Overview : The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) is a UN organization with a capital mandate (unique in the UN System) focused on reducing poverty and inequality first and foremost in the least developed countries (“LDC” s). UNCDF develops and tests out financial models which mobilize and recycle domestic resources to meet local needs and which raise investor confidence in these local economies so that they can become centres of growth. UNCDF works with local governments, promoting financial and fiscal accountability to its citizens through local development funds, performance-based grant systems, structured project finance, and by strengthening local revenue streams. It also supports accountable planning, budgeting, and decision-making at the local level, recognizing the importance of having decisions about resources being made locally, and those resources being spent or invested locally. UNCDF in partnership with the European Union under the 11th EDF is implementing a five year Programme referred to as the Development Initiative for Northern Uganda (DINU). The general objective of the programme is to consolidate stability in Northern Uganda, eradicate poverty and under-nutrition and strengthen the foundations for sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development. The programme aims to steer a paradigm shift from a sector-oriented support to an integrated territorial approach, and 'connect the dots' between key sectors and areas for an inclusive and sustainable socio-economic development of the region. UNCDF contributes to the programme in three areas: - Food Security and Agriculture: UNCDF designs and implements a mechanism for providing concessional and zero interest loans, technical assistance grants and partial credit guarantees to promising projects. Women and youth are deliberately targeted, and projects that aim at reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities (green economy) promoted under the START Facility (Support to Agricultural Revitalization and Transformation) in Northern Uganda.
- Transport Infrastructure: UNCDF supports rehabilitation and upgrading of selected number of priority districts and community access roads within four priority districts (Amudat, Adjumani, Abim, Moyo) to enable implementation of roads rehabilitation programs by districts; provides training in road maintenance and technical assistance in integrating the road rehabilitation and maintenance component in the LG annual and mid-term planning, budgeting and implementation frameworks.
- Good Governance: UNCDF uses local public financial management systems as the entry point to enhance capacities of local authorities to better fulfil their core and broad mandates (notably in relation to the other sectors targeted by this programme) and better respond to local needs and deliver quality services to its citizens, improving upwards accountability mechanisms. This component includes two funding facilities: District Local Government Excellence Fund and District Revenue Mobilization Fund.
The START funding facility is designed to support the implementation of DINU food security and nutrition component, in particular Activity 1.2.2, which aims at providing seed capital to incubation projects along agricultural value chain as part of its overall objective to increase local production of diversified food. The Facility is intended to offer access to affordable medium-term finance for agricultural value adding projects in Northern Uganda through provision of concessional and zero interest loans, technical assistance grants and partial credit guarantees. The medium to long-term development objective will be to stimulate pro-poor economic growth in northern Uganda, better retain the economic benefits of agriculture in the North, and improve local food systems and food security. The secondary medium-term objective will be to transform the Facility into a sustainable and adequately capitalized loan/grant facility providing technical assistance and seed capital to small and medium-sized value adding agribusinesses in Northern Uganda with the further intention to scale up its operation and coverage nationally. START is structured as a blended facility providing a customized mix of Business Development Services, project development and structuring services, and financial products. Accordingly, the START facility has three lines of business managed by the three participating institutions respectively, the Private Sector Foundation of Uganda (PSFU), United Nations Capital Development Program (UNCDF) and the Uganda Development Bank Limited (UDBL). In addition to managing the line of business that provides project preparation and development services, UNCDF is responsible for the overall administration of the Facility. START facility identifies SME’s through publicly issued Call for Proposals (CfPs) to benefit from the range of financial products and services. Most of the SMEs identified through this process face challenges relating to poor record keeping and lack of proper financial management systems among others which often affects the financial performance of these SMEs. UNCDF is seeking ICT Equipment’s and a certified software vendor for Sage 200 Evolution Premium Version to be installed on behalf of SMEs as well as provide necessary training for the SMEs to use the system to further improve on their record keeping and financial management. UNCDF therefore seeks to solicit for applications/quotations from credible vendors to support selected SMEs in northern Uganda. Please send A SIGNED AND STAMPED QUOTATION on your letterhead, by return mail, not later than May 12, 2021. Please ensure that you follow submission guidelines in RFQ Document attached for Quotation and other relevant compliance documents submission required via email to: tenders.kampala@undp.org |