The Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy is promoting the further upgrade of the 'Digital Citizen' digital mobile application, through the integration of new functions aimed at improving the user experience and better serving citizens, as well as the integration into the application of the required functions of the European Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet).
To this end, it has proceeded with the announcement of an open tender, through the Electronic Procurement System (eprocurement), to find a body that will undertake the design, development and upgrade of the application.
The application
According to what is stated in the competition documents, the 'Digital Citizen' is a strategic priority for the Cyprus Presidency and, by extension, the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy.
This digital mobile application, it is added, as its main function enables citizens of the Republic of Cyprus, who have reached the age of 14, to create a profile through their CY Login service credentials and to issue electronic copies of their official documents with the state.
It is noted that these documents can be shown whenever requested for identification and certification purposes by relevant competent bodies.
It is worth mentioning that in addition to the above main functionality, the application includes secondary functions such as the integration of the generative Artificial Intelligence (Generative AI) tool 'Digital Assistant,' the existence of English in addition to Greek as an application language choice by users, as well as an index with frequently asked questions (FAQs) so that users can easily find answers to any frequently asked questions they may have.
The eIDAS 2.0 Regulation
Based on the documents, also in accordance with the eIDAS 2.0 regulation, each EU member state is obliged to make a European Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet or EUDIW) available to its citizens.
This wallet, it is emphasised, should be an easy-to-use application that will store the identification data and credentials of each citizen, provide them to third parties upon relevant approval, and be used for the identification and authentication of the citizen and allow the use of Qualified Electronic Signatures (QES).
Essentially, it is explained, the eIDAS 2.0 regulation aims to achieve universal technical, semantic and legal interoperability across all EU member states, so that citizens can use their national digital identity and other documents at a pan-European level.
The subject of the contract
Based on the above, the subject of the contract to be signed with the selected entity concerns the design, development and upgrade of the 'Digital Citizen' application, through the integration of new functions aimed at improving the user experience and better serving citizens, as well as the implementation and integration into the application of the required functions of the national solution of the European Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet).
It also includes the maintenance and technical support of the entire application and its related subsystems, with the aim of ensuring their smooth and uninterrupted operation, as well as the provision of support services to the application's users.
The main works included in the scope of the contract are:
- The receipt, study and analysis of the existing 'Digital Citizen' application, including its existing architecture, source code, subsystems, interfaces and existing interconnections.
- The design, development, and deployment of new functions in the existing application, including the necessary modifications or extensions to the relevant subsystems and its interfaces.
- The design, implementation, and integration into the 'Digital Citizen' application of the national solution for the European Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet), in compliance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1183, the implementing acts issued pursuant thereto, as well as the currently applicable European Architecture and Reference Framework (ARF) and the relevant technical standards and specifications.
- The maintenance and general technical support of the 'Digital Citizen' application, the integrated EUDI Wallet solution and their related subsystems and interfaces.
- The provision of support services to users of the application, through the existing 'Digital Citizen' support platform, based on the procedures and service levels specified in the Tender Documents.
- The design and implementation of the necessary tools, interfaces and mechanisms for the interconnection and integration of relying parties and issuers of electronic attestations of attributes into the ecosystem of the national EUDI Wallet solution.
Conditions and risks
For the smooth implementation of the object of the contract, however, the following conditions must be met:
- The Contractor must correctly understand the requirements of the Contracting Authority. A prerequisite is that the Contractor and the Contracting Authority have a common understanding of the Subject of the Contract.
- The Deliverables must satisfy all the requirements as described in this document as well as needs that will arise during the implementation phase.
- The Contracting Authority's Project Team should actively participate in the various implementation phases, directing and supporting the Contractor's work and monitoring and controlling the smooth execution of the project.
- The cooperation and participation of the Departments/Services Officers directly or indirectly involved in the project and the good cooperation of the Contractor's team are considered crucial for the successful implementation of the Tool.
- It is important to stick to the schedule.
Failure to meet the above conditions presents the following risks:
- Partial satisfaction of the needs of the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy.
- Preparation of deliverables of lower quality than expected.
- Absence of coordination and lack of communication between Contractor and Contracting Authority (Deputy Ministry of Research).
- Personnel changes on behalf of the Contractor.
- Delay in the execution of the contract.
- High user expectations.
- Possible non-certification of the European Wallet by the European Commission.
The estimated value and offers
According to the tender documents, the estimated value of the contract was set at €9,778,000 excluding VAT, of which €9,278,000 are mandatory and €500,000 are optional services.
Offers for this tender will be accepted until 13 October at 11am, while the contract that will be signed with the selected contractor will be for a duration of 60 months.
(Source: InBusinessNews)
