Seizing Opportunities in the Government Procurement Market

Launch of the Government Procurement Guide for SMEs

1. Local enterprises in search of government procurement (GP) opportunities today received a holistic overview of the latest developments in GP rules and GeBIZ at an inaugural public seminar. The half-day programme on "Seizing Opportunities in Government Procurement Market" was jointly organised by SPRING Singapore, the Ministry of Finance and Defence Science & Technology Agency (DSTA).

2. In Singapore, the Government Procurement (GP) market is worth an average of $10 billion a year. This is an attractive source of business opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises or SMEs. Being small though, many SMEs may lack resources to scan for GP information so they are not able to maximise the GP opportunities available.

3. This morning, some 500 participants had an overview of the recent changes in the government procurement rules. These included relaxing the registration criteria for suppliers, recognising the combined strength of a consortium of SMEs in bidding for larger contracts, and the waiver of the GeBIZ subscription fee for the first supplier account.

4. In his opening address, Mr Png Cheong Boon, Deputy Chief Executive, SPRING Singapore, recognised the need to increase SMEs' awareness of the rule changes. He also announced the launch of a new guidebook "The Government Procurement Guide for SMEs" which was jointly developed by SPRING Singapore and the Ministry of Finance. The guidebook aims to help SMEs access information on GP procedures and guide them on how to participate in GP projects.

5. He added, "In April this year, five months after the announcement of the rule changes, we asked the SMEs whether they were aware of these changes, how they responded to the changes and what benefits they had derived. According to these SMEs, the greatest benefits they had reaped from the changes were better access to GP opportunities, cost savings and easier registration with EPPU."

6. DSTA, the agency appointed by MOF to manage GeBIZ, shared with the audience on the various business opportunities available in GeBIZ and how SMEs can register in GeBIZ and trade electronically with the government. Abecha Pte Ltd also shared with the SMEs how they can keep tabs on the opportunities in the GP market.

7. Success stories and experiences were also shared by Ordell Management Pte Ltd and C&R Interiors Pte Ltd. Ordell Management's success included the Ministry of Health's Balanced Scorecard software solution, the National Environment Agency's refuse disposal management system and incineration plant inventory control system. C&R Interiors' achievements included interior design and renovation works for the National University of Singapore and Health Sciences Authority.

8. "We wanted to learn more about bidding for larger government projects," said one of the participants, Ms Angelia Tan, iDLink Systems Pte Ltd. "It is often a challenge to aim for larger government projects and finding the right partners to collaborate with. The seminar is useful in directing how we could track these opportunities."

JOINT MEDIA RELEASE BY SPRING SINGAPORE, THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE AND DEFENCE SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY AGENCY