Amendment 05 - Solicitation 72052320R00002 PREVI.pdf

1. The due date to submit Technical and Cost Proposals is being extended as follows:

“The Technical and Cost Proposals are both now due on April 8, 2020 at 8 A.M. (Mexico time).”

2. The date to submit Questions under this Solicitation is extended to March 23, 2020 at 12:00 noon (Mexico Time).

3. Attachment No. 1 this Amendment, containing Questions and Answers received in response to this Solicitation is included as part of this Amendment.

--End of Amendment No. 5--

PAGE NO.

SOLICITATION/CONTRACT NO. ORDER NO. AMENDMENT NO.

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION (CONTINUED)

STANDARD FORM 30 (CONTINUATION)

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

72052320R00002 05

PAGE NO.

SOLICITATION/CONTRACT NO. ORDER NO. AMENDMENT NO.

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION (CONTINUED)

STANDARD FORM 30 (CONTINUATION)

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

72052320R00002 05

Attachment No. 1

Subject: Request for Proposal No. 72052320R00002

Activity Name: Violence Prevention and Reduction Activity

Date of Issuance: February 24, 2020

Questions due: March 9, 2020 at 2:00 pm Mexico City time

Proposal due date & time: March 25, 2020 at 5:00 pm Mexico City time

NAICS Code: 541990 – All other Professional, Scientific and

Technical Services

Amendment No.: 5 – Questions and Answers 3

Issuance date of Amendment: March 20, 2020

NO. QUESTION ANSWER

COVER PAGE AND SECTION A

After reviewing Amendment 4 and the included Q&A from Amendment 3, we noticed several inconsistencies that have significant implications for Offerors’ ability to respond to the amended RFP. In addition, the new guidance significantly changes the structure and content of the technical proposal. We request USAID’s immediate review and response to clarification questions below in order to allow Offerors to prepare a proposal that complies with the new guidance. We also request an extension of two weeks for the technical and cost proposal submission deadlines in order to allow Offerors adequate time to address these substantial changes to

USAID’s instructions. Examples of these substantial changes include:

a) Reversal of instructions on naming key personnel candidates in the proposal, which significantly alters the content of the proposal documents.

b) Change of an outcome indicator (GOPI index) which requires introduction of a new activity and more substantive interventions.

As recommended, the Technical and Cost Proposals are both now due on April 8, 2020 at 8 A.M. (Mexico time).

a) USAID clarified in Answer 23 in Amendment

3 that the Offeror must include signed

Employee Biographical Data Sheets for the primary candidate of the Key Personnel positions identified by USAID--Chief of Party and Deputy Chief of Party only. The reference in Section L.8.C.2 only pertained to any additional Key Personnel positions proposed by the Offeror, for which the Offeror must not propose individuals when submitting the proposals.

b) The original outcome indicator was an error and the targets did not align with it. USAID corrected the indicator in Amendment #3, Point #4 (modifying Section C.4, Outcome

#3).

c) See Amendment No. 4 for the correct

Instructions to Offerors.

d) See Amendment 3, revised Section J for additional background information.

c) Significant changes to the page limit and structure of the technical proposal related to the inclusion of the Executive Summary

(reversed in Amendment 4) and Organizational

Chart in the technical page limit

d) Provision of extensive technical material that was not available to most Offerors early in the proposal process, creating an unfair advantage for organizations that did have access to this information.

SECTION L – INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS AND NOTICES TO OFFERORS

2 Amendment 01, Section L.7 states that

“Technical Proposals must not make reference to pricing data in order that the technical evaluation may be made strictly on the basis of technical merit.” However, in Amendment 03, the response to question 3 states that “Offerors are expected to submit as part of the technical and cost proposals, a detailed fee schedule based on Deliverables detailed in Section F.2 and any other deliverables each offeror proposed based on their technical approach”.

Can USAID please confirm that the fee schedule should be submitted only with the cost proposal?

Offerors are required to propose deliverables that reflect the technical approach proposed.

Those deliverables must be included in Section B.9.

Payment of Fee. Offerors are required to propose an amount of fee to be paid for those specific deliverables.

Section B. 9 must be submitted as part of the Cost

Proposals, which is separate from the Technical

Proposal.

However, the Technical Approach must clearly identify those deliverables without making reference to the amount of fee proposed to be paid once these deliverables are completed.

3 Amendment 01, Section L.8 (C)(1)(h) references an “Illustrative Work Plan for the intervention.” Can USAID please clarify if the

Illustrative Work Plan is for the first year or for all four years of the Project?

USAID confirms that the Illustrative Work Plan is only for the first year of the project.

4 Amendment 01, Section L.8 (C)(2), Management Approach states that “The

Offeror must not propose individuals to fill these roles; however, the Offeror must certify that the names and CVs of personnel to fill these key roles will be submitted by the

Offeror for Contracting Officer approval within five business days of the date of award”. However, in Amendment 03, the

Please see Answer 23 of Amendment No. 3 in which

USAID confirms:

1) The Offeror must include signed Employee

Biographical Data (EBD) Sheets for the primary candidate of the Key Personnel positions identified by

USAID--Chief of Party and Deputy Chief of Party.

The reference in Section L.8.C.2 only pertains to any additional Key Personnel positions proposed by the response to question 35 states that “EBDs must be submitted for all identified staff at the moment of submission of the cost proposal”.

1) Can USAID please confirm if all identified staff in addition to key personnel are to be named in the cost proposal?

2) If so, should Offerors submit EBDs for all named individuals?

Offeror, for which the Offeror must not propose individuals when submitting the proposals.

2) The Offeror must submit EBDs and letters of commitment for the primary candidate of the Key

Personnel positions identified by USAID with the proposals: Chief of Party and Deputy Chief of Party.

Additional personnel should not be identified and do not require EBDs.

5 In Amendment 3, Question 24 says.

“Please confirm that offerors may submit an organizational chart as Annex to the technical proposal.” The Answer provided reads, “ The Organizational chart, which is part of the Personnel and Management Approach, is part of the 20 page limitation and should not be included as an Annex.” Yet, on page 5 and 6 of Amendment 3, in the guidance given to organize the technical proposal (L.8.A), the Organizational Chart is listed as Annex D. Could USAID please clarify whether the organization chart should be part of the 20-page technical approach, or should it be presented in Annex D and not count toward the 20-page limit.

See the Answer to # 1c above.

6 In Amendment 3, on page 6 for the guidance on organization of the technical proposal

(L.8.A), USAID now requires Annex C. Key

Individual Certifications per ADS 206 for all key personnel proposed. This certification is normally presented in the Cost Proposal.

Please confirm that this certification is to be included in the Cost Proposal and not the

Technical Proposal.

Key Individual Certifications per ADS 206 was added as Annex G of the Technical Proposal (Solicitation -

Amendment #4 -- Point #1).

7 In Section L.8.A, USAID has modified Annexes to be submitted to include B. Resumes (for key personnel only, not to exceed 3 pages per individual); and C. Key Individual Certifications per ADS 206 for all key personnel proposed.

There is no other discussion in the RFP about resumes, and indeed there is still instruction not to identify key personnel beyond the COP

a) Amendment # 4 deletes Resumes as Annex of the Technical Proposal.

b) See Answer # 4 above.

and DCOP.

A)Please clarify whether offerors are to submit resumes for key personnel, and B) if the requirement is for all key personnel.

8 Section L.8 entitled “Instructions for

Preparation of Technical Proposal” was revised and now includes a Project

Organizational Chart under the Annex section which is not included in the page limit.

However, Answer No. 24 states “Per Section

L.8.A., USAID/Mexico confirms that the 20-page limitation applies to all information related to the Executive Summary, Technical approach and/or Management Plan, including tables and graphics. The Organizational chart, which is part of the Personnel and

Management Approach, is part of the 20 pages limitation and should not be included as an Annex.” Could USAID please clarify this discrepancy?

See Amendment No. 4 for the correct Instructions to

Offerors.

Also, see the Answer to # 1c for more clarification.

OTHERS

9 Amendment 04, Section 1, Annex G, requires key individual certifications for key personnel proposed.

a) Can USAID please confirm that these documents are only required for primary COP and DCOP candidates?

b) Can USAID also confirm whether all key personnel may be named and qualifications described elsewhere in the technical proposal?

a) See the Answers to # 1a and # 4 above.

b) See the Answers to # 1a and # 4 above.

Additionally, as per the original solicitation and subsequent amendments, “The Offeror must provide a description of the responsibilities, roles and qualifications for each additional key personnel and describe how these respond to the proposed management structure and reflect the

Offeror’s judgement of the combination and level of skills and experience required for each position within the context of the

Activity.” Furthermore, “The Offeror must not propose individuals to fill these roles.”