Brain drain in key sectors worrying
Things are really coming to a head in the Kingdom of Eswatini in as far as the economy is concerned. While government would have us think the economy has improved and that we are on an upward trajectory, the situation on the ground is at variance with the numbers thrown at us. The life of the ordinary liSwati is getting worse by the day. Our young people are dejected and are wondering why they put so much energy acquiring an education if it is no longer the proverbial key to success. They are sitting idle at home with their certificates, only being embellishments on their walls. Some with good qualifications are doing jobs which were hitherto known to be for those who only managed to get through secondary or high school.
Many who are employed are being paid peanuts by employers both in the public and private sectors. In order to make ends meet they have resorted to unregulated loan sharks who have made their lives unbearable. Come to the Manzini City at night and you will see many young girls lining the streets trying to make a living through sex work. They are increasing by the day and are getting even younger. You would swear you are somewhere in Johannesburg where such scenes are very common.
The buzzword nowadays, among both the unemployed and employed, is the job rush in other parts of the world. Scores of emaSwati have left for countries including the United States of America, the Republic of China (Taiwan) and Northern Ireland, among others, where there seems to be a ready job market for mostly Africans in the area of healthcare, palliative care and in the labour industry. There is a proliferation of mostly online agencies purporting to offer services that facilitate the placement of locals to these overseas jobs, many of them are just out to make a quick buck and leave desperate job-seekers in the lurch. In the minds of locals at this point, the prospects of working in countries where jobs are almost guaranteed far outweigh the attendant risk of human trafficking and being prey to the growing industry of trafficking of people for organ removals.
Dagga-growing
A young person who dropped out of Grade II in the Hhohho Region, who enters the dagga trade, makes more in a year than a person with a Master’s Degree or who runs a legitimate medium-sized enterprise. In fact, we have heard stories of teachers in dagga-growing areas being loaned money by their learners. How pathetic is that! The allure of toiling for years acquiring an education has long faded in this part of the world. We are breeding a generation of young people who are angry, disappointed and hungry. And that, unfortunately, will come back to bite us sooner than we think, unless something is done to take care of our young people who form the overwhelming majority of our population.
Government needs to take serious note of this brain drain and do something about it as of yesterday. I speak of a government with many reservations knowing that this unique system of governance we operate under has a very weird way of forming one. Job-seeking individuals have now resorted to trying to convince emaSwati to give them a chance at being decision and policy-makers. All manner of disjointed, empty promises are made to the gullible electorate so that a few of them can form a team of people who will be given instructions on what to do and what direction the country should take when election time comes. Those who choose to exercise their right not to vote are victimised by gatekeepers of this system whenever they have a chance to do so. Proof of voting has suddenly been made the one true yardstick to prove citizenship in this country. I know of someone who was humiliated at a national court when she had gone to follow proceedings of a case of assault she had opened. The presiding officer demanded to see if she had the ink mark on her thumbnail as evidence that she was a liSwati. Upon not seeing it, he chided her and claimed she was not a liSwati. Her national identity card was suddenly not sufficient. This is the kind of treatment our people are subjected to.
Many emaSwati have lost any sense of national pride and kinship with this country. They have lost hope and would gladly take any opportunity to live elsewhere, where the lives of people and their general well-being matter. To all these young people scrambling for these overseas opportunities, my word of advice is that they should be extra careful. Great care should be taken to screen the agencies before any money is sent. Otherwise, bon voyage. Right now, there isn’t much to stick around here for.