Eswatini
About parliament
Basic information such as the official name of parliament and details of its structure and leadership. Also includes the current breakdown of MPs by sex and age, and provisions for quotas and reserved seats.
Notes
Following the proclamation by the King on the occasion of the country’s 50th anniversary in April 2018, the country name has been modified from Swaziland to Eswatini with effective of 30 May 2018.
Suite à la proclamation du Roi à l'occasion du 50ème anniversaire du pays en avril 2018, le nom du pays a été modifié de Swaziland à Eswatini avec effet au 30 mai 2018.
Suite à la proclamation du Roi à l'occasion du 50ème anniversaire du pays en avril 2018, le nom du pays a été modifié de Swaziland à Eswatini avec effet au 30 mai 2018.
Parliament name
Libandla (Parliament)
Chamber name
House of Assembly
Structure & Status of parliament
This field is to indicate lower/upper in the back end.
Lower chamber
Parliamentary term (years)
5
IPU membership
Affiliation periods
from 2016
IPU Geopolitical Group/s
IPU Geopolitical Groups: African Group, Arab Group, Asia-Pacific Group, Eurasia Group, Group of Latin America and the Caribbean (GRULAC), Twelve Plus Group.
African Group
Speaker
Official title
The Speaker may for example be known as the Presiding Officer, President, Chairman/Chairperson, etc.
Speaker of the House of Assembly
Speaker
Petros
Mavimbela
(Male)
Year of birth
1963
Term
11.10.2018
Secretary General
Official title
This post is most commonly called Secretary General or Clerk. It may also be called Secretary, Head/Chief of the Secretariat, Director General, etc.
Clerk to Parliament
Secretary General
Benedict
Xaba
(Male)
Official title
This post is most commonly called Secretary General or Clerk. It may also be called Secretary, Head/Chief of the Secretariat, Director General, etc.
Clerk at Table of the House of Assembly
Secretary General
Raymond
Mkhonta
(Male)
Members
Statutory number of members
Statutory number of members, as defined in the constitution or other fundamental law.
Principal mode of designation of members
Directly elected
Compare data of this field.
Directly elected members
Directly elected by citizens.
59
Appointed members
Appointed, for example, by the Head of State.
10
Note on the statutory number of members
Appointed members: 10 members appointed by the Head of State.
Other: The Attorney General (ex-officio member)
The Speaker may be designated from outside parliament and thereby becomes an ex officio member of parliament.
The 2005 Constitution stipulates that the House of Assembly elects one woman from each of the four regions of the country in case the number of women is less than 30 per cent of the total membership of Parliament (the House of Assembly and the Senate). In accordance with the Election of Women to the House of Assembly Act (Act No.09 of 2018), four additional women were elected in November 2018. The House of Assembly thus comprises 74 members, instead of 70.
See historical data for this field.
Other: The Attorney General (ex-officio member)
The Speaker may be designated from outside parliament and thereby becomes an ex officio member of parliament.
The 2005 Constitution stipulates that the House of Assembly elects one woman from each of the four regions of the country in case the number of women is less than 30 per cent of the total membership of Parliament (the House of Assembly and the Senate). In accordance with the Election of Women to the House of Assembly Act (Act No.09 of 2018), four additional women were elected in November 2018. The House of Assembly thus comprises 74 members, instead of 70.
Current number of members
Number of members who currently hold seats in parliament. May be lower or higher than the statutory number of members.
Men
The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Women
The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Percentage of women
Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
Statutory number of members per country
As defined in the constitution or other fundamental laws. Combines the number of parliamentarians in both chambers in bicameral parliaments.
Population (in thousands)
Source: United Nations, World Population Prospects.
Inhabitants per parliamentarian
Calculated by dividing the population by the statutory number of parliamentarians.
Age
Data on the age of parliamentarians is collected at start of the legislature, following the most recent elections. This data is not updated during the legislature.
Average age of all members
Youngest member (years)
Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
Youngest member
Phila Wiseman Buthelezi (Male)
Oldest member (years)
Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
76
Oldest member
Barnabas Dlamini Prime Minister (Male)
Reserved seats and quotas
There are reserved seats in parliament for certain groups
Reserved seats are a means to ensure the parliamentary representation of certain groups in society.
Number of reserved seats, by group
Women
4
Electoral quota for women
Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
Notes
The Constitution requires that women should constitute 30% of the Parliament (Constitution 2005, Art. 95, para. 1c). At least half of the nominated members appointed by the King must be female (Constitution 2005, Art. 95, para. 2a). ‘Where at the first meeting of the House after any general election it appears that female members of Parliament will not constitute at least thirty per cent of the total membership of Parliament, then, and only then, the provisions of this section shall apply. […] For the purposes of this section, the House shall form itself into an electoral college and elect not more than four women on a regional basis to the House in accordance with the provisions of section 95(3).’ (Constitution 2005, Art. 86, para. 1, 2)
Legal source
Legal text that stipulates the quota, such as the Constitution or electoral law.
Constitution, art. 86§1, 95§1
Links to additional information
Parliamentary website
Link(s) to parliamentary web site in English, French and/or local languages.
Constitution
Official links to the Constitution in English, French and/or original language is provided. Links to unofficial translations where no other source is available.