Justification post May 15 2020.pdf

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL (J&A)

TO:

CC:

FROM:

DATE:

RE:

SUBJECT:

Jamie Raile, Contract Officer /s/ 05/14/20

Agency Competition Advocate - courtesy copy

Razia Baqai, USAID Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) for the Water for Africa through Leadership and Institutional Leadership and Institutional

Support (WALIS) Task Order, Bureau for Africa, Office of Sustainable

Development

April 22, 2020

Modification to extend WALIS Task Order: DO-AID-OAA-TO-15-00034 under the WADI IDIQ AID-OAA-I-14-00049

Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition under the Expedited

Procedures Package (EPP) for Responding to Outbreaks of Contagious Infectious

Diseases

We request approval of this justification and authorization (J&A) for use of other than full and open competition pursuant to the authorities under the EPP for Responding to Outbreaks of

Contagious Infectious Diseases (the “Expedited Procedures Package”), approved on March 24, 2020. Your approval of this J&A constitutes the justification for other than the full and open competition as required by Tab 1 (Determination and Findings (D&F) Authorization for the Use of Other than Full-and-Open Competition in the Award or Modification of Contracts) of the

EPP.

a. Nature and/or description of the action being approved.

USAID’s Water Leadership Council has developed a strategy document intended to provide a comprehensive overview of the Agency’s water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) activities in support of each pillar of the U.S. Strategy to Prevent, Prepare for, and Respond to Coronavirus

Abroad. The document provides, in part:

"The provision of safe water, sanitation, and hygienic conditions is essential for slowing down the spread of COVID-19. Frequent and proper handwashing with soap is one of the most important measures that can be used to prevent infection with the COVID-19 virus. Reliable water and sanitation services in health facilities and households are critical to ensuring both sufficient quantities of safe drinking-water and the ability to maintain hygiene (including hand hygiene, laundering, cleaning and disinfection). In addition, WASH services are at risk of being disrupted by the outbreak, the response to it, and downstream socio-economic effects.1"

The proposed extension of the contract fits in line with the Internal USAID WASH Strategic

Approach to COVID-19 quoted above and Pillar 4 of the strategy “Prepare for, mitigate, and address second-order economic, civilian-security, stabilization, and governance impacts of

COVID-19, in part to prevent development backsliding.” Governments have other priorities they will focus on during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and this will cause a possible lapse in services or weakening of the water and sanitation policies within a country. The COR requests the approval of a total estimated cost (TEC) increase of $1.5 million and an extension of the current task order for an additional 12 months. The current task order is scheduled to end in

November 2020.

b. A description of the supplies or services required to meet USAID’s needs (including the estimated value).

Additional tasks to be added to the current task order are:

Task 1: Developing, monitoring, and analyzing sound sector data to inform COVID-19 response and/or resource allocation:

Activities under this task will help support USAID/Washington, Missions, African regional institutions, utilities, and partner governments to strengthen their ability to make informed decisions and to monitor and assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Activities will include building upon national- and regional-level monitoring platforms to help ensure the sustainability of water services. This activity will require close collaboration with other donors and host governments.

Task 2: Engaging in the gathering and dissemination of critical information and data to

African Governments.

Activities under this task will be to research, evaluate, provide recommendations, and disseminate critical information pertaining to the response of COVID-19 in the water and sanitation sector, particularly those related to managing cost, maintaining service delivery, and ensuring safe access to resources, i.e. social distancing or other recommendations.

1 Final Internal USAID WASH Strategic Approach to COVID-19 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CYAu3VdCqKqpR257U0-PCEe7yl1ZKz1x/view

Task 3: Strengthening country systems and/ to engage and inform sector policy that allows for the continuance and improvement of WASH service delivery.

Activities under this task will focus on water and sanitation service delivery continuation and improvement plans, as well as national and local level strategies to respond to the challenges due to the onset of the pandemic and help ensure safe and timely service delivery.

Task 4: Increasing the capacity of African Regional Institutions to improve the collection and use of sector knowledge to respond to COVID-19 coordination and monitoring needs.

Activities under this task will provide technical support to key regional institutions, such as

African Water Association (AfWA), the African Ministers Council on Water (AMCOW), and the African Civil Society Network on Water and Sanitation (ANEW), among others, to strengthen their water and sanitation sector strengthening mandates. Specifically, this task will identify, assess, and build the capacity of regional institutions in analysis, research, data collection, stakeholder coordination, and policy reform, among other topics, in an effort to better disseminate information in the region and equip service providers and host governments to respond to the pandemic.

c. Identification of statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition.

AIDAR 706.302-70(b)(3) and 40 U.S.C. §113; See the “Expedited Procedures Package for

Responding to Outbreaks of Contagious Infectious Diseases” approved March 24, 2020. The

D&F is attached to this file in Tab 1. The EPP can only be used for an Infectious Disease

Outbreak, as defined in paragraph 2 of the D&F (Tab 1). The COVID-19 outbreak was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern by the World Health Organization (WHO) on January 30, 2020, and therefore the class D&F applies to COVID-19 emergency response activities.

d. A discussion of the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition that requires the use of the authority cited.

This J&A advocates for using the EPP to extend the WALIS Task Order and add additional activities and funding, rather than using full-and-open competition, given the urgent need for

USAID to rapidly mobilize technical, financial, and other resources to minimize the impact on the health of populations and economies in countries that have limited capacity to respond quickly to save lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Continuing with the current contractor, DAI, would be more advantageous for the following reasons: (1) more cost and time effective; (2) already mobilized staff; (3) existing key partnerships for rapid response; (4) and ability to pivot and expand past activities to respond to

COVID-19. Over the past four and a half years, DAI has demonstrated strong past performance and received positive assessments in the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System

(CPARs) for its work under the current task order. DAI has demonstrated its ability to deliver timely results that achieve the objectives of the project. In addition, DAI has extensive sector knowledge and has worked with USAID on similar activities in the past. The EPP guidelines encourage the utilization of existing mechanisms to maximize time, relationships, expertise, and resources.

The continuation of DAI’s contract to implement COVID-19 response activities through the

WALIS mechanism is in line with its current task order and also supports U.S. foreign-assistance objectives as outlined in the U.S. Global Water Strategy and the USAID WASH Strategic

Approach to COVID-19 document. Based on the EPP guidance, USAID can “extend an existing contract beyond their present Scopes of Work to bridge gaps between existing programs and activities and the establishment of new programs and activities, including the rapid response needed to contain and mitigate an Outbreak of a Contagious Infectious Disease… and support accurate communications with the public about the risk and preventative measures, which is of critical importance during the rapidly changing environment of an Outbreak of a Contagious

Infectious Disease.2”

e. A description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable.

It would not be practical to solicit from other sources due to time constraints and limited existing

USAID contractors within the water sector that have the experience and ability to leverage key partnerships in Sub-Saharan Africa, to effectively work in this geographic area, and to implement these types of activities.

f. A determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

In order to ensure cost reasonableness, the COR will provide an independent government cost estimate (IGCE) to the CO. In addition, upon receiving a proposed budget from the contractor, line items will be cross-referenced with historical costs.

g. A description of the market research conducted (see FAR Part 10) and the results or a statement of the reason(s) market research was not conducted.

2 Findings that detail the particular circumstances, facts, or reasoning essential to support the determination.

Necessary supporting documentation shall be obtained from appropriate requirements and technical personnel.

https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/EPP_Infectious_Disease_Outbreaks.pdf https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CYAu3VdCqKqpR257U0-PCEe7yl1ZKz1x/view https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CYAu3VdCqKqpR257U0-PCEe7yl1ZKz1x/view https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/EPP_Infectious_Disease_Outbreaks.pdf

Market research was not conducted. Given the urgency of this requirement in response to the

COVID-19 crisis, it is not feasible to select another contractor through a competitive award process who is familiar with the breadth and scope of the work to be undertaken.

h. A listing of the sources, if any, that expressed, in writing, an interest in the acquisition.

Publication of a notice is not required per the determination at AIDAR §705.202(b) and no sources submitted a written expression of interest in this acquisition.

i. A statement of the actions, if any, USAID may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition of the supplies or services required.

In this urgent response to the COVID-19 outbreak, USAID will intensify efforts to build the technical and institutional capacity of local organizations to participate in key activities, as it is anticipated that strengthening their capacity will expand the pool of potential offerors for future procurements and enable wider competition among local organizations.

RECOMMENDATION

It is recommended that you approve this justification for use of other than full and open competition pursuant to the “Expedited Procedures Package for Responding to Outbreaks of

Contagious Infectious Diseases”, approved on March 24, 2020. Your approval of this J&A constitutes the justification for other than full and open competition as required by Tab 1 (D&F for the Authorization of Less than Full and Open Competitive Procedures in the Modification or

Award of Contracts) of the EPP.

https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/EPP_Infectious_Disease_Outbreaks.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/EPP_Infectious_Disease_Outbreaks.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/EPP_Infectious_Disease_Outbreaks.pdf https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1lRPpdE7VQ9zL36vrbZqo_kVatLQwFvEOflp4zRKkYaY/edit#gid=782119524 https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JJ_kaehb3G_5tIDGP6Dw3QACMfL489b-iYRV_MXC7G8/edit?usp=sharing