CONSULTING SERVICES FOR A FIRM TO ROLLOUT THE MUNICIPAL PROPERTY TAX SYSTEM (MPTS) IN BO AND KOIDU NEW SEMBEHUN CITY COUNCILS

GOVERNMENT OF SIERRA LEONE

MINISTRY OF FINANCE

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

(CONSULTING SERVICES – FIRMS SELECTION)

Country: Sierra Leone

Name of Project: Resilient Urban Sierra Leone Project - RUSLP

Grant No.: IDA-D8420

Project ID: 168608

Date of Issue: 20th May 2026

Assignment Title: Consulting Services for a Firm to Rollout the Municipal Property Tax System (MPTS) in Bo and Koidu New Sembehun City Councils

Reference No.: SL-MOF-550138-CS-QCBS

I.0 BACKGROUND

The Government of Sierra Leone, through the Ministry of Finance (MOF), is implementing the Resilient Urban Sierra Leone Project (RUSLP) to improve urban management, strengthen service delivery, and enhance disaster preparedness in key urban centers. The project is financed by a US$50 million IDA grant and US$6.73 million GEF co-financing. To ensure strong alignment with decentralization reforms, the Project Management Unit is housed within the Fiscal Decentralization Division (FDD).

RUSLP supports the Western Area and all six secondary cities, as well as central government institutions responsible for land management, local governance, and environmental resilience.

The project development objective (PDO) of the RUSLP is to “improve integrated urban management, service delivery, and disaster emergency management in Western Area and secondary cities of Sierra Leone”. The PDO will be achieved through the following three main components: (1) Institutional Capacity Development in Integrated Urban Management; (2) Resilient Municipal Infrastructure Investment and Urban Greening; and (3) Emergency Management Institutional and Capacity Development.

Component 1 has the following two subcomponents:

a. Strengthening Integrated Urban Planning and Spatial data Infrastructure; and

b. Upgrading Urban Property Tax Administration and System.

A core element of the support under subcomponent 1b is the modernization of municipal property tax administration, which remains the most viable and predictable source of own-source revenue (OSR) for local councils and is essential for funding urban services.

Historically, property tax administration relied on outdated cadastres, manual processes, and limited digital systems. To address these constraints, the World Bank, under the RUSLP, is supporting the Government in upgrading the Municipal Property Tax System (MPTS), an integrated platform combining:

• MOPTAX 2.0 (a mobile/web-based property tax software),

• The Central Government Monitoring and Reporting System (CGMRS), and

• Integration with the council’s upgrade web-based accounting software, PFM Smart, through the X-Road platform.

The first deployment of the upgraded system took place in Kenema City Council (KCC), where the pilot demonstrated clear gains in property discovery, valuation accuracy, billing efficiency, and digital payments. The experience confirmed the feasibility of scaling the system nationally.

Building on this momentum, the Government now intends to roll out the integrated MPTS in Bo City Council (BCC) and Koidu New Sembehun City Council (KNSCC) as the next step in the national rollout. These councils are priority locations due to their rapid growth and readiness for reform. Successful deployment in Bo and Koidu will broaden the national tax base, strengthen fiscal autonomy, and improve service delivery while laying the foundation for extending the system to all 22 local councils.

This assignment will be delivered by a Consulting Firm in fifteen months through a close collaboration with Baloosoft (the developers of MOPTAX and CGMRS), MOF (through its Fiscal Decentralisation Division – FDD), Ministry of Local Government and Community Affairs (MLGCA), the two beneficiary councils, and relevant ministries. The implementation will draw on lessons learnt by the World Bank, MOF, MLGCA, and Baloosoft from Kenema and earlier reforms in Freetown and Makeni. The rollout is central to achieving RUSLP’s development objective of improving integrated urban management and enhancing the ability of local governments to mobilize and manage their own revenues.

• GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE ASSIGNMENT

2.1 Overall Objective

The assignment aims to help MOF/FDD and the two beneficiary councils—Bo and Koidu—fully deploy, operationalize, and institutionalize the Municipal Property Tax System (MPTS). This includes supporting the full Property Tax Life Cycle (PTLC) so that each council has:

• an accurate, updatable property cadastre;

• a transparent, defensible valuation system;

• automated billing and demand notices;

• integrated digital payment channels; and

• the capacity to manage the system independently.

The firm will guide both councils from readiness assessment through go-live and provide embedded post-deployment support to ensure sustainability.

2.2 Specific Objectives

• Establish a reliable property information base – Build a complete, georeferenced property roll using RUSLP acquired LiDAR data, updated with satellite imagery where necessary, and field surveys.

• Strengthen valuation capacity – Apply a standardized point-based valuation model, conduct a rental survey, and produce council-approved valuation tables and a Rate Book.

• Deploy MOPTAX 2.0 – Configure, populate, test, and operationalize the system for discovery, assessment, billing, reporting, compliance, and reconciliation.

• Integrate with national digital systems – Ensure seamless data exchange between MOPTAX, CGMRS, and integration with the Government Service Bus (GSB).

• Modernize billing and delivery processes – Automate bill generation, create print-ready RDN files, and establish tracking systems and functioning customer service/appeals desks.

• Enable secure digital payments – Integrate at least one bank and one mobile money provider and support councils in reconciliation and public communication.

• Build sustainable in-house institutional capacity – Embed technical staff, provide hands-on training and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), and equip councils to manage all PTLC tasks independently.

• Strengthen long-term sustainability and governance – Support development of data governance policies, cybersecurity practices, update routines, and technical support mechanisms.

3.0 SCOPE OF WORK AND METHODOLOGY

The Consulting Firm will support the Ministry of Finance (FDD/DFMST) and the two beneficiary councils, Bo City Council (BCC) and Koidu New Sembehun City Council (KNSCC) to plan, deploy, operationalize, and sustain the Municipal Property Tax System (MPTS) across all stages of the Property Tax Life Cycle (PTLC). The rollout will be delivered in parallel in both councils, with continuous on-site presence and close coordination with Baloosoft, under arrangements defined by MOF.

3.1 Guiding Principles

• End-to-End PTLC Delivery: Support all stages—from mapping and discovery through valuation, billing, digital payments, and post-reform support.

• Parallel Rollout: Maintain simultaneous progress in Bo and Koidu using shared leadership and dedicated field teams.

• Evidence-Based Methods: All valuation and assessment decisions must be data-driven and validated with councils.

• Coordination with Baloosoft: Joint planning for configuration, API development, integration, and UAT.

• Capacity Transfer: Embed staff within councils and deliver structured on-the-job training and handover.

• Legal & Data Governance Compliance: delivery of the assignment must conform to the Local Government Act 2022, PFM Act 2016, and Property Tax Guidelines 2021, relevant sections of the National Country Planning Act 2025, and aligned with the goal and aspirations of the government’s Fiscal Decentralization Policy and Strategy 2025, and the emerging national interoperability standards, including the Government Service Bus (GSB).

The Resilient Urban Sierra Leone Project Management Unit now invites eligible firms to indicate their interest in providing the above-mentioned package of service. The consulting firm/organization should be able to demonstrate the following qualifications, skills and competencies at the organizational level.

4.0. TEAM COMPOSITION & QUALIFICATIONS

The firm must demonstrate strong experience in municipal taxation, data systems, and digital reform, with particular familiarity working with local councils in Sierra Leone; clear understanding of socioeconomic factors, culture, and local political dynamics.

4.1 Specific Requirements of the Firm

• Proven experience supporting local councils on similar assignments.

• Experience with MOPTAX 2.0 is a major advantage.

• Ability to show how its methodology will enable knowledge transfer to councils and MOF/FDD.

• A clear sequencing of activities and staffing plan to support parallel rollout in Bo and Koidu.

• At least 10 years in core business operations.

• At least 5 years delivering ICT, software deployment, data analytics, or large-scale data collection.

• Successful completion of two recent digital transformation projects, preferably government related.

• Experience conducting primary data collection or complex statistical analysis for government.

• A team capable of software testing, ICT deployment, and analytics.

• Advantageous: staff certified or experienced in Python, machine learning, GIS, ArcGIS, big data tools.

This Request for Expression of Interest will lead to the preparation of short list of consultants. The attention of interested consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” July 2016 Revised November 2017, August 2018, November 2020, September 2023, February 2025 and September 2025 (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest. The Consultant will be selected in accordance with Quality and Cost-Based Selection (QCBS) method set out in the Consultant Guidelines.

Consultants should take note that the Expression of Int