Patton Boggs and PwC host informative government contracting seminar in Doha

Nearly 150 top business leaders and government officials from Qatar and the Middle East region attended the event called 'Contracting with the United States Government in the Middle East: Fundamentals of Understanding and Making the United States Procurement Process Work For You?'

The seminar provided an insider's perspective on the contracting process offering substantive and timely advice for companies seeking to do business with the U.S. Government in the Middle East. It featured a distinguished group of experts discussing both the strategic and practical aspects for contracting with the U.S. Government.

Highlights from the seminar included a presentation by Mr. Robert H. Koehler, Senior Partner, U.S. Government Contracts Practice Group, Patton Boggs and Ret. Col. John C. Garrett, Senior U.S. Defense Policy Advisor, Patton Boggs. The presentation included an overview of the U.S. Government contracting process, a discussion of the Fiscal Year 2005 Supplemental Budget for funds that U.S. Government is expected to spend in the region on various projects, examples of recent Request For Quotations (RFQ) and tips to help attendees navigate the contracting process.

Insightful remarks by Dr. Khaled M. Masoud, Ph.D. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Transatlantic Programs Center, informed attendees about current and future projects in the region.

Mr. Nicholas A. Sanders, U.S. Government Contracts Practice, PricewaterhouseCoopers rounded out the discussion with remarks about the accounting requirements once a contract is awarded and provided an overview of the audit process.

After the presentation and remarks, attendees participated in a valuable roundtable discussion with the speakers. The seminar provided those who attended a real opportunity to understand the U.S. government contracting process. They learned the importance of studying the needs of a project and how to take extra care when preparing a proposal. This hands-on advice is especially valuable since most of the attendees have not yet had the opportunity to do business with the U.S. Government said Robert H. Koehler.

John Garrett added, "This was a great exercise in communication and raising the awareness of the opportunities to do business with the U.S. Government. It also provided everyone who attended the opportunity to build both personal and business relationships. We learned a great deal from the attendees and were very impressed by their extremely sophisticated, astute and knowledgeable questions.

In 2003, Patton Boggs became the first United States law firm to be licensed to practice law in Qatar. The firm has long-standing client relationships throughout the Middle East and particularly in the Gulf region, all of which draw upon the resources of the Doha office. Patton Boggs plans to hold additional seminars in other Middle Eastern countries throughout 2005.