Call for expression of interest: Financial Service Providers (FSPs)
1. Introduction
1.1 Countrywide Sanitation Activity (CWSA) Sanitation Loan for households and SMEs.
The USAID Liberia Countrywide Sanitation Activity, implemented by Population Services
International (PSI) and its partners (Concern Worldwide, Athena Infonomic, and Gusceman Inc.),
is a five-year (2022 – 2027) activity that aims to achieve universal adoption of basic sanitation
and a permanent end to open defecation in Liberia, supported by a coordinated and adequately
funded ecosystem of public, private, and community actors, enabling and inspiring action for
household and SMEs to build improved latrines. The geographical focus of this USAID Liberia
Countywide Sanitation Activity are Rural Montserrado, Bong, Nimba, Lofa, and Grand Bassa.
These five counties account for 72% of the overall population of Liberia and 64% of open
defecation in Liberia.
To achieve its main Goal, the PSI-led Countywide Sanitation Activity is implementing activities
through a wide network of partners across four Result Areas; 1. Improved Sanitation Governance;
2. Adoption of key Sanitation Behaviors, 3. Strengthened Sanitation Markets, and 4. Increased
Financing for Sanitation.
This will be pursued by applying the Market Systems Development approach that focuses on
systemic change with the key objective of stimulating the sanitation markets and the supply
chains to innovate and replicate promising practices in a sustainable way. In this approach, CWSA
aims to leverage partnerships with market actors, identifying impediments and opportunities in
the sub-systems of the sanitation market in Liberia; and facilitating solutions that strengthen
competitiveness and access through market-based incentives that are viable to the target group.
Under Result 4. One of the Intermediate Results (IR4.1) aims to increase access to finance for
targeted households and enterprises across the five counties. CWSA plans to explore
opportunities for partnership with qualified Financial Service Providers (FSPs) including
Microfinance Institutions, (MFIs), Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs) Apex, Credit
Unions, or Rural Financial Institutions(RFCIs) to develop and administer affordable sanitation loan
product tailored for households and a separate loan product for local sanitation enterprises
businesses, with flexible payment terms for the various target groups.
PSI seeks to identify financial service provider(s) offering or willing to develop and provide
sanitation loan products to households and SMEs in the targeted counties. The selected financial
service provider should be based in the five targeted CWSA counties of operation or with an
expanded network and alliances across target counties. PSI shall support the selected institution
to expand on their loan products and services offering to include sanitation loans tailored to the
financial needs of low-income sanitation market segments. The FSPs will be required to
demonstrate that they understand, have the expertise and experience of consumer financing
articulate gaps, and opportunities, and propose innovative and practical solutions that can be
implemented to address the identified gaps sustainably to both the target group and the financial
institutions.
2. Requirements/ Criteria
2.1 Technical and Compliance Requirements
The selected FSPs shall be required to demonstrate their technical and compliance competence
including:
a) Evidence of Formal Business Registration
b) Verifiable accreditation from the Central Bank of Liberia.
c) Up-to-date tax clearance certificate.
d) At least 3 years experience of operating in targeting counties reaching low-income
households and SMEs (including retailers, Community-Based micro-enterprises, artisans,
and informal roadside vendors).
e) Experience in partnering and empowering VSLAs, Credit Unions, RFIs, and Susu Clubs
networks.
f) Experience in collaboration with Government and NGOs for the financial inclusion of low￾income populations.
g) Willingness of senior management and the board to diversify its product offering under
this partnership including dedicating its financial capital to finance the new loan product
on agreeable terms and conditions with PSI.
h) Availability of qualified and committed staff in the institution to operationalize the
sanitation loan product and to serve as product champions within the institution.
i) To provide the financial resources required to launch and roll out the new loan product(s)
j) Ability of FSP’s Management Information System (MIS) to track product performance in
real-time and to generate accurate reports.
k) Willingness to invest in scaling up competitively priced sanitation loan products and
services to increase the reach of the new sanitation loan products to remote communities.
l) Demonstrate flexibility in designing and integrating new financial products and services
into its product portfolio.
m) Experience and innovation including automated /digital and use of mobile financial
services
n) Previous experience in successfully managing donor-funded guarantee funds would be an
asset.
o) Willingness to share accurate product performance data with PSI as per the terms and
conditions of the MoU.
p) Willingness and ability to meet agreed deadlines, produce quality reports, and work
collaboratively with PSI, CWSA partner businesses, and household clients.
2.2 General Requirements: Procedures and Logistics
The interested financial institution shall be required to:
a) Have its own office to provide its staff with office spaces as PSI will not provide working space;
office equipment and vehicles to facilitate its staff movements.
b) Demonstrate a Sound financial and operational performance.
c) Having an acceptable risk portfolio
d) A business plan/strategy (preferably written) that guides intervention reaching the low￾income segments in their specific sectors.
e) List and characteristics of various financial products currently promoted by the financial
service provider.
f) Willing to pay salaries and related benefits for its staff including DSA and any other
compensation as required by the institution policy.
2.3 Geographical Consideration,
The financial service provider shall be willing to provide sanitation loan products and services in
the five counties where CWSA is operating namely: Rural Montserrado (district #1 and #17), Bong,
Nimba, Lofa, and Grand Bassa.
2.4 Scale, demand, and market opportunity
As part of their expression of interest, institutions are required to answer the following
questions as part of their expression of interest.
• What hindered the introduction and scaling of the FSP’s sanitation loan products in the
past, if you have tried doing it before?
• Why does the institution want to enter into a sanitation loan or scale up an existing
sanitation loan product?
• What resources are needed — and available — for the project, including institutional
commitment and human, financial, and technological resources? Is your institution ready
to commit the required resources?
• How will the sanitation loan product and services align with the current and future
business plan of your institution?
• Is there effective demand for the product/service among the target group and if not, what
measures are required to generate demand?
• Why does the institution believe that the low-income market in Liberia is ready for this
sanitation loan product?
3. Debriefing Session
Interested MFIs can schedule a 1-hour debriefing session with the COP and the Access to
Finance Team at the PSI-Countywide Sanitation Activity office along Tubman’s Boulevard, Fish
Market at their convenience.
4. Submission Deadline
Interested Banks/ Microfinance institutions must be based in any of the five CWSA operational
county (Rural Montserrado (district #1 and #17), Bong, Nimba, Lofa, and Grand Bassa) and
required to send an Expression of Interest with cover letter accompanied by 3-5 pages
of confirmation of how they meet up the requirements above (section 2) via email to
LR_Tenders@psiliberia.org. or deliver a hard copy at the county office on or before noon (GMT);
on January 6th, 2025. You can also call the following numbers for more information:
0886232822/ 0777588650/0778172059.