MESC III - Sources sought notice.pdf

SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE

Management Engineering Services Contract (MESC) - Phase III

SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE

The U.S. Agency for International Development’s Mission to Jordan (USAID/Jordan) is contemplating a potential new activity in Jordan. To support its market research, USAID seeks to collect written information about the capabilities of qualified Architect-Engineer (A-E) firms capable of providing construction management and supervision services for water wastewater projects in Jordan. Firms based in Jordan must be registered as Class 1A in the field of water and wastewater, as classified by the

Government Tenders Department in the Jordan Ministry of Public Works and Housing; other firms must have an equivalent international classifications. Interested firms must be capable of performing a possible project similar to that which is described below on a national scale in Jordan.

BACKGROUND

Jordan is one of the most water scarce countries in the world, and the management of its water resources is key to the nation’s stability. Improving water resource management is critically important to the Government of Jordan (GOJ); and USAID’s support in the sector is paramount to the bilateral relationship and USAID’s foreign assistance objectives. One of the key areas of the USG’s support and the GOJ’s priorities in the water sector relates to reducing water losses, termed Non-Revenue Water

(NRW). NRW is the difference between the water supplied and the water that is paid for. NRW results from deteriorated and under-maintained infrastructure, inaccurate metering, and illegal water uses.

NRW is considered one of the most critical challenges facing water utilities in Jordan. Particularly for a country faced with extreme water scarcity, the NRW level is at around 50%, which is far too high. There have been some improvements in specific areas but also challenges that have kept the reduction in NRW too small. The Ministry of Water and Irrigation (MWI) launched the updated National Water Strategy in

March 2023 to cover the period 2023-2040 with the top priority goal to reduce NRW to 25% or below by

2040 and to sustain it.

To achieve this ambitious goal, significant investments are needed in the coming 10 years at least in addition to upgrading the operations and maintenance expenses to achieve and sustain the NRW reduction goal. It is essential that NRW is greatly reduced to address both existing supply and financial needs, and to prepare for the significant water supply extension needed prior to mega GOJ projects coming online, such as the National Conveyance Project. Moreover, without addressing the causes of

NRW, pumping more water into Jordan’s water supply defective systems will result in much of that water being eventually lost as non-revenue. Simultaneously, Jordan’s water utilities need to greatly improve their own NRW control activities to optimize and sustain the anticipated gains from the NRW investments. The GOJ reiterated its goals for reducing NRW and improving water resource management in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between the United States and the Hashemite

Kingdom of Jordan on September 16, 2022. Mutual goals in the water sector, including the reduction of

NRW, were key elements of the bilateral commitments outlined in this historic MOU, and the USG pledged to support the GOJ in its efforts to reduce NRW. With USAID support, the GOJ is undertaking a large-scale effort to reduce water losses in Jordan through the improvement of public infrastructure and management systems. The GOJ’s NRW reduction project is being implemented Nationwide. The NRW

Project comprises three phases through USAID-funded Fixed Amount Reimbursement Agreements

(FARAs). The first phase is completed in December 2021. The second and third phases are ongoing, and

USAID is currently planning for the fourth phase.

USAID has been funding direct contracts to support the GOJ’s FARA implementation since 2015 through the Management Engineering Services Contract (MESC) I activity which was concluded in 2020, followed by the currently ongoing MESC II activity, which will conclude in January 2025. In light of the complexity of the work and its importance to water security in Jordan, USAID’s continued support in the oversight of the NRW Project is extremely important. To that end, USAID/Jordan is considering a prospective project, MESC III, to continue to provide technical assistance to the NRW program, and improve water utilities’ self-reliance by improving their capacities to plan, design, procure, and manage infrastructure upgrades so that future upgrades can be completed autonomously.

ANTICIPATED ACTIVITIES

USAID anticipates that the prospective activity would provide technical assistance and capacity building for the water utilities: Miyahuna, Aqaba Water Company (AW), Yarmouk Water Company (YWC), and the

Water Authority of Jordan (WAJ) and Jordan Valley Authority (JVA) through reviewing the planning and design of physical infrastructure for NRW reduction activities including specifications and tender documents, and monitoring water utilities construction contractors implementing infrastructure upgrades. Additionally, the activity would provide administrative and management capacity strengthening to water utilities. The activity would collaborate with water utilities’ senior management and report directly to USAID in efforts to improve USAID’s insight into water utilities progress. USAID envisions that the activity would provide services under the following main components:

Component 1 - Technical Assistance for NRW Construction Works: improve capacities of the water entities to autonomously manage infrastructure upgrades related to NRW project activities, and support the water sector in implementing the comprehensive step approach for reducing NRW in Jordan per the

NRW Strategy (2023-2040).

Component 2 - Water Utilities Administration Assistance: Support the Ministry of Water and Irrigation and the water entities to maintain achieved results resulting from the NRW reduction activities during the past years, continue to manage their resources, and to prioritize infrastructure repair and upgrade efforts. In addition to providing capacity building, on-job-training, formal training, review and comments on materials prepared, and other capacity building tools identified and agreed to by Water Utilities and

USAID. Moreover, the activity would help water entities improve their health and safety procedures, practices, oversight and reporting.

Expected Outcomes:

● Supporting the water sector entities to improve the management and governance of their own operations.

● Supporting the water sector to provide improved water services to citizens.

● Supporting the water sector to save water as a result of NRW reduction activities.

● Supporting the water sector to better engage and partner with the private sector on NRW reduction activities.

CAPABILITY STATEMENT REQUIREMENTS

Capable firms who wish to respond to this notice must address the items below in their response:

1. Each submission must include a cover page indicating the name of the firm, contact information, and its place of incorporation.

2. Local firms must provide a Classification Certificate of Class 1A in the field of water and wastewater, as classified by the Government Tenders Department the Jordan Ministry of Public Works and Housing. Other firms must provide an equivalent international classification.

3. A three (3) page statement describing the firm’s experience in relation to the services being required, and its capability to execute the services and tasks described in this notice, with specific emphasis on implementing activities supporting and building the capacity of water entities.

4. A one-page table (See sample in Attachment I) with a list of between three and seven past or current projects demonstrating relevant work experience in providing the services and tasks described in this notice, at the prime or subcontractor/awardee level.

Responses must not exceed five (5) pages, including Table A. Any organization responding to this

Sources Sought Notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the government to determine the organization's qualifications to perform this work. Only one submission per organization will be accepted. If an organization submits multiple responses, it runs the risk of its submissions not being considered.

Written capability statements must be received no later than June 7, 2023, at 4 pm, Jordan Time. These submissions must be sent via email ONLY to the following addresses: Jordan_MESCIII@usaid.gov. In the subject line of the email write: Management Engineering Services Contract (MESC) Phase III - Sources

Sought Notice.

Fax and hand carried submissions will not be accepted. Phone inquiries will not be entertained.

This is not a Request for Proposals (RFP) or Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) and is not to be construed as a commitment by the U.S. Government to issue any RFP or NOFO, or ultimately award a contract or assistance agreement on the basis of this notice, or to pay for any information voluntarily submitted as a result of this notice.

Responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the U.S. Government to form a binding contract. Responses to this notice will not be returned and respondents will not be notified of the result of this review. USAID will confirm receipt of submissions, but it will not provide any feedback to respondents on their submissions, nor will it answer any questions related to this notice.

If a solicitation is issued, it will be announced at a later date, and all interested parties must respond to that solicitation announcement separately from any response to this notice. This notice does not restrict the Government's acquisition approach on a future solicitation.

Attachment I

TABLE A

Project Title Project Value Brief Project Description

Dates of implementation

Point of contact Phone Email