Common Country Assessment - Swaziland, 1997

Contents | Introduction | Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Livelihoods | Advancement/Empowerment of Women | Child Rights/Child Development/Child Protection | Education | Population | Environment | Health | STD/HIV/AIDS | Food Security/Nutrition | Governance and Participation | Institution Building | Summary and Conclusion

Chapter Thirteen - Summary and Conclusion

Swaziland's achievements since independence are a justifiable source of pride in many areas, but a cause for complacency in none. Huge strides have been made in areas such as education and average life expectancy, but little has been achieved in managing the consequences of population growth, and with:

• one of the highest national antenatal HIV rates on earth
• a high population growth rate of 2.7 percent
• Increasing civil disturbances
• Serious unemployment
• Serious or very serious soil erosion and other environmental degradation
• Heavily skewed income distribution with much of the population living in absolute poverty
• Indicators such as total fertility rates and under-five mortality being more in keeping with low human development nations than medium human development nations, and
• The recent slowing of growth both in formal employment and GDP

the challenges ahead appear to be even greater than those already overcome.

ESRA, the NDS and the PSMP have arisen in response to the seriousness of these challenges. Whether or not they will be adequate to face those challenges remains to be seen, but the integrity of purpose and the political commitment of the government is clear. The NDS in particular at least partially addresses all the strategies for poverty elimination recommended by the UN:

1. Empower the poor to develop themselves:
2. Empower gender equality:
3. Concentrate upon pro-poor growth strategies in economic growth:
4. Harness globalization for the benefit of the poor:
5. Governments to enable pro-poor policies, markets and political enfranchisement:
6. Those in the most desperate straits need special international support.

Despite a shortage, there are Swazis with the capacities and depth of insight required to address the most complex of these problems, but the management systems are not in place to fully utilise their potentials. The process approach towards sustainable livelihoods, (involving increased participation by the general populace in the formal market sector) remains the best hope, but its implementation is complex. However, some problems with major long-term crippling effects - in both human and national development terms - could be remedied very quickly and simply: for example, through the current programme of iodizing salt, the full potentials of many Swazis can be much more readily realised.

The draft NDS provides a vision with realistic objectives, but the achievement of those objectives entails a different management approach from those built up from historical inertia. Nothing sustainable will happen without strong government vision and leadership towards making Swaziland competitive in the international marketplace in general, and towards bottom-up empowerment in particular.

The United Nations will assist this process in every way that it is able.

Summary and Conclusion Indicators

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