Presolicitation Notice_Mali Service Center_Final.pdf

Presolicitation Notice RFP No. 75N93025R00007 1

PRESOLICITATION NOTICE

Operation and Management of the Mali Service Center Solicitation# 75N93025R00007

Note: This synopsis follows a Sources Sought notice that was released on February 9, 2024

THIS IS A NOTICE OF INTENT, NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. A SOLICITATION WILL

BE ISSUED ON A LATER DATE.

Type of Requirement

New Requirement Re-competition (Contract No. HHSN272201700050I) Expansion of (Contract/Task Order/RFP No.: ______________)

Place of Performance

Place of performance is unknown at this time.

Place of performance is known. Address or general location: Primary place of performance shall be in Mali, West Africa. However, where appropriate, the Contractor shall be permitted to fulfill services sought with support personnel working domestically or remotely (Contractor facility or telework).

Contracting Office Address

Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Office of Acquisitions, 5601 Fishers Lane, MSC 9821, Bethesda, MD, 20892-9821

Duration of contract: ___5___ Years (February 27, 2025, through February 26, 2030)

Anticipated award date: _Approximately February 27, 2025__

Presolicitation Notice Information

Background and Introduction

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has a mission to conduct and support basic and applied research to better understand, treat and ultimately prevent infectious, immunologic, and allergic diseases. NIAID research has led to new therapies, vaccines, diagnostics, and other technologies that have improved the health of millions of people in the United States and globally.

RFP No. 75N93025R00007 2

In addition to supporting a research portfolio on allergy, immunology, and infectious diseases, NIAID also has a mandate to launch a rapid research response to emerging public health threats. Recent examples include research responses to Ebola virus, Zika virus, and SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks. NIAID achieves these mandates through intramural and extramural research programs.

NIAID intramural research activities are conducted by the Division of Intramural Research (DIR), Division of Clinical Research (DCR), and Vaccine Research Center (VRC). NIAID intramural laboratories are led by federal scientists and are in Maryland and Montana.

DCR deploys resources to facilitate the conduct of time sensitive, high priority, global, collaborative clinical research critical to the mission of the NIAID and advancement of NIH and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) global health agendas. These response activities are known as “Special Projects” within the DCR and typically emanate under government-to-government engagements. DCR has developed and continues to maintain critical clinical research infrastructure in its Special Projects. From a strategic perspective, these research infrastructures are imperative to maintain given the current environment of global pandemic threats and many of them native to Africa (i.e., Ebola, Lassa Fever, Yellow Fever, mpox, and Marburg).

NIAID extramural research activities are supported by the Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (DMID), Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Transplantation (DAIT), Division of AIDS (DAIDS), and Division of Extramural Activities (DEA). NIAID’s extramural research portfolio supports grants and contracts that are awarded to U.S. and international biomedical research institutions.

Both NIAID intramural scientists and extramural grantees have developed collaborative research partnerships with international investigators to study diseases in affected geographical regions. NIAID supports a large portfolio of research activities on the African continent, including dedicated research programs in Mali.

A. Mali Research Program

NIAID has more than 34 years of research collaboration with institutions in Mali.

NIAID-supported research has included intramural and extramural projects.

1. International Center for Excellence in Research (ICER)

NIAID’s research program in Mali was initiated in 1989 as a partnership between DIR investigators and Malian scientists at the National School of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bamako (now the University of Sciences Technologies and Techniques of Bamako [USTTB]) to conduct research on Anopheles mosquitoes, which is the vector responsible for the transmission of malaria. The research program expanded over time to include other

RFP No. 75N93025R00007 3 aspects of malaria research, such as vaccine development, and other infectious diseases, including leishmania, filariasis, tuberculosis (TB), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). In 2002, the Mali research program was subsumed into the Mali International Center for Excellence in Research (ICER). The Mali ICER consists of multiple laboratories, including a College of American Pathologists (CAP)-accredited clinical laboratory and a Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) laboratory at USTTB. In addition, there are several clinical field sites within a 100 km radius of Bamako. Mali ICER research projects have focused on malaria epidemiology and vaccine studies; malaria immunological studies; ecological studies on malaria mosquito vectors; basic and clinical studies on leishmaniasis; clinical studies on filariasis; clinical studies on HIV/TB co-infections; and research on emerging infectious diseases.

2. University Clinical Research Center (UCRC)

In 2014, DCR partnered with the Mali Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MHESR), and USTTB to launch the University Clinical Research Center (UCRC). This collaborative partnership aims to facilitate the development of a coordinated clinical research program in Mali, enhance the existing clinical research programs and encourage their growth and sustainability. The UCRC aspires to stimulate clinical research in West Africa that is guided by international standards and principles, and to develop an excellent research environment that will attract, and foster collaborations with, researchers worldwide. The UCRC is intended to provide and coordinate core research capabilities in areas of research regulations, data management, and diagnostics, and to help investigators initiate and implement protocols. These facilities will also encourage collaborations and be a resource for local investigators when applying for grants or other funding mechanisms, and/ or leveraging opportunities to conduct clinical research studies, trainings, and initiatives funded through other mechanisms.

3. Mali Service Center (MSC)

The Mali Service Center (MSC) is a financial services organization that was created in 2004. The MSC was established and fully funded as an independent center by NIAID in partnership with the Mali Ministry of Health (MOH) and the USTTB. The MSC provides financial management, guidance, and oversight for the administration and disbursement of research grant and contract funds in Mali. The MSC ensures compliance with all funding institutions’ grant and contract policies, as well as international and local regulations. It supports a variety of programs funded by several governmental and non-governmental organizations conducting research in Mali, including U.S. government agencies, U.S. and international non-

RFP No. 75N93025R00007 4 governmental organizations (NGOs), European research funding entities, and U.S. and international academic institutions. The MSC is located on the campus of USTTB and, since its inception, has been managed by a U.S.-based entity supported through a contract with NIAID. This contract supports the continuation of the MSC for NIAID-supported research activities.

This contract will support the management and operation of the Mali Service Center (MSC). The Mali Service Center, a financial service center in Mali, is responsible for managing funds, provided by the U.S. Government or other entities, to support biomedical research with collaborators working within Mali.

Purpose & Objectives

The Contractor shall provide NIAID with management and operational support of the Mali Service Center (MSC) to facilitate NIAID-supported research activities in Mali and nearby surrounding countries.

The Contractor shall facilitate research activities of NIAID-funded projects in Mali, including intramural research, extramural grants, and extramural contracts, and funds provided to USTTB for the “Support Services for the NIAID Mali ICER” contract. Specific requirements include procurement of supplies and services, travel management, funds disbursement, accounting and invoicing, and customs clearance for NIAID-funded activities in Mali.

Mali is a Francophone country where French is spoken extensively. To collaborate with NIAID, Mali, and other partnering countries and agencies, the Contractor must have staff members fluent in written and spoken French and English.

The Contractor will be required to provide administrative and managerial support of the MSC for the operation of NIAID-funded scientific research and other partner activities, such as trainings, scientific meetings, and/or conference attendance in Mali and the surrounding region.

NIAID anticipates awarding an Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract, with various types of task order pricing structures, including cost-reimbursement, fixed-price, and labor hour/time & materials, dependent on the need, to an organization that has the capabilities to fulfill the technical requirements of the upcoming solicitation.

Any responsible offeror may submit a proposal which shall be considered by the Agency. It is anticipated that the Request for Proposal (RFP) will be available electronically on or about December 6, 2024, and may be accessed through sam.gov.

RFP No. 75N93025R00007 5

The RFP will be advertised as a Total Small Business Set-Aside. WE ENCOURAGE ALL

RESPONSIBLE SOURCES TO SUBMIT A PROPOSAL WHICH WILL BE CONSIDERED BY THE AGENCY.

This notice does not commit the Government to award a contract. No collect calls shall be accepted. No facsimile transmissions shall be accepted.

For this solicitation, the NIAID requires proposals be submitted Online via the NIAID electronic Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS) website. Submission of proposals by facsimile or e-mail is not acceptable. For directions on using eCPS, please go to the website https://ecps.nih.gov and then click on "How to Submit."

https://ecps.nih.gov/