SOL-522-15-000003_-_CDCS_Summary.pdf

January 30, 2015

SPECIAL NOTICE: REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

Issuance Date: January 31, 2015

Solicitation Number: SOL-522-15-000003

Notice Type: Special Notice – Request for Information (RFI)

Subject: USAID/Honduras Country Development Strategy (CDCS)

Issuance Date: January 31, 2015

Closing Date: N/A

This is a Request for Information (RFI) pursuant to FAR Part 15.201(c), (d) and (f) and FAR

Part 10.002 (b)(2)(iii). The purpose of this RFI is to:

invite comments regarding acquisition strategy (including contract type, terms and conditions, and acquisition planning schedules); feasibility of the requirement

(including performance requirements, statements of work, and data requirements);

the suitability of the proposal instructions and evaluation criteria, including the approach for assessing past performance information; the availability of reference documents; and any other concerns or questions; and improve the understanding of Government requirements and industry capabilities, thereby allowing potential offerors to judge whether or how they can satisfy the

Government’s requirements, and enhancing USAID/Honduras’ ability to obtain quality services at reasonable prices.

An additional purpose of this RFI is to increase the efficiency in proposal preparation and evaluation, negotiation, and contract award in the event USAID/Honduras elects to issue a solicitation requesting proposals. However, this is an RFI, not Request for Proposals (RFP), and is not to be construed as a commitment by the U.S. Government to issue any solicitation or ultimately award a contract on the basis of this RFI, nor to pay for any information submitted as a result of this request, nor does it commit the Government to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of any comments. Proprietary information should not be sent. USAID may use any information provided without incurring any obligations.

Submit comments to this RFI to Raphael Metzger, Contracting Officer, USAID/Honduras at oaahonduras@usaid.gov.

Sincerely, Raphael Metzger

Contracting Officer

USAID/Honduras mailto:oaahonduras@usaid.gov

CDCS OVERVIEW

Honduras’ fragile democracy is increasingly threatened by alarming levels of crime and violence, high levels of poverty and food insecurity, and generally weak governance. These threats to citizen security and economic development are so severe that the Government of Honduras (GOH) has requested outside assistance to address them, through the Central American Alliance for Prosperity plan. Failure to adequately counter these threats directly impacts U.S. security and other national interests. USAID/Honduras will help Honduras to improve citizen security and human rights, strengthen economic performance, reduce poverty, and fortify its democratic institutions.

The USAID/Honduras Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS) for FYs 2015-19 seeks as a goal a more prosperous and safer Honduras that advances inclusive social and economic development among vulnerable populations. USAID/Honduras’ emphasis extends to the social and economic development of vulnerable populations within Honduras to ensure that the economic trajectory of the country is not only upward but also equitable, inclusive, and sustainable.

In pursuit of this goal, USAID collaborates and coordinates with other USG agencies such as the State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, the Departments of Agriculture and the Treasury, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, as well as USG security and defense agencies. The success of this strategy also relies upon strong partnerships with the GOH at national and local levels, community organizations and civil society, and the private sector.

In Honduras, transnational gangs and narcotics traffickers commit crime and violence in an environment of widespread impunity, creating a pervasive sense of citizen insecurity. Criminal activities have escalated to critical levels, especially along the north coast, drug transit routes, and larger cities. The United Nations reports that in 2013 Honduras had the highest murder rate in the world, at 79 killings per 100,000 inhabitants - an average of 18 murders a day. In addition, Honduras also has a high prevalence of many other types of crime, such as extortion, domestic violence, and trafficking in persons. Crime and violence cost the country 9.6 percent of its gross domestic product. This has an incalculable effect on the potential growth of Honduras’ business sector, erodes the legitimacy and authority of government institutions, and threatens the protection of basic human rights.

Nationally, two-thirds of Hondurans live in poverty and an astounding 40 percent live in extreme poverty. Poverty robs Hondurans of the opportunity to lead productive lives, and its consequences, such as malnutrition, severely impact the development trajectory of the next generation. Some 23 percent of children under-five years of age suffer from chronic malnutrition and its effect on their future cognitive capacity. Approximately 30 percent of the Honduran population lacks access to permanent, quality health services. Additionally, less than one-third of children who complete primary school meet grade level standards and only about 10 percent of public school students finish high school.

Programmatically, USAID/Honduras will focus on two Development Objectives (DOs): (1) citizen security increased for vulnerable populations in urban, high-crime areas, (2) extreme poverty sustainably reduced for vulnerable populations in Western Honduras. The prioritization of these two DOs is the result of extensive analysis and evaluation, and is shaped by USAID’s core values as well as expected resource levels.

DO1 programs will concentrate in high-density urban areas with notably high crime rates.

These include Tegucigalpa, San Pedro Sula, Choloma, Tela, and La Ceiba. Those populations most vulnerable to crime and violence in Honduras are to be empowered with resources and opportunities to reduce their risk of becoming victims or perpetrators of crime or violence in their communities. Under DO1, USAID will scale-up successful programs such as community policing, outreach centers which provide educational and off-street social opportunities for at risk youth, community infrastructure that mitigates crime, expansion of middle and high school opportunities and classroom infrastructure, social services to address household and gender based violence, and public financial management in the GOH security and justice agencies.

USAID programs will help authorities recover areas taken over by gangs and restore proper functioning of civil administration. This urban approach has been shown to be effective in pilot areas, both in terms of cost and sustainability. Narco-trafficking routes will be mostly excluded to avoid duplication of effort with other entities.

While USAID/Honduras recognizes extreme poverty can be found throughout the country, activities under DO2 will be strategically focused on the six western departments, given the severe poverty, under-nutrition, and low education indicators in this geographic area. USAID-funded contractors will expand technical agricultural extension activities that substantially increase yields of basic grains, introduce high value horticulture crops, including coffee, improve marketing opportunities, and provide off-farm employment. Biodiversity and climate change adaptation will be advanced through watershed management activities that protect habitats and forests as well as by creating water harvesting systems. Basic education will focus on early grade reading, and where possible on increasing student access to 7-9th grades. Local governments will be encouraged to improve services for their constituents. This five–year period will result in a reduction of both the number of families living on less than $1.25 per day per person (the international poverty level) and suffering malnutrition, as well as increased school completion rates and local government capacity. Overall, DO2 activities will be designed so that the poor will acquire the tools to sustainably increase their incomes through improved resource management and human capacity. National-level institutions will be assisted to scale-up and become more effective in the region, in many cases by decentralizing authority to local governments and institutions.

The two DOs incorporate a well-reasoned mix of short- and long-term strategies to address the fundamental root causes of crime, violence, and poverty. Guided by USAID’s principles to maximize our impact through more strategic, focused, and result-oriented approaches, USAID/Honduras will strengthen integration among democracy and governance, health, economic growth, education, and CARSI (Central America Regional Security Initiative) activities which all contribute to crime prevention under DO1 and poverty reduction under DO2. This CDCS is a living document that will be adapted to a progressive learning agenda, changes in the Honduran environment, as well as USG policies and resource availability.

Goal: A more prosperous and safer Honduras that advances inclusive social and economic development among vulnerable populations

DO1: Citizen security increased for vulnerable populations in urban, high-crime areas

IR 1.1: Resilience of communities and individuals to crime increased

Sub-IR 1.1.1: Community structures that mitigate against crime improved

DO2: Extreme poverty sustainably reduced for vulnerable populations in Western Honduras

Sub-IR 1.1.2: Quality services that protect against violence increased

IR 1.2:

Performance of national and municipal justice and security systems improved

Sub-IR 1.2.1: Citizen engagement with the justice and security sectors improved

Sub-IR 1.2.2: Efficiency of security and justice systems improved

Sub-IR 1.2.3: Effective community police presence increased

IR 2.1:

Resilience of livelihoods increased

Sub-IR 2.1.1: Natural resource management and biodiversity protection improved

Sub-IR 2.1.2: Adaptation of poor household to climate risks increased

IR 2.2:

Incomes

Increased

Sub-IR 2.2.1: Agricultural productivity improved

Sub-IR 2.2.2: Market demand and access increased

IR 2.3: Human capital improved, with a focus on children

Sub-IR 2.3.1: Basic education and nutrition service delivery improved

Sub-IR 2.3.2: Local service management systems improved

USAID/Honduras FY 2015-2019 Country Development Cooperation Strategy Results Framework