Short facts about the government of Swaziland

Country name:

conventional long form:  Kingdom of Swaziland conventional short form:  Swaziland

Government type:

monarchy; independent member of Commonwealth

Capital:

Mbabane; note - Lobamba is the royal and legislative capital

Administrative divisions:

4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni

Independence:

6 September 1968 (from UK)

National holiday:

Independence Day, 6 September (1968)

Constitution:

none; constitution of 6 September 1968 was suspended 12 April 1973; a new constitution was promulgated 13 October 1978, but was not formally presented to the people; since then a few more outlines for a constitution have been compiled under the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC), but so far none have been accepted

Legal system:

based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage:

18 years of age

Executive branch:

chief of state:  King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986) head of government:  Prime Minister Sibusiso Barnabas DLAMINI (since 9 August 1996) cabinet:  Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by the monarch elections:  none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch

Legislative branch:

bicameral Parliament or Libandla, an advisory body, consists of the Senate (30 seats - 10 appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats - 10 appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms) elections:  House of Assembly - last held 16 and 24 October 1998 (next to be held NA 2003) election results:  House of Assembly - balloting is done on a nonparty basis; candidates for election are nominated by the local council of each constituency and for each constituency the three candidates with the most votes in the first round of voting are narrowed to a single winner by a second round

Judicial branch:

High Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch

Political parties and leaders:

Imbokodvo National Movement or INM [leader NA]; Ngwane National Libertatory Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president]; Swaziland National Front or SWANAFRO [Elmond SHONGWE, president]; Swaziland Progressive Party or SPP [J. J. NQUKU, president]; Swaziland United Front or SUF [Matsapa SHONGWE, leader] note:  political parties are banned by the constitution promulgated on 13 October 1978; illegal parties are prohibited from holding large public gatherings; the organizations listed are political associations

Political pressure groups and leaders:

NA

International organization participation:

ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:

chief of mission:  Ambassador Mary Madzandza KANYA chancery:  3400 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone:  [1] (202) 362-6683 FAX:  [1] (202) 244-8059

Diplomatic representation from the US:

chief of mission:  Ambassador Gregory L. JOHNSON embassy:  Central Bank Building, Warner Street, Mbabane mailing address:  P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone:  [268] 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX:  [268] 404-5959

Flag description:

three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red band is a large black and white shield covering two spears and a staff decorated with feather tassels, all placed horizontally

Source: World Factbook