Financial Management for Small Businesses Tender, Zambia - 38540665

Procurement Summary

Country : Zambia

Summary : Financial Management for Small Businesses

Deadline : 31 Dec 2019

Other Information

Notice Type : Tender

TOT Ref.No.: 38540665

Document Ref. No. : 1265748

Competition : ICB

Financier : World Bank (WB)

Purchaser Ownership : -

Tender Value : Refer Document

Purchaser's Detail

Purchaser : WORLD BANK GROUP
Pyramid Plaza Church Road, PO Box 35410 Lusaka, Zambia 10101 Tel +260-211-373200 /+260-211-252811
Zambia
Email :zambiaalert@worldbank.org

Tender Details

Expression of Interest are invited for Financial Management for Small Businesses in Zambia.

Expression of Interest Deadline

31-Dec-2019 at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time – Washington D.C.)

Language of Notice

English

Selection Notice

Assignment Country

· ZM - Zambia

Funding Sources

The World Bank Group intends to finance the assignment/services under:

· BB - BANK BUDGET

· TF0A9787 - Zambia Agribusiness - TA for Market Connect

Individual/Firm

The consultant will be a firm.

Assignment Description

Call for Expression of Interest
Improving Financial Management in Zambias Small Manufacturing Firms
Background:
There is a strong correlation between good financial management practices and SME profitability and growth. That said, SMEs often under-invest in boosting their financial management capability. Some do invest, for example by hiring an external accountant, but due to their limited financial management knowledge, they are not able to spot when the accountant is delivering a poor job. Hiring a reputable accountant is expensive for an SME, and SMEs often have limited knowledge of what cost effective financial management tools and systems are available for to them.
The World Bank is financing the Agribusiness and Trade Project in Zambia, which is implemented by the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry (MCTI). This project includes a component (MarketConnect) designed to increase the sales and productivity of agro-processing SMEs. Early implementation of the project illustrates that agro-processing SMEs generally have weak financial management knowledge and financial management systems, both of which needs to be addressed to help put the SMEs on a growth path.
This Agribusiness and Trade Project provides an opportunity to introduce a cost-effective financial management training and system to a group of 50+ SMEs. If the approach is successful, MCTI may select to scale up implementation to a wider group of Agribusiness and Trade Project beneficiaries, and the World Bank may seek to replicate the approach in another initiative targeting women-owned firms in Zambia.
The SMEs targeted are primarily located in Copperbelt, Central and Lusaka Provinces, and are in manufacturing (mostly food or beverages), has 5+ full time employees, and annual sales of $15, 000 to $150, 000. A cost-effective financial management system should be affordable to an SME of this size.
Additional constraints:
Irregular access to the Internet;
Irregular power;
No accountant on staff;
Limited staff capacity
MarketConnect is staffed with a financial management advisor, as well as specialists guiding the SMEs on marketing and manufacturing. A cost-effective approach to improving the financial management capability of the SME should take into account that implementation and follow-up should be possible with the leadership of the financial management advisory, complemented by junior assistance.
Scope of Work:
The World Bank is seeking a Consultant to:
1) In consultation with MarketConnect, develop requirements for a financial management system that meets the needs of MarketConnect clients, and the monitoring requirements of MarketConnect;
2) Identify an off-the-shelf financial management system that is cost-effective for the target profile SME;
3) Test the system for suitability;
4) Support MarketConnect with design and implementation of financial management procedures for MarketConnect and its clients, including an agreement governing access and use of data.
5) Train five trainers to support SMEs with setting up and using the system; and
6) Provide post-implementation support for a three-month period.
In addition to standard requirements of any financial management system (i.e. generation of cash flow, income and balance sheet statements), desired functionalities of the financial management system include:
a) A manufacturing module were SMEs can input all their ingredients and production formulae so that the modelling tool automatically computes the raw materials used for each production batch and any losses thereof.
b) An inventory management module.

Estimated Duration of the Assignment and Level of Effort:
This assignment is expected to start in January 2020 and conclude in June 2020. The most intensive period of work will be the two first months of the assignment. The estimated level of effort is approximately 40 working days.

Procurement Method:
QCBS

Qualifications Required:
The selected firm and individuals proposed for the assignment should have:
Demonstrated knowledge of the level of financial management knowledge in an SME of the profile outlined in the REOI
Demonstrated knowledge of typical trade-off and cost-benefit decisions when selecting a financial management system for SMEs
Demonstrated knowledge of a range of financial management systems tailored to SME needs
Demonstrated experience with delivering training of trainers to support financial management system roll-out in SMEs

Attachments

· Optional TOR File

Qualification Criteria

· 1. Provide information showing that they are qualified in the field of the assignment. *

· 2. Provide information on the technical and managerial capabilities of the firm. *

· 3. Provide information on their core business and years in business. *

· 4. Provide information on the qualifications of key staff. *

Documents

 Tender Notice