NOTICE OF CALL FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST No. 024/2023/SI/AON/FM/UAGCP / RECRUITMENT OF A NATIONAL CONSULTANT FOR CARRYING OUT THE NATIONAL SURVEY FOR THE EVALUATION OF ARV EARLY WARNING INDICATORS IN LARGE COHORT CARE SITES IN GUINEA, 2023

2023-10-30 13:05:49

REPUBLIC OF GUINEA

Work-Justice-Solidarity

MINISTRY OF HEALTH

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT AND COORDINATION SUPPORT UNIT (UAGCP)

NOTICE OF CALL FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST N°024/2023/SI/AON/FM/UAGCP

TITLE: RECRUITMENT OF A NATIONAL CONSULTANT FOR CARRYING OUT THE NATIONAL SURVEY FOR THE EVALUATION OF ARV EARLY WARNING INDICATORS IN LARGE COHORT CARE SITES IN GUINEA, 2023

FUNDING: Global Fund

In Guinea, the prevalence of HIV in the general population is 1.5%[1]. Women (prevalence: 1.6%) are slightly more infected than men (prevalence: 1.3%). This results in an infection ratio of 1.23 between women and men (123 infected women per 100 men). At the regional level, this prevalence is higher in the Boké region (equal to 2.0%) and less than 1% in the Kankan region (equal to 0.7%). Among pregnant women, this prevalence is 1.5%[2]with large variations in regions: 3.4% in the Boké region, 1.4% in the N’Zérékoré region and 1.9% in the special region of Conakry.

The provision of care is based on the operational structures that constitute health facilities, divided according to their legal status into 4 sub-sectors:

The public sub-sector has: At the central level: 3 national hospitals (Donka, Ignace Deen and Kipé); At the intermediate level: 7 regional hospitals; At the peripheral level: 26 prefectural hospitals, 7 community medical centers (CMC) including 5 in Conakry, 420 health centers and 925 health posts. The parapublic sub-sector has 3 mining company hospitals (CBG, Friguia, SAG), 8 dispensaries (SMD, CBK, Rio Tinto, CBG Conakry, CBG Sangarédi , Kiniéro, GAC and Débélé) and health center (SOGUIPAH). The private sub-sector is made up of the lucrative private sector and the non-profit private sector (NGOs and religious denominations). The private medical sub-sector includes 10 polyclinics, 25 clinics, 3 corporate hospitals, 254 consulting rooms, 18 dental offices, 15 midwives’ offices, 148 nursing offices and 5 associative or faith-based health centers. Community sub-sector consists of community-based services with community health workers and traditional medicine providers.

As part of the strengthening and decentralization of the response to HIV/AIDS, the Republic of Guinea requested and obtained a grant from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria for the period 2021-2023. Part of this grant is intended to reduce mortality and morbidity among adults and children living with HIV through improved access to treatment (including treatment of TB/HIV co-infection), care and support. people living with HIV. The Ministry of Health, through the National Program to Combat AIDS and Hepatitis (PNLSH), is the main recipient of the HIV Treatment component grant.

For the implementation of this grant, the PNLSH:

Works directly with:

-Four (04) sub-recipients: UNICEF, JHPIEGO, CRF and FMG;

-Four (04) service providers: PCG, INSP, DREAM, CRS and REGAP+;

-All health districts and all DRS.

Collaborates closely with: Solthis, MSF-Belgium, PLAN Guinea, SNIS, DNSF, UGL, etc.

The program targets and benefits the following groups:

Adults and children living with HIV/AIDS; Pregnant women; Infants born to HIV-positive mothers; HIV/TB co-infected patients; HIV/Hepatitis co-infected patients; Key populations: PS, MSM, IDU, TRANS GENDER; Vulnerable populations: mining workers, truck drivers, men in uniform, prison populations, fishermen, young people.

Regarding the provision of treatment services, the country has 203 sites at which HIV care services (PEC) have been integrated, 521 PMTCT sites and 259 CDV sites.

The national strategic framework developed during the renewal of HIV grants from the Global Fund for the 2021-2023 period allowed, among other things:

Identify the needs of 52 sites among the 203 health structures which totaled 90% of the active queue of people living with HIV (PLHIV) on antiretroviral treatment (ART) as part of the large cohort PEC sites; Identify the needs of 66 selected PMTCT sites as high-volume ANC sites; Scaling up differentiated screening and moving to a third screening test (multisure); Increasing the number of providers; Developing a strategy and operational plan for measuring viral load among PLHIV on ART; Develop a sample delivery circuit for viral load and for early HIV detection (or EID for Early Infant HIV Diagnosis).

Like other resource-limited countries, retention in the ART program remains low in Guinea. According to the report of the national survey for the evaluation of early warning indicators of 2021, the retention rate of patients on ARV increased from 11% at six (6) months to 61% at twenty-four months (24 ) months in 2019.

With the aim of ensuring effective and efficient implementation of the 2021-2023 grant, the PNLSH plans to carry out a national survey of the evaluation of early warning indicators in HIV cohorts.

It is in these perspectives that the National Program to Fight AIDS and Hepatitis, with the technical and financial support of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, is seeking the expertise of a national consultant to the carrying out of said investigation.

Participation in the competition is open on equal terms to all individual consultants with sufficient qualification and expertise required by type of consultancy.

Interested candidates are invited to express their interest in the provision of the services described in the Terms of Reference, a copy of which is obtained upon request sent to the following email address: [email protected] with details of the consultancy(s). (s).

Applicants are requested to provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services described, in their Expression of Interest files prepared and presented separately as follows:

Technical proposition : including the cover letter/explanatory note, the detailed methodological approach, the detailed work plan and timeline, the well-detailed and updated CV best describing the consultant’s expertise with copies of diplomas and professional certificates, as well as references similar with certificates of service rendered, satisfaction and/or recommendations.Financial proposal : including all costs relating to the mission including fees and possibly other necessary reimbursable costs. Please note that the financial proposal must be made excluding VAT because the project is exempt from VAT and the Consultant will be subject to the taxation applicable in the Republic of Guinea.

The candidate will be selected based on the qualification of the consultant (see paragraph 7 of the ToR).

Proposals drawn up in French in two copies, one (1) original and one (1) copy must be submitted from the UAGCP Procurement Department located on the 3rd floor of the Palm Résidence Camayenne building, north cornice of Dixinn, next to the Ambroise Paré clinicat the latest Tuesday 14/11/2023 at 11:00 a.m. sharp, local time.

For all technical information, please send an email to: [email protected] Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

NB: The financial proposal must be presented in an envelope separate from the technical proposal and marked financial proposal, under penalty of rejection of the offer.

The opening (behind closed doors) of the technical proposals will take place the same day in the UAGCP meeting room from 12h00.

Done in Conakry, 10/26/2023

For the Contracting Authority,

Dr Timothée GUILAVOGUI

[1] Demographic and Health Survey (EDSG V) 2018.

[2] National Sentinel Surveillance Survey (ENSS) 2020