LRPS-2026-9202499 Study of the Basic Social Assistance Pilot: Efficiency, Coverage, and Policy Lessons for Enhancement Inclusion and Protection of Children from Poverty (Ukraine CO) open only for international vendors

UNICEF has now issued a Request for Proposals in order to select a supplier for the provision of Study of the Basic Social Assistance Pilot: Efficiency, Coverage, and Policy Lessons for Enhancement Inclusion and Protection of Children from Poverty The Government of Ukraine’s Ministry of Social Policy, Family and Unity (MoSPFU) has taken a significant step toward modernizing its social protection system through the introduction of the Basic Social Assistance (BSA) programme, piloted since July 2025. This reform aims to consolidate fragmented benefits into a single, more equitable and efficient mechanism, aiming to provide better targeting of support to low-income families including families with children while ensuring fiscal sustainability. The pilot represents an important innovation in Ukraine’s social policy landscape, consolidating various social assistance programmes into a common safety net mechanism, introducing a Base Value mechanism instead of using the subsistence minimum benchmarks, and automatic digital re-evaluations of eligibility. The BSA programme is designed to strengthen resilience for vulnerable populations. The study will explore areas that may require further attention to ensure the programme achieves its intended objectives. Key considerations should include: • Inclusiveness for diverse groups: Certain households may face challenges under the new design, such as large families with children transitioning from universal (child) benefits to income-tested support; older persons and persons with disabilities who currently receive individual benefits; and caregivers of children over three years in regions with limited childcare or care services, who could be affected by standard eligibility criteria. • Design aspects of the “Base Value”: The current approach does not include automatic indexation. The analysis should provide recommendations for the (periodic) re-calibration of the 4,500 UAH base value and assess the alignment with other benefit levels and reform plans (e.g., minimum pensions, unemployment benefits, minimum wage). • Operational and administrative considerations: Implementing accurate income verification and defining household income may present complexities. Additionally, ensuring broad awareness and ease of access - particularly for households unfamiliar with digital platforms such as the Diia Portal—will be essential to support high take-up among eligible families. • Institutional and legal frameworks: Strengthening internal appeal procedures within the Pension Fund of Ukraine could help improve access to redress mechanisms and reduce reliance on courts, contributing to a more efficient and user-friendly system reaching more children. The study will therefore not only assess overall performance of the BSA pilot but will also explore these and other potential risks in depth, with a view to informing the ongoing drafting of the BSA law. By providing evidence-based recommendations, it will help refine programme parameters, strengthen adequacy and equity, and ensure that the final legislation effectively protects vulnerable individuals and families while remaining administratively feasible and fiscally sustainable. This tender will be run through the UNICEF e-submissions system. By clicking on the blue ‘Express Interest’ button in the UNGM tender notice, the full UNICEF e-submission system instructions to bidders document (including instructions on how to access the tender documents and submit an Offer) will be automatically emailed to the ‘contact persons’ included in your UNGM registration. Alternatively, the full UNICEF e-submission system instructions to bidders document is publicly available on the UNICEF supply internet pages here: https://www.unicef.org/supply/index_procurement_policies.html . In the tender management site, if you navigate to the documents tab and opt in to confirm your intention to submit a Bid – you will then see the mandatory placeholders for documents that must be attached prior to submitting your Offer (you will also see if there are any mandatory questionnaires to complete). As such, you are recommended to `opt in` well before the submission deadline so you are clear exactly what documents are required to be uploaded prior to completing your submission. Please note that in order to access the tender documentation through UNICEF’s e-submissions system, vendors must: (i) be registered with UNICEF in UNGM as a company/NGO; (ii) have successfully completed all mandatory information currently required by UNGM when registering. Please ensure that any files submitted as part of your Bid are not corrupt or damaged in any way. Please exercise particular caution when using compressed files. Any corrupt or damaged files may lead to your Bid being invalidated. All vendors are strongly recommended to regularly log in to the UNICEF e-submissions system to check for any deadline extensions, new clarifications, new correspondence or updated tender documents relating to this tender. Pre-bid meeting: 20 February 2026 14-00 Kyiv Time Microsoft Teams meeting Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/36792017385817?p=Ao30qUEqJxbegcx7NE Meeting ID: 367 920 173 858 17 Passcode: 7Wq6A2QA