The Commonwealth Secretary-General, Hon Shirley Botchwey, today launched the Commonwealth Trade Portal at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda.
The Commonwealth Trade Portal is a practical, user-friendly digital platform that provides essential trade information in one place. It will enable Commonwealth businesses, especially Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), to make informed decisions, identify new opportunities, understand market requirements, and trade with greater confidence.
The portal, when fully populated, would contain information on multilateral and preferential tariff arrangements and regimes for all Commonwealth countries. It also provides access to centralised trade data at the national tariff level, which will help businesses identify applicable import duties, assess market trends and demand patterns, and make better-informed decisions about where and how to expand their operations. MSMEs will be able to access information via the portal on export and import requirements in specific Commonwealth markets.
The Antigua and Barbuda summit is the first CHOGM convened by Secretary-General Botchwey, since taking office in April 2025. She said during the launch of the pilot Commonwealth Trade Portal:
“The true measure of the impact of the Commonwealth Trade Portal will not only be the number of countries connected to the platform. It will be the businesses that use it to find new markets, the entrepreneurs who gain the confidence to export for the first time, the partnerships that emerge across our borders, and the jobs and livelihoods that grow as a result.”
Through the portal, businesses can reach a wider and more diverse audience, increase sales opportunities, mitigate the impacts of seasonality and participate in global value chains, whilst establishing their brand in the Commonwealth. It is the Commonwealth Trade Advantage in action.
Imbedded in the portal is a directory of MSMEs. All enterprises operating in at least one of the 56 Commonwealth member countries and employing fewer than 250 persons are eligible for inclusion in the MSME Directory.
According to the State of the Commonwealth Report 2026, the Commonwealth constitutes a major economic force, with a combined GDP of US$15.9 trillion in 2025, projected to rise to US$16.9 trillion in 2026, and intra-Commonwealth trade in goods and services valued at US$874 billion in 2024. This provides a compelling foundation from which to expand and diversify intra-Commonwealth trade and investment.
Commonwealth members countries will be added in phases until all 56 countries are integrated.
A trade-and-investment CHOGM in action
CHOGM, which takes place every two years, is an opportunity for leaders to agree on Commonwealth priorities. This year, these priorities include a Commonwealth work programme on removing arbitrary barriers to intra-Commonwealth trade, fashioning a common platform on sustainable debt and concessional funding based on vulnerability, and a strategy for taking the investment agenda forward in 2027.
Addressing the theme, Accelerating Partnerships and Investment for a Prosperous Commonwealth, leaders will meet with investors, philanthropists, and development partners to finance proposals relating to climate, trade and youth employment.
Ahead of CHOGM, the Commonwealth Secretariat unveiled an investment platform showcasing ‘Investment-ready projects’, currently valued at a combined $52 billion, submitted by 28 developing Commonwealth countries. These investment-ready projects will be discussed at two bespoke sessions at CHOGM.
CHOGM will officially close today, 4 November.
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Suné Kitshoff
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