RFP_Questions_and_Responses.pdf

SOL-523-15-000004

Local Capacity Development Program

USAID/Mexico RFP Questions and Responses

July 31, 2015

Technical Proposal Questions

1. Has a contractor performed similar work to this for the government in the past? If available, please provide the incumbent contract number. If you are unable to provide a contract number, is it safe to assume this is a new requirement for the government?

Response:

Crime and Violence Prevention Activity: Contract No. AID-523-C-15-00001

The Crime and Violence Prevention Activity provides tailored training to civil society organizations (CSOs) to improve their capacity to deliver crime and violence prevention services to vulnerable communities. While the capacity-based training is focused on crime and violence prevention, the training includes components to improve their organizational management and sustainability.

2. Section B.1 (pg. 3) "Background",the RFP states that "...In 2015, the USG conducted a review of CSOs in Mexico...". Could USAID share this document with potential contractors?

Response: USAID conducted an internal review of responses to a Request For Information:

https://www.fbo.gov/?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=79e0e74e3646d260d68fa80e9 f0ca752&tab=core&_cview=0. USAID/Mexico is still reviewing the information for accuracy and it is therefore not publically available. In any case, offerors are encouraged to do their own market research.

3. Section B.3.3 (pg. 6) "Establish Partnerships", could USAID confirm whether the use of Grants Under Contracts (GUCs) would be acceptable to finance technical assistance and/or capacity building of local CSOs?

Response: Grants under Contracts in general are not encouraged. Should there be sound justification for their use and the requirements of ADS 302.3.4.13 Grants Under Contracts (GUCs) are met, they will be considered.

4. On page 6 under "Component 2: Capacity Building of sub-awardee", the RFP states "...the Contractor is expected to subcontract with local CSO to implement the Diplomado, and this organization must be identified in their proposal..." Could USAID kindly clarify that the Contractor has the flexibility to change the identified CSO during the

USAID/Mexico RFP Questions and Responses

July 31, 2015 implementation phase contingent the CSO is not meeting the expectations of the Contractor and the Contract?

Response: It will be possible should there be events outside of the implementer’s control that requires a change but part of the decision of whom will receive the award is based on the specific partnership that will result from this award.

5. On p. 5-6 in Section B.3(2) Scope of Work, the RFP requires that the course “be several months in duration with in-person classroom instruction offered a few days per month.”

Further, “it is anticipated that the course will be imparted five to ten times, with up to 100 organizations participating in total.” Would USAID consider innovative approaches to training delivery methods, such as online course modules, remote instruction, etc., in lieu of or in addition to the traditional in-person training delivery?

Response: Yes USAID would consider innovative approaches to training delivery methods, however the Prime’s main field office for this activity must be based in Mexico.

6. Given the need for strong local partners to achieve the goals and objectives of this project, please clarify if the Mission has a preference for non-exclusive local partners.

Response: USAID does not have a preference for non-exclusive local partners.

7. On page 4, INL is mentioned in its role of “working with many local organizations to improve their capacity, build new effective and long-term partnerships, and reduce the need of foreign assistance over time.” Please clarify what role, if any, INL will be playing in USAID/Mexico LCDA and/or similar programming.

Response: Please refer to B.3. Component 1, Task 4 of RFP. Some of these organizations include those that have worked with INL.

8. Has any market research been conducted to support the intended scope for the local subcontractor and the sustained demand for CSO training services? Can this market research be provided to inform responses?

Response: Please refer to response to Question 2.

9. Will the chart on page 46 meet all requirements to capture institutional capacity and past performance information? Or should PPRs be provided as an additional annex?

USAID/Mexico

Response: Please provide last three short-form PPRs.

10. On page 46, it is requested that offerors provide “grant, cooperative agreement, or contract numbers that show relevant technical and field experience in similar contracts/agreements in Latin America…” Can non-Latin America contracts/agreements be used to represent similar, relevant work and be responsive? Is it required that all these contracts/agreements come from the prime, or can subcontractor performance be included?

Response: It is preferable, but not limited that the offeror show relevant technical and field experience in similar contacts/agreements in Latin America.

Subcontractor performance can be included, but the Prime must have relevant technical and field experience in similar contracts/agreements.

11. On page 44, a list of Recommended Attachments is provided. Could USAID please provide guidance about what information should be included in the recommended attachment “Additional information on proposed subcontractor”?

Response: Please refer to updated RFP

12. Are Cover, Acronyms list and Transmittal (cover) letter included in the 20-page limit?

Response: No. Cover, Acronyms list and Transmittal (cover) letters are not included in the 20-page limit.

13. Does USAID have a preferred font type(s)?

Response: Offerors should use Times New Roman font.

14. Please confirm that both proposals (Technical and Cost) can be submitted as pdf files.

Response: Technical proposals must be submitted in Microsoft Word and Cost Proposals must be submitted in Microsoft Excel with the ability to view all formulas.

Please refer to RFP for proposal preparation instructions.

15. In the past performance summary table (page 46 #4), can we take “instrument number” to mean “contract number?”

USAID/Mexico RFP Questions and Responses

Response: Yes.

16. Does USAID have specific sectors or sub-sectors from which they foresee most CSOs coming?

Response: Yes, please refer to section B.2, Guiding Principles for Implementation” of RFP.

17. On page 18, the RFP states that “the Government intends to evaluate Offerors in accordance with Section M of this RFP…” however, there is no Section M. Please confirm how USAID anticipates evaluating proposals.

Response: Please refer to updated RFP, page 18 for evaluation criteria

18. On pg. 47, it indicates that the key personnel must be Mexican nationals. Does this also mean that they have to be resident in Mexico for the project duration, or could they be Mexican citizens located elsewhere?

Response: Key personnel must be Mexican nationals already located in Mexico and must be resident in Mexico for the duration of the activity.

19. Are references for key personnel subject to the 3-page CV limit, or can they be submitted as a separate page?

Response: References for key personnel are subject to the 3-page CV limit.

20. In addition to the summary table provided in the RFP, would USAID like to see short-form PPRs reports as part of the past performance section?

Response: Please provide last three short-form PPRs.

21. On page 19, the RFP states that “the proposal must include the Prime Contractor’s evaluation of the proposed sub recipient/partner’s past performance.” Can we take this to mean that the Prime Contractor should include information from the sub-awardee CSO in the past performance summary?

Response: Please refer to response to question 10 and response to question 42.

USAID/Mexico RFP Questions and Responses

July 31, 2015

22. The evaluation points appear to add to 105 points rather than the customary 100 points.

Can you please clarify?

Response: This has been corrected. Please refer to updated RFP.

23. Can you confirm that all past performance references must be based in Latin America?

Response: Please see response to question 10.

24. Pursuant to AIDAR 752.204-70 (b)(2), can USAID please provide guidance on when to submit USAID Partner Information Forms?

Response: USAID Partner Information Forms must be submitted prior to award.

25. USAID has requested a summary budget and brief summary explanation of all assumptions used in developing the cost to USAID. In Section D.3.(b) Part 2, USAID requests “cost information for each of the major budget categories”; can USAID clarify if offerors may develop their own categories or if USAID has specific summary budget line item categories pre-determined? In the latter case, can USAID kindly provide their preferred structure for the summary budget?

Response: Please refer to updated RFP.

26. Section D.3.(b) Part 2 of the RFP details that an explanation of “all assumptions used in developing the cost to USAID” is required. Can USAID clarify if it is requesting a detailed budget narrative for all detailed items in the detailed budget that is summarized in the summary budget submitted to USAID?

27. In Section B.7.H.b, USAID details that the Contractor shall submit detailed financial information, including amount obligated, amount invoiced for, total amount expended, and remaining unexpended funds in its quarterly reports. Can USAID clarify if this information is required for Firm-Fixed-Priced contracts? If not, can USAID kindly strike this from the solicitation?

Response: This has been removed from the solicitation. Please refer to updated

RFP.

USAID/Mexico RFP Questions and Responses

July 31, 2015

28. Can USAID please provide information on how it envisions payment structure and payment procedures under the project?

Response: Please refer to FAR 52.212-4, already included in the RFP. USAID will establish the payment schedule with the selected offeror.

29. USAID has incorporated AIDAR 752.225-71, Local Procurement, in the solicitation, which details the requirements of 22 CFR 228 with regards to geographic coding. Can USAID please clarify the solicitation’s geographic code?

Response: The geographic code is 937.

30. Pursuant to Section D.3., USAID defines “major subcontractors” as those subcontractors whose proposed costs exceed 20 percent of the contract value. Can USAID clarify if it is requesting a summary budget and budget explanation for all subcontractors, major subcontractors, or only the prime contractor?

31. Can USAID please clarify the valuation of the points for evaluation of the technical proposal and if they should add up to 100 points on page 20?

32. The RFP states that the offerer should select one Mexican sub-awardee to directly support the capacity building of other CSOs in Mexico. Is more than one local partner acceptable to USAID?

Response: No.

33. Page 6, Item 4 of the RFP states: “The USG will provide the contractor with a list of potential local CSOs to whom the Diplomado shall be targeted. The list will be comprised primarily of organizations that already have worked with the USG or that applied to work with USG in the past and whose applications were unsuccessful.” Can USAID please clarify if it envisions program funds to be utilized for training of other CSOs that are not specifically assigned by USAID to the contractor?

USAID/Mexico

34. Section D.2 states that: “Offerors shall use only 8.5 inch by 11 inch (210mm by 297mm)”. As the former English dimension and the latter metric dimension are actually two different sizes, could USAID please clarify which standard is preferred?

35. Per page 4, Component 1: Training Program of Section B.3, Scope of Work, “The Contractor will adapt an already-existing organizational capacity building curriculum.”

Can USAID please kindly clarify whether USAID has already identified the curriculum that is to be adapted, or whether this curriculum should be sourced from the bidder’s existing training materials?

Response: USAID has not already identified the curriculum that is to be adapted.

USAID does not have a preference from where the curriculum is sourced.

36. Item 3, Establish Partnerships, of Component 1 of Section B.3, Scope of Work, on page 6 of the RFP states that “The Contractor may consider the full range of partnerships, including universities and local NGOs, for in-kind donations of classroom space or donations of staff time to impart trainings and/or provide technical assistance.” Is USAID amenable to co-location of full- and part-time staff at the offices of the sub-awardee or other partner? Would USAID be willing to provide facilities for co-location or training events?

Response: USAID has no preference regarding co-location of full- and part-time staff at the offices of the sub-awardee or other partner. USAID is not willing to provide facilities for co-location or training events.

37. Item 4, Identification of CSOs, of Component 1 of Section B.3, Scope of Work, on page 6 of the RFP states that “The USG will provide the contractor with a list of potential local CSOs to whom the Diplomado shall targeted.” To facilitate project design, can USAID provide further information (size, level of sophistication, location, focus area, date founded, etc.) about these targeted CSOs?

Response: Please refer to RFP.

38. Section B.5, Geographic Scope, on page 7 states that “Training will be provided in Mexico City and/or another major city in the country.” For the purposes of budgeting in-

USAID/Mexico RFP Questions and Responses

July 31, 2015 country travel for Key Personnel, can USAID please provide an illustrative list of other locations in which training may occur?

Response: Please refer to RFP.

39. Per page 46, Personnel and Staffing Plan of Section D.2 Instruction for the Preparation of the Technical Proposal, the RFP states that the technical approach is to contain “signed letters of commitment from each [Key Personnel] candidate.” Can USAID kindly specify whether the letters of commitment from the sub-awardee and key personnel can be non-exclusive?

Response: Full-time key personnel must be exclusive. Part-time key personnel and sub-awardee may be non-exclusive.

40. We are interested in considering a bid for the Local Capacity Development Activity (LCDA), Solicitation, SOL-523-15-00004 and have reviewed the scope of work (SOW) in detail. Based on our understanding of the requirements set forth in the SOW, including the period of period of performance, we have a question regarding the estimated budget ceiling of the proposal. Since we and our partners have completed activities such as this before, it appears the proposed budget could be substantially less than what it would take to perform the required work. Can you provide an indication as to whether the budget shown in the RFP, $1,500,000 is, in fact, the budget proposed for all of the work set forth in the RFP?

Response: Yes, the budget proposed in the RFP is the budget proposed for all of the work set forth in the RFP.

41. In page 7, Specific tasks for Component 1, 2. Develop a Certificate (Diplomado in Spanish) training program, it is requested a course that “. . . for example, to approximately 15-20 CSOs at a time (30-40 participants, with up to two participants from each CSO), and be several months in duration with in-person classroom instruction offered a few days per month.” And that by the end of the project “. . . the course will be imparted five to ten times, with up to100 organizations participating in total.”

Although the USG will provide the contractor with a list of potential local CSOs to whom the Diplomado shall be targeted. We do not have the certainty that the participants of each CSO will enroll to the Diplomado program; furthermore, how can we make them to go throughout and finish the whole program to get the certificate? What is the minimum number of participants getting the certificate that the contractor shall compromise? What the contractor should do to keep the participants working to get the certificate? What additional offerings the USAID is willing to give to the participants in order to make

USAID/Mexico RFP Questions and Responses

July 31, 2015 them stay and finish the program? Can the contractor provide the Diplomado Program all the time in Mexico City?

Response: The contractor is expected to demonstrate its best effort at ensuring retention in the training program. USAID cannot provide resources to participants in order to make them stay and finish the program. Please refer to section B.5, Geographic Scope.

42. In pages 7 and 8 of the RFP, COMPONENT 2: Capacity building of the sub-awardee, it is said that “. . . the Contractor is expected to subcontract with a local CSO to implement the Diplomado, and this organization must be identified in their proposal. The sub-awardee should be a credible local organization that has the demonstrated potential to independently conduct organizational capacity development training”. Is the sub-awardee going to be selected solely by the contractor? Can the sub-awardee be a College or University or a Human Resource training company? How many years of experience should have the sub-awardee? Is there any specific profile to be met by the sub-awardee in order to be accepted by USAID?

Response: Yes, the sub-awardee will be selected by the Contractor with USAID’s concurrence. Yes, the sub-awardee can be a College or University or a Human Resource training company. Please refer to the updated RFP, “Institutional Capabilities and Past Performance” section of technical evaluation criteria.

Cost Proposal Questions

1. Section B.5. (pg. 7) "Geographic Scope", the RFP states that travel expenses for the participants will be covered by the CSOs. Could USAID kindly clarify that full per diem (M&IE and lodging) is included in the travel expenses to be covered by the CSOs and not the Contractor?

Response: Yes. Full per diem (M&IE and lodging) is included in the travel expenses to be covered by the CSOs and not the Contractor.

2. Please confirm that USAID is only seeking two budgets total: one for the base period and one for the option years, rather than one budget per year for base/option years (five total).

3. As this is a firm fixed-price contract, we will be preparing our budget to reflect only those reporting requirements laid out in the RFP (in table on pages 12-13). Please confirm that any reporting not explicitly laid out in the RFP (including “special and or extraordinary

USAID/Mexico RFP Questions and Responses

July 31, 2015 reporting” referenced on page 11) that ends up being required will be for an additional, mutually agreed-upon cost.

Response: Please refer to the RFP, section B.7 for list of reports and deliverables.

4. Can you clarify what you mean on pg. 20 by "The government may determine that an offer is unacceptable if the option prices are significantly unbalanced." Unbalanced as between each other? Or as compared to the base years?

Response: Unbalanced as compared to the base years.

5. Would USAID consider changing this procurement from a Firm-Fixed-Price contract to a CPPF type contract? Given that this is professional services procurement, and that it runs for a base period of three years with two one-year option periods, establishing a realistic pricing estimate of the probable costs of performance is uncertain.

Response: At this time we will not be able to change the procurement from a Firm- Fixed-Price contract to a CPFF-type contract.

6. As per 48 CFR 16.202-1, “The contracting officer may use a firm-fixed-price contract in conjunction with an award-fee incentive (see 16.404)”. We respectfully request that the contracting officer use an award-fee incentive in conjunction with this FFP contract.

Response: At this time we will not be able to convert this to a firm-fixed price with award-fee incentive.

7. Given that under a FFP contract the price is not subject to adjustments based on actual costs, and that a FFP places all risk and responsibility for cost on the contractor we respectfully request that USAID suggest an acceptable % for profit ( a range).

Response: As this is an open competition, USAID/Mexico cannot suggest acceptable cost ranges or pricing guidelines – each offeror needs to determine how to make their offer the most advantageous.

8. Instructions for the Preparation of the Cost / Business Proposal, D3a Part 1- Standard Form (SF) 1447, asks that we complete blocks 12–18. In order to complete this form, we will need the following information:

Response: Please see page 46 of updated RFP.

USAID/Mexico

9. Block 12- This block is partially completed as “Administered by USAID/Mexico”. The block requires that we enter a “CODE”. Where can we find this information, what code does this reference?

10. Block 14- “Payment will be made by” and “CODE”. Please provide this information as we didn’t see it in the RFP.

11. Block 17- Please clarify what goes in that section.