UNCDF aims to leverage data on remittance flows and migration in low- and middle-income countries to improve the functioning of the remittance market and to increase the financial resilience of migrant families.

This is part of a broader effort to support the economic development efforts of the origin and host countries. UNCDF engages with public and private sector stakeholders to enhance the capacity of regulators to monitor and analyse remittance transaction data, which can be used in evidence-based policymaking. UNCDF also works to foster favourable policy and regulatory environments and to deliver financial and technical assistance to a wide range of financial institutions (e.g., banks, cooperatives, microfinance institutions, money transfer operators, and mobile network operators) with an eye to improving the digital remittance ecosystem and designing migrant-centric financial products and services (e.g., savings, credit, insurance, payment services, remittances, pensions, and investments).

UNCDF recognizes that even the best databases on remittances suffer from substantive data gaps, and that these omissions hinder product innovation and constrains policymaking in the sector.

For this reason, UNCDF is seeking to engage a partner institution to build and deploy a ‘data lakehouse’ (lake + warehouse) that will streamline the collection, processing, curation, and analysis of demand and supply-side remittance data, and to develop interactive dashboards that will inform remittance markets and stakeholders. UNCDF seeks a firm with expertise in setting up and implementing data lakes and data warehouses, as well as a track record of delivering complex data engineering and analysis projects and building front-end dashboard solutions. The assignment will start with the existing transaction data gathered by UNCDF (n=80 million records) and will support additional and frequent data ingestion.

Scope: Global

Period: 2022-2023 with the possibility for annual renewal

Budget: Up to US$500,000 for the first year, with possible annual renewal of the contract subject to positive performance appraisal for the period 2024-2025. The intention for this project is to be three years with subject to positive performance appraisal and additional funding available.

Eligible candidates: UNCDF is looking for a data engineering firm that will lead this assignment. Applicants may apply independently or as part of a consortium, provided that the consortium was established prior to this request for applications being issued. Applicants with experience in the remittances and forex market and with UN agencies and/or developing economy markets will be preferred.

The selected institutions will be signing a UNCDF Grant Agreement.

A document answering frequently asked questions is now also available on this page.

All applications must be submitted through this platform, no later than Monday 22nd of August 2022 23:59 Eastern Daylight Time.