Expo 2020 Dubai awarded $1.8bn in contracts to SMEs

Apr 26, 2022: Expo 2020 Dubai awarded Dh6.8 billion ($1.8bn) worth of contracts to small and medium businesses, exceeding a 2016 commitment to award at least 20 per cent of direct and indirect spend to them.

The amount represents more than a quarter of all Expo 2020 Dubai contracts in terms of value, organisers of the event said in a statement.

Among the 3,245 contracts, 66 per cent, or 2,150, were SMEs, including 1,390 local businesses, the report published in The National reported.

Overall, suppliers from outside the UAE were sourced from 94 countries.

"Our commitment to SMEs has been embedded into our planning since the very beginning of our world Expo journey," Mukhtar Safi, chief financial officer and deputy chief executive of Expo 2020 Dubai, said.

"The integration of SMEs into the delivery of what has been a truly exceptional world Expo will be an important part of Expo’s legacy for the UAE and wider region, stimulating employment, strengthening existing industries, enhancing SME competitiveness and ultimately contributing to sustainable economic growth."

The SME sector represents more than 94 per cent of the total companies in the UAE and employs more than 86 per cent of the private sector workforce, a Dubai Chamber report released in November 2020 showed.

The UAE ranked first worldwide in the latest Global Entrepreneurship Index. Last year, the Emirates was placed fourth in the GEI rankings, which are compiled by London-based researcher Global Entrepreneurship Monitor.

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