Tender Summary: Service Provider for IT-Related Services on Biodiversity Advisor Website

Objectives

The primary objective is to enhance the stability, performance, and user experience of the Biodiversity Advisor platform through targeted bug fixes and functionality enhancements. The project aims to modernize navigation, improve content discoverability, integrate external data sources, and strengthen cybersecurity measures in alignment with institutional ICT policies.

Scope of Work

The appointed service provider will deliver the following within a maximum of 450 billable hours over a four-month contract period:

• Navigation & Content Integration: Develop a multi-level menu system to support navigation across 100+ National Biodiversity Assessment (NBA) HTML pages and seamlessly integrate externally generated NBA pages into the platform.
• Search Functionality: Enhance and optimize site search capabilities to effectively index and retrieve NBA content.
• Data & Notification Integration: Connect the platform to SANBI’s library data via an external API and configure automated support email notifications enabling users to report inaccurate records, flag errors, and submit general feedback.
• Security Remediation: Implement brute-force prevention (CAPTCHA after two failed login attempts), rate limiting on password resets, strict password policies with real-time strength indicators, automatic session timeouts (15–30 minutes), and secure token/session management including full logout revocation.
• Deliverables: Comprehensive project plan, implementation methodology, testing protocols, maintenance/support framework, and documented security configurations.

Technical Requirements

• Core Technology Stack: Microsoft ASP.NET and MSSQL.
• External Integrations: OCLC API for library data synchronization; Azure Email Communication Service (SMTP) for transactional messaging.
• Search & Indexing: Implementation and optimization of search functionality using Elasticsearch or an equivalent enterprise search technology.
• Security Standards: Compliance with institutional ICT security policies, including secure authentication, session management, vulnerability remediation, and rate-limiting mechanisms.
• Project Constraints: Flexible workload distribution across the four-month term; joint task prioritization during Week 1; payment based on actual hours worked up to the 450-hour cap.

Skills & Experience Requirements

Bidders must demonstrate proven expertise through submitted CVs, certifications, and project references from the past three years. Key requirements include:

• Qualifications: Tertiary qualification at NQF Level 6 or 7 (or equivalent) in Computer Science, IT, Software Engineering, or related fields, supplemented by recognized industry certifications.
• Development Expertise: Minimum three years of hands-on experience developing, maintaining, and securing enterprise-level web applications using ASP.NET/C# and relational databases (MSSQL, MySQL, or PostgreSQL).
• Integration & API Experience: Demonstrated capability in integrating external APIs and third-party systems within complex application architectures.
• Search Optimization: Practical experience configuring, implementing, and optimizing search/indexing solutions, preferably with Elasticsearch.
• Security Implementation: Proven track record applying authentication hardening, CAPTCHA, rate limiting, password policy enforcement, session timeout controls, and secure token management across multiple projects.
• Project Management: Ability to produce detailed work plans, risk mitigation strategies, testing protocols, and post-delivery support frameworks aligned with the specified timeline.

Notes on Specialized Terms & Services

• OCLC API: An interface provided by the Online Computer Library Center that grants programmatic access to WorldCat, the world’s largest library catalog, enabling seamless retrieval and synchronization of bibliographic data.
• Azure Email Communication Service (SMTP): A cloud-based Microsoft service designed for reliable, scalable delivery of transactional and notification emails directly from applications.
• NQF Levels 6 & 7: South Africa’s National Qualifications Framework designations representing advanced diplomas/certificates (Level 6) and bachelor’s degrees or master’s qualifications (Level 7).
• 80/20 Preference Point System: A South African public procurement scoring model allocating 80 points to competitive pricing and up to 20 points to socio-economic transformation goals, including verified ownership demographics (race, gender, disability).
• CSD Verification: Reference to the Central Supplier Database, the official South African government registry used to validate bidder registration status and ownership claims for preference point allocation.