REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP): HIRING OF SERVICE PROVIDER FOR PROVISION OF MANAGED CLOUD INFRASTRUCTURE-AS-A-SERVICE, HOSTING AND OPERATIONAL SUPPORT FOR THE DIGITAL ESG PLATFORM

1.  About Swisscontact

Swisscontact, Swiss Foundation for Technical Cooperation, is headquartered in Zurich and was founded in 1959 by leading figures from the Swiss private sector and Swiss universities. It is exclusively involved in international cooperation and, since 1961, has carried out its own and mandated projects. A part of the organisation, Swisscontact Bangladesh, is registered as an international non-governmental organisation (INGO) under the NGO Affairs Bureau, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, carrying out diverse projects across sectors such as Ready-Made Garments (RMG), Agriculture, Health,  Water and Sanitation, Light Engineering, and Financial Inclusion.

2. Introduction

Swisscontact implements the Promoting Green Growth in the Ready-Made Garments Sector through Skills (PROGRESS) project with funding from the Embassy of Sweden and the Embassy of Switzerland in Bangladesh. This project empowers Ready-Made Garments (RMG) factories to navigate the green transition, enhancing both their environmental resilience and global competitiveness.

Based on the learning of the PROGRESS project, Technology for Responsible Accountability in Corporate ESG (TRACE) has been introduced which supports the development and operationalisation of a digital platform for better clarity, coordination, and harmonisation of ESG reporting among the key RMG stakeholders. The objective is to enable the factories in RMG supply chain to streamline ESG data management in line with regulations such as the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), emerging carbon pricing mechanisms, etc. The platform also has potential to support other export-oriented sectors like Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU), Real Estate, etc., empowering them to stay competitive in a global market that now demands strict ESG accountability.

The Digital ESG Platform is being developed as a secure, scalable, multi-tenant B2B Software-as-a-Service platform for the Ready-Made Garment sector. The objective of the assignment is to establish and operate a secure, scalable, resilient and cost-efficient cloud hosting environment capable of supporting the Digital ESG Platform throughout its phased product rollout.

3. Objective of the Assignment

Therefore, the project seeks to engage a qualified local/international cloud service provider or  local partner of international cloud service provider to provision, configure, operate, monitor, secure and support the cloud hosting environment under a managed Infrastructure-as-a-Service or equivalent managed cloud hosting model.

The Terms of Reference (ToR) outlines the key tasks to be undertaken as part of the assessment.

This Request for Proposal (RFP) refers to the Terms of Reference (TOR) for “Hiring service provider for Provision of Managed Cloud Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Hosting and Operational Support for the Digital ESG Platform”. The ToR is attached here in this document. Please find the link below.

Find the ToR here

The ToR is also available in the Swisscontact Bangladesh website.  Please click the link:
https://www.swisscontact.org/en/countries/bangladesh/requests-for-proposal

4. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENT

Organizations are required to submit the following:   
A technical proposal outlines in detail including understanding of the assignment, proposed solution, implementation approach, team composition, and work plan.

It is mandatory for the bidding organisations to submit documentary evidence demonstrating their legal, taxation, and financial status. The following documents should be submitted:

  • A certificate of incorporation (for individual companies, a trade license) or other equivalent legal registration.
  • Tax Identification Number (TIN) or other equivalent tax registration documentation issued by a competent authority.
  • Business Identification Number (BIN) or other equivalent documentation issued by a competent authority.
  • Latest PSR (Proof of Submission of Return) or other equivalent documentation issued by a competent authority.

For details, please refer to section 9 and 10 of the ToR.

5. Submission Details

Interested applicants must submit their technical and financial proposals including the supporting documents via email to [email protected] by 14 September 2026. The email subject line must state: “Hiring Cloud Service Provider for Provision of Managed Cloud Infrastructure-As-A-Service, Hosting and Operational Support for the Digital Esg Platform”.

Late or incomplete submissions will not be considered. Swisscontact reserves the right to accept or reject any application, in part or full, or cancel the entire procurement process without assigning any reason whatsoever. Submission of an application does not guarantee the award of the contract.