J.5_Consolidated_Q&A.pdf

RFP # 72061518R00005 USAID/Kenya and East Africa Feed the Future Zone of Influence Survey Questions and Answers – Round 2

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS # 72061518R00005, AMENDMENT 2

FEED THE FUTURE ZONE OF INFLUENCE SURVEY

SOLICITATION QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES – ROUND 2

Dear Offerors, We thank you for submitting questions in response to the referenced Request for Proposals (RFP). We are providing our responses to the questions as follows. The responses to the questions are in blue font immediately following each question.

We hope that having two rounds of questions was helpful for Offerors.

Questions and Answers

1) Following up on page 87 of the RFP and Answer 12 of the Questions and Answers – Round 1 document, while we understand the local compensation plan (LCP) is sensitive, can USAID provide the date of the LCP from which USAID provided the lowest and highest base salary values?

The date of the LCP from which the lowest and highest base salary values is October 1, 2017.

2) Will USAID consider accepting established market labor rates which are fully burdened for CCN or

TCN subcontractors who do not have an approved NICRA or established fringe benefit rate, in lieu of submitting biodatas if that is their established policy for doing business in Kenya?

USAID considers many factors when determining the reasonableness of proposed salaries. These factors include (but are not limited to), prevailing market labor rates and salary history.

3) RFP p. 13 states “…the sample size for the 2018 Kenya endline/baseline ZOI Survey should be 6031 households selected from a total of 241 EAs. Before selecting the EAs, the sample frame shall be stratified into 2 ZOI strata (HR1/SA2 and NAL each having 2766 households). An additional 500 households will be sampled for the non-overlap area in HR1/SA2.”

(a) Please confirm that the 6031 households includes the 500 non-overlap households (ie, NNAL=2766 and NHR1/SA2=3266.

Confirmed.

(b) Assuming 6,031 is the desired number of completed cases, please explain how USAID will consider modifying payment (if at all) if the Contractor is unable to reach the desired target due to circumstances beyond the Contractor’s control.

Any circumstances that may interfere with Contractor performance will be discussed with the Contracting Officer at the time, and any adjustments in payment that may be necessary will be evaluated and negotiated on a case by case basis.

4) RFP p. 87 requires the submission of biographical data sheets for “…key personnel, consultants, and other short-term and long-term professional positions.…” Please confirm that, given that award is firm-fixed-price, biographical data sheets will not be required post-award by USAID for “to be determined” positions such as survey field staff or other staff not yet identified at the time of proposal submission.

This is confirmed. The apparently successful offeror must certify that the proposed salary offered to any individual filling a TBD position will be in line with their salary history.

5) RFP p. 89 references “…environmental compliance implementation and monitoring (per H.11)…”.

However, H.11 refers to salary supplements for host government employees.

(a) Please confirm this refers to H.9 “Environmental Compliance”.

Yes, this is correct. Please consider the RFP amended to include this change.

(b) Please confirm that the reference to “USAID/Sudan” in H.9 should say “USAID/Kenya”.

Yes, this is correct. Please consider the RFP amended to include this change.

(c) If the IIE determination was for a categorical exclusion based on 22 CFR §216.2 (c)(2)(i), (iii) and (v), why is H.9.3), “USAID anticipates that environmental compliance and achieving optimal development outcomes for the proposed activities will require environmental management expertise.” included in the H.9? Given the nature of the RFP activities and the categorical exclusion, it seems environmental management expertise would not be required.

Please include as part of your submission that you do not believe environmental management expertise would not be required.

6) Should the contractor assume that CSPro has the case management capabilities needed for this project? For example, the ability to load cases and questionnaire modules based on geographic area, the ability for supervisors to assign specific cases to enumerators, and the ability to allow quality control managers to review input?

CSPro has already been programmed and has the capacity required.

7) Will the CSPro case management system also be provided to the contractor or should the contractor assume case management is something they will have to design independently?

CSPro has already been programmed and has the capacity required. However, it will have to be adapted to country needs, which is why a programmer is a necessary position.

8) RFP p. 89 states “It is not expected that fee will be applied to other than direct costs for sub-awards

(i.e., not profit or indirect costs).” Given that a major component of fee for firm-fixed-price awards is risk and that indirect costs for subawards are a legitimate cost incurred by subcontractors (as they are for prime contractors) and thus borne by the Contractor (particularly where a major portion of cost, such as field staff expenses, may be subcontracted), please explain USAID’s rationale for suggesting the exclusion of these costs from the fee base.

Fee may be calculated against all allowable costs. The section that discusses fee is updated to include the following language: “The Offeror’s proposed fee in their cost proposal shall be calculated against all allowable costs.”

9) Should the contractor assume costs for payment to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics for their time pulling data and printing EA maps? Or does USAID have an agreement with KNBS to provide support for this contract?

The Offeror should include the cost of listing operations – including pulling data and printing EA maps – in the budget.

10) Do you have an idea about the ceiling price for this tender?

We are not providing a range for this activity. We request that Offerors propose their best firm fixed price based on the SOW and deliverables contained in the solicitation.

11) Can we submit our application by email?

Please refer to Section L.7 of the RFP.

12) Can we use tablets for data collection?

The approach should be proposed by the Offeror. Please propose the method you feel will best achieve the results of the survey while ensuring quality control checks are in place.

13) Can you share the baseline report?

The baseline reports are publicly available in the USAID Development Experience Clearinghouse website (dec.usaid.gov)

14) What is the minimum sample size you would like to have?

The sample size is already stated in the RFP. Please see page 13.

15) How long is the questionnaire interview expected to last?

We are estimating an average of 4 hours. However, interviews of households with many children and working in multiple targeted value chains are expected to take longer while those working in the livestock VCs and/or with fewer children will be shorter.

16) Will USAID provide the anthropometric tools or should we budget them?

No, USAID will not provide the anthropometric tools. Offerers should include in the budget.

17) Kindly elaborate on the initials TBD used in the above RFP.

TBD stands for To Be Determined.

18) What would be the project end date?

Please refer to the RFP for details on the anticipated time frame.

19) On p. 87 and p. 88 there are requirements for biographical data sheets. The text on p. 88 just applies to consultants and the text p. 87 indicates biodata sheets should be provided more broadly for “all key personnel, consultants, and other short-term and long-term professional positions (this does not include positions such as secretaries and drivers) expected to perform on the contract.” The text on

p. 87 appears to imply that short-term survey personnel such as supervisors and interviewers would be required to submit biodata sheets, which is not feasible given many of those individuals would be hired after contract award. Is this requirement only for key personnel and consultants? Or is it a requirement for some other subset of staff working on the project?

Please see the response to Question # 4. Salaries for personnel listed on Page 87 must be accompanied by biodata sheets. For those proposed after the award is made, biodata forms will not be required, however, Offerors will be required to certify that salaries proposed for personnel hired are in line with their salary histories.

[END OF DOCUMENT]