KING TOURS E430M OIL MILL PLANT, OPENS UMTFOMBO WEKUPHILA ESWATINI

MATSAPHA - His Majesty King Mswati III yesterday toured the E430 million Eswatini Oil Mill (EOM) plant, which will cut down the unemployment rate as well as the volume of imports in the country.

EOM is an extension of SOMI Group, which produces cooking oil and is located at Matsapha Industrial Site. This was revealed by the Managing Director (MD) of the company, Mohamed Daud, when His Majesty toured the establishment yesterday. One of the partners said this was the second biggest oil mill in southern Africa, after the one in the Republic of South Africa.

Employ

He said the company needed about 500 tonnes of soya per day, which is about 180 000 tonnes per year. This, he said, means that EOM can indirectly employ over 100 000 emaSwati, who could farm soya across the country and sell it to the company on a daily basis. “This means that the alarming rate of unemployment can be reduced,” the MD said. It is worth noting that according to findings of the Integrated Labour Force Survey 2023, which was officially released by the Minister of Labour and Social Security, Phila Buthelezi, in March 2024, the unemployment rate in the country has increased by 2.1 per cent, from 33.3 per cent to 35.4 per cent.

On the same note, the MD said they also produced the main raw material for animal feed for chickens, cattle and goats, which is soya meal. This, he said, they would supply to animal feed producing companies like FeedMaster, Arrow Feeds and Crane Feds, among others. The MD said these companies were currently importing thousands of tonnes of soya meal from South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

“Producing it locally, at EOM, means the import of soya meal will be reduced,” the MD said. He added that the total investment of the company was about E630 million. Thereafter, the King said he was pleased with the investment and said it would surely contribute to the economic development of the country.  On top of that, the King said as he was touring, the MD told him that they had an intention to expand the plant and create more jobs for emaSwati. He added that the MD asked for more land for the planned expansion, which would see more emaSwati getting employed.

Pleased

The King said he was also pleased to learn that the management was happy with the cooperation and teamwork from the workers. He also officially opened The Royal Tirta Ayu Factory– Umtfombo Wekuphila Eswatini, which is an Indonesian-owned company. The company, which produces traditional drinks (like ginger tea, finger milk and aloe vera tea) is also located at Matsapha Industrial Site.  The company, which the King also toured in the late afternoon of yesterday, also produces body lotions, hand wash and hand lotions, among other products. During the tour, the King said he was pleased with the technology that was used by the company.

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