CommonwealthFirst supports SMEs to trade and invest across the Commonwealth. By 2020 Commonwealth trade is expected to double to US$1 trillion.
The programme is developed by a partnership between the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council and Royal Mail with the support from i-genius as implementation partner. CommonwealthFirst has been established by the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC) to encourage small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to trade and invest across the Commonwealth; a market comprising 53 Englis
h speaking countries with a combined population of 2.2 billion – at least 60% of whom are under the age of 30 – and a combined GDP of approximately US$9.6 trillion. The Commonwealth Factor, with its shared language, complementary legal systems and business practices, helps to reduce trade cost by around 19% cheaper between member countries. Over the next three years 100 leading UK SMEs will be selected to become Commonwealth Export Champions. Through intensive training, mentoring, trade missions and business development support, Export Champions will be supported in their quest to win new business in the fast growing Commonwealth markets. Their success will be showcased as an encouragement to the wider business community to make greater use of the Commonwealth network. The CommonwealthFirst website provides support for all businesses looking to trade and invest in Commonwealth countries, as well as an e-commerce platform powered by Royal Mail. The vision is to expand the programme to businesses in other Commonwealth countries after the initial three-year focus on UK SMEs.
