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18 Feb 2019

Expo 2020 - Great Opportunity for SMEs in the UAE

by RAKBANK
Expo 2020 Opportunities for SMEs

Expo 2020, which is part of Dubai's strategy to increase contribution to the non-oil GDP is scheduled between 20th October 2020 and 10th April 2021. This mega-project will bring lots of opportunities for local SMEs. It is estimated that SMEs contribute 42% towards Dubai's total employment and 40% of gross value and will grow over the next 6-8 years.

 

Build-up to Expo 2020

Thousands of SMEs will have access to tender opportunities for the AED 25 billion mega-event. A boom in tourism is expected, which will drive millions of new visitor/consumers. The Dubai Chamber is expecting 245,000 new jobs to be added in the sector by 2023. In addition, the hospitality sector will see a major growth with number of hotel rooms expected to double by 2020.

 

In 2017, Expo 2020 Dubai awarded more than AED 11 billion of contracts. For 2018, the tender opportunities span the fields of logistics, health, design, safety, construction, and materials - in fact just about every sector, vertical, industry is expected to get a boost. To date, Expo 2020 has awarded 3,093 contracts - 1,717 contracts to SMEs. Industry experts reveal 20% of Expo's contracts will be awarded to SMEs. It's time to seize the opportunity!

 

Expo 2020 is expected to host over 25 million visitors over the next six years. Investment in the tourism looks will grow to AED 143 billion by 2023. This means related and ancillary sectors such as construction, tourism, food and beverage, waste disposal, transportation, goods suppliers will also see growth in employment and revenue for the next six years.

 

This is in line with the Dubai 2021 Vision and help promote the SME sector which represents 95% of all companies and 42% of the total labour force.

 

 

SMEs wanting to participate in tender bids

 

To participate in various tender bids for the mega event, SMEs can register through the eSourcing Portal. The portal links all Expo-related procurement and tender opportunities to SMEs in an open and transparent fashion. If your company is interested in finding out more, register on the e-Sourcing Portal. The portal offers details of current and upcoming tender opportunities.

 

More than 20,500 companies, including many SMEs, from 140 countries have already registered. Registering on the eSourcing Portal is free and tenders can be viewed at no cost.

 

In addition, it is a good idea to register at Tejari.com, similar RFP portals, Meedprojects.com (registration fees apply) which list project tenders. For example, Meed claims listing of over 12,000 projects across 8 sectors.

 

Tip: If you can't pitch or win directly, contact companies that have won the bids to get sub-contracts or outsourced to your company or partner with the winners to work on the projects jointly. Winning a tender is no different to winning a sales order or deal.

 


5 Things You Should Keep in Mind

 

  1. Have a positive mindset. It is easy to get frustrated, impatient with any tendering process and negative about your chances of winning.  Tendering takes time, read months, before the results are announced.
     

  2. Ensure that you understand the opportunity. If you are just starting with bidding for public tenders, often, you will end up bidding for every opportunity out there.  Be realistic about bidding for the ones you are 'more likely' to win.
     

  3. Be creative and maximize the benefits of the services or products you offer. Present previous project work in several different ways, use videos, case studies, testimonials, endorsements, RFP kits, translated into Arabic, hire a professional designer to present it nicely and highlight all aspects of your experience. Show that you can balance price, credentials and quality required to deliver the project.
     

  4. Think like a customer. Look at the contract, tender questions, pain points and bid from a customer's perspective. If unsure get it clarified, schedule a visit or meeting. This will help in interpreting what they want to know. 
     

  5. Be resilient and realistic. It is unlikely, as an SME, you will win every contract. So, do not be disheartened by rejection. Treat the ones you do not win as opportunities for improvement and learning.
     

  6. Get your numbers in order: Be it costing, project planning, delivery, risk factors, budgeting, margins and access to trade finance facilities such as bank guarantees, performance bonds or short-term loans - all of which come into play when you bid or deal with government projects.


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Expo 2020 - Great Opportunity for SMEs in the UAE

18 Feb 2019

Expo 2020 Opportunities for SMEs

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Expo 2020, which is part of Dubai's strategy to increase contribution to the non-oil GDP is scheduled between 20th October 2020 and 10th April 2021. This mega-project will bring lots of opportunities for local SMEs. It is estimated that SMEs contribute 42% towards Dubai's total employment and 40% of gross value and will grow over the next 6-8 years.

 

Build-up to Expo 2020

Thousands of SMEs will have access to tender opportunities for the AED 25 billion mega-event. A boom in tourism is expected, which will drive millions of new visitor/consumers. The Dubai Chamber is expecting 245,000 new jobs to be added in the sector by 2023. In addition, the hospitality sector will see a major growth with number of hotel rooms expected to double by 2020.

 

In 2017, Expo 2020 Dubai awarded more than AED 11 billion of contracts. For 2018, the tender opportunities span the fields of logistics, health, design, safety, construction, and materials - in fact just about every sector, vertical, industry is expected to get a boost. To date, Expo 2020 has awarded 3,093 contracts - 1,717 contracts to SMEs. Industry experts reveal 20% of Expo's contracts will be awarded to SMEs. It's time to seize the opportunity!

 

Expo 2020 is expected to host over 25 million visitors over the next six years. Investment in the tourism looks will grow to AED 143 billion by 2023. This means related and ancillary sectors such as construction, tourism, food and beverage, waste disposal, transportation, goods suppliers will also see growth in employment and revenue for the next six years.

 

This is in line with the Dubai 2021 Vision and help promote the SME sector which represents 95% of all companies and 42% of the total labour force.

 

 

SMEs wanting to participate in tender bids

 

To participate in various tender bids for the mega event, SMEs can register through the eSourcing Portal. The portal links all Expo-related procurement and tender opportunities to SMEs in an open and transparent fashion. If your company is interested in finding out more, register on the e-Sourcing Portal. The portal offers details of current and upcoming tender opportunities.

 

More than 20,500 companies, including many SMEs, from 140 countries have already registered. Registering on the eSourcing Portal is free and tenders can be viewed at no cost.

 

In addition, it is a good idea to register at Tejari.com, similar RFP portals, Meedprojects.com (registration fees apply) which list project tenders. For example, Meed claims listing of over 12,000 projects across 8 sectors.

 

Tip: If you can't pitch or win directly, contact companies that have won the bids to get sub-contracts or outsourced to your company or partner with the winners to work on the projects jointly. Winning a tender is no different to winning a sales order or deal.

 


5 Things You Should Keep in Mind

 

  1. Have a positive mindset. It is easy to get frustrated, impatient with any tendering process and negative about your chances of winning.  Tendering takes time, read months, before the results are announced.
     

  2. Ensure that you understand the opportunity. If you are just starting with bidding for public tenders, often, you will end up bidding for every opportunity out there.  Be realistic about bidding for the ones you are 'more likely' to win.
     

  3. Be creative and maximize the benefits of the services or products you offer. Present previous project work in several different ways, use videos, case studies, testimonials, endorsements, RFP kits, translated into Arabic, hire a professional designer to present it nicely and highlight all aspects of your experience. Show that you can balance price, credentials and quality required to deliver the project.
     

  4. Think like a customer. Look at the contract, tender questions, pain points and bid from a customer's perspective. If unsure get it clarified, schedule a visit or meeting. This will help in interpreting what they want to know. 
     

  5. Be resilient and realistic. It is unlikely, as an SME, you will win every contract. So, do not be disheartened by rejection. Treat the ones you do not win as opportunities for improvement and learning.
     

  6. Get your numbers in order: Be it costing, project planning, delivery, risk factors, budgeting, margins and access to trade finance facilities such as bank guarantees, performance bonds or short-term loans - all of which come into play when you bid or deal with government projects.