Eswatini#Judiciary

{{main|History of Eswatini}}

Artifacts have been found indicating human activity dating back to the early Stone Age, around 200,000 years ago. Prehistoric rock art paintings dating from as far back as {{Circa|27,000 years ago}} to as recently as the 19th century can be found around the country.{{cite book|last=History Online|first=South African|title=Swaziland|year=2011|publisher=South African History Online|url=http://www.sahistory.org.za/places/swaziland}}

The earliest known inhabitants of the region were Khoisan hunter-gatherers. They were largely replaced by the Nguni during the great Bantu migrations. These peoples originated from the Great Lakes region of eastern and central Africa. Evidence of agriculture and iron use dates from about the 4th century. People speaking languages ancestral to the current Sotho and Nguni languages began settling no later than the 11th century.

The Swazi settlers, then known as the Ngwane (or bakaNgwane) before entering Eswatini, had been settled on the banks of the Pongola River. Before that, they were settled in the area of the Tembe River near present-day Maputo, Mozambique. Continuing conflict with the Ndwandwe people pushed them further north, with Ngwane III establishing his capital at Shiselweni at the foot of the Mhlosheni hills. Under Sobhuza I, the Ngwane people established their capital at Zombodze in the heartland of present-day Eswatini. In this process, they conquered and incorporated the long established clans of the country known to the Swazi as Emakhandzambili (those found ahead).Bonner, Philip (1983). [https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/file%20uploads%20/philip_bonner_kings_commoners_and_concessionairbook4you.pdf Kings, Commoners and Concessionaires: The Evolution and Dissolution of the Nineteenth-Century Swazi State]. Cambridge: Cambridge U. Press. pp. 60, 85–88. {{ISBN|9780521523004}}

File:Récipient Swazi.jpg

Eswatini derives its name from a later king named Mswati II. KaNgwane, named for Ngwane III, is an alternative name for Eswatini, the surname of whose royal house remains Nkhosi Dlamini. Nkhosi curiously means "king" in Ethiopian Semitic languages. Mswati II was the greatest of the fighting kings of Eswatini, and he greatly extended the area of the country to twice its current size. The Emakhandzambili clans were initially incorporated into the kingdom with wide autonomy, often including grants of special ritual and political status. The extent of their autonomy, however, was drastically curtailed by Mswati, who attacked and subdued some of them in the 1850s. With his power, Mswati greatly reduced the influence of the Emakhandzambili while incorporating more people into his kingdom either through conquest or by giving them refuge. These later arrivals became known to the Swazis as Emafikamuva.{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}

File:Johnston, W. and A.K. - South African Republic. Orange Free State, Natal, Basuto Land, Etc..jpg

File:Swaziland 1897 - Johnston, W. and A.K. - South African Republic. Orange Free State, Natal, Basuto Land, Etc. (cropped).jpg

The autonomy of the Swazi nation was influenced by British and Dutch rule of southern Africa in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In 1881, the British government signed a convention recognising Swazi independence, despite the Scramble for Africa that was taking place at the time. This independence was also recognised in the London Convention of 1884.{{Cite web|title=Country Facts {{!}} eSwatini|url=https://www.un.int/eswatini/swaziland/country-facts|website=www.un.int|access-date=30 May 2020}}

King Mbandzeni created a complex pattern of land ownership by granting many concessions to Europeans. During the concessions some of the King's senior chiefs like Chief Ntengu Mbokane got permission to relocate to farms towards the Lubombo region, in the modern-day city of Nsoko. Others like Mshiza Maseko relocated to farms towards the Komati River in the place called eLuvalweni. The concessions included grants and leases for agriculture and grazing. In 1890, following the death of Mbandzeni, a Swaziland Convention created a Chief Court to determine disputes about controversial land and mineral rights and other concessions.Great Britain Colonial Office, Swaziland: report for the year (London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1962), Chapter VI, [https://books.google.com/books?id=V50KAAAAIAAJ&pg=RA5-PA39 pp. 39, 40]

Swaziland was given a triumviral administration in 1890, representing the British, the Dutch republics, and the Swazi people. In 1894, a convention placed Swaziland under the South African Republic as a protectorate. This continued under the rule of Ngwane V until the outbreak of the Second Boer War in October 1899.{{Cite web |date=2018-04-20 |title=Why King Mswati III Is Changing Swaziland's Name |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2018/04/20/why-king-mswati-iii-is-changing-swazilands-name_a_23416069/ |access-date=2023-12-06 |website=HuffPost |language=en}}

King Ngwane V died in December 1899, during incwala, after the outbreak of the Second Boer War. His successor, Sobhuza II, was four months old. Swaziland was indirectly involved in the war with various skirmishes between the British and the Boers occurring in the country until 1902.{{cite web|url=http://www.library.uneswa.ac.sz/pastpapers/quest/huma/his/2016/his608%20h626m2016.pdf|title=University of Swaziland Institute of Post Graduate Studies Department of History|access-date=2024-01-18|archive-date=7 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207180309/http://www.library.uneswa.ac.sz/pastpapers/quest/huma/his/2016/his608%20h626m2016.pdf|url-status=dead}}

In 1903, after the British victory in the Second Boer War, Swaziland became one of the British "High Commission Territories", the others being Basutoland (now Lesotho) and Bechuanaland (now Botswana), although a protectorate was not established because terms had not been agreed with the Swazi Queen Regent Labotsibeni Mdluli.

The Swaziland Administration Proclamation of 1904 established a commission with the task of examining all the concessions and defining their boundaries. This work was finished by 1907, and the Swaziland Concessions Partition Proclamation provided for a concessions partition commissioner to be appointed to set aside areas for the sole use and occupation of the Swazis. The commissioner had the power to expropriate up to one third of each concession without compensation, but payment would need to be made if more than a third was taken. In the event, in 1910 he completed his work and set aside 1,639,687 acres, some 38% of Swaziland's area, for the Swazi. The queen regent then encouraged the Swazi to go to work in the Transvaal to earn money to buy more land from the Europeans.

Much of the early administration of the territory (for example, postal services) was carried out from South Africa until 1906, when the Transvaal Colony was granted self-government. A British high commissioner had some of the functions of a governor, but the Swazis were self-governing on their reserves, and the territory was not deemed to be a British possession.{{cite book|last1=Morton|first1=Barry|last2=Ramsay|first2=Jeff|title=Historical dictionary of Botswana|date=13 June 2018|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=9781538111338|page=237}} Sobhuza's official coronation as king was in December 1921 after the regency of Labotsibeni, after which he led an unsuccessful deputation to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom in London in 1922 regarding the issue of the land.{{cite book|last=Vail|first=Leroy|title=The Creation of Tribalism in Southern Africa|year=1991|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=0520074203|pages=295–296|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X4VmAWdXPD0C&q=Sobhuza+deputation+london}}

In the period between 1923 and 1963, Sobhuza II established the Swazi Commercial Amadoda which was to grant licences to small businesses on the Swazi reserves and also established the Swazi National School to counter the dominance of the missions in education. His stature grew with time, and the Swazi royal leadership was successful in resisting the weakening power of the British administration and the possibility of the incorporation of Swaziland into the Union of South Africa.

The constitution for independent Swaziland was promulgated by Britain in November 1963 under the terms of which a Legislative Council and an Executive Council were established. This development was opposed by the king's Swazi National Council (Liqoqo). Despite such opposition, elections took place, and the first Legislative Council was constituted on 9 September 1964. By 1964, the area of the country reserved for occupation by the Swazi had increased to 56%. Changes to the original constitution proposed by the Legislative Council were accepted by Britain and a new constitution providing for a House of Assembly and Senate was drawn up. Elections under this constitution were held in 1967.{{Cite news|date=2018-09-03|title=eSwatini profile|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14095711|access-date=2021-09-20}} Following the 1967 elections, Swaziland was a protected state until independence was regained in 1968.{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1968/56/enacted?view=plain|title=Swaziland Independence Act 1968|website=legislation.gov.uk|access-date=20 April 2018}}

Following the elections of 1972, the constitution of Swaziland was suspended by King Sobhuza II who thereafter ruled the country by decree until his death in 1982. At that point, Sobhuza II had been king of Swaziland for almost 83 years, making him the longest-reigning monarch in history.{{Cite news|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1986/0520/oswaz.html|title=Swazi King ready to rule – after exams|date=20 May 1986|work=The Christian Science Monitor|access-date=20 April 2018|issn=0882-7729}} A regency followed his death, with Queen Regent Dzeliwe Shongwe as head of state until 1984 when she was removed by the Liqoqo and replaced by Queen Mother Ntfombi Tfwala. Mswati III, the son of Ntfombi, was crowned in 1986 as king and ngwenyama of Swaziland.{{Cite news|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/04/26/Mswati-III-the-new-teenage-king-of-Swaziland-vowed/9754514875600/|title=Mswati III, the new teenage king of Swaziland, vowed...|work=UPI|date=26 April 1986}}

An attempt to transfer neighbouring parts of South Africa, more precisely parts of the Zulu homeland of KwaZulu and parts of the Swazi homeland of KaNgwane, to Swaziland in 1982 was never realized.{{Cite journal|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43109383|jstor = 43109383|title = Swaziland's Proposed Land Deal with South AfricaThe Case of Ingwavuma and Kangwane|last1 = Senftleben|first1 = Wolfgang|journal = Verfassung und Recht in Übersee / Law and Politics in Africa, Asia and Latin America|year = 1984|volume = 17|issue = 4|pages = 493–501}}{{Cite journal|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/722639|jstor = 722639|title = The Abortive Swazi Land Deal|last1 = Griffiths|first1 = Ieuan Ll|last2 = Funnell|first2 = D. C.|journal = African Affairs|year = 1991|volume = 90|issue = 358|pages = 51–64|doi = 10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a098406 |issn = 0001-9909|url-access = subscription}} This would have given land-locked Swaziland access to the sea. The deal was negotiated by the governments of South Africa and Swaziland, but was met by popular opposition in the territory meant to be transferred.{{cite web |url=https://www2.lib.uct.ac.za/blacksash/pdfs/cnf19830311.026.001.000b.pdf |title=The Ingwavuma/KaNgwane Land Deal |access-date=8 June 2023}} The territory had been claimed by Sobhuza II as part of the Swazi monarchs' traditional realm, and the South African government hoped to use the area as a buffer zone against guerrilla infiltration from Mozambique. (The South African government responded to the failure of the transfer by temporarily suspending the autonomy of KaNgwane.){{cite book |first=Dennis |last=Austin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D_0NAAAAQAAJ&dq=KaNgwane+Swaziland+%22Supreme+Court%22&pg=PA54 |title=South Africa, 1984 |location=London |publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd. |date=1985 |page=54|isbn=9780710206206 }}{{cite book |last=Macmillan |first=Hugh |chapter=A Nation Divided? The Swazi in Swaziland and the Transvaal, 1865–1986 |editor-first=Leroy |editor-last=Vail |url=http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft158004rs&chunk.id=d0e8042&toc.id=d0e7328&brand=eschol |title=The Creation of Tribalism in Southern Africa |location=Berkeley, California |publisher=University of California Press |date=1989 |pages=310–316}}

The 1990s saw a rise in student and labour protests calling on the king to introduce reforms.{{Cite news|url=https://reliefweb.int/report/swaziland/swaziland-doubt-over-legality-protests-keep-swazis-bay-now|title=Swaziland: Doubt over the legality of protests keep Swazis at bay, for now|work=ReliefWeb|access-date=20 April 2018}} Thus, progress towards constitutional reforms began, culminating with the introduction of the current Swazi constitution in 2005. This happened despite objections by political activists. The current constitution does not clearly deal with the status of political parties. The first election under the constitution took place in 2008. Members of Parliament (MPs) were elected from 55 constituencies (also known as tinkhundla). These MPs served five-year terms which ended in 2013.{{cite web |url=http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/swaziland/constitution-politics|title=Swaziland : Constitution and politics |publisher=The Commonwealth |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107005133/http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/swaziland/constitution-politics |archive-date=7 November 2017|url-status=dead |access-date=20 April 2018}} In 2011, Swaziland suffered an economic crisis which was caused by reduced Southern African Customs Union (SACU) receipts. This caused the government to request a loan from neighbouring South Africa. However, they did not agree with the conditions of the loan, which included political reforms.{{Cite news|url=https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/timeline-swaziland-economic-crisis-1448880|title=Timeline: Swaziland economic crisis |publisher= IOL Business Report |date=8 January 2013}}

During this period, there was increased pressure on the Swazi government to carry out more reforms. Public protests by civic organisations and trade unions became more common. Starting in 2012, improvements in SACU receipts eased the fiscal pressure on the Swazi government. A new parliament, the second since the promulgation of the constitution, was elected in 2013. The king then reappointed Sibusiso Dlamini as prime minister for the third time.{{cite web|url=http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option%3Dcom_content%26view%3Darticle%26id%3D1460%3Aking-re-appoints-dr-bs-dlamini-as-prime-minister%26catid%3D1%3Alatest-news|title=King re-appoints Dr. B.S. Dlamini as Prime Minister|website=Government of the Kingdom of Swaziland|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029200528/http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1460%3Aking-re-appoints-dr-bs-dlamini-as-prime-minister&catid=1%3Alatest-news|archive-date=29 October 2013|access-date=20 April 2018}}

On 19 April 2018, Mswati III announced that the Kingdom of Swaziland had been renamed as the Kingdom of Eswatini, reflecting the extant Swazi name for the state eSwatini, to mark the 50th anniversary of Swazi independence. The name Eswatini means "land of the Swazis" in the Swazi language and was partially intended to prevent confusion with the similarly named Switzerland.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43821512|title=Swaziland king changes the country's name|date=19 April 2018|work=BBC News|access-date=19 April 2018}}{{cite web|title=Kingdom of Swaziland Change Now Official|url=http://www.times.co.sz/news/118373-kingdom-of-eswatini-change-now-official.html|website=Times Of Swaziland|access-date=25 May 2018|date=18 May 2018|archive-date=27 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327101352/http://www.times.co.sz/news/118373-kingdom-of-eswatini-change-now-official.html|url-status=dead}}

Eswatini workers began anti-government protests against low salaries in September 2018. They went on a three-day strike organised by the Trade Union Congress of Eswatini that resulted in widespread disruption.{{cite web|url=https://allafrica.com/stories/201809210158.html|title=Swaziland: Police Turn Swaziland City Into 'Warzone' As National Strike Enters Second Day|date=21 September 2018|via=AllAfrica}} In June 2021, pro-democracy protests broke out across the country, sparking riots, looting, and street skirmishes with police and soldiers. This civil unrest began as a result of years of anger towards the lack of meaningful reforms that would nudge Eswatini in the direction of democracy, as well as the government's reported banning of the submission of petitions. Numerous buildings said to be connected to King Mswati III were torched by protesters, and police reportedly assaulted and arrested political opponents. The New York Times called the turmoil in the landlocked nation "the most explosive civil unrest in its 53 years of independence".{{cite news|first=John|last=Eligon|title=Africa's Last Absolute Monarchy Convulsed by Mass Protests|newspaper=The New York Times|date=July 2, 2021|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/02/us/africa-monarchy-eswatini-protests-swaziland.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/02/us/africa-monarchy-eswatini-protests-swaziland.html |archive-date=2021-12-28 |url-access=limited|access-date=July 3, 2021}}{{cbignore}} At least 20 people were killed by state security forces and dozens more injured and detained. The government shut down the Internet (with the compliance of mobile providers MTN and Eswatini Mobile) making it difficult to access reliable news from the country. The king was also said to have fled the country, though government officials disputed those claims, also calling for an end to the protests.{{cite web|url=https://ewn.co.za/2021/06/29/eswatini-govt-defends-decision-to-ban-delivery-of-petitions-by-protestors|title=eSwatini govt defends decision to ban delivery of petitions by protestors |work=Eyewitness News |first1=Mia |last1=Lindeque |first2=Gladys |last2=Mutele |date=29 June 2021 |access-date=2 July 2021}}{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-57652034|title=King Maswati not fled Eswatini's violent protests – PM|work=BBC News|date=30 June 2021|access-date=2 July 2021}}{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/anti-monarchy-protests-african-kingdom-eswatini-turn-violent-2021-06-29/|title=Anti-monarchy protests in African kingdom eSwatini turn violent|date=29 June 2021|newspaper=Reuters|access-date=2 July 2021|last1=Masuku|first1=Lunga}}{{cite web |url=https://mg.co.za/africa/2021-07-01-qa-whats-driving-the-protests-in-eswatini/|title=Q&A: What's driving the protests in Eswatini? |date=1 July 2021|work=Mail & Guardian |last=Allison |first=Simon |access-date=2 July 2021}}

{{main|Geography of Eswatini}}

File:Eswatini Topography.png

A small landlocked kingdom with an area of {{convert|17364|km2|abbr=on}}, Eswatini is located at approximately 26°30'S, 31°30'E{{cite web |author=WorldAtlas.com, Inc |title=Map of Swaziland |url=http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/africa/sz.htm |access-date=29 December 2009}} and is bordered in the north, west and south by South Africa and by Mozambique in the east. Along the eastern border with Mozambique are the Lebombo Mountains, a mountain ridge at an altitude of around {{convert|600|m}}. The mountains are broken by the canyons of three rivers, the Ngwavuma, the Great Usutu and the Mbuluzi. The western border, with an average altitude of {{convert|1200|m}}, lies on the edge of an escarpment.

Eswatini is separated into four geographical regions. These run from north to south and are determined by elevation. Mbabane, the capital, is on the Highveld.{{Cite web |title=Mbabane history {{!}} Mbabane general information |url=http://www.swazilandhappenings.co.za/mbabanehomepage.htm |access-date=22 January 2021 |website=www.swazilandhappenings.co.za}} The Middleveld, lying at an average {{convert|700|m}} above sea level, is the most densely populated region of Eswatini with a lower rainfall than the mountains. Manzini, the principal commercial and industrial city, is situated in the Middleveld.{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}} The Lowveld, at around {{convert|250|m}}, is less populated than other areas and presents a typical African bush country of thorn trees and grasslands. Eswatini contains three ecosystems: Maputaland coastal forest mosaic, Zambezian and mopane woodlands, and Drakensberg montane grasslands.{{cite journal|last1=Dinerstein|first1=Eric|last2=Olson|first2=David|last3=Joshi|first3=Anup|last4=Vynne|first4=Carly|last5=Burgess|first5=Neil D.|last6=Wikramanayake|first6=Eric|last7=Hahn|first7=Nathan|last8=Palminteri|first8=Suzanne|last9=Hedao|first9=Prashant|last10=Noss|first10=Reed|last11=Hansen|first11=Matt|last12=Locke|first12=Harvey|last13=Ellis|first13=Erle C|last14=Jones|first14=Benjamin|last15=Barber|first15=Charles Victor|last16=Hayes|first16=Randy|last17=Kormos|first17=Cyril|last18=Martin|first18=Vance|last19=Crist|first19=Eileen|last20=Sechrest|first20=Wes|last21=Price|first21=Lori|last22=Baillie|first22=Jonathan E. M.|last23=Weeden|first23=Don|last24=Suckling|first24=Kierán|last25=Davis|first25=Crystal|last26=Sizer|first26=Nigel|last27=Moore|first27=Rebecca|last28=Thau|first28=David|last29=Birch|first29=Tanya|last30=Potapov|first30=Peter|last31=Turubanova|first31=Svetlana|last32=Tyukavina|first32=Alexandra|last33=de Souza|first33=Nadia|last34=Pintea|first34=Lilian|last35=Brito|first35=José C.|last36=Llewellyn|first36=Othman A.|last37=Miller|first37=Anthony G.|last38=Patzelt|first38=Annette|last39=Ghazanfar|first39=Shahina A.|last40=Timberlake|first40=Jonathan|last41=Klöser|first41=Heinz|last42=Shennan-Farpón|first42=Yara|last43=Kindt|first43=Roeland|last44=Lillesø|first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow|last45=van Breugel|first45=Paulo|last46=Graudal|first46=Lars|last47=Voge|first47=Maianna|last48=Al-Shammari|first48=Khalaf F.|last49=Saleem|first49=Muhammad |display-authors=3|title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm|journal=BioScience|volume=67|issue=6|year=2017|pages=534–545|issn=0006-3568|doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014|pmid=28608869|pmc=5451287|doi-access=free}} The country had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 4.21/10, ranking it 142nd globally out of 172 countries.{{cite journal|last1=Grantham|first1=H. S.|last2=Duncan|first2=A.|last3=Evans|first3=T. D.|last4=Jones|first4=K. R.|last5=Beyer|first5=H. L.|last6=Schuster|first6=R.|last7=Walston|first7=J.|last8=Ray|first8=J. C.|last9=Robinson|first9=J. G.|last10=Callow|first10=M.|last11=Clements|first11=T.|last12=Costa|first12=H. M.|last13=DeGemmis|first13=A.|last14=Elsen|first14=P. R.|last15=Ervin|first15=J.|last16=Franco|first16=P.|last17=Goldman|first17=E.|last18=Goetz|first18=S.|last19=Hansen|first19=A.|last20=Hofsvang|first20=E.|last21=Jantz|first21=P.|last22=Jupiter|first22=S.|last23=Kang|first23=A.|last24=Langhammer|first24=P.|last25=Laurance|first25=W. F.|last26=Lieberman|first26=S.|last27=Linkie|first27=M.|last28=Malhi|first28=Y.|last29=Maxwell|first29=S.|last30=Mendez|first30=M.|last31=Mittermeier|first31=R.|last32=Murray|first32=N. J.|last33=Possingham|first33=H.|last34=Radachowsky|first34=J.|last35=Saatchi|first35=S.|last36=Samper|first36=C.|last37=Silverman|first37=J.|last38=Shapiro|first38=A.|last39=Strassburg|first39=B.|last40=Stevens|first40=T.|last41=Stokes|first41=E.|last42=Taylor|first42=R.|last43=Tear|first43=T.|last44=Tizard|first44=R.|last45=Venter|first45=O.|last46=Visconti|first46=P.|last47=Wang|first47=S.|last48=Watson|first48=J. E. M. |display-authors=3 |title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material|journal=Nature Communications|volume=11|issue=1|year=2020|page=5978|issn=2041-1723|doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3|pmid=33293507|pmc=7723057|bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G |doi-access=free}}

File:Eswatini landscape.jpg

{{further|Climate of Eswatini}}

Eswatini is divided into four climatic regions: the Highveld, Middleveld, Lowveld, and Lubombo plateau. Generally speaking, rain falls mostly during the summer months (December to March), often in the form of thunderstorms.{{Cite web|title=Swaziland Walking Safari, Swaziland Tours {{!}} Climate {{!}} Mountain Kingdoms|url=https://www.mountainkingdoms.com/destinations/swaziland/climate#:~:text=Eswatini%20is%20defined%20by%20four,taking%20the%20form%20of%20thunderstorms.|access-date=2021-02-17|website=www.mountainkingdoms.com}} Winter is the dry season. Annual rainfall is highest on the Highveld in the west, between {{convert|1000|and|2000|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}. The further east, the less rain, with the Lowveld recording {{convert|500|to|900|mm|in|1|abbr=on}} per annum.{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}} Variations in temperature are also related to the altitude of the different regions. The Highveld temperature is temperate and seldom uncomfortably hot, while the Lowveld may record temperatures around {{convert|40|°C}} in summer.{{cite web |title=Eswatini (Swaziland) Weather, Climate, and geography |url=https://www.worldtravelguide.net/guides/africa/eswatini/weather-climate-geography/#:~:text=Weather%20and%20climate&text=The%20Lowveld%20has%20a%20warmer,a%20matter%20of%20personal%20preference. |website=World Travel Guide}}

The average temperatures at Mbabane, according to the season:

{{Main|Wildlife of Eswatini}}

File:גרויה שעירה - Grewia villosa.jpg]]

Eswatini has a spectrum of formal and informal conservation areas that protect the nation's rich biological diversity. These areas comprise about 5% of the country's land area. Eswatini has over 820 species of vertebrates and over 2,400 species of plants, with many endemic species. This diversity suggests Eswatini is globally important for biodiversity conservation.{{cite web|url=https://www.cbd.int/doc/world/sz/sz-nbsap-01-en.pdf |title=Swaziland National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (BSAP), Final Draft, April 2001 |publisher=Swaziland Environment Authority, Ministry of Tourism, Environment, and Communications }} Land degradation and conversion to other land uses are the major threats to biodiversity, including plantation agriculture (legal and illegal), bush-clearing, the spread of alien and invasive plants, and unsustainable resource harvesting; major land fragmentation is evident.

Eswatini is a signatory to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), and the United National Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are three main government ministries responsible for national biodiversity management: the Eswatini National Trust Commission, the Eswatini Environment Authority, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. In addition, Big Game Parks, a private entity, is tasked with the management of the Game Act, which controls wildlife and CITES.

There are six formal and more than 10 informal protected areas in the country. The formally gazetted areas include: Malolotja Nature Reserve, Mantenga Nature Reserve, Mlawula Nature Reserve, Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, and Mkhaya Game Reserve, and Hlane Royal National Park. In addition to these, there are many private and community nature reserves, as well as some with mixed governance structures. These include: Dombeya Game Reserve, Mbuluzi Game Reserve, Shewula Nature Reserve, Phophonyane Falls Nature Reserve, Royal Jozini, IYSIS (Inyoni Yami), Ngwempisi Wilderness, Sibebe and others. There are other entities that practice secondary or tertiary conservation, as well as two conservancies: the Mhlosinga Conservancy and the Lubombo Conservancy. Others include: the Natural History Society of Eswatini and the Eswatini Game Ranchers Association.

From 2014 to 2021, Eswatini participated in the "Strengthening the National Protected Areas System" (SNPAS) project. This project attempted to strengthen conservation outcomes and the national footprint of biodiversity conservation across the country.{{cite web |url=http://www.sz.undp.org/content/eswatini/en/home/news-centre/2019/biodiversity-and-ecosystems-conservation-framework-for-eswatini-.html |title=Biodiversity and Ecosystems Conservation Framework for Eswatini Launched |publisher=UNDP |date=10 May 2021 |access-date=9 December 2021 |archive-date=24 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624052144/https://www.sz.undp.org/content/eswatini/en/home/news-centre/2019/biodiversity-and-ecosystems-conservation-framework-for-eswatini-.html |url-status=dead }} In an effort to broaden the spectrum of areas eligible for conservation support (which practice bona-fide conservation management), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) established a new category for informal, or non-gazetted, conservation areas in 2018. These are now called OECMs, or Other Effective Conservation Measures. The SNPAS Project adopted this OECM terminology and began certifying informal conservation areas in Eswatini in 2021.{{cite web|url=http://www.undpopenplanet.org/projects/Strengthening_the_National_Protected_Areas_System_of_Swaziland/ |title=Strengthening the National Protected Areas System of Swaziland |publisher=UNDP |access-date=9 December 2021 }}

There are known to be 507 bird species in Eswatini, including 11 globally threatened species and four introduced species, and 107 mammal species native to Eswatini, including the critically endangered South-central black rhinoceros and seven other endangered or vulnerable species.{{Cite web |date=2020-03-19 |title=Conservation efforts bring cautious hope for African rhinos - IUCN Red List |url=https://www.iucn.org/news/species/202003/conservation-efforts-bring-cautious-hope-african-rhinos-iucn-red-list |access-date=2022-10-10 |website=IUCN |language=en}} Eswatini is rich in bird life, including white-backed vultures, white-headed, lappet-faced and Cape vultures, raptors such as martial eagles, bateleurs, and long-crested eagles, and the southernmost nesting site of the marabou stork.{{cite web|url=http://www.biggameparks.org/3parks_hlane.html|title=Hlane Royal National Park|work=biggameparks.org|publisher=Big Game Parks|access-date=October 8, 2009|location=Malkerns, Swaziland}}

{{main|Government of Eswatini|Politics of Eswatini}}

File:Mswati III King of Eswatini.jpg has been king of Eswatini since 1986.]]

Eswatini is an absolute monarchy with constitutional provision and Swazi law and customs.{{cite web |url=http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=170&Itemid=209 |title=Our governance |publisher=Gov.sz |access-date=16 August 2014}} The head of state is the king or ngwenyama (lit. 'lion'), currently King Mswati III, who ascended to the throne in 1986 after the death of his father King Sobhuza II in 1982 and a period of regency. According to the country's constitution, the ngwenyama is a symbol of unity and the eternity of the Swazi nation.[http://www.gov.sz/images/stories/Constitution%20of%20%20SD-2005A001.pdf The Constitution of The Kingdom of Swaziland Act, 2005], Chapter 1, Section 4(2) By tradition, the king reigns along with his mother (or a ritual substitute), the ndlovukati (lit. 'she-elephant'). The former was viewed as the administrative head of state and the latter as a spiritual and national head of state, with real power counterbalancing that of the king, but during the long reign of Sobhuza II, the role of the ndlovukati became more symbolic.{{cite web |date= 19 March 2022|title=Choosing a King |url=https://www.gov.sz/index.php/about-us-sp-15933109/who-we-are/chosing-a-king |access-date= 19 March 2022|website=The Government Of the Kingdom Of Eswatini}}

The king appoints the prime minister from the legislature and also appoints a majority of senators and a minority of legislators to the lower chamber of the Libandla (parliament) with help from an advisory council. The king is allowed by the constitution to appoint some members to parliament to represent special interests. These special interests are citizens who might have been electoral candidates who were not elected, or might not have stood as candidates. This is done to balance views in parliament. Special interests could be people of a particular gender or race, people with disabilities, significant members of the business community, civic society, scholars, and chiefs.{{Cite web |title=Constitution of the Kingdom of Eswatini 2005 |url=https://constitutions.unwomen.org/en/countries/africa/eswatini?provisioncategory=f62f03f36c6d49a49d805689c0f00a82 |access-date=2022-04-19 |website=constitutions.unwomen.org}}

The Swazi bicameral Parliament, or Libandla, consists of the Senate (30 seats; 10 members appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; to serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats; 10 members appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; to serve five-year terms). The elections are held every five years after dissolution of parliament by the king. The last elections were held on 29 September 2023.{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/eswatini-holds-parliamentary-elections-under-monarchs-control-2023-09-29/|title=Eswatini holds parliamentary elections under monarch's control|website=Reuters|date=29 September 2023 |language=en|access-date=5 Oct 2023}} The balloting is done in a non-partisan manner. All election procedures are overseen by the Elections and Boundaries Commission.{{cite web |url=http://www.eisa.org.za/WEP/swa3.htm |title=Swaziland: Elections and Boundaries Commission |publisher=EISA |date=8 March 2010 |access-date=16 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416082843/http://eisa.org.za/WEP/swa3.htm |archive-date=16 April 2015 }}

At Swaziland's independence on 6 September 1968, Swaziland adopted a Westminster-style constitution. On 12 April 1973, King Sobhuza II annulled it by decree, assuming supreme powers in all executive, judicial, and legislative matters.{{cite web|title=Swaziland: Tinkhundla electoral system|url=http://www.content.eisa.org.za/old-page/swaziland-tinkhundla-electoral-system|publisher=Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa|access-date=20 July 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227055747/http://www.content.eisa.org.za/old-page/swaziland-tinkhundla-electoral-system|archive-date=27 December 2014}} The first non-party elections for the House of Assembly were held in 1978, and they were conducted under the tinkhundla as electoral constituencies determined by the King, and established an Electoral Committee appointed by the King to supervise elections.

Until the 1993 election, the ballot was not secret, voters were not registered, and they did not elect representatives directly. Instead, voters elected an electoral college by passing through a gate designated for the candidate of choice while officials counted them. Later on, a constitutional review commission was appointed by King Mswati III in July 1996, comprising chiefs, political activists, and unionists to consider public submissions and draft proposals for a new constitution.Africa South of the Sahara 2004. Psychology Press. 2003. pg. 1096; {{ISBN|9781857431834}}

Drafts were released for comment in May 1999 and November 2000. These were strongly criticised by civil society organisations in Swaziland and human rights organisations elsewhere. A 15-member team was announced in December 2001 to draft a new constitution; several members of this team were reported to be close to the royal family.Africa South of the Sahara 2004. Psychology Press. 2003. pg. 1097; {{ISBN|9781857431834}}

{{further|Elections in Eswatini}}

Nominations take place at the chiefdoms. On the day of nomination, the name of the nominee is raised by a show of hand, and the nominee either accepts or rejects the nomination. If accepted, the nominee must have the support of at least ten members of that chiefdom. The nominations are for the position of Member of Parliament, Constituency Headman (Indvuna), and the Constituency Executive Committee (Bucopho). The minimum number of nominees is four and the maximum is ten.{{cite web |url=http://www.eisa.org.za/WEP/swatinkundla.htm |title=Swaziland: Tinkhundla electoral system |publisher=EISA |access-date=16 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416062059/http://eisa.org.za/WEP/swatinkundla.htm |archive-date=16 April 2015 }}

Primary elections also take place at the chiefdom level. It is by secret ballot. During the primary elections, the voters are given an opportunity to elect the member of the executive committee (bucopho) for that particular chiefdom. Aspiring members of parliament and the constituency headman are also elected from each chiefdom. The secondary and final elections takes place at the various constituencies called tinkhundla. Candidates who win primary elections in the chiefdoms are considered nominees for the secondary elections at inkhundla or constituency level. The nominees with majority votes become the winners and they become members of parliament or constituency headman.{{cite web |url=http://www.gov.sz/images/stories/justice/CONDUCT%20OF%20ELECTIONS%20IN%20SWAZILAND.pdf |title=Conduct of elections in Swaziland |access-date=16 August 2014}}{{cite web |url=http://www.eisa.org.za/WEP/swa4.htm |title=Swaziland: Electoral system |publisher=EISA |access-date=16 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416090129/http://eisa.org.za/WEP/swa4.htm |archive-date=16 April 2015 }} According to 2023 V-Dem Democracy indices Eswatini is 9th lowest ranked worldwide and 2nd lowest ranked electoral democracy in Africa.{{cite web |last=V-Dem Institute |date=2023 |title=The V-Dem Dataset |url=https://www.v-dem.net/data/the-v-dem-dataset/ |access-date=14 October 2023}}

{{further|Foreign relations of Eswatini}}

Eswatini is a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the African Union, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, and the Southern African Development Community.{{cite web|url=http://sz.one.un.org/|title=United Nations in Swaziland|website=sz.one.un.org|access-date=14 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814103559/http://sz.one.un.org/|archive-date=14 August 2018|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/kingdom-eswatini|title=Kingdom of eSwatini {{!}} The Commonwealth|website=thecommonwealth.org|date=15 August 2013|access-date=14 August 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://au.int/en/countryprofiles/kingdom-swaziland|title=Kingdom of Swaziland {{!}} African Union|website=au.int|access-date=14 August 2018|archive-date=14 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814103916/https://au.int/en/countryprofiles/kingdom-swaziland|url-status=dead}}{{Cite news|url=http://www.comesa.int/comesa-members-states/|title=COMESA Members States – Common Market for Eastern & Southern Africa|work=Common Market for Eastern & Southern Africa|access-date=14 August 2018|archive-date=14 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814165906/http://www.comesa.int/comesa-members-states/|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.sadc.int/member-states/swaziland/|title=Southern African Development Community :: Eswatini|website=sadc.int|access-date=14 August 2018}} As of 2024, it is the only country in Africa that has maintained ties with Taiwan and not the People's Republic of China.{{cite web|title=eSwatini – Taiwan's last friend in Africa|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-46831852|date=14 January 2019|last=Madowo|first=Larry|website=BBC|access-date=24 May 2021}}

The judicial system in Eswatini is a dual system. The 2005 constitution established a court system based on the Western model consisting of four regional Magistrates Courts, a High Court, and a Court of Appeal (the Supreme Court), which are independent of crown control. In addition, traditional courts (Swazi Courts or Customary Courts) deal with minor offenses and violations of traditional Swazi law and custom.{{cite web|url=http://www.gov.sz/index.php/about-us-sp-15933109/governance/judiciary|title=Judiciary|website=The Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160211091709/http://www.gov.sz/index.php/about-us-sp-15933109/governance/judiciary|archive-date=11 February 2016|access-date=26 September 2019}} Judges are appointed by the king and are usually expatriates from South Africa.{{cite web|url=http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Swaziland-JUDICIAL-SYSTEM.html|title=Swaziland – Judicial system |publisher=Nations Encyclopaedia|access-date= 21 February 2016}} The Supreme Court, which replaced the previous Court of Appeal, consists of the chief justice and at least four other Supreme Court judges. The High Court consists of the chief justice and at least four High Court judges.{{cite web|url=http://www.nyulawglobal.org/globalex/Swaziland.html|title=The Law and Legal Research in Swaziland|publisher=Hauser Global Law School Program|access-date= 21 February 2016}} The chief justices have been:

• 1967–1970: Sir Isadore Victor Elgan
• 1970–1972: Sir Philip Pike{{cite web |title=Who's who of Southern Africa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GWZmAAAAMAAJ |publisher=Argus Printing & Publishing Company |language=en |date=1977}}
• 1972–1973–?: Roland Hill
• ?–1974–1983–?: Charles Nathan
• 1985–1991: Nicholas Robin Hannah{{cite web |title=High Court's longest-serving Judge retires from the bench |url=https://www.namibian.com.na/archive19982004/2005/december/national/05EFE732F7.html |website=www.namibian.com.na }}{{Dead link|date=April 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
• 1998–2002: Stanley Sapire
• 2002–2007: Jacobus Annandale (acting)
• 2007–2010: Richard Banda{{cite web|url=http://african-parks.org/apffoundation/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=76|title=The African Parks Network: Board|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110817025935/http://african-parks.org/apffoundation/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=76|archive-date=17 August 2011|access-date=18 January 2019}}
• 2010–2015: Michael Ramodibedi{{Cite news|url=http://thenewage.co.za/54489-1007-53-Swaziland_government_reappoints_controversial_chief_judge|title=Swaziland government re-appoints controversial chief judge|date=25 June 2012|work=The New Age Online|access-date=18 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131215162228/http://thenewage.co.za/54489-1007-53-Swaziland_government_reappoints_controversial_chief_judge|archive-date=15 December 2013}}
• 2015–present: Bheki Maphalala{{Cite news|url=http://www.times.co.sz/news/105547-justice-maphalala-confirmed-as-cj.html|title=Justice Maphalala Confirmed as CJ|last=Ndzimandze|first=Mbongiseni|date=13 November 2015|work=Times of Swaziland|access-date=18 January 2019|archive-date=19 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190119121201/http://www.times.co.sz/news/105547-justice-maphalala-confirmed-as-cj.html|url-status=dead}}

File:Rangers in Action 22-African Land Forces Summit-US Army Africa-13 MAY 2010.jpg

The military of Eswatini (Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force) is used primarily during domestic protests, with some border and customs duties. The military has never been involved in a foreign conflict.{{cite news|url=http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=84&art_id=qw1101220382909B224|title=Crash diminishes Swaziland's air force|date=23 November 2004|publisher=Independent Online (South Africa)|access-date=19 October 2009}} The king is the commander-in-chief of the defence force and the substantive Minister of the Ministry of Defence.{{cite web |url=http://www.africafocus.org/docs11/swaz1104.php |title=Swaziland: Time for Democracy? |publisher=Africafocus.org |access-date=6 July 2012}} There are approximately 3,000 personnel in the defence force, with the army being the largest component.{{cite web |url=http://milexdata.sipri.org/ |title=SIPRI military expenditure database |publisher=Milexdata.sipri.org |access-date=6 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100328072123/http://milexdata.sipri.org/ |archive-date=28 March 2010 }} There is a small air force, which is mainly used for transporting the king as well as cargo and personnel, surveying land with search and rescue functions, and mobilising in case of a national emergency.{{cite web |url=http://www.janes.com/articles/Janes-Sentinel-Security-Assessment-Southern-Africa/Air-force-Swaziland.html |title=Air force (Swaziland) – Sentinel Security Assessment – Southern Africa |publisher=Janes.com |date=12 April 2011 |access-date=6 July 2012}}

== Administrative divisions ==

{{Administrative Divisions of Eswatini Image Map}}

{{main|Regions of Eswatini}}

Eswatini is divided into four regions: Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, and Shiselweni. In each of the four regions, there are several tinkhundla (singular inkhundla). The regions are managed by a regional administrator, who is aided by elected members in each inkhundla.{{cite web |title=Country Profile: Swaziland: The local government system in Swaziland |work=Commonwealth Local Government Forum |access-date=19 October 2014 |date=16 May 2013 |url=http://www.clgf.org.uk/userfiles/1/files/Swaziland%20local%20government%20profile%202011-12.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923204654/http://www.clgf.org.uk/userfiles/1/files/Swaziland%20local%20government%20profile%202011-12.pdf |archive-date=23 September 2015 }} The local government is divided into differently structured rural and urban councils depending on the level of development in the area. Although there are different political structures to the local authorities, effectively the urban councils are municipalities and the rural councils are the tinkhundla. There are 12 municipalities and 55 tinkhundla.{{Cite web |date=2021 |title=Tinkhundla Political System |url=https://www.gov.sz/index.php/about-us-sp-15933109/governance/political-system |access-date=March 2, 2023 |website=The Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini}} Each inkhundla has a development committee (bucopho) elected from the various constituency chiefdoms in its area for a five-year term. Bucopho bring to the inkhundla all matters of interest and concern to their various chiefdoms, and take back to the chiefdoms the decisions of the inkhundla. The chairman of the bucopho is elected at the inkhundla and is called indvuna ye nkhundla.{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}}

There are three tiers of government in the urban areas and these are city councils, town councils and town boards. This variation considers the size of the town or city. Equally, there are three tiers in the rural areas which are the regional administration at the regional level, tinkhundla and chiefdoms. Decisions are made by full council based on recommendations made by the various sub-committees. The town clerk is the chief advisor in each local council or town board.{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}} There are 12 declared urban areas, comprising two city councils, three town councils and seven town boards. The main cities and towns in Eswatini are Manzini, Mbabane, Nhlangano and Siteki which are also regional capitals.

{{center|ISO 3166-2:SZ map key}}

Eswatini's economy is diverse, with agriculture, forestry and mining accounting for about 13% of GDP, manufacturing (textiles and sugar-related processing) representing 37% of GDP and services – with government services in the lead – constituting 50% of GDP. Title Deed Lands (TDLs), where the bulk of high value crops are grown (sugar, forestry, and citrus), are characterised by high levels of investment and irrigation, and high productivity.{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}} About 75% of the population is employed in subsistence agriculture upon Swazi Nation Land (SNL). In contrast with the commercial farms, SNL suffers from low productivity and investment.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}

File:Eswatini GDP per capita chart.svg

The cultivation of sugarcane, the country's largest export, has involved forced evictions of rural communities to build plantations, child labour and work weeks of up to 60 hours. The International Trade Union Confederation refers to "arduous and unhealthy working conditions, miserable wages and violent repression of any attempt to unionize." Economic growth has lagged behind that of neighbouring countries. Real GDP growth since 2001 has averaged 2.8%, nearly 2 percentage points lower than growth in other Southern African Customs Union (SACU) member countries. Low agricultural productivity in the SNLs, repeated droughts, the devastating effect of HIV/AIDS and an overly large and inefficient government sector are likely contributing factors. Eswatini's public finances deteriorated in the late 1990s following sizeable surpluses a decade earlier. A combination of declining revenues and increased spending led to significant budget deficits.{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}}

File:Central Bank of Eswatini.jpg

Eswatini's economy is very closely linked to the economy of South Africa, from which it receives over 90% of its imports and to which it sends about 70% of its exports. Eswatini's other key trading partners are the United States (under the African Growth and Opportunity Act) and the EU, from whom the country has received trade preferences for apparel exports to the US and for sugar to the EU. Under these agreements, both apparel and sugar exports did well, with rapid growth and a strong inflow of foreign direct investment.

File:Southern African Customs Union.svg (green).]]

The continued vibrancy of the export sector is threatened by the removal of trade preferences for textiles, the accession to similar preferences for East Asian countries, and the phasing out of preferential prices for sugar to the EU market. Eswatini will thus have to face the challenge of remaining competitive in a changing global environment. The Investment Climate Assessment provides some positive findings, namely that Eswatini firms are among the most productive in Sub-Saharan Africa, although they are less productive than firms in the most productive middle-income countries in other regions. They compare more favourably with firms from lower middle income countries but are hampered by inadequate governance arrangements and infrastructure.{{Cite web|title=Eswatini|url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-investment-climate-statements/eswatini/|access-date=2021-09-20|website=United States Department of State|language=en-US}}

Eswatini's currency, the lilangeni, is pegged to the South African rand, subsuming Eswatini's monetary policy to South Africa. Customs duties from the Southern African Customs Union and worker remittances from South Africa substantially supplement domestically earned income. Eswatini is not poor enough to merit an IMF programme; however, the country is struggling to reduce the size of the civil service and control costs at public enterprises. The government is trying to improve the atmosphere for foreign direct investment.

As of 2018, public services were very poorly developed. The country had only twelve public ambulances, elementary schools generally no longer provided canteens and pharmacies were disappearing.{{Cite news|url=https://mondediplo.com/2018/10/10swaziland|title=Africa's last absolute monarchy|newspaper=Le Monde Diplomatique |date=October 2018}}

A large amount of wealth in Eswatini is held by the state and the king, including land and large corporations such as RES (Royal Eswatini Sugar) Corporation which is majority owned by the king's sovereign wealth fund, Tibiyo Taka Ngwane, with an additional 6.5% owned by the Eswatini government.{{Cite web |title=Times Of Swaziland |url=http://www.times.co.sz/business/133412-res-shareholders-pocket-millions.html |access-date=2023-06-27 |website=www.times.co.sz |archive-date=17 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230617220926/http://www.times.co.sz/business/133412-res-shareholders-pocket-millions.html |url-status=dead }}

For much of the population, private economic activity involves subsistence agriculture. There are also private businesses run by 15,000 businessmen including descendants of British settlers and some South African investors who have come to Eswatini because they can hire employees at a third of the pay rates they would pay in South Africa. King Mswati III receives 8% of the national budget for official expenses. The police force receives 5% of the budget, as do the armed forces.

{{main|Demographics of Eswatini}}

{{Largest cities

| country = Eswatini

| stat_ref = Source:{{Cite web|url=https://www.geonames.org/SZ/largest-cities-in-eswatini.html|title=Biggest Cities Eswatini|website=www.geonames.org}}

| list_by_pop =

| div_name =

| div_link = Regions of Eswatini{{!}}Region

| city_1 = Manzini| div_1 = Manzini Region{{!}}Manzini| pop_1 = 110,537| img_1 = Manzini district de Manzini (2) Fotor.jpg

| city_2 = Mbabane | div_2 = Hhohho| pop_2 = 76,218| img_2 = Central bank swazi.jpg

| city_3 = Big Bend, Eswatini{{!}}Big Bend| div_3 = Lubombo Region{{!}}Lubombo| pop_3 = 10,342| img_3 =MR8 before Big Bend Swaziland.jpg

| city_4 = Malkerns | div_4 = Manzini Region{{!}}Manzini| pop_4 = 9,724 | img_4 = Malkerns , fabrique de cierges.jpg

| city_5 = Nhlangano | div_5 = Shiselweni| pop_5 = 9,016

| city_6 = Mhlume| div_6 = Lubombo Region{{!}}Lubombo| pop_6 = 8,652

| city_7 = Hluti| div_7 = Shiselweni | pop_7 = 6,763

| city_8 =Siteki| div_8 = Lubombo Region{{!}}Lubombo| pop_8 = 6,152

| city_9 = Piggs Peak| div_9 = Hhohho | pop_9 = 5,750

| city_10 = Lobamba| div_10 = Hhohho| pop_10 = 4,557

}}

File:Eswatini-demography.svg

The majority of Eswatini's population is ethnically Swazi, mixed with a small number of Zulu and White Africans, mostly people of British and Afrikaner descent. Traditionally Swazi have been subsistence farmers and herders, but most now mix such activities with work in the growing urban formal economy and in government. Some Swazi work in the mines in South Africa.{{Cite web|title=The Search for Swaziland's TB-Infected Mine Workers – Eswatini|url=https://reliefweb.int/report/swaziland/search-swaziland%E2%80%99s-tb-infected-mine-workers|access-date=2021-03-13|website=ReliefWeb|language=en}} Eswatini also received Portuguese settlers and African refugees from Mozambique. Christianity in Eswatini is sometimes mixed with traditional beliefs and practices. Many traditionalists believe that most Swazi ascribe a special spiritual role to the monarch.{{Cite web|title=Inverallochy couple's Mission trip|url=https://www.fraserburghherald.co.uk/news/inverallochy-couples-mission-trip-2586765|access-date=2021-03-23|website=www.fraserburghherald.co.uk|language=en}}

{{main|Languages of Eswatini}}

SiSwati{{cite web |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2841.htm |title=Background Note:Swaziland |author=U.S. Department of State |access-date=29 December 2009}} (also known as Swati, Swazi or Siswati) is a Bantu language of the Nguni group, spoken in Eswatini and South Africa. It has 2.5 million speakers and is taught in schools. It is an official language of Eswatini, along with English,{{cite web |title=The Constitution of the Kingdom of Swaziland Act, 2005 |url=http://www.gov.sz/images/stories/Constitution%20of%20%20SD-2005A001.pdf |access-date=3 June 2018 |page=12}} and one of the official languages of South Africa. English is the medium of communication in schools, conducting business, and the press.{{Cite web|title=Kingdom of Eswatini Languages|url=https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Kingdom_of_Eswatini_Languages|access-date=2021-10-17|website=FamilySearch Wiki|date=7 September 2021|language=en}} About 76,000 people in the country speak Zulu.{{cite web |url=http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=SZ |title=Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Sixteenth edition |author = Lewis, M. Paul |year = 2009 |access-date =29 December 2009}} Tsonga, which is spoken by many people throughout the region is spoken by about 19,000 people in Eswatini. Afrikaans is also spoken by some residents of Afrikaner descent. Portuguese has been introduced as a third language in the schools because of the large community of Portuguese speakers from Mozambique{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}} or Northern and Central Portugal.{{cite web |url=https://iilp.wordpress.com/2018/10/23/africa-do-sul-sera-primeiro-pais-nao-europeu-com-ensino-complementar-de-lingua-portuguesa/ |title=África do Sul será primeiro país não europeu com ensino complementar de língua portuguesa |publisher = IILP |year = 2018 |access-date =23 October 2018}}

{{main|Religion in Eswatini}}

Eighty-three percent of the total population adheres to Christianity in Eswatini. Anglican, Protestant and indigenous African churches, including African Zionist (40%), constitute the majority of Christians, followed by Catholicism at 6% of the population. On 18 July 2012, Ellinah Wamukoya was elected Anglican Bishop of Swaziland, becoming the first woman to be a bishop in Africa and serving in that position until her death in 2021.{{cite web |url=https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2021/01/19/bishop-of-swaziland-and-global-environment-advocate-ellinah-wamukoya-dies-from-covid/ |title=Bishop of Swaziland and global environmental advocate Ellinah Wamukoya dies from COVID-19 |website=episcopalnewsservice.org |date=19 January 2021 |access-date=9 December 2021 }} Fifteen percent of the population follows traditional religions{{citation needed|date=July 2021}}; other non-Christian religions practised in the country include Islam (2%{{Cite web |title=International Religious Freedom Report for 2015 |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/religiousfreedom/index.htm#wrapper |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=2009-2017.state.gov}}), the Baháʼí Faith (0.5%), and Hinduism (0.2%).{{cite web |url= http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/country/?CountryID=161 |author = Religious Intelligence |title = Country Profile: Swaziland (Kingdom of Swaziland) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080626110027/http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/country/?CountryID=161 |archive-date=26 June 2008 }} There were 14 Jewish families in 2013.{{cite web |last=Maltz|first=Judy|title=A black Swazi Jew defends his people in Hungary|url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/features/a-black-swazi-jew-defends-his-people-in-hungary.premium-1.519577 |work=Haaretz |date=7 May 2013}}

The Kingdom of Eswatini does not recognise non-civil marriages such as Islamic-rite marriage contracts.{{Cite news|url=http://aa.com.tr/en/africa/swaziland-marriage-law-leaves-muslims-in-legal-quagmire/693456|title=Swaziland marriage law leaves Muslims in legal quagmire|last=Zulu|first=Phathizwe |date=26 November 2016|work=Anadolu Agency|place=Turkey}}

{{Main|Health in Eswatini}}

{{See also|HIV/AIDS in Eswatini}}

As of 2019, Eswatini has the highest prevalence of HIV among people aged 15 to 49 in the world (27.1%).{{cite web|title=Swaziland 2016 Country factsheet|url=http://www.unaids.org/en/regionscountries/countries/swaziland|website=UNAIDS|access-date=14 January 2018}}{{cite web|title=Prevalence of HIV, total (% of population ages 15–49)|url=http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.DYN.AIDS.ZS/countries/1W?display=default|publisher=The World Bank|access-date=6 May 2014}}

Eswatini scores 15.7 in global hunger index 2024, with 74th rank.{{Cite web |title=Global Hunger Index Scores by 2024 GHI Rank |url=https://www.globalhungerindex.org/ranking.html |access-date=2024-12-17 |website=Global Hunger Index (GHI) - peer-reviewed annual publication designed to comprehensively measure and track hunger at the global, regional, and country levels |language=en}}

File:School Day (3638222558).jpg

Education in Eswatini begins with pre-school education for infants, primary, secondary and high school education for general education and training, and universities and colleges at the tertiary level. Pre-school education is usually for children 5-years or younger; after that, a student can enroll in a primary school anywhere in the country. Early childhood care and education centres take the form of preschools or neighbourhood care points. In the country 21.6% of preschool age children have access to early childhood education.{{cite web |url=http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=302&Itemid=415 |title=Early Childhood & Care Education |publisher=Gov.sz |date=22 September 2010 |access-date=16 August 2014}} Primary education begins at age six. It is a seven-year programme that culminates with an end-of-primary-school examination in grade 7 which is a locally based assessment administered by the Examinations Council through schools.{{cite web |url=http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=295&Itemid=408 |title=Primary Education |publisher=Gov.sz |access-date=16 August 2014}}

The secondary and high school education system is a five-year programme divided into three years junior secondary and two years senior secondary. There is an external public examination (Junior Certificate) at the end of the junior secondary that learners must pass to progress to the senior secondary level. The Examinations Council of Swaziland administers this examination. At the end of the senior secondary level, learners sit for a public examination, the Swaziland General Certificate of Secondary Education and International General Certificate of Secondary Education which is accredited by the Cambridge International Examination. A few schools offer the Advanced Studies programme in their curriculum.{{cite web |url=http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=296&Itemid=409 |title=Secondary Education |publisher=Gov.sz |access-date=16 August 2014}}

There are 830 public schools including primary, secondary and high schools.{{cite web |last=Ministry of Education|title=School Lists|url=http://www.gov.sz/images/stories/edupolicies/schools%20lists%20by%20pay%20code%202011.pdf|publisher=Swaziland Govt|access-date=7 February 2014}} There are also 34 recognised private schools with an additional 14 unrecognised private schools. The largest number of schools is in the Hhohho region. Education is free at primary level, mainly first through the fourth grade and also free for orphaned and vulnerable children, but not compulsory.{{cite web|url=http://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/tda2001/Swaziland.htm |title=2001 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor |publisher=Bureau of International Labor Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor |year=2002 |access-date=29 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515092523/http://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/tda2001/swaziland.htm |archive-date=15 May 2009 }} In 1996, the net primary school enrollment rate was 90.8%, with gender parity at the primary level. In 1998, 80.5% of children reached grade five.

In 1963, Waterford School, later named Waterford Kamhlaba United World College of Southern Africa, was founded as southern Africa's first multiracial school. In 1981, Waterford Kamhlaba joined the United World Colleges movement as the first United World College on the African continent, and the only African UWC until 2019, when UWC East Africa in Tanzania joined the movement.{{Cite web|title=UWC East Africa|url=https://www.uwc.org/schools/uwc-east-africa|access-date=20 June 2020|website=UWC}}

The University of Eswatini, Southern African Nazarene University and Eswatini Medical Christian University are the institutions that offer university education in the country. A campus of Limkokwing University of Creative Technology can be found at Sidvwashini (Sidwashini), a suburb of Mbabane. Ngwane Teacher's College and William Pitcher College are the country's teaching colleges. The Good Shepherd Hospital in Siteki is home to the College for Nursing Assistants.{{cite web |url=http://www.cbm.org/programmes/Good-Shepherd-Hospital-300030.php |title=Programme: Good Shepherd Hospital, Siteki, Swaziland | CBM International |publisher=Cbm.org |access-date=16 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160302113946/http://www.cbm.org/programmes/Good-Shepherd-Hospital-300030.php |archive-date=2 March 2016 }}{{cite book|last=Hester Klopper|title=The State of Nursing and Nursing Education in Africa|year=2012|publisher=Sigma Theta Tau|isbn=978-1935476849|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P3kmklrR9zgC&q=good+shepherd+hospital+swaziland+nursing+school&pg=PT388}} The University of Eswatini is the national university, established in 1982 by act of Parliament, and is headquartered at Kwaluseni with additional campuses in Mbabane and Luyengo.{{cite web |url=http://www.uniswa.sz/uniswainfo/history |title=History | University of Swaziland |publisher=Uniswa.sz |date=20 October 1975 |access-date=16 August 2014 |archive-date=16 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216111649/http://www.uniswa.sz/uniswainfo/history |url-status=dead }} The Southern African Nazarene University in Manzini was established in 2010 as a merger of the Nazarene College of Nursing, College of Theology and the Nazarene Teachers College.{{cite web |url=http://www.africanazarene.org/africa-south |title=Church of the Nazarene Africa Region | Africa South |publisher=Africanazarene.org |access-date=16 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141108164401/http://www.africanazarene.org/africa-south |archive-date=8 November 2014 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://www.ncnnews.com/nphweb/html/ncn/article.jsp?id=10009691 |title=Southern Africa Nazarene University launched in Swaziland – Nazarene Communications Network |publisher=Ncnnews.com |date=28 October 2010 |access-date=16 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216040208/http://www.ncnnews.com/nphweb/html/ncn/article.jsp?id=10009691 |archive-date=16 February 2015 |url-status=dead }}

Eswatini Medical Christian University,{{Cite web |title=Founder |url=https://emcu.ac.sz/founder/ |access-date=2022-08-02 |website=EMCU |language=en-US |archive-date=21 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241221023007/https://emcu.ac.sz/founder/ |url-status=dead }} focusing on medical education, was established in 2012 and is Eswatini's newest university.{{cite web |url=http://www.scusz.ac/about-scu/our-vision-and-mission/ |title=Swaziland Christian University » Our Vision and Mission |publisher=Scusz.ac |access-date=16 August 2014 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140707131607/http://www.scusz.ac/about-scu/our-vision-and-mission/ |archive-date=7 July 2014 }} It is in Mbabane.{{cite web |url=http://www.scusz.ac/about-scu/contact-us/ |title=Swaziland Christian University » Contact us |publisher=Scusz.ac |access-date=16 August 2014 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140707125351/http://www.scusz.ac/about-scu/contact-us/ |archive-date=7 July 2014 }} The campus of Limkokwing University was opened at Sidvwashini in Mbabane in 2012.{{cite web |last=Rooney |first=Richard |url=http://allafrica.com/stories/201211160696.html |title=Swaziland: Limkokwing Reduces Minister to Tears (Page 1 of 2) |publisher=allAfrica.com |date=15 November 2012 |access-date=16 August 2014}} The main centre for technical training in Eswatini is the Eswatini College of Technology{{Cite web |title=Eswatini College Of Technology – Looking To The Fututre |url=https://www.ecotsz.co.za/ |access-date=2022-08-02 |website=www.ecotsz.co.za |archive-date=5 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405025950/https://www.ecotsz.co.za/ |url-status=dead }} Other technical and vocational institutions include the Gwamile Vocational and Commercial Training Institute in Matsapha, the Manzini Industrial and Training Centre in Manzini, Nhlangano Agricultural Skills Training Centre, and Siteki Industrial Training Centre.

In addition to these institutions, the kingdom also has the Eswatini Institute of Management and Public Administration (SIMPA){{Cite web |title=Eswatini Institute of Management and Public Administration SIMPA |url=https://simpamdi.business.site/ |access-date=2022-08-02 |website=simpamdi.business.site |language=en |archive-date=5 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405025948/https://simpamdi.business.site/ |url-status=dead }} and Institute of Development Management (IDM). SIMPA is a government-owned management and development institute, and IDM is a regional organisation in Botswana, Lesotho, and Eswatini, providing training, consultancy, and research in management. North Carolina State University's Poole College of Management is a sister school of SIMPA.{{cite web |url=http://www.idmbls.com/content.php?id=23 |title=Welcome To IDM |publisher=Idmbls.com |access-date=16 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141109233408/http://idmbls.com/content.php?id=23 |archive-date=9 November 2014 }} The Mananga Management Centre was established at Ezulwini as Mananga Agricultural Management Centre in 1972 as an international management development centre offering training of middle and senior managers.{{Cite web|url=http://mananga.sz/company-history/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222060630/http://mananga.sz/company-history/ |url-status=dead |title=Company History | Mananga|archive-date=22 February 2014}}

{{main|Tourism in Eswatini}}

Tourism in Eswatini developed significantly during apartheid era, attracting visitors with different policies than South Africa.{{cite journal|last=Harrison|first=David|title=Tradition, modernity and tourism in Swaziland|journal=Tourism and the Less Developed Countries|publisher=Belhaven Press|year=1992|pages=148–162|url=http://www.cabdirect.org/abstracts/19921896887.html}} Tourists came for television programs, sporting events, and gambling unavailable in South Africa.{{cite book|author=Helmut Wachowiak|title=Tourism and borders: contemporary issues, policies, and international research|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IdLHAt9H8Q4C&pg=PA256|year=2006|publisher=Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.|location=Burlington|isbn=978-0-7546-4775-1|page=256}}

Tourist numbers rose from 89,015 in 1972 to 257,997 in 1989. Post-apartheid, growth slowed as neighboring countries became more appealing.{{cite news|last=Hall|first=James|title=Swazi tourism looks to the future|location=Johannesburg|url=http://mg.co.za/article/2004-04-14-swazi-tourism-looks-to-the-future|accessdate=26 April 2011|newspaper=Mail & Guardian|date=14 April 2004}} Now, Eswatini emphasizes its traditional culture and status as the last sub-Saharan African monarchy to attract tourists. The Eswatini Tourism Board, established in 2003, promotes royal celebrations and game parks. In 2006, Eswatini joined the Lubombo Route agreement with South Africa and Mozambique, allowing cross-border travel on a single visa.{{cite news|last=Meyer|first=Jani|title=SA signs tourism pact with Mozambique|url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/africa/sa-signs-tourism-pact-with-mozambique-1.276714|accessdate=25 April 2011|newspaper=The Independent Online|date=7 May 2006}}

{{main|Culture of Eswatini}}

{{see also|Music of Eswatini}}

{{unreferenced section|date=April 2018}}

File:King of Swaziland.jpg at the reed dance festival, where he will choose his next wife]]

The principal Swazi social unit is the homestead, a traditional beehive hut thatched with dry grass. In a polygamous homestead, each wife has her own hut and yard surrounded by reed fences. There are three structures for sleeping, cooking, and storage (brewing beer). Larger homesteads also have structures used as bachelors' quarters and guest accommodation. Central to the traditional homestead is the cattle byre, a circular area enclosed by large logs, interspersed with branches. The cattle byre has ritual as well as practical significance as a store of wealth and symbol of prestige. It contains sealed grain pits. Facing the cattle byre is the great hut which is occupied by the mother of the headman. The headman is central to all homestead affairs, and he is often polygamous. He leads through example and advises his wives on all social affairs of the home, as well as seeing to the well-being of the family. He also spends time socialising with the young boys, who are often his sons or close relatives, advising them on the expectations of growing up and manhood.

The sangoma is a traditional diviner chosen by the ancestors of that particular family. The training of the sangoma is called "kwetfwasa". At the end of the training, a graduation ceremony takes place where all the local sangoma come together for feasting and dancing. The diviner is consulted for various purposes, such as determining the cause of sickness or even death. His diagnosis is based on "kubhula", a process of communication, through trance, with the natural superpowers. The inyanga (a medical and pharmaceutical specialist in western terms) possesses the bone throwing skill ("kushaya ematsambo") used to determine the cause of the sickness.

The most important cultural event in Eswatini is the Incwala ceremony.{{Cite web |title=Incwala |url=https://www.gov.sz/index.php/component/content/article/127-home-affairs/2369-the-annual-incwala-ceremony-begins?Itemid=799 |website=The Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini}} It is held on the fourth day after the full moon nearest the longest day, 21 December. Incwala is often translated in English as "first fruits ceremony", but the king's tasting of the new harvest is only one aspect among many in this long pageant. Incwala is best translated as "Kingship Ceremony": when there is no king, there is no incwala. It is a crime for any other person to hold an Incwala. Every Swazi may take part in the public parts of the Incwala. The climax of the event is the fourth day of the Big Incwala. The key figures are the king, queen mother, royal wives and children, the royal governors (indunas), the chiefs, the regiments, and the "bemanti" or "water people".

Eswatini's most well-known cultural event is the annual Umhlanga Reed Dance. In the eight-day ceremony, girls cut reeds, present them to the Queen Mother and then dance bare-breasted. It is done in late August or early September. Only childless, unmarried girls can take part. The aims of the ceremony are to preserve girls' chastity, provide tribute labour for the Queen Mother and to encourage solidarity by working together. The royal family appoints a commoner maiden to be "induna" (captain) of the girls and she announces the dates of the annual ceremony over the radio. The chosen induna is expected to be an expert dancer and knowledgeable on royal protocol. One of the king's daughters acts as her counterpart during the ceremony. The Reed Dance today is not an ancient ceremony but a development of the old "umchwasho" custom. In "umchwasho", all young girls were placed in a female age-regiment. If any girl became pregnant outside of marriage, her family paid a fine of one cow to the local chief. After a number of years, when the girls had reached a marriageable age, they would perform labour service for the queen mother, ending with dancing and feasting. The country was under the rite of "umchwasho" until 2005.

Eswatini is also known for a strong presence in the handcrafts industry. The formalised handcraft businesses of Eswatini employ over 2,500 people, many of whom are women.TechnoServe Swaziland Handcrafts Impact Study, February 2011 The products are unique and reflect the culture of Eswatini, ranging from housewares, to artistic decorations, to complex glass, stone or wood artwork.

{{further|Eswatini at the Olympics|Eswatini at the Commonwealth Games}}

Eswatini has sent athletes to the Summer Olympics since 1972 but is yet to win a medal. The country has won medals in boxing and marathon at the Commonwealth Games. Team sports popular in Eswatini include football, cricket and rugby union. The Somhlolo National Stadium is the largest sporting venue.

• Outline of Eswatini
• HIV/AIDS in Eswatini

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{{Sister project links|wikt=eSwatini|voy=Swaziland|c=Category:Swaziland|n=Category:Swaziland|v=no|b=no|s=Portal:Swaziland}}

• {{wikiatlas|Eswatini}}
• [https://www.gov.sz/ Government of Eswatini]
• [https://www.thekingdomofeswatini.com/ Official Tourism Website]
• [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/eswatini/ Eswatini]. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
• {{Cite EB1911|wstitle= Swaziland | volume= 26 |last1= Cana |first1= Frank Richardson |author1-link= |last2= Hillier |first2= Alfred Peter |author2-link= Alfred Peter Hillier | pages = 184–186 |short= 1}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20090521105240/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/swaziland.htm Swaziland] from UCB Libraries GovPubs
• [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14095303 Eswatini] from the BBC News
• [https://www.ifs.du.edu/IFs/frm_CountryProfile/SZ Key Development Forecasts for Swaziland] from International Futures

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