Expression of Interest (EoI) for Development of Digital Marketplace Platform

Expression of Interest (EoI) for Development of Digital Marketplace Platform

dZi Foundation:

dZi Foundation is a US-based non-profit organization dedicated to working with rural communities in Nepal to achieve prosperity by removing barriers to basic needs, fostering sustainable livelihood opportunities, and enhancing local capacity to drive transformational change. Our current strategic plan adapts to evolving policy and development landscapes, sharpening our focus on partnerships, local ownership, and long-term sustainability beyond external investments

1. Background and Context

dZi Foundation/ Nepal implements and project, Initiative for Shared Prosperity in Koshi River Basin in Nepal (ISPKN), in six municipalities across five districts in Koshi, Madhesh and Bagmati Provinces. To further support rural communities, agricultural cooperatives, and local micro-entrepreneurs, dZi Foundation/Nepal is launching the development of a sophisticated, feature-rich, futuristic, yet easy-to-use Digital Marketplace Platform. This initiative will serve as the unified digital ecosystem connecting smallholder producers, regional collectors, warehouses, and end-consumers to maximize revenue streams.

The platform's engineering will utilize a single-point management accountability framework to guarantee strict compliance with technical standards, data protection protocols, and deployment punctuality. The platform development is structured into a two-phase lifecycle: 

• Phase I (Current Scope): Core Marketplace Foundation and AI Readiness. 
• Phase II (Future Scope): Advanced AI Enablement, Automation, Predictive Analytics, and Voice Systems.

Client Prerogative: dZi Foundation/Nepal reserves the right to award Phase I and Phase II contracts separately based on vendor performance, budgetary optimization, and baseline project outcomes. 

Core Impact Metrics (Phase I)

• Ecosystem Integration: The platform architecture must be built to eventually onboard and digitize trade networks for a minimum of 600 farming households across our target regional value chains. 
• Local Governance Interfacing: Bidders must incorporate clear system modules allowing Local Government bodies (Palikas) to securely access localized production dashboards, encouraging regulatory compliance and local trade oversight. 

2. Technical Architecture & User Segments

The platform must function as a comprehensive mobile-first and API-driven eCommerce system optimized for multi-role coordination across five distinct user segments: 

1. System Administrators & Local Government: Centralized web dashboards for user provisioning, role-based permissions, financial transaction monitoring, and localized impact auditing. 
2. Micro-Entrepreneurs: Simplified interfaces for mobile onboarding, production tracking, real-time sales visibility, and inventory logs. 
3. Collectors and Cooperatives: Specialized mobile toolsets for field aggregation, bulk procurement workflows, and cross-district transport mapping. 
4. Warehouse Operators: Stock reconciliation matrices, batch and expiry tracking, and dispatch/transfer logging systems. 
5. End-Consumers: High-performance, cross-platform mobile application providing seamless product discovery, shopping cart tools, and integrated checkout. 

3. Technical Scope of Work & Architectural Pillars

Pillar 1: Frontend Ecosystem & Inclusive UX

• Cross-Platform Parity: Frontend systems for consumers and field operators must be built natively using React Native and Expo to guarantee identical performance across iOS and Android. Web management portals may utilize modern Javascript frameworks like ReactJS. 
• GESI-Responsive Interface Design: Digital interface design must explicitly incorporate Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) elements. This includes low-literacy icon-driven workflows for rural farmers, high-contrast readability adjustments, and multi-lingual architecture focusing on local language accessibility to empower marginalized and women producers.

Pillar 2: Robust Backend, Payments & Infrastructure

• Database & API Framework: Built using scalable, open-source-preferred backends (such as NodeJS or Laravel), utilizing PostgreSQL or Supabase for robust authentication, data consistency, and socket-driven operations. 
• Fintech Integration: Implementation of a dynamic, single-point Bank QR payment gateway enabling instantaneous, friction-free digital transactions between consumers and cooperatives. 

Pillar 3: AI Readiness Framework

The vendor will engineer a data layer designed to support Phase II AI modules without requiring core structural rewrites: 

• Vector Databases: Implementation of PGVector (or an equivalent vector indexing system) to allow semantic search queries across products and training materials. 
• Data Architecture: Creation of structured knowledge repositories (FAQ, product catalogs, training modules) combined with data tagging frameworks and meticulous user interaction/search logging. 
• Data Sovereignty Mapping: Bidders must present clear operational methodologies for hosting future on-premises open-source Large Language Models (LLMs), outlining strategies for data localization, context-specific memory management, and regulatory compliance within Nepal's digital laws. 

4. Project Timeline (4-Month Lifecycle)

The complete engineering, setup, testing, and deployment of Phase I is constrained to a strict 4-month execution window, commencing immediately upon contract award and concluding with a definitive platform handover by the end of October 2026.

• Month 1 (July 2026) – Architecture, UI/UX & Blueprinting: Finalization of technical Software Requirement Specifications (SRS), interactive Figma wireframing, relational database schema definitions, and local government data-sharing protocols. 
• Month 2 (August 2026) – Core API & Mobile Framework Build: Construction of backend API frameworks, core frontend React Native application environments, and base configurations for all five target user tiers. 
• Month 3 (September 2026) – Advanced Modules Integration & AI Data Layer: Deployment of the dynamic bank QR payment gateway, structural integration of the warehouse/cooperative inventory matrices, and installation of the PGVector data-tagging systems. 
• Month 4 (October 2026) – Security Hardening, UAT, Training & Handover: Complete OWASP-compliant security vulnerability assessments, rigorous User Acceptance Testing (UAT), delivery of operational training/handbooks to administrator and cooperative teams, and formal live production deployment with definitive project handover by October 31, 2026. 

5. Bidder Eligibility & Evaluation Criteria

Minimum Eligibility Requirements

1. Legal Status: Valid legal registration in Nepal as a company, firm, or technology organization with active PAN/VAT registration and latest tax clearance certification. The entity must not be blacklisted by any government or international donor agency. 
2. Demonstrated Experience: Minimum of two (2) successfully completed software development projects of comparable scale within the last five (5) years, or one (1) large-scale multi-tier digital platform. Bidders must highlight experience with React Native/Expo, Cloud deployments, and prior digital system deployments alongside local government entities. 
3. Team Strength: Bidders must field a dedicated team including a Project Manager, UI/UX Designer, Backend Developer(s), Mobile App Developer(s), Database Engineer, and QA Engineer.

Technical and Financial Evaluation Matrix (QCBS Model)

Proposals will be assessed based on a comprehensive 100-point matrix using the Quality and Cost-Based Selection (QCBS) mechanism: 

6. Key Deliverables & Performance-Based Milestones

All payments are strictly performance-based, requiring verified code repository updates, live staging validation, and formal written sign-offs:

7. Security, Intellectual Property & Do-No-Harm Framework

• Security Baselines: The platform must achieve absolute OWASP compliance. It must feature strict Role-Based Access Control (RBAC), end-to-end SSL encryption, automated database backup and recovery protocols, and undergo rigorous vulnerability assessment and penetration testing (VAPT) prior to final deployment. 
• Intellectual Property Rights: All source codes, system documentation, database structural configurations, design assets, and functional components developed under this contract become the sole property of the dZi Foundation upon final financial settlement. 
• Do-No-Harm & Conflict Sensitivity: The system's user onboarding algorithms and digital marketplace access must be designed to maintain absolute geographic, ethnic, and ward-level neutrality. This ensures equitable electronic market linkage across all rural populations and prevents localized community friction. Bidders must incorporate a secure, anonymized digital grievance log inside the platform configuration to capture and rapidly address complaints raised by users, smallholder farmers, or municipal regulators.

8. Submission of Proposal

Interested Nepali firms or joint ventures (JVs) meeting the defined criteria must submit their formal proposal package electronically. 

Proposal Package Requirements

1. Technical Proposal: Concise document (maximum 10 pages) covering: Firm profile, architectural understanding, implementation methodology, system framework mapping, team CVs, and risk mitigation strategies. 
2. Financial Proposal: Service-wise cost breakdowns, optional phase-additions, annual maintenance estimates, and infrastructure consumption assumptions. 
3. Legal & Reference Appendices: Corporate registration, PAN/VAT certificates, latest tax clearance evidence, and at least three (3) completion certificates or verifiable project portfolios of similar scope. 

• Submission Deadline: June 28, 2026
• Submission Address: procurement.np@dzi.org 
• File Constraint: Total email attachment size must not exceed 10 MB. 

dZi Foundation reserves the complete right to accept or reject any or all submitted proposals without assigning any justification or reason whatsoever.