Swaziland is a small landlocked country surrounded by South Africa to the north, west and south and Mozambique to the east. It gained its independence in 1968 from the United Kingdom and has a current population of some one million with about a quarter of its people requiring food assistance. Swaziland is now the world's leading country for HIV/AIDS with over 50% of adults over the age of twenty infected. The situation is so dire that the very existence of the country is under threat with the United Nations noting that if the infection rate continues unabated the Swazi population will be wiped out in the forthcoming decades.

Swaziland is ruled by King Mswati III, the world's last absolute monarch, who has ruled by decree since 1986 and who has continued to ban political parties after his father, King Sobhuza, dissolved the constitution in 1973, however there is growing unrest and demand for political reform, frequently stalled by the ruling elite. Recently the king's appointed prime minister Prime Minister, Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini, has said that the government will consider using 'sipakatane' to "punish dissidents and foreigners who come to the country and disturb the peace" (this being a form of torture where the feet are repeatedly hit with nail embedded rods.)

With a life expectancy of just around 32yrs, there are an estimated 100,000 orphans in the country (10% of its overall population) and this is likely to increase given the levels of HIV/AIDS. These children are the ones most likely to drop out of school, be trafficked and suffer even more than others from poverty and malnutrition ~ which already affects 40% of children in Swaziland. Education for children in Swaziland, however fares somewhat better, although it is not compulsory, nor free except for orphans and certain other disadvantaged children. Enrolment is high and over 80% of the population is literate. Unfortunately child trafficking is widespread with children trafficked internally and to other countries. For girls this mainly includes domestic servitude and sexual exploitation whilst for boys the trafficking is normally for forced labour and begging or selling in markets.