ROSE HALL, St James — More than 600 micro, small and medium-size enterprises (MSMEs) have secured government contracts valued at $3.2 billion over the past three years, that the Government says highlights the success of its Public Procurement (Set-Asides) Framework which pushes to connect small businesses with lucrative public sector opportunities.

Speaking at Friday’s launch of the MSME Procurement Integration Project at Iberostar Hotels and Resorts in St James, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Sancia Bennett Templer said the Government is now building on that momentum with the introduction of an MSME Procurement Registry which is expected to simplify access to public sector contracts and expand participation by small businesses.

“In the last three years, more than 600 Jamaican MSMEs were awarded government contracts across 100 industries for a combined $3.2 billion in business. That is why we are here today, because we want to build on this impressive start to substantially increase the number of MSMEs participating in government procurement,” Bennett Templer said.