amendment 2 aps final.docx

A. Background and Purpose of this Amendment The subject APS was issued on January 18, 2012.

The purpose of this Amendment is to: 1) provide time, date and location for APS bidder’s conferences at various field missions and headquarters; 2) update language about Kyrgyzstan’s OTI program; 3) provide guidance on how questions and answers from local bidders conferences will be posted; 4) post answers to questions submitted on this APS.

B. Revisions to APS

1) Bidders Conference details:

· Georgia: USAID Georgia is considering hosting a bidder’s conference in-country in mid February. Please check http://georgia.usaid.gov/working-with-usaid/procurement-opportunities for up-to-date announcements and conference details.

· Kenya: Date: February 14, 2012, Time: 2:00-4:00 pm (local time) Location: Voyager Beach Resort, North Coast, Mombasa. Ten kilometers north of Mombasa city centre along Nyali Road in Nyali. No RSVP required. For questions please contact Monica Azimi at mmcqueary@usaid.gov or cell: 0724-256-758.

· Kyrgyzstan: Date: February 21, 2012, Time: 3:00-5:00 pm (local time) Location: “American Information Resource Center Bishkek” Bayalinov Youth and Children’s Library, 242 Ogonbaev Street, 2nd floor +996 (0) 312 661 210 (across from the Bishkek Hyatt Hotel). Participants are highly encouraged to RSVP to Dinah Zeltser-Winant by February 20, 2011 dzeltser@usaid.gov.

· Nepal: There will be two dates.

· February 24, 2012 Time: 1:00-4:00pm (local time)

· February 27, 2012 Time: 9:00 am – 12:00pm (local time) Location: US Embassy, U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S. Embassy Building, Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal. RSVP via email to Sabita Shrestha (sashrestha@usaid.gov) with a copy to Ganga Maharjan (gmaharjan@usaid.gov) on or before Tuesday, February 7, 2012.

· Washington DC, USA: Date: February 14, 2012, Time: 9:00-11:00am (Eastern Standard Time) Location: Conference Call. Please dial the relevant participant dial-in number. When prompted enter the conference call ID number # 49434748 Participant Dial-In Number(s):

*Operator Assisted Toll-Free Dial-In Number: (877) 567-5412

*Operator Assisted International Dial-In Number: (216) 672-5638 Please RSVP intent to call-in to Rebekah Krimmel rkrimmel@usaid.gov by Friday, February 10, 2012.

2) Kyrgyzstan Update:

On page 43 of the APS, it states that “Special consideration will be paid to programs which will align with and leverage the work of the current OTI program in Kyrgyzstan, which will end in July 2012.” This should read “Special consideration will be paid to programs which will align with and leverage the work of the current OTI program in Kyrgyzstan, which will end in December 2012.”

3) Posting of Field Based Bidder’s Conferences Questions and Answers:

Several missions have decided to hold bidder’s conferences and the dates have been posted via grants.gov in Amendment #1 and Amendment #2. The questions and answers discussed via those bidders conferences will be posted on the mission specific USAID.gov websites. Please see a link to relevant mission websites.

For Bosnia and Herzegovina, please visit: http://www.usaid.gov/ba/ For Indonesia, please visit: http://indonesia.usaid.gov/en/opportunities/procurement For Kenya, please visit: http://kenya.usaid.gov/ For Kyrgyzstan, please visit: http://kyrgyzstan.usaid.gov/kyrgyzstan For Nepal, please visit: http://nepal.usaid.gov/

4) Questions and Answers Questions and Answers

1. The APS states that: If the application includes partnerships with local organizations, and is over $500,000, the application must include a capacity building plan to include building technical skills in conflict and peace-building as well as organizational management capacity.

However, there is no mention of the capacity-building plan in the list of annexes. Please let me know if we should include it as an additional annex (as was the case last year) or what the appropriate section for this plan would be.

Answer:

Applications for funding greater than $500,000 may include an OPTIONAL one-page Annex/Attachment that outlines the applicant’s specific capacity-building plan. This one-page document should include precise details about the names of the specific partners to be included and exactly how capacity will be built at the local level throughout the proposed project period. This document should not be a generic statement about capacity and sustainability of the project, but, rather should focus on specific strategies for building capacity of each implementing partner to be included in project activities in accordance with the instructions and evaluation criteria contained in the APS.

2. Would you please let us know if peace-building NGOs from Afghanistan can apply for grant # APS-OAA-12-00001?

Eligible countries for which applications may be submitted under APS-OAA-12-00001 are listed on page 2 of the solicitation. This list of countries does not include programs implementing in Afghanistan.

3. Following your recent call for proposals for the above subject matter, we would like to confirm if we qualify to apply. We are a local Civil Society Organization based in North West Somalia (Somaliland) and have no programs beyond the region. There is no USAID mission on the ground and we understand the Somali mission operates from Nairobi.

The USAID/East Africa mission handles all programming in the Somali cluster. Applications for programs operating in this region need to subscribe to the East Africa Regional Mission country specific guidance provided on page 36 of the solicitation. All activities must be cross-border or multi-country in scope. Programs must support the establishment and strengthening of local cross-border mechanisms for conflict management and reconciliation among/between key stakeholders on both sides of the border, including local government and civil society groups, business, traditional authorities, and other stakeholders, as appropriate, to manage/mitigate on-going potential conflict triggers in the Somali Cluster (Somalia-Kenya border areas).

4. For East Africa, I note that Sudan and South Sudan are not on the list of eligible countries. Could you please clarify if this is indeed the case? If so, a short reason for their exclusion (perhaps a separate solicitation will be issued for both?) would be extremely appreciated. I understand, however, that according to procurement guidelines that USAID is not necessarily required to provide such information though it would be very helpful.

Answer:

The East Africa Regional mission does not have a current focus on the Sudan-South Sudan border. Conflict mitigation on that border is a focus for the USAID South Sudan mission which is not a participating mission per the list of eligible countries listed on page 2 of the solicitation.

5. I am writing to request a clarification regarding the USAID/DCHA/CMM Annual Program Statement for Conflict Mitigation and Reconciliation Programs and Activities (APS-OAA-12-00001).

On page 8 of the solicitation, section 3.3 Award Size Threshold, the Note says that “Local applicants may submit more than one application for funding in FY 2012 if they chose to do so.” The solicitation is silent on whether or not other types of organizations, and specifically U.S. Non-profit organizations, can submit more than one application. Please advise if it is acceptable for an U.S. Non-profit organization to submit more than one application.

Answer:

There is no limit to the number of applications any one organization may submit under the current Global Reconciliation APS.

6. In reviewing the above referenced APS, I'm finding no information about whether there are any restrictions on the number of proposals a US-based NGO can submit for activity in different countries or regions under this invitation.

Can you confirm whether or not there are limits on the numbers of proposals from one organization that can be submitted? Or, if you are not the person I should be checking with, could you let me know who I should contact?

Answer: Please see Question 5.

7. The solicitation states that local organizations may submit more than one application and makes no mention of a submission cap for U.S. and Non-U.S. Non-Profit organizations—how many proposals can an organization submit?

Answer: Please see Question 5.

8. I was reading the USAID/DCHA/CMM Annual Program Statement for Conflict Mitigation and Reconciliation Programs and Activities and our office here in Cambodia is interested in exploring opportunities for this grant. Our office in Ecuador has a great USAID/CMM project that has had a lot of positive impact among the youth and we may be able to replicate their Peace & Conflict Resolution model here in Cambodia.

Last year our office worked on a seed storage proposals and the USAID technical review panel actually recommend the program for funding, but the proposal was not approved by our embassy in Cambodia, for reasons which were beyond their control. This year I wanted to discuss a potential proposal with staff at the local embassy but they tell me that their mission does not do much work in Conflict Mitigation and Reconciliation. I wanted to inquire with the local staff to see if there is anything we should be aware of that would prevent a future denial of this proposal by the embassy if we submit this year.

I have read the Annual Program Statement which provides detailed instructions and program parameters but I wanted to touch base to see if there is any other thing that we should be aware of before we proceed

Answer: Any country specific instructions for Cambodia are provided in Attachment 1.

9. Could you tell me if the Grants Program Conflict Mitigation and Reconciliation Programs and Activities (APS-OAA-12-0001) places a limit on the number of submissions an institution may submit?

Answer: Please see Question 5.

10. I have a question concerning the FY12 Conflict and Reconciliation Program Activities APS. (APS-OAA-12-000001)

Can a US-based NGO submit multiple applications for different eligible countries, each in the threshold of over $500,000 and below $1,200,000 ?

Answer: Please see Question 5.

11. We had received the information about USAID APS for Conflict Mitigation and Reconciliation programs and we would like to seek further information from you on Myanmar as following, if possible:

· What is the process of application? Who would be eligible to apply for the funding? Will the organization that has no registration status in the country be allowed to apply for the funding?

Answer:

Please refer to the APS for detailed instructions on the application process and eligibility criteria. In regard to registration status, there is no requirement under US law that partners register with the government, but any applicant should be capable of establishing operations in the Burma that are necessary to carry out the activities set forth in the application.

· What are the areas of interest or programs of the funding in Myanmar? Does the grants have any specific geographic location to operate/ implement the programs?

Answer: Please refer to Burma specific language, which is posted on page 39 of the APS.

· Would the grant be allowed for the work in partnership and capacity development?

Answer:

The APS is focused on people-to-people reconciliation programming and thus, only certain programs fit the intent of this solicitation. Please refer to the APS, in particular page 6 “APS Scope and Objectives” gives an overview of desired activities. More detail is provided throughout the APS.

12. Our organization would like to know whether USAID would be open to a consortium applying or to sub-grants. I’ve reviewed the APS and there is no mention of a consideration of a consortium of partners.

Answer:

USAID is open to consortiums, as long as there is a prime designated on the proposal. Applicants may propose to work with sub-grantees.

13. How does the APS define NGO? Does it include the private sector and all types of organizations/associations that are not governmental? If so, would a private sector company be viewed favorably or unfavorably --or neutrally?

Answer:

NGOs in this solicitation refer to all non-governmental organizations including the private sector. All types of sectors are welcome to bid including the private sector. All sectors will be judged neutrally.

14. Can an NGO (local or US-based) submit a proposal as the prime, for either funding categories, and have a private company as the sub-contractor?

Answer:

Yes, primes may organize their team and sub-contractors as they see fit as long as they comply to USG rules and regulations.

15. There is an ADRA Peru and also an ADRA in the U.S. ADRA Peru is thinking of applying to the APS as a local organization (because ADRA Peru is registered as one). However in page 8 of the APS, under 3.3 it says: "For specific purposes of this APS, a local NGO does not include subsidiaries, affiliated, or member entities of organizations located outside of, or organized outside of, the host country or region". So, the question is: Is ADRA Peru a local organization given that there is an ADRA in the U.S. that relates to/with them?

Answer: Only you ADAR is in a position to assess is contractual link to ADAR Peru. We cannot make this determination for you.