IAS_SOW_-_Overview_of_US_Cotton_-_Turkey.doc

U.S. Department of Agriculture

Foreign Agricultural Service

Statement of Work (SOW) Cochran Fellowship Program on Overview of U.S. Cotton - Turkey (Trade Shows Team)

GENERAL INFORMATION

1.0 Scope of Work:

The Cochran Fellowship Program’s Eurasia region is requesting the design and delivery of a seven (7) day training program for six (6) Cochran Fellows and one (1) Locally Employed Staff (LES) from Turkey on “Overview of U.S. Cotton”. The U.S. cotton industry has done extensive outreach, training, and marketing in many regions of Turkey, but has had difficulty reaching the region the Fellows are from. The Fellows represent small to medium sized businesses in Turkey from the Anatolia region, particularly the area of Sanliurfa, and their companies. These businesses use open end spinning mills, with sales ranging from $15-30 million annually. Turkey has a large, dynamic, and growing textile industry which exports over $25 billion annually.

The U.S. is one of the leading and preferred cotton suppliers to Turkey and in 2017, exported $730 million in cotton. However, newly-formed small to medium sized mills in the Southeast Anatolian region tend to purchase cotton from other countries such as Syria, Turkmenistan, Brazil, and Africa due to both a lack of awareness about the qualities and characteristics of U.S. cotton and that U.S. cotton is subject to a three percent antidumping duty that U.S. competitors don’t face in Turkey. Turkish mills have been increasing their capacities and renovating their plants with more efficient machinery to increase production while using less electricity and improving their yarn quality to remain competitive. Due to these investments, and their interest to become more competitive, exposing these six (6) Turkish Fellows to the U.S. cotton industry, quality, and standards will help them better understand its benefits and eventually increase imports of U.S. cotton by these mill owners.

This training program shall educate the Turkish Fellows about U.S. cotton industry institutions such as U.S. cotton production and exporting cooperatives, USDA classification centers, and international traders, and also educate on the U.S.’ high volume instrument (HVI) testing that provides cotton growers, ginners, traders, and spinning mills with accurate quality parameters for raw cotton. This training program shall also include visits to cotton farms, production facilities, and warehouses across two to three cities in the U.S. The trainer shall organize meetings with various cotton organizations such as Cotton Incorporated and the Carolinas Cotton Growers Cooperative in Cary, NC, the USDA Classing Office and the American Cotton Shippers Association in Memphis, TN, and the Plains Cotton Cooperative Association and the Lubbock Cotton Exchange in Lubbock, Texas.

The purpose of this training program is to educate Turkish Fellows on the strengths of the U.S. cotton industry, expose them to various aspects of the cotton trading and classification systems, and introduce them to various cotton companies and associations in the U.S. The goal of this program is to expand the market for U.S. cotton and increase exports of U.S. cotton to Turkey.

2.0 Background:

Since 1984, the U.S. Congress has made funds available to the Cochran Fellowship Program to provide training for middle-income and emerging market countries. Training opportunities are for senior and mid-level specialists and administrators working in agricultural trade and policy, agribusiness development, management, animal, plant, and food sciences, extension services, agricultural marketing, and many other areas. Individuals selected for Cochran trainings come from both the public and private sectors. All training occurs in the United States. Training programs are designed and organized in conjunction with U.S. universities, USDA and other government agencies, agribusinesses, and consultants. The Cochran Fellowship Program, which is part of the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service’s Office of Capacity Building and Development-Trade and Scientific Exchanges Division (USDA/FAS/OCBD/TSE), has provided U.S.-based training for over 18,000 international participants from 126 countries worldwide.

CONTRACTOR REQUIREMENTS

3.0 Technical Requirements/Tasks:

The trainer shall ensure that Fellows develop competencies in the following areas:

· An overview of the U.S. cotton industry

· U.S. production system

· U.S. trading systems

· USDA HVI classification system, including “Green Cards”

· The U.S. is one of the few markets that classifies every bale of cotton individually.

· Methods to increase quality and quantity of cotton

· Research on cotton yarn and products

· New trends and innovations in the cotton industry

· Site visits to U.S. cotton warehouses, mills, and farms

· Meetings with U.S. companies, merchants, regional cotton cooperatives, and trade associations

· Provide exposure to U.S. cotton industry institutions such as U.S. cotton production and exporting cooperatives, USDA classification centers, and international traders.

· Example Itinerary: Cotton Incorporated and Carolinas Cotton Growers Cooperative in Cary, NC, the USDA Classing Office and the American Cotton Shippers Association in Memphis, TN, and the Plains Cotton Cooperative Association and the Lubbock Cotton Exchange in Lubbock, TX.

4.0 Government Furnished:

· Emergency Medical Insurance

· Certificates of Eligibility for J-1 visas 5.0 Deliverables / Schedule:

Tasks and Associated Deliverables:

· Provide cash per diem to all Fellows at the start of the program;

· Provide a thumb drive of the training highlights to each Fellow and the Cochran Fellowship Program;

· Ensure that each Fellow completes the Cochran Training Program Evaluation; and

· Development of an Action Plan by each Fellow, in accordance with the Action Plan template. The Action Plan identifies goals and outlines specific steps or activities which each Fellow will perform upon return to their home country. An Action Plan generally includes steps, milestones, measures of progress, responsibilities, assignments, and timeline.

· The contractor shall provide a copy of each fellow’s Action Plan to the Cochran Fellowship Program.

Reporting Requirements:

· A brief final report (format at the discretion of the offeror).

· A pre-training questionnaire to determine Fellows baseline knowledge of the learning objectives. (Template and examples shall be provided)

· A post-training questionnaire to determine the knowledge gained in each of the learning objectives. (Template and examples shall be provided)

· Analysis of the pre and post training questionnaire. (Template and examples shall be provided)

Schedule:

· Deliverables are due no later than two (2) weeks after the completion of the training.

6.0 Travel:

· Suggested dates of the seven (7) day training program are July 29th, 2018 through August 4th, 2018.

· The host institution shall propose the place(s) of performance in their Technical Proposal.

· The host institution shall be reimbursed for travel and subsistence expenses based on GSA’s Joint Travel Regulation.

7.0 Contractor’s Key Personnel: Experience working in program’s field.

8.0 Security Requirements: None.

9.0 Data Rights: None.

10.0 Section 508 – Electronic and Information Technology Standards: None.

Attachment: None.