REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST FOR LIASION CONSULTANT- EAC CROSS BOARDER PAYMENT SYSTEM MASTERPLAN IMPLEMENTATION.

1. About FSD Network

The Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Network is a family of ten locally established Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) programs building diverse and inclusive financial systems across Africa that enhance financial resilience and sustainable livelihoods for all and enable inclusive economic growth. We believe that financial systems have the potential to play a major role in enabling inclusive growth and ensuring access to basic goods and services while assuring a sustainable future for low-income people. We are deeply committed to equity between men and women and supporting the vulnerable and marginalized, including refugees and people living with disability. 

We have a national FSD presence in four East African Community (EAC) countries (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Rwanda) with nearly two decades of experience in advancing inclusive financial ecosystems and fostering inclusive economic growth. DRC and Somalia are exploring establishing an FSD, with Burundi and South Sudan currently the only EAC partner States with no FSD (current or planned). Support to these EAC states will be centrally managed through the FSD Network and guided by the imperatives of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, the FSD Network seeks to mold sustainable financial systems, enabling them to work more inclusively across Africa.

2.  About Access to Finance Rwanda 

Access to Finance Rwanda (AFR) is a Rwandan not for profit company established in 2010 to promote financial inclusion and financial sector development. AFR is currently funded by Sweden, Jersey Overseas Aid, MasterCard Foundation, Co-Develop, and Gates Foundation.

AFR is part of the broader Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) network in Africa that seeks to create a transformative impact on ending poverty by supporting efforts to improve financial inclusion and financial sector development through helping policy makers, regulators, financial service providers and markets drive a more inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

AFR supports the removal of systemic barriers that hinder access to and use of financial services by low-income people, particularly the rural poor, women, youth and MSMEs, and supports the development and provision of financial services including savings, credit, insurance, investment, payments, and remittances.

AFR is guided by the Market System Development (MSD) approach recognizing that efforts to increase financial inclusion and financial sector development must be market led, profitable and sustainable. For more details visit our website: (www.afr.rw).On behalf of FSD Network and with the support of Gates Foundation, AFR seeks Liaison Consultant – EAC Cross Border Payment System Masterplan Implementation.

3. About EAC Payment System Masterplan

The Masterplan envisions a payments ecosystem that fosters economic integration and sustainable growth across the EAC. Its mission is to implement an inclusive, secure, efficient, and interoperable cross-border payments ecosystem to support the objectives of the EAC Monetary Union.

Vision and Mission

The implementation of this project is at a critical stage. The Liaison Consultant working under the guidance and tutelage of the respective EAC directorate responsible for MAC affairs at the EAC Secretariat, will support the directorate in liaison with Payments Subcommittee in actualizing the Masterplan Implementation. 

4 .Scope of Work

The Consultant will serve as the strategic liaison bridge for the respective EAC directorate, Monetary Affairs Committee (MAC) and payments subcommittee.

1. Core Mandate and Objective

Liaison Role: The primary objective of this role will be to provide specialized liaison support to the EAC Directorate, Monetary Affairs Committee (MAC) and Payments Subcommittee. The Consultant will serve as the strategic liaison to support the implementation agenda. 

2. Progress Tracking

• Progress Monitoring: Assist in tracking the progress of Monetary Affairs Committee (MAC) and Payments Subcommittee Masterplan activities and generating necessary updates.

3. Liaison and Stakeholder Management

• Strategic Collaboration: Under the tutelage of EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and with the support of Payments Subcommittee facilitate effective communication and harmonization of MAC masterplan activities.

4. Operational Liaison Coordination

• Workstream Alignment: Under the tutelage of EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and with the support of Payments Subcommittee,assist in coordinating specific workplans to ensure Masterplan objectives are met.
• Logistical Facilitation: Under the tutelage of EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and with the support of Payments Subcommittee assist the coordination of convening/s, regional initiatives and committee engagements required for successful Masterplan implementation.

5. Compliance and Risk

• Policy Adherence: Under the tutelage of EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and with the support of Payments Subcommittee monitor activities to ensure alignment with MAC policies and directives. 
• Risk Identification: Under the tutelage of EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and with the support of Payments Subcommittee, assist in identifying potential risks in workplans and proposing mitigation strategies for the Committee’s consideration.

6 .Capacity Building

• Knowledge Transfer: Under the tutelage of EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and with the support of Payments Subcommittee, assist in the organization and facilitation of workshops, seminars, and training sessions to build stakeholder capacity in line with MAC priorities.

5. Deliverables

Recognizing there are multiple ways to organize and structure this technical assistance, we request the bidder provides and updated resume appropriate to the task. The consultant will be responsible for the following deliverables. 

1 .Executive Dashboard 

• High level report/s designed to monitor pulse of the Masterplan implementation.

2 .Briefs and Strategic Status Reports

• Executive reporting (Bi-Weekly/monthly/quarterly) submitted to EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and Payments Subcommittee. These reports will synthesize complex data from technical workstreams into decision grade intelligence, highlighting achievements, critical bottlenecks requiring intervention, and overall alignment with Masterplan implementation. 

3 .Stakeholder Consensus and Decision Logs

• Records of MAC and Payments Subcommittee coordination activities related to Masterplan implementation, including minutes, decision logs, and briefing notes from engagements together with systematic tracking of resolutions and agreed action points.

4. Strategic Risk Monitoring and Mitigation Matrix

• Dynamic documentation identifying systemic and strategic risks to the Masterplan implementation (e.g., regulatory divergence, funding gaps). This deliverable focuses on providing EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and Payments Subcommittee with foresight and actionable mitigation strategies for decision making.

5. Convening Liaison

• Under the tutelage of EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and with the support of Payments Subcommittee, provide liaison support for MAC meetings and regional convenings to ensure effective decision making and smooth execution of the Masterplan agenda.

6 .Capacity Building Liaison 

• Under the tutelage of EAC Directorate responsible for MAC affairs and with the support of Payments Subcommittee, provide liaison services for policy dialogues, peer learning sessions, and seminars designed to strengthen the MAC committee’s capacity to achieve Masterplan success. 

6. The assignment

The assignment will be for initial period of Six (6) months (Duty Station Arusha Tanzania) and will be renewable subject to the availability of funds. 

Expected starting date: April2026

7 .Education and Qualifications

• Advanced Degree: A Master’s degree in Economics, Finance, Business Administration, International Relations, Technology, Public Policy, or a related field.
• Bachelor’s Degree: A Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline (Economics, Commerce, Technology or Development Studies) or a related field. 
• Experience: 5+ years’work experience, mainly in Central Banking, Finance, Digital Economy and Payment systems, regional exposure and/or exposure in monetary policy will be an added advantage.

8. Experience and technical skills 

Essential

• Liaison / Coordination: Proven track record in managing complex, multi-stakeholder projects. Experience in designing workplans, monitoring implementation matrices, and using project management tools (e.g., MS Project, Asana) to track deliverables.
• Payment Systems: Technical understanding of financial market infrastructures, including Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) systems, Instant Payment Systems (IPS), and cross border payment platforms. Strong balance between technical payments knowledge and liaison engagements.
• Institutional Support: Demonstrated experience working with technical and operational working groups with ability to coordinate logistics and information flow between diverse entities. 
• Strategy Implementation: Experience in supporting the execution of strategies. The candidate should be able to translate high level decisions into actionable operational tasks.
• Reporting and Documentation: Exceptional writing skills in drafting technical progress reports, minutes, briefing notes, and updates. Ability to synthesize complex technical data into clear status reports.
• Escalation: Ability to understand pain points, delays or resource gaps with ability to articulate issues with escalation thresholds to strengthen Masterplan Implementation discipline.
• Stakeholder Collaboration: Proven ability to work collaboratively in a diverse, regional environment and aptitude to appreciate the diverse stakeholder relationships

Desirable Experience

• Regional Experience: Prior work experience within Regional Economic Communities (RECs). 
• Digital Financial Services (DFS): Familiarity with mobile money, fintech’s, and banking infrastructures (including interoperability).
• Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI): Familiarity with the "DPI approach" for financial market infrastructure. 
• International Standards Knowledge: Understanding of BIS (Bank for International Settlements) principles for financial market infrastructures.
• Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E): Understanding of M&E frameworks to effectively track the high impact metrics.
• Capacity Building Liaison: Experience facilitating workshops, technical committee meetings, and capacity building programs. 
• Experience working with Market Systems Development (MSD) approaches.

9 .Attitude/Competencies 

• Strategic thinking and thought leadership.
• Strong drive for results and strong sense of engagement and responsibility.
• Teamwork, interpersonal and relationship building skills, and ability to lead by influence and example.
• Proven ability to partner, communicate and manage/navigate through multiple disciplines and organizational groups.
• Ability to work within a complex and often ambiguous environment and ability to influence senior management and other relevant parties.
• Team oriented, collaborative, flexible, and can adapt to a changing environment.
• High degree of professionalism and integrity.

10. Evaluation Criteria 

The table below summarizes the required consultant’s competencies and experience that also constitute the main evaluation criteria.

Evaluation of Consultant

The evaluation of CVs will use Quality Based selection methodology as detailed below: 

1. Detailed evaluation is scored at 100%
2. Minimum technical score: The mark required to pass the technical evaluation is 70% 
3. The highest ranked Consultant will be invited for negotiations on financial and any technical aspects. 
4. If the negotiations with the designated consultant do not result in a procurement contract, AFR may invite the other consultants for negotiations until it arrives at a procurement contract.

Link to the Masterplan: https://www.eac.int/component/documentmananger/?task=download.document&file=bWFpbl9kb2N1bWVudHNfcGRmX1V5cldvWnRVT094eE1VU3VFeHhBVkRNRUFDIFBBWU1FTlQgU1lTVEVNUyBNQVNURVJQTEFO&counter=1588

NB: No financial proposals are required at this stage

Right to Reject: AFR reserves the right to accept or reject any proposal or to cancel the procurement process and reject all applications at any time prior to contract signature, without incurring any liability to AFR.

11.Submission Requirements

Interested consultants should submit a motivation letter and updated CV detailing academic qualifications, relevant professional experience, and a summary of previous assignments, including client references. 

12. Important Notes

• AFR will not reimburse any costs incurred by consultants in the preparation or submission of their applications.
• Applicants must clearly indicate the area of expertise in the subject line of their email as follows: “Application for Liaison Consultant – EAC Cross-Border Payment System Masterplan Implementation”.

13. Submission Deadline

All expressions of interest must be submitted electronically by:Tuesday March 24, 2026, at 5:00PM Rwanda time (CAT)

Submission Email:procurement02@afr.rw

Subject line: Application for Liaison Consultant –EAC Cross-Border Payment System Masterplan Implementation”

Format: PDF Format

Sincerely,

Jean Bosco Iyacu

Chief Executive Officer