PH Consulate General in Calgary Co-Hosts Business Webinar on Federal Procurement Program for Filipino SMEs

Ms. Jenny Yu from the Federal Government Office of Small and Medium Enterprises (OSME) delivers a presentation on Canada’s federal procurement program during the business webinar co-hosted by Philippine Consulate General in Calgary and the Office of Member of Parliament Kelly McCauley on 02 October 2020. (Calgary PCG photo)

CALGARY 07 October 2020 – The Philippine Consulate General in Calgary co-hosted a virtual Business Webinar on Federal Procurement Program on 02 October 2020 with the Office of Hon. Kelly McCauley, Member of Parliament (MP) for Edmonton West, and the Federal Government Office of Small and Medium Enterprises (OSME).

The Philippine Consulate General co-organized the webinar to increase the awareness of Filipino-owned small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Alberta and Saskatchewan about the federal procurement program for SMEs and the ways to sell goods and services to the Government of Canada.

In his welcome remarks, Philippine Consul General to Calgary Zaldy Patron noted the difficult time that the Filipino business community has been experiencing due to the pandemic. He encouraged Filipino SMEs to look for business opportunities from the federal procurement program which might help them in their respective businesses. He also thanked MP McCauley and the OSME for reaching out to the Filipino business community.

MP McCauley, on the other hand, shared his desire to see more SMEs from the Province of Alberta successfully getting business contracts under the federal procurement program.

Ms. Jenny Yu, OSME’s Project Lead and Procurement Specialist, explained the federal procurement program and OSME’s mandate to support SMEs so they could participate in the program.

She noted that the Government of Canada is one of the largest buyers of goods and services in Canada. In 2017, the federal government spent over CAD 25 billion on goods, services, construction and maintenance projects with over 300,000 contracts awarded, 92% of which were valued at under CAD 25,000 per contract. Direct purchases from vendors valued under CAD 10,000 per contract amounted to almost CAD 1 billion, indicating that SMEs are a considerable provider of goods and services.

Ms. Yu pointed out that while the Canadian Government procures the usual big ticket projects like technology, military equipment, and construction services, it also buys small ticket items like catering services, snow removal and landscaping, shower curtains, clothes, and even dog grooming. She highlighted the thrusts of the federal procurement program to be more inclusive and to engage with women-owned businesses, under-represented groups, new Canadians, and social enterprises.

Likewise, Ms. Yu explained and dismissed the common myths that discourage SMEs from participating in the federal procurement program.

To learn more about the federal procurement program and register as a bidder, Filipino SMEs can visit the website  https://buyandsell.gc.ca.  END

Philippine Consul General to Calgary Zaldy Patron (left) and Hon. Kelly McCauley (right), Member of Parliament for Edmonton West, delivering their remarks during the webinar. (Calgary PCG photo)

For more information, visit https://www.calgarypcg.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/PHinCalgary/.