DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA – A Swati student of the University of Eswatini (UNESWA), Vuyelwa Karabo Simelane, has been crowned the overall winner of the 2026 SADC Tertiary Institution Essay Competition.
The announcement was made during the Official Opening Ceremony of the 46th SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government here, where His Majesty King Mswati III was present. The King applauded with pride to the announcement.
The Bachelor of Science student majoring in Biology and Chemistry and set to graduate this year, will receive the first prize of US$2 000, equivalent to approximately E32 340 at today’s current exchange rate to the dollar. The prize money will be paid directly to her in Eswatini through the SADC Secretariat, accompanied by a certificate signed by the Executive Secretary.
Simelane is the first born daughter of Photojournalist, Lucky Simelane of the Eswatini Observer. Her runner up was Yamikani Bottomani from Malawi earning US$1,000 and in third was Benice Mujoro from Namibia, who received US$500.
The competition, launched as part of the Mechanism in Honour of the SADC Founders, invited tertiary students across the 16 Member States to address the topic: “Compare and contrast the challenges faced by the SADC founders in the 20th century against the current challenges. Which lesson(s) from the SADC Founders would you advise or adapt to address today’s regional dilemma(s)?”
Ms Simelane’s winning essay, titled “From SADCC To SADC: Continuities, Changes and Policy lessons”, employs a vivid family metaphor to explore the region’s journey. She writes: “Southern Africa is a family of siblings born of the same mother, each shaped by a different father bound by shared origins, yet carrying distinct histories, wounds and strength.”
She describes the apartheid-era South Africa as a “troublesome Uncle” whose aggressive policies forced the founding states to form the Southern African Development Coordination Conference (SADCC) to reduce dependence and resist destabilisation. Looking to the present, she notes: “The Uncle has retired (thankfully) however the region welcomed cousins who are nothing but troublemakers they are called corruption, climate disasters, economic stagnation and trade barriers.”
The essay contrasts external threats of the past with today’s internal challenges, including democratic backsliding, electoral disputes and governance crises, while drawing lessons on unity, political will, self-reliance and collective defence.
The SADC Tertiary Institution Essay Competition was introduced following a 2020 Summit decision to honour the Founders and raise awareness among the youth of their legacy. Entries are screened nationally by Ministries of Education, with the top three from each Member State advancing to regional adjudication by a panel of education experts drawn from the Organ Troika states. This year’s panel comprised experts from Malawi, Eswatini and Tanzania. The top three regional winners receive cash prizes of US$2 000, US$1 500 and US$1 000 respectively, with certificates for the top 10.
Eswatini has a proud history in the related Secondary School Essay Competition. In 2014, Manqoba Msibi of Etjendlovu High School in the Shiselweni Region was announced a winner at the SADC Summit in Botswana. The following year, Nonduduzo Ndwandwe from the same school also triumphed. His Majesty later invited the pair and their English teacher, Nontobeko Zulu, for a courtesy visit.
In September 2024, during the official opening of new structures at the school, the King awarded the former pupils permanent government jobs – Msibi as a teacher and Ndwandwe as a paramedic and presented each with E5 000. Teacher Zulu received E20 000 in recognition of her dedication. His Majesty further noted infrastructure improvements at the school, including laboratories and computers, and promised a tarred road from Hlathikulu to Methula.
More recently, in the 2025 Secondary School competition, Eswatini national winners included Aliselihle Thwala of St Mark’s High School (sixth regionally) and Khulani Dlamini of Evelyn Baring High School (10th regionally). Luyanda Simelane of Evelyn Baring High School had earlier taken second place regionally, winning US$1 000.
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