Eswatini MPs seek to centralise stamps for young entrepreneurs
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Times of Eswatini
Eswatini MPs are calling for the stamps needed by young entrepreneurs to no longer be issued by traditional chiefs, but to be available at lower cost at tinkhundla centres. The debate comes as funding and coordination of youth entrepreneurship support programmes remain inadequate, according to Times of Eswatini.
Eswatini MPs are calling for chiefdom stamps needed by young entrepreneurs to be available at lower cost at tinkhundla centres, rather than relying directly on chiefs. The proposal was made during consideration of the Finance Committee's report on the 2025 regulations amending the Youth Enterprise Revolving Fund, a fund intended to finance young businesses, reports the Times of Eswatini.
The parliamentarians also highlighted underfunding of youth support programmes and difficulties accessing land for young farmers. The Youth Enterprise Revolving Fund benefits only a few hundred micro-enterprises, leaving tens of thousands of applicants without start-up or operating funding, according to the information presented to Parliament.
Finance Committee chairman Marwick Khumalo, MP for Lobamba Lomdzala, said that Article 7 of the regulation had been amended. He said procedures would begin at chiefdom level, while maintaining that young people should not be prevented from accessing the services concerned because of the cost of the stamps, reports the Times of Eswatini.
