Design, Implementation and Operationalization of a National Unified Health Terminology Service Tender at GIZ

Reference Number:7000016867

Publication date: 08.07.2026

Introduction

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a federally owned international cooperation enterprise for sustainable development with worldwide operations. The GIZ Office in Kigali covers GIZ’s portfolio in Rwanda and Burundi. GIZ Rwanda/Burundi implements projects on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the European Union and other commissioning authorities in the following priority areas: Sustainable Economic Development; Good Governance; Climate, Energy and Sustainable Urban Development; Digitalization and Digital Economy; and regional projects in the Great Lakes Region.

Context

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a federally owned international cooperation enterprise for sustainable development with worldwide operations. The GIZ Office in Kigali covers GIZ’s portfolio in Rwanda and Burundi. GIZ Rwanda/Burundi implements projects on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the European Union and other commissioning authorities in the following priority areas: Sustainable Economic Development, Good Governance, Climate, Energy and Sustainable Urban Development, Digitalization and Digital Economy, Mineral Governance, Peace and Security in the Great Lakes Region. 

MultilateralOrganizations

Health data interoperability is critical to improving healthcare quality, efficiency, and access. However, a large share of health data globally remains underutilized due to fragmentation and lack of standardization. While regions such as the European Union have established initiatives to advance interoperability, including the European Interoperability Framework and the European Health Data Space, many countries in Africa continue to face challenges related to governance, coordination, and technical capacity. Strengthening Rwanda’s national terminology and interoperability foundations will support more consistent data capture, improved data exchange across systems, and better use of health data for service delivery, management, and policy.

This activity responds to a need identified in collaboration with the Ministry of Health to support the development and implementation of a national health terminology service for Rwanda, aimed at improving data standardization and interoperability across health information systems. It addresses gaps in data consistency, clinical coding practices, and system integration across the health sector. The work includes establishing governance arrangements, assessing current systems and terminology use, designing the technical architecture, and developing a minimum viable product (MVP), followed by pilot testing, rollout, and capacity building.

Tasks to be performed by the contractor

The contractor shall provide the following work/service: 

Work Package 1 – Project planning and resourcing

Objective: Have an approved project plan to support assessment and design of the terminology service.

Tasks: 

• Develop a detailed project plan and implementation roadmap for the terminology service, including workstreams, timelines, roles and responsibilities, dependencies, and budget.
• Integrate explicit activities for “current status / mapping assessment” and “technical architecture and MVP” into a project plan as distinct work packages.
• Align and validate the project plan with MOH and relevant stakeholders, securing formal approval.

Output

• Approved project plan and implementation roadmap, including timelines, work packages, roles and responsibilities, dependencies, and indicative budget. 

Work Package 2 – Technical design and MVP  

Design

Objective: Have a draft technical architecture/specification and an MVP of the terminology service.

Tasks: 

• Implement a MVP of the terminology service aligned to the draft architecture, sufficient to: 
• Demonstrate integration with at least one of the identified systems. 
• Showcase key workflows (e.g. retrieving codes, mapping).
• Organise a review session with MOH and stakeholders to get feedback on the architecture and MVP, and document required adjustments.

Output

• Operational MVP of the terminology service with integration demo and architecture review including stakeholder feedback.

Work Package 3 – Pilot, rollout and showcasing

Objective: Pilot and go live with the solution.

Tasks: 

• Plan and execute a pilot of the terminology service, including: 
• Selection of pilot sites and systems. 
• Pilot success criteria and monitoring mechanisms.
• Incorporate lessons from the pilot into the architecture and implementation, preparing for national rollout.
• Complete activities required for the solution to be fully live by end of December 2026 (infrastructure, support processes, governance arrangements).
• Coordinate with the go-live team to define what aspects of the terminology service will be demonstrated, and to whom, and where (policy brief, conference, etc.), ensuring evidence and stories from the pilot are captured.
• Provide support for the go-live and any issues faced during the pilot phase.
• Ensure alignment with the capacity building objective so that training materials and strategies reflect use of the unified terminology service within the approved systems 

Output

• Pilot implementation report with performance against success criteria, lessons learned, and supporting documentation showcasing system benefits.Terminology service deployed and operational for initial rollout.

Work Package 4 – Capacity building

Objective: A strategy is in place and tested for capacitating health workers to better use the approved systems, aligned with the unified terminology service.  

Health

• Develop a short proposal describing the capacity-building objective and approach.
• Integrate a capacity-building workstream into the overall project plan and implementation roadmap, including stakeholders, timelines, roles and responsibilities, delivery approach (e.g. training institutions or MoH teams), and indicative budget.
• Conduct a training needs assessment for users of the approved health information systems, focusing on accurate data entry, system workflows, and the appropriate use of standardized terminology.
• Define competency objectives for key user groups (e.g. frontline health workers, data managers, supervisors) and design or adapt a training curriculum that integrates system workflows with practical use of the terminology service.
• Develop standardized training materials and guidance, including slide decks, job aids, quick reference guides, user manuals, and SOPs aligned with the mappings and value sets defined during the assessment and technical design phases.
• Implement pilot trainings alongside the terminology service pilot, collect feedback from trainees and supervisors, refine the training approach, and develop a plan for national scale-up including processes for updating materials and monitoring indicators (e.g. number of staff trained, proportion of correctly coded records).

Output

• Capacity-building strategy and workstream integrated into the project plan.
• Standardized training curriculum and materials aligned with the terminology service
• Pilot training completed with evaluation results and a national scale-up plan.

The contractor is responsible for providing the following services:

• Design, develop, and deploy a centralised terminology service, including technical architecture, specifications, and an operational MVP integrated with at least one in-scope system.
• Develop and implement a capacity-building strategy with training materials and pilot trainings aligned to the terminology service.

Period of assignment: from August 2026 until December 2026.

3. Concept

In the tender, the tenderer is required to show how the objectives defined in Chapter 2 (Tasks to be performed) are to be achieved, if applicable under consideration of further method-related requirements (technical-methodological concept). In addition, the tenderer must describe the project management system for service provision. 

Management

Note: The numbers in parentheses correspond to the lines of the technical assessment grid.

Technical-methodological concept

Strategy (1.1): The tenderer is required to consider the tasks to be performed with reference to the objectives of the services put out to tender (see Chapter 1 Context) (1.1.1). Following this, the tenderer presents and justifies the explicit strategy with which it intends to provide the services for which it is responsible (see Chapter 2 Tasks to be performed) (1.1.2).

The tenderer is required to present the actors relevant for the services for which it is responsible and describe the cooperation (1.2) with them.

The tenderer is required to describe the key processes for the services for which it is responsible and create an operational plan or schedule (1.4.1) that describes how the services according to Chapter 2 (Tasks to be performed by the contractor) are to be provided. In particular, the tenderer is required to describe the necessary work steps and, if applicable, take account of the milestones and contributions of other actors (partner contributions) in accordance with Chapter 2 (Tasks to be performed) (1.4.2).

The tenderer is required to describe its contribution to knowledge management for the partner (1.5.1) and GIZ.

4. Personnel concept

The tenderer is required to provide personnel who are suited to filling the positions described, on the basis of their CVs (see Chapter 7), the range of tasks involved and the required qualifications.

The below specified qualifications represent the requirements to reach the maximum number of points in the technical assessment.

Team leader: Project Leader

Tasks of the team leader

• Ensure alignment of the terminology service with national digital health architecture and interoperability standards.
• Oversee mapping between local codes and international standards where applicable.
• Lead technical workshops with MOH and system owners to validate architecture and implementation approaches.
•  Provide strategic technical guidance throughout the pilot and rollout phases.

Qualifications of the team leader

• Education/training (2.1.1): University degree (Master’s or equivalent) in Health Informatics, Health Information Systems, Public Health Informatics, Information Technology, Computer Science or related field. 

• Language (2.1.2): C1-level language proficiencyin English
• General professional experience (2.1.3): 5 years of professional experience in the health IT, software development, or system integration. 
• Specific professional experience (2.1.4): 3 years in leading the design or implementation of health information systems, including work with health data standards, terminologies, or interoperability frameworks.
• Leadership/management experience (2.1.5): 3 years of management/leadership experience as project team leader or manager in a company

Health Information Systems Analyst  

Health

Tasks of the Health Information Systems Analyst 

• Conduct testing and documentation of system workflows and terminology mappings during the MVP and pilot phases.
• Map data elements from each in-scope source system to relevant international standards (ICD, SNOMED CT, LOINC), identifying gaps where national standards need to be proposed.
• Produce the consolidated terminology list to be managed by the server, including mapped elements, proposed national standards, and definitions.
• Work closely with MOH and system owners to validate assessment findings and mapping outputs.

Qualifications of key expert 1

• Education/training (2.2.1): University qualification (master’s or equivalent): Master’s degree in Health Informatics, Information Systems, Computer Science, Public Health, or related field.
• Language (2.2.2): C1 -level language proficiency in English 
• General professional experience (2.2.3): 5 years of professional experience in digital health, health information systems analysis, or IT systems analysis.
• Specific professional experience (2.2.4): 3 years of experience analyzing health information systems, data standards, or digital health architectures.

Software Engineer 

Tasks of the Software Engineer 

• Design and develop the core terminology server application, including terminology storage, search, versioning, and mapping functions. 
• Build the technical infrastructure underpinning the centralized terminology service in line with the agreed architecture. 
• Develop user-facing components where required (e.g. terminology browser or admin interface). 
• Conduct unit testing, debugging, and technical documentation throughout the development lifecycle. 
• Support the Systems Integration Engineer during MVP integration and pilot deployment. 
• Implement adjustments to the server based on feedback from the architecture review session.

Qualifications of key expert 2

• Education/training (2.3.1): University qualification (bachelor’s or equivalent): Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Technologyor related field.
• Language (2.3.2): B2 -level language proficiency in N/A
• General professional experience (2.3.3): 4 years of professional experience in software development, or application engineering.
• Specific professional experience (2.3.4): 2 years of experience developing health information systems or similar enterprise systems, with familiarity in database design, API development and software testing.
• Other (2.3.8): Familiarity with health standards or terminology systems is an advantage. 

System Integration Engineer 

Tasks of the System Integration Engineer 

• Design and implement APIs to enable in-scope health information systems to connect to and consume the centralized terminology service. 
• Lead integration between the terminology server and at least one in-scope health information system for the MVP demonstration. 
• Ensure interoperability with existing systems using relevant standards (e.g. HL7 FHIR, REST). 
• Conduct integration testing and resolve interface issues during MVP, pilot, and rollout phases. 
• Document integration specifications and support system owners during onboarding to the terminology service. 
• Provide technical support during go-live and pilot phase.

Qualifications of key expert 3

• Education/training (2.4.1): University qualification (bachelor’s or equivalent): Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Technologyor related field.
• Language (2.4.2): B2 -level language proficiency in N/A
• General professional experience (2.4.3): 4 years of professional experience in systems integration, API development, or health IT interoperability.
• Specific professional experience (2.4.4): 2 years of experience integrating health information systems, with demonstrable hands-on experience with HL7 FHIR, REST APIs, and interoperability frameworks.
• Other (2.4.8): Experience with terminology services or FHIR terminology endpoints (eg. CodeSytem, ValueSet) is an advantage

Soft skills of team members

In addition to their specialist qualifications, the following qualifications are required of team members:

• Team management skills
• Communication skills
• Stakeholder Management & Collaboration
• Analytical & Critical Thinking
• Interdisciplinary thinking
• Gender and diversity sensitiveness.

Costing requirements.

Specification of inputs

Inputs of GIZ or other actors

GIZ and/or other actors are expected to make the following available:

• Transportation on site with own project vehicle -- in case the assignment is outside Kigali.
• Logistics for workshops:
  

• Workshop venue
• Workshop materials (White boards, markers, charts among others)
• Catering costs for 30 participants

Requirements on the format of the tender

The structure of the tender must correspond to the structure of the ToR. In particular, the detailed structure of the concept (Chapter 3) should be organised in accordance with the positively weighted criteria in the assessment grid (not with zero). The tender must be legible (font size 11 or larger) and clearly formulated. It must be drawn up in English.

The complete tender must not exceed 10 pages (excluding CVs). If one of the maximum page lengths is exceeded, the content appearing after the cut-off point will not be included in the assessment. External content (e.g. links to websites) will also not be considered.

The CVs of the personnel proposed in accordance with Chapter 4 of the ToRs must be submitted using the format specified in the terms and conditions for application. The CVs shall not exceed 3 pages each. They must clearly show the position and job the proposed person held in the reference project and for how long.  

Jobs

Please calculate your financial tender based exactly on the parameters specified in Chapter 5 Quantitative requirements. The contractor is not contractually entitled to use up the days, trips, workshops or budgets in full. The number of days, trips and workshops and the budgets will be contractually agreed as maximum limits. The specifications for pricing are defined in the price schedule.

Submission of offer: The Expression of Interest should contain the following:

Technical Proposal: 

• A cover letter expressing your interest in this assignment
• Technical Proposal (attached template for technical proposal MUST be used)
• Up to date CVs of proposed experts
• Completed Self declaration of eligibility

Financial Proposal: Financial offer indicates the all-inclusive total contract price, supported by a breakdown of all costs as described in the specification of inputs. 

Your EoI has to be submitted in 2 separated emails to RW_Quotation@giz.de until 19/07/2026

1.The technical offer has to be submitted in PDF format and as attachment to the email with the subject: Technical offer 7000016867

2.The financial offer has to be submitted in PDF format andthe price must be in Rwandan Francs and VAT excluded (if applicable) and as attachment to the email with the subject: Financial offer 7000016867

If the emails exceed the default email size of 30MB, offers can be exceptionally submitted through https://filetransfer.giz.de/ 

MultilateralOrganizations

Offers submitted through any other sharing platform, as google documents or similar will not be considered.

Offers submitted in hard copy will not be considered.

GIZ reserves all rights. 

Annex: 

• Technical Proposal template 
• Technical assessment grid 
• Self-declaration of eligibility

Attachment

attachment_file_c1d9788880d58ae75ef2

attachment_file_70e6174f4eb88e59de4b

attachment_file_57f975481c36f8898329

attachment_file_60c638a423ccaa308e94