SME wider community engagement with the FCDO SME Advisory Forum

BEI is delighted to continue supporting the members of FCDO’s SME Advisory Forum to engage with the wider SME community.

Our aim is both to ensure that members of the Advisory Forum are briefed on the full range of views of the SME supplier community and to enable them to provide feedback on the discussions after their meetings.

This quarter’s meeting will be attended by Dr Beverley Jandziol, FCDO Commercial Director, and Elaine Woodbine, Commercial Lead - Market Creation, who will cover:

• FCDO budget settlement - implications for SMEs
• FCDO’s draft SME Action Plan
• The upcoming expressions of interest process for new members of the SME Advisory Forum

The FCDO SME Advisory Forum consists of fifteen members who act as an industry consultative body advising FCDO officials on the International Development agenda as it affects SMEs. Members include the leaders of a range of micro, small and medium-sized businesses across the FCDO supply chain.  This initiative is intended to complement rather than duplicate the work of the SME Forum, and in that respect it has the support of our FCDO partners.

BEI facilitates quarterly meetings, chaired by the SME Forum members, for all interested SME suppliers (BEI members and non-members equally) at which they can:

a) provide feedback on the previous Forum meeting and any updates received from the FCDO; and

b) solicit ideas for future Forum meeting agenda items and discussion.