Barriers to the involvement in green public procurement among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) government suppliers

• Main Authors: Ismail, Suhaiza, Zainol, Zaini
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Emerald 2024
• Subjects: HJ Public Finance; HJ9701 Public accounting
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/110346/1/JOPPJan2024.PDF; http://irep.iium.edu.my/110346/

Purpose – The objectives of this study are two-fold. First, it aims to examine the challenges of green public procurement (GPP) involvement among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) government suppliers. Second, it investigates the differences in the perceived challenges between the small and medium-sized groups of companies. Design/methodology/approach – The study draws on the quantitative method. The questionnaire was distributed to SMEs that supply green goods or services to the government and which are listed in the MyHijau directory. Using convenience sampling, a total of 394 questionnaires were distributed and 126 usable questionnaires were received, representing a response rate of 31.98 percent. A descriptive analysis of the mean score, standard deviation, and mean score ranking was used to analyze the overall results. The t-test analysis was carried out to examine the differences between the small and medium-sized groups of companies. Findings – All five categories of the barriers, i.e., financial, legal, people, knowledge, and organizational challenges, are perceived as the important challenges for SMEs’ involvement in GPP. Of the five categories, ‘having lack of knowledgeable staff on GPP’ under the category of ‘people’ challenge, is ranked as the most major barrier. In relation to the differences between the two groups of enterprises (small and medium-sized), medium enterprises are more affected by two items under the ‘organization’ challenge, i.e., ‘The company has not targeted suppliers that promote environmentally-friendly products/services’; and ‘The company has not established a clear objective on purchase of green products and services’, as compared to the small-sized enterprises through their GPP involvement. Practical implications – By understanding the difficulties faced by SMEs in engaging with GPP, various practical measures can be formulated to support the SME businesses in mitigating the challenges faced in their involvement with GPP to reach the sustainable development goals (SDGs). Originality/value – This study extends empirical evidence on barriers or challenges that may hinder the involvement in GGP, with a specific focus on SME government suppliers.