SWAZILAND: Taiwanese Invest $85m In Jeans Factories

Taiwanese investment is to bring a US$85m factory investment to Swaziland. Taiwan's Nien Hsing Textile Co has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Swazi government to build two jeans manufacturing plants and one denim-producing plant in Swaziland, which is one of the handful of countries in the world that recognises Taiwan instead of its arch-rival China. The investment would create more than 4,500 jobs.The spokesman said Nien Hsing chose Swaziland because there were no tariff and quota restrictions on textile exports to the United States - Nien Hsing's main export destination. Nien Hsing was scheduled to complete its first jeans plant in May 2001, the second jeans plant in December 2001, and the denim plant in December 2002. The three plants would have monthly capacity of 90,000 dozens of jeans and 2.2 million yards of denim. Nien Hsing currently has plants in Nicaragua, Mexico, and Lesotho.