| Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Established | 6 September 1968 |
| State | Eswatini |
| Leader | Ngwenyama (King of Eswatini) (Mswati III) |
| Website | www |
Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini is the union government created by the constitution of Eswatini where the monarch holds supreme executive, legislative, and judicial powers. The Ngwenyama (lion) is a hereditary leader, rules the country, with the assistance of a council of ministers and a national legislature.
| Office | Name | Since |
|---|---|---|
| Ngwenyama (King of Eswatini) | Mswati III | 25 April 1986 |
| Prime Minister | Russell Dlamini | 4 November 2023 |
In general practice, however, the monarch's power is delegated through a dualistic system: modern and statutory bodies, like the cabinet, and less formal traditional government structures. At present, parliament consists of an 82-seat House of Assembly (55 members are elected through popular vote; the Attorney General as an ex-officio member; 10 are appointed by the king and four women elected from each one of the administrative regions) and 30-seat Senate (10 members are appointed by the House of Assembly, and 20 are appointed by the king, whom at least the half must be women). The king must approve legislation passed by parliament before it becomes law. The prime minister, who is head of government is appointed by the king from among the members of the House on recommendations of the King's Advisory Council and the cabinet, which is recommended by the prime minister and approved by the king, exercises executive authority.
The head of government is the prime minister, who is appointed by the king after the election of a new parliament. The prime minister is a member of parliament and serves a five-year term. The prime minister cannot serve more than two consecutive terms. As a head of government, he chairs the cabinet meetings. Themba N. Masuku served as acting prime minister since the death of Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini on 13 December 2020 until 19 July 2020. Mswati III announced that Cleopas Dlamini would be the new Prime Minister.
The cabinet of the Eswatini government is appointed by the king on advice from the prime minister. The members of the cabinet must be members of either Houses of parliament. The members of the cabinet are known as ministers, and they head government departments called ministries. They head their respective portfolios until the end of the parliament's term, or unless there is a cabinet reshuffle, dismissal, or death.
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 20 September 2013. [1] [2] The balloting is done on a non-party basis in all categories. All election procedures are overseen by the elections and boundaries commission. [3]
Nominations take place at the chiefdoms. On the day of nomination, the name of the nominee is raised by a show of hands. Nominees are given an opportunity to indicate acceptance of the nomination. Nominees must be supported by 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. Primary elections also take place at the chiefdom level. They are 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 take place at the various constituencies called Tinkhundla. [4] Candidates who won 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. [5] [6]
The 2005 constitution is currently in force. [7] The constitution of 6 September 1968 was suspended 12 April 1973 by a State of Emergency decree imposed by King Sobhuza II, the father of the current King Mswati III. The decree gave absolute power to the monarchy and banned organised political opposition to royal rule.
A new constitution was promulgated 13 October 1978, but was not formally presented to the people.
In 2001 King Mswati III appointed a committee to draft a new constitution. [8]
For local administration Eswatini is divided into four regions (Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni), each with an administrator appointed by the king. Parallel to the government structure is the traditional system consisting of the king and his advisers, traditional courts, and 59 tinkhundla (subregional districts in which traditional chiefs are grouped).
Eswatini is a member of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) which the U.S. began negotiating a Free Trade Agreement with in May 2003. The other members of SACU are Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and South Africa.
Eswatini is also a member of ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, and the WTrO.
Eswatini, officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and also known by its former official name Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its north, west, south, and southeast. At no more than 200 km (120 mi) north to south and 130 km (81 mi) east to west, Eswatini is one of the smallest countries in Africa; despite this, its climate and topography are diverse, ranging from a cool and mountainous highveld to a hot and dry lowveld.
Eswatini is an absolute monarchy with constitutional provisions and Swazi law and Custom. The head of state is the king or Ngwenyama, 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 constitution of Eswatini, the king and Ingwenyama is a symbol of unity and the eternity of the Swazi nation. By tradition, the king reigns along with his mother or a ritual substitute, the Ndlovukati. 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. The king appoints the prime minister from the legislature and also appoints a minority of legislators to both chambers of Libandla (parliament), with help from an advisory council. The king is allowed by the constitution to appoint some members to parliament for special interests. These special interests are citizens who might have been left out by the electorate during the course of elections or did not enter as candidates. This is done to balance views in parliament. Special interests could be people of gender, race, disability, business community, civic society, scholars, chiefs and so on. The Senate consists of 30 members, of which some are appointed by the king on recommendation of the advisory council and others elected by the lower house. The House of Assembly has 65 seats, of which 55 are occupied by elected representatives from the 55 constituencies around the country, and 10 are appointed by the king on recommendation of the advisory council. The attorney general is the ex-officio member. Elections are held every five years.
Artifacts indicating human activity dating back to the early Stone Age have been found in the Kingdom of Eswatini. The earliest known inhabitants of the region were Khoisan hunter-gatherers. Later, the population became predominantly Nguni during and after the great Bantu migrations. People speaking languages ancestral to the current Sotho and Nguni languages began settling no later than the 11th century. The country now derives its name from a later king named Mswati II. 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 people of Eswatini largely belong to a number of clans that can be categorized as Emakhandzambili, Bemdzabu, and Emafikamuva, depending on when and how they settled in Eswatini.
Mswati III is Ngwenyama (King) of Eswatini and head of the Swazi royal family.
The Parliament of Eswatini is bicameral, consisting of a lower chamber and an upper one. Some of the members of both chambers are elected, while the rest are appointed by the King of Eswatini. Election is by secret ballot in a first-past-the-post system of voting. Members of both chambers serve for five-year terms. All candidates run on a non-partisan basis, as political parties are banned.
The House of Assembly of Eswatini is the lower chamber of the country's bicameral Parliament. The Assembly may debate and pass bills, although as the country is an absolute monarchy, the role of the legislature is mostly advisory.
Prince Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini was a Swazi politician who served as Prime Minister of Eswatini, from 1996 to 2003 and again from October 2008 to September 2018.
Prince Sotsha Ernest Dlamini was Prime Minister of Swaziland from 6 October 1986 to 12 July 1989. He was born in Mankayane. Dlamini died on 7 February 2017, aged 76.
Dr. Moses Mathendele Dlamini is a Swazi political figure. He was a Senator and is acting chief of Mbelebeleni in the Shiselweni District. He was also Swaziland's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade from 2006 to 2008. Since October 2008 he has been serving in king Mswati III's advisory council or Swaziland national council standing committee(Liqoqo supreme council). Currently he is a member of the Ludzidzini Council 2022-2023
In Eswatini, an inkhundla is an administrative subdivision smaller than a district but larger than an umphakatsi. There are 55 tinkhundla in Eswatini: 14 in Hhohho District, 11 in Lubombo District, 16 in Manzini District, and 14 in Shishelweni District. According to the constitution of Eswatini, the government for Eswatini is a democratic, participatory, tinkhundla-based system that emphasizes devolution of state power from central government to tinkhundla areas and individual merit as a basis for election or appointment to public office. The system is non-partisan since the constitution does not recognize political parties, although section 25 of the constitution allows for open freedom of assembly and association. Each inkhundla elects one representative to the House of Assembly of Eswatini, the lower chamber of the bicameral parliament (Libandla). The same trend is applied in local government elections. This governing system was designed by King Sobhuza II with the assistance of political scholars and lawyers. It came to effect in 1978 and was adjusted in the early 1990s.
General elections were held in Swaziland on 19–20 September and 18–19 October 2003. Fifty-five independent candidates were elected to the Parliament. Voter turnout was only 18.4% of the 213,947 registered voters.
Themba Nhlanganiso Masuku is a Swazi politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of Eswatini since 2018 and as Acting Prime Minister from 13 December 2020 to 16 July 2021. Earlier, he served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2008 until 2013.
General elections were held in Swaziland on 20 September 2013.
The Swazi Democratic Party, also known by its abbreviation SWADEPA, is a political party in Eswatini led by its president Jan Sithole. SWADEPA was established in 2011 and took part in the 2013 parliamentary elections in Swaziland by putting up candidates running as individuals.
General elections were held in Eswatini on 18 August and 21 September 2018.
Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini was a Swazi business executive who served as the tenth prime minister of Eswatini, holding the office from October 2018 until his death on 13 December 2020.
The Sive Siyinqaba National Movement is a political party in Eswatini. It is led Ngomuyayona Gamedze as of 5 November 2022 as president, taking over from former Minister of Tourism Musa Nkambule and calls for a constitutional monarchy as a replacement for the absolute monarchy currently in place in Eswatini. Sive Siyinqaba National Movement also calls for a government by the people, for the people.
Cleopas Sipho Dlamini is a Liswati business executive who served as the prime minister of Eswatini from 2021 to 2023.
