End of Year Message from the UN Resident Coordinator in Eswatini

Dear Regional Directors and UNCT Colleagues, 

As the curtain falls on 2024 and rises on 2025, I take this opportunity to thank all of you for your dedication and collaboration in our efforts to make a difference for EmaSwati despite the challenges facing our world. I am grateful for our collective achievements and look forward to the opportunities that 2025 brings.

Our achievements in 2024 have been made possible through the steadfast partnerships with the Government of Eswatini, civil society organizations, international development agencies, and private sector stakeholders. Our collaboration with the Government of Eswatini has been particularly rewarding, riding on the appointment of a new cabinet after the September 2023 national elections. Thus, early in the year, our invitation to present our work to the new cabinet at its inaugural retreat provided a privileged platform to demonstrate the value of the UN in Eswatini. The excellent, evidence-based and integrated presentation of our work in five strategic areas was a great display of a coherent and value-adding UN, and opened the doors for follow-up presentations to cabinet and regular high-level engagements.  The one-day high-level segment of the 2024 UNCT retreat provided another opportunity for our continued dialogue with government whose rallying call of ‘Nkwe!’ (urgency, speed, agility) resonates fully with our mandate of accelerating sustainable development.

Notable milestones in 2024 include the launch of the AfCFTA National Strategy, underscoring Eswatini’s commitment to continental trade and integration. The launch of the National Education Reform Committee was a major step in the government’s commitment to transforming education, while increased budgets to agriculture, MSMEs and health signalled national alignment to critical areas of the SDGs. Joint work on women empowerment and ending gender-based violence was boosted through a new partnership with the European Union, while we closed the year with the good news of the funding of the second phase of the UN Partnership on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which will further enhance our support to the inclusion of persons with disabilities in national development planning.

In terms of our advocacy efforts, the collaboration with MTN Bushfire Festival enabled us to reach over 20,000 participants on vital issues such as climate action, youth empowerment, human rights and health, among others. The ‘Green Indaba’ highlighted the growing interest of the private sector in the green economy and climate action, while our work with the Central Bank of Eswatini on Priority Sector Lending Policy placed on the table innovative ideas about accelerating growth through targeted financing of specific sectors.

This year, we welcomed new members to the UNCT, including the UNAIDS Country Director, the UNDP Resident Representative, and a dedicated UNHCR officer. The relocation of UNESCO to the UN House was a key milestone, streamlining our operations and enhancing efficiency. Internally, our staff townhall meetings provided the opportunity to remain focused on the well-being and sense of belonging of our staff. The use of interactive technologies has particularly helped to enhance active participation and shaping of the agenda of our staff townhalls.

The year also saw us launch the processes for a new UNSDCF for the period 2026-2030. These processes included the development of the Common Country Analysis (CCA) and the evaluation of the current UNSDCF 2021-2025.  We also embarked on the identification of the strategic priorities for the 2026-2030 UNSDCF. The CCA process was particularly engaging and detailed, deploying strategic foresight and systems-thinking methodologies and drawing wide participation. I applaud our technical teams for ensuring that we laid a firm foundation for the design of the new Cooperation Framework. 

2025 will be a busy year as we conclude the implementation of the current Cooperation Framework and complete the design of the new one for 2026-2030.

I will continue to count on your dedication and support to ensure that we have a truly responsive and strategic Cooperation Framework to guide our last mile efforts to achieve the SDGs. In this regard, I must highlight that, as testament to the strong partnership with the government, the year closed with a substantive meeting with the Prime Minister, at his request. The meeting centred on the design of the new Cooperation Framework and the government’s expectations around it. As reflected in my readout of the meeting shared with UNCT colleagues at the time, the PM agreed to lead senior government officials for a dialogue with the UNCT mid-January to further discuss the strategic direction of the CF 2026-2030. In all his interactions with us, the PM has been very clear: the UN must focus on fewer, high-impact interventions and concentrate its resources to achieve tangible results. 

As always, I will count on all of us to take full advantage of the attention we have from the government and to demonstrate that the UN is listening and responsive to the expressed expectations. The CF 2026-2030, and the agency programme documents that will flow from it, provide us with a clear opportunity to demonstrate a listening, strategic and responsive UNCT.

Once again, please accept my heartfelt gratitude to all of you for your leadership, unwavering support and collaboration throughout the year. I equally thank all our hard-working staff  for their resilient dedication to an, inclusive, and prosperous Eswatini.

Season’s greetings to you all, and my best wishes for a productive and successful new year.

George Wachira - UN Resident Coordinator, Kingdom of Eswatini