Three Eswatini Ministries to Account for Youth Unemployment Funds

Mbabane East Member of Parliament Welcome Dlamini has demanded that three government ministries account for funds allocated towards youth empowerment and the fight against unemployment. The ministries of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs, Economic Planning and Development, and Agriculture will have to explain how they utilised the resources allocated to create opportunities for young people. This comes as youth unemployment remains a major national concern in Eswatini.

Dlamini made the submission during the House of Assembly Portfolio Committee debate on the Prime Minister's Office second quarter performance reports. He cited the recent police recruitment exercise, where a large number of young people turned up, as a wake-up call for the government to address unemployment. Parliament had approved substantial amounts of money for youth empowerment, but Dlamini questioned whether the resources were producing the desired results.

Acting Prime Minister Thulisile Dladla acknowledged that the police recruitment exercise had exposed the extent of unemployment in the country. She described the recruitment exercise as an eye-opener for the government and the nation, saying the number of applicants had shocked authorities. The experience should serve as a lesson to government departments and other institutions that were yet to undertake similar recruitment exercises.

Dladla agreed with Dlamini's demand for accountability from the three ministries. She stressed that government was not celebrating the high turnout but instead regarded it as a serious indication that more needed to be done to create employment opportunities. The ministries responsible for youth empowerment and employment creation should return to Parliament to explain how the available resources were being utilised.

The World Bank had also provided funding towards interventions intended to address the country's development challenges. Dladla said the responsible ministries needed to account for how such resources were being used. They should provide details of the programmes being implemented, the number of young people expected to benefit, and the employment opportunities likely to be created.

Dlamini invoked the leadership style of the late former Prime Minister Barnabas Dlamini, whom he said would not have allowed the situation to continue without decisive intervention. He said the former prime minister would have demanded accountability and ensured that those responsible for youth empowerment programmes were compelled to demonstrate results.

The three ministries will have to provide a detailed explanation of how they utilised the funds allocated towards youth empowerment and the fight against unemployment. This will help assess whether existing interventions are adequately addressing unemployment and whether the funds allocated towards such programmes are reaching their intended beneficiaries.

Key points

• The three ministries of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs, Economic Planning and Development, and Agriculture must account for funds allocated towards youth empowerment and the fight against unemployment.
• The recent police recruitment exercise exposed the extent of unemployment in the country, with a large number of young people turning up.
• The World Bank had provided funding towards interventions intended to address the country's development challenges.