Times Of Swaziland: RECONSTRUCTION FUNDS INCREASE BY 40%

RECONSTRUCTION FUNDS INCREASE BY 40%
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Mhlengi Magongo on 08/08/2022 15:10:00


MBABANE – Businesses have been given a chance to rise from the damages and
losses incurred during COVID-19 as well the June unrest.
EswatiniBank has announced that funds provided by the Reconstruction Fund
increased by E143.606 million from E212.335 million in the previous year to
E355.941 million in 2022. The bank mentioned this in their statement of profit
or loss and other comprehensive income for the year ended March 31, 2022. The
ministry of finance together with EswatiniBank disbursed over E60 million
through the Reconstruction Fund in May. This was stated by new Chairperson of
the reconstruction fund Thulisile Gama in an interview.
Gama said the amount disbursed to the business owners so far is E 61 243 567.73.
She said this mainly goes towards the informal sector stock compensation and
refunds to businesses which are already back in business. “Currently, there
are 230 applications that have been approved by the reconstruction fund
Management Committee, as of May 16, 2022,” she said.
The chairperson also mentioned that the value of the approved applications was
E108 835 867.89.
Guarantees
She said they also give guarantees to the businesses which are compensated for
infrastructure and capital equipment. “We pay to source following submissions
of quotations and Bill of quantities and the guarantees issued out to date are
of the value of E47 592 300.16,” she said. Gama added that applications were
still opened and business owners should apply to revive and improve their
businesses. “The application forms are available at every branch of
EswatiniBank and also through the Government of Eswatini website and the
Eswatini- Bank Website,”she added. Vice chairperson of the construction fund
Meluleki Dlamini said the Reconstruction Fund management committee has received
330 applications from affected businesses during the unrest.  He said this was a
concern to the committee since this number is not reflective of the number of
incidents reported to the NDMA when the unrest took place.
Request
“The incidents reported to NDMA were more than 700,” he said. “This
announcement will continue to run through our national radio station EBIS and we
have already made this same announcement through Eswatini TV,” he said. He
also mentioned that the scope of the fund spans from the June 25, 2021 to
September 15, 2021. His Majesty King Mswati III officially launched the
Reconstruction Fund last year September with contributions amounting to
approximately E1 billion.
Supporting
The fund is an intervention aimed at supporting all those who were affected
during the civil unrest in June this year. The fund has received E500 million
start-up injection from the government. At its launch, the fund had received a
contribution from Taiwan worth E330 million as well as from a number of local
businesses including EswatiniBank, Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF), Eswatini
Royal Insurance Corporation (ESRIC), Eswatini Posts and Telecommunications
Corporation (EPTC), Montigny, Dalcrue and Standard Bank Eswatini.