February 03, 2011

The TRA has received a grant from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), toward the cost of the Telecommunications Regulatory Capacity Building Project and intends to apply part of the proceeds of this grant to payments under the contract for "Building Capacity of the TRA on Spectrum Policy and ICT Convergence Regulatory Issues".

The services include building the knowledge of the staff in technical aspects of innovations and international best practices regarding regulation. Services will also support capacity development to engage in strategic thinking within the TRA on the implications of innovations for market structure and the economics of service provisioning to consumers. The focus will be on creating the mechanisms for TRA to think strategically about its role in developing the market and encouraging private sector participation. As part of these services, a consultant will support TRA staff on issues related to radio spectrum policy and ICT convergence, and assist the TRA in designing strategic responses and developing the appropriate instruments (e.g. policy recommendations or regulatory guidelines/rules) for these issues.

The TRA now invites eligible consultants to indicate their interest in providing these services. Interested Consulting Firms must provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services (brochures, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, availability of appropriate skills among staff, etc.) by providing al least the information requested in the application form.

The information should clearly indicate a narrative description of the assignments, contact details of the clients, contract’s value and persons-months of key staff provided by the firm.

Expressions of interest may be submitted by individual consulting firms as well as existing or proposed associations between consultants, e.g., joint ventures and sub-consultancies. Once the short-list of the qualified firms, which is expected, for the assignment, to enclose a maximum of six firms or associations of firms, is finalized, any association among short-listed firms may only be changed with the written approval of the TRA. Only those short-listed firms will receive the Request For Proposals (RFP) with detailed Terms of Reference and be invited to submit technical and financial proposals. The RFP for the assignment is expected to be issued in April 2011. Interested eligible Consulting Firms for the assignment may obtain further information at the TRA’s website www.tra.gov.lb/Capacity-Building or by contacting the TRA at the address given below.

A Consulting Firm will be selected in accordance with Quality and Cost Based Selection (QCBS) and the procedures set out in the World Bank’s Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers May 2004 (revised October 2006 and May 2010)

Expressions of interest must be delivered to the address below by February, 18, 2011 at 5:00 PM the latest.

Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, Marfaa 200 Building, Beirut Central District, Beirut, Lebanon. Main : + 961 1 964 300+ 961 1 964 300 Fax : + 961 1 964 341, cbtf@tra.gov.lb  

NB: This Request for Interest was also published in the official Gazette.