All public entities in Namibia are required to reserve a specific percentage of their procurement plans for SME participation.

Minister of Finance Erica Shafudah said this in response to Nudo leader Vetaruhe Kandorozu, who questioned whether there is a procurement threshold dedicated to SMEs.

“In terms of the good practice that we have also issued, and we have shared this with all public entities, they have a requirement that when they prepare their annual procurement plans, they should reserve a certain percentage specifically for SMEs,” Shafudah said.

“So when we look at their annual procurement plans, we ask them questions as to what is the percentage that they have reserved for SMEs, and we have also gone further to specify the specific categories of businesses that should really be reserved for SMEs.”