Request For Proposal (RFP) for the Research on Barriers to Financial Access for Women-Led Enterprises and Farmer-Based Organizations under the Liberia Women Empowerment Project (LWEP)

RFP No: 2005530

Issue date: January 26, 2026

Issuing organization: Catholic Relief Services, Liberia Program

Closing date: February 12, 2026, at 4.00 pm

Submission method: Sealed envelope

Type of agreement: Service Contract

Section I: Request for Quotation

1. Introduction

CRS is kindly inviting competitive tenders from qualified and credible Individuals or Organizations specialized in consultancy services and capacity of conducting consultancies to generate evidence‑based insights on demand, supply, and enabling‑environment barriers to access and use of finance by women-led enterprises/farmers/entrepreneurs, FBOs, and VSLA members, and to produce a bankable linkage strategy and implementation roadmap to connect these segments to appropriate Financial Services Providers (FSPs), including banks, MFIs, fintech/mobile money service providers, non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs), agricultural development banks, input dealers with credit, off‑takers, among others.

2. Background

CRS in consortium with other partners is piloting the Liberia Women Empowerment Project (LWEP). The project is a three-year initiative implemented by the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection with funding from the World Bank. Operating across six counties, Bomi, Gbarpolu, Grand Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh, Montserrado, and Rivercess – the project aims to empower women by addressing harmful social norms, enhancing access to livelihoods, and strengthening institutional capacity to promote gender equality.

3. Purpose

The purpose of this Terms of Reference (ToR) is to engage the services of a qualified consultancy firm or experienced institution in consultancy services to conduct research to generate evidence‑based insights on demand, supply, and enabling‑environment barriers to access and use of finance by women-led enterprises/farmers/entrepreneurs, FBOs, and VSLA members, and to produce a bankable linkage strategy and implementation roadmap to connect these segments to appropriate Financial Services Providers (FSPs), including banks, MFIs, fintech/mobile money service providers, non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs), agricultural development banks, input dealers with credit, off‑takers, among others.

4. Target Segments

• Women farmers/entrepreneurs (by crop/livestock/value chain position; micro‑SMEs).
• VSLA members (and groups), including leadership and digital readiness.
• FBOs/cooperatives/producer groups (governance, services, aggregation).
• Financial Service Providers (FSPs): banks, MFIs, fintech, MMOs, NBFIs, input suppliers with credit, off‑takers.

5. Key Activity

The selected service provider will be responsible for implementing a series of consultancy activities as followed:

1. Diagnose demand‑side barriers faced by women-led enterprises/farmers/entrepreneurs and VSLA members across selected value chains and geographies.
2. Assess supply-side constraints and appetite among FSPs to serve these segments, including product features, pricing, risk management, agent networks, and credit decisioning.
3. Map the role of FBOs & VSLAs in savings, credit, aggregation, extension, and how they can serve as conduits/guarantors for formal finance.
4. Review the enabling environment, including policies, collateral registries, digital KYC tiers, consumer protection, credit information sharing, and relevant public schemes/guarantees.
5. Co‑design a linkage strategy and pilot concepts (quick wins and 6–12‑month roadmap) to connect women-led enterprises, FBOs, and VSLAs to FSPs, including product adaptations, partnerships, onboarding journeys, and risk‑sharing options.
6. Build a results framework and M&E indicators to track linkages (e.g., accounts opened, credit disbursed, usage, repayment, and satisfaction).

6. Methodology

The consultant is expected to propose a methodology that effectively facilitates the delivery of the following:

1. Desk Review of secondary data, policies, and prior studies/programs.
2. Quantitative Survey of women-led enterprises and VSLA members, with indicative sample sizes and disaggregation by gender.
3. Qualitative Research
   • FGDs (separate groups by gender/age) with women farmers/entrepreneurs and VSLA members.
   • Key Informant Interviews (KIIs): FSPs (retail/SME/etc.), regulators, apex bodies, mobile money providers, input suppliers, off‑takers, FBO leaders, VSLA promoters/NGOs, extension officers, etc.
   • Customer journey mapping and persona development for priority segments.
4. Supply‑Side Mapping of FSPs (branch/agent footprint, product inventory, pricing, underwriting, partnerships) and pipeline partners (off‑takers, ag‑techs).
5. Policy & Regulatory Scan focused on KYC, collateral, agents, e‑money, credit bureaus, consumer protection.
6. Co‑Creation Workshops with stakeholders to test linkage models and product concepts.
7. Data Analysis Plan including descriptive statistics, segmentation, comparative analysis, etc.
8. Ethics & Safeguarding: informed consent, anonymization, secure data storage; enumerator training on gender‑sensitive interviewing and referral pathways (GBV/SEA).

Note: Sampling frames, sizes, and instruments will be finalized in an Inception Report.

7. Expected Outputs and Deliverables

Deliverables & Schedule

8. Reporting Format

The final report is expected to be organized as follows:

• Executive Summary (≤4 pages)
• Methodology (limitations, biases, ethical safeguards)
• Demand Side ‑Findings (by segments, value chains, regions)
• Supply‑Side Findings (FSP readiness, unit economics, risk, consumer protection)
• Enabling Environment Review (key regulatory and public‑program levers)
• Personas & Customer Journeys (women farmers/entrepreneurs; VSLA leaders/members)
• Barrier–Opportunity Matrix (what blocks, what enables, where to intervene)
• FSP Landscape & Partnership Pipeline (ranked by readiness/fit)
• Product/Channel Concepts (e.g., input credit with off taker contracts; ‑VSLA‑to bank‑ linkages; warehouse receipt lending; agent expansion; bundled microinsurance; digital layaway; asset finance; climate smart‑ loans)
• Business Case & Sustainability (unit economics, incentives, risk‑sharing, guarantees)
• Linkage Strategy & Implementation Roadmap (phasing, roles, resourcing, quick wins & pilots, policy asks)
• M&E Framework (KPIs, data sources, cadence)
• Annexes: tools, sampling details, raw outputs, references, dataset inventory.

9. Timeline and Key Milestones:

CRS will evaluate the proposals and award the assignment based on technical and financial feasibility. Subsequently, short-listed Institutions May be invited for an interview and/or presentation. The Catholic Relief Services reserves the exclusive right to select the candidate it considers suitable for the assignment.

Project Location: All six LWEP counties: Bomi, Gbarpolu, Grand Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh, Montserrado, and Rivercess.

10. Qualifications and Experience required for the Team Leader and Key Staff:

Consultant Qualifications (or Team Leader)

• Demonstrated expertise (8+ years) in agricultural/SME Finance, Gender & Women’s Economic Empowerment, and Digital Financial Services.
• Proven track record delivering mixed‑methods research and market diagnostics for FSPs and/or development programs.
• Experience designing linkage models (VSLA/FBO‑to‑FSP, value‑chain/embedded finance).
• Team composition should cover: Team Lead (finance/gender), Quantitative Specialist, Qualitative Lead, Field Coordinator, Data Manager, Policy/Regulatory Expert, and local language research staff.
• Familiarity with ethical research, safeguarding, and data protection standards.
• Strong stakeholder facilitation and report writing skills; publications or sample deliverables preferred.
• For firms: legal registration and tax compliance in Liberia; for individuals: ability to contract and invoice.

11. Payment schedule

Payment will be made to the consultant as below:

12. Instructions to Bidders

Bidders are required to submit their proposals in two separate sealed envelopes (technical and financial proposals) enclosed with an outer sealed envelope with the reference number addressed to:

Catholic Relief Services, Liberia Program

16^th Street Gardner Avenue

Seaside, C-140 Building,

Sinkor Monrovia, Liberia

Subject: RFP No: 2005530

Bids must be received no later than February 12, 2026, at 4.00 PM

Failure to comply with these instructions may result in disqualification.

Expected delivery time: The duration of this consultancy is 2.5 months after contract signing

Softcopy of this RFP, additional information or request for clarification can be requested at liberiarfq@crs.org.

13. Eligibility Criteria (Administrative evaluation)

Bidders must meet the following eligibility criteria to be considered:

• Submit bids no later than February 12, 2026, at 4.00 PM

Eligibility criteria

Admin Pass Mark is a pass or Fail

• Submit a valid business registration
• Submit a valid tax clearance
• Submit a signed quotation submission form (Annex I)
• Submit a signed experience form (Annex II)
• Company profile

14. Material vs Non-material Deviations Errors and Clarification

a. Material Deviations (Non-Responsive)

A Bid shall be considered materially deficient and non-responsive if it contains a deviation that:

• ​Affects the scope, quality, or performance of the research.
• Missing signature: A bid that is not signed by an authorized representative is legally invalid and cannot be rectified.
• Missing Financial Proposal: omission of the price component is material deficiency.

b. Consequence

Any Bid deemed materially deficient shall be rejected and disqualified.

c. Non-Material Deviations

CRS reserves the right to seek clarification for minor clerical omissions that do not constitute a material deviation.

Conditional Qualification: A Bidder may be conditionally qualified for the next stage (Technical Evaluation) if they have substantially met all mandatory criteria but have minor, non-material deficiencies. This applies specifically to:

• Missing stamp or formatting: minor administrative oversight (missing company stamp e.g.)
• Pre-existing Documentary evidence: if a bidder fails to submit documents (e.g. a tax clearance, business registration) that legally existed prior to the bid deadline, the committee may request its submission within a strict 24-hour window.

Clarification request SHALL NOT be used to allow a bidder to alter the substance of their technical solution or change their bid price.

Section II: Proposals Content

The following documents must be submitted for the submission to be considered:

15. Technical proposal envelope

Bid submission Form (Annex I)

Submit a signed experience form (Annex II).

Valid Business registration & Tax Clearance.

Company profile.

CV of key staff (Annex III).

Cover Letter (Maximum one page). The cover letter MUST NOT contain any financial proposal information.

Technical and financial proposals with a focus on addressing the assignment’s purpose and objectives, methodology to be used, key selection criteria, sample size from the study population and targeted age groups, draft data collection tools and interview guides.

Initial work plan based on the methodology outlined

Contracts for similar research work have been conducted in the past 5 years including at least 3 references from previous INGOs.

16. Financial Proposal envelopes

Bidders must submit a detailed, itemized budget accompanied by a Budget Assumptions Narrative that clearly explains how all costs were derived. The financial proposal must include:

1. Detailed Cost Breakdown (USD)
   • Personnel / Level of Effort (LOE)
   • Daily rates with number of days per position
   • Travel and per diem assumptions
   • Data collection costs (enumerators, devices, supervision, QA)
   • Workshops (co‑creation, validation)
   • Operational and administrative costs
2. Budget Assumptions Narrative

Bidders must provide a written explanation describing the assumptions used to calculate all cost items, including:

• Sample size assumptions
• Number of field teams and deployment duration
• Enumerator training plan and costing basis
• Expected travel routes and field logistics
• Workshop participant numbers
• Data collection platform costs (e.g., ODK/CommCare) Kobo tool box
• Any subcontracting or specialist services
• Cost efficiency measures

3. Summary Budget Table

• Personnel
• Fieldwork & Data Collection
• Travel
• Workshops
• Other Direct Costs
• Total Cost (USD)

Section III: Proposals Submission

17. Submission instructions

Bids are to be delivered to CRS office before 4:00 PM, no later than February 12, 2026.

Envelopes Labeling:

• Technical Proposal: Liberia Women Empowerment Project (LWEP) Financial Linkage Research Application.
• Financial Proposal: Liberia Women Empowerment Project (LWEP) Financial Linkage Research Application.

Both envelopes should be enclosed in an outer sealed envelope labeled with:

RFP Number: 2005530

RFQ Name: Liberia Women Empowerment Project (LWEP) Financial Linkage Research Application.

Bidder’s Name and Contact Information:

18. Important Notes

• Late submission is defined as:
  • Any proposal that arrives at the designated submission address after the exact time and date specified above, regardless of the reason for delay (e.g. courier issues, traffic, misrouting, or administrative errors).
• CRS reserves the right to consider or reject Late submission.
• Incomplete or improperly labeled submissions may result in disqualification.
• Bidders may be required to provide additional information or participate in a clarification meeting.
• CRS reserves the right to accept or reject any quotation and annul the bidding process and reject all quotations at any time prior to the award of the contract, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

Section IV: Selection Process

CRS will review received proposals within the deadline through a three-step process:

• Determination of eligibility.
• Technical review of eligible proposals.
• Scoring and ranking of the eligible proposals based on the assessment criteria outlined in the Evaluation Methodology section to identify the highest-ranking proposal.

Section V: Evaluation Methodology

The methodology of evaluation will be based on “Quality and Cost-Based Selection (QCBS)” as follow:

• Technical quality and cost are both considered.
• Weighting is applied to quality and cost scores to determine the overall score.
• The proposal with the highest combined score is selected.

Section VI: Evaluation Criteria

Only submission that meets the eligibility criteria (administrative evaluation) will be considered for technical and financial evaluation.

19. Technical Evaluation – Weight: Tech Weight is 60%

Technical Pass mark is 70 points

20. Financial Evaluation – Weight: Fin Weight is 40%

Arithmetical errors will be rectified on the following basis:

• If there is a discrepancy between the unit price and the total price that is obtained by multiplying the unit price and quantity, the unit price shall prevail and the total price shall be corrected.
• If the Supplier/Vendor does not accept the correction of errors, its quote will be rejected.
• If there is a discrepancy between words and figures, the amount in words will prevail.

Offers that are found technically compliant shall be evaluated based on the lowest offer.

Financial scores are assigned to each proposal based on the cost evaluation, using the following formula: the lowest cost proposal receives the highest score PointLowestFin, and other proposals are scored relative to the lowest cost. The supplier with the lowest total price will receive a score of 100

Illustration: X and Y represent the lower offer and the offer for which the score needs to be calculated, respectively: Score = (X/Y)* 100

21. Combining Score Calculation

The total score for each bidder will be the sum of the weighted technical score and weighted price.

• Technical score and financial score are combined using the predetermined weights.
• Combined Score = (Technical Score x Tech Weight) + (Financial Score x FinWeight).

Section VII: Post-qualification Actions

• Verification of accuracy, correctness and authenticity of the information provided by the bidder on the administrative, technical, and financial documents submitted.
• Inquiry and reference checking with the entity that may have done business with the bidder.
• Inquiry and reference checking with other previous clients on the quality of performance of ongoing or previous contracts completed.
• Physical inspection of the bidder’s branches or other places where business transpires, with or without notice to the bidder.

Section VIII: Terms and Conditions

• Delivery Location: Catholic Relief Services – 16th street Sinkor and Gardiner Avenue, Seaside, C-140 Building
• Latest Delivery Date: As per contract.
• Payment terms: N30.
• Currency: USD.

22. Withholding Tax

In accordance with the tax laws of the Republic of Liberia, CRS shall withhold applicable taxes from all payments made under this contract. The current withholding tax rate is:

• 10% for services provided by resident entities
• 20% for services provided by non-resident entities

The withheld amount shall be remitted directly to the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA), and evidence of tax paid shall be issued to the Contractor upon request.

It is the responsibility of the Contractor to ensure compliance with all applicable tax obligations in Liberia. CRS shall not be liable for any tax liabilities arising from the Contractor’s failure to comply with national tax laws.

Tax will be applied to the following:

• Level of Effort
• Training/knowledge transfer
• Maintenance and Technical support.

23. Contractual Obligation and Future Disqualification

• The selected service provider will be contractually obligated to deliver the services as per the provided terms of references within the required timeframe.
• Failure to meet this obligation without written notice may result in penalties and contract termination.

24. Advance Payment Terms

If the selected bidder wishes to request an advance payment of ten percent (10%) of the contract price, s/he must provide a valid advance payment guarantee using the CRS template.

Section IX: Award Criteria

The contract will be awarded to the bidder with the highest combined score, calculated based on the weighted technical score and the financial score. The evaluation committee will consider both technical and financial criteria to determine the bidder that offers the best overall value for money, ensuring the required technical specifications are met while achieving cost-effectiveness.

Section X: Rejection of Award

CRS may reject any quote that is not substantively responsive to the terms and conditions of the RFQ.

CRS is not bound to accept the lowest or any quote and reserves the right to accept any quote in whole or in part and to reject any or all quotes without assigning any reason therefore and to Contract on any of the terms offered or on different terms.

CRS will send a Notice of Award to the winning bidder. The winning bidder agrees to acknowledge the purchase order or contract by email upon award within one (1) business day under the terms and conditions stated herein.

Section XI: Cost of Providing Quotes

Bidders shall bear all costs associated with the preparation and submission of the quote, and CRS will not be liable for those costs, regardless of the conduct or outcome of the solicitation.

Section XII: Clarification and Amendments of Request for Quotation

To assist in the examination, evaluation and comparison of Quotes, CRS may, at its discretion, ask the Supplier/Vendor for clarification of its Quote. The request for clarification and the response shall be in writing and no change in price or substance of the Quote shall be sought, offered, or permitted.

CRS may, for any reason, whether at its own initiative or in response to a clarification requested by a prospective supplier/vendor, amend the Request for Quotation. To afford prospective suppliers/vendors reasonable time to consider the amendments in preparing their offers, CRS may extend the deadline for the submission of quotes. Any amendments will be published in the same manner as the present tender.

Section XIII: Important Additional Information

General terms and conditions of CRS applicable to goods and services can be downloaded at the following address: http://CRS.org/vendor-terms/vendor-terms.pdf or obtained upon request from the CRS’ office and are applicable within the national legal context.

Vendors must not be associated or have been associated in the past directly or indirectly with a firm or any of its affiliates which have been engaged by CRS to provide services for the preparation of the design, specifications, and other documents to be used for the procurement of the goods under this request for quotation.

Bidders, Suppliers and Service Providers, while conducting their activities, are expected to comply with the following policies and regulations:

• CRS Terms and Conditions: http://CRS.org/vendor-terms/vendor-terms.pdf.
• CRS Suppliers and Service Provider Code of Conduct: https://www.CRS.org/sites/default/files/supplier_code_of_conduct.pdf.
• Global Fund Code of conduct for supplier: https://www.theglobalfund.org/media/3275/corporate_codeofconductforsuppliers_policy_en.pdf.

Annex I. Quotation Submission Form RFP No. 2005530

The following document is part of this request for quotation and must be completed and returned with your offer.

Quotations must be completed according to the instructions in this request. Quotations must be completed in English, signed, and returned to CRS before the specified deadline. CRS’s terms and conditions applicable to goods and services are provided in Section XII: Important Additional Information.

I, the undersigned, having read CRS’s terms and conditions applicable to goods and services for the request for proposal No. 2005530, as stated in the attached document, hereby offer to provide the goods and services specified in this request for quotation at the price or prices indicated, in accordance with all specified specifications, and subject to CRS’s terms and conditions applicable to goods and services established or specified in the document.

I, the undersigned, declare that:

1. Our company and our personnel have no conflicts of interest in any activities that could represent, if we are selected, a conflict of interest with CRS.
2. Our company confirms that the bidder or subcontractors have not been associated, or in any way involved, directly or indirectly, in the preparation of the project, specifications, and/or other documents used in this tender.
3. Our company, its affiliates, or subsidiaries (including subcontractors or suppliers of any part of the contract) have not been declared ineligible by CRS in accordance with Section I. 3: Eligibility Criteria.
4. We have not offered and will not offer any gift and/or favor of any kind in exchange for this request for quotation and will never do so during the execution of any awarded contract.

I, ____________________________________ (Name of authorized signatory) , certify that I am the_____________________________(position) _____________________of (legal name of the company)________________; by signing this request for quotation for and on behalf of (legal name of the company) _______________________________, I certify that all information contained in this document is accurate and true and that signing this offer falls within my authority.

Annex II. Past Experience Form for RFP No. 2005530

Purchases orders or contracts signed by both parties must be provided for each experience.

Annex III. Key personnel (format of Biodata)

Give the detailed information of the key personnel who are scheduled to be assigned as full-time field staff for the project. Fill up a form for each key personnel.

– Authorized Managing Officer / Representative

– Sustained Technical Employee

1. Name : ____________________________________________
2. Date of Birth : ____________________________________________
3. Nationality : ____________________________________________
4. Education and Degrees :_______________________________________
5. Specialty : ____________________________________________
6. Registration : ____________________________________________
7. Length of Service with the Firm :___ Year from___ (months) _____ (year) To ____ (months) _____ (year)
8. Years of Experience : ____________________________________________
9. If Item 7 is less than ten (10) years, give name and length of service with previous employers for a ten (10)-year period (attached additional sheet/s), if necessary:

Name and Address of Employer Length of Service

_____ year(s) from _____ to ______

10. Languages : ____________________________________________

Supporting Documents for each key personnel

1. Copy of degree (bachelor or master)
2. CV

Note: For key personnel to be validated, Bidder MUST fill out Annex 6 AND provide (a), (b), (c) and (d). This is a PASS/FAIL to have the point.

Company Name: ______________________

Name of Key Personnel: ____________________

Role in the Proposal: _____________________________

Signature of Key Personnel: ____________________________

Date: _______________________________

Annex IV. Submission Checklist for Bidders

Bid submission Form.

☐Price Quote which complies with the specifications/TOR provided

☐Signed Quotation Submission Form (Annex I)

☐Reference list- Past Experience Form (Annex II)

☐Key personnel Form (Annex III)

☐Business registration, Tax Clearance, PPCC certificate and any required license (if any)

☐Business Brochure/Profile including names of management team/partners