Nyarugenge, KN 16   AV 30      

B.P.124 Kigali, Tel. (250) 574295   

Fax: (250)574254                   

 E-mail : info@caritasrwanda.org               

Web site: www.caritasrwanda.org 

TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR HIRING A CONSULTING FIRM TO DEVELOP A WEB-BASED DATA MANAGEMENT AND REPORTING SYSTEM (INTEGRATION & TRACKING SYSTEM) FOR FAMILY PLANNING SERVICES IN CATHOLIC-BASED HEALTH FACILITIES AND THEIR CATCHMENT AREAS

I. INTRODUCTION

Caritas Rwanda is a non-profit organization officially registered, with the mission to assist people in need and foster for the whole human being. Caritas Rwanda has more than 60 years of working experience in building poor families’ resiliency through development, social welfare, and health interventions. Caritas Rwanda is an equal opportunity organization, looking for competencies without any discrimination

Caritas Rwanda signed a framework agreement with the Rwanda Biomedical Centre for the implementation of a Belgium-funded project through its development agency (ENABEL). The project aims at ensuring that all women, new-born, children, adolescents, and men have universal access to quality integrated Reproductive, Maternal, Neonatal, Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH) and/or Family Planning & Adolescent Sexual Reproductive Health (FP/ASRH) services. Specifically, Caritas Rwanda agreed with RBC to implement FP interventions through three different components:

• Increased demand for family planning services for the Rwandan population aged of 15-49 years through awareness raising and community engagement.
• Improved availability and accessibility of quality family planning services through strengthened referral systems.
• Improved family planning quality services and satisfaction of users through provider-community partnership committees.

All these project components were proposed to tackle the FP issues linked with low uptake of family planning among Catholic co-managed health facilities including the catchment communities. 

It is from this background that Caritas Rwanda would like to hire a consulting firm to develop a web-based data management and reporting system for FP services carried out in all Catholic-based health facilities and their catchment areas to enhance data-driven decision-making capabilities for health managers and policymakers through comprehensive dashboards and reports.

II. ASSIGNMENT OBJECTIVES 

1. To develop a digital system that connects all Catholic health facilities in Rwanda to track family planning services;
2. To enable real-time tracking and reporting on the status of Family planning clients, ensuring they receive the appropriate family planning methods;
3. To generate actionable insights through dashboards for decision-makers at various levels of Catholic-based medical coordination. 

III. ASSIGNMENT METHODOLOGY, OUTCOMES AND DELIVERABLES 

A. Methodology 

• System Design and Development: Design a secure, user-friendly digital platform that integrates with existing health information systems where possible, to facilitate the process and track service delivery.
• Data Privacy and Security: Ensure compliance with national and international data protection regulations to safeguard patient information.
• Capacity Building and Training: Develop and implement a training program for users at all levels, including Family planning educators, health facility staff, and Diocesan & national Medical Coordinators.
• Monitoring and Evaluation: Establish mechanisms for ongoing monitoring and evaluation of the system's effectiveness in improving family planning service delivery and tracking system. 

1. Project Initiation

• Stakeholder Engagement: Identify and engage key stakeholders, including representatives from Catholic health facilities, public health entities, the Rwandan Ministry of Health, and Caritas Rwanda, to ensure their needs and concerns are incorporated into the project plan.
• Needs Assessment: Conduct a thorough needs assessment to understand the current couples Family planning care processes, gaps in service delivery, and specific requirements for the tracking system. 

2. System Design and Development

• Requirements Gathering: Detailed collection of system requirements from all user categories, including health workers at different levels and administrative staff.
• System Architecture Design: Design the overall system architecture, ensuring it is scalable, secure, and interoperable with existing health information systems where possible.
• Prototyping: Develop a prototype of the system for early feedback from end-users, adjusting design and functionality as needed.
• Software Development: Develop the system according to the finalized design specifications, using agile development methodologies for flexibility and iterative progress.
• Security and Privacy Measures: Implement robust data protection and privacy measures, including encryption, access controls, and audit trails. 

3. Testing and Quality Assurance

• Unit Testing: Conduct thorough unit testing of individual components to ensure they work correctly in isolation.
• Integration Testing: Test the integration of components to ensure they work together seamlessly.
• User Acceptance Testing (UAT): Engage end-users in testing the system to validate that it meets their needs and is user-friendly.
• Security Testing: Perform security testing to identify and mitigate potential vulnerabilities. 

4. Training and Capacity Building

• Training Material Development: Develop comprehensive training materials, including manuals, online tutorials, and FAQs.
• Training Sessions: Conduct training sessions for all system users, tailored to their roles and responsibilities.
• Feedback Loop: Establish a feedback loop to gather insights from users during training to further refine the system. 

5. Deployment

• Pilot Deployment: Implement a pilot phase in a selected number of facilities to monitor system performance and user adoption in a controlled environment.
• Full-scale Deployment: Roll out the system across all targeted facilities, incorporating lessons learned during the pilot phase. 

6. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Maintenance

• Performance Metrics: Define key performance indicators (KPIs) to monitor the system's effectiveness in improving referral tracking and service delivery.
• Continuous Monitoring: Set up a continuous monitoring framework to track system performance and user satisfaction.
• Evaluation: Conduct periodic evaluations to assess the impact of the system on family planning service delivery.
• System Maintenance: Establish a maintenance plan for regular updates, patches, and user support to ensure the system remains effective and secure over time. 

B. Expected Outcomes 

• A fully functional digital tracking system deployed across all Catholic health facilities and linked with public health entities.
• Improved coordination between Catholic and public health facilities in the delivery of family planning services.
• Enhanced data-driven decision-making capabilities for health managers and policymakers through comprehensive dashboards and reports. 

C. Deliverables

1. Inception report with:
   • An executive summary
   • A detailed technical system development approach
   • System functional and non-functional specifications
   • Detailed sprint plan
2. Mock-up and a Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
   • Mock-up will have the system design and architecture layout.
   • The MVP should demonstrate the core functionality of key system features.
3. Developed and successfully tested web-based system. 

D. Roles and qualifications: 

IV. APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

1. The application document should include:

• Cover letter confirming the firm's interest in providing the required services;
• A copy of the company registration certificate/ with at least 8 years of experience in digital health system design, developing and deployment as well as overall experience in the Rwandan public health system.
• Technical proposal presenting an executive summary, technical approach, methodology, and sprint plan of the assignment;
• Financial proposal clarifying cost breakdown and payment modalities;
• Written reference of previous relevant work (at least two) of relevant systems in the health sector;
• Provide a copy of RSSB Clearance Certificate;
• Provide a copy of the RRA VAT registration certificate;
• Provide a copy of RRA Tax Clearance certificate;
• Provide a copy of Proof of EBM Possession.
• Valid National Cyber Security Certificate; 

N.B: Submission of all administrative documents listed above is mandatory and non-submission of one of said documents will cause the rejection of the offer. 

The bidders should mention the proposed hosting service cost/year and maintenance fee anytime is required by the organization.

The system should give to the administrator the flexibility to add a module if it is required.

V. SELECTION CRITERIA

Applications will be assessed on cost reasonableness (30%) and technical competence (70%). Financial proposals should be precise if all taxes are inclusive or exclusive. Only those who successfully passed the technical evaluation (70% of the 70%) will be assessed for the financial step. 

TIMELINE:

The project is expected to be completed within 3 months from the commencement date. 

VI. HOW TO APPLY 

Interested consulting firms are requested to submit their technical and financial proposals in sealed envelopes (1 original and 2 copies) to the Caritas Rwanda secretariat no later than Tuesday, 19^th March 2024 (by 2:30 pm). The public opening will be the same day at 3:00 Pm in the conference room of Caritas Rwanda located at KN 16 Av 30. 

Done at Kigali on 12^th March 2024 

Prepared by:                                                   

Dr. KANANI Jean Bosco      

Director, Health Department   

Approved by:

Father Oscar KAGIMBURA

Secretary General