SMS BASED MONITORING SYSTEM FOR WASICHANA WOTE WASOME CASH TRANSFER PROJECT

Organization: Concern Worldwide
Country: Kenya
Closing date: 28 Oct 2015

Concern Worldwide is an international non-governmental humanitarian organization dedicated to the reduction of suffering and working towards the ultimate elimination of extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries.

Expressions of interest are invited for the following consultancy opportunity:

SMS BASED MONITORING SYSTEM FOR WASICHANA WOTE WASOME CASH TRANSFER PROJECT

BACKGROUND

Concern in a consortium with other partners is currently implementing a programme called Wasichana Wote Wasome (WWW – ‘Let All Girls Read’). The programme aims to improve school enrolment, retention, attendance and learning outcomes for 81,000 marginalised girls in Kenya and targets 500 primary schools and the communities they serve in two contexts: Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) and urban slums. To this end, the programme has several components one of which is a cash transfer targeting 5700 vulnerable households. The cash transfers objective is to ensure vulnerable households have sufficient resources to send their children, and particularly their girl children, to school. The expectation is that the cash transfer will both pay for school costs and enable households to generate income in a sustainable way ensuring children can continue their learning at school beyond the lifetime of the project. The cash transfer project targets the most vulnerable households with primary school children (6yrs old – 16 years old) attending project schools. Following identification, screening and verification each selected household receives eight monthly payments of Kes 2000 via MPESA

CONSULTANCY OBJECTIVES

The objective of the consultancy is to develop an SMS based survey to support in monitoring the WWW cash transfers.

LOCATION

Nairobi, Kenya

METHODOLOGY

The consultant will develop a technical and financial proposal detailing how they will carry out this project ensuring all objectives are met. A live demo of the attributes and functionalities of the system will be required before the Consultant can be contracted.

TIMELINE

The consultancy is for fifteen (15) days. Actual dates will be agreed with the Consultant at the beginning of the consultancy.

DELIVERABLES/EXPECTED OUTPUTS

a) An SMS based survey system to support cash transfer monitoring. The consultant will design, develop and deploy a fully functional scalable, SMS based monitoring system to serve the WWW cash transfer programme. The system should be:

Easily scalable
User friendly
Able to provide reports for analysis.
Able to handle traffic for over 5000 SMS per minute

b) System support post deployment.

c) System documentation and user guides.

Any added value that the consultant can provide beyond the basic requirements is an added advantage and should be included in the technical proposal.

RENUMERATION

Agreed rates will be based on prevailing market competitive rates and value for money. In full consideration of the services performed by the consultant under the terms of contract, Concern Worldwide shall pay the consultant fees as per the agreed output and payment schedule.

The Consultant(s) is not an employee of Concern Worldwide or its affiliates, thus no benefits or compensation are provided as part of this agreement.

WORKING CONDITIONS

The consultant will liaise with the Assistant Programme Manager-Urban Livelihoods, the M&E Advisor and the Food Income and Markets Coordinator. The Consultant will work independently using his/her own laptop and office space.

CONSULTANT’S PROFILE

A degree in Computer Sciences/Engineering or ICT related degree
MCSE/CCNA or other IT professional qualifications, computer programming and database management skills and proficiency in computer packages and applications
Proven competency in telephony systems and network security platforms with at least three (3) years’ experience developing SMS related solutions that meet client needs.
Excellent analytical, problem solving, planning, organization, interpersonal and reporting skills.

How to apply:

Interested applicants who meet the above requirements must submit the following;

A technical (indicate earliest date of availability to undertake and complete the assignment) and financial proposal quoted in Kenya Shillings (Kes) for the whole assignment
Cover letter and CV (Demonstration of Capability) If quoting for an organization attach the CV of the Lead Consultant and any other personnel to be involved in the assignment
A list of previous work done (Work Completion Certificates can be attached) including telephone and email contacts of three (3) referees who can validate technical expertise
Snapshots of a similar SMS based monitoring systems deployed by the Consultant.

All applications must be addressed to the ****HR Manager, Concern Worldwide, Nairobi**** to the following email address:**nairobi.hr@concern.net** with the subject of the email as ‘**SMS Based Monitoring for WWW Cash Transfer Project**’

The closing date for submission of Expressions of Interest is ****Wednesday**** 28^th October 2015.

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Concern has a Code of Conduct and a Programme Participant Protection Policy to ensure the maximum protection of programme participants from abuse and exploitation.

****CONCERN WORLDWIDE IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER****