Digital and Financial Capability Training for BISP Beneficiaries

Job details

KARANDAAZ PAKISTAN REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST Digital and Financial Capability Training for BISP Beneficiaries Country Pakistan EOI Reference No. 27 Project Title Digital and Financial Capability Training for BISP Beneficiaries Programme Karandaaz Digital – Supporting G2P Digitization in Pakistan Issuing Organization Karandaaz Pakistan Assignment Duration Approximately 18 – 24 months (indicative –firm may propose duration based on its own assessment) EOI Issue Date 16 July, 2026 Last date for Queries: 27 July, 2026 Response to Queries: 29 July, 2026 Last Date for Submission 10 August, 2026 Queries / Clarifications [email protected] Address EOI response to: Procurement Department Who can Apply Firms, or consortiums/joint ventures 1. Introduction Karandaaz Pakistan is a not-for-profit company established in 2014 and registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (“SECP”) under Section 42 of the Companies Act,2017. Karandaaz Pakistan promotes access to finance for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and advances financial inclusion for individuals by leveraging technology-enabled solutions and platforms. Karandaaz Pakistan operates across multiple program verticals including Karandaaz Capital, Karandaaz Digital, Karandaaz Innovation, and Karandaaz Research & Insights. Karandaaz Pakistan's founding was supported by a seed grant from the UK Government's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), with subsequent support for its digital financial services work provided through grants, including from the Gates Foundation. Karandaaz Digital focuses on expanding access to digital financial services in Pakistan by working closely with regulators, policymakers, government entities, financial service providers, and ecosystem stakeholders across policy and regulation, experimentation, solutions development, and scale-up. 2. Background and Rationale A shift to Raast-enabled, account-based disbursements under the Benazir Income Support Programme (“BISP”) is not merely a change in payment rails, it represents a structural transition from cash access to genuine financial participation. While full-mandate accounts remove the supply-side constraints inherent in Limited Mandate Accounts (LMAs), they do not automatically translate into meaningful usage or empowerment. Without deliberate investment in digital and financial capability, there is a high risk that beneficiaries will continue to exhibit “cash-out only” behavior, effectively replicating the limitations of the current system on new infrastructure. The rationale for capability-building of approximately one million BISP beneficiaries is to bridge the last-mile gap between access and usage. Women receiving payments into their own accounts, and operating SIMs and mobile wallets registered to their CNICs, are being positioned as independent financial actors for the first time. Evidence from Pakistan and comparable markets shows that first-generation users, particularly low-income women, face barriers including low functional literacy, limited familiarity with digital interfaces, trust deficits in formal financial systems, and socio-cultural constraints on independent financial decision-making. To support BISP in ensuring an effective transition, Karandaaz Pakistan intends to engage an experienced firm (or consortium/joint venture) to design and implement a nationwide Digital and Financial Capability Building program to build beneficiaries', particularly women's digital readiness and confidence to navigate the digital financial system. 3. Objective of the Assignment The primary objective of this assignment is to support BISP in preparing its beneficiaries for the transition to digital accounts by building their digital and financial capabilities through a structurally blended training program for approximately one million beneficiaries, which can later be scaled to BISP's entire beneficiary base. Specific objectives include: • Beneficiaries demonstrate functional digital readiness; • Beneficiaries exhibit improved financial knowledge, confidence, and capability; • Beneficiaries successfully onboard and complete initial digital transactions; • Beneficiaries transition from one-time access to active and sustained usage of digital financial services; • BISP develops institutional capacity through a certified pool of master trainers; and, • A context-appropriate blended (physical/digital) training model is designed and deployed at scale. 4. Scope of Services The selected firm will be responsible for the end-to-end design, adaptive implementation, and continuous reporting of the training program. The broad components of work shall include: • Diagnostic, Curriculum Design & Capacity Building – baseline assessment, beneficiary segmentation, task-based curriculum design, localized and gender-intentional content, and Training of Trainers (ToT) for BISP master trainers. • Roll-Out Planning & Go-to-Market Strategy – a comprehensive nationwide rollout strategy, including a dedicated blended training deployment plan justifying the physical-to-digital modality split, channel mapping, and sequencing across the beneficiary journey. • Field Implementation, Beneficiary Training & Behavioural Reinforcement structured training delivery to approximately one million beneficiaries, integrated digital reinforcement, and onboarding support. The program is expected to follow a phased rollout, with a structured review and course-correction gate between phases. The full scope of work, deliverables, and payment milestones will be detailed in the complete Terms of Reference (TORs) and Request for Proposals (RFP) which shall be shared with shortlisted/eligible firms. 5. Eligibility and Required Competencies Interested firms, or consortiums/joint ventures, must be able to demonstrate the following competencies, supported by CVs, project references, and a description of relevant experience: • Financial and Digital Literacy Expertise – demonstrated experience designing and implementing financial and digital literacy programs for low-literacy and marginalized populations, particularly women. • Content Development and Sector Methodology – proven capability developing blended (physical and digital) training curricula and content for low-literacy, women-centric audiences, and experience working with relevant ecosystem actors (SBP, social safety net programs, banks, mobile banking operators, telecoms, agent/retailer networks, and public sector institutions). • Digital Channel Deployment – demonstrated capability to design and deploy IVR, SMS, short-form video, and digital media content at scale in low-connectivity environments. • Project Management and M&E Capability – demonstrated strength in field coordination, progress documentation, output verification, and data quality assurance. • Qualified and Relevant Team Composition – availability of a technically qualified team spanning financial literacy, digital tools/DFS, gender and community engagement, training/facilitation, and field operations. • Geographic Deployment and Delivery Capacity – operational infrastructure, field presence, and staffing depth to deliver a large-scale, multi-phase blended program across urban, peri-urban, and remote rural areas of Pakistan. Applications may be submitted by a single firm, or a consortium/joint venture of firms. Where a consortium/joint venture applies, the roles, responsibilities, and coordination mechanisms among its members must be clearly defined. 7. Information Requested at EOI Stage Interested and eligible firms and consortia/joint ventures are requested to submit an Expression of Interest comprising: • A cover letter confirming interest in and eligibility for the assignment; • The entity’s (company, partnership, or consortium/joint venture) profile, including legal status, registration documents, and years of operation; • A summary of relevant experience and track record, including at least 2 comparable assignments (financial/digital literacy, low-literacy or women-centric training programs, or social safety net program engagements), with client references; • Brief CVs of proposed key personnel (indicative team lead and technical specialists); • A short concept note (maximum 2–3 pages) outlining the firm's proposed approach to blended (physical/digital) training delivery at scale; and • Evidence of financial standing and capacity to mobilize and deliver a national-scale, multi-phase program. Bidders who meet the pre-requisites will be invited through an RFP to submit a detailed Technical and Financial Proposals. • The decisions of Karandaaz Pakistan will be final. Karandaaz Pakistan reserves the right to cancel the bidding process and to reject all bids or to accept or reject any bid, at any time prior to the award of the contract, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders or any obligation to inform the affected bidder or bidders of the grounds for Karandaaz P