Africa-Press – Eswatini. Decentralisation in Eswatini offers both promising opportunities and significant challenges for the private sector, according to local entrepreneur Bhekithemba Matsenjwa.
The businessman, who runs the Helpers Office in Siteki, a hub supporting young entrepreneurs, told the Eswatini Sunday that when properly executed, decentralisation could foster greater local economic participation and better resource allocation, potentially unlocking investment tailored to the unique needs of communities.
“Decentralisation brings mixed prospects,” Matsenjwa said. “It can spur local ownership of development, attract targeted investments, and create economic momentum in rural areas. But without strong governance and consistent capacity at the local level, it risks leading to uneven outcomes.”
Matsenjwa emphasised that decentralisation could be key in narrowing the yawning divide between wealthy urban centres and impoverished rural communities like Maphungwane. By shifting decision-making closer to the grassroots, local entrepreneurs would gain influence over development priorities, enabling projects better aligned with community strengths and needs.
“This means dormant business potential in rural settings can be awakened, driving new growth hubs across the country,” he noted.
However, Matsenjwa cautioned that these benefits hinge on adequate capacity building, clear policies, and accountability structures. Without these, decentralisation could result in fragmented economic policy and inconsistent development trajectories.
“Imagine local councils empowered to approve projects without proper training or strategic oversight; investments might decline, and sustainable growth could stall,” he explained.
Businesses craving stability worry that if regions pull in different directions, investors, both domestic and foreign, might hesitate. Matsenjwa called for decentralisation efforts to be underpinned by a coordinated framework that harnesses local strengths while preserving national cohesion.
“Governance must remain predictable and efficient. Decentralisation should be a tool to align economic growth, not splinter it,” he warned.
The entrepreneur sees targeted infrastructure investment and improved public services as vital to making decentralisation a true engine for balanced growth.
“Combined with policies that encourage local enterprise, decentralisation can bridge urban-rural disparities and stimulate diversified economic development,” he said.Decentralisation in Eswatini offers both promising opportunities and significant challenges for the private sector, according to local entrepreneur Bhekithemba Matsenjwa.
Eswatini’s decentralisation ambitions echo reforms sweeping across Africa, with mixed lessons from countries like Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Ghana.
Kenya’s devolution model with 47 counties is praised for empowering communities, but also criticised for financial and administrative challenges.
Uganda’s system struggles with slow resource transfers and insufficient autonomy, limiting local government effectiveness.
Tanzania focuses on improving essential services but faces capacity and revenue limitations.
Ghana stands out for effective rural development driven by community participation and empowered local assemblies.
A joint report by the East African Local Government Association (EALGA) and United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) highlights persistent challenges such as unclear roles, weak revenue bases, limited resource control, skills shortages, and poor access to funding.
The report advocates clarifying responsibilities, building institutional capacity, raising budgets, and fostering stronger central-local collaboration.
Echoing regional experiences, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) lauds decentralisation as one of the most transformative governance reforms in recent decades, reshaping how powers and resources are shared.
It involves political, administrative, and fiscal dimensions—empowering elected local leaders, shifting service delivery, and granting fiscal autonomy.
Yet, the OECD warns of risks if decentralisation is poorly sequenced or balanced, potentially causing service disparities, fiscal stress, and governance inefficiencies.
They also highlight subnational governance innovations, like metropolitan cooperation and regionalisation, as vital complements to strengthen capacity and coordination.
For Eswatini, decentralisation offers a genuine pathway to empower communities and drive inclusive economic growth. But the journey demands more than policy declarations: it requires political will, sustained investment in skills and infrastructure, and genuine community engagement.
As Matsenjwa concluded, “The potential is huge but whether decentralisation becomes a catalyst for growth or a new bureaucratic hurdle depends on how we execute it. The future of the nation’s economic equity may well rest on getting this right.”
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