Recruitment of a Firm to Provide Technical Support to the Health Management and Financing System and

SELECTION OF CONSULTING FIRMS BY THE WORLD BANK GROUP REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (EOI) Electronic Submissions through WBGeProcure RFx Now ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW

Assignment Title: RECRUITMENT OF A FIRM TO PROVIDE TECHNICAL SUPPORT TO THE HEALTH MANAGEMENT AND FINANCING SYSTEM AND

Assignment Countries:

- Guinea-Bissau ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTION Terms of Reference— Technical Assistance to Strengthen Public Financial Management in the HealthSector of Guinea-Bissau (Consulting Firm) Two-phaselump-sum contract — Phase 1 (FY27) and conditional Phase 2 (FY28)

1. Background

1.1 Country and sectorcontext Guinea-Bissau is a fragile, low-income state with recurrentpolitical instability, a narrow fiscal base and governance indicators below theIDA fragility threshold. Despite notable progress against HIV, tuberculosis(TB) and malaria, the health system remains chronically underfunded and highlydependent on external financing and on household payments. Per capita generalgovernment health expenditure was about USD 5.20 in 2020, far below the USD 86benchmark, and out-of-pocket payments account for about 65–66 percent ofcurrent health expenditure. Health absorbed only 2.72 percent of generalgovernment expenditure in 2019, below regional peers such as Chad (5.23percent), Guinea (6.15 percent), Mauritania (6.98 percent), Niger (9.38percent) and Burkina Faso (9.58 percent). Externally funded vertical programmes for HIV, TB, malariaand immunization have their own management units and greater financial capacitythan the rest of the system. Government co-financing commitments to theseprogrammes cannot currently be traced through national systems. At the sametime, the irregular payment of health worker salaries has triggered recurrentstrikes that disrupt service delivery, underlining the cost of weak budgetexecution and payroll management for the population. 1.2 Public financialmanagement in the health sector: the problem this assignment addresses The WHO Health Financing Progress Matrix (HFPM) countryassessment for Guinea-Bissau (2025) rates public financial management (PFM) inthe health sector as “Emerging”. Its main findings are summarized below. Budgetplanning, execution, monitoring and reporting functions in the health sectorperform only in a limited way, within weak overall PFM systems. TheMinistry of Health does not produce financial execution data; budget executionreporting for the sector is not available and is not published. Allocationsfollow historical budgets and liquidity constraints, so policy priorities(including primary health care and HIV, TB and malaria) are poorly reflected inthe budget. Reallocation is possible within, but not between, current,personnel and investment lines, creating rigidity and delays. Healthfacilities rely heavily on self-generated user-fee revenue, managedautonomously with limited accountability, reporting and control atdecentralized levels. Limitedoversight of spending, including personnel spending, constrains fiscal spacefor critical expenditure. WHO recommends strengthening budgeting as the foundation forpolicy-driven planning that links all funding sources (State budget, externalfunds and user fees) to priorities; reinforcing the financial managementregulatory framework; and producing budget execution reports with fullinformation on funding sources and on expenditure by level, region, andinstitutional and economic classification. 1.3 The Global Fund–WorldBank engagement and how this assignment fits The Global Fund and the World Bank are supporting theGovernment of Guinea-Bissau to strengthen health financing and PFM in thehealth sector, with a focus on HIV, TB, malaria and Resilient and SustainableSystems for Health (RSSH). The support is financed by the Global Fund through atrust fund administered by the World Bank and is implemented in closecoordination with the Ministry of Health (MoH), the Ministry of Finance (MoF)and partners, notably WHO and the European Union (EU). This assignment covers the operational PFM component:accounting and financial management practices, budget monitoring andexpenditure tracking, financial reporting, and the related capacity building,at central level and in two pilot regions.

2. Objectives of the assignment

Overall objective Strengthen the capacity of the MoH, in coordination with the MoF, torecord, monitor and report on health spending, from budget allocation toexecution, so that resources, including those for HIV, TB, malaria and RSSH andgovernment co-financing, are traceable, reported regularly and used fordecision-making. Specific objectives The firm is responsible for 3 specific objectives. First, Supportthe Rollout of a Financial Management System. Second, develop budget monitoringand expenditure-tracking processes and tools. Third, PFM Capacity Building for MoHand MoF Personnel with transfer skills to Ministry of Health and Ministry ofFinance staff

3. Phasing and contracting envelope

The assignment is contracted in two phases. Phase 2 is a conditionalextension, exercised only once its budget envelope is confirmed and the Phase 1deliverables have been approved. Phase Period Core content Phase 1 FY27 — 6 months from contract signature

• FM system acquired and rolled out at the central level
• FM procedures established;
• Accounting and reporting support at central level;
• Budget monitoring expenditure-tracking processes;
• PFM Capacity building plan for central and decentralized level

Phase 2 (conditional) FY28 — 12 months

• FM system deployed in regional and selected entities level ;
• budget monitoring expenditure-tracking instruments and tools ;
• Capacity building in central and decentralized level;
• Accounting and reporting support in pilot regions;
• training of trainers;

Phase 2 subject to confirmation of the FY28 envelope

4. Scope of work

The assignment is organized in 3 workstreams, (1 phase 1 and 2 phase2). The firm reports to the World Bank Task Team Leader, who is responsible forcontract management. Day to day, the Firm works with the World Bank PFMtechnical lead and with the Director of DSFC at the MoH, who is the maincounterpart. A MoF focal point will be designated by the Budget Directorate. Anysubstantive change to scope or schedule requires written approval by the TaskTeam Leader. Phase 1 (FY27): Workstream A support the Support theRollout of Financial Management Systems at central level; budgetmonitoring processes and capacitybuilding design A.1 Provide technical assistance to the Direcção de Serviços Financeirose Contabilidade (DSFC)to establish accountingprocedures. A.2 Support theacquisition and rollout of accounting software with a budget module for central level recording. A.3 Produce a budgetmonitoring processes for the health sector, aligned with the nomenclature ofthe Budget Directorate and usable by DSFC without external support. A.4 Capacity Building planning: (1)Identifytraining gaps among MoH and MoF personnel involved in PFM within the healthsector, focusing on areas such as financial management and expendituretracking. (2) Design targetedcapacity-building programs and workshops to enhance compliance with newexpenditure tracking mechanisms, (3) producecapacity building plan for central and decentralized levels. Phase 2 (FY28, conditional) — Workstream B : budgetmonitoring and expenditure-tracking instruments and tools , accounting support, and FM system deployed in regional level B.1 from the budget processes manual develop budgeting instrumentsand tools, and roll out the budgeting instruments and tools with central and regionalusers. B.2 Produce an expenditure tracking tool for heath sector, particularly HIV, TB and malaria programs,with a short user guide. B.3 Support the Direcção de Serviços Financeiros e Contabilidade toimprove accounting and financial reporting practices, including standardizedreporting formats and guidelines for the health sector. B.4 Develop and implement enhanced financial reporting mechanismstailored to the health sector, including the introduction of standardizedformats and guidelines B.5 Support the deployment of the information system accountingsoftware and reporting support in two pilot regions, including a data migrationplan, user guides and three months of post-deployment support. Rollout beyondthe central level and the two pilot regions is outside the scope of thiscontract. Phase 2 (FY28, conditional) — Workstream C: capacitybuilding in central and decentralizedlevel including training of trainers C.1 From the Capacity building design and plan for PFM, budget monitoringand accounting software , Deliver central anddecentralized level trainings for selected beneficiaries for centrallevel Ministry of Health and Ministry ofFinance staff, C.2 training-of-trainerssession for decentralized level and provide remote backstopping to two regionalreplication sessions led by the trained trainers. C.3 Hand over reusable training materials to the Ministry of Healthand the Ministry of Finance, and produce the final consolidated report of theassignment.

5. Deliverables and paymentmilestones

All deliverables are submitted in Portuguese or/and French with an executive summary in English orFrench, in draft for comments and revised to final within ten working days ofreceipt of consolidated comments. The contract is lump-sum and payments aremade against approval of each deliverable, as a percentage of the phasecontract value. Phase 1 — FY27 Ref. Deliverable Due Payment L1

Inception report: methodology, list of documents and data to be obtained, interview plan, work plan and data management plan

M+1 20% L2

• Accounting procedures
• budget monitoring processes and tools ;

M+4 25% L3

• Roll out FM system in central level

· M+5 40% L4 PFM Capacity building design and training plan M+6 15% Phase 2 — FY28, conditional Ref. Deliverable Due Payment L5 (1) Acceptable budget monitoring execution tracking instruments and tools report on the rollout of the budgeting instruments M+3 of Phase 2 35% L6 Accounting system deployment at decentralized in two pilot regions, data migration plan, user guides and post-deployment arrangements financial reporting mechanisms M+6 of Phase 2 35% L7 Training in central level and training -of-trainers report with materials handed over, and final consolidated report with findings, recommendations and handover note M+12 of Phase 2 30% In addition, the Firm submits a monthly progress note of nomore than two pages. The progress note is not a payment deliverable.

6. Firm profile and key staff

Firm qualifications : at least sevenyears of demonstrated experience supporting public financial management; whichat least 1 experience in a low-income or fragile context. Significantexperience demonstrated presence or experience and in-depth knowledge of publicfinance in Guinea-Bissau will be a major asset. The firm proposes its own level of effort for each phase within theceiling. The technical proposal must demonstrate that the proposed staffingdelivers the deliverables of Section 5 within that envelope. The positionsbelow are required. Mission Director team leader , CharteredAccountant with a minimum of fifteen (15) years of progressive experience inpublic and private sector financial management, and registered with arecognized professional order of certified public accountants Senior public finance and budgeting expert : at least twelve years of experience in budget reform, budgetexecution and financial management systems, Expert in private accounting with astrong background in the private sector, this expert will also have experienceworking with public entities to improve their accounting practices. Junior Public Finance Expert with morethan eight (8) years of experience having worked on various budgeting andfinancial management projects . . Three (3) junior public or private finance analysts : at least three years of experience in public finance or private accounting,accounting software field data collection experience in Guinea-Bissau or acomparable context. An IT specialist with at least five (05)years of experience and familiar with the installation and deployment ofaccounting software at central and decentralized levels. Key experts must be available for the full duration of theassignment. Any substitution requires prior written approval, and the proposedreplacement must have equal or better qualifications.

7. Duration, location andimplementation modalities

Phase 1 runs for six months from contract signature and Phase 2, ifexercised, for twelve months. The assignment is based in Bissau, at the MoH andthe MoF. Remote work is allowed for analytical tasks, but at least one keyexpert must be present in Bissau during each critical milestone (workshops,deployment and training). Field travel is limited to the two pilot regions inPhase 2. All travel, per diem, local transport and workshop logistics areincluded in the lump sum, except for meeting venues, which are provided by theclient. Field travel is limited to the two pilot regions , all in Phase 2. Thefirm bears all mission expenses, internal travel and per diem for its teamwithin the lump-sum price.

8. Client inputs

The Ministry of Health andMoF will provide access to budget, accounting and financial reporting data,technical focal points at central and regional levels, meeting facilities inBissau, and the letters of introduction required for field work and ministryliaison. Because the assignment relies primarily on data held by theadministration, timely provision of that data is a condition of delivery, anddelays are grounds for adjusting the deliverable schedule. The Ministry ofFinance is engaged through the joint coordination group. The World Bankprovides technical supervision and facilitates arbitrations with the Ministry.

9. Confidentiality, intellectualproperty and conflicts of interest

All financial, budget and accounting data obtained in the course ofthe assignment are confidential. The firm shall sign a confidentialityagreement with the Ministry, submit a data management and protection plan inthe inception report, use the data exclusively for the purposes of theassignment, and destroy or return all data at the end of the assignment withwritten attestation. All deliverables, training materials, databases, templatesand code are the exclusive property of the Ministry of Health of Guinea-Bissauand the World Bank, who may distribute and reuse them freely. The firm and itsstaff shall comply with the World Bank's conflict of interest rules andconsultants' code of conduct, and shall declare in writing, before contractsignature, any engagement with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Financeor partners working on public financial management or health financing inGuinea-Bissau.

10. Evaluation criteria andreporting

Technical proposals are evaluated on general experience of the firm(20 points), methodology and work plan, including the realism of the proposedeffort against the ceiling (30 points), qualifications of the key staff (40points) and approach to data management and confidentiality (10 points). Theminimum technical score is 75 out of 100. The selection method and contractform are confirmed with Corporate Procurement. Thefirm reports monthly to the Task Team Leader and to the 2 Ministries focalpoints, with a review on submission of each deliverable and a phase reviewbefore Phase 2 is exercised FUNDING SOURCE The World Bank Group intends to finance the assignment / services described below under the following:

- BB: Bank Budget

- TF0C9781: FMUTF

ELIGIBILITY

Eligibility restrictions apply

- [Please type list of restrictions] SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS The World Bank Group invites eligible firms to indicate their interest in providing the services. Interested firms must provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services (brochures, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, availability of appropriate skills among staff, etc. for firms; CV and cover letter for individuals). Please note that the total size of all attachments should be less than 5MB. Firms may associate to enhance their qualifications unless otherwise stated in the solicitation documents. Where a group of firms associate to submit an EOI, they must indicate which is the lead firm. If shortlisted, the firm identified in the EOI as the lead firm will be invited to the request for proposal (RFP) phase. Expressions of Interest should be submitted, in English, electronically through WBGeProcure RFx Now NOTES Following this invitation for EOI, a shortlist of qualified firms will be formally invited to submit proposals. Shortlisting and selection will be subject to the availability of funding. Only those firms which have been shortlisted will be invited to participate in the RFP phase. No notification or debrief will be provided to firms which have not been shortlisted. If you encounter technical difficulties while uploading documents, please send an e-mail to the Help Desk at corporateprocurement@worldbank.org prior to the submission deadline.

Procurement number: 0002020895. Expressions of interest are submitted through the World Bank Group's eProcure (RFx Now) portal, which requires vendor registration.