LAVUMISA (17 SEPTEMBER 2026): A series of major and simultaneously emerging initiatives are combining to fast-track the early birth of the country’s first deliberately planned new city.
Currently under the working name of Eco-City, the proposed 100,000 people settlement will begin taking shape in early 2028.
Sources close to the project say the city will be built at Siphambanweni, just north of the MR 11 and MR 21 roads’ intersection.
But the Ministry of Housing and Township Development (MoHUD) Principal Secretary Dr. Simon Zwane said location of the city will be determined by an integrated masterplan currently being undertaken by the UN Habitat on behalf of project owners, EWADE.
The masterplan, Dr. Zwane says, “is not yet complete, but nearing completion.” MoHUD oversees all urban developments in the Kingdom.
One of the principal drivers of the new city, is ongoing work to complete the Mpakeni Dam which will produce irrigation water for a 30,000ha network of agricultural estates stretching from St Philips in the north to the border regions from Kwaluseni in the North to Lavumisa town in the south-east.
Network of rivers
The dam will be filled by a network of rivers and dams. While the Mpakeni Dam construction had reached 54% completion as of August 2026, work is yet to start on one of its essential components.
The Ngwavuma River on which the dam stands, does not have enough water and is prone to seasonal drying. To keep it constantly full and sufficiently e quipped to irrigate a 30,000ha estate, it will have to tap onto the Mkhondvo River. For that reason the Government is currently seeking financing, from among others, the AfDB to build the Ethemba Dam. This dam will harvest the Mkhondvo River west of Nhlangano and tunnel its water South-East to Mpakeni. The financial needs of this particular project are believed to be much larger than the current Mpakeni Dam.
Progress in the funding effort was indicated by an AfDB team that flew into the Kingdom from 1 to 11 September 2026 to assess the proposed investment and determine its suitability for financing. The AfDB mission reviewed the technical, financial, and environmental viability of Ethemba Dam, identified as the MNWAP-2A component. It includes the proposed Ethemba Dam construction and a 30km tunnel that will transfer water to Mpakeni.
Other funders understood being tapped for the investment include the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), alongside potential public-private partnership (PPP) models are being investigated.
North of the Mpakeni dam, earthmovers are busy in ongoing on-farm developments clearing the bush and preparing new farm estates in readiness for cropping and irrigation in 2028 when Mpakeni starts delivering water. This component of the developments is funded by the OPEC bank.
So far, the AfDB is the main supporter of the MNWAP project. It has now committed almost E4.7 billion (about US$220 million) in loans to support key infrastructure such as the E2.6 billion (about US$143 million) loan for developments including the Mpakeni Dam, and a E2.1 billion (aboutUS$94 million) loan for a 30km tunnel that will deliver water to about 4,000 ha irrigated farms in the Maloma, Sithobelweni and St Phillips areas.
Separately but also associated, the AfDB is also funding the development of a fourth arterial north south dual road that will link the MNWAP project to markets. This involves upgrading, from gravel to bitumen the MR 14 road from Siphofaneni to Sithobela and Maloma, and the MR10 section from Maloma to the railhead at Nsoko. The same project is also upgrading the MR21 stretch from Maloma through Siphambanweni to the Nsalitshe border.
These disparate interventions must connect and enhance the purpose of the planned ecocity as a cohesive facility that is integrated with the development vision of the region.
Purpose of masterplan
“The purpose of the master plan is to demarcate land for various uses to support the ongoing development of the MNWAP to bring in agro-processing facilities and supporting land uses such as residential, commercial, and so forth…” Dr. Zwane explains.
He said the masterplan is being developed with support from the United Nations Habitat who are contracted by EWADE through an AfDB grant while the ministry of housing is a collaborating partner as the responsible portfolio.
Dr. Zwane would not say where the city would be located, pointing at the ongoing masterplan. However, sources close to the project say it will be located at A4, near the Siphambanweni intersection of the road Nhlangano to Lavumisa and the M21 from Siphofaneni to the Nsalitshe border with KwaZulu Natal. This new road will go through the city and promises to provide an important new regional connectivity and gateway for tourists landing at the KM3 International Airport to access wildlife assets in game parks in Northern KwaZulu Natal and the warm sand beaches in Richardsbay. The KM3 airport is already a quick gateway for the Zimbabwe and Zambia diaspora in Maputo to reach home and return to work.
The African Development Bank’s Urban and Municipal Development Fund grant funded masterplan seeks to stimulate local agro-processing, improve regional transport corridors around Lavumisa, and sustainably accommodate future economic growth.
The plan investigates concepts including Climate Resilience that seeks to integrates low-carbon infrastructure, green building concepts, and sustainable water-energy management.
Plans for an Agro-Industrial Integration framework that seek to create dedicated agro-processing zones centred around cotton processing as well as a diversified agricultural programme of horticulture and livestock to be enabled by regional dam developments are being investigated.
The new city is strategically planned to support long-term regional expansion, aiming to stimulate employment opportunities and decentralized services in the Shiselweni corridor.
Jm/today/17.09.2026
