RFQ N6817127QJ001_Questions and Answers.pdf

Question No. Reference Question Answer

001 PWS

Please confirm whether the requirement is for one full-time

Cultural Relations Specialist.

No set number of personnel is required by the Government, the required number of CRS is based on the contractor proposal

002 PWS

Is a named backup/relief CRS required at proposal submission?

The USG expects no laps in coverage of hours of operation: PWS section 12

Solicitation Evaluation

For a proposed Djiboutian subcontractor, must JCCS/AFRICOM vetting be completed before proposal submission, or can it be completed prior to award/performance?

JCCS/AFRICOM determination will be completed prior to award/performance.

Solicitation Evaluation

May relevant subcontractor past performance be included in the Past Performance volume?

Yes it May be included

005 Solicitation PWS Section 13.3 identifies a six-month FAR 52.217-8 extension, but the listed dates appear to cover approximately five months. Please confirm the intended period.

Correct dates for the FAR 52.217-8 extention are 10 August 2028 to 10 February 2029

006 PWS

Please confirm the required number of Cultural Relations Specialists (CRSs) or Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs) for this requirement. The current pricing schedule is structured by months, but the PWS does not appear to specify a minimum number of CRS personnel.

No set number of personnel is requiredd by the Government, the required number of CRS is based on the contractor proposal

How the monthly CLIN should be priced

For the CRS CLINs, please confirm whether the monthly unit price represents the total monthly price for the entire CRS requirement, regardless of the number of personnel proposed, or whether the unit price is intended to represent the monthly price per individual CRS.

The Unit Price is your propsed total monthly price for the CRS requirement, regardless of the number of personnel proposed

Expected weekly hours

/ Friday schedule

PWS Section 12 identifies core operating hours as Monday through Thursday from 0800–1700 and Saturday from

0900–1300, while also stating that each CRS shall work a standard workweek not to exceed 50 hours. Please confirm whether Friday is intentionally excluded from the normal work schedule and specify the expected minimum or normal number of working hours per CRS per week.

Friday is a non-working day for Djibouti, and is excluded from normal work schedule

009 Solicitation

Please clarify the correct periods of performance. The dates stated in the PWS and the RFQ/pricing schedule appear to differ. Additionally, PWS Section 13.3 identifies the FAR 52.217-8 extension period as 11 August 2028 through 10

January 2029 and describes this as six months; however, that date range appears to represent only five months. Please provide the controlling dates for the base period, option period, and extension period.

Correct dates for the FAR 52.217-8 extention are 10 August 2028 to 10 February 2029

010 PWS

PWS Section 8 states that travel is not anticipated beyond a 50 KM radius of Camp Lemonnier, while Section 14 states that services may be performed in Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, and other countries within the CJTF-HOA AOR.

Please clarify whether contractor personnel should anticipate travel outside Djibouti during the period of performance.

While not anticipated beyond a 50 KM radius of Camp Lemonnier,services may be performed in

Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, and other countries within the CJTF-HOA AOR

SOLICITATION N6817127QJ001_Questions and Answers (Q&A)

011 PWS

If travel outside the 50 KM radius or outside Djibouti is required, please clarify whether airfare, lodging, meals/per diem, visas, medical requirements, ground transportation,

included in the Contractor's firm-fixed price.

If CJTF-HOA requires services to be provided outside of Djibout, the USG will fund all logistics requirements in support the travel.

012 PWS

The PWS requires full proficiency in written and spoken French and Somali, working proficiency in English, and states that the Contractor shall have working proficiency in local Djiboutian languages such as Afar and Arabic. Please confirm whether each individual CRS must independently satisfy all of these language requirements, including Afar and Arabic, or whether the required language capabilities may be satisfied collectively across the Contractor's proposed CRS team.

The languages may be satisfied across the CRS Team.

013 PWS

Please confirm whether there are any requirements concerning: Djiboutian nationality or residency of proposed CRS personnel; minimum male/female staffing composition;

or possession of a Djiboutian driver's license.

no nationality requirements, CSR is required to pass vetting to gain base access

014 Solicitation

The evaluation criteria assess the experience, education, and language capabilities of contracted personnel. Please clarify whether offerors are required to identify all proposed CRS personnel at the time of quotation and, if so, whether the

Government requires resumes/CVs, diplomas or transcripts, and language proficiency documentation for each proposed

CRS.

offerors may provide all relevent names and coressponding resume/CVs, diplomas or transcripts, and language proficiency documentation for each proposed CRS.

015 PWS

Given the liaison and community-engagement responsibilities, please confirm whether the Government will provide transportation for official travel between Camp Lemonnier, U.S. Embassy facilities, Djiboutian government locations, military facilities and other local engagement locations, or whether the Contractor is responsible for providing vehicles and transportation.

The USG will provide all logistical support for services required outside of CLDJ.

016 PWS

The PWS requires personnel to adjust schedules and respond within three hours when recalled outside core operating hours. Please clarify whether after-hours or emergency support is expected to remain within the stated standard workweek/not-to-exceed 50-hour limitation, or whether offerors should account for additional hours when pricing the requirement.

Yes. It is within the standard 50-hours limitation

017 PWS

The RFQ's title and CLINs refer to a Cultural Relations Specialist in the singular, while PWS paragraphs 10 and 12 refer to "each CRS" and "the CRSs." How many specialists does the Government require? If the number is left to the quoter, will a quote based on one full-time specialist, with a named alternate for absences, be considered acceptable?

No set number of personnel is required by the Government, the required number of CRS is based on the contractor proposal

018 Solicitation Option Period 1 is described as 12 months, but CLIN 1001 shows a quantity of 2 months. Please confirm the quantity that should be priced for CLIN 1001.

Please reference the solicitation document (SF1449) for specific dates.

Solicitation Evaluation

The RFQ prices CLIN 2001/2002 as a 6-month option period (10 Aug 2028 to 9 Feb 2029), while PWS paragraph 13.3 describes that same period as the FAR 52.217-8 Option to Extend Services. Please confirm whether quoters should price

CLINs 2001/2002 as an option, or whether the six-month extension will be evaluated by the Government under FAR

52.217-8 at the Option Period 1 rates.

Correct dates for the FAR 52.217-8 extention are 10 August 2028 to 10 February 2029

020 Solicitation The RFQ states a base period beginning 10 October 2026; the

PWS states 11 October 2026. Please confirm the start date.

correct dates are 10 October 2026 to 09 August

021 PWS

The SAM notice lists NAICS 541990; the RFQ form lists 541820.

Please confirm which NAICS code applies.

541990

022 PWS

The Technical factor requires language certifications "at a minimum." Which certifications does the Government accept as proof of full proficiency in French and Somali and working proficiency in Afar and Arabic (for example DELF/DALF, TCF, an Oral Proficiency Interview, or a government or university language assessment)? If no recognized certification exists for a language, will a Government or embassy language test result, or a signed attestation with a demonstration at the Government's request, be acceptable?

Any generally commercial acceptable profiecieny certifications

023 Solicitation

1. The instructions list three volumes (Mandatory Documentation, Technical, and Price), but Factor 2 evaluates past performance. Should past performance references be included within Volume II, or submitted as a separate volume?

The volumes referenced in addendum 52.212-1 are the submission criterea, the factors listed in 52.212-2 are the evaluation criteria. Volumes and Factors are different criterea. Please refer to the addendums to

52.212-1 and 52.212-2 for instructions and evaluation criterea respectively.

024 PWS

Please confirm that the specialist is not required to be a U.S.

citizen, and that a Djiboutian national who passes base-access screening and vetting is acceptable.

no nationality requirements, CSR is required to pass vetting to gain base access

025 Award Is there an incumbent currently performing this requirement, and will the Government provide any transition or overlap period before 10 October 2026?

Yes, there is an incumbent and there is no transition period.

026 PWS

For Government-directed travel outside the local area, please identify the reimbursement methodology and allowable cost elements (airfare, lodging, meals/per diem, ground transportation, visas, country-entry costs), and confirm whether prior Government authorization is required.

If CJTF-HOA requires services to be provided outside of Djibout, the USG will fund all logistics requirements in support the travel.

Solicitation Evaluation

Will the Government provide proposal submission instructions and formatting requirements (page limits, font type/size, margins, line spacing)?

Please refer to adendum to 52.212-1 for submission requirements.

Solicitation Evaluation

Are Offerors required to submit a resume/CV for each proposed CRS (e.g., in Volume II - Technical)? If so, please specify any format, page limit, or minimum content requirements.

Yes, offerors may provide all relevent names and coressponding resume/CVs, diplomas or transcripts, and language proficiency documentation for each proposed CRS.

Solicitation Evaluation

Must supporting documentation for education and language proficiency (transcripts, degrees, certifications, test results) be submitted with the quotation, or only upon request/prior to award?

See addendum 52.212-2 section M.2(b).

Solicitation Evaluation

The instructions do not identify a separate Past Performance volume - please clarify submission requirements, including number of references, recency period, relevancy criteria, and format.

Proposals should be submitted in three volumes as listed in the addendum to 52.212-1: Mandatory

Documentation, Technical, and Price. The Government will evaluate Past Performance as a factor (Factor 2) in accordance with the addendum to 52.212-2. Past performance is evaluated on an Acceptable/Unacceptable basis. The Government reserves the right to assess the past performance of proposed subcontractors.

031 Evaluation

Given Technical is Pass/Fail and Past Performance is Acceptable/Unacceptable, will the Government conduct a best-value tradeoff among acceptable quotations, or award to the lowest-priced technically acceptable Offeror with acceptable Past Performance?

Per addendum to 52.212-2 "(a) Basis of Award: The Government will award a firm-fixed priced contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other non-price factors considered."

032 Personnel

Will the proposed CRS be considered Key Personnel, and must the proposed individual perform after award? If substitutions are allowed, what is the approval process, and must replacements meet or exceed the original qualifications?

NOT applicable

033 Personnel Is there a security clearance requirement for the proposed

CRS? If so, what level?

The PWS does not require a formal security clearance. However, all personnel must undergo and pass security vetting and background checks as detailed in PWS Sections 15, 16, and 17

034 Personnel

Section 10 requires full French and Somali proficiency plus working proficiency in local Djiboutian languages (e.g., Afar and Arabic). Must the CRS demonstrate proficiency in both

Afar and Arabic, or does one suffice? Is a specific proficiency standard (e.g., ILR) required?

All refrenced languges shall be satisfied: PWS 5.4 Task 4

Staffing &

Scope What is the required staffing quantity - one full-time CRS/FTE, or multiple personnel?

Staffing requirments Depends on propsed need to meet all required tasks within the PWS

Staffing &

Scope

If supported by one primary CRS, must the Contractor provide qualified backup coverage for planned/unplanned absences, and must backup personnel meet all education, language, and security/vetting requirements before providing coverage?

No lasps in coverage of expected hours of operation:

PWS section 12

Staffing &

Scope

Section 12 lists core hours (Mon-Thu 0800-1700, Sat 0900- 1300) but caps the workweek at 50 hours. Please confirm the anticipated standard weekly labor hours per CRS and whether

Saturday coverage is routinely required.

PWS section 12: Core operating hours are Monday through Thursday, 0800 to 1700 (inclusive of a 1-hour uncompensated meal break), and Saturday, 0900 to 1300.

Contract

Administratio n

Please confirm the correct Period of Performance dates for pricing. The PWS shows Base 11 Oct 2026-10 Aug 2027, Option 1 11 Aug 2027-10 Aug 2028, and a FAR 52.217-8 extension 11 Aug 2028-10 Jan 2029 (~5 months, not the stated 6), and these appear to differ from the RFQ delivery schedule.

correct dates are 10 October 2026 to 11 August 2027 See PWS

Contract

Administratio n

Do JCCS registration and AFRICOM Foreign Vendor Vetting requirements apply to U.S.-based prime and subcontractors, or only to non-U.S./foreign vendors?

Applys to all non-U.S./foreign vendors prime and subcontractors.

General

Question Will the Government consider extending the RFQ deadline?

No, the government will not extend the RFQ deadline.

Sheet1