BY SIFISO NHLABATSI
EZULWINI – Eswatini has been urged to harness its renewable energy resources to strengthen energy security, improve economic resilience and unlock new opportunities for sustainable investment.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative Henrik Franklin said the country’s transition towards a sustainable economy should not be viewed solely as an environmental obligation, but as a strategy for strengthening competitiveness, reducing economic risks and creating long-term value.
Franklin was speaking during the 7th International Sustainability Summit held at Royal Villas, Ezulwini, on Friday, under the theme, “From Ambition to Execution: Building Resilience and Unlocking Business Value.”
He said Eswatini had an opportunity to use its renewable energy resources to strengthen energy security while supporting the development of more efficient and competitive industries.
“Eswatini can use its renewable energy resources to strengthen energy security. It can develop more efficient and competitive industries,” Franklin said.
He said the country could also create value from materials currently treated as waste, expand sustainable agriculture, eco-tourism and nature-based enterprises, and use green finance to mobilise investment into resilient infrastructure and productive sectors.
Franklin said sustainability was no longer simply about making commitments or adopting policies, but about ensuring that those commitments resulted in tangible changes in the economy and people’s lives.
He said the central question facing governments, businesses and other stakeholders was whether they could translate sustainability commitments into different investment decisions, resilient infrastructure, responsible value chains, decent jobs and measurable improvements in people’s lives.
“The central challenge is no longer whether sustainability matters. That argument has largely been settled. The question before us is whether we can translate these commitments into different investment decisions, different production systems, more resilient infrastructure, responsible value chains, decent jobs and measurable improvements in people’s lives,” he said.
According to Franklin, climate change was already affecting water security, agricultural production, infrastructure, the cost of doing business, energy systems and the livelihoods of vulnerable households in Eswatini.
He said increasingly frequent and intense droughts, floods, storms and wildfires were creating direct financial losses for government, businesses and communities.
Franklin further warned that changing international markets were placing greater emphasis on carbon footprints, environmental standards, supply-chain transparency and responsible business conduct.
He said companies that failed to anticipate these changes risked facing higher operating costs, reduced competitiveness and declining access to markets and finance.
However, he said the sustainability transition presented significant opportunities for Eswatini if the country was able to position itself strategically.
“Sustainability must therefore be understood not simply as an environmental obligation, but as a strategy for economic resilience, competitiveness, and long-term value creation,” Franklin said.
He also emphasised the importance of responsible investment, saying businesses that respected communities, protected workers, managed environmental impacts and maintained transparent governance were better positioned to create lasting value.
Franklin said environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles should not be treated merely as corporate social responsibility initiatives or additional reporting requirements.
Instead, he said ESG was fundamentally about understanding risk, responsibility and value creation, noting that environmental stewardship, human rights, worker safety, inclusion, transparency and good governance were foundations of resilient and competitive economies.
The UNDP representative also highlighted the organisation’s work in Eswatini aimed at supporting the country’s transition towards a greener and more resilient economy.
He said UNDP was working with the Eswatini Environment Authority, with funding from the Global Environment Facility, on reducing persistent organic pollutants and unintentional persistent organic pollutants.
He said the organisation was also supporting efforts to eliminate polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which can pose risks to human health and the environment.
Franklin said UNDP’s work in climate resilience, biodiversity conservation, sustainable finance, youth empowerment and green enterprise development was guided by the need to ensure that economic development created opportunities while safeguarding people and the environment.
He further revealed that UNDP was working with the Central Bank of Eswatini and other stakeholders, with support from the NDC Partnership, to develop the Eswatini Green Finance Taxonomy.
The initiative, he said, was intended to guide financial flows and investments towards the green economy while helping prevent greenwashing.
Franklin urged stakeholders attending the summit to move beyond dialogue and focus on implementation, stressing that sustainability should be treated as a continuous process requiring learning, adaptation and collaboration.
He said government, businesses, development partners, regulators, researchers and communities needed to work together to develop practical solutions.
“When solutions emerge, sustainability moves from ambition to execution,” he said.
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