INTELLIGENCE MEMORANDUM SWAZILAND'S PUSH FOR DEVELOPMENT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP85T00875R001700020058-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 15
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 2, 2010
• Sequence Number: 58
• Publication Date: October 1, 1971
• Content Type: IM

Sanitized Copy Approved for
Release 2010/03/05 : r'j
CIA-RDP85T00875R0017000
Sanitized Copy Approved for
Release 2010/03/05
CIA-RDP85T00875R0017000
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/03/05 :CIA-RDP85T00875R001700/02)0058-5
~/Q'GI--C~ ~-
e~~-fo~ysv~ ~~-ao
y
Conf ident~:l
Intelligence Memorandum
Swaziland's Push :For Develo~bment
Confidential
ER ' IM 71-i:0.4
October 1971
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/03/05 :CIA-RDP85T00875R001700020058-5
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/03/05 :CIA-RDP85T00875R001700020058-5
WARNING
'This document contains information affecting the nationfxl
,defense of the United States, within the meaninb of Title
18, sections 793 Ind 794? of the US Code, as .amended.
Its transmission or revelation of its contents to or re-
ceipt by an imautliorized person is prohibited by law.
GROUP 1
EMCivded from avlamallt
downprodinU and
~admrificarien
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/03/05 :CIA-RDP85T00875R001700020058-5
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/03/05 :CIA-RDP85T00875R001700020058-5
CONFIDENTIAL
CENTRAL INTELLIGRN~CE AGENCY
Directorate of In#elligence
October 1971
INTELLIGENCE MEMORANDUM
SWAZILAND'S PUSH FOR DEVELOPMENT
Introduction
l . During Swaziland's final two decades as a British High Commission
Territory, which ended in 1968, its. economy grew rapidly. Investments in
mining, farming, and forestry resulted in large increases in exports and
generated about athree-fold increase in domestic wage-employment. The
momentum of ~;~rowth was not maintained, however, and development has
been negligible since independence. The government glow is engaged in a
p~ish to renew export growth and to increase agricultural productivity and
income. This memorandum describes the proposed projects that represent
Swaziland's principal development hopes and analyzes th~;ir anticipated
contributions to the economy.
Conclusions
2. Swaziland is preparing five major development projects. Two are
designed to increase farm output and to alleviate a longstanding
Swazi-expatriate land-ownership issue; a third is a large thermal electric
powerplant intended mainly tv export electricity to South Africa; and two
are mining projects that will produce iron ore and. asbestos for export.
Combined with Swaziland's overall development effort, these projects should
improve living standards. and stimulate modest economic growth - an
improvement over .the near stagnation of recent years.. The total impact,
however, will be much less dramatic than .that produced by the large
.investments of pre-independence years. During the 1970s the principal
contributions will consist mainly of employment generated by construction
activities,. a considerable expansion of Swazi-owned land, and some
improvement in food self-sufficiency and land and cattle management. The
Note: This memorandum was prepared by the Office of Eco-:omic Research
.and coordinated within the Directorate of hiteliigence.
COY~TFIDENTIAL
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/03/05 :CIA-RDP85T00875R001700020058-5
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/03/05 :CIA-RDP85T00875R001700020058-5
? CONFIDENTIAI~ i
major contributions will net accrue until the 1 ~i'80s when, under current
planning, all five projects will have begun operation. and the agricultural
measures will have had time to take effect.
Discussion
Background
3. After four years of self-government, clurin~ which it was unable
to retain the economic growth rate of its latier years as a British High
Commission Territory, Swaziland has beg~.~n a number of large development
projects to get its economy moving. It is a small landlocked country of
only 6,700 square miles (about the size of Hawaii), bordering Mozambique
on the east and enclosed by So~ith Africa on the north, west, and south
(see the map, Figure 1). Despite its smallness., however, it has remarkably
diverse resources .and topography. 1'he mountainous western region. has.
valuable mineral deposits -especially iron ore and asbestos. Much of the
country is suited to forestry, and the grass-covered plateaus cast of the
mountains, the Middle and Low Velds, contain large c+~al deposits and are.
suitable. for raising cattle and subtropical crops.
4. Land ownership has long been a sensitive political and emotional
issue in Swaziland. The Swazi tribe, the predominant segment of its
popula?ion of some 435,000, owns only 52% of .the land area; most, of
the remainder is individually o :vned by white expatriate farmers (see the
chart, Figure 2). Much of Swaziland was purchased by Europeans in the
19th century from Swazi chiefs. In 1907.. however, a UK proclam~ :and is
individually owned, and land sales or purchases are nonexistent. A system
of individual land tenure is 2 requisite to both programs to enable
participants to use their land as collateral for financing improvements and;
to insure that ber.~efits from increased productivity will accrue to the
individual producers. Although a tenure program still has not been enacted,
the government is consideri~ig granting long-term leases to the programs'
participants.. Such a system may foreshadow ~che formalization of stable
individual land tenure.
29. Finally, the land purchase and development program is intended
to alleviate, at least partly, the politically charged Swazi-versus-expatriate
land-ownership issue. When fully implemented, the program will purchase
about half of the expatriate-owned land. Although many tribal chiefs tend
to view this amount a ~ inadequate, the prospective purchases probably will
defuse the issue in the short run.
- 12 -
CONFIDENTIAL
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/03/05 :CIA-RDP85T00875R001700020058-5