The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Eswatini

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This page contains a list of the greatest Swazi Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 19,576 Politicians, 6 of which were born in Eswatini. This makes Eswatini the birth place of the 174th most number of Politicians behind Grenada, and Andorra.

Top 7

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Swazi Politicians of all time. This list of famous Swazi Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.

Photo of Sobhuza II

1. Sobhuza II (1899 - 1982)

With an HPI of 61.78, Sobhuza II is the most famous Swazi Politician.  His biography has been translated into 39 different languages on wikipedia.

Sobhuza II (Swazi: [sɔbʱuzʱa]; also known as Nkhotfotjeni, Mona; 22 July 1899 – 21 August 1982) was Ngwenyama (King) of Swaziland (now Eswatini) for 82 years and 254 days, the longest verifiable reign of any monarch in recorded history. Sobhuza was born on 22 July 1899 at Zombodze Royal Residence, the son of Inkhosikati Lomawa Ndwandwe and King Ngwane V. When he was only four months old, his father died suddenly while dancing incwala. Sobhuza was chosen king soon after that and his grandmother Labotsibeni and his uncle Prince Malunge led the Swazi nation until his maturity in 1921. Sobhuza was acknowledged as King by the British in 1967, and Swaziland achieved independence in 1968. Sobhuza continued to reign until his death in 1982. He was succeeded by Mswati III, his young son with Inkhosikati Ntfombi Tfwala, who was crowned in 1986.

Photo of Mswati III

2. Mswati III (b. 1968)

With an HPI of 58.22, Mswati III is the 2nd most famous Swazi Politician.  His biography has been translated into 76 different languages.

Mswati III (born Makhosetive; 19 April 1968) is the Ngwenyama (King) of Eswatini and head of the Swazi royal family. He heads an absolute monarchy, as he has veto power over all branches of government and is constitutionally immune from prosecution. He was born in Manzini in the Protectorate of Swaziland to King Sobhuza II and one of his younger wives, Ntfombi Tfwala. He was crowned as Mswati III, Ingwenyama and King of Swaziland, on 25 April 1986 at the age of 18, thus becoming the youngest ruling monarch in the world at that time. With unrestricted political power and able to rule by decree, Mswati III (together with his mother, Ntfombi Tfwala, now Queen Mother [Ndlovukati]) is the last remaining absolute monarch in Africa and one of the only 12 remaining absolute national or subnational monarchs in the world. Under the constitution, the king is the commander-in-chief of the defence force and commissioner-in-chief of police and correctional services and Mswati III exercises ultimate authority over all branches of the national government and effectively controls local governance through his influence over traditional chiefs. Under his reign, political dissent and civic and labor activism are subject to harsh punishment under sedition and other laws. Political parties have been banned in Eswatini since 1973 when King Sobhuza II declared a state of emergency that has continued ever since. Pro-democracy protests from 2021 onwards have been violently dispersed and political activists have been arrested, subjected to torture and other ill-treatment, and their homes have been raided by security forces. The government exercises total control over the broadcast media, including the only privately owned TV channel, which belongs to the royal family. Almost all media outlets are controlled, directly or indirectly, by Mswati III. Mswati III lives an opulent and lavish lifestyle which stands in sharp contrast to the lives of most Emaswazi people. In 2022, an estimated 32% of the population lived below the $2.15/day international poverty line (measured by price-purchasing parity (PPP) in 2017) while 55% of the population was under the lower-middle-income country poverty line of $3.65/day. Mswati III is known for his practice of polygamy (although at least two wives are appointed by the state) and currently has 16 wives. Formerly named Swaziland, in 2018 Mswati III renamed the country Eswatini (formally the Kingdom of Eswatini) by decree.

Photo of Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini

3. Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini (1942 - 2018)

With an HPI of 49.02, Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini is the 3rd most famous Swazi Politician.  His biography has been translated into 28 different languages.

Prince Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini (15 May 1942 – 28 September 2018) was a Swazi politician who served as Prime Minister of Eswatini, from 1996 to 2003 and again from October 2008 to September 2018.

Photo of Ntfombi of Eswatini

4. Ntfombi of Eswatini (b. 1950)

With an HPI of 49.01, Ntfombi of Eswatini is the 4th most famous Swazi Politician.  Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Ntfombi (born Ntfombi Tfwala; 27 December 1949) has been Queen Mother of Eswatini since 1986. She was also regent of Eswatini from 1983 to 1986. She is the mother of King Mswati III.

Photo of Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini

5. Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini (1968 - 2020)

With an HPI of 43.32, Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini is the 5th most famous Swazi Politician.  His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini (15 March 1968 – 13 December 2020) was a Swazi business executive who served as the tenth prime minister of Eswatini, holding the office from October 2018 until his death on 13 December 2020. Born in Eswatini's Manzini Region, Dlamini completed his degree at the University of Swaziland and an MBA at Hampton University, going on to work in the banking and telecommunications sectors. His career of more than 18 years in these sectors included positions as managing director of Nedbank and as CEO of MTN Eswatini. Following the death of Prime Minister Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini in 2018, Dlamini was selected by King Mswati III to succeed him. He was the youngest prime minister in the country's history, and had no prior government experience. His work in government included cutting of nonessential expenses and making plans to improve the country's economy and ease of doing business ranking. He was also the head of the country's AIDS council.

Photo of Sotsha Dlamini

6. Sotsha Dlamini (1940 - 2017)

With an HPI of 40.31, Sotsha Dlamini is the 6th most famous Swazi Politician.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Prince Sotsha Ernest Dlamini (27 May 1940 – 7 February 2017) was Prime Minister of Swaziland from 6 October 1986 to 12 July 1989. He was born in Mankayane. Dlamini died on 7 February 2017, aged 76.

Photo of Sikhanyiso Dlamini

7. Sikhanyiso Dlamini (b. 1987)

With an HPI of 32.04, Sikhanyiso Dlamini is the 7th most famous Swazi Politician.  Her biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Princess Sikhanyiso Dlamini (Swazi: [sikʰaɲiso ɮʱamini]; born 1 September 1987) is a Swazi princess and politician. She is the eldest daughter of King Mswati III of Eswatini, and is the country's former Minister of Information and Communication Technology.

People

Pantheon has 7 people classified as Swazi politicians born between 1899 and 1987. Of these 7, 3 (42.86%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Swazi politicians include Mswati III, Ntfombi of Eswatini, and Sikhanyiso Dlamini. The most famous deceased Swazi politicians include Sobhuza II, Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini, and Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini. As of April 2024, 1 new Swazi politicians have been added to Pantheon including Sotsha Dlamini.

Living Swazi Politicians

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Deceased Swazi Politicians

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Newly Added Swazi Politicians (2024)

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Overlapping Lives

Which Politicians were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 4 most globally memorable Politicians since 1700.