Inactive

Task Order implementation has been impacted by the pandemic, including delays in effectively engaging Government of Tunisia counterparts (GoT) in the assessment and completion of the functional and te... Task Order implementation has been impacted by the pandemic, including delays in effectively engaging Government of Tunisia counterparts (GoT) in the assessment and completion of the functional and technical requirements of IT procurements. COVID 19’ social distancing and in-person meeting restrictions slowed the pace of implementation because not all GoT counterparts were able to work or meet remotely. Furthermore, pandemic-induced limitations made it more difficult to reach agreement and finalize decisions with the GoT for the terms of reference and technical requirements of needed software and IT solutions for the Budget preparation, Budget performance, Medium-term macro-economic and budgetary framework, Debt management, and Budget execution modules of Tunisia’s Public Financial Management and Information System (PFMIS). The COVID-related delays left no time in the current performance period of the Task Order to allow for the full testing and adoption by the Ministry of Finance. For example, with the delayed agreement reached with the Ministry of Finance counterparts (MoF) to procure a COTS budgeting solution, the implementation of the solution is estimated to take 24 months, including support from the selected vendor for preparation of the 2024 budget, as requested by the MoF. In order to fully support the implementation of the budgeting solution, FAST would need to be extended by 12 months to cover the anticipated period of performance for the resulting contract. Hence, the proposed increase in the Task Order’s period of performance will provide the needed time for the Task Order for procuring and testing of delivered IT solutions to ensure GoT adoption and use.