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Eswatini

sovereign state in southern Africa
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Eswatini (or Swaziland) is a country in Africa. It is officially the Kingdom of Eswatini (Umbuso weSwatini). It was called Swaziland until April 2018.

Kingdom of Eswatini
Umbuso weSwatini  (Swazi)
Coat of arms of Eswatini
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)
Location of  Eswatini  (dark blue)

– in Africa  (light blue)
– in the African Union  (light blue)

Location of Eswatini
Capital

26°30′S 31°30′E / 26.500°S 31.500°E / -26.500; 31.500
Largest cityMbabane
Official languagesEnglish
National languageSwazi
Demonym(s)Swazi
GovernmentUnitary parliamentary absolute diarchy
• Ngwenyama
Mswati III
Russell Dlamini
LegislatureParliament
• Upper house
Senate
• Lower house
House of Assembly
Independence from the United Kingdom
• Granted
6 September 1968
24 September 1968
2005 [1][2][3]
Area
• Total
17,364 km2 (6,704 sq mi) (153rd)
• Water (%)
0.9
Population
• 2021 estimate
1,192,271[4][5] (155th)
• 2017 census
1,093,238[6]
• Density
68.2/km2 (176.6/sq mi) (135th)
GDP (PPP)2019 estimate
• Total
$12.293 billion
• Per capita
$11,089[7]
GDP (nominal)2019 estimate
• Total
$4.662 billion
• Per capita
$4,206[7]
Gini (2015)Positive decrease 49.5[8]
high
HDI (2019)Increase 0.611[9]
medium · 138th
Currency
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Driving sideleft
Calling code+268
ISO 3166 codeSZ
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.[10]

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.[11] Part of the reason was that the old name sounded too similar to Switzerland.[11][12]

Health

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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

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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.[13] In 1996, the primary school enrollment rate was 90.8%. Girls and boys both attended at the primary level.[13] In 1998, 80.5% of children reached grade five.[13]

The University of Eswatini provides higher education.

Demographics

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Swazi people dancing in a cultural village show.

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.[14] 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.[15] Tsonga is spoken by about 19,000 people in Swaziland. Afrikaans is also spoken by some residents of Afrikaner descent.

 
Districts of Eswatini

Districts

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Eswatini is divided into four districts:





Cities

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The cities in Eswatini are:

Rank City Census 1986 Census 1997 Calc. 2005 District
1. Manzini 46,058 78,734 110,537 Manzini
2. Mbabane 38,290 57,992 76,218 Hhohho
3. Big Bend 9,676 9,374 10,342 Lubombo
4. Malkerns 4,830 7,400 9,724 Manzini
5. Nhlangano 4,107 6,540 9,016 Shiselweni
6. Mhlume 6,509 7,661 8,652 Lubombo
7. Hluti n.a. 5,806 6,763 Shiselweni
8. Simunye 8,762 5,633 6,512 Lubombo
9. Siteki 2,271 4,157 6,152 Lubombo
10. Piggs Peak 3,223 4,581 5,750 Hhohho
11. Lobamba n.a. 3,625 4,557 Manzini
12. Ngomane n.a. 3,902 4,511 Lubombo
13. Vuvulane n.a. 3,594 4,155 Lubombo
14. Mpaka 1,007 2,144 3,586 Lubombo
15. Kwaluseni n.a. 2,701 3,395 Manzini
16. Bhunya 3,361 2,650 3,046 Manzini
17. Mhlambanyatsi 2,075 2,553 2,886 Manzini
18. Mondi 2,886 2,703 2,872 Hhohho
19. Tabankulu 4,651 2,551 2,815 Lubombo
20. Hlatikulu 1,276 2,076 2,748 Shiselweni
21. Bulembu 4,850 2,443 2,260 Hhohho
22. Kubuta n.a. 1,750 2,038 Shiselweni
23. Tjaneni 3,682 2,250 1,899 Lubombo
24. Sidvokodvo 1,339 1,528 1,746 Manzini
25. Lavumisa 850 1,117 1,300 Shiselweni
26. Ngwenya 445 842 1,281 Hhohho
27. Nsoko 2,868 963 1,175 Lubombo
28. Mankayane 913 1,040 1,144 Manzini


References

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  1. ↑ "Laws" (PDF). www.wipo.int. Retrieved 2019-12-27.
  2. ↑ "THE CONSTITUTION OF THE KINGDOM OF SWAZILAND ACT" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 September 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  3. ↑ "Constitution" (PDF). www.gov.sz. Retrieved 2019-12-27.
  4. ↑ "World Population Prospects 2022". population.un.org. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  5. ↑ "World Population Prospects 2022: Demographic indicators by region, subregion and country, annually for 1950-2100" (XSLX). population.un.org ("Total Population, as of 1 July (thousands)"). United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Swaziland Releases Population Count from 2017 Census". United Nations Population Fund. Archived from the original on 7 August 2018. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Report for Selected Countries and Subjects". www.imf.org.
  8. ↑ "Swaziland – Country partnership strategy FY2015-2018". World Bank. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  9. ↑ "Human Development Reports – Eswatini (Kingdom of) – Human Development Indicators". United Nations Development Programme. May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
  10. ↑ Kuper, Hilda (1963). The Swazi: a South African kingdom. Internet Archive. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. pp. 10–13. ISBN 978-0-03-042615-5.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Swaziland king changes the country's name". BBC News. 2018-04-19. Retrieved 2018-04-19.
  12. ↑ "Kingdom of Swaziland Change Now Official". Times Of Swaziland. 18 May 2018. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 "2001 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor". Bureau of International Labor Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor. 2002. Archived from the original on 15 May 2009. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  14. ↑ U.S. Department of State. "Background Note:Swaziland". Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  15. ↑ M. Paul Lewis (2009). "Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Sixteenth edition". Retrieved 29 December 2009.

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