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Growth Gateway

Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

07 Sep 2026 at 12:03

Award Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is extending and scaling up Growth Gateway, a development and international trade programme delivered in the UK and through relationships with low-income and middle-income countries. The service aims to increase two-way trade and investment, combining official development assistance and other funding to generate socio-economic impact and commercial opportunities for UK growth. Its scope covers mobilising trade and investment pipelines, including firm-level and transformational projects; supporting inclusive growth and jobs, particularly for women and marginalised groups; strengthening economic diplomacy and strategic partnerships; advancing UK climate leadership and climate transition; and driving commercial deals and future markets aligned with the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy. Delivery activity is associated with the FCDO and is addressed to the UK.

This is an awarded contract modification and extension to the existing Growth Gateway arrangement. The FCDO used a limited award procedure without prior publication of a competition, relying on Regulation 72(1)(b) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and a Voluntary ex ante transparency notice. The incumbent supplier, Boston Consulting Group UK LLP, was awarded the modification on 7 September 2026, and the contract was signed on the same date. The amendment adds £30,000,000 to the financial limit, increasing it from £78,900,000 to £108,900,000, and extends delivery by seven months to 31 March 2028. The stated rationale is continuity, established relationships, programme-specific knowledge, and avoiding mobilisation, transfer and handover costs. Subcontracting is involved and contract extension options are included.

This requirement demonstrates demand for suppliers able to manage complex international development and trade programmes spanning government, partner governments, investors, private-sector stakeholders and overseas posts. A credible competitor would need experience building and converting trade and investment pipelines, delivering technical assistance and measurable development outcomes, and managing programmes that combine public funding with commercial objectives. Relevant capability includes inclusive economic growth and jobs programmes, economic diplomacy, strategic partnership development, climate transition and sustainable growth, as well as identifying commercial opportunities for UK businesses. Strong programme governance, stakeholder relationships, knowledge transfer and orderly transition planning would be important, particularly where live activities and established networks must be maintained. The award also indicates that capacity to coordinate multiple objectives and provide continuity at significant programme scale is valued by this buyer.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Growth Gateway

Notice Description

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) intends to extend and scale up an existing contract, Growth Gateway. Growth Gateway (GG) aims to deliver development impact through increased two way trade and investment between the UK and Middle Income Countries (MICs) and Low Income Countries (LICs). The programme combines official development assistance (ODA) and non-ODA funding to deliver socio-economic impact against logframe targets and identify commercial opportunities for UK growth.

Lot Information

Lot 1

This notice is to indicate that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) intends to extend and scale up the contract with the named supplier for Growth Gateway (GG). The contract financial limit will be uplifted by an additional PS30,000,000 and extend by a further 7 months to take the contract end date to 31 March 2028. This notice constitutes a Voluntary ex ante notice under Regulation 99 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. The Authority considers the award of this contract modification is permitted under Regulation 72 (1) (b) of those Regulations, and therefore subject to publication of a notice under that provision, however the Authority also intends to observe a 10 day standstill period under regulation 99 (3)(c). The programme has 5 core objectives: * Mobilising trade and investment pipelines - via firm-level and transformational projects, and MAB reform * Catalysing inclusive growth and jobs - especially for women and marginalised groups * Promoting economic diplomacy - strengthening strategic partnerships aligned to UK priority areas * Advancing UK climate leadership - accelerating action from policy to mobilisation, working with partners * Boosting UK growth - driving commercial deals and opening future markets aligned to the UK's Modern Industrial Strategy The additional budget and time will allow for Growth Gateway to continue to deliver its role as a key delivery mechanism for the Growth Community of Expertise and allow it to meet the current and anticipated demands across FCDO and utilise Growth Gateway to step up support for inclusive and sustainable growth, economic partnerships and climate transition in line with Minister's priorities. Finally given the Growth CoE will absorb and build on the lessons, networks and pipeline results generated by Growth Gateway, it is imperative that Growth Gateway's closure is correctly sequenced with the standing up of the Growth CoE to ensure value for money for both programmes.

Options: The original contract included options to extend the contract by an additional 24 months (up to August 2027) and up to PS80,000,000. A previous amendment has extended the end date to August 2027 and will now extend beyond this to 31 March 2028. The current financial limit of the contract is PS78,900,000 and this will be increased to PS108,900,000 as part of this amendment.

Procurement Information

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) intends to increase the financial ceiling of the Growth Gateway (GG) contract by PS30,000,000. The modification is made under Regulation 72(1)(b) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. The additional funding will enable continued delivery of the existing Growth Gateway service model at the scale and pace required to meet current demand and support transition to the successor Growth Community of Expertise Technical Assistance Facility. The modification does not introduce new services or materially alter the nature or scope of the contract. FCDO considers that a change of contractor cannot be made for economic and technical reasons. The incumbent supplier is responsible for a live pipeline of activities and has established relationships with Posts, partner governments, investors and private sector stakeholders, together with programme-specific knowledge developed over the life of the contract. Appointing an alternative supplier for the remaining contract period would require mobilisation, transfer of knowledge and subsequent handover to the successor programme, creating significant inconvenience, duplication of costs and increased delivery risk. The modification does not exceed 50% of the original total contract value and the overall nature of the contract remains unchanged. The amendment is time-limited and supports delivery continuity, value for money and an orderly transition to successor Growth CoE arrangements.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06f356
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/084332-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Limited
Procurement Method Details
Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

75 - Administration, defence and social security services

CPV Codes

75210000 - Foreign affairs and other services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£108,900,000 £100M-£1B

Notice Dates

Publication Date
7 Sep 20261 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Not Specified
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
EAST KILBRIDE
Postcode
G75 8EA
Postcode Area
Glasgow
Country
Scotland
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLM Scotland
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLM9 Southern Scotland
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLM95 South Lanarkshire
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
South Lanarkshire
Electoral Ward
East Kilbride West
Westminster Constituency
East Kilbride and Strathaven

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

The Boston Consulting Group UK LLP

Further Information

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.

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