Eswatini: Sovereign state in southern Africa

It is officially the Kingdom of Eswatini (Umbuso weSwatini). It was called Swaziland until April 2018.

Kingdom of Eswatini Umbuso weSwatini  (Swazi)
Flag Coat of arms
Motto:  "Siyinqaba" (Swazi) "We are a fortress" "We are a mystery" "We hide ourselves away" "We are powerful ones"
Anthem:  "Nkulunkulu Mnikati wetibusiso temaSwati" "Oh God, Bestower of the Blessings of the Swazi'"
Location of  Eswatini  (dark blue) – in Africa  (light blue) – in the African Union  (light blue)
Capital	Mbabane (executive) Lobamba (legislative) 26°30′S 31°30′E / 26.500°S 31.500°E / -26.500; 31.500
Largest city	Mbabane
Official languages	English
National language	Swazi
Demonym(s)	Swazi
Government	Unitary parliamentary absolute diarchy
• Ngwenyama	Mswati III
• Prime Minister	Russell Dlamini
Legislature	Parliament
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	House of Assembly
Independence from the United Kingdom
• Granted	6 September 1968
• United Nations membership	24 September 1968
• Current constitution	2005
Area
• Total	17,364 km2 (6,704 sq mi) (153rd)
• Water (%)	0.9
Population
• 2021 estimate	1,192,271 (155th)
• 2017 census	1,093,238
• Density	68.2/km2 (176.6/sq mi) (135th)
GDP (PPP)	2019 estimate
• Total	$12.293 billion
• Per capita	$11,089
GDP (nominal)	2019 estimate
• Total	$4.662 billion
• Per capita	$4,206
Gini (2015)	49.5 high
HDI (2019)	0.611 medium · 138th
Currency	Swazi lilangeni (SZL) South African rand (ZAR)
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Driving side	left
Calling code	+268
ISO 3166 code	SZ
Internet TLD	.sz
Website www.gov.sz

Its capital is Mbabane. The country is named after the 19th-century king Mswati II. Eswatini was colonized by the British and the Boers at the end of the 19th century.

Eswatini is a small country. It is no more than 200 kilometres (120 mi) north to south and 130 kilometres (81 mi) east to west. It is completely surrounded by land. Eswatini does not touch the sea. The two countries that touch it are Mozambique and South Africa. The country's two largest cities are the administrative capital Mbabane and the economic center Manzini. The seat of government is Lobamba.

On 19 April 2018, the King of Eswatini Mswati III announced that the Kingdom of Swaziland had renamed itself the Kingdom of Eswatini. Part of the reason was that the old name sounded too similar to Switzerland.

Eswatini is strongly affected by HIV and AIDS. The 2012 CIA World Factbook showed Swaziland with the highest HIV infection rate in the world. Life expectancy is 50 years.

Education in Eswatini is free at primary level, mainly 1st and 2nd grades. It is also free for orphaned and vulnerable children. Children are not required to attend. In 1996, the primary school enrollment rate was 90.8%. Girls and boys both attended at the primary level. In 1998, 80.5% of children reached grade five.

The University of Eswatini provides higher education.

 

Most of Eswatini’s people are ethnically Swazi. There is also a small number of Zulu and white Africans, mostly people of British and Afrikaner descent. Eswatini also has some Portuguese settlers and African refugees from Mozambique.

82.70% of the people are Christian. Christianity in Eswatini is sometimes mixed with traditional beliefs and practices. Some people think of the king as having a spiritual role. Eswatini also has a small Muslim minority.

Swazi have been subsistence farmers and herders. They now mix such activities with work in the growing urban economy and in government. Some Swazi work in the mines in South Africa.

SiSwati and English are the official languages. SiSwati has 2.5 million speakers and is taught in schools. It is also one of the official languages of South Africa.

About 76,000 people in the country speak Zulu. Tsonga is spoken by about 19,000 people in Swaziland. Afrikaans is also spoken by some residents of Afrikaner descent.

 

Eswatini is divided into four districts:

• Hhohho
• Lubombo
• Manzini
• Shiselweni

The cities in Eswatini are: