Exploring the perceptions of construction SMEs on appropriate supporting policies for growth and development by the Qatari government for effective participation in infrastructure procurement and delivery for the 2022 World Cup

The purpose of this paper is to gauge the perceptions of SMEs of the measures they believe would enhance their development and growth by the Qatari government to ensure full and effective participation in the procurement of infrastructure and services for 2022 World Cup, which also serves the strategy of capacity building in the construction sector and diversification of the Qatari economy. A quantitative research methodology was applied to allow a cross-sectional data to be collected using a questionnaire survey. The literature on SMEs in Qatar indicates heterogeneity and this resulted in the categorisation of SMEs into three types. These include micro construction SMEs, small construction SMEs, and medium Construction SMEs. A total of 146 fully completed on-line questionnaire were obtained and analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSSx). The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to rank the factors believed by SMEs to hindering their effective participation in construction activities in Qatar. The results from SPSS results clearly showed that there is a huge variance in the perception of factors believed by SMEs to be hindering their effective participation in construction activities in the country. SMEs are particular about their underdeveloped entrepreneurial skills, lack of access to both financial and human capital, the distance between SMEs and construction educational institutions, unfair market competition for labour, materials, and equipment. From these findings, the study concluded that it is important that intended beneficiaries of government policies are consulted for inputs into policy formulation for effective outcomes. The study only focused on Small Medium Enterprises in Qatar, however, given similar socio-economic and political characteristics, the findings have wider applicability across the Gulf Corporation Council (GCC) countries, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman The study calls for an interface or platform where construction SMEs can interact with the Qatari government on how SMEs can be better supported for enhanced capacity building and development. The paper acknowledges the global pattern of the predominance of construction SMEs and their roles in construction industry development. This explains the various initiatives advanced by governments for SMEs development, and by critically appraising the effectiveness of such initiatives by the Qatari government, this study advances previous knowledge with its findings and recommendations.