Mbabane – The Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority hosted a one day stakeholder engagement to validate a gap analysis report assessing how the Kingdom’s investment regime aligns with the African Continental Free Trade Area Protocol on Investment.
The engagement brought together public and private sector representatives, development partners and policy experts in Eswatini to examine the country’s preparedness to implement the Protocol and to identify priority policy and regulatory reforms needed to support investment growth.
The report was developed under the AfCFTA capacity building programme on investment with technical support from ODI Global. Discussions focused on how the continental investment framework interacts with Eswatini’s existing laws, policies and institutions governing investment. 
Participants took part in panel discussions, roundtable policy dialogues, breakout group sessions and expert presentations. These sessions examined the Protocol on Investment, assessed regulatory constraints affecting investors and explored opportunities for reform within Eswatini’s national investment landscape.
Key areas covered during the engagement included an overview of the AfCFTA Protocol on Investment, presentation of the diagnostic gap analysis and validation exercises across the four pillars of the Protocol, namely promotion, facilitation, protection and sustainable development. Stakeholders also reflected on priority actions and practical steps required to support implementation.
