Econometric Study on the implementation and performance of the EFSD+ Open Access Window in ENEST-MENA countries and options for MFF 2028-2034

The European Commission (DG ENEST) is procuring an econometric study on the implementation and performance of the EFSD+ Open Access Window in ENEST-MENA countries with an estimated contract value of €700,000 under procedure EC-ENEST/2026/CD/0074 (Competitive Dialogue). The study must rely on independently collected technical financial data, inferential statistics, legal and financial impact evidence, and benchmarking of EFSD/EFSD+ debt, guarantee and equity products against comparable non-EU market instruments to inform options for the MFF 2028-2034. Target applicants are financial consultancy firms or consortia with expertise in financial instruments, financial intermediaries, financial market data and econometrics; submission is via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal with key dates including an expression of interest phase listed 2026-01-01 and a final tender deadline of 2026-08-17. Tender documents, including the descriptive annexes and draft contract, are published on the Funding & Tenders Portal and bidders should prepare multidisciplinary technical proposals addressing data access, counterfactual design and methodological robustness.

Tender — European Commission DG ENEST

Deadlines and indicative value

Two-stage tender with key submission deadlines:2026-01-01 (preliminary) and 2026-08-17 10:00:59 CET. Estimated contract value approximately €700 000 ¹.

What the contract will fund:A technical econometric study to appraise market value, relevance and effectiveness of IFI financial products implemented via EFSD/EFSD+ in ENEST-MENA countries, and to assess impact versus a no-EU intervention scenario. The study must rely on independently collected technical financial data, apply inferential statistics, benchmark debt, guarantee and equity products against comparable market players, and provide substantial contractor input during study design.

Who can apply:Financial consultancy firms with specialist expertise in financial instruments, financial intermediaries and financial market data; consultants experienced in banking/non-banking finance and econometrics. The contracting authority will use the competitive dialogue procedure (Art. 2.6.7 PRAG).

1. 1Core methodological requirements: independent financial data collection and inferential statistical analysis
2. 2Comparative benchmarking against non-EU public, non-profit and private market providers
3. 3Evidence collection on legal and financial impacts of EFSD/EFSD+ contracts on IFIs and their counterparties
4. 4Significant contractor role in study design and technical specification

Tender documentation and submission via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal:Tender page.

Footnotes

1. 1Estimated total procedure value and procurement documents published on the Funding and Tenders Portal (see Tender page). Contracting authority: European Commission, DG ENEST.

Opportunity summary and purpose

Type:Tender. Contracting authority: European Commission, DG ENEST - Enlargement and Eastern Neighbourhood. Procurement procedure: Competitive dialogue under Art. 2.6.7 PRAG (used for particularly complex contracts). Objective: commission an econometric study to appraise the market value, relevance and effectiveness of IFI financial products paid via EFSD/EFSD+ contracts in ENEST-MENA countries, and to measure their impact compared to a no-EU intervention counterfactual. The study will rely on independently collected technical financial data, inferential statistics, legal and financial evidence of the impact of EFSD/EFSD+ contracts on IFIs' contracts with their clients and financial intermediaries, and benchmarking against similar debt, guarantee and equity products delivered by non-EU public, non-profit and private market players.

Key differences vs traditional Framework Contract (FwC) studies:This study departs from traditional EC FwC studies by: collecting legal and financial impact evidence rather than only opinions; relying on independently collected technical financial data and inferential statistics rather than anecdotal surveys; benchmarking EFSD/EFSD+ based financial products against comparable market products from other public, non-profit and private actors; and contracting consultants experienced in banking, non-banking finance and financial market data rather than conventional ODA-sector consultants.

Important dates, budget and administrative details

Call identifier:EC-ENEST/2026/CD/0074. Publication date: 2026-07-15. Submission method: electronic submission via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal (esubmission). Two-stage/two-deadline indicators present: the portal lists deadlines of 2026-01-01T08:00:59.000Z (likely system/placeholder) and the formal tender deadline 2026-08-17T10:00:59+00:00 (end of reception period listed as 2026-08-17 10:00:59 local portal time). Estimated total procedure value: €700,000. Main CPV: 66100000 (Administrative management and general management consultancy services). Expected contracting lot: one lot (LOT-0001).

Documents published with the tender:Available documents include Invitation-to-tender-part1, Annex 1 Descriptive document, Annex 2 Declaration of honour and a Draft contract (Draft contrat-direct-service-2024 FR Recast-en). These documents are published on the Funding & Tenders Portal and were added on 2026-07-15.

Detailed answers to structured extraction questions

Eligible Applicant Types

Primary targeted applicants:financial consultancy companies specializing in financial instruments, financial intermediaries and financial market data providers. Broader eligible applicant types (based on typical public procurement eligibility and the contract description): large enterprises, specialised consultancies, think tanks with financial econometric capacity, financial market data vendors, research institutes or universities with econometrics and financial economics expertise, and consortia combining these entities. SMEs are not marked as suitable (smeSuitableIndicator: false), so while SMEs may technically participate if legally allowed, the notice explicitly indicates the contract is not SME-targeted. Public sector bodies, NGOs or individuals would generally be ineligible as prime contractors unless forming an eligible legal entity or consortium with required expertise.

Funding Type

Primary financial mechanism:procurement contract (service contract/tender) commissioned and paid by the European Commission. This is not a grant, loan, equity or award; it is a public procurement service contract to purchase a study. Estimated contract value: €700,000.

Consortium Requirement

Procedure allows either single entities or consortia as per standard procurement rules; the tender material requires qualification information and selection criteria. The study's multidisciplinary nature (econometrics, finance, legal impact analysis, data collection) strongly implies that bidders may propose consortia or subcontracting arrangements combining econometricians, financial sector experts, legal analysts and data providers. The portal indicates tenderer qualification requests and technical selection criteria will apply, and a competitive dialogue procedure will be used to refine technical solutions.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility)

Lead contracting authority:European Commission (EU-level). The study focuses geographically on ENEST-MENA countries (Eastern Neighbourhood and Enlargement countries plus Middle East and North Africa). Eligible bidders: typically legal entities established in EU Member States or countries eligible to participate in EU public procurement (this usually includes EU, EEA and certain third countries in line with the procurement rules and the Funding & Tenders Portal participation conditions). The procurement notice does not list an explicit exhaustive country eligibility list in the scraped text, but the contracting authority is the European Commission and e-submission is via the portal, so applicants must comply with EU procurement participation rules.

Target Sector

Primary thematic sectors:finance (IFI financing instruments), development finance, financial instruments (debt, guarantees, equity), financial markets data, econometrics/microeconomics and public policy evaluation. Secondary relevance: international cooperation / development policy and EU external action evaluation.

Mentioned Countries

The tender references region ENEST-MENA (Eastern Neighbourhood and Enlargement countries and Middle East and North Africa). No individual countries are explicitly named in the scraped content. Contracting authority link points to DG ENEST which covers enlargement and the eastern neighbourhood region; the study remit is ENEST-MENA countries broadly.

Project Stage and Expected Maturity

Expected maturity:analytical evaluation and research stage with substantial primary data collection and inferential econometric analysis. The contractor must design the study methodology during the competitive dialogue phase and implement data collection, benchmarking, econometric modelling, legal and financial impact analysis, and policy options for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF 2028-2034). This involves research, development of analytical models, validation of counterfactuals, and drafting policy recommendations (research to pre-policy advice stage).

Funding Amount

Estimated total procedure value:€700,000. The contracting authority indicates expected costs likely around €700 K and the procurement record lists an estimated overall contract amount of €700,000 (currency EUR).

Application Type and Submission Method

Application method:open competitive tender with a competitive dialogue procedure. Submission is electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal (eSubmission). Invitation to submit a request to participate and an Invitation-to-tender part 1 were published; interested parties must follow the portal process and meet tender submission deadlines. Submission method code: ESUBMISSION (required).

Nature of Support

Beneficiaries (the winning contractor) will receive monetary payment under a service contract for delivering the study. The opportunity provides money (a paid contract) in exchange for services. Non-monetary benefits include access to EC stakeholders during competitive dialogue, and the potential for visibility and follow-on work with the Commission, but primary support is monetary procurement payment.

Application Stages

Number of stages:Multi-stage procurement process, implemented via Competitive Dialogue. At minimum: 1) Request to participate / selection stage where candidates are pre-selected based on selection criteria; 2) Competitive dialogue phase with invited participants developing detailed solutions and participating in dialogue sessions; 3) Submission of final tenders; 4) Award and contract signature. Thus applicants should expect at least 3 to 4 formal stages in the process.

Success Rates

No explicit success rate is provided in the tender documents. Typical single-lot complex EC procurement success rate depends on number of bidders but can be low (for high-value complex contracts often fewer than 5 finalists are invited to dialogue and 1 wins). Given the specialized scope and estimated value, practical competition may include a limited short-list; bidders should assume a competitive selection with several commercial or research consortia competing.

Co-funding Requirement

No co-funding from bidders is required; this is a standard fee-paid service contract funded by the European Commission. The procurement documents do not indicate any cost-sharing or co-financing requirement. Bidders must however absorb their own proposal preparation costs and may be required to provide financial guarantees or performance securities as per the draft contract.

Tender templates and application structure

Tender documents published include Invitation-to-tender part 1, Annex 1 Descriptive document, Annex 2 Declaration of honour and a Draft contract. The portal will provide e-forms and structured templates for submission. While the full template content is in the downloadable PDFs, typical required components based on the invitation: 1) Request to participate or tender form (administrative data and legal entity identification); 2) Technical offer including methodology, work plan, staffing and competence (CVs, roles, profiles); 3) Financial offer (price breakdown, rates, travel and overheads); 4) Selection and exclusion documents (financial capacity, professional liability, declarations on exclusion criteria, declarations on conflicts of interest, evidence of past performance); 5) Annexes such as Declaration of Honour, evidence of relevant contracts and references, proof of eligibility and registration, and any required certificates. The awarding criteria weighting indicated in the lot are quality 80 and price 20 (please consult procurement documents for exact sub-criteria and weights).

1. 1Administrative submissions and declarations: complete the Declaration of Honour (Annex 2) and provide all exclusion/eligibility documentation required by EU procurement rules.
2. 2Technical proposal structure: study design and methodology, data sources and data acquisition plan, econometric models and inferential methods proposed, benchmarking framework, legal and financial impact assessment approach, quality assurance and risk mitigation, detailed work plan, deliverables and schedule, team composition and CVs, roles and responsibilities.
3. 3Financial proposal structure: total price and detailed breakdown by staff category, person-days, subcontracting, travel, data purchases, and other direct costs; compliance with contract pricing format in the draft contract.
4. 4Selection criteria likely to be assessed: relevant professional experience of the tenderer and key experts in econometrics and finance, capacity to access and process financial market data, prior work on financial instruments and guarantees, evidence of past studies with similar complexity, and organisational capacity to manage a large multi-country study.
5. 5Award criteria weighting: quality 80; price 20. Detailed quality sub-criteria to be found in Invitation-to-tender part 1 and Annex 1 descriptive document.

Technical and methodological expectations

The contracting authority expects the contractor to bring substantial technical inputs already during study design. Required competencies and tasks include: independently collecting technical financial data from IFIs, partner financial intermediaries and market sources; designing counterfactuals and econometric models to estimate impact versus no-EU intervention; conducting inferential statistics and robustness checks; performing legal analysis of EFSD/EFSD+ contracts' effects on IFIs contractual arrangements with clients and PFIs; benchmarking EFSD/EFSD+-funded debt, guarantee and equity products against similar products from other governmental, non-profit and private market providers; producing policy options for MFF 2028-2034; and supporting the Commission through competitive dialogue and thereafter delivering final study reports and dissemination materials.

Expected technical deliverables will include methodological protocols, datasets (properly anonymised/confidentiality protected as required), econometric analysis outputs, benchmarking tables, legal impact assessments, country-level and aggregate findings for ENEST-MENA countries, policy recommendations, and final reports in English. The contractor must be conversant with financial market data sources, microeconomic and financial econometrics, counterfactual impact evaluation methods, and with data collection challenges in IFI-funded operations.

Risks, practical considerations and recommendations for bidders

Key risks and practical notes:1) Data access risk: the study requires independent technical financial data from IFIs and counterparties which may be confidential; bidders must propose credible data access strategies and legal safeguards. 2) Complexity of counterfactuals: rigorous design of no-EU intervention counterfactuals and proper econometric identification strategies will be essential. 3) Legal analysis: bidders must combine financial econometrics with legal analysis of contract clauses and market effects. 4) Consortium composition: multidisciplinary consortia with banking/financial market specialists, econometricians, legal experts, and data providers will be more competitive. 5) Competitive dialogue: bidders should be prepared to engage in iterative dialogue sessions and refine their methodology during the procurement process. 6) Deliverable management: plan for quality assurance, data protection, and clear reporting aligned with Commission expectations.

Reference to tender documentation and portal:Full tender documentation and download links are available on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal at the opportunity page: ec.europa.eu. Bidders must consult Invitation-to-tender-part1, Annex 1 Descriptive document and the Draft contract for precise proposal requirements, selection criteria, contractual conditions and templates ¹.

Comprehensive summary

This public procurement seeks a specialised financial consultancy (or consortium) to deliver an original, technically advanced econometric study assessing the implementation and performance of the EFSD+ Open Access Window across ENEST-MENA countries and to produce options for the EU Multiannual Financial Framework 2028-2034. The contract is procured by the European Commission (DG ENEST) through a competitive dialogue due to the contract complexity and the need for substantial contractor input during study design. The study must combine legal and financial contract impact analysis, independently sourced financial market data and inferential econometrics, and benchmarking of EFSD/EFSD+-based debt, guarantee and equity instruments against comparable market products. The estimated budget is €700,000. Submissions are electronic via the Funding & Tenders Portal; applicants should prepare a rigorous technical methodology, demonstrate data access capacity, present a multidisciplinary team (econometrics, finance, legal), and deliver high-quality analytical outputs to inform policy options for the next MFF.

Footnotes

1. 1Tender package including Invitation-to-tender-part1, Annex 1 Descriptive document, Annex 2 Declaration of honour and Draft contract were published on 2026-07-15 on the Funding & Tenders Portal and should be consulted for complete instructions and submission templates.

Opportunity Overview

This is a high-value **€700,000** tender for an **econometric study** to appraise the market value, relevance, and effectiveness of **IFI financial products** paid via **EFSD/EFSD+ contracts** in **ENEST-MENA countries**, with implications for the **MFF 2028-2034** [1]. The study marks a **clean departure** from traditional EU desk reviews by relying on **independently collected technical financial data** and **inferential statistics** rather than anecdotal surveys [1].

Procurement Procedure

The contract will be awarded via **Competitive Dialogue** (Procedure identifier:**EC-ENEST/2026/CD/0074**), a procedure reserved for **particularly complex contracts** where the authority cannot specify technical means or legal/financial makeup in advance [1][3]. This three-phase process involves an initial **eligibility check**, a structured **dialogue phase** to define solutions, and a final **tender phase** [3].

Key Procedural Features:Unlike standard tenders, Competitive Dialogue allows the Commission to discuss **all aspects of the procurement** with selected candidates to identify the best solution before binding tenders are submitted [3]. Final tenders may be clarified or optimized within narrow limits to avoid distorting competition [5].

Target Applicants

The contract specifically targets **financial consultancy companies** specializing in **financial instruments**, **financial intermediaries**, and **financial market data** [1]. The EC explicitly seeks consultants normally dealing with the **banking and non-banking financial sectors**, rather than those focused on the **Official Development Assistance (ODA)** sector [1].

Study Scope & Methodology

The study must assess the **legal and financial impact** of EFSD/EFSD+ contracts on IFIs' contracts with clients and partner intermediaries, using **benchmarking** against similar products from governmental, non-profit, or private market players [1].

1. 1Collect evidence of legal/financial impact on client contracts (not opinions)
2. 2Use independently collected technical financial data with inferential statistics
3. 3Benchmark financial products (debt, guarantee, equity) against non-EU market players
4. 4Apply statistical tools to finance and microeconomics

Deadlines & Timeline

Note:The first deadline (Jan 1, 2026) likely refers to the **request to participate** phase required to enter the dialogue, while the August deadline is for the **final tender** after the dialogue phase [1].

Strategic Context

This study addresses criticisms that the EFSD+ **open architecture window** has been **slow, costly, and cumbersome** to implement, while struggling to invest in complex contexts like fragile states [11]. It aims to provide evidence for upgrading EU external investment tools for the next **Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF)** [11].

Funding Leverage Context:The EFSD+ External Action Guarantee (EAG) can guarantee operations up to **€60 billion**, with the Commission estimating a leverage factor above **eight**, potentially mobilizing **€500 billion** in investment for 2021-2027 [15].

Application Portal

Interested parties must submit their **Expression of Interest** via the official **EU Funding & Tenders Portal** Tender Details [1].

Footnotes

1. 1Budget and procedure details confirmed via Development Aid tender listing [1].
2. 2Competitive Dialogue definition and phases defined under Directive 2014/24/EU Art. 30 [3].
3. 3Critique of EFSD+ implementation effectiveness from ECDPM analysis [11].