Consultancy Services for the Development of a Digital Tracking and Management System for Agricultural Machinery and Service Centers

WORLD BANK/IFAD PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION UNIT

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, REPUBLIC OF LIBERIA

Rural Economic Transformation Project (RETRAP)

1st Floor LIBSUCO Building Japan Freeway (Formerly Somalia Drive),

Gardnersville – Monrovia, Liberia

LOAN #: P175263; IDA: 69000

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST

(CONSULTING SERVICES – FIRMS SELECTION)

Assignment Title: Consultancy Services for the Development of a Digital Tracking and Management System for Agricultural Machinery and Service Centers

REOI Reference No: LR-PMU-MOA-551322-CS-QCBS

• Background and Rationale

Agricultural mechanization is a cornerstone for transforming Liberia’s farming systems, enabling smallholder farmers to increase productivity and efficiency. However, the sector faces challenges including low equipment utilization, weak monitoring, and high fuel consumption. To address these, the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), with World Bank support under the Rural Economic Transformation Project (RETRAP), is establishing Agricultural Mechanization Service Centers (AMSCs).

This assignment involves the development of a Mechanization Management and Tracking System (MMTS) and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). The system is intended to function as a management and accountability platform, integrating with the RETRAP reporting database and the National Farmer Registry to ensure traceability, transparency, and economic sustainability of mechanization services delivered to smallholder farmers across Liberia.

• Objectives Primary Objective: To implement a nationally scalable mechanization management and accountability system that improves equipment utilization, performance tracking, cost recovery, and service delivery to smallholder farmers, thereby enhancing agricultural productivity and climate resilience.

Specific Objectives

• Digitally register all mechanization equipment and operators with unique identifiers.

• Track granular service metrics including hectares covered, GPS location, and fuel efficiency.

• Enable demand aggregation by geography and season to drive efficient AMSC scheduling.

• Integrate mechanization data with the National Farmer Registry and RETRAP databases.

• Establish standardized operational workflows and protocols (SOPs) for all AMSC activities.

• Scope of Work: The Consultant will:

• Conduct stakeholder consultations and a National Farmer Registry Readiness Assessment.

• Design a vendor-neutral system architecture and comprehensive data models for equipment and financial transactions.

• Develop the full MMTS platform, including mobile field modules with offline synchronization capabilities.

• Deploy and pilot the system in up to five (5) selected AMSCs and produce a Pilot Learning Report.

• Develop a multi-tiered supervision hierarchy and real-time performance dashboards.

• Deliver a "Train the Trainer" program and finalize user manuals/SOPs for national rollout.

• Ensure full transfer of all source code, data, and technical documentation to MoA and RETRAP.

The shortlisting criteria are:

(a) Core Business and Number of Years in Business: The firm must have at least ten (10) years of proven experience in software development and ICT consultancy.

(b) Technical and Managerial Organization of the Firm: Evidence of technical capacity in cloud-based solutions, secure data management, and mobile application development.

(c) Description of Similar Assignments: A minimum of seven (7) years of specialized experience in the design and deployment of fleet tracking solutions, management information systems (MIS), or similar national-level agricultural digital platforms.

(d) Experience in Similar Conditions: Demonstrated experience deploying digital systems in rural environments with limited connectivity, preferably in West Africa.

(e) Availability of Appropriate Skills among Staff (Project Manager, System Architect, Mechanization Specialist, Data Governance Expert, and GIS Analyst).

Note: Key Experts will not be evaluated at the shortlisting stage.

The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment can be found at the following websites: a) www.moa.gov.lr b) Alternatively, it can be directly requested via email from [email protected].

The attention of interested firms is drawn to Section III, paragraphs 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers,” Seventh Edition, September 2025, setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest. In addition, please refer to paragraph 3.17 of the Procurement Regulations on unfair competitive advantage related to this assignment. The Regulations are available on the Bank’s website at www.worldbank.org/procurement. A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Quality and Cost-based Selection (QCBS) method set out in the Procurement Regulations.

Expressions of interest must be submitted electronically in a format that cannot be altered (PDF format is preferred) to the email address below by 1st June 2026 @ 5:00 pm local time.

Note: All expressions of interest MUST be submitted to the email address below:

Galah Toto National Project Coordinator

Project Implementation Unit (PIU),

Ministry of Agriculture Rural Economic Transformation Project (RETRAP)

2nd Floor LIBSUCO Building, Japanese Freeway (Formerly Somalia Drive), Gardnersville – Monrovia, Liberia Tel: +231-777576980 Email: [email protected] with a copy to Email: [email protected]

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Design, Development, and Implementation of the

Agricultural Mechanization Tracking System (MMTS)

Standard Operating Procedures and Operator Capacity Building Program

Ministry of Agriculture | Rural Economic Transformation Project (RETRAP)

Republic of Liberia

February 2026

• Background

Agricultural mechanization is a cornerstone for transforming Liberia's farming systems, enabling smallholder farmers and agri-enterprises to increase productivity, reduce reliance on manual labor, and improve efficiency across land preparation, cultivation, harvesting, and post-harvest operations. Despite its potential, mechanization in Liberia continues to face persistent challenges, including low equipment utilization, weak monitoring and supervision, high fuel consumption, poor maintenance tracking, and limited visibility of service delivery performance. These operational gaps are compounded by weak institutional capacity, resulting in fragmented oversight, inconsistent service standards, and limited accountability. Without strong governance structures, mechanization services risk becoming unreliable, unsustainable, and inaccessible to the farmers who need them most.

To address these constraints, the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), with technical and financial support from the World Bank under the Rural Economic Transformation Project (RETRAP), is establishing Agricultural Mechanization Service Centers (AMSCs). These centers will serve as centralized hubs providing modern mechanization services that enhance agricultural productivity, improve rural livelihoods, and promote sustainable farming practices. By aggregating demand and supply, AMSCs reduce costs, foster private sector participation, and ensure long-term sustainability of mechanization solutions. However, for these centers to succeed, institutional strengthening and organizational capacity building are essential to ensure that management systems, supervision frameworks, and accountability mechanisms are robust and responsive.

The economic sustainability of each AMSC depends on a sound operational business model. This means that mechanization services must be priced to recover costs, service utilization rates must meet realistic targets, and maintenance reserves must be adequately funded. Beyond tracking equipment use, an effective management platform must help assess utilization rates against targets, calculate cost per hectare serviced, monitor fuel efficiency by equipment type and operator, measure revenue recovery against operational expenditure, and evaluate affordability for smallholder farmers. Without this economic visibility, there is a real risk that AMSCs become operational liabilities rather than sustainable service hubs. The Mechanization Management and Tracking System (MMTS) must therefore be designed not merely as an equipment register but as a management and accountability platform that improves the economic efficiency, sustainability, and transparency of mechanization services delivered to smallholder farmers across Liberia.

The proposed MMTS, supported by standardized Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and a structured supervision framework, is designed to directly address these institutional weaknesses. By embedding transparency, accountability, and evidence-based management into mechanization services, the MMTS will strengthen organizational oversight and harmonize national mechanization data. Building on proven digital agriculture infrastructure, the system will integrate with the RETRAP reporting database to ensure farmer linkage, traceability, and comprehensive monitoring of mechanization services. This intervention directly contributes to RETRAP's broader objectives of increasing productivity and market access for smallholder farmers and agri-enterprises, while advancing climate-smart agriculture, agribusiness development, and workforce training. Ultimately, the initiative seeks to reduce food insecurity, promote economic transformation, and build resilience in Liberia's rural communities.

• Purpose of the Assignment

The purpose of this assignment is to procure a qualified firm to design, develop, and deploy a nationally scalable Mechanization Management and Tracking System, along with a comprehensive operational framework for the AMSCs. The work will proceed in clearly defined phases, with each phase subject to review and acceptance before the next phase begins. Specifically, the assignment seeks to:

• Design and deploy a digita