REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT

Selection of an Individual Consultant: technical support Adaptation of the Official Governmental Website Template to the National Design System (NDS) on the Drupal Platform

World Bank Micro, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Competitiveness Project

REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA Sector: General industry and trade sector IDA Credit No. 71740 IBRD Loan No. 94230 Project ID No. P177895 Reference No. MD-CEP- 547266-CS-INDV

The Republic of Moldova has received financing from the World Bank toward the cost of the Micro, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Competitiveness Project (MSME) and intends to apply part of the proceeds for consulting services.

The consulting services (“the Services”) include services aimed to the full adaptation of the governmental website's Drupal template to the National Design System (NDS), in compliance with GD 728/2023, ensuring: • Visual and brand coherence with the unified design standard approved by eGA; • Compliance with minimum WAI web accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1 level AA, with level A mandatory as per the Regulation); • Full functionality of the Drupal content management system (CMS), including multilingual support; • Compatibility with the operator's technical and technological platform (MCloud).

The assignment will be implemented in the period May to October 2026, three (3) months of warranty period, with an estimated level of effort of app. 40 man-days.

The Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment is attached to this request for expressions of interest.

The Project Implementation Unit of the MSME Competitiveness Project now invites eligible individual local consultants (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services.

The qualifications requirements are:

EDUCATION • College or university degrees in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Web Design, or a related field (minimum Bachelor's level); • Relevant certifications in web accessibility or Drupal are an advantage.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE • Minimum 3 years of demonstrated experience in Drupal theme development and customisation; • Minimum 2 completed projects involving the implementation or adaptation of a design system in a Drupal environment, evidenced by portfolio or verifiable references. • Demonstrated experience implementing WCAG 2.1 (level AA) accessibility requirements in web projects. • Experience in multilingual Drupal site configuration (Language / Content Translation / i18n modules); • Experience with version control systems (Git). TECHNICAL COMPETENCIES • Advanced knowledge of Drupal 10 theming (Twig, hook system, Block system, Layout Builder, Configuration Management); • Proficiency in Semantic HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript (ES6+), and CSS methodologies (e.g. BEM); • Ability to implement pixel-perfect layouts from Figma designs; • Proficiency with accessibility testing tools (axe DevTools, WAVE, Lighthouse, NVDA/JAWS); • W3C code validation (validator.w3.org); • Solid understanding of responsive and mobile-first design principles; • Frontend performance optimisation (Lighthouse scoring, asset optimisation, lazy loading); • Git workflow – Pull Requests, branch management, clean commit history.

The Consultant shall provide relevant references to confirm the experience and qualifications. The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” November 2020 (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the „Open Competitive Selection of Individual Consultants” method set out in the Procurement Regulations and to be specifically set out in the Request for submission of the technical and financial proposal.

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours.

The applications should include a letter of Expression of Interest, CV, and related recommendation letters, if any, together with a copy of CV in MS WORD format.

Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form to the address below (in person, or by mail, or by e-mail) by May 07, 2026, COBD, indicating the assignment title in subject line.

Project Implementation Unit of the MSME Competitiveness Project 180, Stefan cel Mare Ave., office 815, MD-2004, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova Tel: + 373 22 296-723;

e-mail: piu@mded.gov.md with cc: procurementmgf@gmail.com web: https://uipac.md/   TERMS OF REFERENCE

Individual Consultancy services - technical support Adaptation of the Official Governmental Website Template to the National Design System (NDS) on the Drupal Platform

I. Background The Government of the Republic of Moldova (GoM) is pursuing a policy agenda to support export-led economic growth. In this regard, an improved business environment is essential to foster sustainable private sector growth. Significant regulatory and institutional weaknesses in the business environment have been identified by the recently conducted Investment Climate Assessment as major obstacles to the private sector’s ability to perform efficiently and grow, and they also negatively affect investor confidence. The presence of cumbersome regulations undermines the competitiveness of private Moldovan enterprises and prevents increased investment by increasing the cost of doing business, and ultimately providing fertile ground for corruption, favoritism, and the informal economy. Project Description The MSME’s project development objectives (PDO) are: (i) to reduce the regulatory burden, increase access to finance, increase the export competitiveness of Moldovan enterprises, and (ii) in case of an Eligible Crisis or Emergency, to respond promptly and effectively to it. The PDO will be achieved through a set of activities that aim to: (a) digitize government-to-business services and inspections, streamline permissive documents, and enhance national quality infrastructure to reduce the regulatory burden enterprises face; (b) support access to finance for enterprises through credit guarantees and enhance the capacity of CGF, and (c) support the development of MSMEs and enhance their export competitiveness; d) support project management; e) support the government's response in case of an emergency. Background of the assignment The E-Governance Agency (eGA) is the technical and technological operator of the Republic of Moldova's shared digital infrastructure, including the MCloud, MPass, and MSign platforms. Under Govenrment Decision 728/2023 on the official websites of public authorities and institutions, eGA coordinates the compliance of central public administration websites with mandatory minimum requirements governing content, style, design, and accessibility. The National Design System (NDS) is the unified design framework approved under GD 677/2025, comprising visual guidelines, standardised UI components, design tokens, and Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) requirements, with the aim of ensuring a coherent and accessible user experience across all government digital platforms. The official governmental website template is built on the open-source Drupal 10 content management platform. The existing Drupal 10 template is not yet fully aligned with the NDS and does not comprehensively meet the technical and accessibility requirements set out in GD 728/2023. eGA therefore seeks to contract an individual consultant with expertise in Drupal theming and design systems to carry out this adaptation.

Legal Basis and Normative References This TOR is grounded in and must be read in conjunction with: • Government Decision No. 728/2023 on the official websites of public authorities and institutions and the minimum requirements for their social media profiles (Official Gazette No. 404-407/2023, art. 958), including the annexed Regulation, as amended; • Government Decision No. 677/2025 on the approval of measures necessary for the implementation of the unified design model, including the National Design System (NDS) Guidelines (documentation made available to selected candidates); • National standards SM ISO 13407:2006 and SM ISO/TR 18529:2006 on human-centred design processes for interactive systems, referenced in Article 63 of the Regulation; • Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 – W3C Recommendation (https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/); • Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) Conformance Logos (https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/conformance-logos/); • World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) web standards recommendations (https://www.w3c.org).

II. Objectives of the Assignment The overall objective of this assignment is the full adaptation of the governmental website's Drupal template to the National Design System (NDS), in compliance with GD 728/2023, ensuring: • Visual and brand coherence with the unified design standard approved by eGA; • Compliance with minimum WAI web accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1 level AA, with level A mandatory as per the Regulation); • Full functionality of the Drupal content management system (CMS), including multilingual support; • Compatibility with the operator's technical and technological platform (MCloud).

III. Scope of Work – Tasks and Responsibilities

3.1 Adaptation of the Drupal theme to the NDS The consultant shall carry out the following activities within the scope of theme adaptation:

1. Implement the ONEST typeface and the NDS font set across the theme;
2. Apply the NDS colour palette, grid system, and responsive breakpoints;
3. Implement all UI components pixel-perfect against provided designs – header, navigation menu, news block, footer, etc. – with all elements editable via CMS;
4. Implement an integrated search engine and a hierarchical site map;
5. Ensure fully responsive layout across all screen sizes and resolutions;
6. Optimise theme performance to ensure fast page load times;
7. Test cross-browser compatibility across Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Opera, and Safari;
8. Document all theme-level changes made..

3.2 WAI accessibility compliance Accessibility requirements shall be implemented primarily through the configuration and integration of a relevant Drupal accessibility module (e.g. Editoria11y, Accessibility Checker, or equivalent), complemented by theme-level adjustments where necessary. The consultant shall ensure adherence to web accessibility standards in accordance with Articles 57--61 of the Regulation: The consultant shall ensure adherence to web accessibility standards in accordance with Articles 57–61 of the Regulation:

1. Run an accessibility audit using automated tools (e.g. axe, WAVE, Lighthouse) before and after adaptation;
2. Add ARIA attributes, image alt texts, and semantic HTML5 structure throughout the theme;
3. Ensure colour contrast meets WCAG 2.1 level AA across all components;
4. Ensure all interactive elements are fully operable via keyboard;
5. Integrate or verify a text-to-speech functionality as required by the Regulation;
6. Implement the Accessibility Statement page with a user feedback mechanism;
7. Place the WAI conformance logo (minimum level A) in the appropriate location on the site;
8. Validate all HTML and CSS against W3C standards (validator.w3.org).

3.3 Multilingual CMS configuration The consultant shall ensure the complete functional configuration of the Drupal CMS

1. Set up the site in minimum two languages – Romanian as mandatory, plus at least one international language;
2. Configure language switching so that the user lands on the equivalent page in the selected language, not the homepage;
3. Set up all required content types: organisational structure, leadership, legislation, public procurement, decision-making transparency, and others;
4. Configure the metadata schema for all content types;
5. Implement subscription functionality for news, events, and announcements;
6. Enable CMS user action logging;
7. Configure user roles and access permissions – system administrator, content administrator, and information provider;
8. Implement an online petition submission form with automatic confirmation sent to the petitioner;
9. Perform full functional testing of the adapted theme in the test environment before delivery.

3.4 Warranty The consultant shall provide a 3-month warranty period following final acceptance, during which any defects or non-conformities identified shall be remediated at no additional cost.

IV. Deliverables/Reports

The following deliverables/reports must be developed:

1. NDS-adapted Drupal 10 theme (source code), pixel-perfect against provided designs, delivered via Pull Request to eGA's Git repository;
2. All design elements implemented as editable CMS components – logo, navigation menu, footer contacts, and other configurable site-wide elements – with the ability to enable or disable sections per institution;
3. Predefined layout structure for all standard page templates: header, footer, menu, sidebar, and content page;
4. Accessibility audit results (automated and manual), with all identified issues resolved in the theme;
5. Accessibility Statement page with a functional user feedback mechanism;
6. Theme setup and customisation guide for institution-level administrators;
7. Final report with a complete log of changes and recommendations for future maintenance.
8. Warranty Period Report.

V. Reporting Arrangements The final deliverables/reports will be submitted to the e-Governance Agency for approval. The report will be approved for payment by the PIU Executive Director.

VI. Institutional arrangements and Client’s inputs The consultant will work remotely and on eGA’s premises (upon request, at least one (1) day per week) under the direct supervision of the Project Manager designated by eGA. Operational coordination will be ensured by the eGA technical team responsible for the governmental web platform. For the duration of the assignment: • eGA will provide access to the Drupal development/test environment, NDS specifications, and relevant internal documentation; • The consultant will participate in weekly working meetings (online or in person) with the eGA team; • All deliverables will be reviewed and formally approved by the eGA Project Manager before final acceptance; • All code contributions shall be submitted via Pull Requests, reviewed and approved by the eGA technical team prior to merge. Direct commits to the main branch are not permitted; • The consultant will comply with eGA's cybersecurity policies, including multi-factor authentication (MFA) requirements when accessing agency resources.

VII. Duration (Timeline) of the Assignment The assignment is estimated to be perfomed in three (3) months, plus three (3) months of warranty period with an estimated level of effort of not more than 40 man-days. The contract can be extended beyond this term, subject to the Consultant’ satisfactory performance and PIU’s needs.

VIII. Selection Criteria (Qualification Requirements)

This assignment will require a local individual Consultant, who has: Education • College or university degrees in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Web Design, or a related field (minimum Bachelor's level); • Relevant certifications in web accessibility or Drupal are an advantage.

Professional experience • Minimum 3 years of demonstrated experience in Drupal theme development and customisation; • Minimum 2 completed projects involving the implementation or adaptation of a design system in a Drupal environment, evidenced by portfolio or verifiable references. • Demonstrated experience implementing WCAG 2.1 (level AA) accessibility requirements in web projects. • Experience in multilingual Drupal site configuration (Language / Content Translation / i18n modules); • Experience with version control systems (Git). Technical competencies • Advanced knowledge of Drupal 10 theming (Twig, hook system, Block system, Layout Builder, Configuration Management); • Proficiency in Semantic HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript (ES6+), and CSS methodologies (e.g. BEM); • Ability to implement pixel-perfect layouts from Figma designs; • Proficiency with accessibility testing tools (axe DevTools, WAVE, Lighthouse, NVDA/JAWS); • W3C code validation (validator.w3.org); • Solid understanding of responsive and mobile-first design principles; • Frontend performance optimisation (Lighthouse scoring, asset optimisation, lazy loading); • Git workflow – Pull Requests, branch management, clean commit history.

i) Terms of payment The Contract will be a Standard World Bank lump-sum contract.