72069623RFI00001Trade Activity RFI - signed (1).pdf

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

RFI Number: 72069623RFI00001 Issuance Date: 11/30/ 2022 Due Date and Time: 12/13/2022 (4:00 PM Rwanda time)

SUBJECT: United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Rwanda Trade Facilitation Activity (RTFA)

Dear Interested Parties, The United States Agency for International Development’s Mission in Rwanda (USAID/Rwanda) posts this Request for Information (RFI) to collect written information for the upcoming Rwanda Trade Facilitation Activity (RFTA).

This RFI is issued solely for information-gathering and planning purposes. This is not a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a Request for Application (RFA) and is not to be construed as a commitment by the United States Government (USG) to issue any solicitation or Notice of Funding Opportunity, award a contract or assistance agreement on the basis of this RFI, or pay for any information voluntarily submitted as a result of this request. Responses to this RFI must not be portrayed as proposals and will not be accepted by the USG to form a binding agreement. It should be noted that responding to or providing comment on this RFI will not give any advantage to any organization in any subsequent procurement(s) if such procurement(s) is released. USAID will not provide answers to anything submitted in response to this request. USAID posts its competitive business opportunities on www.beta.sam.gov or www.grants.gov. It is the potential offeror’s/applicant’s responsibility to monitor these sites for announcements of new opportunities. Responses to this RFI may be used by USAID without restriction or limitation.

Responses to this RFI must be addressed, and submitted by email, to the Acquisition and Assistance Specialist, Mr. Eriazel Bagabo at ebagabo@usaid.gov. Please include RFI Number 72069623RFI00001 in the subject line. Responders will not receive individualized feedback. All inquiries concerning this RFI must be directed only to the email addresses identified above. Hard copy submissions will not be accepted nor will phone inquiries be entertained.

Thank you for your interest in USAID/Rwanda’s programs and we look forward to your comments.

Best regards, Benjamin Lawrence, Contracting Officer Office of Acquisition and Assistance (OAA) USAID Rwanda and USAID Burundi http://www.beta.sam.gov/ http://www.beta.sam.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ mailto:ebagabo@usaid.gov

Attachment 1: How to Submit a Response

Interested parties wishing to participate should submit their responses to the questions listed in Attachment 3 electronically to Eriazel Bagabo, at ebagabo@usaid.gov. Responses to this RFI will be accepted within the due date stated above. You will receive only an electronic confirmation acknowledging receipt of your response but will not receive individualized feedback or suggestions.

Responses may contribute to upcoming activity design(s). However, this RFI will not be construed as a commitment by the U.S. Government (USG) to issue any solicitation, award any grant, or pay for any information submitted as a result of this request.

No basis for claims against the U.S. Government shall arise as a result of a response to this RFI or from the USG’s use of such information. USAID/Rwanda will not respond to any telephonic or other inquiries regarding this notice.

The submitted response should include:

1. Subject: 72069623RFI00001- [Organization name] Response Include in the email:

● Name of Contact with email address

● Affiliation/ Organization

● Address and phone number

2. Responses to questions presented in Attachment 3

Attachment 2 - Background and Technical Context

Increasing international trade in agricultural goods can be a significant driver of inclusive economic growth in Rwanda. Geopolitical conditions and systemic inefficiencies, however, impede the flow of these goods across Rwanda’s borders and throughout the country overall and therefore are limiting the potential growth of Rwanda’s economy. For example, systemic inefficiencies which emerge from unnecessarily time-consuming and expensive administrative procedures, persistent non-tariff barriers (NTBs), and deficient skills and knowledge among Rwandan trade facilitation actors, all of this contribute to high cost of trade. Even though Rwanda has made progress towards improving international trade processes through the use of a national single window system which helps traders with digitally obtaining and submitting various export and import required documents, the country has erected some unnecessary impediments to the movement of goods across borders, an example being persistent requirements for traders to navigate trade processes with large sheafs of documents which must be exchanged in physical form among multiple parties and across multiple steps to complete a transaction.

In addition, Rwanda is engaged in international trade agreements such as African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) East African Community (EAC) Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), etc. A common goal of each of these agreements is to make trade easier among participating countries, which in turn should lead to increased manufacturing opportunities, higher per capita income, and ultimately to Rwanda’s increased economic growth.

The Rwanda Trade Facilitation Activity (RTFA) will contribute to creating a trade-enabling environment through identifying and reducing non-tariff barriers (NTB) to trade, strengthening soft infrastructure, and building more transparency and efficiency into the trade regulatory system. These improvements will enable Rwanda to benefit more from international trade, whether from individual countries or regional trade blocs, and allow Rwanda’s traders to respond more quickly to disruptions in the normal flow of goods.

The RTFA has three intermediate results (IRs), each with associated sub-intermediate results. At the macro level, the activity expects to contribute to the reduction of time and the cost of trading across borders from and to Rwanda.

Intermediate Result (IR)1 Reduce non-tariff barriers to trade. The RTFA will work with trade facilitation institutions such as the Ministry of Trade and Industries (MINICOM, Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) Rwanda Inspectorate and Competition Authority (RICA) etc.) to expand and increase access to systems that enable traders to report, monitor, and advocate for the removal of NTBs.

Sub-Intermediate Results

● 1.1 Reduction in border fees and time to clear goods in customs.

● 1.2 Bolster the National Trade Facilitation Committee and the Non-tariff Barriers to trade (NTB)

Monitoring Committee and other trade-related forums where issues are discussed and addressed.

● 1.3. Increase NTB reporting system utilization by the trading community.

Intermediate Result (IR)2 Improve soft infrastructure and technical skills of trade facilitation actors

The RTFA will strengthen the IT capacity of GoR trade facilitation actors to automate service provisions and bolster a transparent trade regulatory system. Improving soft infrastructure may include using software or any other application to integrate existing online systems to the National single windows system used to process import, export, and transit documentations online to reduce time and cost a trader spends to trade Internationally.

Sub-Intermediate Results:

● 2.1. Expand automation to include currently manual customs and non-customs procedures / better integration into workflow.

● 2.2. Improve technical skills of the trade facilitation actors, including association of clearing agents, Authorized Economic Operator, Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) customs department etc.

Intermediate Result (IR) 3 Strengthen Rwanda public and private sector to participate in AfCFTA market.

The RTFA will support the Government of Rwanda (GoR) and private sector associations and actors to make use of a continent-wide duty-free market, AfCFTA. The support will include building capacity of trade support institutions and traders to understand ACFTA trading rules and regulations including market dynamics, raise awareness to the Rwandan traders on liberalized sectors, and to support the Ministry of trade and other institutions to complete negotiations of AfCFTA outstanding issues.

Sub-Intermediate Results:

● 3.1. Rwanda's private sector is supported to make use of the AfCFTA market.

● 3.2. Increase volume and value of trade flows from and to Rwanda and identify

Alternative sources for agricultural inputs.

Attachment 3: Requested Information/Questions

USAID/Rwanda is interested in gathering feedback on the following questions:

Level of Industry Interest

1. How interested is your organization in this trade facilitation work using the below scale:

o 1 = Zero Interest o 2 = Limited Interest (20% probability we will submit an offer/application) o 3 = Moderate Interest (50% probability we will submit an offer/application) o 4 = High Interest (75% probability we will submit an offer/application) o 5 = No Doubt (100% probability we will submit an offer/application)

Programming

2. Under what type of mechanism (i.e., contract or cooperative agreement) would best address this activity?

3. Are the Intermediate Results clear and appropriate for the objective as articulated? Are the IRs achievable within a five-year time frame and is the context realistic?

4. Do you think the IRs complement each other based on the scope and the context?

5. Currently Rwanda has a single window system which helps traders exchange documentation for import and export electronically. What are the opportunities and challenges to effectively integrate and expand single window use to allow all trade facilitation services providers to digitally process export and import documentation under one single window?

IR1 Reduce non-tariff barriers to trade.

6. USAID has identified five Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) to trade: the lack of coordination among Trade Facilitation agencies, restriction to use private bonded warehouses, high cost of import permits for food products, non-harmonized sanitary and phytosanitary requirements, and the violation of agreed rules of origin. These NTBs are negatively affecting international traders in Rwanda, for example by forcing them to incur excessive costs on trade, and experience un-reliability and unpredictability and delays with clearing goods through their supply chains. What are the best ways to address these NTBs in Rwanda to allow faster processing of imports, exports, and transit of goods?

7. Are there other NTBs that should be addressed in order to improve Rwanda’s trade performance and achieve the results noted in Attachment 2?

IR2 Improve soft infrastructure and technical skills of trade facilitation actors

8. Under IR 2, USAID intends to strengthen the IT capacity of GoR trade facilitation actors to automate import, export and transit service provisions and bolster a transparent trade facilitation regulatory environment. Please discuss how you think that sustainability should be addressed so that after five years partner institutions will sustain soft infrastructure once the activity comes to an end.

IR 3 Strengthen Rwanda public and private sector to participate in African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) market

9. What are the short- and long-term potential market opportunities for Rwandan traders using the AfCFTA agreement?

10. How best should USAID position itself to complement other donors in support of GoR in the implementation of AfCFTA strategy?

11. Besides supporting Rwandan traders with increasing exports in volume and quality, what else would you recommend to ensure successful entry of Rwandan goods to the African market through use of AfCTA protocol?

No other documents or information are requested at this time. USAID/Rwanda asks respondents to not send any additional information other than what is requested above.

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