Govt e-Marketplace (GeM) Suitably Placed to exceed its Ambitious Target of ₹ 1.75 lakh crore

· GeM revolutionizes the ecosystem of public procurement in the country through technology, digitization of processes, digital integration of all stakeholders and use of analytics

· GeM features over 66,000 government buyer organisations and more than 58 lakh sellers and service providers offering a diverse range of goods and services

· The portal features over 11,000 product categories with more than 29 lakh listed products, as well as over 270 service categories with more than 2.5 lakh service offerings

· GeM successfully integrates with 1.5 lakh+ India Post offices and 5.2+ lakh Village Level Entrepreneurs [VLEs] via the CSCs for last-mile outreach and service delivery

· GeM conducts curated trainings with the State Mission Coordinators and District Managers to help them understand GeM and its features

The Government e-Marketplace (GeM), the public procurement portal, is suitably placed to exceed its ambitious target of ₹ 1.75 lakh crore, PK Singh, CEO, GeM said in a media interaction on 8 February, 2023. As on February 1st 2023, GeM has achieved a staggering ₹ 1.5 lakh crore of Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) in FY23 alone. Cumulatively, GeM has surpassed the ₹ 3 lakh crore GMV since inception, with the overwhelming support of its stakeholders. The total number of transactions on GeM has also crossed 1.3 crore.

GeM has over 66,000 government buyer organisations and more than 58 lakh sellers and service providers offering a diverse range of goods and services. The portal features over 11,000 product categories with more than 29 lakh listed products, as well as over 270 service categories with more than 2.5 lakh service offerings. Based on various studies, the minimum savings on the platform are about 10%, which translates into a savings of over ₹ 30,000 crore worth of public money.

CEO-GeM, P.K. Singh shared the journey and vision ahead for GeM at the media interaction. He also thanked all the stakeholders who are the primary drivers behind GeM's reaching such great heights.

Government e Marketplace (GeM) is an online platform for public procurement in India that was envisaged by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi. The initiative was launched on August 9, 2016 by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry with the objective of creating an inclusive, efficient, and transparent platform for the buyers and sellers to carry out procurement activities in a fair and competitive manner.

In the last 6.5 years, GeM has revolutionized the ecosystem of public procurement in the country through technology, the digitization of processes, the digital integration of all stakeholders, and the use of analytics.

GeM is an example of how digital platforms created with a strategic and clear intent to reinvigorate and reimagine legacy processes can bring about lasting change for the nation as well as the underserved. GeM has been effectively contributing to the government’s commitment of “Minimum Government, Maximum Governance”.

The platform enables multiple procurement modes (direct purchase, L1 procurement, bidding, reverse auction, bid followed by reverse auction). GeM has evolved as a trust-based platform and is contactless, paperless, and cashless, where authentication of users is done through API integration with respective domain databases, i.e., Aadhaar, PAN, Startup, GSTN, MCA21, etc. The marketplace includes policies for automated market adjustments as well as end-to-end digital processes that support a thriving buyer-seller ecosystem.

GeM has successfully integrated with 1.5 lakh+ India Post offices and 5.2+ lakh Village Level Entrepreneurs [VLEs] via the CSCs for last-mile outreach and service delivery. Curated trainings are being conducted with the State Mission Coordinators and District Managers to help them understand GeM and its features.

Through automation and digitization of processes, GeM has led to higher process efficiencies, better information sharing, improved transparency, reduced process cycle times, and a higher level of trust among bidders, which in turn have resulted in greater competition and higher savings. These innovations in GeM have also brought down waiting times and prices for buyers significantly and ensured timely payments to sellers. This is also expected to enhance the overall "Ease of Doing Business" while also promoting the highest standards of quality in public procurement in India.