Mumbai witnessed an important development in India’s public procurement and MSME empowerment landscape as World Trade Centre Mumbai (WTC Mumbai) and Government e-Marketplace (GeM) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 19 January 2026. The strategic agreement aimed to expand outreach, enhance global engagement and accelerate the inclusion of MSMEs, startups, women entrepreneurs and underrepresented suppliers in government procurement.
The MoU established a structured framework for collaboration between the two institutions, focusing on supplier development, capacity building and international market access. Leveraging WTC Mumbai’s extensive global network, the partnership was designed to facilitate webinars, buyer-seller meets, trade fairs and international outreach programmes, while also onboarding global suppliers onto the GeM platform.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Vijay Kalantri, Chairman, WTC Mumbai and President, All India Association of Industries (AIAI), stated that the partnership would play a catalytic role in integrating MSMEs and women entrepreneurs into government procurement. He emphasised that improved market access through GeM would further strengthen domestic enterprises and support the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat. Dr. Kalantri also highlighted WTC Mumbai’s continued advocacy for timely credit to MSMEs, noting that financial support remains critical to their competitiveness.
Satya Narayan Meena, Additional CEO and Chief Financial Officer, GeM, described the MoU as a pivotal step in GeM’s evolution as a globally benchmarked digital procurement platform. With over one crore registered users, he underlined the importance of wider exposure and capacity building, particularly for MSMEs and women-led enterprises. He also highlighted the impact of GeM’s Womaniya initiative in enhancing women entrepreneurs’ participation in public procurement.
Key areas of collaboration under the MoU included policy dialogue on emerging themes such as AI and sustainable procurement, global training programmes, supplier readiness frameworks and international outreach initiatives through WTC networks. A Joint Working Group was constituted to oversee implementation, ensuring alignment with Government of India policies on transparency, data security and inclusivity.
From an industry and exhibition perspective, the partnership marked a significant step towards strengthening India’s digital procurement ecosystem, supporting Ease of Doing Business reforms and contributing to the long-term vision of Viksit Bharat 2047 by positioning India as a global leader in public procurement innovation.
