Lozitha – Zimbabwean businessman and philanthropist Wicknell Chivayo has been granted Eswatini citizenship and issued a diplomatic passport following a private audience with King Mswati III at the Royal Palace.
Chivayo, who described the meeting as among the greatest honours of his life, said the King praised his philanthropic work across Africa and expressed strong interest in attracting African-led investment into the Kingdom.
“The highlight of my courtesy visit was His Majesty’s most humbling instruction to his administration, which bestowed upon me the highest honour of being granted Eswatini citizenship, as the King accepted me as his young, fellow African son,” Chivayo wrote on his official X account, @sir_wicknell. 
The businessman said the diplomatic passport was presented to him to facilitate ease of travel and business operations in Eswatini, particularly in the area of infrastructure development.
Chivayo said their discussions ranged across industrialisation, energy security, infrastructure development and private sector growth, with King Mswati III speaking at length about unlocking the Kingdom’s renewable energy potential and attracting strategic investment to improve the lives of ordinary emaSwati.
“It was particularly exciting to exchange views on the development of large-scale utility projects, including renewable energy, which has the potential to attract the largest investments in Southern Africa,” he said.
Chivayo pledged his companies and technical partners would mobilise substantial capital and raise funding through debt from local banks and pension funds to deliver on bankable projects in the Kingdom.
He also contrasted Eswatini’s investment climate favourably against that of Zimbabwe, noting that unlike his home country, which has faced decades of economic sanctions and perceived sovereign risk, Eswatini presents a strong opportunity for large-scale development given its credit rating and backing from multilateral development financiers.
King Mswati III also commended Chivayo’s support for ruling parties in the Southern African region, including ZANU PF under President Emmerson Mnangagwa, and the two discussed the responsibility young Africans have in driving the continent’s socioeconomic development.
Chivayo described the monarch as “soft-spoken yet exceptionally astute, traditional yet remarkably forward-thinking,” adding that few leaders possess the ability to preserve cultural heritage while simultaneously embracing modernisation and economic progress.
