Cameroonian Ship Registry and Digitization (19AQMM24R0234) - Q-A NDF Response (1).pdf

No. Question Answer

III Scope C. states "Deployment requirements will vary based on circumstances, but may include:

4. Providing Ship and International Safety Management Company Management."

Will the Government please clarify the requirement of "Providing Ship and International Safety Management Company Management"

The ship registry management solution should include information on vessels' and companies' compliance with the International Safety Management Code established by the International Maritime Organization. Item 4 will be modify to read: "Providing information on ship and company compliance with the International Safety Management Code, as established by the International Maritime Organization."

C 10 States “Providing equipment, servers, monitors, desktop terminals, scanners required for daily operations and access to the digitized ship registry database to the various maritime districts and headquarters locations.” Could the government provide the number of “monitors, desktop terminals, scanners required for daily operations” required (number of users).

The implementer will need to ensure that the offices of the four maritime districts and headquarter locations have the necessary equipment to make use of the ship registry management solution. Specific requirements will be determined by the contractor during the assessment visit mentioned in Deliverable A, and will be finalized through discussions with the Department of State and the Cameroon Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs, and Inland Waterways. The government expects 10-15 end users, who will likely need the following equipment:

-Server -Windows server standard in French -SQL Server Standard for +5 clients -Cyber protection and backup -Desktop computers with Monitors for five Maritime Locations (numbers are still unknown but estimate three per location.

-Associated Windows applications for the five maritime locations -Installation and setup (cables, network connections, etc.)

C 9 states "Producing sanitized incident reports for registered ships in the registry. The Government may require specific reports to be prepared in response to sanction violations. At the request of the Government, the Contractor may be required to arrange translation of individual reports." Will the Government please provide the list of languages reports may need to be translated to?

Reports may need to be provided in English and French.

Factor 3: Relevant Past Performance "Provide at least three (3) Past Performance Summaries as the prime or as a subcontractor reflecting work similar to that described in the SOW that is underway or has been completed within the past three (3) years."

Please confirm Offeror's are permitted to submit partner/Subcontractor Past Performance references.

Confirmed as permissible. However, if your proposed partner/subcontractor will only contribute a small role in the proposal, then the past performance will be evaluated accordingly.

After initial scanning, images are processed by OCR and computable data is extracted. Any uncertain data field identified in that process is then reviewed by a trained specialist for validation, needed error correction, and OCR model tuning. Can that validation/correction effort be performed remotely or must it be done from Cameroon?

Per F-002, Places of Performance, if the contractor has the ability to conduct some activities of the SOW from its own facilities, it may do so. Therefore, work may be conducted remotely as long as the objectives and deliverables of the SOW are fulfilled.

6 Do the existing headquarter locations already have secure and reliable Internet connectivity? If so, what is the bandwidth?

Internet connectivity is variable across locations. Cameroon has a current project addressing connectivity requirements. Local ISP will provide fiber-based connectivity with speeds ranging from 10Mbs to 100Mbps depending on the office site. In general, factors that affect connectivity include fiber accessibility, backup availability and maintenance timeframes.

7 Will users accessing the registry be able to support MFA either by SMS/authenticator app code/push notification?

Yes, users will be able to support MFA.

While on-premise and hosted are supported, for security and administrative purposes, hosted is the best option. Is there a preference or requirement for geographic location of the securely hosted systems (US, EU, etc.)?

The securely hosted systems should include local data hosting options in Cameroon.

Will contractor staff be required to remain onsite to complete the historical scanning until all go-forward registrations are digital?

The contractor is responsible for ensuring that historical scanning is completed.

The contractor may consider hiring Cameroonian staff to complete this process, but should not expect for employees of Cameroon Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs, and Inland Waterways to conduct this work. Specifics of the workflow will likely need to be determined during the assessment visit mentioned in Deliverable A.

Are there pre-existing digital data sources that can be utilized to help validate automated extraction and indexing of historical and/or go-forward document images? (This data could help train the initial OCR/scanning algorithms in advance of live scanning.)

It is up to the contractor to determine if appropriate pre-existing data sources exist.

11 What is the document image retention policy (5 years, 10 years, conditional, etc.)? Documents will need to be maintained for the lifetime of each ship.

As we will propose external hosting services for the Registry management solution, shall we propose also the servers and equipment for hosting locally in Cameroon Ministry of Transport?

Yes

Questions Template for Solicitation 19AQMM24R0234 - Department of State - Cameroonian Ship Registry and Digitization 10/18/2024

Is there any idea about the number of users to be considered when offering the provision of monitors, desktop terminals, scanners required? or shall we add in our offer the unit price and the quantity will be defined during the project?

The government estimates 10-15 users who will require equipment. However, specific requirements will be determined by the contractor during the assessment visit mentioned in Deliverable A, and will be finalized through discussions with the Department of State and the Cameroon Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs, and Inland Waterways. The implementer will need to ensure that the offices of the four maritime districts and headquarter locations have the necessary equipment to make use of the ship registry management solution.

14 Should we add travel costs in the proposal price list or we can define those costs during the execution of the project depending on the necessary travels to Cameroon?

You may propose an estimated cost of certain number of trips you think will be necessary to complete the project. The Government will have a plug number to standardize the various proposals and will fund the CLIN incrementally as necessary during Contract performance.

15 How many deployment trips to Cameroon are required per year? What is the frequency of the Cameroon trips? What is the duration of each trip?

There is not a fixed number of required deployments or duration of deployments.

Per Deliverable A, the contractor will conduct an assessment visit to determine the current state of the ship registry and the best path forward. For the sake of the solititation, the contractor should provide an estimate on the number and duration of trips that might be required to meet the objectives of the project.

16 How many pages is a ship registry and about how many ship registries will need to be digitized on each trip?

The government estimates 5 to 10 paper documents are associated with each of the 332 ships in the registry.

17 Can a secure cloud based solution be utilized or does the system need to be on-prem and connected to a network that supports the various maritime districts?

Secure cloud based solutions can be utilized, but must include the data protection, storage, and security standards associated with the solution and compliance with national data protection policies in the host country.

Will a locked facility be available at the Cameroon Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs, and Inland Waterways for digitization equipment to be left overnight or does the equipment need to be packed and setup daily?

Yes, a locked facility will be available.

Will the Department of State Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation/Office and/or the Nonproliferation and Disarmament Fund (ISN/NDF) and the Office of Counterproliferation Initiatives (ISN/CPI) have future ship registry or similar projects?

The Department of State cannot provide information about future projects, and receiving an award on this project would not guarantee the award of future projects.

20 Could the Government please clarify the projected number of end users expected for the system?

The government estimates 10-15 end users . However, specific requirements will be determined by the contractor during the assessment visit mentioned in Deliverable A, and will be finalized through discussions with the Department of State and the Cameroon Ministry of Transport.

Could the Government please provide estimates and historical data regarding the digitization efforts to assist offerors in accurately assessing the scope and level of effort required?

The government does not have additional historical data related to this effort.

Could the Government please clarify whether the new system will require integration with any existing systems, and if so, could the Government please provide detailed information on those systems?

The system does not need to integrate with any pre-existing systems, but should be able to be integrated in future systems, and the information in the system should be easy to upload or export as needed.

23 Could the Government please provide clarification on the number of users who will require equipment?

The implementer will need to ensure that the offices of the four maritime districts and headquarter locations have the necessary equipment to make use of the ship registry management solution. Specific requirements will be determined by the contractor during the assessment visit mentioned in Deliverable A, and will be finalized through discussions with the Department of State and the Cameroon Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs, and Inland Waterways. The government expects 10-15 end users, who will likely need the following equipment:

-Server -Windows server standard in French -SQL Server Standard for +5 clients -Cyber protection and backup -Desktop computers with Monitors for five Maritime Locations (numbers are still unknown but estimate three per location.

-Associated Windows applications for the five maritime locations -Installation and setup (cables, network connections, etc.)

Could the Government please clarify whether the responsibility for acquiring the database and backend infrastructure rests with the offeror, assuming this is a web-based application? If this is the case, could the Government please specify the quantity required?

The responsibility of acquiring the database and backend infrastructure rests with the offeror. Upon completion of the assessment visit refrenced in Deliverable A, the offeror may determine specific requirements and propose a solution that meets the objectives of this project.

25 Could the Government please clarify whether the data is available in French and if it is accessible in any other languages?

All data is available in French. A limited number of files also include data in English.

26 Could the Government please provide information regarding the number of documents that require Optical Character Recognition (OCR)?

The government estimates 5 to 10 paper documents are associated with each of the 332 ships in the registry.

Could the Government please clarify who is responsible for determining which data needs to be captured and the sequence in which it is collected? Additionally, we would like to understand if this decision has any pricing implications for the initial meeting and end-user verification processes.

The offeror will determine this information by conducting an assessment visit and consulting with the Cameroon Minstry of Transport, with approval from the Dpartment of State.

28 Could the Government please clarify the factors that are hindering the establishment of effective online connectivity, assuming that this is the intended approach?

Internet connectivity is variable across locations. Cameroon has a current project addressing connectivity requirements. Local ISP will provide fiber-based connectivity with speeds ranging from 10Mbs to 100Mbps depending on the office site. In general, factors that affect connectivity include fiber accessibility, backup availability and maintenance timeframes.

29 Could the Government please clarify whether it is necessary to maintain a Tier 1-3 service desk? If so, should this service be operational 24/7?

The contractor is responsible for providing customer support for the ship registry solution. Support need not be provided 24/7.

Could the Government please provide clarification regarding the cybersecurity requirements for the system, specifically pertaining to on-premises and off-premises environments, workstations and laptops, mobile devices, and network specifications?

The Contractor shall maintain cybersecurity standards that are, at a minimum, comparable to the NIST Cybersecurity Framework. Specific requirements can be determined through the assessment visit mentioned in deliverable A.

31 Could the Government please clarify whether there exists a national or international cybersecurity standard applicable to the system?

The Contractor shall maintain cybersecurity standards that are, at a minimum, comparable to the NIST Cybersecurity Framework.

In reference to the SOW Scope C.10, which outlines the deployment requirements, which state the following: “Providing equipment, servers, monitors, desktop terminals, scanners required for daily operations and access to the digitized ship registry database to the various maritime districts and headquarters locations.”

How should offerors approach pricing for the environments and hardware? Additionally, given that the specific needs of the Cameroon Ship Registry will be developed and reported only ten days after the conclusion of the site engagement, what guidance can the Government provide to offerors who will not have the requirements prior to this engagement?

Offerors can provide an estimate for hardware pricing. Specific needs will be determined during the assessment visit, in consultation with the Cameroon Ministry of Transport and with approval of the Department of State. In addition to conducting an in-person assessment visit, the offeror can correspond with the Cameroon Minstry of Transport in advance of the assessment visit to clarify specific needs and conditions.

33 Could the Government please clarify whether this could be executed at an off-site processing location?

Per F-002, Places of Performance, if the contractor has the ability to conduct some activities of the SOW from its own facilities, it may do so. Therefore, work may be conducted remotely as long as the objectives and deliverables of the SOW are fulfilled.

34 Could the Government please clarify whether it is possible to provide a description of the current records retention process?

Currently, each district office maintains paper records for ships that registered at that particular office.

35 Could the Government please provide clarification on whether there are any specific software or system requirements that must be met?

This information will be determined by the contractor during the assessment visit mentioned in Deliverable A.

36 Could the Government please provide a detailed explanation of the current methods employed for the storage of paper documents?

Currently, each district office maintains paper records for ships that registered at that particular office.

37 Could the Government please clarify whether the ultimate objective of this initiative is to transition to a fully electronic records management solution in the future?

Yes, the ultimate objective is to provide an electronic records management system for the ship registry, and to ensure historical records are digitized and inputted into the new records managemnt system.

38 Could the Government please provide examples or templates of the legacy paper ship registry records that are to be digitized under this contract?

The Government will facilitate communication between the contractor and the Cameroon Ministry of Transport to collect this information.

Given the ambiguity in system requirements, would the Government consider granting a two-week extension to ensure that comprehensive assumptions can be made in order to fully meet the Government's needs?

No

40 Could the Government please provide the specific period of performance for this contract?

The Government intends to establish a contract with a one-year base period with two option years.

41 Could the Government please provide the anticipated start date for this contract? The Government anticipates a start date of December 1, 2024.

Could the Government please clarify whether the Government will be providing a pricing template for offerors, or if it is expected that all offerors create their own pricing structure?

All offerors are expected to create their own pricing structure.

43 Could the Government kindly provide clarification on the specific labor categories that are anticipated?

It is up to the offeror to propose labor categories for this contract.

Could the Government please provide an estimate of the anticipated hours or level of effort required for the system, based on the limited information currently available in the Statement of Work (SOW)?

It is up to the offeror to estimate levels of effort for this contract.

45 Could the Government please provide any guidance on the pricing for web services, equipment, and other related data points in Cameroon?

It is up to the offeror to propose pricing for this contract.

Could the Government provide an estimated number or range of vessels currently in the Cameroon Ship Registry that will require digitization and inclusion in the new digital solution? This information is crucial for us to prepare a compliant proposal.

According to S&P Global, there are 332 vessels flagged to Cameroon which are active (meaning, S&P Global is marking them as in service or in repair).

The lack of detail about the vessel composition was introduced in the Government's responses. Could the Government specify the types and sizes of these vessels—for example, how many are over 500 Gross Register Tonnage (GRT) and how many are under? This affects the complexity of data handling in our solution.

Out of those 332 in service vessels in Cameroon, 251 vessels have a gross tonnage greater than 300.

Could the Government confirm whether all current vessel and associated data are held exclusively in paper format, or if there are existing digital databases or spreadsheets in use? This ambiguity impacts our technical approach to data migration.

All current vessel and associated data needed for digitization are in paper format.

Could the Government confirm whether proposing an existing, secure, tried-and-tested cloud-based ship registry solution—hosted outside Cameroon—is acceptable and would be considered compliant? Or would such a proposal now be deemed non-compliant due to the on-premises hosting requirement introduced in the answer to Question #8?

A cloud-based ship registry solution is acceptable, with requisite data protection, storage, and security standards associated with the solution are in compliance with national data protection policies.

The Government indicates adequate internet connectivity that could support a cloud-based solution. Are there other factors necessitating on-premises hosting in Cameroon that were not specified in the original solicitation but have emerged through the Government's recent answers? If so, could the Government provide insight into these factors to resolve this ambiguity?

The Government of Cameroon prefers an on-premises solution for this requirement. However, offerers may propose off premises hosting solutions and are requested to detail the data protection, storage, and security standards associated with the solution and compliance with national data protection policies in the host country.

The Government specified that reports must be provided in English and French, and data is primarily in French. This introduces ambiguity about the extent of multilingual support required, which was not clear in the solicitation, where it is only reports that needed to be translated.

Cameroon is a French speaking country, therefore the data is primarily in French.

Reports should be provided in both French and English.

Is it only the reports that need to be bilingual, or are other components of the solution—such as digital certificates, user interfaces, or notifications—also required to support both English and French? This affects our design and development efforts.

The reports should be provided in both French and English. The user interfaces, digital certificates, and notifications should be provided primarily in French.

Are all the anticipated 10-15 end users fluent in English, or are some users fluent only in French? This information is necessary to determine if the application interface must be bilingual.

All of the anticipated end users are fluent in French. They have varying levels of fluency in English.

For solution outputs like vessel registration digital certificates, is it mandatory for them to be available in both English and French, or is English-only acceptable? The ambiguity arises from the recent answers and impacts our compliance.

The vessel registration digital certificates should be provided in French. If your solutions allows for these digital certificates to be in both French and English, then please pursue that option.

Does the solution's user interface, including back-office and online service areas, need to be available in both French and English? This was not specified initially but is now unclear due to the Government's responses.

The solution's interface should be provided primarily in French. If your solutions allows for both French and English, then please pursue that option.

Does the Government's response imply that offerors are permitted to alter the current CLIN structure to better reflect their pricing models, including adding or adjusting CLINs?

This was not evident in the original solicitation but is now ambiguous due to the recent answers.

Yes

If modifying the CLIN structure is acceptable, may offerors create CLINs with performance periods shorter than the base period—for instance, a hardware CLIN with specific payment terms rather than spreading costs over monthly payments? This ambiguity affects our financial proposal.

This is an acceptable solution if the Offeror can adequately convey the aggressive milestones to completing the project. The Risk Mitigation Strateg/Plan should addresses known and unknown risks.

Is it acceptable for offerors to propose a customized payment schedule aligned with project milestones and deliverables, given the Government's indication that we should create our own pricing structure? This clarification is necessary to ensure compliance.

The Government will consider milestones/progress payments if the successful Offeror/Awardee accept reclassification of CLIN XX1 (SMEs Support) as FFP and renamed as (XX1: Ship Registry Digitization)

The SMEs Support CLINs (001, 101, 201) are labeled as Labor Hour (LH) contracts but are quantified as a single Lot (LT), which appears inconsistent. Should offerors provide a detailed pricing breakdown by labor category and hours, aggregating to the total price for these CLINs? This inconsistency was not apparent until the Government's recent responses.

Yes

Could the Government provide at least an estimated range for the total number of pages or records to be digitized? Without this information, we cannot prepare a compliant and realistic proposal.

The government estimates 4000-8000 pages.

Is there any historical data or precedent from similar projects that could help in estimating the scope? The lack of such information in the recent answers introduces uncertainty.

No, this project is the first of its kind.

Offeror Question Sheet