MBABANE – Economist Sanele Sibiya has backed Business Eswatini (BE) Chief Executive Officer Nathi Dlamini’s call for government to slow the pace of borrowing.
Sibiya says Eswatini now requires a major shift towards stronger debt management and fiscal discipline.
Sibiya said Dlamini’s warning was timely, arguing that public debt had breached the 40 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) threshold and was moving towards 50 per cent.
Dlamini made the call directly to Minister for Finance Neal Rijkenberg during the launch of the 2026 Annual Income Tax Return Filing Season, held under the theme ‘File Right. File On Time’.
He said the private sector was increasingly concerned about the direction of public debt, particularly because Eswatini had previously maintained what he described as prudent expenditure and debt-management practices.
At the end of June 2026, public debt stood at E42.1 billion, equivalent to 40.4 per cent of GDP, according to the latest Recent Economic Development (RED) report by the Central Bank of Eswatini.
The CEO said the private sector’s concern was not simply about the existence of public debt, but about the speed at which the debt burden was increasing.
He reminded the minister that Eswatini had managed to keep public debt below 38 per cent of GDP for almost eight years, saying the country had previously been recognised for maintaining debt levels below those of many countries in the region.
Meanwhile, the economist said the rising debt burden was particularly concerning because interest payments alone were already exceeding planned government spending on education.
“When combined with debt service, they surpass allocations for both health and education,” Sibiya said, describing this as a case of crowding out, where government’s social spending comes under pressure as more resources are directed towards servicing debt.
Sibiya also questioned the argument that Eswatini could continue increasing its debt towards the regional average of 60 per cent of GDP.
He said his own analysis placed the country’s optimal debt ratio below 40 per cent, citing the small and vulnerable nature of the economy, its single-digit growth rate and the faster increase in debt. “Put simply, we are borrowing at a diminished capacity to repay and the borrowing is not generating commensurate growth,” he said.
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