19KZ1025Q0009 QA 2.pdf

19KZ1025Q0009 – Questions & Answers

Section 1 – Schedule & Scope

Programming (12 months):

1. How many programs per month per American Space are expected? Each month American corners holds a thematic monthly program. Examples include:

Constitution Day, MLK, International Education Week, July 4 th, and more.

2. Is there a minimum attendance or target audience size for each program?

Attendance may vary from a corner to corner. Average number is between 25-30 participants for each program.

3. Are virtual/online programs acceptable, or must all be in-person? In-person.

America250 Celebration Program:

4. Does this have to be a single national event, or can each space host its own celebration? The cost is to support programming expenses, whether the event is a fair, concert, or presentation.

5. Will the Embassy provide America250 branding, or is contractor design required? – There is a logo template designed by the US government for America250 branding, so contractor design is not required.

In-Country Training:

6. Will the Embassy identify a venue, or must the contractor arrange it? The embassy will identify a venue.

7. What is the expected duration (single day, multi-day)? It is a multi-day capacity building training.

8. Should costs cover both coordinators and Embassy staff travel? The cost should cover the American corner coordinators travel and lodging.

Coordinator Professional Development:

9. What qualifies as acceptable professional development (in-country job shadowing, international conferences, online courses)? It is a mix of job-shadowing, attending professional fairs or conferences that are taking place in Kazakhstan. The cost is mostly to cover their logistics support.

10. Will the Embassy pre-approve training opportunities? Yes. The Embassy should approve these opportunities.

Branded Promotional Materials:

11. Will the Embassy provide the branded promotional materials (or a standard set of items), or is the contractor responsible for full design, procurement, and delivery?

Contractor is responsible for design by using the logo templates.

12. If only branding guidelines are provided, will the Embassy supply logos/graphic templates? Yes. Embassy will provide logos.

13. Should items be procured locally in Kazakhstan or imported? Either.

14. Are there restrictions on types of items (e.g., apparel, stationery, tech accessories)?

No restrictions. Examples include T-shirts, baseball hats, tote bags, notebooks, pens, keychains, phone card holders, etc.

Program Manager:

15. Must the Program Manager be physically resident in Astana, or can they be regionally based with travel? Preferably based in Kazakhstan, Astana.

16. What level of clearance or vetting will be required? A CV with a recommendation letter followed by an interview.

Section 2 – Contract Clauses

17. Are American Spaces coordinators using Embassy-provided IT, or must the contractor supply compliant laptops, routers, and software? - American Embassy doesn’t provide any IT equipment to an American Space Coordinator

18. Will the Embassy audit or inspect IT systems? - N/A

Section 3 – Solicitation Provisions

Proof of business in Kazakhstan:

19. Is a joint venture or subcontract with a local entity acceptable? – Yes. Evidence that the offeror/quoter operates an established business with a permanent address and telephone listing; in Kazakhstan or plans to establish an office within 30 days of contract award.(p. 23 of Solicitation).

20. If establishing a new office, what specific licenses are required within 30 days? - The Embassy will rely only on written proposals

Past Performance:

21. Are examples outside public diplomacy (e.g., DoD training, capacity building) acceptable if they show relevance to management/education? Yes, with evidence of past activities with a post-survey result.

22. How many references are required, and will Embassy staff contact them directly?

Two references. Embassy staff may contact references directly.

Resources:

23. Is there an expected staff-to-space ratio? Each American corner/American space is staffed by one person.

24. Do coordinators count as “contractor staff” for resourcing purposes, or are they separately funded by the Embassy? For resourcing purposes, yes, coordinators can count as contractor staff. They are not funded separately by the Embassy.

Section 4 – Evaluation Factors

25. How will technical proposals be scored relative to past performance and price (equal weighting, or tradeoff)? - The U.S. Government intends to award a contract/purchase order to the responsible company submitting an acceptable offer at the lowest technically acceptable price. (from the Cover Letter)

25. Will the Embassy conduct oral presentations, or rely only on written proposals? - The Embassy will rely only on written proposals

19KZ1025Q0009 – Admin Services Kazakhstan - Questions

1.) Are there any other positions contemplated other than the Project Manager? Please see the following which is included in the RFQ: The Contractor shall retain a program manager to oversee strategic planning, communication, media planning, and reporting. The program manager will conduct occasional site visits to monitor property, equipment, and programming.

2.) Is there remote work allowed under this contract? To monitor the flow of American Corners’ administrative support, at least one person should be present in Kazakhstan, Astana.

3.) What is the minimum frequency for Program Manager site visits to the eight American Spaces? Is there a required site visit schedule (quarterly, annually)? At least one trip per year. Not required.

4.) For America250 programming, is there a minimum number of events or audience size required to meet expectations? Programming varies from a movie screening, discussion club to fairs and outreach activities. The cost is to support programming expenses.

5.) Can thematic programming be coordinated virtually across multiple American Spaces, or must each space host a standalone event? In-person, standalone events.

6.) Does each American Space require dedicated on-the-ground staff, or can a single roving team cover multiple sites? The coordinators are staff of the local partner host-institution (library) that is hosting the American Spaces program.

7.) Are there target audience sizes for events (e.g., minimum 25 attendees per event, or cumulative annual audience)? Attendance may vary from corner to corner. Average number of participants per event is usually between 25-30 participants for each program.

8.) Are there target audience sizes for events (e.g., minimum 25 attendees per event, or cumulative annual audience)? Attendance may vary from corner to corner. Average number of participants per event is usually between 25-30 participants for each program.

9.) What is the required formatting for the application? – You should fill out the required sections manually or electronically

10) Is there a page limit? – No, there is no a page limit.

11) How detailed should the activity descriptions be? – Please see page 5 of the Solicitation. There is a table with the exact description of the services required. You should fill in Unit price and Total per Year sections.

12) 1. Form SF-1449 Block 12: What should be indicated in this block? - Nothing

13) Block 17: What should be filled in the CODE and FACILITY CODE sections? You should insert your Company Name, address , email address and phone number Blocks 19–24: May we enter the total amount without dividing it into units (e.g., Quantity – 1; Unit – 1; Unit Price – total of base year; Amount – total of base year)?

May we print out the form and fill it in manually? – please put see details in Section

1. Please fill in Section 1 accordingly

2. Recommendation Letter May U.S. Embassy staff provide the recommendation letter? Since our organization has been working with the U.S. Embassy Public Diplomacy Section since 2019, would it be sufficient to provide their contact details so that you can reach out directly? – You should provide all requested information as per Section 3

3. Quotation Format We plan to submit the quotation as one PDF file. Are there any requirements or limitations regarding the number of pages or any other? - No The organizational charter and the eGov document confirming our legal status will be attached separately.

4. Deadline Your letter indicates the deadline as September 26, 2025, at 3:00 PM, while SAM.gov lists September 22, 2025, at 3:00 PM in the description section. Could you please confirm which deadline applies? – Deadline is September 26, 2025 at 3 pm