Call for Proposals – Procurement of Services for the Evaluation and Enhancement of the Cooperative Information Management System and COOP Database in Lebanon

Within the framework of the PROSPECTS programme in Lebanon, ILO focuses on enhancing resilience of Lebanon’s crisis-hit labour market and creating enhanced economic opportunities and decent employment for both Lebanese host communities and Syrian refugees. It is doing so through an integrated approach that supports:  market-driven skills training (Pillar 1: Education and Learning) ; enhancing value chains using Access to Markets system approach; enhancing career guidance and employment placement services and labour market governance; enhancing value chains using Access to Markets system approach, promoting financial inclusion and entrepreneurship with focus on supporting business start-ups, and Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs, and social and solidarity economy enterprises (SSEs) in the agriculture and agri-food sectors and other emerging sectors (Pillar 2: Economic inclusion);  and strengthening social protection schemes, including for the most vulnerable. (Pillar 3: Protection and Social Protection).

In phase 1, ILO PROSPECTS supported Lebanon's agricultural sector by focusing on horticulture, particularly by improving greenhouse practices for farmers in Akkar and Bekaa. Recognizing the crucial role of cooperatives in promoting sustainable rural development and economic resilience as well as in job creation for host communities and refugees, particularly across agricultural value chains, the ILO also focused on cooperatives development by conducting assessments to identify challenges and opportunities and providing training to strengthen the capacity of the Director General of Cooperatives. Building on these efforts, Phase II of PROSPECTS aims to expand its work on cooperative development by addressing existing challenges and ensuring that cooperatives are well integrated into the value chains within the agricultural sector.

In Lebanon, under PROSPECTS I, the ILO has collaborated closely with the Directorate General of Cooperatives (DGCOOP) to assess the current status of the cooperative sector, identify gaps, needs, and opportunities, and has strengthened the capacity of DGCOOP staff through the ILO THINK.COOP  and START.COOP  tools, recognizing that these tools are vital for enhancing the operations and management of many established cooperatives that currently lack a robust business model.

Through this collaboration, the ILO identified the lack of reliable data about the existing cooperatives as a   major challenge to understanding their role and impact. Most of the available data is outdated and stored on paper, with some of it being inaccurate because it relies on information provided by the cooperatives themselves, and DGCOOP staff lacks the capacity to collect accurate data from each cooperative. This inaccurate, paper-based data can hinder the effectiveness of both the Directorate General of Cooperatives and the cooperatives themselves, as it makes it difficult to make informed decisions, allocate resources efficiently, develop and implement long-term and sustainable strategies that truly address the needs and challenges of the cooperative sector. This lack of a proper database also makes it hard for donors to tailor programs that match the exact needs of cooperatives and include these cooperatives in value chain projects.

Moreover, while a number of international organizations, have attempted to develop a digital database management system, and while the basic software has been created, it still lacks several essential services and features and is not currently used by the DGCOOP . Additionally, the data collection needed to use even the existing features of the software has not been collected and completed yet.

To address the aforementioned challenges and in alignment with the ILO Guidelines on Statistics of Cooperatives, the ILO, through PROSPECTS Phase II, seeks to support DGCOOP and the cooperative sector in enhancing their cooperative database (1) and, if feasible, developing an improved information system (2). The aim of this system is to provide an accurate and comprehensive database of cooperatives, along with their specific services and features.

The aim of the data collection and the development of the Information System for Cooperatives (ISC) for the Directorate General of Cooperatives is to centralize and streamline data management, enabling efficient access to accurate and up-to-date information about cooperatives. This system supports informed decision-making and sound policy-making and enhanced communication, while also promoting transparency and accountability within the sector. A key function of the updated database and the ISC would be to enable effective monitoring and evaluation of cooperative performance and compliance with regulations. The Directorate General can track key performance indicators to ensure that cooperatives are operating in line with national standards and cooperative laws. The ISC can also be useful for the provision of e-services to cooperatives, which might include but not limited to registration services, submission of yearly reports, access to technical or financial support. 

Objective

The objective of this assignment is to carry out consultations and an initial assessment with a focus on two key steps:

1. Assess the feasibility of digitalizing the cooperative database and advise on whether to develop a new information management system or enhance the existing one based on the needs and capacities of DGCOOP and cooperatives. This includes advising on system development/enhancement to improve efficiency, user-friendliness, and the ability to maintain a comprehensive and structured database of cooperatives, along with required features and services. Additionally, the assessment will identify any missing criteria, indicators, or functionalities that should be incorporated to strengthen the system’s effectiveness.
2. Evaluating Data Collection and Integration: This step involves assessing the content and process of data collection for existing cooperatives and ensuring the seamless integration of this data into the updated system.

To align the assignment with national priorities and international best practices, the consultations will include a review of similar initiatives supported by the ILO (such as those in Tanzania, Turkey and the one on-going now in Jordan under PROSPECTS) and engagement with various stakeholders. These stakeholders include cooperative members and leaders, DGCOOP, the Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR), the National Statistical Office in Lebanon, international cooperative experts, The Food and Agriculture Organization, the ILO’s COOP/SSE Unit in HQ, other relevant government authorities, and development partners.

Assignment Key Activities

This assignment will include the following key activities:

1. Mapping the workflow of cooperative services, identifying existing gaps in service types and quality, and determining the services and features to be added to an information management system.

1. Conduct an Initial Review for contextual and institutional understanding of the DGCOOP and cooperatives sector:
2. Conduct an analysis of the current DGCOOP database system as well as the existing software.
3. Assess the feasibility of digitalizing the DGCOOP database and conduct a needs assessment to determine the requirements and software content for updating and enhancing the existing software or developing a new system: 
4. Provide recommendations and action plan for software enhancement/development – If digitalization is adopted.
5. Develop of a comprehensive data collection, data entry and analysis strategy.
6. Develop a data collection strategy:
7. Identify capacity building needs for data collection staff
8. Provide a budget estimation
9. Develop tender and bidding documents for both software development (if recommended) and data collection as per the ILO standards.

Required Qualifications

Bidders shall demonstrate the following eligibility and technical qualification.

•  A registered Lebanese business consulting firm / business service provider with expertise in feasibility studies, digital platform analysis, and the design of digital solutions
• Proven experience in institutional assessment, business process management and mapping, and workflow analysis
• Proven experience in information management systems, software review and development. and data review/analysis

Required Expertise and Qualifications for the project team:

1. At least 7 years of experience in conducting feasibility studies, institutional assessment, business process management and mapping, and workflow analysis for businesses and governmental institutions.
2. At least 7 years of experience in software review and development, assessing existing digital tools, and recommending upgrades or new system implementations.
3. Expertise in information management systems, database structures, and data governance, with experience in reviewing and optimizing existing databases and software

Additional Requirements:

1. Understanding of government structure and inter-government relations
2. Proven ability to engage with diverse stakeholders, particularly within government institutions and cooperatives.
3. Experience with cooperative sectors and international organizations like the ILO would be a plus.
4. Proven experience in the preparation of technical documents including technical specifications and TORs for the development/update of software ad IT solutions.
5. The ability to produce high-quality reports, presentations, and strategic recommendations in both English and Arabic is essential.
6. Strong presentation and facilitation skills.

Submission Requirements

Interested Lebanese companies are advised to check the enclosed Terms of Reference for further elaboration of the tasks and deliverables expected within the scope of this assignment.

The duration of the assignment is for 5.5 months over the period April – September 2025.

Interested bidders must submit the following:

• Company profile and demonstrated experience relevant to the assignment
• A technical proposal elaborating the assessment methodology (applicants can elaborate further on the methodology mentioned in this ToR if needed), timeframe and associated with the working days for each deliverable.
• Financial proposal
• CVs of all the team involved in conducting the study.
• Previous similar reports on assessments conducted by the consultancy firm/service provider.