The Morrison Government is delivering on its commitment to increase opportunities for Indigenous businesses, with $188 million in contracts being awarded to Indigenous small to medium enterprises (SMEs) through the Digital Transformation Agency’s (DTA) marketplaces.
The Government’s Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP), introduced in 2015, aims to provide Indigenous Australians with more opportunities to participate in the economy and to significantly increase the rate of purchasing from Indigenous enterprises.
Since 2018, almost 600 contracts have been awarded to Indigenous SMEs through the DTA’s Digital, Hardware and Software marketplaces, with a 1300% increase in contracted value from 2018-19 ($13M) to date ($188M).
Minister for Employment, Workforce, Skills, Small and Family Business, Stuart Robert, said these figures demonstrate the significant value government procurement platforms like the DTA’s Digital Marketplace bring for SMEs.
‘The DTA’s marketplaces are making it easier for Indigenous sellers to showcase their services, and in turn, assist government agencies in delivering better government services for Australians,’ Minister Robert said.
Minister for Indigenous Australians, Ken Wyatt, said driving more Government annual spend into Indigenous businesses was vital to economic advancement for Indigenous Australians.
‘The increased contracts awarded to Indigenous businesses through the DTA’s marketplaces demonstrates the success the IPP has had,’ Minister Wyatt said.
‘These contracts embed Indigenous businesses into our supply chains and will help them grow and prosper, leading to more jobs and increased opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.’
The DTA works in close partnership with the National Indigenous Australians Agency to drive awareness, participation and growth for Indigenous SMEs to access and win work across government.
The DTA’s marketplaces make buying and selling digital goods and services for government easier. These marketplaces offer a range of products for hardware, software, telecommunications, digital consultancies, data centres and cloud.
For more information about the DTA’s marketplaces, visit www.buyict.gov.au
For more information about the Indigenous Procurement Policy, visit www.niaa.gov.au/ipp
Media contact: Minister Robert’s Office – (02) 6277 7200
Minister Wyatt’s Office – 0431 299 518
Background information:
Key data on Indigenous participation in digital and ICT government contracts:
- 597 contracts have been awarded to Indigenous SMEs through the DTA’s Digital, Hardware and Software marketplaces
- There has been a 1300% increase in contracted value awarded to Indigenous SMEs through the DTA’s marketplaces from 2018-19 ($13M) to date ($188M)
- $122.7M awarded in contracts via the Digital Marketplace, $35.2M awarded via the Hardware Marketplace and $30.4M awarded via the Software Marketplace.
DTA marketplaces Indigenous SME case study:
The DTA’s marketplaces have helped Indigenous IT SME Kirra Services to increase their visibility and grow their business. Established in 2017 and based in Canberra, Kirra Services is a majority owned, Supply Nation certified Indigenous information technology service provider.
Founder and Managing Director, Brad Nagle, is a proud Bundjalung man, leading a team of seven full-time employees and a number of contractors. He believes it is Kirra Services’ ability to assist government agencies as a trusted partner that has enabled the business to thrive and achieve ongoing success.
The Kirra Services business model is to deliver solutions across the broad suite of ICT capability – software, hardware, cyber and services. They have won close to 100 contracts through the DTA’s marketplaces since inception, enabling them to grow and expand their digital business and tailor their service offering to government.
Quotes attributable to Brad Nagle, Founder and Managing Director of Kirra Services:
‘We have found that securing government contracts as approved sellers on the DTA’s marketplaces has provided a good avenue for us to demonstrate our wares and capability.’
‘To position us to be competitive in the market, we support projects that align with our business model and cultural background.’
‘This has provided us with a solid foot in the door at agencies. But it is our demonstrated ability to deploy our diverse ICT solutions and provide value for money outcomes that sets us apart.’
‘We work closely with project managers at various agencies and provide deep-level guidance on solutions to their ICT problems.’
‘We also understand the value in developing business partnerships. We often work in close alignment with other companies in the same ecosystem to collaborate on ideas and approaches and achieve the best outcomes.’
‘And in the true spirit and the nature of the IPP, we actively support other Indigenous businesses and the community on a variety of projects. This extends to supporting students at local TAFEs with provision of re-use laptops and health clinics in Arnhem Land, for example.’
