Page 40 - Procurement guidelines for smart sustainable cities - A U4SSC deliverable

The problem

Once known mainly for its beaches and bananas, the Dominican Republic now has the largest
economy in the Caribbean and Central America. And yet, until recently, women were not sharing
the fruits of its success. In the early 2000s, government spending on procurement, an important
tool in promoting gender equality, went almost exclusively to men.

For female entrepreneurs, often running small family businesses, public procurement was seen as
a closed shop – out of reach and not worth the effort needed to win a contract.

“No economy can develop its full potential, unless women and men participate fully.”

Kristina Georgieva, Director of the International Monetary Fund

The approach

In 2012, Dr Yokasta Guzmán became the Dominican Republic’s first female Director of Public
Procurement. Her office, the DGCP (Dirección General de Contrataciones Públicas), began to launch
a range of initiatives aimed at women-owned businesses. These included:

• encouraging women to register as suppliers on the government database;
• setting a target of 5 per cent of all government contracts to go exclusively to women-owned
businesses; and

• running events and workshops to familiarize women with public procurement.

To raise awareness, “procurement fairs” were held across the country. At these events, officials
could find out where women-owned businesses were located and meet women face to face to
explain the opportunities.

Follow-up events included training on how to use the government’s eProcurement system and
workshops on interview techniques and presentations. To reassure female suppliers that the system
was not rigged in favour of men, a raffle system was introduced. Any business that met the selection
criteria was entered into a “project lottery” with the winner announced in public.

Statistics on gender inclusionusing clear charts and maps, rather than being buried in government
reports or spreadsheets.

26 Procurement guidelines for smart sustainable cities | May 2023