Maputo — The King of Swaziland, Mswati III, said in Maputo on Monday that his country is facing the same challenges as Mozambique in terms of development, hence the need for cooperation partners to grant more financial resources to tackle these obstacles.

He was adressing a meeting with the Diplomatic Corps acredited in Mozambique, whom he briefed on his visit to the country, where he arrived on Friday.

"Problems that Mozambique faces are similar to those in other countries in the Southern African region, hence we should join hands, share experiences, and see how we can help each others towards development", he said.

He told his audience that in the various meetings he held with Mozambican authorities at various levels he found that the priority of the Mozambican government is eradication of poverty, unemployment, diseases and other ills of the society.

"Everywhere I went I could feel that Mozambicans are commited to developoment projects", explained Mswati, reiterating that for a good success, these efforts need the support of cooperation partners.

He also comended Mozambique for consolidating peace since the end of the war of destabilization in 1992, which he described as essential for the implementation of the different development projects.

Speaking of his own country, Mswati said that the government managed to raise about 1.6 billion Emalangeni - the local currency - (about 243.800 million US dollars) to be used in projects to improve the Swazi people's quality of life.

Mswati also revealed that he has signed the new constitution of the country, which he hopes will imprve the country's political life.

He also expressed hope that the summit of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), to take place in Gaborone on 17 August, will discuss a number of issues partaining to the region's development.

Mswati III is visiting the country at the invitation of Mozambican Presdient Armando Guebuza to strengthen the frienship relations between the two countries.

On Mswati's first day in Maputo, the two heads of state signed an agreement to scretch out all visa requirements between Mozambique and Swaziland, that should enter into effect as from 1 October, depending on the pace at which organizational aspects are dealt with.