Traditionally, the Swazi lived in family homesteads (imithi) dispersed throughout the countryside. The only larger settlements were the homesteads of royalty and chiefs. This pattern has been modified since the late 19th century by the exposure of the rural Swazi to the money economy. Nucleated settlements grew up at important administrative and trading centres under British colonial rule from 1903, but the process of urbanization accelerated only after World War II, when the establishment of major agricultural, mining, and industrial operations acted as magnets for job seekers and created sizable company towns such as Mhlume, Simunye, Big Bend, and Mhlambanyatsi. The largest are the administrative capital of Mbabane and the commercial and industrial centre of Manzini. More than one-fifth of the population is urban.

The rural population lives within a communal land tenure system administered by the traditional chiefs. A typical homestead includes the main hut of the headman (umnumzane); the huts of his mother, wife (or wives), and children; the kitchen and storerooms; and the cattle enclosure (isibaya) in front and facing east. Cattle are more than draft animals and a source of milk. They constitute a store of wealth for use on social and ceremonial occasions (e.g., lobola, or bride-price).

The traditional pattern of homestead life is strictly seasonal. With the onset of the rains in spring (August or September), women plant gardens along the riverbanks; later, when the heavy rains come in summer (October to February), with help from the men, they plow or hoe to sow corn (maize) and sorghum (a millet) in larger fields. At this time all able women and children abandon their homesteads for the fields, and the men also join in the planting and weeding. The summer months are, on the whole, the hungry months, unless supplemented by remittances from working members of the family. Autumn to early winter (March to May) is the harvest; by July the last of the corn and sorghum has been dried and brought in. Activity then moves to the homesteads, where women and men thresh the grain, the best of which is stored and the remainder consumed at once. Winter is a time for relaxation, hunting, entertaining, and visiting. To some extent this traditional round has been disrupted by population pressure on land, by increased drift to the towns, by the absence of men working in the cities, and by the use of hired tractors for plowing, but the basic pattern is still recognizable.

The traditional centres of Swazi life are the royal villages of the ngwenyama (the king) at Ludzidzini and of the ndlovukazi (the queen mother) at Phondvo, both of which are in the “royal heart” of the country and not far from the old royal capital of Lobamba.

Demographic trends

Eswatini has a very young population, with more than one-third under the age of 15 and almost another one-third between 15 and 29 years of age. Life expectancy is higher for women than for men, and the average for both is about 57 years, which is much lower than the global average. Eswatini’s population growth rate is slightly lower than the world average, while the country’s birth and death rates are both higher than the world average. The lower life expectancy and population growth rate and the higher than average death rate are in part due to the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the adult population.

Agriculture and forestry

A mixture of subsistence and commercial farming is practiced in Eswatini. The staple crop is corn, and other crops include sorghum (mainly for the brewing of traditional beer), pumpkins, beans, peas, and other vegetables. Crop yields are generally low, but the more progressive farmers produce on a par with the large-scale commercial sector. Because of the role of cattle as a traditional store of wealth, the livestock population, mostly cattle and goats, greatly exceeds the country’s carrying capacity and is a major cause of vegetation loss and soil erosion.

The largest agro-industry is the cultivation of sugarcane and the manufacture of sugar. Also of major commercial importance are the extensive man-made forests of pine and eucalyptus (in the Highveld), which supply timber to a wood pulp mill and several sawmills. Unbleached wood pulp is the country’s second largest export after sugar. The area under timber plantations is about 6 percent of the country’s total area. Other important crops are citrus fruits and cotton (Lowveld), pineapples (Middleveld), rice, tobacco, and vegetables. Commercial livestock farming is also important, particularly in the Lowveld, and supports meat processing and dairy plants.

Industry

Mining has declined in relative importance since the 1960s, asbestos and coal in particular. Iron ore, tin, and gold have been exploited sporadically in the past, but no mines are now active. Since 1984 diamonds have been growing in importance and are now the second largest mineral export after asbestos.

The processing of agricultural, forest, and livestock products forms the backbone of the industrial sector. Other manufactures include textiles and clothing, which expanded enormously in the 1980s, beverages, office equipment, furniture, and various other light industries.

Tourism, particularly from South Africa, has become a major sector of the economy. Centred on the hotel and casino complex in the central Ezulwini valley (about seven miles from Mbabane), the sector boasts smaller complexes at Piggs Peak in the north and at Nhlangano in the south. High-quality handmade textiles and tapestries and a range of stone and wooden handicrafts complement this sector.