Thanks for watching.... 1. Manzini 2. Mbabane 3. Big Bend 4. Malkerns 5. Mhlume 6. Hluti 7. Siteki 8. Piggs Peak 9. Lobamba 10. Mpaka Swaziland, officially the Kingdom of Swaziland (/swɑːzɨlænd/ or /swɑːzɨlənd/; Swazi: Umbuso weSwatini) and sometimes called kaNgwane or Eswatini, is a sovereign state in Southern Africa surrounded – with the exception of Mozambique to its east – by South Africa. It and its ethnic people take their names from Mswati II, the 19th-century king under whose rule Swazi territory was expanded and unified. Swaziland is one of the smallest countries in Africa. It is no more than 200 kilometres (120 mi) north to south and 130 kilometres (81 mi) east to west. Regardless, the country has a very diverse topography of varying climate with a cool and mountainous highveld and a hot and dry lowveld. The population is primarily ethnic Swazis whose language is siSwati. They established their kingdom in the mid 18th century under the leadership of Ngwane III; the present boundaries were drawn up in 1881. After the Anglo-Boer War, Swaziland was a British protectorate from 1903 until 1967, gaining independence on 6 September 1968. The country is a monarchy, currently ruled by King (Ngwenyama) Mswati III. The king is head of state and appoints the prime minister and a number of representatives of both chambers of parliament. Elections are held every five years to determine the majority of the house of assembly. The current constitution was adopted in 2005. Swaziland is a member of the Southern African Development Community, the African Union, and the Commonwealth of Nations. Swaziland is a developing country, with a small economy. It is classified as a lower-middle-income country with a GDP per capita of $6,367. With membership in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and COMESA, its main trading partners are South Africa, United States, European Union, and the country's currency, the lilangeni, is pegged to the South African Rand. The agriculture and manufacturing sectors of the country's economy are responsible for the majority of employment. The Swazi population faces major health issues. HIV/AIDS, and to a lesser extent, tuberculosis are the main health challenges. As of year 2013, Swaziland has an estimated life expectancy of 50 years. The population of Swaziland is fairly young with a median age of 20.5 years with people 14 years old and below making up 37.4% of the total population. The present population growth rate is 1.195%. Swaziland is well known for its culture. Umhlanga, held in the month of August/September, and incwala, the dance of the kingship held in December/January, are the most important national events. Artifacts indicating human activity dating back to the early Stone Age 200,000 years ago have been found in the Kingdom of Swaziland. Prehistoric rock art paintings date from c. 25,000 BC and continuing up to the 19th century can be found in various places around the country. The earliest known inhabitants of the region were Khoisan hunter-gatherers. They were largely replaced by the Bantu tribes during Bantu migrations who hailed from the Great Lakes regions of eastern and central Africa. Evidence of agriculture and iron use dates from about the 4th century and people speaking languages ancestral to current Sotho and Nguni languages began settling no later than the 11th century. The Swazi settlers, then known as the Ngwane (or bakaNgwane), before entering Swaziland had been settled on the banks of the Pongola River and prior to that in the area of the Tembe River near present day Maputo. Continuing conflict with the Ndwandwe people pushed them further north, with Ngwane III establishing his capital at Shiselweni at the foot of the Mhlosheni hills. Under Sobhuza I, the Ngwane people eventually established their capital at Zombodze in the heartland of present-day Swaziland. In this process, they conquered and incorporated the long established clans of the country known to the Swazi as Emakhandzambili. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swaziland

• published: 29 Aug 2014
• views: 1114