Africa-Press – Eswatini. Eswatini’s Minister of Information, Communications and Technology, Senator Savannah Maziya, has once again shown why the Kingdom remains serious about bridging the digital divide.
Maziya took centre stage at the Tech Diplomacy Global Forum 2025, held on 18 June at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, where global leaders, diplomats, and tech thinkers gathered under the theme “Shaping the Future of International Relations in the Digital Age.”
Representing the country on an international panel titled “Bridging the Digital Divide in the Global South,” Maziya rubbed shoulders with fellow ministers and experts from France, Chile, and South Africa, all with one goal: closing the technology gap between developed and developing nations.
She didn’t mince words as she laid out Eswatini’s digital ambitions, telling delegates that the country was not waiting for change but actively creating it.
“We are leapfrogging traditional development paths by integrating innovation, infrastructure, and citizen engagement at once,” she declared.
The Minister outlined four pillars driving Eswatini’s digital shift, green energy, equitable digital access, ethical AI governance, and community-led capacity building.
She made a strong case that energy equality is the backbone of digital inclusion, warning that Africa’s digital future will stall if reliable electricity continues to bypass rural and poor communities.
“Digital equity must begin with reliable and inclusive energy access. Without it, we risk leaving entire communities behind,” Maziya said.
She added that Eswatini is actively building local skills in digital tools, pushing for policies that prioritise youth access, and participating in global conversations to develop inclusive and ethical frameworks for emerging technologies, especially Artificial Intelligence.
By joining this elite panel, Maziya positioned the Kingdom as a key Southern African voice in tech diplomacy, proving that even smaller nations can shape the global digital agenda.
The Forum, hosted in collaboration with UNESCO, builds on the organisation’s ongoing work in science, technology, and innovation policy and follows the UNESCO Global Ministerial Dialogue on Science Diplomacy held in March this year.
With her remarks widely applauded, Maziya’s presence in Paris was more than symbolic, it was a bold declaration that Eswatini is ready to shape the future, not just catch up to it.
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