As part of its efforts to enhance the efficiency of government procurement, the Ministry of Finance (MoF), recently organised a workshop for its federal partners at the Four Seasons Hotel in Dubai. The workshop sought to align federal entities and SMEs, provide a preliminary idea of a future Department of Government Procurement platform that would match supply with demand of certain commodities, and support SMEs.
The development of the e-Department of Government Procurement platform is in response to the directives of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to create a federal government procurement platform that is in line with the UAE Government’s Vision 2021. The platform improves the efficiency of government procurement and allows federal entities to complete the purchase within 6 minutes instead of 60 days.
Representatives from the Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, Ministry of Community Development, Ministry of Health and Prevention, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Ministry of Energy and Industry, Ministry of Infrastructure Development, and Ministry of Education, in addition to the Prime Minister’s Office, the United Arab Emirates Space Agency, the Federal Authority For Identity And Citizenship, Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, Mohammed bin Rashid Fund for SMEs, as well as several small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, senior officials and staff of the Financial Operations Department, Policy Department and the Government Properties Department of the Ministry of Finance were present at the workshop.
H.E. Mariam Al Amiri, Under Secretary of the Financial Management Sector, reiterated the ministry’s keenness to organise a set of workshops for various stakeholders in the Department of Government Procurement platform, in order to identify growth opportunities and provide updates on the latest developments to the platform.
H.E. said: “Through this workshop, the Ministry of Finance seeks to build a government platform capable of providing advanced services to all government entities. The digital platform for government procurement will serve as a link between federal entities and suppliers and will enhance interaction between them. It will also make government procurement management more efficient, and speed up the procurement process.”
At the workshop, overview of the government procurement platform project and future goals were presented. Also discussed were the concessions offered to support small and medium enterprises and opportunities for them, as well as job opportunities in the federal government.
Also discussed were ways to match supply and demand between the federal government and SME owners in various areas, as well as the SMEs’ offerings and challenges they face. The workshop deliberated the initial impressions of the platform and the future course of action. The workshop also held a Q&A session for participants.
The Ministry of Finance will take all the challenges and proposals presented during the workshop by the government entities and SME entrepreneurs to study them and submit them to the Council of Ministers for approval. The Department of Government Procurement platform is currently one of the first projects of the Ministry of Possibilities, the world’s first virtual ministry, which aims to re-engineer government systems and processes. The ministry aims to achieve this through proactive solutions within a specific period of time by focusing on important national issues. The platform will be rolled out in six phases over a period of 12 months, with a unified, efficient and flexible government procurement mechanism.
