REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN

MODERNIZATION OF REAL PROPERTY REGISTRATION AND CADASTRE PROJECT

Credit No.5761-UZ

         Assignment Title: Provision of Services as an Individual Consultant to test the Methodology and Software of the State Cadastral Valuation of Real Property

Cadastre Agency under the State Tax Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan has received financing from the International Development Association toward the cost of the Modernization of Real Property Registration and Cadastre Project and intends to apply part of the proceeds to involve a team of five (5) individual local valuation specialists to test the methodology and software of the State cadastral valuation of real property within the framework of the second stage of the experiment on determination of  the cadastral value of real property units.

Key objective of the consultancy:

1. to test the methodology of the State cadastral valuation of real property on pilot areas within the framework of the second stage of the experiment to determine the cadastral value of real property units;
2. to test software for the State cadastral valuation along with the creation of respective databases;
3. to provide comments and suggestions for improving the methodology and software of the State cadastral valuation of real property based on the results of their approbation and testing.

Interested individual consultants must send a CV that provide information on their qualifications and experience demonstrating their ability to undertake this assignment (reference to similar services, experience in similar assignments, availability, etc.).

Consultants (valuation specialists) should meet the following qualification requirements:

• Completed higher or equivalent education in law, economics, real property valuation, architecture, construction, land administration, or other relevant discipline. The consultant must confirm his qualifications (degree, trainings, valuator’s certificate issued by the authorized body) in the field of land and real property valuation and practical experience of its application.

• At least 5 years of experience in the field of real property valuation;

• Strong skills in writing analytical materials, reports and recommendations in Uzbek and in Russian.

The consultant will be selected in accordance with the procedures of «Individual Consultant» selection method, set out in the World Bank's Guidelines for Selection and Employment of Consultants under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits & Grants by World Bank Borrowers (January 2011 and revised in July 2014).

Both Local and International applicants with relevant experience can submit their Expressions of Interest for the required position.

Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form to the address below (in person, by mail, or by fax, or by e-mail) by December 30, 2021 until 18:00 Tashkent time.

Cadastre Agency under the State Tax Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan

Attn: Mr. Mirsaid Mimaksudov, Deputy Director

Chuponota Street 6 “v”, 100097 Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Contact person: Khasan Magdiev, PIU Director or Sirojiddin Imanov, Procurement Specialist

Tel.: 998712025596, +998974442474

Fax: +99871 2738661

E-mail: mrprc5761@gmail.com

Web site: www.kadastr.uz

The Republic of Uzbekistan
Modernization of Real Property Registration and Cadastre Project

TERMS OF REFERENCE

FOR THE PROVISION OF SERVICES AS AN INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT TO TEST THE METHODOLOGY AND SOFTWARE OF THE STATE CADASTRAL VALUATION OF REAL PROPERTY

1. Background

The Government of Uzbekistan is currently undertaking efforts to modernize its real property registration and cadastre system to realize the economic and social benefits of up-to-date accessible information for future development. The Government of Uzbekistan has requested World Bank to support the Modernization of Real Property Registration and Cadastre (MRPRC) Project. It was approved by the World Bank Board of Directors on May 24, 2016 and became effective on January 12, 2017. The MRPRC Project’s objective is to establish an efficient and accessible real property registration and cadastre system in the Republic of Uzbekistan as a component of services of the national eGovernment.

The MRPRC Project will achieve this goal by: (i) improving business processes and customer orientation in the real property register and cadastre; (ii) creating a fully digital integrated real property register and cadastre system that is accessible online to the public; (iii) improving the regulatory and operational environment of the real property register and cadastre; (iv) facilitating spatial data access, exchange and sharing at the national level; and (v) raising awareness on the importance of real property rights.

Real property registration and cadastre modernization, including the creation of efficient and accessible systems and the functional capacity needed to operate them, is a continuous investment that requires support over the long term. The completion of this project requires years of detailed work and the resolution of numerous contentious issues that constantly arise when creating a new system of such paramount importance. As such, this project should be seen as a foundation stone of a modern system that facilitates economic development and good governance by having reliable and accessible records for real property across the country. The project provides for the creation of a new electronic system of cadastre and registration of real property and spatial data for its practical application, including the implementation of key strategic and regulatory reforms. Once the fundamental system and information base has been developed, a potential second phase would focus on the next level interventions, including supporting the use of geodetic  and cadastre data for provision of various market economy services and fiscal purposes in line with the planned eGovernment functions (such as municipal services, emergency prevention and recovery, land use planning and development control, land development, real property market monitoring, utilities management, property valuation and taxation).

Cadastre Agency (CA) under the State Tax Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan is the governmental authority responsible for implementation of the MRPRC Project. Detailed information about the MRPRC Project is available in Project Appraisal Document (PAD)^[1].  

Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On further improvement of resource taxes and property tax” No.UP-6121 dated December 3, 2020, provides for the implementation, with the involvement of foreign experts, where required, a number of measures to improve the cadastral valuation of real property, in particular:

- development of a methodology to determine the cadastral value of real property units on the basis of their market value;

- improvement of the information system to create a complete and reliable database on the real property units and conduct a high-quality valuation of real property units;

- development of the Land Code in a new edition, providing for classifiers of types of permitted use of land plots and grounds for termination of rights to them;

- conducting in 2021-2022 an experiment to determine the cadastral value of real property units based on market value, depending on the use of land plots and the purpose of capital construction objects in four "pilot" regions of the republic:

pilot area No.1 - residential and non-residential (commercial) real property units - Mirzo-Ulugbek district of Tashkent city;

pilot area No.2 - industrial facilities - the city of Navoi, Navoi region;

pilot area No.3 - recreational areas and specially protected territories - Bostanlyk district of Tashkent region;

pilot area No.4 - agricultural facilities - Romitan district of Bukhara region.

Also, the "Roadmap for the implementation of the agreements reached during the visit of the Vice President of the World Bank Anna Bjerde on May 14-19, 2021" to Uzbekistan, approved by the Deputy Prime Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan D. Kuchkarov and S. Umurzakov, provides for the development of cooperation in the field of land reforms and systems of the State cadastre, in particular by:

- support of a pilot project of comprehensive valuation of real property (in partnership with Rosreestr);

- involvement of the World Bank’s experts to develop a methodology for mass valuation of real property.

In 2021, within the framework of the project on creation of a system of State cadastral valuation, implemented jointly with the Federal Service for State Registration, Cadastre and Cartography of the Russian Federation (Rosreestr) with the participation of the Cadastre Agency and the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the first stage of an experiment on cadastral valuation of various types of real properties at four pilot areas was carried out by applying data collected from various open sources.

To approbate the methodology and to test the software of the State cadastral valuation of real property, developed within the framework of the project on creation of a system of State cadastral valuation based on market value, the second stage of the experiment should be carried out to determine the cadastral value of real property units at the same pilot areas.

At the second stage (December 2021 - August 2022), (i) a cadastral valuation of real property units will be carried out according to the new methodology, (ii) the software will be tested with generation of databases, (iii) the results obtained will be compared with the results of the first stage. The objective of the second stage is to develop comments and suggestions to  improve the methodology and software of the State cadastral valuation of real property proceeding from the results of the approbation and testing.

Taking into account above circumstances and to ensure the sustainability of achieving the goals of the MRPRC Project in terms of the real property mass valuation methodology development and implementation for taxation and other purposes, in 2021-2022 it is planned to involve a team of five (5) individual local valuation specialists to test the methodology and software of the State cadastral valuation of real property within the framework of the second stage of the experiment on determination of  the cadastral value of real property units.

2. Key objective of the consultancy

Key objective of the consultancy:
 (i) to test the methodology of the State cadastral valuation of real property on pilot areas within the framework of the second stage of the experiment to determine the cadastral value of real property units;
(ii) to test software for the State cadastral valuation along with the creation of respective databases;
 (iii ) to provide comments and suggestions for improving the methodology and software of the State cadastral valuation of real property based on the results of their approbation and testing.

3. Scope of work

The tasks and responsibilities of each consultant (valuation specialist) will include the following:

1. Study and master the methodology of the State cadastral valuation of real property.

2. Study and master the automated information systems (AIS): "State cadastral valuation data fund", "Real property market monitoring", "Determination of cadastral value".

3. Conduct the cadastral valuation of real property units at four pilot areas^[2] along with the preparation of economic zoning maps to test the methodology of the State cadastral valuation of real property.

4. Conduct testing of software for the State cadastral valuation along with the development of appropriate databases using the AIS "State cadastral valuation data fund", "Real property market monitoring", "Determination of cadastral value".

5. Conduct a comparative analysis of the results obtained in the first and second stages of the experiment on determining the cadastral value of real property units.

6. Prepare and submit to the Cadastre Agency comments and suggestions on improving the methodology and software for the State cadastral valuation of real property based on the results of their approbation and testing.

7. Provide assistance to the Cadastre Agency in conducting a test mass valuation of residential property in Tashkent city.

The scope of consultancy - 9 person-months per one specialist (198 person-days); total - 45 person-months (990 person-days).

4. Expected outcomes

Consultants (valuation specialists) shall provide the following outcomes:

1. Cadastral valuation reports for real property units for each of the four pilot areas with the attachment of economic zoning maps in the form of GIS layers, prepared by the responsible consultants.

2. Materials of software testing for the State cadastral valuation with the attachment of the relevant databases created using the AIS "State cadastral valuation data fund", "Real property market monitoring", "Determination of cadastral value".

3. Data of a comparative analysis of the results obtained within the first and second stages of the experiment on determining the cadastral value of real property units at four pilot areas.

4. Comments and suggestions on improving the methodology and software for the State cadastral valuation of real property based on the results of their approbation and testing.

5. Required professional background and skills

Consultants (valuationspecialists) should meet the following qualification requirements:

• Completed higher or equivalent education in law, economics, real property valuation, architecture, construction, land administration, or other relevant discipline. The consultant must confirm his qualifications (degree, trainings, valuator’s certificate issued by the authorized body) in the field of land and real property valuation and practical experience of its application.

• At least 5 years of experience in the field of real property valuation;

• Strong skills in writing analytical materials, reports and recommendations in Uzbek and in Russian.

VI.      Selection criteria:

Consultant will be selected on the ground of the listed below criteria:

• Technical competence: availability of the necessary qualifications and experience in the subject area of consulting, including knowledge of national standards in the field of real property valuation (30%);
• Experience in conducting the valuation of real property units (land plots, buildings, apartments, etc.) for various purpose (70%).

7. Duration of works and management

The work, within the framework of the consulting assignment, will begin in December 2021, and will continue until September 16, 2022.

This consulting assignment will be coordinated by designated coordinator from the Cadastre Agency, and all activities under the consulting assignment will be closely monitored by the MRPRC PIU’s specialists on M&E.

 Reports shall be submitted to the Cadastre Agency as defined in Section VIII (Reporting and Coordination).

Expected timelines for the preparation of the final versions of documents:

1. Inception report shall be submitted within 30 calendar days from the date of signing the Contract.
2. Consolidated report^[3] on cadastral valuation of real property units at four (4) pilot areas with the attachment of economic zoning maps in the form of GIS layers–within 180 calendar days from the date of signing the Contract. The consolidated report is formed on the basis of cadastral valuation reports for each pilot areas, prepared by the responsible consultants.
3. Materials of the comparative analysis of the results obtained within the first and second stages of the experiment on determining the cadastral value of real property units at four (4) pilot areas - within 210 calendar days from the date of signing the Contract.
4. Consolidated report^[4] on testing the software for the State cadastral valuation with the attachment of the relevant databases created using the AIS "State cadastral valuation data fund", "Real property market monitoring", "Determination of cadastral value" - within 240 calendar days from the date of signing the Contract.
5. Generalized comments and suggestions of consultants (valuation specialists) on improving the methodology and software for the State cadastral valuation of real property based on the results of their approbation and testing - within 250 calendar days from the date of signing the Contract.

VIII.   Reporting and coordination
 

All reporting on the consulting assignment shall be submitted to the Cadastre Agency in Uzbek and Russian in paper and digital form. All materials prepared by the consultants will be the property of the Cadastre Agency and should not be distributed without its prior written consent.

Inception Report. Consultants shall develop and submit to the Cadastre Agency an Inception Report, which will reflect: (a) the Consultant's action plan for the implementation of activities under the consulting assignment, (b) the schedule for the implementation of the action plan, (c) the methodology that will be applied to accomplish the assigned tasks, (d) financial information and (e) related annexes.

Final Report. The Final Report shall be submitted to the Cadastre Agency one week before the end of the Contract. This report shall describe (a) the consultants' accomplishments throughout the assignment, taking into account the explicit requirements of Section IV. “Expected outcomes”, (b) analytical information, (c) lessons learned, (d) remarks, proposals and recommendations, (e) conclusions and (е) related annexes.

The expected deadline for completion, harmonization and submission of the Final Report is September 2022.

Throughout the entire period of the preparation and implementation of the consulting assignment, the consultants will closely cooperate with the Project Implementation Unit (PIU), international consultants and respective employees and officials of the Ministry of Finance, the Cadastre Agency, and other interested organizations.

Interaction between the consultants, the Ministry of Finance, the Cadastre Agency, international consultants, other interested specialists and organizations, including at pilot areas,  will be carried out through the designated coordinator, recruited by the Cadastre Agency, who will be responsible for coordinating the activity of under consulting assignment between the consultants and the Cadastre Agency.

IX.      Language

Uzbek and Russian are official languages of the assignment.

X.        Other provisions

1. Consultants will carry out their work on the territory of the Cadastre Agency and four (4) pilot areas.

2. Cadastre Agency shall provide the consultants with workspace, furniture, access to Internet, transportation to visit pilot areas and meetings.

3. Cadastre Agency will provide the consultants with all reports and other relevant materials (legal acts, statistical data, etc.); organize meetings with relevant interested specialists and organizations.