Calls for Applications

RFA: Success factors in digitizing and integrating tax filing and payments

April 09, 2019
Calls for Applications

Summary

Objective:

To request for applications (RFA) is to identify the factors of success in digitizing and integrating tax filing and payments, highlighting good practices that enable the adoption and scaling of digital tax payments in emerging economies. The analysis will be based on the analysis of at least three case studies of tax administration digitization reforms in at least three countries among the following members of the Better Than Cash Alliance: Liberia, Rwanda, Mexico, Philippines and or Indonesia.

Timeline:

Applications should be returned to the Better Than Cash Alliance Secretariat by email no later than April 24th of 2019 at 23.00 Eastern Time (GMT -4).

Also, the deadline to submit consultations is April 17th of 2019 Eastern Daylight Time.

The overall duration of the whole project should be not more than 4 calendar months.

Contact:

Applications and any consultation about this RFA should be submitted via email at camillo.tellez@uncdf.org, copying rodrigo.mejia.ricart@uncdf.org and amela.cosovic-medic@uncdf.org.

Please include in the subject line of the email: RFA response – Success factors in digital tax payments.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between an RFA and RFP?

Both Request for Application (RFA) and a Request for Proposals (RFP) are competitive processes. RFA is used to support programming to produce a development result (output or outcome) and RFP is a procurement that delivers inputs to a project.

RFA is reviewed by a programme committee that includes staff with technical expertise in the subject of the RFA. RFP is reviewed by a procurement committee that includes staff with expertise in procurement.
The result of an RFA may be a publication (public good). Thus, some or all the outputs and deliverables will be placed in the public domain with the intent that they can be freely and widely used by other parties.

The results of an RFP could be a confidential report that is used as an input to guide internal strategy. RFA: The selected (successful) organization/firm signs a Financing (Grant) Agreement with UNCDF. RFP: The selected organization/firm signs a Contract with UNCDF. Both are considered legally binding contracts and are both performance based.

Please help us to understand which presentation format should we use for the proposal: PowerPoint?, Word?

The applicant is free to select either format.

What is the expected format for the final deliverables? Power Point or Word?

The expected format for the final deliverable is a detailed report in word and an executive summary in both word and power point.

Can you please describe the decision criteria to select the organization that will support you? Specifically, what weight will economic considerations receive in the final decision?

Key requirements are outlined on the RFA. The technical evaluation will be based on Team Competences and Technical Proposal and Expertise of the Firm. Team Competences is comprised of team leader and team members. Technical Proposal and Expertise of the Firm is comprised of General and Information Plan, Methodology and approach, Specific Technical experience for the assignment, Dissemination/Publishing.
The project budget is US$ 200,000 and we are looking for a global public good with the highest quality at this price.

The analyses requested are of differing levels of complexity (direct and indirect economic indicators). Can the Alliance describe what level of analysis is desirable against each item for purpose of the case studies?

Data requirements will vary based on the case study, as these are all different reform efforts within a particular digital payments ecosystem. While causal impact indicators would be ideal, we understand that there are methodological limitations to what can be achieved based on existing data and the timeframe of this research, which means the project will rely for the most part on existing data. The Alliance will be particularly attentive to, but not limited to, the following: overall revenue administration performance (efficiency, tax collection and administrative costs, revenue increases, compliance performance, taxpayer satisfaction with services/user experience, adoption and use of digital channels). Similarly, the Alliance is interested in data and outcomes linked to domestic resource mobilization/ tax revenue, financial inclusion, women’s economic empowerment, formalization of enterprises, responsible digital payments in the digitization of tax services.

Does the Alliance want the consultants to indicate which 3 countries they will choose as case studies in the proposal?

The consultants will help the Alliance decide on the final selection of case studies. The consultants will be invited to propose variables that can help guide that decision, including: BTCA membership, regional diversity, buy-in by revenue authority, feasibility, potential for valuable lessons (i.e. relevance of the case study), diversity in terms technological maturity of the tax administration office in question as well as in the size and complexity of the country.

Is the playbook for successful adoption of digital tax payments considered a separate output to be completed by the Alliance after this work or part of the expected deliverable?

Drawing on the case studies cited above, the key deliverable are the global lessons on the “how to” distilled for members of the Alliance. These lessons should be presented in the form of a short playbook that the Alliance can then carry forward in the development of a more complete “practical toolkit” in this topic.

Category:

Calls for Applications
Programme:

Better Than Cash Alliance
Language:

English
Publish Date:

March 21, 2019
Application Deadline:

April 24, 2019

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