King Mswati III consents land for business
African News Dimension (subscription), South Africa
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from the Manzini region will learn with relief that King Mswati III has signed an additional 38 consents that will enable them to start projects on Swazi Nation Land (SNL).
About 149 consents have been signed already, enabling SMEs across the country to start up projects that will bring sustainable income for their families. The Secretary of the Swazi Commercial Amadoda (SCA) Manzini Branch, Albert Mbuyisa, said following their agreement to deal with business proposals on a weekly basis early this year in order to minimise the time frame of approval, an additional 38 consents were signed for SMEs in the Manzini region.
Handicraft “The businesses applied for range from groceries to salons, hardware stores, handicraft and feedlot management. We would advise those businesses that have not yet received consent because of reasons beyond control to be patient as we try to sort things out,†Mbuyisa said. Elaborating he said, “Once the consents are endorsed by the King’s Office, it is required that they are signed by the respective chiefs before we can forward them to the Manzini Regional Administration (RA) Office for further signing. Once the RA signs the consent, they are then taken to the Licensing Office in the Ministry of Enterprise and Employment for purposes of issuing out trading licenses.†Training When asked how they monitor the businesses and whether or not the business people get training on the various businesses once they have been approved, Mbuyisa said his office keeps a track record of every business and they also visit the business sites on a regular basis. “Every Thursday we go out to the various constituencies to view the project sites and once the business is approved we take it to the King’s Office. We do assess the individuals and if there is a need for training we see to it that they get training,†he said. About 229 consents were signed for businesses under SCA last year. Times of Swaziland