By: Nkosiyabusa Nsibande
The use of public procurement as a tool for economic development could provide Eswatini’s creative sector with a more reliable route to growth, particularly by connecting local producers to the substantial and recurring demand generated by government institutions.
Speaking on the importance of building a stronger “Made in Eswatini” economy, Peculiar People Eswatini founder, executive chairman, and creative director Melusi “Zox” Dlamini said the country’s challenge is not necessarily a shortage of creative talent, but the limited commercial opportunities available to turn that talent into sustainable businesses. He argued that entrepreneurs, designers, and manufacturers need access to markets that can provide the revenue certainty required to invest in production capacity and employment.
“We have access to hundreds of entrepreneurs, innovators, designers, and creators producing exceptional products. Yet they struggle not because they lack quality or innovation, but because they lack visibility, opportunity, market access, and trust,” Dlamini said.
His proposal places government procurement at the center of efforts to expand domestic production. Rather than treating local creatives solely as recipients of support programs, Dlamini wants them to be positioned as commercial suppliers capable of competing for government contracts where sufficient local capacity already exists.
“Where local capacity exists, can we please explore how we can localize the design and production of apparel for our security forces, our healthcare personnel, as well as other public institutions?” he asked.
Such an approach could create economic linkages extending well beyond the businesses that directly receive government contracts. Local production of uniforms, for example, could generate demand for designers, textile manufacturers, printers, fabric suppliers, transporters, and other service providers. Similar opportunities could emerge from government procurement of locally produced furniture, artwork, interior products, and other creative goods.
For small and growing enterprises, the importance of such demand extends beyond simply winning an individual contract. Predictable orders can provide businesses with greater certainty when making decisions about equipment, employees, inventory and premises. They can also give entrepreneurs a clearer basis for managing cash flow and planning future investment.
“If the government can become the biggest customer of this sector, we can create something incredibly powerful, which is predictable demand,” Dlamini said.
From a financial perspective, predictable demand can also strengthen a business’s commercial profile. Regular contracts and documented sales can improve financial record-keeping and provide evidence of revenue generation when an enterprise approaches financial institutions for working capital or expansion funding. However, access to credit would still depend on the business’s financial position, lending requirements, and ability to demonstrate repayment capacity.
Dlamini believes the broader economic benefit would come from keeping a greater share of public expenditure within the local economy. When domestic enterprises fulfill government purchases, the initial expenditure can circulate through local suppliers, employees, and service providers, creating additional economic activity.
“It would keep more money circulating within our economy and, importantly, create a sustainable ecosystem in which our creatives, designers, manufacturers, and entrepreneurs can grow from small businesses into strong competitive enterprises,” he said.
The proposal, however, does not remove responsibility from the private sector. Dlamini stressed that local entrepreneurs must demonstrate they can meet the standards expected of institutional customers. Local procurement should create opportunities to compete, rather than protect businesses from the commercial discipline of quality, reliability, and performance.
“We are not really asking for favors. We are asking for opportunities to compete, to produce, to learn and to grow,” he said.
For businesses seeking to benefit from public procurement, commercial readiness will therefore remain critical. Entrepreneurs need to understand procurement requirements, maintain proper financial records, protect their intellectual property, meet production standards, and demonstrate that they can consistently deliver orders on time. Without these foundations, increased access to procurement opportunities may not translate into sustainable business growth.
Dlamini also called on creatives to take a more proactive approach to securing markets rather than waiting for institutions to discover their work. He said entrepreneurs should actively present their products to policymakers, government departments, and other potential buyers, demonstrating how local products can meet institutional requirements.
“We have to collaborate more. We have to host more of such events. And we have to put our designs on our policymakers,” he said.
He believes this approach should extend beyond fashion into furniture and the visual arts, with local products gaining greater visibility in government offices and at public events. Increased visibility, in his view, can influence purchasing decisions while demonstrating to consumers and institutions that local businesses can produce commercially valuable products.
“We need our furniture, our arts dominating government offices, not because they have called us, but because we have been proactive and we have offered our products,” Dlamini said.
The same strategic thinking, he argued, should guide the sector’s approach to influencers and public figures. While businesses may be attracted to personalities with large audiences, Dlamini believes the focus should be on individuals whose visibility can strengthen the credibility and market positioning of local brands.
“Let us make it impossible for our policymakers to ignore the work that we are doing. We need the right people wearing our designs,” he said.
The underlying objective is to make “Made in Eswatini” commercially meaningful rather than simply a patriotic label. For local production to become a sustainable contributor to economic growth, businesses must combine creativity with quality, reliable supply, sound financial management, and effective market development.
The opportunity presented by public procurement is therefore larger than securing individual government contracts. If properly linked to local production capacity, it could help create recurring revenue streams, encourage investment in manufacturing, support employment, and strengthen domestic supply chains.
For Eswatini’s creative sector, the ultimate measure of success will be whether businesses can use local opportunities as a platform to build stronger enterprises that can compete in regional and international markets. Government can help create the demand, but the responsibility for converting that demand into commercially sustainable businesses will not rest with the entrepreneurs themselves.
