Request for Expression of Interest

African Development Bank Group (AfDB)

North Africa Regional Development and Business Delivery Office – RDGN

5, Avenue du Dollar, Immeuble Zahrabed – Les Berges du Lac II, Tunis 1053, Tunisia

1. The African Development Bank hereby invites individual international consultants to indicate their interest in the following assignment: Design Phase of E-Connect Pan-Africa Platform (ECPP). Terms of Reference are ANNEX A ;
2. E-commerce can provide African Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) with the opportunity to reach a large market of customers at a much lower cost and upfront investment. In Africa, E-commerce was estimated to achieve about $27 billion and to create approximately 3 million jobs in 20201. African SMEs access to the online market is constrained by the lack of connectivity, lack of financial support, limited infrastructure and networks, lack of skills and information ;
3. The development of the E-Connect Pan-Africa Platform (ECPP) will allow African SMEs to access potential business opportunities, offer their products and be knowledgeable about other products available from other companies in the continent. It will provide them with a one-stop shop that offers the suite of tools necessary to undertake online transactions, benefit from opportunities in other African countries, and connect to suppliers, potential partners, and investors as well as provide them with full access to information about regulations and procedures of doing business in Regional Member Countries ;
4. The key objectives of the platform are to : 1) promote intra-regional and inter-regional trade; 2)increase investment in the Continent; 3) connect SMEs to partners, clients, suppliers and investors across the continent and elsewhere in the world, and provide them with access to up-to-date and clear information about regulations and procedures of doing business in Regional Member Countries ;
5. The project will include three phases: the design phase (Phase I), the pilot phase (Phase II), and the roll-out phase (Phase III). This assignment involves carrying gout Phase I – design of the ECPP. Source: Statista / Boston Consulting Group, estimate prior to COVID-19 pandemic ;
6. The North Africa Regional Development and Business Delivery Office (RDGN) of the African Development Bank (AfDB) requires the services of a Business Analyst to design the E-Connect Pan-Africa Platform, as committed under pillar 2 of the North Africa Regional Integration Strategy – 2020-26 (strengthening trade and investment through promotion of the private sector) ;
7. RDGN invites international consultants to indicate their interest in providing the services. Interested eligible consultants shall provide information on their qualifications and experience demonstrating their ability to provide the services (documentation, references for similar services, experience in comparable assignments, availability, etc.) ;
8. The eligibility criteria, the establishment of a short list and the selection procedure shall be in conformity with the Bank’s Rules and Procedures for the Use of Consultants available on the Bank Website at http://www.afdb.org. Please, note that interest expressed by an individual consultant does not imply any obligation on the part of the Bank to include it in the shortlist ;
9. The estimated duration of services is 6 months and the estimated start date is August 24^th, 2020 ;
10. Expressions of interest must be received by email for the attention of Rafika AMIRA at the email address below no later than 10 August 2020 at 12:00 p.m. local time. Consultants need to specify the name of the assignment in the title. Expressions of interest should be written in either English or French.

For the attention of: Rafika Amira : r.amira@afdb.org

Copied to: Ines Demni Moussa : i.moussademni@afdb.org

AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK GROUP

ANNEX A

TERMS OF REFERENCE:

Individual consultant

INTRODUCTION :

The North Africa Regional Development and Business Delivery Office (RDGN) of the African Development Bank (AfDB) requires the services of a Business Analyst to design the E-Connect Pan-Africa Platform (ECPP), as committed under pillar 2 of the North Africa Regional Integration Strategy – 2020-26 (strengthening trade and investment through promotion of the private sector).

This document presents the Terms of Reference (ToRs) for implementing Phase I (Design) of the initiative. It outlines a brief overview of the project, purpose and scope, key tasks to be completed, management, qualifications, required resources and an estimated timeline.

BACKGROUND :

E-commerce can provide African Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) who can offer competitive products/services with the opportunity to reach a large market of customers at a much lower cost and upfront investment. In Africa, E-commerce was estimated to achieve about $27 billion and to create approximately 3 million jobs in 20202. African SMEs access to the online market is constrained by the lack of connectivity, lack of financial support, limited infrastructure and networks, lack of skills and information. Based on UNCTAD estimates, Africa’s share of the global e-commerce is less than 0.5%.

The creation of the E-Connect Pan-Africa Platform (ECPP) will allow African SMEs to access potential business opportunities, offer their products and be knowledgeable about other products available from other companies in the continent. It will provide them with a one-stop shop that offers the suite of tools necessary to undertake online transactions, benefit from opportunities in other African countries, and connect to suppliers, potential partners, and investors as well as provide Source: Statista / Boston Consulting Group, estimate prior to COVID-19 pandemic them with full access to information about regulations and procedures of doing business in Regional Member Countries.

The current environment for the ECPP initiative is conducive with the coming into force of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCTFA), which seeks to gradually eliminate tariffs on intra-African trade. The AfCTFA will enable African companies to meet the demands of the African market, which accounts for 1.2 billion consumers, comprising all 55 member states of the African Union with a GDP of USD 2.5 trillion. As such, the AfCFTA will provide great opportunities for African SMEs to meet demand across Africa and access new markets, create jobs and build resilience in the event of a slowdown in growth in other parts of the World. The COVID_19 pandemic is a good example. African SMEs can help the continent respond to the increasing demand for medical supplies and build its resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. The AfCFTA can play an instrumental role in supporting the health industry in Africa and to facilitate the creation of reginal medical value chains to respond to the increasing demand for medical products and build the continent’s response capacity to health crises in the future. Only 8% of Africa’s medical products come from suppliers in the continent even though Africa exports many of the materials (e.g., rubber, fabric, ethanol) used to produce medical products³ . Most of Africa’s medical supplies are imported mainly from the European Union, China and India despite the great potential in different African regions particularly North Africa and South Africa. For instance, North Africa has the capacity and distinctive skills to scale-up the production of masks, septic gels and other sanitary equipment, as well as implement innovative digitalization solutions on pandemic monitoring, telemedicine, online education, etc. The ECPP can play an instrumental role to help leverage the knowledge, expertise, applications as well as the availability of raw materials available in Continent to develop regional medical value chains as opposed to importing from other continents.

The ECPP will offer multi-functional suite of tools, as follows :

• Access to Connection Opportunities : the ECPP will enable African SMEs to publish their company profiles and access the profiles of potential clients, suppliers and investors through a click of a button. It will allow them to reach out to other users through a secure and private networking system. The system will allow users to assess and rate their experience exchanging with other members ;
• Access to Business Opportunities : the ECPP will offer SMEs with easy access to business opportunities, through for example requests for proposals ;
• Access to Learning Solutions : the ECPP will include a full suite of learning solutions and tools including online databases, tutorials, webinars and online courses to enhance their knowledge and skills to export their products within Africa and to the rest of the world, particularly if they have not exported their products in the past ;
• Access to Finance : the ECPP will help members to become knowledgeable about financing An online application form will be made available so members can assess Source: International Trade Center  their eligibility. The platform will provide information to facilitate investment between SMEs and potential investors (African and international).

The key objectives of the platform are as follows : 1) promote intra-regional and inter-regional trade; 2)increase investment in the Continent; 3) connect SMEs to partners, clients, suppliers and investors across the continent and elsewhere in the world, and provide them with access to up-to-date and clear information about regulations and procedures of doing business in Regional Member Countries.

The project will include three phases: the design phase (Phase I), the pilot phase (Phase II), and the roll-out phase (Phase III). The region in which the platform will be piloted will be identified as part of the design phase based on the readiness as well as willingness of countries to participate in the pilot phase.

PURPOSE OF THE CONSULTANCY :

The purpose of this consultancy is to carry out the design phase of the initiative (Phase I). The consultant is expected to develop the business plan (the blueprint)for the ECPP, propose scenarios and costing options for Phase II and III, and mobilize resources.

TASKS FOR THE CONSULTANT :

The main responsibilities of the consultant are as follows :

• Conduct a benchmarking exercise and competitive analysis, by 1) carrying out an in-depth document and literature review on existing platforms covering the Africa region and/or other regions; conducting key informant interviews with organizations that have implemented similar initiatives (e.g., the Inter-American Development Bank) ;
• Carry out wide consultations with key stakeholders, including but not limited to Bank management and staff (RDGN, RDRI (regions and HQ), RDVP, PITD, PIFD etc.), Regional Economic Communities, SMEs from a sample Regional Member Countries, and development partners. The objective of these consultations is to assess the feasibility and utility of the platform, identify opportunities and risks, test potential features/characteristics with users, and estimate costs. Given the COVID-19 situation, these consultations will be carried out virtually ;
• Consult and provide an assessment of potential anchor companies, banks and other large private sector players interested in participating in such a platform ;
• Develop different models/scenarios and costing options and sustainability models (of the platform) ;
• Develop a resource mobilization and communication strategy. Identify potential sponsors/partners (e.g., International Trade Center) ;
• Develop a draft business plan as well as the detailed business requirements and platform design/ and key elements to implement in order to maximize business impact. This will include a complete road map for the strategy and future direction of the portal, full description of the portal, its services, characteristics, technology stack, market size, competition, operations, and management as well as the budgeting for launching the first pilot on a geographical basis (infrastructure and coding). The plan will also define a resource mobilization strategy for the development of the ECPP, the conduct of the pilot phase, the complete roll-out and the ongoing management of the platform. It will also include a design for the pilot phase (i.e., which countries and sectors would participate, pilot period, cost, evaluation plan) ;
• Finalize the business plan based on feedback from the Task Manager, the Working Group, Management and any other key stakeholders, as required ;
• Mobilize resources for Phases II and III from the Bank and other potential co-financiers.

REPORTING AND QUALITY MANAGEMENT :

The consultant will report to the Task Manager of this initiative: Regional Integration Coordinator (RIC), North Africa Region. The Task Manager will guide the consultant throughout the assignment; ensure that they have the necessary information to carry out the assignment and; facilitate any necessary interactions with the Bank. It is expected that the consultant would provide regular updates on progress to the Task Manager (through written progress reports and verbal briefings, as required). This will ensure clear communications between the consultant and RDGN and will help solve any issues that may arise during the project.

In addition, the consultant will be required to present some deliverables to a Working Group (WG), which will be instituted to act as a sounding board for the initiative. The WG composed of representatives from the following units/teams: 1) Regional Integration Coordinators from the five regions; 2) a representative from HQ, RDRI; 3) Industry and Trade department; 4) CHIS. The WG will be the forum through which the team will consult with the concerned units/departments. Finally, the consultant may be required to make presentations to Bank Management, who will oversee this initiative.

SELECTION CRITERIA :

The consultant must meet the following criteria :

• Have at least a master’s in management information systems, business informatics, Computer science or other related fields ;
• Experience of minimum 5 years in the area of information management and/or E-commerce Business/systems analysis and design ;
• Strong E-commerce marketing skills ;
• In-depth knowledge of the latest advances in E-commerce techniques and strategies ;
• Strong skills and experience in areas such as: needs analysis, IT project management, change management including results driven task prioritization ;
• Good understanding of information security related to electronic platforms and digital payment ;
• Experience working in international organization and managing corporate partnerships ;
• Proven experience in producing reports, publications and policy documents ;
• Ability to communicate and write effectively in French and/or English.

DURATION AND DUTY STATION :  The consultant will provide her/his services for a duration of SIX (6) months. The starting date for the consultant will be 24 August 2020. The consultancy will be based at the Bank’s Regional Office in Tunis, TUNISIA.

WORKING LANGUAGE : The consultant will be required to work in French and/or English.

DELIVERABLES : This assignment (phase I of the ECPP) will be launched in August 2020 and will be completed by January 2021. The following table outlines the estimated timeline per deliverable.