SOL-641-13-000005.pdf

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SOL-641-13-000005 X 03/01/2013

USAID/WA/RAAO

No. 24, Fourth Circular Road, Cantonments Accra, Ghana refer to Section L.5 1600 GMT April 18, 2013

Frederique Rakotoarivelo 1272 frakotoarivelo@usaid.gov x 1 x 5 x 7 x 30 x 32 x 33 x 42 x 46 x 66 x 81 x 82 x 92 x 107

Yves B. Kore

1 110

USAID/Ghana SOL-641-13-000005

Table of Contents

B.1 PURPOSE

The purpose of this contract is to procure the services of a Contractor to implement the USAID/Ghana Feed the Future Agriculture Policy Support Project as described in Section C.

B.2 CONTRACT TYPE AND CONTRACT SERVICES

This is a cost-plus-fixed-fee (CPFF) completion-type contract. For the consideration set forth below, the Contractor must achieve the performance objectives and deliverables or outputs described in Section C and F in accordance with the performance standards specified herein.

B.3 ESTIMATED COST, FIXED FEE, AND OBLIGATED AMOUNT

a) The estimated cost for the performance of the work required hereunder, exclusive of fixed fee, is $TBD. The fixed fee, if any, for the contract period is $TBD. The total estimated cost plus fixed fee is

$TBD.

b) Within the estimated cost plus fixed fee (if any) specified in paragraph (a) above, the amount currently obligated and available for reimbursement of allowable costs incurred by the Contractor (and payment of fee, if any) for performance of the contract period hereunder is $TBD. The Contractor must not exceed the aforesaid obligated amount unless authorized by the Contracting Officer pursuant to the clause of this contract entitled “Limitation of Funds” (FAR 52.232-22). See Section I of this contract.

c) Funds obligated hereunder are anticipated to be sufficient through TBD. Funding for this contract will be on an incremental basis, subject to availability of funds.

B.4 CONTRACT BUDGET AND CEILINGS

a) The contract budget found herein is based on the contractor’s original proposal and/or final proposal revision, which was accepted by USAID through award of this contract.

(b)Without the prior written approval of the contracting officer, the contractor may not exceed the total estimated costs set forth in the budget hereunder or the total obligated amount, whichever is less.

c) The following itemized budget sets forth the estimates for reimbursement of dollar costs for individual line items of cost, and the fixed fee (if any).

Contract Period of Performance Yr 1 Yr 2 Yr 3 Yr 4 Yr 5 Total I. Estimated Cost Direct Costs Indirect Costs Subtotal Contract Estimated Cost II. Fixed Fee III. Total Estimated Contract Cost Plus Fixed Fee

B.5 PAYMENT OF FIXED FEE

The Government must pay the Contractor for performing this contract the fixed fee specified in the Schedule.

The fee must be paid in installments at the time of each payment on account of allowable cost. The amount of each such installment being determined by applying to the amount payable as allowable cost a percentage reflecting the ratio of total contract fee to total contract estimated costs.

In the event of discontinuance of the work in accordance with the clause of the contract entitled “Termination (Cost Reimbursement)” (FAR 52.249-6), the fee must be re-determined by mutual agreement equitably to reflect the reduction in the work actually performed. The amount by which such fee is less than, or exceeds, payments previously made on account of the fee must be paid to, or repaid by the Contractor, as applicable.

B.6 INDIRECT COSTS

The contract clause entitled “Allowable Cost and Payment (DEC 2002)”, FAR52.216-7, specifies that the indirect cost rates must be established for each of the Contractor’s accounting periods that apply to this contract. Pending establishment of revised provisional or final indirect cost rates, allowable indirect costs must be reimbursed on the basis of the following negotiated provisional or predetermined rates and the appropriate bases:

Description Rate Base Type Period 1/ 1/ 1/ [To be determined]

B.7 REIMBURSABLE COSTS

The US dollar costs allowable must be limited to reasonable, allocable and necessary costs determined in accordance with FAR 31 (Contract Cost Principles), A-21 (Cost Principles for Educational Institutions), A-122 (Cost Principles for Non-Profit Organizations), FAR 52.216-7 (Allowable Cost and Payment), FAR 52.216-8 (Fixed Fee), if applicable, and AIDAR 752.7003 (Documentation for Payment), in order to be reimbursable under this contract.

[END OF SECTION B]

SECTION C ‐ SPECIFICATIONS

STATEMENT OF WORK

Acronyms

AgDPO Agriculture Development Policy Operation

AGRA Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa

AOR Agreement Officer Representative

BHEARD Borlaug Higher Education Agricultural Research and Development Program

BUSAC Business Sector Advocacy Challenge

CAADP Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program

CDCS Country Development Cooperation Strategy

CEPA Center for Policy Analysis

CGIAR Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research

CIDA

CSIR

Canadian International Development Agency Council for Scientific and Industrial Research

COR Contracting Officer Representative

DANIDA

CSOs

DG

Danish International Development Assistance Civil Society Organizations Democracy and Governance

DIFD Department for International Development (UK) same as UK Aid

DP Development Partner

ESB

DQA

Economic Strategy Branch Data Quality Analysis

FASDEP II Food and Agriculture Sector Development Policy II

FBO Farmer Based Organization

FinGAP Financing Ghanaian Agriculture Program

FTF Feed the Future

GCAP Ghana Commercial Agriculture Project

GFSR Global Food Security Response

GOG Government of Ghana

GSGDA Ghana Shared Growth and Development Agenda

GSS Ghana Statistical Service

GSSP Ghana Strategic Support Program

IEE Initial Environmental Examination

IEHA Initiative to End Hunger in Africa

IFPRI International Food Policy Research Institute

IR Intermediate Result

ISSER Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research

M&E Monitoring & Evaluation

MDBS Multi-Donor Budget Support

MDG Millennium Development Goal

METASIP Medium Term Agriculture Sector Investment Plan

MEST Ministry of Environment, Science, and Technology

METSS Monitoring, Evaluation, and Technical Support Services

MiDA Millennium Development Authority

MOFA Ministry of Food and Agriculture

MOFEP Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning

MOTI

NAIP

Ministry of Trade and Industry National Agricultural Investment Plan

NDPC National Development Planning Commission

NSS National Statistical Service

PAD Project Appraisal Document

PBS Program for Biosafety Systems

PASA Participating Agency Support Agreement

PPMED

PPP

Policy, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate (MOFA) Public Private Partnership

PPRSD Plant Protection & Regulatory Services Directorate (MOFA)

RING Resiliency in Northern Ghana

ROAA Regional Office of Acquisition and Assistance

SADA The Savannah Accelerated Development Authority

SAKSS

SLM

Strategic Analysis and Knowledge Support System Sustainable Land Management

SRID Statistics, Research, and Information Directorate

STAR

STI

Strengthening Transparency Accountability and Responsiveness Science, Technology and Innovation

TA Technical Assistance

USAID United States Agency for International Development

USDA United States Department of Agriculture

USG United States Government

WB

WRS

World Bank Warehouse Receipt System

C.1 BACKGROUND

Ghana signed the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) Compact in October 2009, committing to a set of goals and principles for achieving poverty reduction through accelerated agricultural investment and growth. Implementation of this Compact is outlined in the 2011- 2015 Medium Term Agricultural Sector Investment Plan (METASIP), which provides a basis for coordinating public and private investment under Ghana’s Food and Agriculture Sector Development Policy (FASDEP II).

Modernization of the agriculture sector requires policies and programs that support effective and efficient functioning of production systems and agricultural markets. While the investment climate in Ghana is better than in many countries, a number of policy impediments still prevent a transformative leverage of private sector resources. Addressing these policy impediments could catalyze agricultural development, ultimately reducing poverty and hunger in Ghana. Hence, the country needs an improved enabling environment for private sector investment and growth.

To improve the enabling environment and successfully achieve the outcomes within the program areas of the METASIP, Ghana policymakers need to better use existing data and create more data and information to support appropriate and effective policy analysis, decision making, and planning.

However, within the Ghanaian context, policymakers often lack quality data and the capacity to analyze and communicate the findings. In addition, it is imperative that previous and future capacity building efforts be translated into actions that will deal with policy and operational blockages for agricultural economic growth. A recent institutional assessment of public, private, agricultural research, and civil society organizations involved in Ghana’s food security landscape, highlighted three areas as being important to implementation of the METASIP, yet currently deficient among implementing actors, the ability to assemble and analyze data; develop and implement performance monitoring plans; and conduct policy analysis, develop recommendations and communicate with key stakeholders early enough in an initiative's history to ensure impact.

Donors providing Multi-Donor Budget Support (MDBS) to the Government of Ghana (GOG) cite three big challenges in government operations: lack of quality primary data, lack of evidence-based analyses, and a disconnect between national budgeting and evidence. These reports have also highlighted significant challenges in monitoring and evaluation, knowledge management, policy analysis and communication within the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) and other institutions, leading to difficulties tracking outputs and outcomes and measuring impact to guide policy making and strategic planning in METASIP implementation. In addition, they need assistance to operationalize solutions to problems, to take action and make sure that it gets done. Thus, specific line ministries will need support to implement the METASIP such as MOFA/Policy, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation and the Directorate (PPMED), MOFA/ Statistics, Research, and Informational Directorate (SRID), Ghana Statistical Services, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MOFEP), Parliament Select Committee on Agriculture and Cocoa, and the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA).

For the GOG to make informed decisions about agriculture and its economy, it needs to have the ability to generate, analyze, and use accurate statistical and econometric data at the national and regional levels.

Line Ministries relevant to agricultural development struggle to provide this data. If this data is available, policymakers can also use it to analyze the impacts of policy choices; prioritize resource allocations across sectors; understand investment trade-offs involved in growth; calculate and manage risks; and leverage cost effective synergies between different METASIP programs.

In addition to having the appropriate information available to improve the enabling environment, stakeholders must also be consulted and given the opportunity to provide input for the enabling environment to be improved. Yet the roles for various stakeholders, especially the private sector, are largely undefined despite wide acknowledgement of their importance. Further, many stakeholders in the Ghana food security policy process do not have the capacity to effectively advocate for policies that serve their long-term interest. Nor are there adequate mechanisms for their contribution to be organized and integrated into the policy decision-making process. This leads to a disjuncture between the policies passed and implemented and the engagement of people who are impacted by the policies.

The Government of Ghana (GOG) has formed a variety of organizational structures to implement the METASIP under the CAADP agenda. First, the Agricultural Sector Working Group (ASWG) provides a forum for the GOG and development partners to dialogue on policy related to agricultural modernization, resulting in a yearly Joint Sector Review (JSR). In four years, this group has evolved from a forum for harmonization of development assistance to a well-structured, GOG-led mechanism for strategy development, policy review and program evaluation. In 2011, the GOG formed the 13-member METASIP Steering Committee to oversee METASIP implementation with representatives from the GOG and private sector. The Strategic Analyses and Knowledge Support Systems (SAKSS) policy node is a country-level body envisioned under the CAADP process to improve the quality of policy and strategy design and implementation through the facilitation of well-informed planning, review, and dialogue processes.1

The METASIP Steering Committee established the SAKSS node headed by MOFA’s Policy, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate (PPMED) to improve the design and implementation of the policies and strategies of the METASIP through rigorous evaluation and analysis. Under the guidance of the METASIP Steering Committee, the SAKSS node’s main function is to coordinate a collaborative network of interested individuals from universities, think tanks, private sector, and civil society. The SAKSS node is comprised of the six sub-committees based on the six METASIP thematic areas: 1) increased food security; 2) increased income growth; 3) increased competitiveness and enhanced integration into domestic and international markets; 4) sustainable management of land and environment; 5) science and food technology applied in food and agriculture development; 6) improved institutional coordination. Each of the sub-committees is tasked to strengthen four general areas of work:

1) strategic analysis; 2) knowledge management; 3) capacity building; and 4) coordination and governance. While the broader structure has been established, the SAKSS node is not yet functional.

There is also an anticipated need to clearly define its mandate, the best role for the node, and best processes it should follow.

The strengthening of the SAKSS node is imperative to the success of the METASIP. The SAKSS node’s capacity will need to be built to address broad questions related to the METASIP implementation such as: Is Ghana on track to meet its own growth targets for the agriculture sector as expressed in the sixth national development plan? Have expectations for achieving the growth and poverty and hunger reduction targets been met so far? The SAKSS node will conduct and coordinate a number of analyses to address broad questions about the efficacy of the METASIP programs. It is envisioned that the SAKSS node could also evolve to become a hub for knowledge management, priority setting in METASIP evaluation, and stakeholder brokering. The fully functioning SAKSS node will provide the METASIP Steering Committee of the current and relevant analytical needs for the METASIP implementation. The METASIP Steering Committee will then prioritize analytical needs and eliminate duplication. Thus, information will flow up through the SAKSS node to the Steering Committee and back down. The METASIP Secretariat will provide the coordinating and logistical support to assure that the critical findings from the analysis will be translated into definitive actions. There are various participants to support these actions within the METASIP Steering Committee and the SAKSS node. In addition, other

1 ECOWAS Commission, Republic of Ghana, & NEPAD/African Union. (n.d.).Ghana: Strategic Analyses and Knowledge Support Systems to Inform and Guide the CAADP Implementation Process.

donors may want to make a contribution and the responsibilities of the Steering Committee will not remain static. For example, there is in an indication the Committee will be heavily involved in the G8 New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition as well as the Grow Africa movement.

A number of non-governmental actors represent the private sector on the METASIP Steering Committee: the Ghana Hunger Alliance, Ghana National Association of Farmers and Fishermen (GNAFF), General Agricultural Workers Union (GAWU), Federation of Association of Ghanaian Exporters (FAGE), Traditional Rulers, and FOODSPAN. However, other important organizations could also contribute if their organizational and technical policy capacity was higher. It is important that the greater private sector agribusiness community including some not traditionally considered agribusiness (e.g., transporters, manufacturers using agricultural materials, and bankers) be heard within this process.

Currently the Public Private Forum on Agriculture is one of the few platforms where the public and private sector can engage in the agricultural policy arena. It is important to support existing platforms as well and catalyze the creation of other platforms for public-private engagement.

Engaging and improving the technical reporting capacity of the media is also extremely important to the public policy process. Most people will receive their information either thru the radio, newspaper, or TV, making media reporting critical to the policy dialogue within Ghana. Yet media reports often fail to accurately represent the facts related to policy debates.

C.2 SCOPE OF THE POLICY SUPPORT PROJECT

USAID/Ghana’s FTF 2011-2015 Multi-Year Strategy has outlined a strategy that supports the goals of the METASIP by primarily focusing in reducing poverty in Northern Ghana. The FTF-USAID Policy Support Project is an effort to address key policy constraints that restrict the development of private sector led commercial agriculture in Ghana. It helps achieve USAID/Ghana’s second Development Objective (DO2) for Sustainable and Broadly Shared Economic Growth. This contract aims to meet this objective through policy interventions, capacity building, and technical assistance. The contract will use existing policy matrices and the METASIP Steering Committee priorities as the guide to improve agricultural policy formation, implementation, evaluation, and research. Capacity building, rigorous data collection and analysis, effective communication and outreach are imperative to improving the agricultural policy process and thus, will also be a focus of the contract. This contract will make focused strategic efforts in the areas that will have the most impact in enabling the policy environment for agricultural growth. The life of project for this contract is five years starting 2013 through 2018.

C.3 PROJECT OBJECTIVES

The main goal of the FTF-USAID Policy Project is to improve the food security enabling environment for private sector investment in support of USAID/Ghana’s FTF Intermediate Result (IR) 1: Increase the competitiveness of rice, maize, soya, and marine fisheries value chains in ways that foster broad based and sustained economic growth.

The Project’s purpose is to increase the capacity of the GOG, the private sector, and Civil Society Organizations to implement evidence-based policy formation, implementation, research, and advocacy and perform rigorous monitoring and evaluation of agricultural programs implemented under the

METASIP.

Under the FTF Strategy Results Framework, the improved enabling environment for private sector investment sub-intermediate result has two components: 1) improved policies to support agriculture sector growth and 2) improved execution of public sector investment policies. To support these two outcomes, the Contract's activities will fall into three components of the policy process: 1) Policy Formation and Implementation, 2) Policy Research, and 3) Policy Advocacy.

Component 1: Policy Formation and Implementation will improve the policy process of evidence-based decision-making related to food security.

Component 2: Policy Research will increase the availability of rigorous policy analysis for evidence-based policymaking which will contribute to the first component.

Component 3: Policy Advocacy will clarify and amplify the voice of the private sector (including civil society, private associations, and media) in the public policy process.

The project will also support the policy efforts of other Ghana FTF projects (such as the Ghana Commercial Agriculture Project, Agricultural Technology Transfer Project, the Integrated Coastal Fisheries and Governance Project, and others listed in section C.5.2) and will support the policy agenda of the Government of Ghana (GOG), agreed upon by development partners. Therefore, this project will be the US Government’s primary effort for supporting the GOG’s expected policy commitments at the May 2012 G8 Summit Africa session, which focused on food security.

Development Hypothesis: If 1) public institutions have a greater capacity for evidence-based policy decision making, if 2) more Ghanaians have advanced training in policy research, and if 3) the private sector (including civil society and media) can effectively engage in the policy process, then the Ghanaian agriculture sector enabling environment will improve to increase private sector investment, agricultural growth, and food security.

C.4 TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS/EXPECTED RESULTS

The contractor must achieve the objectives identified below by performing activities specified underneath each objective and elsewhere in the contract, subject to the guidance and limitations specified in this scope of work. Specific services and activities required must be established in the annual work plans approved by the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) and, when necessary, through modifications to work plans approved in writing by the COR. Such technical direction must be consistent with all of the terms and conditions of the contract and the determinations of the Contracting Officer.

Initially, this Contract will focus on interventions in the agriculture inputs policy (Component 1, Expected Result 1c.) and standing up of the SAKSS node (Component 1, Expected Result 1a.). While these two expected results are prioritized as the most urgent parts of this Contract, all other parts must be initiated within the first six months.

C.4.1 Component 1: Policy Formation and Implementation

Result 1: Policy process for evidence-based decision-making related to food security improved.

The contractor’s performance will be measured by the indicators below (but not exclusively), including the approved PMP.

Indicator Target

a. Numbers of major polices/regulations/administrative procedures in the following stages of development as a result of USG assistance broken down by sector: Inputs (seeds, fertilizer), Outputs (maize, rice), Macroeconomic, Agriculture sector wide (wage rate for agricultural labor), Research, extension, information, and other public services, Food security, and Climate change adaptation or natural resource management:

Stage 1: Analyzed Stage 2: Drafted and presented for public consultation Stage 3: Presented for legislation/decree Stage 4: Passed/approved Stage 5: Passed for which implementation has begun

b. Score, in percent, of combined key areas of organization capacity amongst direct and indirect local implementing partners. Detailed scoring parameters outlined in the FTF Indicator Handbook: Definition sheets (pgs. 36-37)

c. Number of individuals who have received USG supported short-term agricultural sector productivity or food security training disaggregated by: Producers, People in government, People in private sector firms, People in civil society, and by Sex.

d. Number of government units or divisions that have received short-term training disaggregated by New (receiving USG assistance for the first time) and Continuing (received USG assistance the previous year).

e. Number of agriculture policy communications developed and/or written for stakeholder consumption disaggregated by: Type of communication (policy brief, newspaper article, white paper, radio program, television program), Main stakeholder group targeted (GOG, private sector, civil society), and Lead in policy communication developed or written: GOG, USG, private sector, civil society.

* It is understood that in the time frame of the project, many may not start at stage 1 and be accomplished through stage 5. It is also understood that the project may only be able to influence the process from stage 3 – 5 because this is not as much under the project’s control.

** Number of individuals and not training attendance, for example if a person attends five trainings, they will only count as one individual

***** Divisions and units will be counted separately, for example MOFA/PPMED, MOFA/SRID will count as two divisions

The contractor must provide technical assistance to the executive and legislative branch bodies (including the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority) to improve the institutional capacity in the various stages of the policy process: data collection, analysis, communication, legislation, and oversight.

The contractor must meet the immediate needs for policy analysis within the GOG, build the capacity of public and private institutions, and initiate direct relationships between the private sector, civil society, and GOG institutions. The emphasis must be on implementation and actions, as well as long-term planning and organizational arrangements to continue what is recommended. The activities under this contract must address and/or facilitate the often quick turn-around analysis of alternative strategies and policies needed for efficiency and efficacy of METASIP programs. Thus, the contractor must provide short-term technical assistance to GOG METASIP implementing units to fulfill immediate organizational and policy analysis needs while building the capacity of the institutions. It is important to point out that the Contractor must focus on capacity building activities that will identify specific challenges, address bottlenecks, and develop actionable plans. This contract will be complimented by several other activities that are listed in section C.5.2. The contractor must focus on policies that enable the private sector to develop, commercialize and use improved agricultural inputs to increase smallholder productivity and incomes. Thus, it is important for the contract to be flexible and agile enough to address the dynamic analytical policy needs in Ghana.

In addition to the traditional forms of capacity building such as technical training, the GOG has identified their need to operationalize and take action to implement the METASIP as a priority. Despite the existing capacity and favorable policy climate in certain areas, the GOG, private sector, and civil society groups have struggled to coordinate and unify efforts to take action to address the bottlenecks in agricultural development already identified. The Contractor must engage in key agricultural growth areas identified by the METASIP Steering Committee and build its capacity and the capacity of associated institutions and organizations to take the next step of creating a clearly defined plan and execute it. The METASIP Steering Committee has identified this last step as what is sorely lacking to achieve tangible results in agricultural growth.

The Contractor must undertake, but not be limited to, the following activities to achieve objectives identified below under Component 1:

C.4.1a Improve the capacity for policy analysis and evaluation by core METASIP Implementing institutions by standing up the SAKSS node

Activities:

Review the current architecture (including contingent of implementing institutions) of the

SAKSS node and recommend adjustments to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the node – including assistance to the GOG on implementing accepted recommendations.

Draft a short term SAKSS intervention plan using the findings from the needs assessment that must be implemented in the first six months of the contract.

Draft a long term SAKSS support plan by month six of the contract based on any restructuring plans and using the lessons learned from the short term plan.

Develop short-term training curriculum for SAKSS node members in data collection, policy analysis, policy brief writing, and knowledge management.

Train the various members of the SAKSS node to collect and analyze data.

Provide training on knowledge management and determine the best modes for knowledge organization and dissemination.

Provide support to the SAKSS node sub-committees to identify relevant research questions to evaluate the performance of the METASIP.

Facilitate the design of performance frameworks for on-going METASIP programs.

Facilitate the drafting of evaluation reports and policy briefs related to programs under

METASIP.

Strengthen the capacity of METATSIP implementing institutions in policy analysis, using models to make informed decisions, GIS, and investment analysis.

Support the METASIP Steering Committee Secretariat in clarifying the mandate and role of the

SAKSS node.

Facilitate the integration of the Ghana SAKSS node into the ReSAKSS through tight technical assistance, coordination, and communication with the CAADP ReSAKSS.

C.4.1b Enhance the implementation of improved policies, regulations, and administrative procedures as outlined by GOG-endorsed policy documents and agreements made between the GOG, donors, and private sector. It is expected that some of this will be related to the policy efforts of other USAID/Ghana projects (e.g., GCAP, ATT, ICFG, and STAR/Ghana).

Activities:

Facilitate…