FOSHAN, Guangdong: This southern Chinese city is attempting to position itself as a major procurement base for the United Nations (UN) and will hold a forum on April 17 to help local manufacturers become UN suppliers.

"There is enormous potential for manufacturers here, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), to become UN suppliers, as they have already developed strong competitiveness in the international market," Zhou Wen, an official on the forum's organizing committee, said yesterday.

Foshan has more than 80,000 SMEs, of which about 300 companies, mostly focused on home appliance manufacturing, have registered on the UN's procurement list.

But only two firms were accepted as UN suppliers last year, according to Zhou.

The UN's procurement volume totals about $5 billion each year, of which less than 1 percent is from China via third parties, Zhou said.

"Chinese companies used to be unaware of the UN's huge market. The forum will help develop another channel for their international business," Zhou said.

Jointly organized by the Ministry of Commerce and the Foshan city government, several leading officials from the UN's procurement departments will attend the forum to talk about how Chinese businesses can become UN suppliers.

A list of UN procurement goods will also be issued to Chinese companies at the forum, Zhou said.

Each year, the UN purchases more than 10,000 goods through its procurement database.

According to the UN's procurement procedure, companies should first be listed on its database to become suppliers.

"Being listed on the database will help firms enter the international market. So we are encouraging more SMEs, which often face fierce international competition, to first apply for inclusion in the database," Zhou said.

According to Zhou, there is strong demand for goods made in China from the UN.