The Royal Eswatini Sugar Corporation (RES) has awarded 82 employees certificates under its Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) programme, which recognises workplace experience as an alternative to the Form Five qualification required for consideration for permanent employment.
The certificates were presented on Friday, 9 October 2026 at Thembelisha Hall in Simunye.
RES is the first company in Eswatini to introduce the RPL programme. The programme gives employees who have relevant workplace competencies but lack formal academic qualifications an opportunity to have their experience formally recognised.
According to the company, qualifying employees who receive the certificates can be considered for permanent employment subject to meeting other company requirements.
Addressing employees during the ceremony, RES Managing Director Nick Jackson said the company recognises the importance of education but also acknowledges that not everyone has the opportunity to complete formal schooling. 
“Education is important, but not everyone gets the opportunity to go to school. Some people have to take care of their families, and that deprives them of the opportunity to complete their education,” Jackson said.
He said the programme was introduced to recognise employees’ workplace experience and provide an alternative pathway towards meeting qualification requirements for certain positions.
“The company introduced the programme to award certificates recognising employees’ experience, equivalent to Form Five. This opens opportunities for those who do not have a Form Five certificate but have the relevant job experience to be considered for permanent employment,” he said.
Jackson said the initiative acknowledges skills, knowledge and experience acquired through years of practical work, dedication and service.
The programme was first implemented in 2025. During its inaugural year, 81 employees received certificates. Of those, 13 secured permanent employment in 2026.
The latest intake of 82 employees brings the total number of beneficiaries to 163 since the programme started.
The company said the initiative addresses barriers faced by workers whose education may have been interrupted by family responsibilities or other circumstances and allows RES to retain institutional knowledge within its workforce.
Among the beneficiaries is Agriculture General Labourer Bongani Tfwala, who said receiving his certificate made him feel as though he were celebrating his birthday. He said he was happy that his workplace knowledge and experience had been formally recognised and that the certificate had renewed his hope of being considered for permanent employment.
General Labourer in the Factory Raw House Zodwa Dludlu thanked Jackson and RES for introducing the programme. She said it demonstrated that the company was putting its commitment to employees into practice.
Dludlu said the programme gave meaning to the message “I am seen, I am heard and I am valued,” which was sung across the company during culture feedback activities last week. She said for her and fellow beneficiaries, the message had become a reality because their contributions and experience were being acknowledged.
She also likened her experience to the biblical account in the Gospel of John of a man who had been ill for 38 years and waited at the Pool of Bethesda before his circumstances changed, saying many employees had waited a long time for an opportunity to improve their employment prospects.
Assistant at the Mhlume Conditioning Plant Njabulo Dlamini said he was excited to receive his certificate because it would enable him to apply for positions within the company for which he was previously ineligible. He said the recognition would allow him to compete for available positions and pursue permanent employment.
Water Resources Pump House Attendant Nelisiwe Sibandze also thanked the company for the initiative, saying it made her feel that the company’s leadership understood her aspirations. She acknowledged the support of her family while she waited for an opportunity to improve her employment prospects.
RES said through RPL it is providing employees with an opportunity to build on the knowledge and skills they have developed in the workplace while pursuing positions for which formal recognition of their competencies is required.
The company said the impact of the initiative will be measured by the number of certificates awarded and the opportunities created for employees to advance, secure permanent employment and build more stable futures for themselves and their families.
