Google deal exposes country to high risk – PM

Following reports that the country had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Google, Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini has revealed that there may be high risks associated with the agreement.

Dlamini said he had initially refrained from speaking about some things, but decided to do so as he was in Parliament. He said he was not present when the agreement was signed, but upon his return, he reviewed the MoU.

He said after reviewing the MoU he did not understand it. He said he then consulted international experts regarding its authenticity and was advised that there was little substance in the MoU, but was told that it posed significant risks. He added that it might be risky speaking about it because it might not even have been signed by Google.

“There is a lot of misinformation, and we advise the media not to report things as fact when they are not verified,” he said.

He said as Cabinet, they were challenged by a problem where agreements were signed without the knowledge or presence of the minister of foreign affairs or government.

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“Some ministers represent the country and append signatures without being authorised to do so. We condemn this because it is illegal. This reflects a focus on personalities and media attention rather than delivery and outcomes,” he said.

This was after Senator Princess Ncengencenge raised concerns on the issue after she raised it during the debate on the ministry of ICT’s performance report for the 2025/2026 financial year. She said the minister had indicated that the MoU would help locals earn income through digital content.

She said she had reviewed the minister’s response multiple times but still did not understand it and requested the prime minister to clarify the issue as part of Cabinet’s collective responsibility.

“What does the MoU say? We want clarity, especially on behalf of unemployed youth who have been given hope that Google will pay for their content,” she said.

She added that ESCCOM confirmed to have been engaged on the issue, but stated that the entity was advised to engage the SADC community because the country’s population was small and engaging Eswatini on monetisation did not make business sense for them.