EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY SECRETARIAT
INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANCY FOR A COMPUTER PROGRAMMER / DEVELOPER TO ESTABLISH THE LABORATORY INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (LIMS) FOR THE EAC REGIONAL NETWORK FOR MOBILE LABORATORIES PROJECT
TERMS OF REFERENCE
Background
The EAC Secretariat signed a 3-year financing agreement with the Federal Government of Germany through the German Development Bank (KfW) on 23rd November 2016 to support the establishment and operationalization of the EAC Regional Network of Public Health Reference Laboratories for Communicable Diseases (EAC – RNPHRL). The purpose of the laboratory network is to strengthen the capacity of Partner States to detect and respond to pathogens of biosafety level 3 and 4 nature.
Given the region’s requirement for technical support regarding this level of laboratory practice, the EAC Secretariat with support from KfW appointed the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) headquartered in Hamburg, Germany as a Technical Consultant to support the project given their particular experience in supporting similar interventions in the recent transnational Ebola outbreak in West Africa (2014-2016). Subsequently BNITM has seconded an experienced Microbiologist and an experienced Molecular biologist to the EAC Secretariat to support this process.
As part of the project implementation, a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) is to be established in the mobile laboratories to streamline laboratory workflows, reduce transcription error rates and improve connectivity for data reporting.
The C4G Basic Laboratory Information System (BLIS) Open Source Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) was selected for the EAC Mobile Labs project, due to advantages of BLIS including that it is open source, Web based, interoperable with the existing LIMS used in the various Partner States and that it can be integrated with DHIS-2 system that is used both regionally and nationally. Other capabilities of the C4G BLIS include capturing data offline that can be synchronized later when the network becomes available and the ability to use a mobile app which have GIS enabled IDSR for tracking samples. One limitation of the C4G BLIS LIMS however, was that it does not currently contain a module to manage the biobanking of samples, which is a key component of the EAC mobile laboratory project. However, an existing open source biobanking module can be interfaced with the C4G BLIS to address this.
Objective of the Assignment
The overall objective of the assignment is to establish the LIMS for the EAC mobile labs through customizing the C4G BLIS in order to meet both technical and operational requirements. Customization will include among other things, sample workflows and direct interfacing with key laboratory equipment, including the PCR and ELISA machines.
Scope of the work
The consultant will be based at the East African Community headquarters in Arusha, where the mobile training labs are stationed. He/she is expected to work with the Health experts and ICT experts at the EAC HQs and the National Public Health Laboratories in the EAC Partner States to establish the C4G BLIS LIMS for the EAC mobile labs.
Key deliverables of the consultant
The consultant should submit the following key deliverables,
- LIMS implementation strategy and schedule of work: Outlining details of activities with proposed methodology and timeline/delivery dates
- Production of a prototype LIMS customized for the EAC mobile lab workflows, ready for testing at the EAC HQs and in Partner States.
- Final configured LIMS for roll out across mobile labs in the EAC Partner States
Timeline
The LIMS consultant is expected to establish the prototype LIMS with configured workflows for the EAC mobile labs by 30th December 2019, ready for testing in the Partner States.
The final validated LIMS should be ready by 31st January 2020.
How to Apply
Qualified Individual Consultants should submit expression of interest to the following address within 14 working days after date of the advert
Secretary General
Attn: Secretary Procurement Committee
East African Community (EAC) Headquarters
Afrika Mashariki Road / EAC Close,
P.O. Box 1096, Arusha, Tanzania.
Office Tel: +255 27 2162100
Office Fax: +255 27 250 4255 / +255 27 250 4481
Email:[email protected] and [email protected]
Website: www.eac.int
