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Tender description :
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Expression of interest for Design and Needs Assessment Study on Trade Facilitation Including Streamlining of Border and Corridor Procedures and Processes of the Programme & Development of Transit Zones
the Mano River Union Secretariat Has Received Financing From the African Development Bank (afdb) Towards the Cost of the Mano River Union Road Development and Transport Facilitation Project Phase Iii. the Mano River Union Secretariat Intends to Apply Part of the Approved Amount of This Financing Eligible for Payments Under the Contract for Recruitment of a Consulting Firm to Undertake “needs Assessment Study on Trade Facilitation Including Streamlining of Border and Corridor Procedures and Processes and Development of Transit Zones’’ the Mru Program Specifically Aims at Strengthening Sub-regional Integration and Trade in Sierra Leone and Liberia. the Program Also Aims at the Strengthening of Sub-regional Integration and Trade. Specifically, the Program Will (i) Improve the Level of Service of the Kailahun – Buedu 25km on the Kailahun – Koindu Corridor.
The Mano River Union Secretariat has received financing from the African Development Bank (AfDB)
towards the cost of the Mano River Union Road Development and Transport Facilitation Project Phase
III. The Mano River Union Secretariat intends to apply part of the approved amount of this financing
eligible for payments under the contract for recruitment of a consulting firm to undertake “Needs
Assessment Study on Trade Facilitation Including Streamlining of Border and Corridor Procedures
and Processes and Development of Transit Zones’’ The MRU Program specifically aims at
strengthening sub-regional integration and trade in Sierra Leone and Liberia. The program also aims
at the strengthening of sub-regional integration and trade. Specifically, the program will (i) improve
the level of service of the Kailahun – Buedu 25Km on the Kailahun – Koindu corridor.
The services to be provided under the Assignment include the following:
• Review of national, MRU, ECOWAS and AfCFTA trade-related policies and legal
instruments, and identify inconsistencies or implementation gaps affecting trade in goods,
customs cooperation, rules of origin, transit, standards, SPS/TBT compliance, and NTB
reporting;
• Map public and private stakeholders involved in cross-border trade, including customs,
immigration, standards bodies, police, transport unions, chambers of commerce, market
associations, women trader groups, freight forwarders, SMEs and local authorities, and assess
their roles, capacity gaps and coordination constraints;
• Assess customs, tax, transit and border management procedures, including tariff
classification, valuation, documentary requirements, certificates of origin, border fees,
inspection practices, risk management, post-clearance controls, and the use or potential use
of electronic systems such as ASYCUDA and single-window platforms;
• Identify Aid for Trade, AfCFTA implementation support, customs modernization,
digitalization and private sector development opportunities that could complement the
MRU/RDTFP Phase III trade facilitation component, including possible support from AfDB,
WTO, World Bank, UNCTAD, ITC and other development partners;
• Assess the participation of SMEs, cooperatives, farmers’ organizations, logistics operators,
women-led enterprises and informal traders in priority value chains, and identify practical
measures to support formalization, aggregation, access to finance, quality compliance, market
information and participation in AfCFTA-enabled regional supply chains;
• Assess awareness and practical knowledge among traders and border officials on trade
documentation, rules of origin, certificates of origin, customs obligations, standards and
certification, insurance and freight terms, NTB reporting, and rights and obligations under
ECOWAS, MRU and AfCFTA frameworks, and propose targeted training modules;
• Assess the specific constraints faced by women cross-border traders, including access to
information, finance, storage, market facilities, safety, harassment, documentation, digital
tools and representation in trade facilitation institutions, and design a gender-responsive
capacity-building and facilitation plan;
• In collaboration with border communities and relevant agencies, identify the main goods,
services and value chains traded through formal and informal channels, including their origin,
destination markets, seasonality, volumes where available, transport routes, and potential
eligibility for AfCFTA preferences; stakeholders
• Estimate, to the extent data permits, the fiscal, commercial and development costs of informal
trade, illegal fees, delays, duplicated inspections and unrecorded transactions, while
distinguishing revenue loss from legitimate simplified trade facilitation needs;
• Identify the main categories of cross-border trade, including agricultural produce, processed
food, livestock, manufactured goods, consumer products, services, transit traffic and informal
small consignments, and assess the regulatory and logistical constraints affecting each
category;
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