Q&A Responses for MYAPS Nepal Round 720BHA23APS00002-04.pdf

Date: November 13, 2024

Subject: Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance’s (BHA) responses to questions received on the BHA Multi Year Annual Program Statement (MYAPS): Round 04-Nepal ER4 Activity released on October 11, 2024 - Funding Opportunity Number: 720BHA23APS00002

Summary The U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) has summarized below the questions that BHA received on the MYAPS Round 04-Nepal ER4 Activity.

Amendments to this MYAPS round can be found in the following sections:

1. Section B, 2, Page 13 (Expected Performance Indicators, Targets, Baseline Data, and Data Collection): The first sentence which reads “This Round falls under BHA’s Emergency Application Guidelines (EAG) Disaster Risk Reduction Policy and Practice (DRRPP) sector and related subsectors, as well as the Climate keyword” has been revised to read “This Round falls primarily under BHA’s Emergency Application Guidelines (EAG) Disaster Risk Reduction Policy and Practice (DRRPP) sector and related subsectors, as well as the Climate keyword. However, BHA will consider the use of other sectors and keywords as applicable.”

2. Section C, 1, page 14 (Eligible Applicants): The following language is removed: “Because this award will utilize International Disaster Assistance (IDA) account funding, authorized through the Foreign Assistance Act, applicants must be a U.S. or non-U.S. non-governmental organization (NGO) or a Public International Organization (PIO). USAID defines an NGO as any nongovernmental organization or entity, whether non-profit or profit-making, including hospitals, universities, and for-profit corporations. Further, the organization must be a legally recognized, organizational entity under applicable law, legally registered in Nepal” and replaced with the following: “Eligibility for this NOFO is not restricted.”

3. Section D, Page 18 (Concept Note Format): Further specificity to the page limit total and what sections count towards the 10 page limit. An executive summary (of no more than one page) and an organogram will be excluded from the 10 page limit, along with the cover page and the key personnel CVs. Furthermore, organograms and key personnel CVs may be submitted as Annexes at the end of the Concept Note if applicants prefer.

4. Section D, 5, page 18 (Concept Note Format): The CN format outline has been amended to include a Needs Assessment as a required subsection of the technical approach/program description and to remove the market analysis and modality selection reference, which will no longer apply. Additionally, The CN format on page 18 has been amended to include Management Structure and Institutional capacity as the first two subsections of the Management Structure and Institutional Capacity section, while the activity-specific staffing plan and management approach subsections have been removed, and no longer apply.

Additionally, the text “not more than one page in total” has been added in parentheses after “Executive Summary” at the bottom of page 18.

5. Section D, 5 (c) Section D, 5(c), page 19 (Activity Design): Under “Theory of Change”, the sentence “Applicants must provide a program description, needs assessment/context analysis and a description of specific activity targeting and beneficiary selection” has been removed from this section and no longer applies.

6. Section D, 5(c), page 19 (Technical Approach/Program Description): The last bulleted sentence under “Applicants must present an integrated narrative that details:” has been revised to read “The strategy for answering relevant knowledge gaps and adjusting the activity design during activity implementation.” References to refinement and contextualization have been removed.

7. Section D, 5(f)2, Page 23 (BHA Sectors and Corresponding Indicators): The first paragraph which reads “Indicators will not be required at the concept note stage. BHA will advise the apparently successful applicant on required indicators during the full application” has been removed from this section and no longer applies. The subsequent paragraph has been revised to read as follows: “The primary sector that BHA expects activities and corresponding indicators to fall under for this activity is the Disaster Risk Reduction Policy and Practice (DRRPP) sector, although BHA welcomes a multisectoral approach and will consider interventions in other sectors. Applicants should choose what sub-sectors and corresponding indicators they perceive to best fit the interventions which are aligned with the purposes of this MYAPS round and outline those in this section.”

BHA has revised this MYAPS Round where appropriate and reissued it as Amendment #1. BHA did not reply to all questions and comments received during the Question and Answers (Q&A) period individually. BHA has provided responses to questions received by the deadline which are found on the following pages. BHA will not accept additional questions for this round.

Questions on the FY25 Nepal ER4 MYAPS Round and BHA Responses

Questions on Applicant Eligibility

1. Question: Who is eligible to apply?

BHA Response: Eligibility for this NOFO is not restricted. Any organization may apply.

2. Question: (Consortium Participation) Can consortium partners team up with more than one prime/lead in a concept paper submission either as a lead or as a partner/co-applicant/consortium partner?

BHA Response: There will only be one award and thus one recipient. Applicants can apply as primes with a sub awardee, or as a legal consortium, but there will not be multiple prime award recipients.

3. Question: (Relevant Experience) Are there any limitations on the number of years of past project experience that applicants should showcase?

BHA Response: BHA refers applicants to the MYAPS, Section D. 7 h) History of Performance (Pg. 42).

Applicants' past project experience should not exceed “three (3) years and not to exceed five (5) awards."

4. Question: On page 20 of the BHA MYAPS, there is a reference to a host country agreement requirement for ER4 and on page 29 of the MYAPS, BHA mentions a requirement to include a host country agreement for all food security activities. Although this solicitation falls under the Disaster Risk Reduction Policy and Practice Sector, do we need to include a host country agreement in the concept note submission if any agriculture or other food security interventions are proposed?

BHA Response: No, a host country agreement for agriculture or other food security interventions is not required at the CN stage.

Questions on Transition Awards

5. Question: We understand from page 2 of ADS Chapter 303 (Process for Transition Awards) that one of the conditions for the transition award is that the local recipient has not previously received a direct award from USAID. Would recipients that directly received fixed amount https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2023-12/BHA_Multi_Year_Annual_Program_Statement.pdf awards from USAID be eligible for Transition Award or would this apply to recipients who have not received any direct funding from USAID, including fixed amount awards?

BHA Response: Recipients that have previously received a fixed amount award from USAID would not be eligible for a Transition Award, as defined in ADS 303.

6. Question: Can USAID/BHA please confirm that the standard for partner readiness for a transition award is as described in Section 4 of ADS 303mbb, or can the recipient determine other/additional criteria?

BHA Response: Yes, BHA confirms that our standards for partner readiness are laid out in ADS reference 303mbb.

7. Question: On page 9, Section A.3, the Round states that “the recipient will be required to recommend local subrecipient(s) for a potential future award to a local partner at the end of the award term.” Additionally, page 21, Section D.5(d), references strengthening the capacity of the local entity to manage potential future direct BHA awards. USAID/BHA states elsewhere that the Applicant should strengthen the capacity of at least two local subrecipients in each targeted province to meet requirements for potential transition awards. Can USAID please confirm that capacity strengthening for a potential transition award is required for at least one local subrecipient?

BHA Response: Capacity strengthening for a potential transition award is required for at least two local organizations in each Province (Sudurpaschim and Karnali).

8. Question: Working with “local partners” is referenced throughout the Round, in addition to local subrecipients. If local entities and locally established partners are included in USAID’s definition of local partners, would service contracts to such entities be considered to fulfill the requirement to work with two local partners per province?

BHA Response: No, service contracts alone to such entities would not fulfill the capacity strengthening and transition award requirement. Applicants must demonstrate how they plan to constructively build the capacity of sub-awardee organizations, rather than simply delegating tasks, as well as leverage their contextual understanding to better achieve the goal of this activity. See Page 11 of the Round 04 MYAPS for further details.

9. Question: Under the "Capacity Strengthening and Transition Award" on pg. 11, USAID asks that the award recipient strengthen the capacity of at least two local subrecipients for each targeted province. Would USAID/BHA also accept if the local organization (national) has separate chapter https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2024-10/303_100824.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/303mbb.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/303mbb.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/303mbb.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/303mbb.pdf offices in each targeted province? Would USAID/BHA consider these offices as separate (2) or united (1) organizations?

BHA Response: Yes, BHA is amenable to strengthening different chapter offices of local organizations, and would consider these offices as separate organizations if they are separately managed and the applicant can present logical steps to ensure such chapter offices receive capacity building to manage BHA awards directly.

Questions on Concept Note Submission Requirements

10. Question: Please confirm whether any cost documentation, to include a summary or detailed budget, is required as part of the Concept Note submission.

BHA Response: No cost or budget documentation is required as part of the concept note submission.

11. Question: Page 18 of the notice of funding opportunity states that concept notes, including all required sections, should not exceed 10 pages total, excluding the cover page and key personnel CVs. Is there a possibility for the executive summary and the proposed organogram to also be excluded from the 10-page limit?

BHA Response: Yes, an executive summary (of no more than one page) and an organogram will be excluded from the 10-page limit. Furthermore, organograms and key personnel CVs may be submitted as Annexes at the end of the Concept Note if applicants prefer. An amendment to this round of the MYAPS will be issued as such.

12. Question: On page 23, the solicitation states that indicators will not be required at the concept note stage. However, USAID has included a sub-section in the template called “BHA Sector and Corresponding Indicators.” Could you please clarify the guidance on this particular section?

BHA Response: With regard to the monitoring and evaluation plan, section 2, “BHA Sectors and Corresponding Indicators,” this section has been revised for greater clarity (see amendment 2 on page 1 of this Q&A document). For the purposes of this section of the M&E plan, applicants should choose what sectors, sub-sectors, and corresponding indicators they will monitor and which they perceive to best fit the interventions which are aligned with the purposes of this MYAPS round, and outline those in this section.

13. Question: On page 20, the Round states that the technical narrative/program description should include “The strategy for answering relevant knowledge gaps and refining the activity design during the refinement or contextualization period.” Can BHA please confirm that BHA’s specific

Refine and Implement (R&I) Model is not expected to be included in this Round for the Nepal ER4 Activity?

BHA Response: No, BHA's specific R&I model is not expected to be included as part of CN submission for this round, however the technical approach must include a strategy for answering relevant knowledge gaps during activity implementation.

14. Question: According to the description of the Theory of Change (page 19), “Applicants must include a Theory of Change for their activity and a purpose level overview describing each of the proposed purposes and list the applicable sectors and sub-sectors. Applicants must provide a program description, needs assessment/context analysis and a description of specific activity targeting and beneficiary selection.” Could USAID kindly clarify what information should be provided under the Theory of Change subsection given that many of the items listed—the Purpose Overview (including sectors and subsectors), Program Description, the Needs Assessment, and Targeting and Beneficiary Selection—are all separate subsections in and of themselves?

BHA Response: This MYAPS round has been amended to remove the sentence “Applicants must provide a program description, needs assessment/context analysis and a description of specific activity targeting and beneficiary selection” (see amendment 3). A Theory of Change (ToC) should describe the causal linkages from the Goal, Purpose, and Sub-purposes that contribute directly to the purposes.

Preconditions for success or assumptions can also be included. BHA recommends a ToC statement in an IF, THEN format. Please see the base BHA MYAPS section D.5(c) for more information on ToC.

15. Question: Discrepancies between the sections and subsections listed under the “Required Concept Note Format” on page 18 and the section descriptions provided on pages 20 through 23:

a. There is no mention of a Needs Assessment on page 18. However, a Needs Assessment and corresponding description appear on page 20. Should applicants provide a Needs Assessment?

b. Similarly, Institutional Capacity is not listed as a subsection on page 18.

However, Institutional Capacity and a corresponding description appear on page

21. Should applicants provide an overview of their institutional capacity?

c. Conversely, an Activity Specific Management Staffing plan is included under the “Required Concept Note Format” on page 18, but there is no description of this section provided in subsequent pages? Should applicants provide a Staffing Plan?"

BHA Response: See amendment 4 of this MYAPS round for corrections to these discrepancies.

16. Question (Pre-Award Survey (PAS) Requirement for New Applicants): The guidelines indicate that BHA requires a pre-award survey for new applicants. Could you please confirm if this survey is applicable at the concept note stage, or if it will only be required if the application advances to later stages?

BHA Response: A PAS is not required at CN stage. If necessary, a PAS will be conducted after the apparently successful applicant has been identified.

17. Question: What should be the general formatting (text size, margins, etc.) of the CN?

BHA Response: Please see section 3(D), page 1 for CN for general formatting instructions.

18. Question: Besides CVs of key personnel, are there other documents that should be submitted with the concept note? Is it necessary to submit the “Other Required Documents” listed in the BHA MYAPS section D (5), as required by the ER4 round type?

BHA Response: No documents beyond what is laid out in the concept note format outline in section D(5) are required.

Questions on Technical Areas and Sectors

19. Question: The NOFO states that proposed projects are intended to be multi-sectoral and also states that this round falls solely within the DRRPP sector. Please confirm whether proposed interventions should only include the DRRPP sector and related subsectors.

BHA Response: While DRRPP should be the main sector focus of proposed projects, BHA welcomes a multi-sectoral approach and will consider concept notes that include sectors beyond solely DRRPP.

Please see amendment 3 of this MYAPS.

20. Question: The notice of funding opportunity mentions that this round falls under the Emergency Application Guidelines sector, Disaster Risk Reduction Policy and Practice. However, food security is highlighted in the background section and illustrative interventions reference agriculture and food security. If we want to propose a food security intervention as part of a broader DRR technical approach, could we propose additional sectors from the Emergency Application Guidelines, such as Agriculture?

BHA Response: Yes, BHA is open to agriculture and food security interventions in addition to and/or related to DRRPP interventions.

21. Question: On page 23, Section D.5(f)(2), the Round states that “The Sector that BHA expects activities and corresponding indicators to fall under for this activity is the Disaster Risk Reduction Policy and Practice (DRRPP) sector. Applicants may choose what sub-sectors and corresponding indicators they perceive to best fit the interventions which are aligned with the purposes of this MYAPS Round.” However, under Section A.5 (page 10) and throughout the Round 4 NOFO, USAID/BHA notes the importance of a “multi-sector approach” in the Activity, including illustrative activities in other sectors. Can BHA confirm that applicants can include additional Sectors (and relevant sub-sectors) in addition to DRRPP? If so, can BHA please clarify the following: a) Can the Applicant include multi-sector purposes as indicated in Section A.2.1 (page 7) and Section D.4(a) (page 22) of the MY APS, with sectors grouped into each purpose and broken into sub-sectors; keywords; geographic areas; and other tables as applicable? b) BHA is clear in its Sector Guidelines that it will not fund MPCA for DRR but may fund disaster planning for potential future MPCA interventions, or MPCA as part of early or anticipatory action. Can BHA please clarify if MPCA is an allowable Sector under this Round? Are resource transfers anticipated under this program?

BHA Response: a) Yes, the applicant can include multi-sector plans for each purpose as applicable, although the only required sector will be DRRPP; b) Generally, BHA supports planning of all kinds, to include MPCA planning under DRRPP. However, use of the MPCA sector is discouraged under this round.

Resource transfers for anticipatory actions will not be supported.

22. Question: Are there any templates that can be used for the M&E component or any particular templates in general which you can share and need to be included in the submission?

BHA Response: There are no templates that must be used for the M&E component of this CN. However the sections M&E plan sections on page 19, Section D(5)(f) must be addressed when submitting the M&E plan.

23. Question: Is this NOFO targeting public infrastructure or only private houses damaged by disasters?

BHA Response: The overall activity goal of this NOFO is to reduce disaster risk and increase the disaster management capacity of the Government of Nepal as well as highly vulnerable disaster-prone communities in Nepal to mitigate, withstand, respond to, and recover from disasters. In general, USAID/BHA prefers low-cost, simple, and rehabilitation-focused interventions reliant on unskilled labor over larger, more structurally complex, or new construction interventions that require skilled labor. Any proposed construction/rehabilitation interventions need proper engineering oversight, from design to building. For more information on this topic, please see BHA’s For-Work Guidance.

https://www.usaid.gov/document/bha-work-guidance

24. Question: On page 22 of the Round, Section D.5(d), the description of the EPRM Key Personnel role includes that “The individual will provide leadership in technical multi-sectoral analysis and response design, if disaster strikes during the life of this award.” Does BHA expect the Applicant to include set-asides or activities for response in the event of a disaster over the Activity’s Period of Performance?

BHA Response: Applicants may include plans for rapid response activities in the event of a disaster over the period of performance of this award, but it is not a requirement, and set-asides will not be supported. Any such plans should be logically linked to the activity purposes and will require prior USAID approval, if disaster strikes during the life of the award.

Questions on Phase II versus Phase III of the Award

25. Question: Understanding that Phase II funding will require a renewal application, should Concept Notes propose programming for both Phase I and II, or only Phase I?

BHA Response: Please only submit information in the concept note pertaining to phase I of the program, meaning an initial award period of 3 years with an estimated award ceiling of $9 million.

Questions on Working with Local Partners

26. Question: Is it required that all partners be formally named within the Concept Paper or can this be finalized later as part of the full application package?

BHA Response: No, local partners need not be named specifically during the concept note phase of this competition. BHA will consider concept notes with both named and unnamed partners.

27. Question: Page 41 of the BHA Multi Year Annual Program Statement mentions Unique Entity Identifiers (UEI) are required for sub-awardees at the time of award. Could you please confirm whether the UEIs for sub-awardees will be required at the time of concept note submission, or can they be included at a later stage and before the award is issued?

BHA Response: UEIs are required for prime applicants at the time of concept note submission. For subrecipients, UEIs are required before an award can be made, but not at the time of concept note submission.

28. Question: Could USAID/BHA kindly confirm whether national organizations are encouraged to be non-exclusive and able to work with multiple consortia?

BHA Response: Non-exclusive letters of commitment from consortium members may be submitted with the CN, but are not required. BHA neither expects or desires exclusivity for sub-awardees. See pages 15 and 27 of the MYAPS for reference.

29. Question: Under "Capacity Building" on pg. 9, the RFP states that the prime recipient will develop the capacity of their local subrecipients to become more capable of receiving a direct award. Would USAID/BHA also accept a consortium approach where one subawardee organization provides capacity development support to other consortium members?

BHA Response: Yes, BHA would accept a consortium approach where one subawardee organization provides capacity development support to other consortium members, but the consortium members receiving capacity development would need to be local organizations registered in Nepal and the prime would still hold ultimate accountability for the successful capacity development of these organizations.

30. Question: Can USAID/BHA please confirm that their definition of local subrecipients includes local entities and locally established partners that may be national-level local organizations with operational presence in the targeted provinces?

BHA Response: Yes, USAID's definition of local organizations includes local entities and locally established partners that are national-level with operational presence in the targeted provinces.

31. Question: Does BHA/USAID prefer any specific capacity assessment tool for the local governments to be prime-ready?

BHA Response: Please note local organizations should be NGOs, not government organizations, as per the eligibility criteria. At this time, BHA does not have a specific capacity assessment tool for local NGOs to be prime ready.

32. Question: Base APS lists de minimis rate at 10% which has been increased to 15% as of Oct. 1, 2024. Can local entities use the updated de minimis rate?

BHA Response: Yes, potential recipients under this award will be eligible for the updated de minimis rate of 15 percent.

Questions on Staffing

33. Question: Does USAID/BHA anticipate being part of the interview and selection process for key personnel as stated in Base MYAPS? Or are they agreeable to applicants submitting the names and CVs of those chosen and rationale for selection in these roles for AOR approval as per Round 4 FY25 Addendum?

BHA Response: BHA will not participate in the interviewing or selection of key personnel; yet key personnel must receive BHA approval. Final key personnel approval will be decided after the apparently successful applicant is chosen during the full application review phase.

34. Question: Could BHA/USAID kindly clarify where in the application key personnel CVs should be included (as an annex or under the Key Personnel subsection)? Relatedly, could BHA/USAID kindly clarify what information, if any, applicants should include under the key personnel subsection (beyond, potentially, Key Personnel CVs)?

BHA Response: Applicants may include key personnel CVs either in the Key Personnel section of their CN or as an annex. At a minimum, applicants must note the name of the proposed Key Personnel for all required positions in this subsection, referencing CVs in the appropriate annex.

35. Question: Could USAID/BHA kindly confirm whether Key Personnel are encouraged to be non-exclusive?

BHA Response: USAID does not require exclusivity for key personnel.

36. Question: Key Personnel Requirements: Are there any restrictions on the composition of key personnel. Specifically, is the inclusion of key personnel limited to national and international expatriates?

BHA Response: No, there are no restrictions on the composition of key personnel.

37. Question: When submitting the key personnel, should we include CVs of existing personnel only or the structure and profiles of the envisaged project team?

BHA Response: Applicants should include the CVs of their proposed key personnel, whether existing or envisaged.

Questions on the Gender Analysis

38. Question: The Round refers applicants to the Base MY APS for Gender Analysis Summary guidance. Guidance on page 29 of the MYAPS, Section D.6(b) includes, “See the related Technical References on Gender for more information.” The link to Technical References on Gender seems to be broken. Can BHA share the updated link?

BHA Response: Thank you for bringing this broken link to our attention. You can find relevant technical references on Gender Analysis in USAID/BHA's Emergency Application Guidelines (Section 2.1.2) and in ADS Chapter 205.

Questions on the Competitive Process

39. Question: On page 25, Section E.2 of the Round, USAID/BHA states that one or more applicants may be invited to submit a full application. In the same section and on page 18, Section D.4, the Round states that instructions and a deadline for full applications will only be provided to the single applicant invited to submit. a) Can USAID/BHA please confirm that only one applicant is expected to be invited to the full proposal stage? b) Can BHA please confirm that cost information and the cost application are required only at full proposal stage, and only from the Applicant invited to submit a full proposal?

BHA Response: a) Yes, only one applicant will be invited to submit a full application; b) yes, cost information and a full cost application are only required at the full application stage, and only from the apparently successful applicant.

40. Question: Could USAID/BHA kindly provide additional details on the application steps after the concept note stage? Will there be additional rounds before the full application? Could USAID/BHA kindly provide additional details on how many organizations will be selected to advance to the next application round? Could USAID/BHA kindly provide additional details on the expected timeline between submission of the concept note and the next stage?

BHA Response: BHA refers applicants to Section D Application and Submission Information of the NOFO.

Page 18 states "After reviewing the concept notes, USAID/BHA will provide a deadline and any additional submission instructions to only one applicant invited to submit full technical and cost applications.”

41. Question: Would USAID/BHA please consider extending the solicitation due date by one week?

This would allow applicants more time to work closely with local partners and key stakeholders https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uv2N9MpWVWR0PqDGcurxUhexQeFLFhgeMLpPtuwy5UI/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.3rdcrjn https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2023-04/205_1.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2023-04/205_1.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2023-04/205_1.pdf for a more robust and impactful design process in line with USAID’s localization strategy, given many partners' offices are closed for the Nepalese holidays.

BHA Response: No, the timeline will not be adjusted.

42. Question: Evaluation Framework: Could you provide further insight into the evaluation framework for the concept papers? Specifically, how will the concept papers be evaluated?

BHA Response: Applicants should refer to NOFO Section E Concept Note Review Information (NOFO pg.24).

43. Question: If the concept note is successful, what is the timeframe for submitting a fully-fledged proposal?

BHA Response: The timeline is subject to change, but a full application is likely to be due from the apparently successful applicant on or around early March 2025.

Question on Reporting

44. Question: On page 13, the timeframe for baseline, midterm evaluation and final evaluation seem tight over a three year period. The notice of funding opportunity references a baseline due 90 days after award start date. The process for midterm evaluation would need to start half way into year 2, and the final evaluation report would need to be submitted 90 days after the end of year 3. Would it be possible to have midterm done in 1st or 2nd quarter of Y3, and a final evaluation done if the renewal award is granted, in the last two quarters of Y5?

BHA Response: No, it will not be possible at this stage to amend the due dates of the mid term evaluation or final evaluation. Please note that the final evaluation (should the years 4 and 5 extension be granted) will not be due until after 90 days following the end of year 5.