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Swaziland is a Southern African country. Surrounded by
South Africa and also bordering Mozambique, to the
northeast, the kingdom of Swaziland is a mountainous
enclave, with no outlet to the sea, but well provided
with water courses. The country spans 17 363 km2. The
administrative and judicial capital is Mbabane, with
Lobamba being the legislative capital. The largest
cities are Manzini, with 76 900 inhabitants (2004),
Mbabane (70 800 inhab.), Nhlangano (6900 inhab.) And
Mhlume (14 400 inhab.). The territory descends on
three large steps, from west to east. The first level,
the so-called Highveld (above 900 m), is formed
by rugged mountains covered with forests and cut by
waterfalls. The Middleveld (400-850 m), covered
with orange groves and pineapple plantations, goes down
to the lowlands of Lowveld (150-300 m), in
whose lands there are sugarcane plantations. At the
eastern end, the border is formed by the Lebombo chain
(which reaches 825 m), cut by canyons, which separates
Swaziland from Mozambique and the Indian Ocean. The
largest rivers are Lomati, Usutu, Mkhondvo and Komati
and represent great hydroelectric potential.
Climate
It has a tropical climate of altitude.
Economy
Sugarcane is the country's main production. When
Swaziland became independent in 1967, 55% of the arable
land was in the hands of foreigners, mainly South
Africans and Europeans. With largely positive results in
agricultural production, Swaziland is an exception in
Black Africa. In 1995, suffering from a dry spell, he
had to ask the European Union for food aid.
The subsoil is rich in minerals: diamond deposits
have been discovered, and there is also coal, iron,
asbestos. Economic growth between 1970 and 1985 was over
4% per year. This relative wealth is explained by the
existence of a high workforce (30,000 wage earners)
employed in South Africa and repatriating their
wages. On the other hand, Swaziland is part of the group
of countries linked to the South African Customs Union,
a circumstance that ensures more than 2/3 of the
national income. Swaziland's main trading partners are
South Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States of
America and Mozambique.
Environmental indicator: the value of carbon dioxide
emissions, per capita (metric tons, 1999), is
0.4.
Population
In 2006 it had 1 136 334 inhabitants, which corresponds
to a population density of 67.61 inhab./km2. The
birth and death rates are respectively 27.41% and
29.74%. Average life expectancy is 32.62 years. The
value of the Human Development Index (HDI) is 0.547 and
the value of the Gender-adjusted Development Index (IDG)
is 0.536 (2001). It is estimated that, in 2025, the
population will be 1 356 000 inhabitants.
The current population is characterized by a strong
ethnic homogeneity. The vast majority of the inhabitants
are Swazi (84%), followed by zulos (10%) and tsonga
(3%). The Zulo ethnic group settled in Swaziland at the
end of the 17th century, coming from the area that is
now the Mozambican territory. The main religions are
Protestantism (37%), African Christianity (29%),
traditional beliefs (21%) and Catholicism (11%). The
official languages are Swazi and English.
History
In the 19th century, European colonists politically
dominated the territory. The Swazi people came to
consent to the presence of a government composed of
English, South Africans and Swazi representatives. In
our century, in 1949, the South African Union intended
to control Swaziland, but the British refused the
proposal. In 1967 it was no longer possible for the
United Kingdom to keep the colony under its control.
Swaziland is a parliamentary monarchy governed by
traditional tribal institutions where an assembly and a
senate operate with the consent of the king. The current
holder of the throne was crowned in 1986 and is called
Mswati III.
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