Eswatini exporters and entrepreneurs are set to benefit from the UK’s trade reforms.
The new reforms aim to simplify access to the UK market and strengthen economic ties between the UK and developing countries.
This was announced by Teetee Zwane, the Political, Trade Policy, and Communications Officer at the British High Commission. The reforms were unveiled on July 10, 2025.
Zwane stated in a press release that the reforms include simplified rules of origin for imported products, which will enable all countries under the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS), including those further up the value chain like Nigeria, to source inputs on finished goods from across Africa, ensuring that goods can continue to enter the UK tariff-free.
“Launched in 2023, the DCTS is the UK’s flagship trade preference scheme covering 65 countries and offering reduced or zero tariffs on thousands of imported products,” she said.
The upgrades are expected not only to support trade between Eswatini and the UK but also to enhance trade among African countries, helping to unlock the potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area’s $3.4 trillion.
Last year, over £3.2 billion worth of goods were imported into the UK from African countries, benefiting from preferences granted by the UK’s development trading arrangements.
Commenting on the reforms, UK Minister for Development Jenny Chapman said developing countries now want a different relationship with the UK.
Countries in the Global South want a different relationship with the UK as a trading partner and investor, not merely as a donor.