Provision of a Next-Generation Wide Area Network, Secure Internet Connectivity, Managed Security, Disaster Recovery and Related Managed Services
Tender Details
- Tender Number: 49/2026
- Tender Type: Request for Bid (Open Tender)
- Department/Company: Legal Aid South Africa
- Province: National
- Tender Category: Information & Communications Technology; Computer Networks; Internet Connectivity; IT Security; Disaster Recovery; Telecommunications; WiFi
- Contract Period: 5 Years
- Required Location: 29 De Beer Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, 2001
- Service Coverage: Nationwide
- Closing Date: 19 October 2026
- Closing Time: 11:00
- Briefing Session: No briefing session
- Compulsory Briefing: No
Tender Description
Legal Aid South Africa invites suitably qualified service providers to provide a next-generation Wide Area Network (WAN), secure internet connectivity, managed security, disaster recovery and related managed services for a period of five years.
The project will provide a centrally managed and secure network environment connecting Legal Aid South Africa’s national office, disaster recovery facilities, local offices and satellite offices across South Africa.
Objectives
The main objectives are to:
- Establish a resilient nationwide WAN infrastructure.
- Improve network performance and connectivity across Legal Aid South Africa’s offices.
- Strengthen network security and centralised security management.
- Improve operational and disaster recovery resilience.
- Provide proactive monitoring and managed IT services.
- Improve IT governance and service management.
- Ensure reliable connectivity for Legal Aid South Africa’s distributed office network.
Scope of Work
The successful service provider will be responsible for the end-to-end provision and management of network services covering:
- 1 National Office
- 1 Disaster Recovery Site
- 1 Integrated Justice System (IJS) Site
- 65 Local Offices
- 64 Satellite Offices
The scope includes:
- WAN transport underlay services.
- Secure network overlay services.
- Direct internet breakout.
- Enterprise firewall infrastructure.
- Mobile data connectivity and SIM management.
- Network monitoring and management.
- Disaster recovery services.
- Project and service management.
- Training and knowledge transfer.
- Rack hosting facilities.
Network Connectivity Requirements
Bidders are required to provide pricing for two network architecture options:
Option 1 – Dual-Homed Connectivity
Provides primary and secondary connectivity for local offices, offering additional network resilience.
- National Office: 1 Gbps
- Disaster Recovery Site: 1 Gbps
- Local Offices: 100 Mbps
- Satellite Offices: 50 Mbps
- IJS Site: 10 Mbps
Option 2 – Single-Homed Connectivity
Provides a single connectivity path for local offices.
- National Office: 1 Gbps
- Disaster Recovery Site: 1 Gbps
- Local Offices: 50 Mbps
- Satellite Offices: 50 Mbps
- IJS Site: 10 Mbps
Security Requirements
The solution will include enterprise-level network security, including:
- Primary and secondary enterprise firewalls at critical sites.
- Centralised security policy enforcement.
- Secure network access.
- Threat protection and mitigation.
- Security monitoring.
- Integration of security principles aligned with SASE (Secure Access Service Edge) architecture.
Mobile Connectivity
The service provider will also be required to provide an APN platform for managing mobile connectivity.
This includes:
- Corporate SIM card management.
- Centralised APN management.
- Data usage management.
- Tiered data bundles.
- Option 1: 5 TB per provider.
- Option 2: 2.5 TB per provider.
Managed Services
The appointed service provider will provide ongoing managed services throughout the five-year contract, including:
- 24/7 network monitoring.
- Network Operations Centre (NOC) services.
- Incident management.
- Service-level monitoring.
- Proactive fault detection.
- Project management.
- Service management.
- Change and risk management.
- Vendor coordination.
- End-user training.
- Knowledge transfer and documentation.
- Rack hosting.
Technical Requirements
Bidders should demonstrate strong technical capability in:
- Large-scale WAN and SD-WAN environments.
- SASE and secure network architecture.
- Multi-site network deployment.
- Enterprise firewall implementation.
- Network security and threat management.
- Internet connectivity and direct internet breakout.
- Disaster recovery and business continuity.
- Mobile/APN connectivity management.
- 24/7 NOC operations.
- Network monitoring and incident response.
- Hybrid cloud and on-premises environments.
Skills & Experience
The successful service provider should have proven expertise in:
- Designing and implementing large-scale multi-site WAN environments.
- SD-WAN and SASE architecture.
- Network security and firewall configuration.
- Zero-trust security integration.
- Operating a 24/7 Network Operations Centre.
- SLA and incident management.
- Project and service management.
- Disaster recovery planning and testing.
- Business continuity management.
- Stakeholder reporting and vendor coordination.
- Technical training and knowledge transfer.
Contract & Pricing Structure
The contract will run for five years.
Pricing is expected to distinguish between:
- Once-off implementation costs, and
- Monthly recurring charges (MRC).
Bidders should carefully review the official tender documentation for the detailed pricing schedules and commercial requirements.
Key Technical Terms
SASE (Secure Access Service Edge): A network architecture that combines networking and security capabilities to provide secure connectivity and access across distributed locations.
Underlay: The underlying physical or virtual transport infrastructure used to carry network traffic.
Overlay: The logical network services and policies operating over the underlying transport network.
Internet Breakout: Allows branch offices to access the internet directly rather than routing internet traffic through a central data centre.
APN (Access Point Name): A mobile network gateway configuration used to control and route cellular data connectivity.
NOC (Network Operations Centre): A dedicated facility or team responsible for monitoring, managing and responding to network incidents and performance issues.
Tender Enquiries
Contact Person: Dr. Joe Khosa
Email: JoeK@legal-aid.co.za
Telephone: 011 877 2000
Briefing Session
- Briefing Session: No
- Compulsory: No
Submission
Closing Date: 19 October 2026
Closing Time: 11:00
Bidders must follow the submission procedures and requirements specified in the official tender documentation.