Responding to a public call for tenders represents a real challenge for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Cameroon. Beyond the creation of the administrative file, these companies must master two types of essential criteria to hope to win the market: the elimination criteria and the evaluation criteria.

Elimination criteria are those which, if not met, automatically result in the elimination of the offer. “This may involve, for example, non-compliance with delivery deadlines, the absence of one of the required administrative documents, or even non-compliance with minimum technical specifications,” explains Mr. Tasse Fabrice, head of profiling and subcontracting opportunities at BSTP-CMR.

Faced with these qualifying requirements, SMEs must therefore demonstrate absolute rigor in compiling their application file. “They have no right to make mistakes on these points, otherwise their offer will be rejected,” Mr. Tasse Fabrice reminds us.

At the same time, the evaluation criteria are those which make it possible to compare the different offers and to determine which one will be retained. “It may be the price, the technical value of the proposal, the execution times, or even the financial solidity of the company,” explains Mr. Tasse Fabrice.

On these evaluation criteria, SMEs must therefore not only be competitive, but also highlight their strengths strategically. “It’s a balancing act, because you have to offer the best value for money while highlighting your strengths,” underlines Mr. Tasse Fabrice.

Faced with these challenges, SMEs must imperatively train and surround themselves with experts to perfectly master these different criteria. “This is the key to winning these public contracts, crucial for the development of our SMEs,” concludes Mr. Tasse Fabrice.

A sine qua non condition for Cameroonian SMEs to be able to fully seize these opportunities offered by public procurement.