Strengthening the capacities of the IPA bodies for the effective implementation of the Operational Programme on Digital Economy and Society 2024-2027

This is a restricted services tender (reference EC-ENEST/TIA/2026/EA-RP/0087) by the Government of Albania to provide technical assistance for implementation of the IPA III Operational Programme on Digital Economy and Society 2024–2027, covering institutional strengthening, capacity building, procurement support, monitoring and communication. The estimated contract value is €2,400,000 with a maximum duration of 30 months and a request to participate deadline of 05/10/2026 16:30 (Europe/Tirane), submitted non-electronically. The award will follow a best price-quality ratio (procurement metadata indicates 80% quality / 20% price) and shortlisting will invite between 4 and 8 candidates, with full eligibility and submission rules set out in the procurement documents.

What it funds

Scope summary

Contract to provide technical assistance to strengthen institutional, administrative and operational capacities of the Managing Authority, Intermediate Bodies for Financial Management, End Recipients and other stakeholders for implementation of the IPA III Operational Programme on Digital Economy and Society 2024–2027 in Albania. Activities include institutional strengthening, capacity building, preparation of project and procurement documentation (tender dossiers), monitoring, evaluation and reporting support, procurement and contract management assistance, and communication/visibility.

Estimated value and duration:Estimated total value €2,400,000. Maximum contract duration 30 months. ¹

1. 1Who can apply: natural persons and legal entities (individually or in consortium) established in EU Member States or eligible IPA III countries; international and regional organisations may participate.
2. 2Procedure: restricted (two-stage). Shortlist: minimum 4, maximum 8 candidates; award by best price-quality ratio.
3. 3Place of performance: Albania; language of procedure and submissions: English.

Requests to participate must follow the provided request form and declaration templates; submissions are sent to the CFCU address in Tirana (see procurement documents) ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Procurement documents, submission address, templates and full selection/award criteria are available on the Funding & Tenders Portal: Tender details.

Opportunity summary

Type:Tender (restricted procedure). Lead contracting authority: Government of Albania (CFCU). Procurement reference: EC-ENEST/TIA/2026/EA-RP/0087. Main CPV: 75131000 Government services. Nature of contract: services, fee-based. Estimated total contract value: €2,400,000 (exclusive of VAT). Maximum contract duration: 30 months. Award method: best price-quality ratio. Place of performance: Albania. Programme / Funding: Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) — Operational Programme on Digital Economy and Society 2024-2027 for Albania. Submission method for requests to participate: non-electronic / paper submission to contracting authority address; electronic Q&A via F&T Portal. Language of procedure: English.

Purpose:Provide technical assistance to strengthen institutional, administrative and operational capacities of the Managing Authority, Intermediate Bodies for Financial Management, End Recipients and other stakeholders involved in implementation of the IPA III Operational Programme on EU for Digital Economy and Society 2024–2027 in Albania. Support includes institutional and administrative strengthening, capacity-building activities, preparation of project and procurement documentation including tender dossiers, programme monitoring, evaluation and reporting support, procurement and contract management assistance, and communication and visibility activities related to the Programme ¹.

Key administrative dates and milestones

Eligibility and who may apply

Participation conditions follow Regulation (EU) No 2021/1529 (IPA III) and the PRAG selection rules. Participation is open to natural persons who are nationals of, and legal persons effectively established in: Member States of the European Union or in eligible countries/territories as defined under Article 11 of IPA III. Participation is also open to international and regional organisations. All bidders must respect exclusion grounds and submit declarations on honour. Capacity-providing entities and subcontractors may be used but must meet the same eligibility/nationality requirements where stated and must provide declarations and commitments. Sub-contracting is allowed.

Eligible applicant types:Open to: private consulting firms, consortia of firms (permanent or informal), international/regional organisations, NGOs, research institutes, universities and other legal persons effectively established in EU Member States or eligible IPA III countries (see IPA III Article 11). Natural persons who are nationals of eligible countries may also participate. Consortium members are jointly and severally liable. The contracting authority prohibits short-list alliances not declared in the request to participate and short-listed candidates may not form alliances or subcontract to each other for this contract ¹.

Contract and procurement details

Procedure type:Restricted procedure (two-stage). Submission method for requests to participate: paper submission (sealed envelope) or hand-delivery to CFCU office in Tirana. Electronic submission of requests to participate is not allowed. Between 4 and 8 candidates will be shortlisted and invited to submit full tenders. If fewer than 4 eligible candidates meet selection criteria, the authority may still proceed with the available candidates. Award criterion: best price-quality ratio with specified weighting (quality 80%, price 20% as indicated in procurement metadata — tender documents must be consulted for exact breakdown and sub-criteria). Framework agreement and options: up to 30% repeat services allowed under negotiated procedure without prior publication if conforming to basic project.

Estimated contract value:€2,400,000 (estimated overall contract amount).

Scope of work and technical requirements

Overall objective:ensure effective implementation of the IPA III Operational Programme on Digital Economy and Society 2024–2027 in Albania by strengthening capacities across managing entities and beneficiaries. Core areas of support (non-exhaustive list):

1. 1Institutional and administrative strengthening of Managing Authority and Intermediate Bodies for Financial Management.
2. 2Capacity-building activities and training for staff of Managing Authority, intermediate bodies, end recipients and stakeholders.
3. 3Preparation of project documentation, grant/contract procurement documentation, and tender dossiers.
4. 4Assistance in procurement processes and contract management for programme-funded actions.
5. 5Support for programme monitoring, evaluation, performance reporting and results measurement.
6. 6Organisation and delivery of communication, visibility and dissemination activities in line with EU visibility rules.
7. 7Ad hoc technical assistance, policy advice and methodological support related to programme implementation.

Technical capacity selection requirements (high-level, from tender documentation):candidates/tenderers must demonstrate at least two completed contracts in the last four years each with a minimum value of €720,000 in domains covering policy development/programming/implementation/monitoring of EU-funded actions and institutional strengthening of public institutions in the context of EU-funded programmes. Documentary proof required for each reference (reports, certificates, proof of payment).

Selection and award criteria

Selection criteria (summary):

1. 1Economic and financial capacity: average annual turnover over last three closed financial years not less than €1,500,000 (or equivalent evidence).
2. 2Professional capacity: average number of personnel in relevant specialist areas during current and previous two years (minimum: 3 personnel in specialist knowledge areas related to the contract). No professional conflicts of interest.
3. 3Technical capacity: at least 2 relevant contracts in the last 4 years, each valued at minimum €720,000, covering both EU-funded actions implementation/monitoring and institutional strengthening of institutions in the EU-funded context.

If more than 8 eligible candidates meet the selection criteria, a re-examination will rank candidates using: 1) highest number of qualifying reference contracts, and 2) highest cumulative value of qualifying services.

Award criteria:Best price-quality ratio. The procurement metadata indicates an 80% weight on quality and 20% on price; the tender dossier contains full breakdown of quality sub-criteria and scoring. Candidates must consult the tender documents for exact award scoring rules and methodology ¹.

Application and submission process

Stage 1:submit a Request to Participate (Annex B3 request to participate form) in English together with the signed Declaration on Honour (a14a) and supporting documents, in a sealed envelope to the Contracting Authority (CFCU, Ministry of Finance, Third floor, Bulevardi Deshmoret e Kombit No. 3, 1001 Tirana, Albania). Evidence may be by post (postmark deposit) or hand delivery (acknowledgement of receipt). Electronic submission of the request to participate is not accepted for this indirect management procedure. Stage 2: shortlisted candidates (4–8) will be invited to submit full tenders; provisional invitation date 05/01/2027. Full tender submission format, required annexes, organisation & methodology, and expert curricula vitae will be provided in the tender dossier to shortlisted candidates.

Number of application stages:Two-stage restricted procedure: Stage 1 shortlisting via Request to Participate, Stage 2 submission of detailed tenders by shortlisted candidates (2 stages).

Submission method and address:Requests to participate must be submitted in paper form (sealed envelope) by post/courier (postmark or deposit slip as evidence) or hand-delivered to: Veronika Korkaj, General Director CFCU, General Directorate for Financing and Contracting of EU, World Bank and Other Donor Funds, Ministry of Finance, Third floor (CFCU’s protocol office), Bulevardi Deshmoret e Kombit, No. 3, 1001 Tirana, Albania. Opening hours and further instructions are in the a5f additional information document ¹.

Financial and contractual conditions

Estimated value:€2,400,000. Contract type: service contract, fee-based. Currency for financial data and submissions: EUR. Candidates must express financial data in EUR and, where necessary, use InforEuro exchange rate of August 2026 for currency conversions. Contract may include options for additional similar services up to 30% of the initial contract. Electronic ordering and payment will be used post-award. Framework agreement provisions may apply; consult tender dossier for payment schedule, deliverable-based payments, audit and reporting clauses and EU visibility rules.

Co-funding requirement:No co-funding from bidders is required. The procurement is financed under IPA III (EU funds). Bidders must comply with PRAG and contractual obligations for EU-funded contracts (audit, visibility, eligibility, origin rules).

Templates, forms and documents applicants must use

Applicants must use the Request to Participate form (Annex B3 / b3_req_part_form_en), the Declaration on Honour template (a14a) and provide financial and technical data as described in the request to participate form. The contracting authority published two procurement documents at time of notice: a5f additional info (tender specifications - additional information) and b3_req_part_form_en (request to participate form). These documents include templates and instructions for filling financial tables, personnel statistics, areas of specialisation, experience references (maximum 15 references), and the signed declaration format. Any capacity-providing entities must provide separate supporting documents/commitments. The request to participate form includes mandatory fields: identity of legal entity, contact person, economic & financial capacity table, personnel statistics, areas of specialisation, experience matrix, and signed statement of intent. Full tender dossier with tender submission form and evaluation methodology will be provided only to shortlisted candidates.

1. 1Annex b3_req_part_form_en: Request to participate form: financial tables, personnel statistics, areas of specialisation, experience references, signed statement and declaration of intent.
2. 2Annex a5f_additional_info: Additional information about contract notice: eligibility rules, legal basis (Regulation (EU) No 2021/1529), submission instructions, shortlist numbers, selection criteria details, provisional timetable.
3. 3Declaration on Honour template (a14a) — must be submitted signed by each legal entity (consortium members and capacity-providing entities/subcontractors where applicable).

Practical notes, Q&A and further info

Clarifications and questions must be submitted in writing through the Funding & Tenders Portal Questions & Answers tab (F&T Portal login required). Clarifications must be requested at the latest 21 days before the request to participate deadline and will be published on the F&T Portal at the latest 8 days before the deadline. For administrative efficiency, copy clarification emails also to tender_CFCU@financa.gov.al. All communication in the procedure and contract will be in English. Candidates accept to receive outcome notifications electronically. The contracting authority may extend deadlines in case of disruptions in electronic communication tools. Candidates must ensure they are not listed in EU restrictive measures lists at award decision time (cannot be awarded contract if listed).

Contact for procurement documents and enquiries:Funding & Tenders Portal tender page: Tender details. Contracting authority email for clarifications: tender_CFCU@financa.gov.al. Physical submission address: General Directorate for Financing and Contracting of EU, World Bank and Other Donor Funds (CFCU), Ministry of Finance, Third floor, Bulevardi Deshmoret e Kombit, No. 3, 1001 Tirana, Albania.

Risk, limitations and special conditions

- Only one request to participate per natural or legal person (including where the person appears as consortium member or leader). Multiple submissions by same entity will cause exclusion. - If a candidate relies on capacities of other entities, such entities must provide written commitments and satisfy eligibility rules; for economic/financial criteria those entities become jointly and severally liable. - Short-listed candidates must preserve consortium composition; changes are only possible with prior written authorisation in limited cases as per PRAG. - Main subcontractors must provide declarations where applicable. - The contract and procedure are governed by PRAG and IPA III rules, including audit and visibility requirements.

Categorisation answers (structured extraction)

Eligible Applicant Types:startups (via consortium), SMEs, large enterprises, consultancies, universities, research institutes, nonprofit organisations, international/regional organisations, government bodies (where eligible), consortia of the above. Individuals (natural persons) who are nationals of eligible countries may participate but selection criteria focused on legal entities and consortia. Capacity-providing entities/subcontractors allowed.

Funding Type:procurement / service contract (tender) financed by EU IPA III funds (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance). The mechanism is a service contract (fee-based).

Consortium Requirement:not mandatory but allowed. Procedure is restricted: candidates may be single entities or consortia. If participating as a consortium, the consortium composition stated in the request must be preserved for the tender stage unless prior authorisation is obtained. Short-list composition is binding for tender stage.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):EU Member States and IPA III eligible countries as per Article 11 of Regulation (EU) No 2021/1529. Practically targeted for implementation in Albania; place of performance: Albania. Participation explicitly open to entities effectively established in EU Member States or eligible pre-accession countries; international and regional organisations may participate.

Target Sector:public administration / government services support for Digital Economy and Society programme implementation — sectors covered include digital transformation policy implementation, public sector institutional strengthening, procurement and contract management support, monitoring & evaluation for EU-funded digital economy programmes.

Mentioned Countries:Albania (explicit). Region/programme references: PreAccession Countries / New Member States, EU (IPA III).

Project Stage:implementation support for programme roll-out; expected maturity: operational implementation, capacity-building, monitoring/evaluation and procurement implementation (development to demonstration/implementation).

Funding Amount:estimated total contract value €2,400,000.

Application Type:restricted procedure two-stage; Request to Participate via paper submission (open call to eligible participants), shortlisted candidates invited to submit full tenders (invitation-only for stage 2).

Nature of Support:monetary contract payments (service fees) under a procurement contract; beneficiaries (the contractor) will receive financial remuneration for services. Additionally non-monetary support (access to programme stakeholders, data, workshops) may be part of contract delivery but primary is financial remuneration.

Application Stages:2 (shortlisting via Request to Participate, then tender submission and evaluation).

Success Rates:not published explicitly; shortlisting will invite between 4 and 8 candidates. Success rate depends on number of applicants; maximum shortlisted is 8 and single contract to be awarded per lot. Indicative success rate from shortlist stage to award typically low; exact probability depends on competition and number of eligible applicants.

Co-funding Requirement:no co-funding required by applicants. The procurement is fully financed under IPA III.

Templates and application form structure:Mandatory templates and structure applicants must complete when submitting Request to Participate: use Annex B3 request to participate form (b3_req_part_form_en) and Declaration on Honour (a14a). The B3 form requires: identity details (legal entity, nationality), contact person, economic and financial capacity table (annual turnover, current assets/liabilities and averages for last three closed accounting years), personnel statistics for last 3 years (permanent and other personnel; relevant fields), areas of specialisation (max 10), experience matrix with up to 15 project references (project title, client, origin of funding, contract value, part carried out by entity, personnel provided, dates, consortium members where applicable, description of services, evidence documents). If relying on capacity-providing entities, supporting commitments must be provided as separate documents. All declarations must be signed; originals may be requested if shortlisted. See Annex a5f for detailed guidance and required supporting documents.

How to evaluate whether to apply

Key fit criteria:ability to demonstrate the required turnover (avg >= €1.5M over last 3 closed years), technical references meeting the €720,000 per-contract threshold (at least two in the last 4 years) in relevant fields (EU-funded programme implementation, institutional strengthening), availability of at least 3 specialist staff on average over last 3 years in relevant fields, capacity to perform in Albania and comply with IPA/PRAG rules, ability to submit paper request to participate by the specified deadline. Consortia can be formed to meet criteria but must submit consortium composition in the request to participate and remain bound by it for the tender stage.

Footnotes

1. 1Official procurement documents and full tender dossier are published on the Funding & Tenders Portal tender page: Tender details (EA708621...CN) including Annexes a5f additional info and b3 request to participate form. See the procurement documents at Tender details.

This is a restricted services tender in Albania for technical assistance to strengthen the institutional, administrative and operational capacity of the bodies implementing the IPA III Operational Programme on EU for Digital Economy and Society 2024-2027. The public notice identifies procedure EC-ENEST/TIA/2026/EA-RP/0087, TED reference 167/2026 596880-2026, and a request to participate deadline of 5 October 2026 at 16:30 Europe/Tirane.[1] The opportunity sits within Albania's wider IPA digital economy and society programming for the 2024 to 2027 period.[11]

What the contract is about

The contract seeks technical assistance for the Managing Authority, Intermediate Bodies for Financial Management, End Recipients and other stakeholders involved in implementing the IPA III Operational Programme on EU for Digital Economy and Society 2024 to 2027 in Albania. The stated support covers institutional and administrative strengthening, capacity building, preparation of project and procurement documentation including tender dossiers, support for programme monitoring, evaluation and reporting, procurement and contract management assistance, and communication and visibility activities.

• Institutional and administrative strengthening
• Capacity building and training support
• Preparation of project and procurement documentation
• Support for monitoring, evaluation and reporting
• Assistance with procurement and contract management
• Communication and visibility activities for the programme

Who can apply

The public snippet does not publish the full eligibility criteria, so the decisive rules are in the procurement documents. As a restricted procedure, only candidates that pass the first stage and satisfy the selection and exclusion criteria can proceed further. This means applicants should expect qualification checks on legal status, professional capacity, technical and operational experience, and any other requirements set out in the tender documents. The notice also flags the opportunity as not SME suitable, which suggests the assignment is aimed at larger or more specialised service providers with strong implementation capacity.

Key conditions and applicant considerations

This is a public procurement contract rather than a grant, so there is no funding rate or co-financing percentage. The award method is the best price-quality ratio, with the published weighting showing 80 percent for quality and 20 percent for price. The contract is planned for a maximum of 30 months, which is a useful indicator of the implementation horizon and the level of continuity expected from the contractor.

1. 1Review the request to participate documents carefully, because the procedure is limited to the first stage at this point.
2. 2Prepare evidence of relevant technical assistance experience in public sector institutional strengthening and programme support.
3. 3Check whether the submission must be made by paper or other non-electronic means at the address stated in the procurement documents.
4. 4Confirm internal capacity to deliver a multi-month assignment in Albania with programme monitoring, procurement and communications tasks.
5. 5Plan for evaluation under a quality led award model rather than a lowest price model.

Practical takeaways

Applicants should treat this as a specialised EU-funded technical assistance assignment supporting Albanian public institutions rather than a general consultancy call. The most important commercial points visible in the notice are the €2.4 million estimated value, 30 month duration, restricted procedure, non-electronic submission route, and the 5 October 2026 participation deadline.[1] The procurement documents are essential for the exact eligibility rules, submission address, and any detailed administrative requirements.