Eswatini: Facts & Stats

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts

Also Known As	Umbuso weSwatini • Swaziland • Kingdom of Swaziland • Kingdom of eSwatini
Head Of State And Government	King: Mswati III, assisted by Prime Minister: Russell Dlamini
Capitals	Mbabane (administrative and judicial); Lobamba (legislative)⁵
Population	(2024 est.) 1,206,000
Form Of Government	monarchy² with two legislative houses (Senate [30³]; House of Assembly [65⁴])
Official Languages	Swati (Swazi); English
Official Religion	none
Official Name¹	Umbuso weSwatini (Swati); Kingdom of Eswatini (English)
Total Area (Sq Km)	17,364
Total Area (Sq Mi)	6,704
Monetary Unit	lilangeni⁶ (plural emalangeni [E])
Population Rank	(2023) 161
Population Projection 2030	1,322,000
Density: Persons Per Sq Mi	(2024) 179.9
Density: Persons Per Sq Km	(2024) 69.5
Urban-Rural Population	Urban: (2024) 25% • Rural: (2024) 75%
Life Expectancy At Birth	Male: (2022) 57.6 years • Female: (2022) 61.8 years
Literacy: Percentage Of Population Age 15 And Over Literate	Male: (2020) 89% • Female: (2020) 89%
Gni (U.S.$ ’000,000)	(2022) 4,565
Gni Per Capita (U.S.$)	(2022) 3,800
¹On April 19, 2018, it was announced by the king that the new official name would be changed to Eswatini.²Controversial constitution became effective by royal decree on February 8, 2006.³Includes 20 nonelective seats.⁴Includes 10 nonelective seats and 1 ex officio seat (the speaker, who may be designated from outside the House of Assembly).⁵Lozitha and Ludzidzini, royal residences close to Lobamba, have national symbolic significance.⁶The lilangeni is pegged to the South African rand at 1:1; the rand is accepted as legal tender within Eswatini.