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Reasons for the frustration of the owners of small and medium enterprises

Sami Al Riyami

reyami@emaratalyoum.comsamialreyami

08 March 2021

According to the latest statistics published by the Ministry of Finance, which is the authority that puts all the numbers related to government purchases, their proportions, and their sources in detail, there are only 186 small and medium companies registered in the suppliers register of the federal government, while there are actually thousands of small and medium companies that it manages. Young men and women citizens and citizens, and they are registered with the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development and the Mohammed bin Rashid Foundation for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises, so what is the reason for this modest number ?!

It is very clear that there is a great state of frustration and mistrust prevalent in the owners of these projects, and this situation is often due to their feeling that there are practices that impede their access to a fair share in government procurement, as they are often treated as being second-class, and their products are not appropriate In government agencies, an act that is completely inconsistent with the government's intention to support and attract this group instead of alienating and restricting it!

A female citizen who owns these projects says: “Talking about government purchase of our products is nothing more than an advertisement for media promotion for government agencies only, and the truth is that the support provided to us is almost non-existent.” She adds: “I have been invited to provide (free) hospitality services to one of the government agencies. And when I asked them about the interview, they said: (It is enough to introduce my name), and I wonder here: Where is the support for that?

How much would this party have paid if it had organized a reception and hospitality in a hotel, or had hired a foreign company to organize events ?! ».

There is a role required of all government agencies to support this type of projects, and by the way it is a right, not a blessing, for these loyal young people who are themselves undertaking their small and medium projects, a right approved by a decision issued by the Council of Ministers to allocate a known and clear percentage of government purchases to them, and the Ministry of Finance has the role The largest implementation of this decision, as it holds a periodic meeting with suppliers to federal agencies, and here it is their responsibility to publish a detailed report on the participation of owners of small and medium enterprises, and how they are supported in such meetings.

Last July, the Ministry of Finance announced that it is preparing to launch a government procurement platform that includes all the goods and services needed by government agencies. It will include between 80 and 90% of government purchases, and about 36 major government agencies will participate in its first phase, and among its declared goals is to support project owners. Small and medium-sized companies, can we ask Al Maliya to publish the latest developments in the platform?

Do we hope that the ministry publishes its numbers about the reality of dealing with this vital sector of the economy, so that, as we have entrusted it, it would be a neutral party aimed at the public interest only, away from any accounts or fears of embarrassing anyone?

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reyami@emaratalyoum.com