Questions and Answers_3Sep26.pdf

UNCLASSIFIED

Solicitation Amendment:

Vendor Questions and Answers (Q&A) South East Africa (SEA) Security Engagements (FY26)

RFQ: H9227626QE013

Question 1 Is this requirement a cost-reimbursement or a fixed-price contract? There appears to be conflicting cost-type language in the draft Performance Work Statement.

Answer 1 The Government confirms that this contract will be awarded on a Firm-Fixed- Price (FFP) basis for all core execution tasks under the Requirement 1 (WPS Capacity Building) and Requirement 2 (GFA Data Collection) portfolios. This includes all operational planning, baseline reporting, civil-military dialogue execution, stakeholder coordination, and local consultancies. Travel and travel-related per diem will be executed on a Cost-Reimbursable, No-Fee, Not-to- Exceed (NTE) basis.

Question 2 Will the Government consider extending the proposal submission deadline to allow for thorough pricing revisions under this model?

Answer 2 Yes. The solicitation response deadline is officially extended to 9 September 2026. The projected contract obligation date is 15 September 2026.

Question 3 The draft PWS lists estimated ranges of engagements (e.g., 2 to 5 engagements for certain countries). How should we construct our fixed unit pricing to account for this variability?

Answer 3 The Government has standardized and locked all engagement quantities to the maximum range values. Vendors must price exactly:

• Requirement 1 (CLIN 0001): 3 engagements for Zimbabwe, 3 engagements for Zambia, 3 engagements for South Africa, 2 engagements for Somalia, 2 engagements for Botswana, 2 engagements for Malawi, and 2 engagements for Angola.

• Requirement 2 (CLIN 0002): 15 engagements for Mozambique and 3 engagements for Libya.

These quantities must be populated directly into the pricing template.

Question 4 Should the final proposal contain detailed rate justifications and G&A/indirect calculations?

Answer 4 Yes. While the resulting contract is Firm-Fixed-Price, the proposal must include detailed backup sheets in active Excel formats. This breakdown must identify estimated direct labor, G&A, overhead, subcontracts, material costs, and expected margins. This ensures the Government can perform a cost analysis to verify that the proposed pricing is realistic and sufficient to complete the standardized quantities.

Question 5 Please confirm that in our offer we should submit a quote for a Firm Fixed Price contract for CLIN 0001 / Requirement 1, and for Cost Plus Fixed Fee for CLIN 0002 / Requirement 2? Should the Firm Fixed Price quote include a detailed cost-element breakdown? If such a breakdown is required, should it include the elements set forth in CPWS section 1.2.1.18, including by prioritized site and engagement?

Answer 5 The contract is Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) across both CLIN 0001 (Requirement 1) and CLIN 0002 (Requirement 2). There are no Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee (CPFF) tasks. Both requirements require a detailed cost-element breakdown (direct labor, G&A, overhead, subcontracts, and expected margins) to be submitted in active Excel format to allow the Government to conduct a cost analysis. The breakdown must be organized by individual engagement and country.

Question 6 Can we add one or two positions to the Key Personnel under both Requirements? We suggest adding a Project Manager to handle administrative functions under the guidance of the Team Lead.

Answer 6 Yes. The Government has officially revised the Key Personnel requirements for both portfolios. Bidders must propose a dedicated Project Manager for both Requirement 1 and Requirement 2 to handle contract administration, scheduling, logistical arrangements, compliance reporting, and database management under the guidance of the Team Lead/Engagement Director. Resumes must be provided.

Question 7 RFQ section 1.2.5.5 states that the contractor should conduct a 6-Month Post- Project Follow-up Report, due exactly 180 calendar days after each project completion. RFQ section 1.2.7.2.1 states that the contractor should conduct a 6- Month Post-Project MEL, submitted exactly 6 months post-event. Should this be clarified so that no evaluation or report will be due after the end date of the contract?

Answer 7 Confirmed. No evaluations, surveys, assessments, or post-project reports shall be required or due after the final end date of the contract's Period of Performance (PoP). All 180-day follow-up reporting tasks are strictly conditional upon falling within the active contract PoP.

Question 8 Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) Requirements: The PWS requires that draft Civil Affairs planning products, actor-relationship maps, and target area assessments be handled as CUI and that deliverables be transmitted via encrypted SFTP with multi-factor authentication. Under DoD policy, a contractor can only receive, transmit, or store CUI if they possess an approved Government Controlled Cloud (GCC) environment and a documented Supplier Performance Risk System (SPRS) minimum score of 110 in PIEE. Will the Government confirm that an existing GCC environment and a minimum SPRS score of 110 documented in PIEE are required to submit a proposal for this effort?

Answer 8 No. The Government confirms that there is no requirement to handle, create, or store Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) under this contract. Accordingly, an approved Government Controlled Cloud (GCC) environment and a minimum SPRS score of 110 in PIEE are not required to submit a proposal. All work under this contract is strictly unclassified. Standard unclassified Operational Security (OPSEC) and secure SFTP protocols will be utilized to transmit standard unclassified participant personally identifiable information (PII) such as Leahy vetting rosters.

Question 9 Invoicing and Payment Terms: The solicitation outlines a 12-month Firm-Fixed- Price (FFP) structure with a quantity of "1 Lot" for CLINs 0001 and 0002.

However, PWS Paragraph 1.2.1.11.2 states that the contractor is authorized to invoice per individual engagement upon completion and acceptance across 35 discrete engagements. Because the volume of engagements varies significantly month-to-month, this structure requires a substantial upfront capital outlay from the contractor before invoicing through WAWF. To encourage competition and maintain a standard FFP structure, will the Government update the invoicing terms for CLINs 0001 and 0002 to a Unit of Issue of 12, thereby allowing the contractor to invoice 1/12th of the Total Evaluated Price monthly?

Answer 9 No. The CLIN structure remains "1 Lot" and flat monthly billing (1/12th) will not be authorized. However, the contractor is authorized to submit incremental invoices in WAWF per completed individual engagement immediately upon physical completion and formal Government acceptance of the primary Phase III short-term deliverables—specifically, the Handover Records / Certificates of Transfer and the associated 10-Day After-Action Report (AAR). "1 Lot" allows for invoicing at any time and for any approved milestone amount.

Question 10 Period of Performance: The updated RFQ retains a performance start date of approximately September 1, 2026, while the quotation deadline has been extended to September 9, 2026, with a projected obligation date of September 15, 2026. Please confirm the revised performance start date and whether the August 31, 2027 end date remains unchanged.

Answer 10 The performance timeline will reflect a full 12-month period of performance starting from the actual date of contract award. The exact start and end dates will be finalized upon award (e.g., if award is on September 15, 2026, the PoP will run through September 14, 2027).

Question 11 CLIN 0003 (Travel) Pricing Structure: Recent updates and Q&As describe CLIN 0003 travel as cost-reimbursable, no-fee, with a $250,000 Not-to-Exceed (NTE) ceiling. However, the updated solicitation schedule still identifies CLIN 0003 as Firm-Fixed-Price. Please confirm that offerors should price and administer CLIN 0003 as cost-reimbursable with a $250,000 NTE ceiling.

Answer 11 Yes. CLIN 0003 is a Cost-Reimbursable (No-Fee) CLIN with a strict Not-to- Exceed (NTE) limit of $250,000.00. The FFP designation on the CLIN structure in the billing system is an administrative system limitation. The "1 Lot" structure will allow the contractor to invoice for travel actuals as needed and approved.

Offerors must enter exactly $250,000.00 for CLIN 0003 in their proposals. [Note:

The NTE value has been updated as of Amendment 0003 to increase this value to $525,000.00. This change will be reflected on the pricing template.]

Question 12 CLIN 0003 Expense Allocation: Please confirm which specific expenses should be charged to CLIN 0003. Should this CLIN cover airfare, lodging, per diem, visas, and local/security transportation, while labor associated with travel planning and travel time remains built into the FFP amounts for CLINs 0001 and 0002?

Answer 12 Confirmed. CLIN 0003 shall exclusively cover direct, actual travel expenses (commercial airfare, lodging, per diem/M&IE adhering to FTR and GSA maximum per travel location, visa fees, and authorized local ground transport). All contractor labor hours, including travel planning, administrative preparation, booking overhead, and transit/travel hours, are strictly excluded from CLIN 0003 and must be built directly into the Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) unit labor rates for CLINs 0001 and 0002.

Question 13 Senior National Stabilization Consultant Staffing: The revised PWS requires a minimum of one Senior National Stabilization Consultant per high-priority cluster, but the specific clusters are not defined. Should offerors propose one consultant per country, one per regional cluster, or follow another Government-defined grouping?

Answer 13 Bidders are not required to propose separate consultants for all 9 countries.

Bidders must propose a minimum of one (1) Lead Senior Consultant per defined funding/CLIN cluster:

• Cluster A (Requirement 1 Countries / CLIN 0001): Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Botswana, Malawi, Angola, and Somalia.

• Cluster B (Requirement 2 Countries / CLIN 0002): Mozambique and Libya.

The consultants proposed must demonstrate the appropriate language capabilities and localized networks to successfully cover their assigned cluster.

Question 14 Cost Backup Formatting: Should the detailed active-Excel cost backup be organized by individual engagement and country, or may offerors provide consolidated cost-element backup that supports the unit prices entered into the Government pricing template?

Answer 14 To facilitate a proper cost analysis, the cost backup must be organized by individual engagement and country. However, where there are opportunities to conduct engagements in a cluster/geographic sequence to reduce travel costs and maximize effect, offerors are highly encouraged to present those recommendations and associated cost savings in their proposal.

Question 15 Headquarters and Installation Access: Will any contractor personnel be required to perform work at, attend recurring meetings at, or otherwise access SOCAFRICA headquarters, Kelley Barracks, Panzer Kaserne, or another U.S.

Government installation? If so, please identify the anticipated location, frequency, and applicable access or badging requirements.

Answer 15 No. There is no requirement or expectation for contractor personnel to access SOCAFRICA headquarters, Kelley Barracks, Panzer Kaserne, or any other U.S.

Government installations. All recurring coordination meetings and communications will be executed remotely over MS Teams, Email, and telephone.

Question 16 Personnel Security Clearances: The revised PWS states that all work is unclassified but includes Controlled Unclassified Information handling requirements. Please confirm whether any contractor personnel, including Key Personnel, must possess a security clearance, Common Access Card, installation credential, or other personnel-security eligibility.

Answer 16 All work under this contract is strictly unclassified. Contractor personnel do not require security clearances, Common Access Cards (CAC), installation credentials, or other personnel-security eligibility. There is no logical access to Government IT networks or physical access to installations required. Standard unclassified Operational Security (OPSEC) procedures will be implemented to safeguard participant names and data.