The digital economy is expected to account for 17% of the global economy by 2028, and businesses need to adapt their strategies. To prepare Eswatini firms to harness new digital trade opportunities, key business support organizations took part in a four-day training on market diversification, digital trade, and AI tools. The training brought together participants from the Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority and other key trade promotion and support institutions.
‘The training aims at supporting businesses in Eswatini to take advantage of regional and global opportunities to create more jobs and foster inclusive growth,’ said Luis Miguel Pascoal, EU Programme Officer.
The EU funds the Eswatini: Promoting growth through competitive alliances programme, which implemented by ITC in partnership with the Eswatini Government.
The workshop focused on practical skills to small businesses find new markets and embrace digital trade. They learned how to read market data to identify export opportunities and how to select digital channels — such as e-commerce platforms and social media — to reach international buyers.
They also explored how AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity can help analyze market information and create marketing content tailored to different audiences. Through interactive exercises, they practiced generating product descriptions and social media posts, and analysing trade flow datasets with AI assistance.
The participants also developed their own market diversification roadmaps, which lay out markets to target, digital channels to use, and AI tools to enhance their market entry. Business support organizations can use the roadmaps to guide small businesses in navigating new market opportunities.
“This training will add so much value for Eswatini Foods, especially because we are already exporting to Scotland and Germany. We will continue to explore the AI tools introduced here to enhance our business content and improve our market analysis — especially as we target the EU market.” Damien De Sousa, Head of Sales, Eswatini Foods.
“We will use the tools we have learned from this training to help the women we support expand their market reach and explore export opportunities. The local market is limited due to population size, so digital tools and content creation skills are key. We also want them to understand how global trade policies affect their businesses.” Lisa Maphanga, Liaison Officer, COMESA Federation of Women in Business – Eswatini Chapter.
“The training was amazing! It gave me tools to explore new markets and access vital information I didn’t know how to find before. I especially appreciated comparing e-commerce platforms and learning about the new AI tools, which I’ll definitely continue using.” Samkelisiwe Ndlangamandla, Reign Pot Consultancy.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of International Trade Centre.
