7200AA24RFI00015 Local Works Evaluation Request for Information (RFI) 2024-4-29.pdf

7200AA24RFI00015 Request for Information Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 1

SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE/REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

MARKET RESEARCH PURPOSES ONLY

General Information

Reference Number: 7200AA24RFI00015

Notice Type: Special Notice - Sources Sought / Request for Information

Issuance Date: April 29, 2024

Responses Due Date: June 3, 2024, 5:00pm EST

Subject: Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation

To All Interested Respondents:

This is a Special Notice - Sources Sought / Request for Information (also referred to as “SNSS” and/or “RFI”) issued by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Responses to this SNSS/RFI are not proposals on which USAID can issue any contracts or orders. This is NOT a solicitation for work or

Invitation for Bids (IFB), Request for Proposals (RFP), Request for Proposal Abstracts (RFPA), or Request for Quotations (RFQ), and shall not be construed as an obligation on the part of USAID. Interested

Respondents (interchangeably referred to as “organizations”) are solely responsible for any and all expenses associated with responding to this RFI. Proprietary information should not be sent.

USAID seeks to identify capable organizations that can provide the services described below. The purpose of this notice is to conduct market research to gauge the interest from industry. Responses to this

SNSS/RFI will not be returned and respondents will not be notified of the result of the review. USAID reserves the right not to post any follow-up commentary as a result of a question submitted. Respondents are advised that the U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this SNSS/RFI. All costs associated with responding to this SNSS/RFI will be solely at the

Interested Respondent’s expense. Any potential solicitations released in follow-up to this SNSS/RFI are entirely contingent on the availability of funds. USAID is not seeking technical or cost applications / proposals at this time. A solicitation announcement/date for the aforementioned services has not yet been determined.

Responses to this SNSS/RFI are voluntary and free to address some or all of the below items, as well as provide additional information that they think is relevant. Issuance of this SNSS/RFI does not constitute a commitment on the part of the Government to issue a solicitation, make an award, or to be responsible for any costs associated with responses to this SNSS/RFI. Please note that issuance of this SNSS/RFI does not constitute an award commitment on the part of the U.S. Government, nor will it give an advantage or disadvantage to any Respondent(s) or Non-Respondent(s) in a subsequent solicitation. This document is to obtain information on the possible activity only, and all submissions will be held confidential, though contact information of respondents may be shared if permission is granted by the respondent. Interested

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 2

Respondents may identify their interest and capability to respond to the requirements described below by responding to the questions outlined in this notice. Interested Respondents shall ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow USAID to determine the Respondents capabilities to perform this work.

Sincerely, Nayo Tolbert

Contracting Officer

Office of Acquisition & Assistance

Bureau of Management

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 3

I. BACKGROUND

U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Local Works Program, located within the Local, Faith, and Transformative Partnerships (LFT) Hub in the Bureau for Inclusive Growth, Partnerships, and

Innovation (IPI), is the Agency’s flagship locally led development program. Local Works was launched in

2015 in response to legislation enacted by Congress to integrate locally led development practices into

Agency operations and programs outside of the earmarked funds. The legislation is borne out of a recognition that local organizations have obstacles in accessing direct USAID funding. Additionally, while many local organizations have been sub-recipients of USAID funding, they are frequently excluded from any meaningful participation or decision-making in program design. These realities undermine local buy-in to USAID programming, and therefore challenge the sustainability of that programming. In response, the legislative intent of the Local Works program is to increase the sustainability of development results by supporting, among other priorities:

● Significant local investment in program design and priority-setting;

● Feedback mechanisms connecting USAID, implementing partners, and program participants in order to maximize communication about the efficiency and effectiveness of programming;

● A systems approach to understanding and addressing the underlying factors that influence development outcomes; and

● A culture of learning, experimentation, and sharing for the benefit of USAID as a whole.

II. OVERVIEW

IPI/LFT wishes to evaluate: 1) the performance of the Local Works program and 2) how it fits within a wider comparative analysis of localization at USAID. The approach might entail one or more studies, which could be run sequentially or concurrently, constituting a meta-evaluation of USAID’s approaches toward localization.1

Component 1 will examine specifically the Local Works funded set of activities over the past 10 years focusing on these key questions such as:

● How well has Local Works fulfilled its legislative intent to date, aligned throughout the USAID program cycle, and provided Missions with the support they need to do locally led development? What are the gaps, the root causes impeding closure of those gaps, and what has Local Works learned to improve itself?

● How well was local leadership expanded and enhanced in development processes, and what lessons did Local Works learn about leadership, context, and performance?

1 One definition of a meta-evaluation is an instrument used to aggregate findings from a series of evaluations. It may involve an evaluation of the quality of this series of evaluations and its adherence to established good practices in evaluation. The objective of the potential meta-evaluation may be to provide an overview of, and a perspective on, the major USAID localization instruments applied in locally led development.

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 4

● What quantitative and qualitative uptake of locally led development practices occurred in Missions both within and beyond Local Works teams, and what were the facilitating and inhibiting forces generating those results?

● What is the overall assessment of Local Works using the following standard criteria:

○ RELEVANCE: Is the intervention doing the right things?

○ COHERENCE: How well does the intervention fit?

○ EFFECTIVENESS: Is the intervention achieving its objectives?

○ EFFICIENCY: How well are resources being used?

○ IMPACT: What difference does the intervention make?

○ SUSTAINABILITY: Will the benefits last?

Component 2 will draw on Component 1 information to examine qualitatively the other models of localization operating in USAID. For example – models put into practice by programs under PEPFAR, USAID’s Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance, the Bureau for Conflict Prevention and Stabilization/Office of

Transition Initiative, and models used under the Centroamerica Local regional localization initiative – and how Local Works can better support them to be more effective and successful.

IPI/LFT envisions the evaluation questions will be answered by primary data collected in approximately eight of the current 45 Local Works Missions. Missions that have parallel localization models operating simultaneously will provide case-study comparisons. Learning from the evaluation will be essential in informing programmatic adaptations and external advocacy efforts. The information generated about the program performance is intended to be used by the IPI/LFT Hub-based Local Works team, Mission Local

Works teams, Agency leadership, and Congressional stakeholders.

In line with the Local Works’ focus on local capacity, IPI/LFT wishes to leverage evaluation expertise in the countries where USAID conducts programming. This RFI serves to increase USAID’s awareness of individuals and organizations with evaluation capacity and interest both within and outside the United

States.

III. INTENDED STATEMENT OF WORK

A. PURPOSE

This Request for Information (RFI) seeks information on the interest and capacities of organizations to support a prospective evaluation of the global Local Works Program. IPI/LFT is especially interested in:

● Organizations both within and outside the United States with experience managing or participating in a cross-country consortium to conduct evaluation or research; and

● Organizations with existing evaluation or research capacity based in countries where USAID conducts programming.

Interested organizations are advised to periodically monitor the www.sam.gov and www.grants.gov

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 5 websites for updates concerning a potential solicitation. Interested organizations are encouraged to sign up and monitor USAID’s Business Forecast for related future opportunities.

B. EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

IPI/LFT is interested in submissions from:

1. Organizations: Both U.S.-based (including small businesses) and non-U.S. based organizations are encouraged to express interest. IPI/LFT is interested in submissions from non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, research institutions, private sector organizations, or other organizations with relevant experience.

2. Individual Consultants: Individuals who are citizens or permanent residents of the countries where USAID conducts programming, and who have professional experience relevant to this RFI, are encouraged to express interest. Please note that USAID typically partners with organizations for multi-country evaluation services and does not partner directly with individual consultants, but may share individual consultant responses to this RFI with other donors and interested respondents seeking these capacities with the submitter’s consent (as provided in the Google

Form survey).

IPI/LFT encourages responses to this RFI from organizations and consultants that possess ANY of the evaluation-related capabilities and expertise listed below. Individuals and organizations DO NOT need to have all the capabilities and experience listed below to respond.

Evaluation-related capabilities and expertise:

1. Conducting evaluations and analytic research, including:

a. Designing performance evaluations;

b. Mobilizing and managing evaluation teams, especially teams inclusive of and/or led by local researchers;

c. Conducting activities to strengthen evaluation and research-related capacities, especially among evaluation team members;

d. Conducting desk reviews and literature reviews;

e. Conducting focus group discussions, key informant interviews, or other relevant qualitative data collection approaches;

f. Conducting qualitative or quantitative data analysis; and/or

g. Documenting and reporting research or evaluation findings and recommendations in a user-friendly manner that is understandable and conducive for use in decision-making and sharing across a range of audiences.

2. Using participatory methods in evaluation or research (as outlined in USAID’s Participatory

Evaluation Guidance Note) including, but not limited to:

a. Meaningfully engaging local stakeholders in evaluations (i.e. in formulating evaluation/research questions, validating findings, co-developing recommendations, etc.);

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 6

b. Employing participatory methodologies such as outcome harvesting, most significant change or complexity-aware techniques; and/or

c. Closing feedback loops with evaluation respondents.

3. Managing or participating in a multi-country research or evaluation consortium, including:

a. Building a consortium of organizations based in different countries;

b. Collaborating as a member of a consortium across numerous countries and languages;

c. Bringing together networks or existing partners your organization typically engages in a collaborative manner with to conduct evaluations;

d. Establishing a common objective and path forward shared by diverse partners;

e. Analyzing research findings from diverse contexts to draw cross-cutting conclusions;

and/or

f. Any other elements of management or participation in a cross-country research or evaluation consortium.

4. Conducting evaluations centered on USAID or other donor policies or processes, rather than the performance or impact of discrete development activities (e.g. evaluations of policy implementation or of business process improvement).

IV. Contracting Officer and Point of Contact

Contracting Officer:

Nayo Tolbert

Office of Acquisition & Assistance

Bureau of Management

U.S. Agency for International

Development (USAID)

500 D Street SW

Washington, DC 20547 ntolbert@usaid.gov

Point of Contact:

Jamille Wilson

Office of Acquisition & Assistance

Bureau of Management

U.S. Agency for International

Development (USAID)

500 D Street SW

Washington, DC 20547 jawilson@usaid.gov

V. Authorized Geographic Code

The expected Authorized Geographic Code for this service is: 937.

VI. NAICS Code:

The expected North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code for this service are:

● 541990 - All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services.

VII. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Interested respondents must submit short written responses to the questions outlined in the survey via

Google Form. The link to the form is provided below in this section. Please do not provide generic

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 7 capability statements as these documents shall add no value to this SNSS/RFI. Please do not submit current or previous applications, proposals, links to resources, or resumes as they will be discarded.

Respondents are encouraged to review the questions and respond to only those that are relevant to their experience and capabilities. Responses to all questions are not required, but encouraged as applicable. Each response field is limited to 1,500 characters. USAID experience is NOT required to respond to this RFI. If respondents wish to cite specific work with/for USAID, please include contract/award numbers. Submissions must be in English, Spanish, or French.

USAID will not provide clarifications or responses to respondent questions for this RFI. If you have technical difficulties accessing or submitting the Google Form, please reach out to the point of contact shown in the RFI cover page.

Please submit responses to this RFI by Google Form no later than June 3, 2024, 5:00pm, Eastern

Standard Time (EST). Responses submitted via email directly to the USAID point of contact will not be considered. Responses received after the due date and time will not be read or considered. Interested

Respondents are required to submit responses via Google Form Survey. The URL is also provided below.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdoIdmGt0eIn706qBCwrq77qc_82OLGfXjyFgEStPgn0MXe0

A/viewform?usp=sf_link

If USAID receives multiple submissions from an individual/organization, we will only review the last submission received before the deadline. IPI/LFT values input from our potential partners, and we thank you for your interest and assistance in developing potential future programs.

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 8

ANNEX #1

This Annex is provided for information purposes only. Interested Respondents are required to submit responses via Google Form Survey. Responses submitted via email directly to the USAID point of contact will not be considered.

QUESTIONS FOR GOOGLE FORM:

1. Your name and title.

2. Your email address.

3. Your organization (if your submission is on behalf of an organization).

4. Which best describes this submission?

a. Individual (independent consultant or self-employed).

b. Non-governmental organization or civil society organization.

c. Academic institution or research institution.

d. Private sector organization (Not a U.S. Small Business).

e. U.S. Small Business.

f. Other.

5. If you selected U.S. Small Business in Question 4, please enter your small business type here.

6. In what country is your organization’s headquarters or main office? (If you are an individual, please state the country of which you are a citizen or permanent resident.)

7. If you have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) issued by the U.S. government, please enter it here. This is not required to respond to this RFI.

8. Have you or your organization received more than USD $5 million in funding directly from USAID (i.e. as a prime recipient and not including sub-awards) in the previous five fiscal years (period ending September 30, 2023)?

a. Yes, I/we have received more than USD $5 million in funding directly from USAID in the previous five fiscal years.

b. No, I/we have not received more than USD $5 million in funding directly from USAID in the previous five fiscal years.

9. Please describe your (or your organization’s) past experience and technical capacities conducting evaluations and/or analytic research, including:

a. Designing and managing performance evaluations.

b. Mobilizing and managing evaluation teams, especially teams inclusive of local researchers.

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 9

c. Conducting activities to strengthen evaluation and research-related capacities, especially among evaluation team members.

d. Conducting desk reviews and literature reviews.

e. Conducting focus group discussions, key informant interviews, or other relevant qualitative data collection approaches.

f. Conducting qualitative or quantitative data analysis.

g. Documenting and reporting research or evaluation findings and recommendations in a user-friendly manner that is understandable and conducive for use in decision-making and sharing across a range of audiences.

10. Please describe your (or your organization’s) past experience and technical capacities in using participatory methods in evaluation or research (as outlined in USAID’s Participatory Evaluation Guidance Note) including, but not limited to:

a. Meaningfully engaging local stakeholders in evaluations, ie: in formulating evaluation/research questions, validating findings, co-developing recommendations.

b. Employing participatory methodologies such as outcome harvesting, most significant change, or complexity-aware techniques.

c. Closing feedback loops with evaluation respondents (e.g. following up with evaluation respondents about evaluation results after data collection).

11. Please describe your (or your organization’s) past experience and technical capacities managing or participating in a multi-country research or evaluation consortium, including:

a. Building a consortium of organizations based in different countries.

b. Establishing a common objective and path forward shared by diverse partners

c. Analyzing research findings from diverse contexts to draw cross-cutting conclusions.

d. Any other elements of management or participation in a multi-country research or evaluation consortium.

12. Please describe your (or your organization’s) past experience and technical capacities conducting evaluations centered on USAID or other donor policies or processes (rather than the performance or impact of discrete development activities) (e.g. evaluations of policy implementation or of business process improvement).

13. If you are a U.S.-based organization or an organization based outside the countries where USAID conducts programming, please describe your organization’s experience with and approach to subcontractor selection; contract management, structure and oversight; and quality assurance for service providers outside the United States.

14. Optional: If you are able and willing, please provide the total estimated cost for evaluations or research you have described in Questions 9, 10, 11, or 12. This information is optional and will be used to help USAID budget for this evaluation.

Collecting Information on Potential Partners for Local Works Evaluation 10

15. Please describe your or your staff’s ability to speak, read, and write in English using the following levels (note that English language skills are NOT required to respond to this RFI):

a. No Proficiency.

b. Elementary Proficiency (conversational, able to understand basic questions)

c. Limited Working Proficiency (can handle limited work requirements in the language).

d. Professional Working Proficiency (able to participate fully in conversations on professional or personal topics).

e. Native or Full Professional Proficiency (able to use the language fluently and accurately in all settings).

16. Please describe your or your staff’s ability to speak, read, and write In French using the following levels (note that French language skills are NOT required to respond to this RFI):

a. No Proficiency.

b. Elementary Proficiency (conversational, able to understand basic questions).

c. Limited Working Proficiency (can handle limited work requirements in the language).

d. Professional Working Proficiency (able to participate fully in conversations on professional or personal topics).

e. Native or Full Professional Proficiency (able to use the language fluently and accurately in all settings).

17. Please describe your or your staff’s ability to speak, read, and write in Spanish using the following levels (note that Spanish language skills are NOT required to respond to this RFI):

a. No Proficiency.

b. Elementary Proficiency (conversational, able to understand basic questions)

c. Limited Working Proficiency (can handle limited work requirements in the language).

d. Professional Working Proficiency (able to participate fully in conversations on professional or personal topics).

e. Native or Full Professional Proficiency (able to use the language fluently and accurately in all settings).

18. Do you allow USAID to potentially share your information with other donors and interested parties seeking these capacities?

• Yes, I allow USAID to potentially share my information with other donors and interested parties seeking these capacities.

• No, please keep my response confidential to USAID.

[END OF REQUEST FOR INFORMATION]