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ATTACHMENT A
Questions and Answers
Request for Proposals SOL-111-10-000005, Enterprise Development and Market Competitiveness (EDMC)
| 1. |
| In the transmittal letter the closing time for the submission of proposals is 10:00 a.m. (Yerevan time) and on the cover sheet the closing time is 4:00 p.m. (local time). Please clarify the actual closing time for delivery of proposals. |
| The closing time is 10 AM, Yerevan time (see Attachment B, cover page and SF 33, block 9) |
| 2. |
| Page 7, Section C.1, footnote 1 mentions “The value chain, also known as the value chain analysis…” Can USAID please clarify this statement/sentence? |
| Footnote 1 has been deleted (see attachment B, Section C) |
| 3. |
| In Section C.1 on pages 5, 9 and 12 USAID refers to “value chain management.” Can the Mission provide its definition for this term? |
| The term “value chain management” has been revised to “value chain management capacity” (see attachment B, Sections B and C). |
| 4. |
| Page 10, Section C.1, Objective A.4 refers to employing effective mentoring schemes. “Mentoring” or “mentoring enterprises” are also used on page 12, 14 and 21 of the RFP. Can the Mission provide its definition for this term? |
| The terms “mentoring schemes and “mentoring enterprises” have been deleted from the revised solicitation (see Attachment B, Section C). |
| 5 |
| Page 11, Section C.1, includes the following expected overall result: |
“A minimum average expansion of market share in targeted export markets of 3 percent by year 2, 6% by year 3, 9% by year 4, and 12% by year 5. The baselines, target values for market share by assisted VC, and export markets to be defined in the Work Plan.”
Measuring market share for certain value chains could be difficult, for example in the global religious tourism value chain. Would USAID be willing to consider an alternative overall result that focuses on growth in the target market?
This result has been deleted in the revised solicitation (See attachment B, Section C)
| 6 |
| Page 72, Section L.4 (1A), can USAID clarify if Offerors should select at least four value chains that will be targeted for assistance in the proposal, or if they should only present and apply their value chain analysis methodology to identify the value chains that will be examined during the in-depth value chain assessment at contract inception. |
| The offerors shall describe their methodology and identify at least 4 value chains per RFP requirements (see Attachment B, Section C.2 B. Proposed Interventions / Components and Section L.4, (c) (1) c.) |
| 7 |
| Page 74, Section L.4 (3), can USAID please confirm that the past performance references, usage of small business concerns narrative and SF294s do not count towards the page limit? |
| Past performance references, usage of small business concerns narrative and SF294s will be submitted in an Annex and will not be counted towards the page limit. Submission on a CD Rom is acceptable. (also see Attachment B, Section L.4, (b)) |
| 8 |
| Page 74, Section L.4 (3), may Offerors include past performance references for subcontractors whose proposed cost is less than 20% of the Offeror’s total proposed cost. |
| Yes. |
| 9 |
| Page 79, Section L.5 (j), can USAID clarify whether a 5- or 6-day workweek will be authorized for international short-term expatriate assignments in the field. |
| 6-day workweek may be authorized for international short-term expatriate assignments while in Armenia, on a case-by-case basis when an overall cost savings will result. Prepare LOE and budget accordingly. |
| 10 |
| Page 4, Section B.4: The four technical CLINs (objectives) are strongly interrelated in the scope of work, and many activities will likely support all four CLINs. Would USAID consider removing the CLINs and allow Offerors to propose an overall detailed estimate of costs for the entire project. |
| Offerors shall provide overall detailed budget for the entire project (see Attachment B, Section L.5, B.(b)(1)). The budget shall contain sufficient information to demonstrate how the offeror proposes to allocate resources among the four CLINs set forth in section B.4. |
| 11 |
| Can Offerors include a list of acronyms used in the proposal, which will not count towards the 40 page limit in the technical proposal. |
| List of acronyms will be counted towards the page limitation (also see Attachment B, Section L.4 (b) for items excluded from page limitation). |
| 12 |
| Are there any sectors that the mission wishes to deemphasize, taking into account priorities of other donor or USG programs? |
| No. |
| 13 |
| In the Management Approach and Personnel section, part C, how many points are assigned to the capability, experience, education and qualifications of local personnel? |
| No specific points are assigned to the capability, experience, education and qualifications of local personnel. Local personnel skill sets will be evaluated as part of Staffing Plan per the revised solicitation requirements (see Attachment B, Section L.4 (c) (3) 2.) |
| 14 |
| Are local resumes required to be accompanied by a signed letter of commitment? |
| Local resumes shall be accompanied by a signed letter of commitment only if proposed as key personnel. |
| 15 |
| Under Grant Administration, seed capital is not explicitly listed as possible use of grant funds. Is seed capital expected to be disbursed indirectly through investment funds and accelerators/incubators? |
| The contractor shall propose innovative approaches for provision of seed capital in appropriate amounts as determined by the offeror including through investment funds and accelerators/incubators. (Also see Attachment B, Section C) |
| 16 |
| Can USAID provide the attachments listed in Section J? |
| All attachments have been provided in the revised solicitation (see Attachment B) |
| 17 |
| Section L.4 (Instructions for the Preparation of the Technical Proposal) specifies a limit of 40 pages for the technical proposal. Is the draft PMP that must be submitted with the proposal part of the 40-page limit? |
| Draft PMP will not be counted against the 40 page limit (also see Attachment B, Section L.4 (b)). |
| 18 |
| Are graphics, charts, including organizational chart, tables, and textboxes subject to the 11 point font requirement or can a small font be used? |
| Offerors shall not use a type smaller than 11 pitch. |
| 19 |
| Does the workplan that must be submitted count towards the 40-page limit? |
| The Year one illustrative work plan to be submitted with the proposal will not be counted against the 40 page limit (also see Attachment B, Section L.4 (b)). |
| 20 |
| Can USAID provide the latest version of the Mission’s local compensation plan? |
| See attachment 5, Local Compensation Plan. |
| 21 |
| The short window to prepare proposals, together with the identical September 8 due date of the regional mission's Georgia NEO proposal (for which many of the firms bidding on EDMC are also preparing), make it difficult for firms to provide USAID with the strongest submissions possible. Given these observations, would USAID please consider extending the due date by 1-2 weeks? |
| The due date for submission of proposals has been extended to October 1, 2010. |
| 22 |
| We request that non-expendable property (NXP), which is defined as $500 in the RFP solicitation document, meet the A-122 standard of $5,000 and request the application of the non-profit definition described in A-122. |
| Non-expendable property under this project is defined in accordance with AIDAR 752.245-70 as follows: |
“Non-expendable property, for purposes of this contract, is defined as property which is complete in itself, does not lose its identity or become a component part of another article when put into use; is durable, with an expected service life of two years or more; and which has a unit cost of more than $500.”
| 23 |
| Please confirm that the regulations in ADS 303 will apply to H.12 Grants Program (small grants) and that non-US grants will be authorized up to $250,000. |
| Regulations which apply to USAID-executed grants shall also apply to grants executed by the Contractor (see Attachment B, Section H.12) |
| 24 |
| Please confirm that the definition of participant training is established for the purpose of this contract as stated in Clause 1.2. |
| Definition of participant training is established in AIDAR 752.7019 (see Attachment B, Section I.25) |
| 25 |
| Please confirm that the submission of policy is required only for offerors which have not previously received direct USG funds as described in L(5)(d) |
| Correct. However, USAID may require submission of additional information if an offeror is in the competitive rage. |
| 26 |
| Please confirm that the submission of the documents described in L(5)(h) are for major subcontractors only. |
| Letters of commitment are required from all subcontractors identified in the offeror’s proposal and will be part of the cost/business proposal (also see Attachment B, Section L(5)(h)). |
| 27 |
| Section L.4, page 74. Can USAID kindly confirm that references should only be included on resumes of the Chief of Party and four Objective Team Leaders? |
| References are required for all key personnel (also see Attachment B, Section L.4 (c) (2)). |
| 28 |
| Section J, page 64 refers to a number of attachments including a summary of predecessor activities, but we did not receive these attachments. Can USAID provide offerors with the attachments? |
| All attachments have been provided in the revised solicitation (see Attachment B). |
| 29 |
| In Section L.4, USAID lists the items that will and will not be included in the 40 page limit. Would USAID consider including graphics related to the technical approach within the items that do not count towards the 40 page limit? |
| Graphics related to the technical approach will be counted against the page limit. (See Attachment B, Section L.4 (b) for items excluded from the from the 40page limitation). |
| 30 |
| Section L.4(3)(a), P. 74 – USAID asks the contractor to “list in an annex to the technical proposal up to 10 of the most recent and relevant contracts…” Will USAID confirm that the Past Performance “Annex” does not count against the 40 page limit? |
| Past performance information will not be counted against the 40 page limit (also see Attachment B, Section L.4 (b)). |
| 31 |
| Section H.8, P.36, Will USAID confirm that it is required that the Chief of Party be proficient in |
Armenian and Russian?
a. Does this apply to other proposed key personnel as well?
The Chief of Party and the other key personnel must have English language proficiency.
| 32 |
| In accordance with AIDAR 722.170 contractor cooperating country national personnel should be compensated on the same level as USAID direct hire CCN personnel. As such, in order to put together a comparable Local National Compensation plan, we would kindly request that USAID provides the current LCP in use by the Mission in Armenia. |
| See attachment 5, Local Compensation Plan, to the revised solicitation. |
| 33 |
| Section L.5(b)(2)(K), P. 76, Indirect Costs – Does USAID consider the company NICRA the same as a letter from a cognizant U.S. Government audit agency? Is this requirement the same as L.5(b)(4)(i) on page 77? |
| Yes, assuming it establishes indirect rates or an equivalent forward pricing agreement |
| 34 |
| Section L.5(4)(e) page 77, Subcontracting Plan –would USAID consider removing this requirement since the contract will be performed in whole overseas? |
| Subcontracting Plan is required per Section L.5 (e) of the solicitation. |
| 35 |
| Please confirm that a detailed Work Plan is not required for the proposal, and such a Work Plan is only required after the target Value Chains (VCs) have been selected and approved by USAID. |
| The offerors shall submit a Year one illustrative work plan, including mobilization plan (see Attachment B, Section L.4, (c) (3). The detailed Work Plan will be submitted within 90 days after award once the target Value Chains have been selected and approved by USAID. |
| 36 |
| On page 22 of the RFP states, "The contractor shall alert the COTR if it intends to pursue work in any value-chains that have potential for significant adverse impact on the environment." Should contractors avoid proposing work in value-chains that might have substantial environmental impact altogether? |
| No, if the selected value chains have potential for significant adverse impact on the environment the contractor shall be responsible for implementing all conditions of the amended IEE pertaining to activities with significant adverse effect on the environment. |
| 37 |
| Is the Organizational Chart included in the 40 page limit? |
| Yes. |
| 38 |
| On page 75 of the RFP states, “…up to 10 of the most recent and relevant contracts…” are required as past performance information. Does this mean 10 for the entire consortium or 10 for each major subcontractor? |
| The offeror and all major subcontractor will each provide past performance information on up to 10 of the most recent and relevant contracts as required in the solicitation (also see Attachment B, Section L.4, (c) (4)). |
| Please clarify how Small Business Prime Offerors will be evaluated regarding the inclusion of Small Businesses? Are Small Business Prime Offerors required to submit the information listed in Section L (3) A-C on page 75? |
| Small Business Prime Offerors will not be evaluated favorably or unfavorably on inclusion of Small Businesses. The past performance information on the use of small business concerns is not required from Small Businesses (also see Attachment B, Section L.4(c)(4)(d)). |
| 40 |
| Please confirm that AID 1420-17 is not required for any long-term or short-term individual professionals, expatriate and CCN. |
AID 1420-17s, Contractor Employee Biographical Data Sheets, are required for all long term, short term expatriate personnel and all long term cooperating country personnel (also see Attachment B, section L.5 B.(b)(2)(A)).
| 41 |
| For budgeting purposes, please clarify the anticipated start date for Armenia EDMC. |
| The project is expected to start on/about December 1, 2010. |
| 42 |
| Regarding Section J, Attachment 3 of the RFP (page 64), could USAID please clarify in what part of the cost/business proposal Offerors should include a completed SF LLL? Also, is it required of all proposed subcontractors? |
| SF LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities, shall be included in an annex to the cost/business proposal. The form must be completed and signed by the prime offeror and all 1st tier US-based subcontractors. |
| 43 |
| Section L.4(2)C of the RFP (page 73) states that the Offeror shall provide resumes “for proposed personnel.” The next paragraph states that “each resume shall be accompanied by a signed letter of commitment…from each candidate.” Please confirm that letters of commitment are required only from proposed key personnel. |
| Letters of commitment are required from the proposed key personnel only (also see Attachment B, Section L.4 (a)). |
| 44 |
| Regarding Section L.4(2)C of the RFP (page 73), would USAID consider accepting regional or local experience in place of international experience as part of the minimum required qualifications for the Chief of Party and/or the four Objective Team Leaders? |
| The minimum required qualifications for the COP and the four Component Leaders are stated in section L.4 (c) (2) of the revised solicitation (see Attachment B, Section L.4(c)(2)). |
| 45 |
| Will the Mission evaluate a 1-2pp Executive Summary and, if so, will said Executive Summary |
be counted within the 40pp limit?
Executive Summary will be counted against the 40page limit (also see Attachment B, Section L.4 (c)(1) a.).
| 46 |
| We find that it is useful to submit an Evaluation Matrix, which maps the proposal to the |
Evaluation Criteria in Section M, as part of the Table of Contents. Will USAID allow a 1-2 page
Evaluation Matrix prior to the Table of Contents and counted outside of the 40pp limit?
No. It will be counted toward the 40page limit.
| 47 |
| In Section A.2, the RFP mentions a “network of local consulting firms capable of providing technical assistance and training support have already been identified in previous programs and studies”. Is USAID referring to a specific list and, if so, can the sources be provided? |
| USAID does not refer to a specific list. Offerors are expected to research the local consulting market to identify the BDS providers they will work with. |
| 48 |
| Section L4, “General Instructions to the offeror”, under “a) The offeror should submit the proposal either”, section iii) states “ hand delivery (including commercial courier) of an original and 5 paper copies of the technical proposal and one original and ONE COPIES of the cost/business proposal to the issuing office.” Please confirm that the offeror should provide only one copy of the cost/business proposal. |
| One original and one copy of the cost/business proposal shall be submitted (also see Attachment B, Section L.3) |
| 49 |
| Section L4, “Instructions for the Preparation of the Technical Proposal,” under “(2) Management |
Approach and Personnel, section A: Please confirm that the Staffing Plan with a complete listing of key personnel with position descriptions should be provided in the annex of technical proposal and does not count against 40pp page limit.
Staffing Plan including Organizational chart and LOE table will be counted against the 40 page limit.
| 50 |
| Would the evaluation committee accept innovative staffing configurations different from the one |
described in the RFP? That is, can the offeror propose positions other than the five mentioned on p73 and still receive full points.
Offerors should provide positions consistent with their approach (Also see Attachment B, Section L.4 (c) (2)).
| 51 |
| Section L4, “Instructions for the Preparation of the Technical Proposal,” under “(2) Management |
Approach and Personnel, section C: please confirm, only the COP is key personnel.
USAID/Armenia determined that the Chief of Party and Component Team Leaders are key personnel for this contract.
| 53 |
| Section L.5 “Instructions for the Preparation of the Cost/Business Proposal,” under “(b) Part 2 – |
Proposed Costs/Prices” states “Biographical Data Sheets are required for all long term, short term expatriate personnel and all long term cooperating country personnel being proposed.” Please confirm, that the offeror does not need to provide Biographical Data Sheets for short-term cooperating country personnel being proposed.
AID 1420-17s, Contractor Employee Biographical Data Sheet, are not required for short term cooperating country personnel.
| 54 |
| Section L.6 “Instructions for the Preparation of Branding and Marking Plans” states “offeror(s) |
should submit a preliminary BIP and MP (not to exceed two pages) as a separate annex to the
COST proposal.” Please confirm that the BIP and MP should be included in the annex of Cost
Proposal.
AND
Please clarify, whether any part of the Branding Implementation and Marking Plan shall be included within the 40pp limit.
The preliminary Branding Implementation Plan and Marking Plan shall be submitted as an annex to the cost/business proposal. Branding Implementation Plan and Marking Plan will not be counted against the 40 page limit (also see Attachment B, Section L.6).
| 55 |
| Please clarify, whether the offeror should complete a “Disclosure of Lobbying Activities” form or |
not. If yes, please confirm that this form should be presented as an annex to the technical proposal and won’t be counted against 40pp limit.
Offerors shall complete the “Disclosure of Lobbying Activities” form and submit it as past of the cost/business proposal.
| 56 |
| In regard to the project if there are any circumstances that USAID requests that local subcontractor companies should be associated with prime bidders on an exclusive basis? |
| USAID does not require that local or any US subcontractors be associated with prime offerors on an exclusive basis. Offerors and proposed subcontractors establish their business relationships w/o USAID involvement. |