Tenders

Background

As part of the ECOWAS Commission’s initiative to accelerate digital transformation among Member States, a grant has been provided to the Government of The Gambia through the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy for the digitalization of public services. This grant will support two main digital service development projects: the creation of a Government Mobile Information App (One-Stop Government Information Platform) and the implementation of the MYGOV platform. The MYGOV platform, to be implemented in partnership with A2i and the Government of Bangladesh through a South-South Corporation, aims to digitalize five key public services over the next six months. The Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy intends to utilize part of these funds to develop the Government information mobile app.

The Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy of The Gambia recognizes the pivotal role of digital technologies in fostering citizen engagement and accessibility to governmental services and information. Aligned with this vision, the ministry together with our implementing agency, The Gambia ICT Agency (GICTA) mandated to support government in the implementation of E-government projects endeavors to develop a user-centric and user-friendly mobile application aimed at providing citizens and non-citizens alike with seamless access to an array of government-related information directly on their mobile devices.

This initiative aims to transform the existing gambia.gov.gm website into a mobile application, available on both Android and iOS platforms, serving as a centralized hub (A one stop center) for citizens to access government services information, news, announcements, policies, and other pertinent information.

Objective

Empowered by the support from ECOWAS, the primary objective is to develop a mobile application that simplifies citizen access to government information and services, thereby fostering transparency, accountability, and active citizen participation. The application should prioritize user-friendliness, intuitive navigation, and prompt delivery of accurate information to users, regardless of their technical acumen. Additionally, it should feature a feedback mechanism to address citizen inquiries and facilitate experience sharing.

 Scope of Work

The scope of work for the development of the mobile application includes the following:

• Designing and developing a fast and user-friendly mobile application compatible with Android and iOS platforms
• Implementing features to enable user access to government information, services, announcements, news, and feedback mechanisms.
• Integrating functionalities such as push notifications, search capabilities, and multilingual (English, French and Portuguese) support to enrich user experience
• Ensuring compliance with data protection regulations and security standards of the republic of The Gambia
• Conducting rigorous testing to rectify any bugs or issues prior to official launch
• Work with MOCDE/GICTA technical team to deploy the application on relevant app stores (Google Play Store, Apple App Store) and Go-live.
• Provide maintenance and support for the duration of twelve (12) months after deployment
• Ensure compliance with app store guidelines.
• Provide complete source code with all the system files needed for installation and execution of the package including installation manual
• Provide comprehensive training to the Ministry’s technical staff and GICTA in the operation of the application and configurations including operation manual.

Deliverables

The firm/consultant shall deliver the following:

• Comprehensive analysis report outlining user requirements of the web portal
• Design and create a wireframe for mobile application such as the user interface (UI) and user experience (UX).
• Development of a user-friendly citizen centric Government mobile application for government information
• Deployment of the Government mobile application on Android and iOS versions
• All source code must be accessible and delivered to the Government of The Gambia (ie. MOCDE/GICTA)
• Creating user manuals and technical manuals for troubleshooting.
• Provide technical support during the implementation phase and post-launch maintenance period.
• Conduct training for government personnel responsible for updating and maintaining the application.

Technical Requirements:

• The mobile application should be developed using native or cross-platform development frameworks such as Flutter, React Native or any other mobile application development framework.
• The application should be compatible with both Android and iOS platforms to reach a wider audience.
• Integration with the government web site known as the “government web portal” to allow for real-time automatic updating from website to the mobile app

System Development Requirements:

• Development environment: The development team should have access to appropriate development tools, IDEs, and testing environments.
• Version control: Source code management should be handled using a version control system such as Git, with regular commits and branching strategies.

Timeline and Payment

The timeline for the development of the mobile application will be determined in consultation with the selected vendor, taking into account the complexity of the project and the availability of resources. However, the ministry aims to have the application developed and deployed within (2) months.

Qualification And Experience of Firm/Consultant

Interested firms should satisfy the following minimum requirements:

1. The firm shall have a valid license for performing the consultancy service in the I.T. Consultancy Services in GPPA (i.e. GPPA Business Registration).
2. The firm must have at least four (4) years of experience in the field of software and application development.
3. The firm shall have adequate technical manpower to carry out the project and complete it on
4. Key Experts must have a minimum Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems or related fields.
5. Experience in mobile application development tools or frameworks
6. Track record of successful completion of past assignments with evidence of at least 3 similar assignments
7. Evidence of deployment of apps on app stores or google play store.
8. Proposed approach and methodology for the development of the App.
9. Clarity and comprehensiveness of the proposed deliverables and timeline.

Submission of Proposals:

Interested firms can purchased the Bid document in English language at the Procurement Unit upon payment of a non-refundable fee of D15,000.00. Bids must be delivered to the Procurement unit, Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy. 1^st and 2^nd floor Tenengfara Business Complex, Bertil Harding Highway, Bakau. On or before Wednesday, 25^th September, 2024 at 12 noon Banjul time and must be accompanied by a bid security of 2% of the bid amount valid for 120 days. All are urge to submit their proposals in accordance with the guidelines provided in this TOR. Proposals can also be submitted electronically to  bsmendy@mocde.gov.gm,lloum@mocde.gov.gm,anjie@mocde.gov.gm no later than Wednesday 25^th September, 2024 at 12noon. Late submissions will not be considered.