The General Services Administration (GSA) debuted a new search tool today that makes it easier for buyers to find commercial products and services from Native-owned businesses and governments.
This new feature will help the visibility of Native businesses and Tribal governments, who are limited in their ability to generate traditional government revenues due to their unique Federal status, GSA said.
The search tool allows buyers to search for Native business categories in GSA Advantage!, GSA eBuy, and GSA eLibrary.
“The Biden-Harris administration is committed to forging cooperative relationships with Tribal Nations that are built on trust, consensus building, and shared goals – and that includes supporting the economic growth of Native-owned businesses,” GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan said today in a press release.
“Making it easier for buyers to obtain quality commercial products and services from Native-owned businesses is good for Federal agency missions, good for the Federal marketplace, and good for the communities we serve,” Carnahan added.
The new search identifiers help Federal agency partners to comply with the Buy Indian Act. They can also help buyers to better identify specific acquisition pathways, such as the ability to search for hand tools made by American Indian-owned small businesses.
The search terms for community-owned entities include:
- Alaska Native Corporation Owned ? an
- Native Hawaiian Organization Owned ? hn
- Tribally Owned ? to
And individually-owned:
- American Indian Owned ? ai
“These new tools will support Native American small businesses while also advancing the Biden-Harris administration’s Buy Indian Initiative. This is a win-win for both the Federal customer and our highly qualified Native American 8(a) certified businesses,” said Small Business Administration (SBA) Assistant Administrator for the Office of Native American Affairs, Jackson S. Brossy.
