Project

AI-Driven SME Formalization & Financial Access Accelerator for Inclusive Economic Recovery in Syria

Contract Type

Service Contract

Company

Beacon Consulting & Development

Location

Damascus, Rural Damascus, Syria, with the possibility of remote work and technical coordination as needed.

Contract Period

Expected implementation period: October 2026 – November 2026

The platform is expected to be fully launched and delivered by 30 November 2026.

Application Deadline

20 September 2026

Project Background

The AI-Driven SME Formalization & Financial Access Accelerator for Inclusive Economic Recovery in Syria, implemented by Beacon Consulting & Development and supported by the develoPPP programme, aims to support 200 informal micro and small enterprises (SMEs) in Damascus, Rural Damascus, and Daraa in transitioning towards more formalized, financially transparent, digitized, and finance- and investment-ready businesses.

The project combines enterprise capacity building, financial support and advisory services, business formalization, digital compliance, AI-enabled financial management, and linkages between SMEs and financial institutions.

Assignment Overview

Beacon Consulting & Development is seeking to contract a qualified technology company, software development company, or specialized technology service provider with demonstrated relevant experience to design, configure, develop, deploy, and provide technical support for an AI-enabled platform for SME management, financial management, compliance, and financial readiness.

The platform will be used by up to 200 micro and small enterprises and must be designed to operate effectively within fragile market environments characterized by low levels of digital literacy, widespread reliance on cash-based transactions, and potentially limited internet connectivity.

Scope of Services

The selected Service Provider will be responsible for implementing the following key components:

1. Platform Configuration and Deployment

• Configure and deploy a secure, cloud-based, AI-enabled platform.
• Set up user accounts, roles, permissions, dashboards, and workflows.
• Ensure a mobile-friendly and user-friendly design.
• Provide an Arabic-language interface with RTL direction.
• Ensure ease of use for SMEs with limited digital literacy.

2. Digital SME Profiles

The platform must enable the creation and management of digital SME profiles including:

• Business name, sector, location, founding date, and number of employees.
• Owner information, contact details, and gender-disaggregated data.
• Registration and legal formalization status.
• Digital readiness and financial readiness.
• SME stage and progress within the project.
• Activity and technical assistance records.
• SME data-sharing consent records.

3. AI-Enabled Bookkeeping and Financial Management

The platform must enable SMEs to:

• Record income, sales, expenses, purchases, accounts receivable, accounts payable, and cash transactions.
• Capture invoices and receipts using mobile devices.
• Support data extraction through OCR for Arabic text and Arabic and Western numerals, where technically feasible.
• Automatically categorize transactions using AI and Natural Language Processing (NLP).
• Allow users to review and correct AI-generated classifications.
• Store financial records securely and in a searchable format.
• Provide alerts regarding incomplete data or unusual transactions.

4. Financial Reporting

The platform must automatically generate simplified financial reports, including:

• Income Statement / Profit and Loss Statement.
• Cash flow summary.
• Sales and expense reports.
• Accounts receivable and payable.
• Monthly financial performance.
• Downloadable reports in PDF and Excel/CSV formats.

5. AI-Enabled Financial Analysis

The platform will provide AI-generated financial analysis and insights based on SME data, including:

• Identification of financial trends and key indicators.
• Identification of unusual transactions or missing data.
• Provision of simplified explanations suitable for non-financial users.
• Human-review mechanisms and clear warnings regarding the limitations of AI use.

6. Compliance and Legal Registration

The platform must include configurable compliance functions covering, as applicable:

• Business registration.
• Licensing.
• Tax documentation.
• Reporting requirements.
• Required documentation.
• Compliance and renewal deadlines.
• Automated alerts and reminders.
• Monitoring of SME compliance status.

7. Financial Readiness and Financing Eligibility

The platform must support SMEs' financial and financing readiness through:

• Government compliance checklists.
• Eligibility requirements of partner financial institutions.
• Gap assessments.
• Action plans and corrective actions.
• Tracking of required documentation.
• Calculation of readiness scores.
• Monitoring referral and financing status.

8. AI-Enabled Advisory Assistant

The platform must include an AI assistant capable of providing basic guidance related to:

• Financial management and bookkeeping.
• Use of the platform.
• Business planning.
• Compliance.
• Financial readiness.

The AI assistant must be based on knowledge and guidance materials approved by Beacon, with an escalation mechanism to Beacon staff when it is not appropriate to provide an automated response.

9. Matching and Referral to Financial Institutions

The platform must support:

• Establishing eligibility criteria for each financial institution.
• Matching SMEs with appropriate financing criteria.
• Referring SME data after obtaining the required consent.
• Tracking the referral process from submission through financing decision.
• Providing restricted access to financial institution users only to the SME files referred to them.

10. Dashboards and Monitoring

The Beacon team must be able to monitor:

• SME registration and onboarding.
• Platform usage.
• Financial records.
• Compliance status.
• Readiness scores.
• SME progress.
• Training and technical assistance activities.
• Participation by gender, location, and sector.
• Financing referrals and their outcomes.

11. Configurable Requirements and Knowledge Base

The platform must allow authorized Beacon users to manage compliance, eligibility, financing requirements, and guidance without requiring software redevelopment for every routine update.

Authorized users must be able to:

• Add, modify, update, deactivate, or replace requirements.
• Update required documentation and eligibility criteria.
• Update deadlines and guidance.
• Update readiness criteria and scores.
• Configure requirements specific to each financial institution.
• Maintain effective dates and version history of updates.
• Record the identity of the user who made each change and the date of the change.
• Preserve the requirements applicable at the time previous SME assessments were conducted.

12. Security, Data Protection and Technical Architecture

The Service Provider must implement appropriate technical controls, including:

• Secure authentication and role- and permission-based access.
• Data encryption in transit and at rest.
• Regular backups.
• Audit and change logs.
• Appropriate controls to protect SME financial information.
• Data ownership, retention, export, and deletion procedures.
• Secure cloud hosting.
• Offline capability for relevant field data collection activities, with subsequent synchronization where technically feasible.

Testing, Piloting and Deployment

The Service Provider will be responsible for:

• Functional testing.
• Security testing.
• Performance testing.
• Usability testing.
• User Acceptance Testing (UAT).
• Conducting a pilot phase with a selected group of SMEs.
• Addressing identified issues.
• Final deployment of the platform for 200 SMEs.
• Training, handover, and knowledge transfer.

Key Deliverables

1. Inception and Requirements Report.
2. Approved System Design and Prototype.
3. Fully configured and operational AI-enabled SME platform.
4. SME registration and digital profiling module.
5. AI-enabled bookkeeping and financial management module.
6. Automated transaction classification.
7. Automated financial reporting module.
8. Compliance and legal registration module.
9. Financial readiness and financing eligibility module.
10. Financial institution matching and referral functions.
11. AI-enabled advisory assistant.
12. Dashboards and M&E reporting functions.
13. Configurable compliance and eligibility framework.
14. Administrative dashboard and user management.
15. Arabic RTL and mobile-responsive interface.
16. Security and data protection framework.
17. Technical documentation and user manuals.
18. Training and knowledge-transfer materials.
19. User Acceptance Testing and pilot report.
20. Final deployment of the platform for 200 SMEs.
21. Handover package and technical support.

Indicative Timeline

Ownership of Project-Specific Deliverables

Ownership of all software, source code, configurations, database structures, system architecture, technical documentation, user interfaces, workflows, dashboards, AI configurations, prompts, assessment methodologies, compliance frameworks, reporting templates, and other materials developed or configured specifically for Beacon under the contract shall transfer to Beacon Consulting & Development upon full payment, to the extent permitted by applicable law.

Required Qualifications and Experience

• Demonstrated experience in software and digital platform development and deployment.
• Demonstrated experience developing financial management, fintech, compliance, accounting, ERP, SME management, or similar platforms.
• Strong experience in AI-enabled applications, Natural Language Processing (NLP), OCR technologies, or AI-enabled financial solutions.
• Experience developing Arabic-language and RTL interfaces.
• Experience with cloud systems, APIs, databases, dashboards, and secure user management.
• Experience handling financial data and sensitive business information.
• Strong understanding of data protection and information security.
• Experience developing systems based on configurable rules and knowledge bases.
• Experience integrating institutional or financial institution users is an advantage.
• Experience working in environments with limited connectivity or emerging and fragile markets is an advantage.
• Ability to comply with the required implementation timeline.
• Strong technical documentation and knowledge-transfer capabilities.
• Previous experience with donor-funded or development projects is an advantage.

Application / Proposal Submission

Qualified companies and service providers are required to submit two separate proposals through the designated application form:

1. Technical Proposal

The Technical Proposal must include, at minimum:

• Understanding of the assignment and scope of work.
• Proposed methodology and technical approach.
• Proposed technical architecture and technologies to be used.
• Work plan and implementation timeline.
• Proposed team and roles.
• Company relevant experience and previous work.
• Proposed approach to AI, security, data protection, Arabic/RTL, and limited-connectivity requirements.
• Testing, deployment, training, support, and handover methodology.
• Key assumptions, dependencies, and risks.

2. Financial Proposal

The Financial Proposal must clearly state the proposed total lump-sum contract value, including all costs required to implement the scope of work and deliver the fully operational platform.

Required Documents

1. Technical Proposal – PDF
2. Financial Proposal – PDF
3. Company Profile
4. Samples of relevant previous work
5. CVs of the proposed key team members
6. Company registration and relevant legal documents
7. References or contact details for similar assignments, if available

Submission Deadline: 20 September 2026

Only complete submissions containing both a Technical Proposal and a Financial Proposal will be considered.