Amendment_No.1_to__SOL-617-12-000026._and_Responses_to_Questions.pdf

5. PROJECT NO.

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7. ADMINISTERED BY

2. AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION NO.

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6. ISSUED BY

8. NAME AND ADDRESS OF CONTRACTOR

4. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQ. NO.3. EFFECTIVE DATE

9A. AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION NO.

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10A. MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT/ORDER NO.

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BPA NO. 1. CONTRACT ID CODE

FACILITY CODECODE

Offers must acknowledge receipt of this amendment prior to the hour and date specified in the solicitation or as amended, by one of the following methods:

The above numbered solicitation is amended as set forth in Item 14. The hour and date specified for receipt of Offers

E. IMPORTANT:

is extended, X

(a) By completing Items 8 and 15, and returning __________ copies of the amendment; (b) By acknowledging receipt of this amendment on each copy of the offer submitted; or (c) By separate letter or telegram which includes a reference to the solicitation and amendment numbers. FAILURE OF YOUR AC- KNOWLEDGMENT TO BE RECEIVED AT THE PLACE DESIGNATED FOR THE RECEIPT OF OFFERS PRIOR TO THE HOUR AND DATE SPECIFIED MAY is not extended.

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is required to sign this document and return ___________ copies to the issuing office.is not, A. THIS CHANGE ORDER IS ISSUED PURSUANT TO: (Specify authority) THE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14 ARE MADE IN THE CONTRACT ORDER NO. IN ITEM 10A.

15C. DATE SIGNED

B. THE ABOVE NUMBERED CONTRACT/ORDER IS MODIFIED TO REFLECT THE ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14, PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORITY OF FAR 43.103(b).

RESULT IN REJECTION OF YOUR OFFER. If by virtue of this amendment you desire to change an offer already submitted, such change may be made by telegram or letter, provided each telegram or letter makes reference to the solicitation and this amendment, and is received prior to the opening hour and date specified.

C. THIS SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT IS ENTERED INTO PURSUANT TO AUTHORITY OF:

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BY

Contractor X

16C. DATE SIGNED

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION

16B. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the document referenced in Item 9A or 10A, as heretofore changed, remains unchanged and in full force and effect.

15A. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER

16A. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER

15B. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR

STANDARD FORM 30 STANDARD FORM 30

(Type or print)

(Type or print)

(Organized by UCF section headings, including solicitation/contract subject matter where feasible.)

(No., street, county, State and ZIP Code)

(If other than Item 6)

(Specify type of modification and authority)

(such as changes in paying office, appropriation date, etc.)

(If required)

(If applicable)

(SEE ITEM 11)

(SEE ITEM 13)

(X)

13. THIS ITEM APPLIES ONLY TO MODIFICATIONS OF CONTRACTS/ORDERS,

IT MODIFIES THE CONTRACT/ORDER NO. AS DESCRIBED IN ITEM 14.

11. THIS ITEM ONLY APPLIES TO AMENDMENTS OF SOLICITATIONS

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

(Signature of person authorized to sign) (Signature of Contracting Officer)

1 13

01 SEE BLOCK 16C N/A

ACQUISITION AND ASSISTANCE OFFICE

USAID/UGANDA

P.O BOX 7856 KAMPALA

UGANDA

ACQUISITION AND ASSISTANCE OFFICE

USAID/UGANDA

P.O BOX 7856 KAMPALA

UGANDA

SOL-617-12-000026

The Purpose of this Modification is to:

1. Revise various sections as detailed on the continuation pages.

2. Post Responses to Questions.

[SEE CONTINUATION PAGES FOR SPECIFIC CHANGES]

TRACY J.MILLER

CONTRACTING OFFICER

USAID/Uganda Environmental Management of Oil Sector

Amendment # 1

CONTINUATION PAGE

Amendments to the Solicitation

I. Section F.5 (2) Performance Monitoring Plan (PMP) delete paragraph 2 that reads; “The activity PMP shall include all relevant Economic Growth development objective team indicators and other indicators that the contractor may consider necessary for tracking performance. In addition to indicators, the PMP shall include baseline information, annual targets, and a data collection plan for each for each indicator. The PMP shall be revised annually to capture the learning that may have taken place over the previous year.”

in its entirety and replace with the following;

The activity PMP shall include all relevant Economic Growth development objective team indicators (see attachment J.8) and other indicators that the contractor may consider necessary for tracking performance. In addition to indicators, the PMP shall include baseline information, annual targets, and a data collection plan for each for each indicator. The PMP shall be revised annually to capture the learning that may have taken place over the previous year.”

II. Section F.6 EVALUATION OF CONTRACT PERFORMANCE

Delete paragraph: “Evaluation of the contractor’s performance shall be conducted in accordance with the performance standards and indicator targets set forth herein (section C.5.2.3). Evaluation by the COR and the Contracting Officer (CO) will be conducted jointly and shall form the basis of the Contractor’s performance record with regard to this contract as required in FAR Part 42.15 and AIDAR 742.15.”

in its entirety and replace with the following;

“Evaluation of the contractor’s performance shall be conducted in accordance with the performance standards and indicator targets set forth herein (section C.3.1). Evaluation by the COR and the Contracting Officer (CO) will be conducted jointly and shall form the basis of the Contractor’s performance record with regard to this contract as required in FAR Part 42.15 and

AIDAR 742.15.”

III. Section F.7 KEY PERSONNEL Delete paragraphs b) Senior Technical Advisor- Environmental Monitoring and Management in the Oil and Gas Sector and d) Finance and Administrative Manager in their entirety and replace with the following:

b) Senior Technical Advisor- Environmental Monitoring and Management in the Oil and Gas Sector:

The advisor will provide technical assistance to Uganda’s environmental institutions to build institutional capacity for inspection, monitoring and reporting related to oil and gas impacts in ecologically sensitive areas. The advisor will also provide guidance to the COP and other team members on biodiversity conservation and environmental management to achieve the objectives articulated in the Statement of Work. The Senior Technical Advisor – Environment will have the following minimum qualifications:

Minimum of a Master’s degree in environmental science, conservation biology, forest management, sustainable ecological systems, oil and gas management, petroleum engineering, geosciences, or a related field of study (Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field and seven years of relevant experience could be substituted for a Master’s degree).

Minimum of 7 years’ experience working on or advising programs related to environmental monitoring and management in the oil and gas sector, of which at least two years include working in the developing world.

Demonstrated excellent track record of achieving results in similar types of capacity strengthening activities.

Demonstrated strong English written and oral communication skills.

d) Finance and Administrative Manager:

Minimum of a Master’s degree in Business Administration, Finance or other relevant field

(Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field and seven years of relevant experience could be substituted for a Master’s degree).

Minimum of 7 years’ experience in financial management of projects of similar size.

Demonstrated familiarity with compliance to USG Cost Accounting Standards as well as experience and skills in developing and managing budgets of similar size.

Note: USAID reserves the right to determine if experience & education are relevant.

IV. Section J: Attachment J.4 delete: Budget by Task CLIN” tab in Attachment J.4 in its entirety

V. Section J, include the following: Attachment J.8 entitled “Economic Growth Development Objective Team Indicators.”

VI. Section L.8 INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE PREPARATION OF THE TECHNICAL PROPOSAL

Delete (c) The cover page, table of contents, key personnel resumes, personnel statements of availability, dividers, and past performance report forms are not included in the page limitation.

All Key personnel related attachments shall be submitted under Annex B. No material may be incorporated in the proposal by reference, attachment, appendix, etc. to circumvent the page limitation. Pages that exceed the page limitation shall not be evaluated.

in its entirety and replace with the following:

(c) The cover page, cover letter, table of contents, executive summary, list of acronyms, key personnel resumes, personnel statements of availability, dividers, and past performance report forms are not included in the page limitation. All Key personnel related attachments shall be submitted under Annex B. No material may be incorporated in the proposal by reference, attachment, appendix, etc. to circumvent the page limitation. Pages that exceed the page limitation shall not be evaluated.

VII. Section L.8 (3) Institutional Capability

Delete Paragraph b) in its entirety and replace with the following;

b) Descriptions of past and current relevant training, degree, and research programs designed and implemented and technical assistance provided to similar institutions, and how this will be applied to the Environmental Management for the Oil Sector activity. It is not expected that the proposed Key Personnel will be able to provide complete knowledge of all aspects of this program. The proposal should provide information on how the Offeror will fill in any knowledge gaps and provide technical expertise and support in areas such as curriculum development, research, and training. Information should also be provided on the types of research resources and amount of support the Offeror will provide to the program at Makerere.

VIII. Section L.8 (4) Past Performance

Delete Paragraph two in its entirety and replace with the following;

In Annex C, Offerors shall include a matrix that lists no more than five (5) current or past contracts and subcontracts that are similar in subject matter, size, statement, and complexity to the Statement of Work above and (ii) list up to five (5) contracts with USAID that are currently on-going or that have ended within three years of the date of the issuance of this Solicitation.

This information should be provided for Offerors as well as for each of the proposed major subcontractors. Offerors must provide the following information for each entry in the matrix:

(a) Name of the organization and DUNS number

(b) Project name and number

(c) Project description

(d) Performance period of the contract

(e) Amount of the contract (or subcontract, when the Offeror or proposed subcontractor is a subcontractor on the project)

(f) Technical contact person, telephone number and email address

(g) Administrative contact person and telephone number and email address”

USAID/UGANDA ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT FOR THE OIL SECTOR:

SOLICITATION # SOL-617-12-000026

RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS

Technical Questions

1. Section C.3 (p 19) states: “these experts would be embedded into Makerere University and potentially GoU institutions….” A) Are logistical arrangements to support embedded experts in place already, and is there no need to budget for a separate project office? B) If office space and operational support (electricity, phone, etc.) from Makerere has been arranged, can you clarify which unit of Makerere and which GoU institutions are offering these facilities? C) What furniture, equipment (printers, photocopiers, etc.) and support will be provided by these institutions?

A) There are currently no logistical arrangements in place to support these embedded experts. Although it is possible that Makerere and other GoU institutions could offer some type of logistical support for the activity, the Offeror should budget for all logistical arrangements in Uganda.

B) The Offeror will be working with the College of Natural Sciences at Makerere University.

There are no specific GoU institutions offering any facilities at this time.

C) The Offeror should budget for furniture, equipment, and other support necessary for the activity. As noted above, Makerere and other GoU institutions could provide this type of support but nothing is in place at this time.

2. Section C.3 (p 19): Result 1, Outcome 2, 3rd bullet states “Augment Government of Uganda institutions’ laboratory …”.

a) Which/how many institutions are included?

b) May we use a plug figure to cover this item as equipment needs will need assessment after award?

a) There is no requirement to include specific Government of Uganda institutions for this illustrative activity. It is up to each Offeror to determine the specific activities; however, if this type of activity is undertaken, the Offeror would need to determine the specifics on how to provide the support to achieve Outcome 2.

b) Yes

3. Per the qualifications on p. 37 of the RFP, the Finance and Administrative Manager requires experience in financial management of large international projects. A) Would USAID consider replacing this with "projects of similar size" instead of "large international projects"? Additionally, under the qualifications, experience managing logistics and/or supply chain management is highly preferred. B) Can USAID expand on how this project will incorporate logistics and supply chain management?

A) Yes, large international projects have been replaced with projects of similar size. See revised Section F.7 d) B) Experience managing logistics and/or supply chain management is not a requirement for this position. The qualifications have been revised to reflect this in Section F.7 d.

4. In lieu of a Master's degree, would USAID consider candidates with a Bachelor's degree and more years of experience for key personnel?

Yes, a Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field and seven years of relevant experience can be substituted for a Master’s Degree for both the Senior Technical Advisor- Environmental Monitoring and Management in the Oil and Gas Sector and the Finance and Administrative Manager only. See revised Section F.7 b) and d). USAID reserves to right to determine if the experience documented & education is relevant.

5. Page 25 section C.6.1 states “While USAID’s evaluation policy calls for evaluative activities that focus on performance and impact, learning can also include activities between monitoring and impact evaluation and can underscore the need for mid-course corrections, while improving the results of implementation, especially where activities are innovative.”- A) Will an impact evaluation be conducted on this project? B) And if so, by whom, and what type of impact evaluation will be conducted. A) It USAID policy (ADS 203) that performance and/or impact evaluations will be conducted to all USAID funded ‘large’ projects. Therefore, this project will most likely have an impact evaluation conducted at the end of the activity and periodically throughout the life of the activity.

B) The evaluation will be conducted by an independent evaluator. The type of impact evaluation hypothesis and evaluation questions will be determined before an evaluation RFP is written.

6. Please provide the offeror with the Economic Growth development objective team indicators that this project will report (as required in F.5 (2) page 32), the ones available in USAID/Uganda’s CDCS have issues of attribution and manageable interest with respect to this project.

See revised section F.5 (2) and attachment J.8 for Economic Growth development objective team indicators specific to environment programs. The Offeror is welcome to develop additional results-oriented indicators that better measure the success of this activity.

7. Section H.23(ii) (p. 53) states that the project will be covered by the umbrella Initial Environmental Examination (IEE). Would it be possible to provide this IEE to bidders?

Yes, the umbrella Initial Environmental Examination is attached as Attachment J.6

8. In the Institutional Capability section on Page 104 of Section L, would USAID please clarify what "the institution" refers to in the sentence that begins, "The proposal should provide information on how the institution will fill in any knowledge gaps..."?

The institution is the Offeror.

9. Also in the Institutional Capability section on Page 104 of Section L, would USAID please clarify what specific information on resources USAID is requesting in the following sentence? “Information should also be provided on the types of research resources and amount of support the institution will provide to the program at Makerere”?

Response: Ideally, the Offeror and partner(s) (which could be an academic institution) could develop a long-term relationship with Makerere University or other institutions and could provide additional research resources (for example, fellowships or research grants for Makerere students) to contribute to the long term sustainability of the program.

Contractual Questions

10. In page 29 of Section E,3., QUALITY ASSURANCE SURVEILLANCE PLAN (QASP) - Would USAID please clarify who is responsible for developing this plan? A) Would USAID please provide a format for or sample of the QASP? B) If it is the Contractor's responsibility to prepare the QASP, when is this plan due to USAID?

A. The Contractor will be responsible for developing the Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan.

B. There is no standard format or template for this document; the contractor, after award will propose a format for approval by the Contracting Officer’s Representative

(COR).

11. E.3 Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) (p. 29): please provide the plan as it affects how we present our approach to M&E.

See Response to Question 10

12. Section E.4, through F.5 (2) (pp 30-32) – M&E and PMP: No information is provided on anticipated funding streams for the project, though these have significant implications for M&E and USAID indicator reporting. Please provide indicative information on funding sources that have explicit reporting requirements, if possible?

Funds for the activity are biodiversity funds. There are no additional funding reporting requirements except those listed in the synopsis of Contract Reports/plans, Attachment J.8, and the required biodiversity indicator.

13. F.6 (p 35): Evaluation of Contract Performance refers to section C.5.2.3, which is missing.

Please provide this section.

Delete section C.5.2.3 and replace with C.3.1; see revised section F.6

14. Section L.8 (c) (p. 101) exempts the cover, TOC, dividers and annexes from the 30-page proposal limit. May we include a cover letter and list of acronyms that will not be subject to the 30-page limit?

A cover letter and list of acronyms shall not be counted as part of the 30 page technical proposal limit but shall not however exceed 1 page each. See revised Section L.8 (c)

15. Section L.8(d)(2) (p. 102) states that the 1-2 page Executive Summary is exclusive of the 30 page limit. In section L.8(c), however, the Executive Summary is not listed as an item excluded from the page limit. Would USAID please confirm that the executive summary is not included in the 30 page limit?

Confirmed, 1-2 page Executive Summary is not included in the 30 page limit. See revised Section L.8 (c)

16. Please confirm that an acronym list may be provided exclusive of the page limit.

Response: see response to question 14

17. Section L.8 Past Performance (p 105) requests: the offeror shall include a matrix that (i) lists no more than three current or past contracts and subcontracts……..and (ii) lists all contracts with USAID that are currently ongoing or that have ended within three years …..Can you please clarify what should be included in the matrix and whether you are requesting PPRs.

As mentioned in Section L.8.4 “Offerors must provide the following information for each entry in the matrix:

(a) Name of the organization and DUNS number

(b) Project name and number

(c) Project description

(d) Performance period of the contract

(e) Amount of the contract (or subcontract, when the Offeror or proposed subcontractor is a subcontractor on the project)

(f) Technical contact person and telephone number & email address

(g) Administrative contact person and telephone number and email address”

USAID/Uganda is not requesting PPR’s.

18. Section L.8(d)(4) (p. 105) Past Performance, states that “In Annex C, Offerors shall include a matrix that (i) lists no more than three (3) current or past contracts and subcontracts that are similar in subject matter, size, statement, and complexity to the Statement of Work above and (ii) lists all contracts with USAID that are currently on-going or that have ended within three years of the date of the issuance of this Solicitation. This information should be provided for Offerors as well as for each of the proposed major subcontractors.” First, will USAID kindly confirm that the limit of three current or past subcontracts under (i) refers to all members of an Offeror’s consortium, including major subcontractors? And second, given that the requirement under (ii) would entail the provision of hundreds of project references for some Offerors, would USAID consider modifying this requirement? For example, could bidders provide information for the 20 most relevant projects?

See revised section L.8 Subpart 4 entitled “PAST PERFORMANCE.”

19. M.3.1, Technical Evaluation Criteria (p 106): No scores are given for the four criteria listed.

Is it possible to provide a percentage ranking of these criteria to guide weighting in proposal development?

Refer to Section M.3.1 entitled “Technical Evaluation Criteria.” The technical proposal evaluation criteria are presented below in DESCENDING ORDER of importance.

Technical Approach;

Staffing and Management Institutional Capability Past Performance Technical is substantially more important than cost.

20. Section M: Would USAID consider assigning a points structure to the Technical evaluation criteria?

See response to question 19.

21. Given the M&E requirements provide in the RFP, may offerors outline their M&E strategy in an annex not included in the 30 page limit for technical proposal?

The Offeror’s M&E strategy should be outlined in Annex D, Draft Performance Management Plan.

22. Section B.4 (p. 15) of the RFP indicates the following CLIN structure: CLIN 001 – Direct Costs, CLIN 002 – Subcontracts, CLIN 003 – Indirect Costs, and CLIN 004 – Fixed Fee.

However, the “Budget by Task CLIN” tab in Attachment J.4 has columns for each year that require indirect costs and fixed fee to be applied to task CLIN costs. This format seems to conflict with Section B.4, which represents Indirect Costs and Fixed Fee as individual CLINs. Could USAID please clarify how Offerors should present the CLIN structure in attachment J.4?

Delete Budget by Task CLIN” tab in Attachment J.4 in its entirety.

23. Although the RFP cover page states that the program shall be implemented over a period of four years, the “Budget by Task CLIN” tab of Attachment J.4 indicates that Year 1 shall encompass the “estimated number of months remaining in FY13 at time of award.” Can USAID please confirm that Year 1 should be budgeted as a full 12 months of implementation?

USAID Confirms that Year 1 should be budgeted as a full 12 months and also see response to question 22.

24. Section L.9(b)(2)(A) (p. 106) states that “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 Biographical Data Sheets are not required for illustrative short term expatriate personnel.

Biographical Data Sheets are not required for illustrative short term expatriate personnel.

25. On page 102 of Section L, USAID provides offerors with a list of Annexes it may provide to its proposals. However on page 101 of Section L, USAID states that, "No material may be incorporated in the proposal by reference, attachment, appendix, etc. to circumvent the page limitation. Pages that exceed the page limitation shall not be evaluated." Would USAID please confirm that Annexes permitted in the list on page 102 may be referenced in the technical chapters?

Confirmed, annexes permitted in the list in Section L.8 (3) with respective page limitation may be referenced in the technical chapters while the technical proposal shall have a 30 page limit.

26. Would USAID please confirm that a six-day work week is allowed for short-term technical assistance?

Yes, a six-day work week is allowed for STTAs, however premium pay is not authorized.

[End of Amendment No.1]