As Taiwan prepares to vote on January 13, 2024 in a presidential election, its official diplomatic relations with Africa are now almost non-existent since it has lost almost all its support there. Apart from Somaliland, which has not yet managed to establish itself as a sovereign state, only the Kingdom of Eswatini continues to officially recognize Taiwan as a country.
4 mins
This small landlocked state inside South Africa has always remained an unwavering ally of Taiwan. Just recently, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen was received with great fanfare in Mbabane, to celebrate a triple anniversary: the fifty-five years of independence of the former British colony, relations with Taiwan, and also the fifty-five years of King Mswati III. A visit organized as a response to the trip of the Chinese head of state Xi Jinping to South Africa two weeks earlier, for the summit of Brics.
“I like coming here, I like the friendship you offer us, and I hope that this friendship will continue and intensify, and that the relationship between our two countries will last forever “, declared the outgoing president received at the royal palace of Lozitha last September. Because, unlike the Gambia, São Tomé and Principe, or Burkina Faso, which have all turned their backs on the island since 2016, the kingdom of 1.2 million inhabitants remains loyal to it and therefore retains a large symbolic value for the Taiwanese government.
A royal choice
There are only thirteen left in the world to recognize the Republic of China (ROC) and to maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. The rest of the nations diplomatically recognize the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
For’Eswatiniformerly called Swaziland, the choice to remain aligned with Taipei is explained above all by the goodwill of the king Mswati III, who reigns supreme over Africa’s last absolute monarchy. Since his accession to the throne in 1986, the sovereign has maintained a great affinity with the Pacific island, and has already visited there 18 times. When he was infected with Covid-19, it was Tsai Ing-wen who sent him treatment to cure himself. The reconstruction of the country after the riots of 2021 was also partly financed by largesse from Taiwan, and one of the monarch’s sons, like many other young Swazis, was able to study on the island and obtain his diploma there. Taipei also turns a blind eye to the lack of democracy within this small country and to human rights abuses.
“ This relationship has always been very strong, and we have no reason to believe that it could weaken in the future », insists the spokesperson for the Swazi government, Alpheous Nxumalo. “ Taiwan would bring a lot and for a long time to the international community if they were allowed to participate in different organizations and the UN system. », he adds, even though the island lost its seat on the Security Council in 1971.
A decision more political than economic
During her last visit, the outgoing Taiwanese president signed three agreements, including the project to build an oil reservoir in the country, to ensure greater energy independence. Taiwan also supports the kingdom in areas such as health, education, and electrification, while nearly two-thirds of the population lives below the poverty line. But these diplomatic preferences deprive Mbabane of taking full advantage of the investments that Beijing could offer.
This choice is deliberately assumed by the executive, according to Sanele Sibiya, professor at the University of Eswatini: “ From an economic point of view, it is obvious: aligning with China would make more sense in terms of trade and opportunities. So it’s really a political decision. » Beijing remains Mbabane’s second trading partner in terms of imports, but the absolute monarchy has, for example, never signed the new Silk Roads agreements. “ Diplomatic relations between two countries are not solely motivated by financial interests », says spokesperson Alpheous Nxumalo. Furthermore, Eswatini can still derive some benefits from this positioning. “ Being the last supporter on the mainland, this also puts pressure on Taiwan to continue funding activities in the country “, notes economics professor Sanele Sibiya. “ The kingdom is thus satisfied with this development assistance, rather than loan techniques based on market logic. »
China has tried in the past to convince the king to change his allegiance, but now seems to have opted for a more patient approach. If one day Eswatini were to, in turn, turn its back on the Pacific island, the People’s Republic of China would win the great symbolic victory of having rallied all the recognized States of Africa to its cause.
Read alsoAfrica: Chinese Foreign Minister begins his traditional New Year tour