Kongen af det forarmede Swazilands dyre rejse til britisk regentjubilæum forringer det lille sydafrikanske lands mulighed for at rette op på en elendig økonomi.
The spending comes just as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) criticised Swaziland for diverting money that should have been used on education and health to other spending according to Swaziland Newsletter Friday.
IMF withdrew team
As a result of this spending the IMF withdrew from Swaziland its team that was advising the government on economic recovery. Now, the kingdom will find it impossible to get the loans it needs from the World Bank and the African Development Bank to help rescue the economy.
State secret
The cost of King Mswati’s trip is a state secret, but it has been possible to piece together some of the spending.
To fly to London the King hired a private plane for an assumed price of 700.000 US dollar (4,1 mio. DKR), despite having received a jet as a gift for his birthday last month.
Five nights at luxury hotel
The King, who is sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, took an entourage of 30 people with him to the Diamond Jubilee. He stayed five nights at the 630 dollar-per-night Savoy Hotel. If his entourage stayed in the same hotel, the total hotel room bill was 94.500 dollar (560.000 DKR).
This gives a total spending of 794.500 dollar (4,7 mio. DKR).
Diplomatic response
In November 2011, Joannes Mongardini, head of the IMF team in Swaziland, was asked by the BBC whether he thought the King and the Royal family ought to make financial sacrifices to help Swaziland out of its economic mess. He responded diplomatically, ‘We would expect all Swazis to make a sacrifice.’
