PR_15839794_Statement of Work Internet Service Provisioning Chancery Male_v3.pdf

Statement of Work for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) Umar Zahir Building, Hulhumalé, Maldives.

1. Purpose

The purpose of this Statement of Work (SOW) is to solicit quotations from qualified Internet

Service Providers (ISPs) for the provision, installation, and ongoing support of a dedicated fiber-based internet service to the Umar Zahir Building, Hulhumalé, Maldives. This SOW defines the technical, operational, security, and service-level requirements that must be met by the selected provider.

2. Scope of Work

The ISP shall provide a reliable, enterprise-grade fiber internet connection with high availability, low latency, and minimal downtime. The service must be suitable for mission-critical operations and support future scalability.

The scope includes:

Site survey and feasibility assessment - Fiber installation and termination - Provisioning of internet service - Delivery of service through ISP-owned equipment - Service testing, commissioning, and handover - Ongoing monitoring, maintenance, and support.

ISP shall provide all labor, materials, permits, licenses, and supervision required for fully operational service.

3. Service Location

• Site Name: Umar Zahir Building, Hulhumalé, Maldives

• Delivery Medium: Dedicated Fiber Optic Connection

4. Technical Requirements

4.1 Bandwidth

• Committed internet bandwidth of 50 Mbps (symmetrical or asymmetrical to be clearly specified by the ISP)

• Bandwidth must be guaranteed (non-best-effort)

4.2 Fiber & Handoff Requirements

• Service must be delivered via fiber optic cable

• Handoff must be provided using a Multimode Fiber SFP from the ISP service switch

• Optical and interface specifications must be shared prior to installation

4.3 IP Addressing

• ISP must provide a minimum of one (/29) public static IPv4 subnet

• All IP addresses must be routable and permanently assigned for the duration of the contract

4.4 Equipment Requirements

• ISP-provided service switches/termination equipment must:

o Be enterprise-grade o Support dual power supplies to ensure continued operation in case of a single power module failure o Support future bandwidth upgrades without full equipment replacement

5. Security & Compliance Requirements

5.1 Prohibited Equipment

The use of the following banned Chinese-manufactured network equipment is strictly prohibited in any part of the service delivery, including access, aggregation, or core infrastructure associated with this connection:

• Huawei

• ZTE

• Hytera

• Hikvision

• Dahua

The ISP must certify in writing that none of the above vendors’ equipment is used in providing this service, in compliance with U.S. Department of State restrictions.

5.2 Network security

• No traffic shaping, throttling, filtering, or inspection without written authorization

• Protection against interception or manipulation

• Secure routing policy requirement

6. Availability, Reliability & SLA Requirements

6.1 Service Availability

• Minimum service availability of 99.9% uptime per calendar month

• Downtime must exclude scheduled maintenance windows approved in advance

6.2 Latency & Performance

• Low-latency routing optimized for international traffic.

• Domestic latency target (≤ 20 ms)

• Minimum achievable latency (less than 250ms) to the United States, with the ISP required to specify expected round-trip latency (RTT) to major U.S. network exchange points

• Routing must prioritize optimal paths to the U.S. to support mission-critical applications

• Packet loss must not exceed 0.5%

• Jitter must be within acceptable limits for voice and video services (Jitter maximum ≤ 30 ms)

• Explicit MTTR definition

• Service credits mandatory for SLA violations

• Credits applied automatically (no separate Embassy request required)

6.3 Fault Response & Resolution

The ISP must provide a clearly defined Service Level Agreement (SLA) including:

• 24x7 Network Operations Center (NOC) support

• Maximum fault response time: 1 hour

• Maximum service restoration time:

o Critical outage: 4 hours o Non-critical issue: 8 hours

6.4 Escalation & Reporting

• Defined escalation matrix

• Monthly performance and uptime reports

• Dedicated account manager

• Mandatory immediate escalation for critical incidents

6.5 Internet Services Quality

24-hour Dedicated Service

Internet Service Provider (ISP) shall provide dedicated (not shared or bundled) leased channel high-speed access to the Internet; data transport media must be fiber optic, terrestrial connectivity. Twenty-four (24) hours uplink. Post Internet Service Provider (ISP) connection must be "always on" with unlimited usage, and must not require the installation of any custom software on the client side.

Bandwidth Availability

For Internet Services the Internet Service Provider must guarantee full contracted bandwidth availability 24x7x365 from the originator side to the ISP’s internet gateway. Bandwidth sharing between other non-Embassy customers is not allowed. Connection Ratio must be 1/1.

Downstream & Upstream

Internet Service or data service transmission from the originating information server towards an end server is referred to as downstream; and a transmission from an end user towards the remote server is referred as upstream; Post Internet Service Provider (ISP) Contention Ratio

(downstream / upstream) must be 1:1 /1:1.

Internet Protocols Access

ISP must permit the transit of all Internet Protocol (IP) protocols (especially IPSec), including but not limited to, User Datagram Protocol (UDP), Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), and

IPSEC to transit without filters or proxies. Unfiltered access to the Internet is required without

ISP firewall blocking. Filters or sniffers must not be established, connected, or introduced by the

ISP for any Embassy channels. If there are any existing filters, sniffers, restrictions, or proxies, they must be identified, and removed prior lease line circuit installation.

VPN Encryption Devices

Internet Service Provider must permit installation of Customer VPN encryption devices on circuit.

Network Devices

Network devices shall comply with the following characteristics:

a) Internet Service Provider (ISP) shall permit ping and trace route traffic from

169.252.0.0/16 and 169.253.0.0/16 to the ISP connection router interface port which delivers the service.

b) Services provided by the Internet Service Provider (ISP) shall be delivered on separate ports, either using RJ-45 interface or LC connector.

c) Internet Service Provider (ISP) shall provide routers and Data media converters or transmission devices in all cases.

d) Network devices should have capable of dual power sources for redundancy power.

e) Devices shall be Rack mountable in a standard Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) rack.

f) One separate or individual physical interface connector is required per service.

7. Redundancy & Future Expansion

• The solution must support future bandwidth upgrades beyond 50 Mbps without major infrastructure changes

• Fiber path design should allow for potential redundancy or secondary circuits in the future

• Equipment must support additional interfaces if higher speeds are required later.

• ISP must state whether:

o Last-mile fiber is physically diverse o Upstream carriers are redundant o Any single point of failure exists

• Must disclose limitations in writing if redundancy is not possible

8. Installation, Testing & Acceptance

The ISP shall:

• Conduct a pre-installation site survey - Provide an installation plan and timeline -

Perform end-to-end testing (bandwidth, latency, failover)

• Support acceptance testing prior to service go-live

• As-built documentation required

• Labeling of installed equipment

• Service not considered accepted until written Embassy approval

9. Network Monitoring & Visibility Requirements

The ISP must provide or support a network monitoring platform that enables real-time and historical visibility into the internet service.

9.1 Monitoring Capabilities

The monitoring solution must include: - Real-time monitoring of bandwidth utilization (ingress and egress) - Visibility into total traffic, peak usage, and average utilization - Interface-level statistics for the delivered service - Link status monitoring (up/down events)

9.2 Historical Traffic & Reporting

• Historical traffic data retention for a minimum of 12 months

• Ability to view and export historical usage reports (daily, weekly, monthly)

• Graphical dashboards showing trends and capacity utilization

• Downloadable reports in common formats (PDF/CSV)

9.3 Access & Security

• Secure access to the monitoring platform via web-based dashboard

• Role-based access for authorized user or multiple users

9.4 Alerts & Notifications

ISP must notify Embassy within 15 minutes of outage or degradation

• Configurable alerts for:

o Link outages o High utilization thresholds o Performance degradation

• Alerts delivered via email and SMS to defined Maldivian/Sri Lankan mobile number.

9.5 Integration & Ownership

• Monitoring platform may be ISP-hosted or customer-accessible

• No additional licensing cost for basic monitoring and reporting

• ISP must provide onboarding, documentation, and basic training if required

10. Maintenance Window Controls

• 72-hour written notice for planned maintenance

• Maintenance must be outside business hours

• Emergency maintenance must be immediately communicated

• Maintenance limited to 4 hours unless approved

11. Documentation & Deliverables

The ISP must provide: - Network diagram and fiber route details - IP addressing details -

Equipment specifications - SLA documentation - Contact and escalation details

11. Proposal Submission Requirements

ISP proposals must include: - Technical solution description - Confirmation of compliance with all requirements - SLA details - Pricing (one-time and recurring costs) - Contract term options -

Lead time for installation

12. Evaluation Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated based on: - Technical compliance - SLA strength and reliability -

Security and compliance adherence - Cost effectiveness - ISP experience and references

13. Contract Term

The proposed service term should be clearly stated (e.g., 12, 24, or 36 months), including renewal and termination terms.

End of Statement of Work