WE CAN MAKE COFFINS LOCALLY, STOP IMPORTATION – BUSINESSMEN

MBABANE – Had emaSwati believed in their own, the challenge of a shortage of coffins and caskets due to the surge in deaths owed to COVID-19, would not be there.

As the saying goes, for every challenge, there is an opportunity and this is exactly what businesses involved in the carpentry industry see following reports that funeral undertakers are faced with a challenge of a shortage of coffins and caskets as a result of the surge in deaths due to the coronavirus pandemic. For a country that has been swimming in  financial abyss even before the outbreak of COVID-19, the looming crisis of a shortage of coffins has been seen by the carpentry industry players as an opportunity.

The only letdown, according to owners of companies involved in the manufacturing of carpentry material, is that emaSwati have a mentality of not believing in what they produce and instead prefer products imported from other countries. Last week, this publication reported that as deaths increased, most of which are due to the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic mount, undertakers are facing a shortage of coffins and caskets. The undertakers, who source their coffins from South Africa, were said to be running low on stock. The suppliers relayed that as much as they had a stock pile of coffins, their supply was running low and there was an impending challenge from their suppliers.

Worst

It was stated that the number of corpses received by funeral homes had increased by 200 to 350 per cent, with last week being declared the worst since the pandemic started. One of the undertakers, Dups Funeral Home and Crematorium, relayed that the challenge was seemingly escalating. The organisation’s General Manager, Kyle De Sousa said he had gathered from some of the industry players that they were already facing a shortage of coffins. He said Dups Funeral Home and Crematorium had stock-piled, though the stock was being depleted at a fast rate. It is a fact that while the country does have the much needed skills in the carpentry industry, most funeral undertakers have for years been buying coffins and caskets from neighbouring South Africa.

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