REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (REOI)
(CONSULTING SERVICES – FIRM SELECTION)

Project Name: National Plan for the Teaching and Learning of French in Rwanda / Plan National pour l’enseignement-apprentissage du français au Rwanda (PNFR)
Source of fund: MINEDUC/AFD

Grant Agreement Number: CRW105901R

Submission deadline: Refer to Umucyo

Assignment Title: Consultancy service for development and administration of an online French language test & Application for learning French online

1. PROJECT BACKGROUND
The overall objective of the National Plan for the Teaching and Learning of French in Rwanda (PNFR) is to respond to the Government of Rwanda’s October 2018 decision to use the French language more broadly across sectors including education, training, and professional world. This plan has been endorsed by the Ministry of Education (MINEDUC) on the 1st of April 2022 and aims at promoting the teaching and learning of French in Rwanda. French is one of Rwanda’s official languages, recognized in the 2003 Constitution.

In 2008, Rwanda entered the EAC and shifted from French language to English as the language of instruction in public sector. Recognizing the potential for enhanced collaboration with the francophone countries, the Plan is designed to shift the approach to learning French from its use as a language of instruction to learning it as a foreign language for real-world situations thanks to innovative, context-grounded teaching practices. In this way the Plan works to improve the efficiency of the time spent studying French, meeting students’ needs more directly by taking into account the learning context and the more specific and strategic opportunities for how French can help them, particularly in meeting the needs of the labour market and in higher education fields of study. The Plan emphasizes French learning for STEM and the use of ICT in language learning.

The PNFR has four strategic components that will be implemented by MINEDUC in close collaboration with its affiliated agencies: REB (Rwanda basic Education Board), NESA (National Examination and School Inspection Authority), RTB (Rwanda TVET Board), RP (Rwanda Polytechnic), HEC (Higher Education Council), and UR (University of Rwanda).

Those strategic components are the following:
a) Strengthen the French teachers’ level of French proficiency
b) Strengthen the appeal of the French language & access to a renovated, action-oriented approach to teaching French
c) Contribute to improved employability through French
d) Coordinate and implement the plan.

2. ASSIGNMENT
In the frame of this project, the development and administration of (1) an online French language placement test and (2) an application to learn French online (up to B2 level in the CEFRL) reflect the wish of the government of Rwanda to develop modern and sustainable tools with local pedagogical and technical teams.

The online French language placement test will show and measure the gaps in the level of French teachers as well as the actual needs in matter of teaching, learning and training whereas the application will help the teachers to improve their level in French in total autonomy.

The choice of developing and administering the online test and the French application locally is deliberate as it will be institutionalized in Rwanda specific context through pedagogical and technical trainings and these tools will be used more widely in next future.

It will be demanded to the firm to select Consultants to train and work hand in hand with 2 teams :
1. The pedagogical team with 30 FFL teachers. These teachers will have to build the contents for the online level test and the application.
2. The IT team with 10 IT local specialists who already work on e-platforms (REB/RTB/RP). These platforms will host the test and the application that will be administered locally.
These online tools will fit to international standards.

3. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF TERMS OF REFERENCE:

The online French level test should evaluate the level of teachers on the 4 communication competences (oral comprehension, oral expression, written comprehension and written expression) plus the structure of the language. This test with all the digitized activities will need to be developed with the local teams through training workshops and administered locally with the creation of a user guide for the examiners.

The application for learning French online (with smartphone, tablet or laptop) will have to propose auto-corrective online activities (with the 4 communication competences) covering A1 to B2 levels in the CEFRL (Common European Framework of references for languages) with a complete evaluation at the end of each level on the model of DELF.

4. TENDER REQUIREMENT & REGISTRATION

The MINEDUC is hiring a firm with the experience of developing similar online existing tools with international recognition. The Consultants shall demonstrate past experience (at least 5 years) and show competences in the building and follow up of similar projects and activities. The transfer of knowledge through the training workshops will be important for the sustainability and continual use of the new tools.

The shortlisting criteria/required documents are:
1. The description and documents indicating that they have performed similar assignments with same complexity and nature in the last 10 years.
2. Certificate of company registration issued by Country of registration with business-related activities.
3. Submission of EOI Letter
4. Signed statement of integrity

 The Request for Proposals (RFP) will be issued to the shortlisted consulting firms whose EOIs are most qualified to the assignment. The shortlist of selected firms will be between 4 and 6.
 All EOI can be written in English or French and must be submitted on the deadline set by the e-procurement system. EOI will be opened on the same day in the e-procurement system.
 The RFP is published on both e-procurement systems : AFD’s dgMarket and Rwanda Government’s UMUCYO. Bidders are required to submit their bid only on UMUCYO.
 Bidders are required to register with Rwanda’s e-procurement system (UMUCYO) on the following website Rwanda On-Line E-Procurement System (umucyo.gov.rw).
 For this specific REOI, the bidders can contact RPPA (Rwanda Public Procurement Authority) on the following e-mail address e-procurement@rppa.gov.rw for registration and submission of their EOI.
 The candidates who are black listed are not eligible (Each candidate will undergo a check of UN, EU, France and World Bank financial sanctions lists)
For further information regarding the tender, interested eligible bidders can enquire through UMUCYO e-procurement System and through the following e-mail address: info@mineduc.gov.rw
The deadline for submitting the EOI is the 17th of March 2023.