1. Iceland

1.1. SMEs in the national economy

SMEs in Iceland are significant actors in the “non-financial business economy”. They contribute to approximately three-fourths of total employment and more than two-thirds of value added.

Table ‎1.1. Basic figures of the non-financial business economy of Iceland, 2014
Estimates for 2014 based on figures from the Structural Business Statistics Database (Eurostat)

Number of enterprises

Number of persons employed

Value added

Number

Share

Number

Share

(in billion EUR)

Share

Total

24 255

100.0%

104 890

100.0%

6 531

100.0%

SMEs

24 200

99.8%

77 620

74.0%

4 442

68.0%

Micro

22 707

93.6%

29 218

27.9%

1 552

23.8%

Small

1 267

5.2%

25 422

24.2%

1 282

19.6%

Medium-sized

226

0.9%

22 980

21.9%

1 608

24.6%

Large

55

0.2%

27 270

26.0%

2 090

32.0%

Note: These data for 2014 are provided by Statistics Iceland and Eurostat (Structural Business Statistics Database), and were processed by DIW Econ. The data cover the non-financial business economy, which includes industry, construction, trade, and services (NACE Rev. 2 sections B to J, L, M and N), but not enterprises in agriculture, forestry or fisheries, or largely non-market service sectors such as education and health. The advantage of using Eurostat data is that the statistics are harmonised and comparable across countries. The disadvantage is that for some countries the data may be different from those published by national authorities.

Source: (European Commission, 2017[1]).

1.2. National policy framework to support SMEs in public procurement

Considerations regarding SMEs are integrated into general public procurement policy, especially with a view to increasing competition in public procurement. Ríkiskaup, the central purchasing body of Iceland, urges contracting authorities to divide contracts into lots, except where proper justification exists, so that the size of the tender does not discourage SME participation.

Implementation of the e-tendering system, scheduled for 2017, as well as use of the European Single Procurement Document and e-access to databases to obtain certificates and attestations is expected to further standardise and simplify public procurement procedures.

1.3. Implementation mechanisms

Ríkiskaup hosts a conference biennially to inform economic operators and buyers about the latest changes in public procurement. It has also provided educational seminars about public procurement, which were organised by the Federation of Icelandic Industries. Ríkiskaup has also offered seminars on public procurement law in co-operation with the University of Iceland for both contracting authorities and economic operators. These events are not specially held for SMEs. However, as the majority of the business population in Iceland are SMEs, these events help increase visibility and understanding of the public procurement system and facilitate SME participation in public procurement.

Furthermore, in order to increase the participation of craftsmen’s enterprises in a framework agreement on craftsmen services, several visits have been made to their organised interest meetings.

1.4. Monitoring performance

As 99.8% of companies in Iceland are SMEs, there is no specific monitoring mechanism regarding SME participation in the public procurement market. In 2016, SMEs were awarded 91% of the contracts from Ríkiskaup in terms of number, which represented 90% in terms of volume.

Reference

[1] European Commission (2017), SBA Fact Sheets 2016, http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/22382.

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