ASCENT announcement: Request for proposal

The ASCENT project announces a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Provision of hosting services for the ASCENT Digital Adherence Platform.

Submitted questions and answers about this RFP can be found here.

KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation

KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation (KNCV) is an international non-profit organization dedicated to the fight against tuberculosis (TB), still the second most deadly infectious disease in the world. KNCV is an international center of expertise for TB control that promotes effective, efficient, innovative and sustainable TB control strategies in a national and international context. We are an organization of passionate TB professionals, including doctors, researchers, training experts, nurses and epidemiologists. We aim to stop the spread of the worldwide epidemic of TB and to prevent the further spread of drug-resistant TB.

The ASCENT project

ASCENT (Adherence Support Coalition to End TB) is a Unitaid funded project to help patients successfully complete their course of treatment through the use of digital adherence technologies and data-driven support interventions, utilizing tools such as smart pill boxes and other innovations. The project will be implemented from July 2019 until December 2022 and aims to reach nearly 70.000 patients in Ukraine, Ethiopia, Tanzania, South Africa and the Philippines. These digital adherence technologies empower patients to take their daily medication at a time and place that suits them best. Additionally they provide real-time information to the TB doctor or nurse, helping to determine the most appropriate treatment approach for each individual patient and by enabling focused efforts on those patients that require extra support.

Objective of the RFP

We are looking for interested candidates that can provide in-country hosting services and management for the ASCENT Digital Adherence Platform for one or more of the countries implementing ASCENT project. (Ethiopia, the Philippines, South Africa, Tanzania, and Ukraine.) Download the full procurement announcement here.

Timeline

First contractual period will be from 1st of March 2020 – 1st of March 2021 with the possibility to extend. The candidate should be capable to start activities within 1 month after contract signing.

Published

This RFP is published from 21st of January to 9^th of February 2020 on the ASCENT and KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation websites. Review and selection of vendor(s) will take place from 10^th of February until 23^rd of February 2020.

Vendor questions and/or requests for clarification will be accepted via email to ascent@kncvtbc.org until 2^nd of February 2020, and responses will be published on the KNCV website on the 4^th of February 2020.

Submission

Proposals should be submitted via ascent@kncvtbc.org and must be received by 11:59 CET on 9^th of February 2020. Proposals received after this date and time shall be invalid and will be blocked from review. Proposals should be submitted in English and each interested party shall submit only one proposal. The proposal needs to include the following documents:

Completed Requirements document:
Appendix 1-A: Availability and costs of services required
Appendix 1-B: Other associated costs
Appendix 2-A: Response cover letter

Selection

Selection of the candidate(s) will be based upon independent assessment of the proposals by a review committee consisting of in-country and external specialists. It is expected that one vendor will be selected per each of the five (5) country settings. KNCV will evaluate all proposals based on the following criteria:

1. Overall suitability: Proposed solutions must meet the scope and be presented in a clear and organized manner.
2. Technical fit: Vendors and their proposed solution will be evaluated on the technical fit with regard to technical, hardware, software, data privacy/security and risk management approaches.
3. Organizational experience: Vendors will be evaluated on their demonstrated experience related to the scope of this RFP.
4. Value and cost: Vendors will be evaluated on the cost of their solution(s) based on the work to be performed in accordance with the scope of this project.

Questions and contact

KNCV reserves the right to request further information during the RFP process. Questions regarding requirements described in this RFP must be directed in writing via email to ascent@kncvtbc.org before 2nd of February 2020. For each question, please indicate the page number and specific item needing clarification.

Responses to questions and/or clarifications originating from such questions that improve the quality of the RFP can be found here. To ensure you receive modifications to the RFP, send an email to ascent@kncvtbc.org to be put on the distribution list.

Read more about the ASCENT project.