72061122R00007 Zambia Integrated Health Activity Questions and Answers 9.23.2022.pdf

72061122R00007 Zambia Integrated Health Activity Amendment #1

Questions and Answers

# Question USAID Response

1 I have seen an advertisement on the official website for the USAID page.

Please, what positions are on there?

There are no direct positions in USAID as part of this solicitation. Please engage with prospective offerors.

2 I am trying to find out if the understanding that this FOI will have two areas capacity building and the treatment component. If that understanding is correct ,is it also correct that there is a likelihood of one organization to focus on the treatment and other organization to focus on capacity building initiatives?

If we understand the question correctly, we anticipate that there will only be one awardee to perform all of the requirements in the RFP and resultant contract.

3 My name is X, I am a filmmaker based in Lusaka, I have scripts that I have done about hiv, early marriage and teenage pregnancy. I want to shoot the short films translate them in to 7 common languages in Zambia. I want to show people who are limited to information about hiv and early marriage, I want to beam the short moves to the country side.

I want to find out if I do qualify to partner with you on this project?

Please review the eligibility criteria in the RFP.

4 Can USAID please confirm if Key Personnel CVs should be included as part of an annex (and should therefore not be included within the 40 page maximum number of pages)?

No, everything is included in the 40 page limit.

5 Can USAID please confirm if the organogram should be included as part of an annex (and should therefore not be included within the 40 page maximum number of pages)?

No. Please see #4.

6 Per section C.9 Working with Local and Indigenous Organizations, USAID mentions subcontracts to such organizations however in some cases a grant would be the more appropriate mechanism. Could USAID confirm that Grants under Contract are authorized on this contract?

No, they are not authorized.

7 Can size 10-point font be used for figures, tables, charts and graphics?

No.

8 Can acronyms be listed as an Annex? No, please see #4.

9 Can USAID please clarify that the description of any quality awards or certifications that indicate exceptional capacity to provide the service or product described in the statement of work should be included as a separate Annex to the cost proposal and not as an Annex in the technical proposal?

That information is required to be included in the past performance information sheet (attachment 3) and only for those awards not in CPARS.

10 Can USAID please clarify that Biographical Data Sheets (Attachment 6) for all Key Personnel and letters of commitment signed by each person proposed as Key Personnel should be included as a separate Annex to the cost proposal and not as an Annex in the technical proposal?

They are part of the cost proposal. Please see Section L.7.10 of the RFP.

11 Can USAID please confirm that offerors may provide past performance information, as required in section L.7.7, for projects funded by both contract and grant mechanisms?

No, contracts only.

12 On page 6, under Section C.1, the RFP states that the Activity Title is “USAID Zambia Integrated HIV and Health Activity (USAID Zambia Integrated Health).” Can Offerors refer to the Activity as “ZIHA” as an

No.

abbreviation?

13 On page 8, under Section C.5 and on page 25, under Section F.6, Deliverable #5, the RFP references “Increased utilization of community and facility-based quality, person-centered, integrated HIV, TB/HIV, FP and MNCH services by at least 25%.” Can USAID clarify:

a. the specific definition of

“utilization” in this context and the specific indicator(s) that the Contractor will be expected to measure of named integrated services?

b. whether such “utilization” indicators are expected to be available through existing national (i.e., SmartCare) or PEPFAR (i.e., DATIM) data systems?

c. the parameters of the baseline data source(s) for the 25% increase?

We have removed the deliverable in Section F.6.

14 On page 8, under Section C.5, Component 1, the RFP explicitly mentions “client differentiated needs including for women, men, and adolescents.” Can USAID clarify if the Offeror should include efforts on children and HIV-exposed infants, as these populations are mentioned under Component 2?

The Offeror should include all populations affected by HIV.

15 On page 11, under Section C.9, the RFP states that “at least 15% of the contract (by dollar value) must be subcontracted through local organizations” and “at least 10% of the contract (by dollar value) must be subcontracted through indigenous organizations.” Considering this, would USAID approve grants under contract (such as fixed amount awards) to comply with this requirement?

16 On page 25, under Section F.6, regarding Deliverables #1-4: Can USAID confirm that “achievement” and “maintenance” of 95-95-95 refers to the percentage of targets achieved (rather than a population-based estimate)?

This has been further clarified and defined in Section F.

17 On page 25, under Section F.6, Deliverable #6 states “At least 20% of P/DHOs have taken over direct service delivery for integrated HIV/FP/MNCH from the contractor at the end of the contract, and have been deemed to sustain the services by USAID.” Can USAID provide clarity on the specific definition of “taken over” in this context?

It means that those facilities no longer require USAID (or other donor) funding or support to operate. This has been reflected in Sections C and F. Please note that Section C states that the milestones to get here are jointly developed with the Contractor, USAID, and GRZ.

18 On page 27, under Section F.9, the Chief of Party (COP) description states that the COP “must work closely with the Deputy Chief of Party.” Can USAID confirm whether this should read “Technical Director” rather than “Deputy Chief of Party”?

Thank you for the catch. This has been amended.

19 On page 27, under Section F.9, the Finance Management and Operations Director minimum qualifications include registration “with the Zambian Institute of Chartered Accountants (ZICA).” Would USAID consider changing this requirement as a “preferred qualification” rather than a “minimum qualification”?

Restricting eligible candidates to only those with a specific certification may prevent Offerors from proposing suitable candidates with longstanding USAID experience in finance and administration leadership roles and degrees in business administration.

This requirement has been removed.

20 On page 94, under Section L.6, the RFP states that “Times New Roman point 12 font size” should be used for the technical proposal. Would USAID allow a smaller font for tables and graphics?

This has been updated.

21 On page 95, under Section L.6, the RFP states the required order of the technical proposal as “Cover Page, Cover Letter and Executive Summary, Table of Contents, Draft Workplan for 24 Months, and Management Plan.”

Can Offerors provide the following order as an alternative: “Cover Page, Cover Letter, Table of Contents, Executive Summary, Draft Workplan for 24 Months, and Management Plan”?

We have changed the order.

22 On page 96, under Section L.7.3, the RFP states “The Offeror must provide a complete budget for the total proposed estimate cost during the period of performance, including the budgets for each major Subcontractor, by cost element utilizing the provided Excel budget template in Attachment 5. All formulas must be displayed, and the budget must not be locked.” Can Offerors modify the template to add more tabs (e.g., level of effort, equipment schedules, subs)?

Yes.

23 On page 96, under Section L.7.3, the RFP states “There must not be multiple workbooks between the prime and subcontractor(s), if applicable.” Would USAID reconsider this given that the Prime summarizes total cost by year in the Prime budget? Having different workbooks for each subrecipient will reduce the high risk of data error that may occur when merging data from

No. Please adhere to the instructions provided.

multiple subrecipients.

24 On page 100, under Section L.7.7, the RFP states that “all applicable fields in Attachment 5 must be completed.”

Can USAID clarify if this is referring to the Attachment J.3 - Past Performance Information Sheet?

Thank you for the catch. Yes, this has been corrected.

25 On page 100, under Section L.7.7, the RFP states that “Offerors must not submit past performance information for contracts in CPARS.” Can USAID confirm if Offerers may provide just the contract number on the Past Performance Information Sheet for contracts in CPARS so that USAID knows which projects to evaluate?

No.

26 On page 100, under Section L.7.7, the RFP states “describe any quality awards or certifications that indicate exceptional capacity to provide the service or product described in the statement of work.” Can USAID clarify if these descriptions should be submitted as a Word document or if they should be in the Excel template provided for the Past Performance Information?

Please see #9.

27 Can USAID clarify how much of the funding for this Activity is anticipated to be from PEPFAR?

$100,000,000

28 There are several references to the Activity ‘goals,’ but these are not defined explicitly in the solicitation.

Can USAID please clarify Activity goals? (e.g., pages 21, 27, 45, 105)

These are the same as the objective and results in Sections C.4 and C.5.

29 Given that the anticipated solicitation release date in the USAID Business Forecast is October 1, 2022, that the solicitation was released early on September 7, 2022, and that there are two public holidays in Zambia before

October 26, 2022, would USAID consider a two-week extension to the proposal due date?

30 Will USAID provide illustrative targets for Northwestern, Copperbelt, and Central provinces for Year 1, including for the PEPFAR indicators

(TX_NEW, TX_CURR, PVLS,

HTS_TST, HTS_POS,

VMMC_CIRC, PrEP_NEW, TX_CURR, MMD)?

These targets have not been developed yet as the Contractor will be responsible for them starting in COP 23.

31 The RFP is unclear on MNCH and FP component. What indicators under MNCH and FP are of interest to

USAID?

Indicators for this component are established under the AMELP. We have removed this deliverable in Section F.6.

32 C.4 OBJECTIVE AND C.5

EXPECTED RESULTS AND

MINIMUM ACTIVITIES, PAGES 7

AND 9: Can USAID please clarify the subpopulations of this contract?

On page 7 under Objective, the RFP references “PLHIV especially women, AGYW, children, and adolescents,” and on page 9 under Component 2, priority subpopulations listed are “women, especially living with HIV, children living with HIV, AGYW, survivors of GBV, PLHIV with TB.”

Please see #14.

33 C.4 OBJECTIVE, PAGE 7; C.5

EXPECTED RESULTS AND

MINIMUM ACTIVITIES, PAGES 8

AND 10; AND F.6 PAYMENT OF

FIXED FEE, PAGE 25: The RFP references “focus” and “priority districts”, but aside from the three provinces identified, focus/priority districts are not identified. Can USAID please clarify which districts within the three initial priority provinces are being considered?

This will be determined in the first six months of the contract. The language has been updated.

34 C.5 EXPECTED RESULTS AND The language is Section F.6 is meant to be

MINIMUM ACTIVITIES, PAGE 8:

Can USAID please clarify the target for required results of Component 3?

Section C.5 of the RFP states that that “20% of health facilities should be transitioned from direct service delivery support.” Under F.6 PAYMENT OF FIXED FEE on page 25, the RFP states that “At least 20% of P/DHOs have taken over direct service delivery for integrated HIV/FP/MNCH from the contractor at the end of the contract, and have been deemed to sustain the services by USAID.” Is the target for transition from direct service delivery 20% of health facilities or 20% of P/DHOs?

“health facilities”. This has been corrected.

35 C.5 EXPECTED RESULTS AND

MINIMUM ACTIVITIES, PAGE 10:

Can USAID please confirm that the second bullet point should be separated and read as follows?

• Build capacity across all levels of government including gradual HRH transition to local entities.

• Deliver TA and capacity building to strengthen the health system to foster responsiveness to program beneficiary needs, socio-cultural norms and service adaptability to maintain quality, performance, and efficiencies.

Yes, this has been corrected.

36 C.6 WORKING WITH GRZ, PAGE

10: The RFP states that making the relationship work between the Zambian public health system and the private sector “will take some effort and time.” Can USAID clarify whether this Activity is expected to work with the private sector? If so, can USAID confirm which entities are considered private sector actors, e.g., faith-based facilities, private

Yes. Anything not the public sector is the private sector.

for-profit clinics, etc.?

37 C.9 WORKING WITH LOCAL

AND INDIGENOUS

ORGANIZATIONS, PAGE

11: Would USAID reconsider indigenous organizations requiring Board members to be 100% Zambian? Many small CSOs have non-Zambia Board members who provide guidance and diversity that reflects good governance.

We have amended the language.

38 C.10 CONSTRUCTION, PAGES

11-12: The RFP prescribes that design costs must not exceed 6% of any of the costs associated with construction. Could USAID clarify if the design validation and verification can be allocated in addition to the 6% allocated to the “design” subcategories of any A&E subcontract, or should this be allocated under other categories in the subcontractor’s budget?

No, that’s within the 6% limit.

39 F.5 REPORTS AND

DELIVERABLES, PAGE 18: Does USAID require a separate budget line item reflecting the Environmental Management and Mitigation Plan (under F.5.7)?

This is up to the offeror.

40 F.6 PAYMENT OF FIXED FEE,

PAGE 25: Given the anticipated need to adapt to the dynamic environment in Zambia as stated in Section B.7, will there be flexibility to also adapt the targets in the fee schedule provided in Section F.6?

Given the generality and hypothetical nature of the question, the answer is no.

41 F.5.6 Activity Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (AMEL) Plan, Page 21: The RFP states, “All data… must align with requirements per MER and SGAC guidance.” Can USAID please share where to find

Search the State Department’s website:

PEPFAR Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting (MER) Indicators this guidance?

42 F.9 KEY PERSONNEL, PAGE 26: In the spirit of capacity development, sustainability, and transition, will USAID consider changing the requirement that all key personnel be employed by the prime Contractor and allowing one or more key personnel to be employed by local major subcontractors?

No.

43 H.13 ELECTRONIC PAYMENTS

SYSTEM, PAGE 41 and H.23

ELECTRONIC PAYMENT

SYSTEM, PAGES 50-51: Section H references “Grants under Contracts,” but there is no specific reference to Grants under Contracts in Sections B, C, or H of the solicitation. Does USAID intend to include a Grants under Contracts mechanism under this contract?

No.

44 H.2 ADDITIONAL

REQUIREMENTS FOR

PERSONNEL COMPENSATION,

PAGE 36: (e) Annual Salary Increases, (2) TCN and CCN Staff references the U.S.

Embassy Local Compensation Plan (LCP) to establish the maximum salary of the highest senior Foreign Service National. Could USAID share the LCP for the Embassy with offerors?

We are not sharing the LCP, but here is the range:

Support ZMW 76,977.22 - ZMW 176,260.78 Junior ZMW 135,912.18 - ZMW 267,984.08 Mid ZMW 250,346.82 - ZMW 602,590.96 Senior ZMW 511,565.54 -ZMW 1,436,445.33

45 H.14 ENVIRONMENTAL

COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS,

PAGE 43: The RFP states, “A provision for sub-grants is included in this award; therefore, the contractor will be required to use an Environmental Review For (ERF) or Environmental Review (ER) checklist using impact assessment tools to screen grant proposals to ensure the funded proposal will result in no adverse environmental impact….”

Does USAID intend to issue Grants under Contracts under the awarded contract for this RFP?

46 L.6 INSTRUCTIONS FOR

PREPARATION OF THE

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL, PAGE

94: Can USAID please clarify if graphics/images and/or tables/charts may use a font and font size other than Times New Roman 12-point font?

No.

47 L.6 INSTRUCTIONS FOR

PREPARATION OF THE

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL, PAGE

94: The RFP states, “Technical Proposals must adhere to the page limit of 40 pages total,” and “Nothing is excluded from the page limitation.”

Can USAID please confirm whether the Technical Proposal has any annexes not included in the 40-page limitation? If yes, can USAID please provide a list of annexes?

There are no annexes.

48 L.6 INSTRUCTIONS FOR

PREPARATION OF THE

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL, PAGE

95: Can USAID please clarify if the Cover Page, Cover Letter and Executive Summary, and Table of Contents are excluded or included within the 40-page limitation for the Technical Proposal? May offerors include an acronym list, and if so, would this be included within the 40-page limitation?

The RFP is clear. Everything is included in the page limitation.

49 L.6 INSTRUCTIONS FOR

PREPARATION OF THE

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL, Draft Workplan for 24 months, PAGE 95:

Confirmed. It is up to offerors to prepare their proposals. We are not dictating what goes into the technical proposal outside of what is stated in Section L. Offerors have the opportunity to

Can USAID please confirm that the main body of the Technical Proposal includes only the (1) Draft Workplan for 24 Months and (2) Management Plan? Does this mean that the Technical Proposal does not include activities or expected results beyond the first 24 months (i.e., in Years 3-5)? If the Technical Proposal is not limited to only the (1) Draft Workplan for 24 Months and (2) Management Plan, can USAID please provide a list of other sections and Technical Evaluation Factors for those sections?

• Can USAID please clarify expectations for the Draft Workplan for 24 Months?? Can USAID please confirm that the Draft Workplan does not need to include all details as outlined under the Annual Work Plan Year 1 description on page 19?

demonstrate their creativity and differentiation.

50 L.6 INSTRUCTIONS FOR

PREPARATION OF THE

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL, PAGE

95: Can USAID please clarify whether the Key Personnel CVs fall within the main Technical Proposal (40-page limitation), or in an annex?

Within the 40 page limit.

51 L.6 INSTRUCTIONS FOR

PREPARATION OF THE

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL, PAGE

96 AND F.9 KEY PERSONNEL,

PAGE 28: Sections F.9 and L.6 indicate that offerors should propose two Key Personnel positions, including job descriptions with roles, responsibilities, and minimum requirements/qualifications. Can USAID please clarify whether offerors should include job descriptions and qualifications within the Management Plan (40-page limitation) or in an annex?

Yes. This must be within the 40 page limit.

52 L.6 INSTRUCTIONS FOR

PREPARATION OF THE

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL, PAGE

95: Can USAID please clarify if the organogram should be included within the main Technical Proposal (40-page limitation), or in an annex?

Yes, and within the 40 page limit. There are no annexes.

53 L.7.4 Budget Narrative, page 96: The RFP states that international travel should be identified under Other Direct Costs (ODC). Can USAID please confirm that all travel should be included under a separate Travel cost category?

See question #22.

54 L.7.12 Waiver under FAR Part 4.2101 Prohibition on covered Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services and Equipment (December 2021), page 100: Could the USAID confirm if the current waiver to Section 889 Modified Foreign Assistance (FA) Waiver from the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), which will expire on September 30, 2028, is applicable and would trigger modification to sections L.7.12 (4) (i-iv) of the RFP?

Kindly clarify the applicability of such requirements in light of the current waiver in place.

It’s applicable, but there is no modification to the language. It is standard language.

55 Can USAID please make an exception to keep the Cover Page, Cover Letter, Executive Summary, and Table of Contents outside of the 40-page limit for the technical volume?

No.

56 May contractors include the 2-page CVs for the 6 key personnel positions and the organizational chart as annexes to the technical proposal?

No

57 Please clarify what phases are Good catch. The RFP has been updated.

referenced in the instructions on page 94; section M doesn’t refer to phases as described in section L.

58 The evaluation for the Draft Workplan for 24 Months on page 104 states that technical proposals will be evaluated on the quality and realism of the draft workplan, and how likely it will progress the activity towards achieving the required objectives.

Can USAID please expand upon the criteria that will be used to evaluate the draft work plans so that respondents can appropriately respond?

No. The criterion is as stated in Section M.

59 The RFP references psychosocial support in the scope of work on page 7, and mental health support on page

9. Please define what is meant by each term.

Please refer to the State Department’s Country Operational Plan (COP) for standard definitions.

60 Page 10, C.8 states that the contractor must coordinate with a 3rd party M&E provider. Can USAID disclose the name of the provider and if they are excluded from bidding or subcontracting on the ZIHA opportunity?

USAID/Zambia’s current M&E contractor is SoCha. They are not precluded, but would need to have a significant OCI mitigation plan in place to participate.

61 Can USAID confirm that all current data from the 3rd party M&E provider is publicly available?

All data will be uploaded by September 30, 2022. However, that is all data from the M&E contractor, not necessarily data relevant to this

RFP.

62 Please clarify specific districts (“focus districts”) within the 3 provinces that USAID would like contractors to work in for the first year of the project.

Please see #33.

63 Does USAID envision any G2G work as part of the ZIHA program?

It is unclear what is meant by “G2G work”.

G2G agreements are between USAID and the host government, and work under them is performed by the host government, not a USAID contractor.

64 C.4, Objective, states that The Contractor must initially operate in Northwest, Copperbelt, and Central Provinces, but specific locations will change and could be anywhere in Zambia. This has significant implications for the technical design, budget assumptions, and overall organizational risk. Can USAID be more specific about which provinces and districts this project will work in through the life of the project and how/when that will change?

Please see #33. While districts may change, we have made adjustments to the fee schedule to compensate if they do change.

65 The title of Objective 3 on page 9 describes increasing capacities of the P/DHOs to gradually provide more direct service delivery. The narrative under this component discusses building the capacity of GRZ and community-based structures and institutions. Does USAID envision IPs supporting local partners and organizations to deliver HIV and other clinical services so that sustainable systems and activities can continue, or only to the GRZ?

The GRZ, though the GRZ can deliver these services through the mentioned organizations should the GRZ choose to do so.

66 Page 18, F.5 states that a Construction Implementation Plan is due within 30 days of award. Would USAID consider changing this to be due within 90 days of award as this would allow for sufficient time to address the details required within this plan?

Yes, the RFP has been updated.

67 In addition to refurbishment and improvements to existing health facilities, are offerors expected to construct new health service delivery posts.

Possibly.

68 Attachment J.5 Budget Template is an Excel 97-2003 document. Can we submit a budget in a more recent

Yes.

version of Excel to take advantage of updates that have been made to Excel particularly with the use of Tables and Formulas

69 Page 25, F.6 Fixed Fee Payment.

Some of the conditions noted in this table present risk to the contractor as they push payment until nearly the end of the contract. May contractors present a technical approach and an alternative payment scale that breaks up results by year?

No.

70 Given the risks associated with this project and in particular the potential for location change, would USAID please consider having a base fee in addition to the fee paid based on results?

We do recognize the risk, which is why there is a fee component that is simply tied to the receipt of the final invoice and release of claims though we have increased the amount tied to that deliverable in the RFP to address concerns. Further, we recognize that shifting districts could impact achievement of the intended results and the language in the section F.6 has been updated. However, this is an activity where risk is being shared and we are expecting the Contractor to reach for these goals.

71 Can the fee table include fee payments that are tied to submission of required reports per the Reports and Deliverable Table in F.5 given the risks associated with the results currently included in the fee table?

Please see #70.

72 Will the fee schedule be reconsidered if USAID selects to change the focus districts of the project?

Please see #70.

73 Section F.6 on page 25 of the RFP provides a fee table where fee is tied to obtaining and maintaining 95-95-95 in aggregate in all focus districts and at each age group stratification. Given that the provinces of implementation may change over the life of the project as stated in section C.4 on page 7 of the

No, but please see #70.

RFP, it may be very difficult for the implementing organization to meet such results as provinces and districts are at such varying levels of HIV services. This puts the implementing organization at high risk of not achieving the targets and therefore not being able to realize the fee. Can Offerors propose a different fee table that is more aligned with the risks associated with this project?

74 Page 25, F.6 Fixed Fee Payment Deliverable 1-4 - can USAID confirm if these are based on self-reported data adjusted for viral load <200 HIV RNA copies per milliliter, among adults aged 15+ years (preliminary ZAMPHIA results)

No, it’s based on MER data.

75 Page 25, F.6 Fixed Fee Payment Deliverables 2, 3, and 4 - can USAID specify the age stratifications which will be used to determine this deliverable.

All fine-age stratifications.

76 Page 25, F.6 Fixed Fee Payment Deliverables 2, 3, and 4 – can USAID clarify whether the 95-95-95 achievement is within the provinces where ZIHA will be implemented (and not Zambia as a whole)?

Yes.

77 Page 25, F.6 Fixed Fee Payment Deliverables 3 and 4 – if target districts are changed during implementation, what criteria will USAID utilize to evaluate 95-95-95 maintenance at each age group stratification?

Please see #70.

78 Given the types of integrated services mentioned in the Payment of Fixed Fee Deliverable 5, can USAID consider splitting this out into various indicators? For example, increase in PMTCT services, increase in TB

We have removed this deliverable.

identification in HIV clinics, increase in FP uptake, and so on.

79 Question on Fixed Fee Payment Deliverable 5– Since utilization is monitored and measured continually, can USAID divide the deliverables out so that it is a pre-determined increase in utilization by end of each year – rather than have it tied to the end of contract achievement of 25%.

We have removed this deliverable.

80 Per C.4, Objective, the provinces and districts of ZIHA implementation will change during the life of project. As Fixed Fee Payment Deliverables 5 and 6 are tied to increased utilization of services and transition to P/DHOs taking on direct service delivery by the end of the contract a change of project geography will have major implication for any IP in meeting these targets. Would USAID please consider changing the fee table given that an IP cannot ensure these results when geographies shift.

Please see #70.

81 Fixed Fee Payment Deliverable 6 -how will USAID define “P/DHOs have taken over direct to service delivery.” Does this include both facility and community-based services (e.g.; P/DHOs directly paying CHWs)?

Please see #17.

82 Fixed Fee Payment Deliverable 6 - by having “taken over direct service delivery,” is USAID referring to a complete HRH transition, or are other factors being measured?

Please see #17.

83 What criteria for Fixed Fee Payment Deliverable 6 will USAID use to deem that services are sustained?

Please see #17. We expect this to be part of the process of a facility being transitioned to the GRZ. Thus, we have removed this language in Section F.

84 Section C.9 on page 10 and 11 of the No, there are no GUCs.

RFP states that at least 15% of the contract dollars must be subcontracted to local organizations and 10% of the contract dollars must be subcontracted to indigenous organizations. If an Offeror proposes Grants Under Contract (GUCs), could the GUCs be counted toward the requirements for funding going toward local and indigenous organizations?

85 Section B.3(b) on page 3 includes a plug figure of $2M for Constructions.

If the Offeror intends to contract this work to a local or indigenous organization, can this be counted toward the requirements for 15% and 10% of the budget to be subcontracted such local and indigenous organizations?

Yes.

86 Section C.4 on page 7 of the RFP states that the specific locations will change and could be anywhere in Zambia. Can USAID provide assumptions around which provinces should be budgeted in which years for budgeting purposes?

Provinces are indicated in the RFP.

87 Section H.2(e) on page 36 of the RFP states that a 5% annual increase may be granted once a year for TCN and CCN staff. Current market data shows that annual increases should be closer to 10% given current inflation rates. Can USAID please consider amending this?

No.

88 Can USAID please confirm that it expects 100% of an entity’s staff and 100% of the entity's Board of Directors (if it has a Board of Directors) to be citizens or lawfully admitted permanent residents of Zambia to be considered an indigenous organization. Would USAID be willing to lower the criteria of the staff and Board for this definition?

89 Section M.5 on page 106 of the RFP, does USAID intend to use an Offeror’s indirect ceiling rates as part of the final cost evaluation?

If this is referring to the ceiling on indirect costs that will be included in Section B, we will consider it as part of a responsibility determination.

90 Is USAID willing to provide a letter of credit for any proposed GUCs?

There are no GUCs.

91 Does USAID anticipate releasing any additional funding opportunities related to this activity

No. Not at this time.

92 Regarding section C.9 Working with Local and Indigenous Organizations, would proposals including more than the required 15% of funds budgeted for local organizations plus 10% for indigenous organizations be favoured/receive additional points in the scoring of proposals?

No, though we do encourage offerors to go above and beyond that minimum requirement.

93 In Section C.4 there is mention of concentrating resources on focus districts. Are the focus and priority districts in Northwest, Copperbelt, and Central Provinces already identified, and if so, which are they?

Please see #33.

94 B.3(b)/C.10 Is the amount for Construction fixed at $2m or can either be increased or reduced?.

When will USAID give direction on the breakdown of the $2m?

The amount will not be increased.The breakdown may be agreed upon post award workplan level.

95 C.4/C.5 Which ones are the Target districts? Is it all the districts in these 3 Provinces?

Please see #33.

96 F.6 When will the Fixed Fee Negotiated? What will be the basis for inclusion in the Contract?

FAR52.216-8 Fixed Fee does , not

Offerors propose the fee, though there is a statutory limit of 10%.

stipulate the rate

97 L.7.7 Where the Contractor has been added to Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) in the current FY and the performance information is yet to be updated, can the Contractor instead use " Past Performance Information Sheet"(Attachment 3)? How will this performance captured since there is a caveat for Offerors not to submit past perfomance information for contracts in CPARS?

In this situation, you can add that info to the information sheet.

98 L.7.7 There is a specific requirement to only show past performance in the last 3 years and involving the delivery of integrated health services in a foreign country. Does this mean that only organization with International experience are eligible to bid.? This sentence seem to technically eliminate Zambian organizations with experience/past performance if that performance is in Zambia . Kindly clarify??

“Foreign country” in this context means other than the United States. If the past performance is for work within Zambia, meeting the other requirements, it would be considered. Please note that a lack of relevant or recent past performance results in a neutral rating, and thus the entity is still eligible for the award.