Health Record Rights Index · country brief · this country's data as of October 1, 2026
Who holds the health record in Eswatini?
In 2026, Eswatini scores 43 out of 100 for how much say a person has over their own health record. It is tied for 80th of 198 countries and territories, and could rank anywhere from 59th to 106th allowing for scoring error, in the Weak band (25 to 44). Who holds the keys: doctors, hospitals and insurers. Source: Health Record Rights Index, SuperTruth, this country's data as of October 1, 2026.
Doctors, hospitals and insurers decide. Its strongest right, compared with the typical country, is one record across your care (50 out of 100, against 38 for the typical country). The furthest behind is rules for AI in your care (25 out of 100, against 30 for the typical country).
Most public clinics share one national electronic record, but patients get no portal, no sharing choices, and health data rules are still in draft.
Published · updated · this country's data as of October 1, 2026 · research tool, not legal advice
overall score · Weak band, 25 to 44
43/100
rank among 198 countries and territories; likely 59th to 106th, allowing for scoring error
In 2026, getting your full record scores 40 out of 100 in Eswatini; the typical country scores 40 to 45. Section 19 of the Data Protection Act 2022 gives a right to a copy of your data, including who has had access to it, but at a prescribed fee. We found no patient portal, so requests go facility by facility. Source: World Health Organization, March 4, 2022, and the other sources below.
Who controls health records in Eswatini?
In 2026, doctors, hospitals and insurers hold the keys to your health record in Eswatini. Control over who sees it scores 35 out of 100 in Eswatini; the typical country scores 30. Health data may be processed without consent for treatment and facility administration, and the national CMIS record is shared across public clinics with no opt-out we could find. A right to learn who accessed your data exists in law, not verified in practice. Source: World Health Organization, March 4, 2022, and the other sources below.
How does Eswatini compare?
In 2026, Eswatini scores 43 out of 100, against 39 for the typical country. This brief compares it with Seychelles (43 out of 100), South Africa (43 out of 100) and Rwanda (44 out of 100). Source: the ranking of all 198 countries and territories.
Eight rights, compared with Seychelles, South Africa, Rwanda and the typical country
Scores out of 100, by right
Getting your full record20%
40
40 · 40 · 50
Control over who sees it20%
35
42 · 42 · 30
Privacy and security15%
55
45 · 60 · 52
One record across your care15%
50
52 · 33 · 46
Protection from sale and ads10%
42
40 · 50 · 50
Doctors see it when treating you10%
45
50 · 32 · 34
Your say over research use5%
46
46 · 50 · 50
Rules for AI in your care5%
25
20 · 48 · 55
Black dot: Eswatini. Hollow dots: Seychelles, South Africa, Rwanda (scores out of 100 on the right, same order). Gray line: the typical country of all 198. Overall: Eswatini 43 out of 100. Scores move in steps of about 5 points, so read a rank with its likely range.
What would Eswatini need to change to score higher?
Eswatini sits in Weak (25 to 44); Mixed starts at 45. Its two weakest rights, compared with the typical country and weighted by how much each counts, are protection from sale and ads (42 out of 100, against 45 for the typical country) and rules for AI in your care (25 out of 100, against 30 for the typical country). Our scoring rules give more points for:
Protection from sale and ads: Clear limits on selling health data or using it for ads, covering apps and data brokers as well as doctors and hospitals.
Rules for AI in your care: Rules for AI used in care that are in force: AI tools regulated as medical devices, control over changes to them, and a person overseeing them, plus national rules where EU law leaves gaps.
Which laws give health record rights in Eswatini?
Data Protection Act, 2022 (Act No. 5 of 2022): Health is sensitive data; access, correction and marketing objection rights; breach notice; fines up to E100 million.
Medicines and Related Substances Control Act, 2016 (Act 9 of 2016): Creates the Medicines Regulatory Authority; registers medicines and devices; trials need approval and good clinical practice.
Eswatini Communications Commission Act, 2013: Sets up the Commission that the Data Protection Act names as the data protection authority.
Doctors, waits and private care context, not part of the score
Doctors per 10,000
5.6 2023
Nurses and midwives per 10,000
42.6 2023
Private insurance + out-of-pocket
26.0% 2023
Record reaches private care?
unknown
Real cases
September 8, 2026 · Inhlase Centre for Investigative Journalism Deaf patients say hospitals without interpreters force them to share health details with others
August 19, 2026 · APAnews (African Press Agency) Eswatini signs US health funding deal amid concern over sharing health data
In 2026, Eswatini scored 43 out of 100 for how much say a person has over their own health record, tied for 80th of 198 countries and territories (could be 59th to 106th), in the Weak band. Who holds the keys: doctors, hospitals and insurers. Source: Health Record Rights Index, SuperTruth, this country's data as of October 1, 2026, https://healthrecordrights.com/brief/eswatini/
The 14 sources for Eswatini
Each source appears once, under the first right it supports. Titles are shown as our research agents recorded them, usually in the page's own language; text in square brackets is our machine translation. Links were checked on the date shown.
Getting your full record (2 sources)
“Data Protection Act, 2022 (Act No. 5 of 2022), Government Gazette Extraordinary Vol. LX No. 41”
World Health Organization (law or regulation) · Title in English
Dated March 4, 2022 · Link checked October 2, 2026 (opened)
Used for: Getting your full record; Control over who sees it; Privacy and security; Protection from sale and ads; Your say over research use; Rules for AI in your care
SuperTruth Inc. · 24 S. 24th St., Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA · +1 215 918 4140 · supertruth.ai Something wrong? Tell us · Questions or a briefing: supertruth.ai/on-the-record#contact · Full index: healthrecordrights.com
OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (38 mostly high-income countries). DTI™: the Data Trust Index, which grades the evidence behind each score. SuperTruth makes it and publishes this index. Everything here comes from public information: laws, government and regulator pages, court decisions, published news, WHO, OECD and World Bank data. Full sources: https://healthrecordrights.com/brief/eswatini/#sources. SuperTruth built this index and sells health data verification products; no one paid to be included. Research tool, not legal advice. Our scores and our own words are CC BY 4.0; quoted law and source titles stay with their owners.
