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Background: Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the British in the late 19th century; independence was granted 1968. Student and labor unrest during the 1990s have pressured the monarchy (one of the oldest on the continent) to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy.
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Common Name: Swaziland
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Local Official Name: Swaziland
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Abbreviated Name: Kingdom of Swaziland
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Official Name: Swaziland
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Official Script Name: Swaziland
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Local Common Name: Swaziland
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Former Name: Swaziland
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Territory of: NA
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Head of State: King MSWATI III
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Government Type: monarchy; independent member of Commonwealth
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Independence: 1968 September 6 (from UK)
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Constitution: none (constitution of 6 September 1968 was suspended 12
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National Holiday: Independence Day, 6 September
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International Organization Participation: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
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Administrative Divisions: 4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni
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Dependent Areas: NA
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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
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Suffrage: 18 years of age years
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Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches: 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
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Party Leaders: political parties are banned by the constitution - the following are considered political associations - 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]
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International Disputes: Swaziland continues to press South Africa into ceding ethnic Swazi lands in Kangwane region of KwaZulu-Natal province that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom
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Illicit Drugs: NA
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Location of Swaziland: Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa
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Continent: Africa
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Land Area Total: 17,363 sq km
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Region: Southern African |
Land Area Land: 17,203 sq km
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Capitol City: Mbabane; note - Lobamba is the royal and legislative capital
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Land Area Water: 160 sq km
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Current:
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Latitude: 026 30 S
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Border Boundary Land: 535 km
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Longitude: 031 30 E
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Border Boundary Coastline: 0 km
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Arable Land: 10.00 %
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Pastures: 0.00 %
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Crops: 1.00 %
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Woodlands and Forests: 0.00
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Highest Elevation: 1,862 m
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Location: Emlembe
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Lowest Elevation: 21 m
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Location: Great Usutu River
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Largest City in Swaziland: Mbabane
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Mbabane Largest City Population: 73,000
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Threatened Species: 0
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Environmental Issues: limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion
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Environmental Agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Desertification, Law of the Sea
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Irrigated Land: 690
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Bordering Countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km
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Natural Resources: asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc
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Geographical Terrain: mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains
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Comparative Area of Swaziland: slightly smaller than New Jersey
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Swaziland's Geography: landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa
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Click Here for detailed information about the weather conditions in Swaziland.
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General Climate: varies from tropical to near temperate
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Natural Hazards: drought
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Economic Overview: In this small landlocked economy, subsistence agriculture occupies more than 80% of the population. Manufacturing features a number of agroprocessing factories. Mining has declined in importance in recent years: diamond mines have shut down because of the depletion of easily accessible reserves; high-grade iron ore deposits were depleted by 1978; and health concerns have cut world demand for asbestos. Exports of soft drink concentrate, sugar, and wood pulp are the main earners of hard currency. Surrounded by South Africa, except for a short border with Mozambique, Swaziland is heavily dependent on South Africa from which it receives nine-tenths of its imports and to which it sends more than two-thirds of its exports. Remittances from the Southern African Customs Union and Swazi workers in South African mines substantially supplement domestically earned income. The government is trying to improve the atmosphere for foreign investment. Overgrazing, soil depletion, drought, and sometimes floods persist as problems for the future. Prospects for 2002 are strengthened by the country's status as a beneficiary of the US African Growth and Opportunity Act initiative.
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GDP: $4,600,000,000 USD
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Currency: lilangeni
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GDP per Capita: $4,200 USD
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Currency Code: SZL
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GDP Growth Rate: 2.50 %
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One $USD Equals: %fincurrencyequals% SZL
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Currency Exchange Rate History: emalangeni per US dollar - 11.5808 (January 2002), 8.4933 (2001), 6.9056 (2000), 6.1087 (1999), 5.4807 (1998), 4.6032 (1997); note - the Swazi lilangeni is at par with the South African rand; emalangeni is the plural form of lilangeni
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GDP of Agriculture: 10.00 %
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GDP of Industry: 43.00 %
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GDP of Services: 47.00 % |
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Inflation Rate: 7.50 % |
Population in Poverty: 0.00 %
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Unemployment Rate: 34.00 %
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Tourism: 319,000.00 visitors each year
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Consumption by lowest 10%: 0.00 %
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Budget Revenue in USD: $448,000,000 USD
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Consumption by upper 10%: 0.00 %
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Budget Expenditures in USD: $506,900,000 USD
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Electricity Production: 362,000,000 kWh
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Electricity Exports: 0 kWh
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Electricity Consumption: 900,660,000 kWh
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Electricity Imports: 564,000,000 kWh
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Electricity Production by Source:
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Fossil Fuel Electricity Production: 55.80%
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Nuclear Electricity Production: 0.00%
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Hydro Electricity Production: 44.20%
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Other Electricity Production: 0.00%
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Oil Production: 0 barrels per day
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Natural Gas Production: 0 cu m
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Oil Consumption: 0 barrels per day
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Natural Gas Consumption: 0 cu m
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Oil Exports: 0 barrels per day
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Natural Gas Exports: 0 cu m
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Oil Imports: 0 barrels per day
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Natural Gas Imports: 0 cu m
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Proven Oil Reserves: 0 barrels
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Proven Natural Gas Reserves: 0 cu m
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External Debt: $336,000,000 USD |
Received in economic aid: $104,000,000 USD
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Donated in economic aid: $0 USD
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Agricultural Products: sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep
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Primary Industries: mining (coal), wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates, textile and apparel
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Industrial Growth Rate: 3.70 %
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Import Amount in USD: $850,000,000 USD - motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals
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Import Partners: South Africa 89%, EU 5%, Japan 2%, Singapore 2%
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Export Amount in USD: $702,000,000 USD - soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit
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Export Partners: South Africa 72%, EU 12%, UK 6%, Mozambique 4%, US 4%
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GINI Index: 0.00%
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Labor Force Number of People: 0
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Labor Force by Occupations: NA
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Radio Broadcast Stations: 8 |
Number of People with Radios: 170,000 |
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Television Broadcast Stations: 5 |
Number of People with Televisions: 23,000 |
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Number of People with Mainline Telephones: 38,500 |
Number of People with Mobile Phones: 45,000 |
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Internet Service Providers: 6 |
Internet Users: 6,000 |
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Internet Country Code: .sz |
Newspapers: 27 |
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Two Letter Country Code: SZ |
Weights and Measures: |
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Phone Country Code: +268 |
Electricity Voltage: Volts |
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Telephone Systems: general assessment: a somewhat modern but not an advanced system
domestic: system consists of carrier-equipped, open-wire lines and low-capacity, microwave radio relay
international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
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Highways: 1,064 km |
Railways: 297 km
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Gas And Oil Pipelines: 0 km |
Waterways: 0 km
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Airports: 1 |
Heliports: 0
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Motor Vehicles: 77 per 1,000 people |
CO2 Emissions: 0 Metric Tons of CO2 per year |
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Per capita CO2 emissions: 0.00 Metric Tons of CO2 per year |
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Merchant Marines: NA
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Ports and Harbors: NA
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Population: 1,123,605 people type - nationality |
Birth Rate: 39.59 births per 1,000 people |
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Population Density: 56.00 people per sq km |
Death Rate: 23.26 deaths per 1,000 people |
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Population Growth: 1.63% per year |
Fertility Rate per Women: 5.77 babies born per woman |
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Population Male 0-14: 254,573 |
Population Female 0-14: 256,677 |
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Population Male 15-64: 281,645 |
Population Female 15-64: 301,071 |
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Population Male 65+: 12,027 |
Population Female 65+: 17,612 |
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Population 0-14: 45.50% |
Literacy Rate: 78.30% |
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Population 15-64: 51.90% |
Literacy rate of Males: 78.00% |
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Population 65+: 2.60% |
Literacy rate of Females: 78.40% |
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Population that is Male: 47.50
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Population that is Female: 52.50% |
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Life expectancy at birth in years: 37.00 years |
Infant mortality rate - baby deaths per 1000 births: 109.43 Babies die per 1,000 births |
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Life expectancy at birth for Males: 36.35 years |
Life expectancy at birth for Females: 37.66 years |
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Rate of AIDS/HIV infection: 35.60%
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Number of people living with AIDS or HIV: 212,000
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Number of people who died of AIDS: 7,100 |
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Disease Risk:
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Diseases:
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Net Migration Rate per 1,000 people: 0.00
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Nationality: SWAZI
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Ethnic Groups: African 97%, European 3%
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Primary Language: English
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Other Languages: English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official)
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Primary Religion: Zionist
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Other Religions: Zionist (a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral worship) 40%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, Anglican, Bahai, Methodist, Mormon, Jewish and other 30%
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Branches: Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (Army), Royal Swaziland Police Force
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Manpower Fit to Serve: NA years
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Manpower Available: 253,510 People
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Manpower Fit to Serve: 146,805 People
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Amount of Manpower Available each Year: 0 People per year
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Expenditures: $20,000,000 USD per year
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Expenditures as a Percentage of GDP: 4.75
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Note: Phrasebase uses a variety of sources when compiling the facts and information presented above. This information is continually updated throughout the year.
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Swaziland Spa and Resort Directory
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