# New procurement technical assistance center to help Mariana Island businesses grow

/ Published Jan. 26, 2021
FORT BELVOIR, Va., 
For nearly four decades, the Defense Logistics Agency has used Procurement Technical Assistance Centers to help businesses compete for and perform contracts with the Defense Department. The Procurement Technical Assistance Program was authorized by Congress in 1985 to expand the number of businesses capable of participating in DOD and federal government contracts.

In September 2020, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory consisting of 15 islands in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, entered into a cooperative agreement with DLA to establish a PTAC.

DLA PTAP Program Manager Sherry Savage said fiscal 2020 funding allowed for the expansion of services to new areas in the CNMI including Saipan, Tinian and Rota.

“The presence of a PTAC in the Northern Marianas is very important to DLA because we know that the federal government as a whole only issued 32 contract awards in the Northern Marianas last year,” she said. “That means that there’s untapped potential for contractors who can serve the [Defense Industrial Base].”

DLA administers the program through its Small Business Programs Office in cooperation with states, local governments and nonprofit organizations. The PTAP has over 300 centers in Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam and in 49 states that provide contracting-related assistance to businesses that form the DIB. The PTACs comprise a nationwide network of procurement professionals who help these businesses navigate the government procurement process.

Savage said increasing the industrial base allows DLA to buy higher quality products at better prices and helps the local economy. Although there’s significant federal funding for projects in CNMI and Guam, no entity existed in CNMI to teach residents how to obtain government contracts. The PTAC began serving CNMI businesses Jan. 11.

“The government agencies in those areas will be much more successful finding suppliers to carry out the projects if we have a PTAC there, teaching them who buys what they sell and how they need to market those goods to government agencies,” Savage added.

PTACs keep businesses informed on government contracting-related resources and changes, especially those resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. PTAC members also share client information with government personnel to assist in the search for suppliers.

Historically, the CNMI's economy has relied primarily on tourism and garment manufacturing. In the aftermath of Super Typhoon Yutu in 2018 and the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, both industries have suffered, said Glenna Sakisat Palacios, Special Assistant to the CNMI Governor for Military Affairs.

“Everything eventually just shut down. This award is part of the larger effort to ensure the people of the Northern Marianas are given the same opportunities for support that’s available in communities around the nation, increasing venues for contracting opportunities in the CNMI,” she said. “Local entrepreneurs as well as other business owners are very eager to compete.”

Sixto Igisomar is the new PTAC’s director.

“A lot of manufacturer and production opportunities were terminated or halted [during the pandemic] because we’re limited by our geography,” Igisomar said. “But the presence of the PTAC will provide the opportunity for our organizations and businesses to expand their investments.”

He added that he and Sakisat Palacios have researched DLA’s business model and global services and are proud to engage with the agency.

“We’re trying to improve the economic situation for the residents of those islands,” Savage said. “DLA pays directly for at least two employees – a program manager and a counselor – so just by having a PTAC, we’ve already created jobs.”

Sakisat Palacios said the new PTAC will benefit DLA as well as CNMI residents by reducing overall costs. For example, military service members and planners often bring products they’ll need for exercises in the region.

“They’d have to buy bottled water in Japan, load it in on the ship, transport it with the troops over to the island and then offload and store it,” she said, adding that in the future, CNMI vendors could potentially provide locally sourced bottled water, fuel and emergency vehicles like fire trucks.

Savage said CNMI and Guam have military installations and a demand for government contractors to perform work, but insufficient bids cause delays, and lack of competition drives prices up.

“As the PTAC’s business clients learn how to find and bid on government procurements, more awards can be issued, projects will be completed, and the industrial base and the CNMI’s economy will be strengthened,” she said.