J.6_Consolidated_Q A.pdf

RFP # SOL-667-16-000003 USAID/Kenya and East Africa Mid-Term Evaluation of the “Toward Enduring Peace in Sudan” Program Questions and Answers

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS # SOL-667-16-000003

MID-TERM EVALUATION OF THE “TOWARD ENDURING PEACE IN

SUDAN” PROGRAM

SOLICITATION QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES

Dear Offerors, We thank you for submitting questions in response to the referenced Request for Proposals (RFP). We are providing our responses to the questions as follows. The responses to the questions are in blue font immediately following each question.

A revised RFP incorporating some of the changes caused by responses to questions is posted along with this document. Changes will be highlighted for ease of reference.

Questions and Answers

1) Does the Combined Synopsis/Solicitation under solicitation number SOL66716000003 contain requirements similar to a current contract? If possible, please provide the current contract number.

Or, is this a new requirement for the government?

This is a new requirement for the Government.

2) Pages 66, 67, and 77: The RFP states in the list on page 66 that the RFP will require “7. Past

Experience,” “8. Past Performance”, and “9.A. Past Performance Information.” The RFP also states on page 67 that the proposal must contain “Past Experience” and “Annex A. Past Performance Information.” Finally, the RFP states on page 77 that the proposal will be evaluated based on “(3) Institutional Capacity and Experience” and “(4) Past Performance.” Would the Mission please clarify its requirements? Specifically, does the Mission require past experience, past performance, and past performance information?

This has been clarified in Amendment 1. We require the following:

• Institutional Capacity and Experience (L.8(b)(7))

• Past Performance Information (L.8(b)(8) - Annex A)

3) Page 11: The RFP states that the contractor must include “a customer satisfaction survey of key stakeholders” in its approach. To ensure that implementers design an adequate approach, would the Mission please clarify which stakeholders it would like us to survey?

Stakeholders should include beneficiaries, local non-governmental organizations, state or local government and Traditional Authorities, e.g. Tribal Leaders.

4) How many days does the Mission anticipate that the evaluation team will conduct field work?

This depends on the offeror’s approach; thus, it is up to the offeror to propose the appropriate number of days to conduct the fieldwork.

5) When does the Mission anticipate that the contractor will conduct field work?

Immediately after the mission approves the work plan.

6) Page 70: Will the Mission please provide the local compensation plan referenced in the RFP?

The local compensation plan (LCP) is considered sensitive but unclassified information, so while we cannot share it, we will provide you with the range of salaries in the Sudan LCP as follows:

Lowest FSN-1: $3,593 per year (base salary) Highest FSN-12: $57,713 per year (base salary)

7) Was a baseline conducted for this program, and if so can we confirm that we will have access to the baseline data? If yes, will analysis and reporting deliverables be expected to perform a longitudinal analysis of baseline data as compared with midterm data?

No baseline was conducted for this program.

8) Are there any nationality requirements for the Senior-Level Evaluator / Team Leader?

There are no nationality requirements. In the interest of costs, it would of course be beneficial to the Offeror to propose a local hire.

9) Can the Evaluation Expert be South Sudanese?

There is no objection to a South Sudanese Evaluation Expert. Key personnel proposed must meet the required qualifications specified in Section F.6. Please also note that it is the contractor’s responsibility to ensure all staff can obtain appropriate visas for entry into Sudan.

10) Understanding that programs are active in Blue Nile, West Kordofan, South Kordofan, Darfur, and

Khartoum, have the program interventions been carried out uniformly within the aforementioned states, or are there potentially significant variations in the degree and scope of interventions across different states? In particular, are there relevant sub-state variations that might affect the geographic scope of sampling?

Interventions are not being implemented uniformly within those states, since TEPS was designed to be flexible, adaptive and responsive to community needs. There are no specific geographical variations with regards to interventions, since interventions depend on each specific community's needs.

11) What are the specific interventions associated with each beneficiary type?

There are no specific interventions associated with each beneficiary type. In general, TEPS activities include, but are not limited to, youth engagement in community-based peace building initiatives;

promoting social peace and cultural diversity through music; supporting citizen participation, including marginalized groups, in meaningful and inclusive national dialogues on the future of Sudan; enhancing the role of Native Administrations to represent the interests of the local population in political dialogues; providing vocational training to youth as an alternative to participation in conflict; promoting women income generation activities.

12) Are comprehensive beneficiary lists (including demographic and contact information) available for the purposes of sampling?

Yes, and the lists will be made available to the successful offeror.

13) Can you provide more detail on how much programming is being done in which state?

Please see the table below:

State # of Activities

West Kordofan , Abyei 0

Blue Nile State 12

Darfur, All States 11

South Kordofan 2

Khartoum 10

West Kordofan, Muglad 8

Red Sea State 4

14) On page 10, Section C.4, “Evaluation Questions”, Question 1, USAID asks for evidence that TEPs has strengthened the capacity of local peace actors and increased employment and other income generation opportunities in conflict prone areas. Does USAID have baseline information in which to reference?

USAID does not have baseline data.

15) On page 11, Section C.4, “Evaluation Questions”, question 2 states “To what extent have the TEPS activities affected the roles of women and youth?” Would USAID consider narrowing or this question to include to what extent have the TEPS activities affected the roles of women and youth in general or in regard to something specific?

USAID feels that the question is sufficient for the purposes of this evaluation. Therefore, no change has been made to the wording.

16) On page 11, Section C.5, “Data collection and analysis”, USAID requires that a stakeholder satisfaction survey be used. Can another method be substituted that the Contractor feels may better answer evaluation questions?

C.5 also states that the contractor may incorporate other basic methodological approaches appropriate to the task, if any. Offerors are welcome to propose other methods if they feel such methods may better answer evaluation questions.

17) Section F.6, on pages 16-17 lists the key personnel qualifications. Could USAID clarify if these are anticipated part or fulltime positions?

Whether they are full time or part time depends entirely on the Offeror’s proposed approach.

Please note, however, per Section G.4, the Team Leader needs to be the primary point of contact at all times during the period of the contract.

18) On page 66, Section L.8 (b) Content of the Technical Proposal, lists 8. Past Performance but there is not an explanation of the requirements in Section L.8 (b).1(b).8. Can USAID please provide the requirements for the non-annex “Past Performance” section?

This has been clarified in Amendment 1. “Past Performance” listed under L.8 (b) has been removed and the requirements under L.8(b).8. “Annex A: Past Performance Information” have been clarified.

19) On page 66, Section L.8 (b) Content of the Technical Proposal, lists item 8 as Past Performance, however on that same page (page 66), Past Performance is listed as an annex. Can USAID please clarify if Past Performance should be included in the content of the technical proposal or as an annex?

Please include past performance as Annex A. This has been clarified in the solicitation through Amendment 1.

20) Could USAID please clarify the differences between the Past Experience, Past Performance, and

Past Performance (as an annex) requirements listed in Section L.8 on pages 66 and 67 of the proposal?

Please note that “Past Performance” listed under L.8 (b) (non-annex) has been removed in Amendment 1. The narrative under Section L.8 (b)(7) and Section L.8 (b)(8) provides instructions on the information that the offerors must include in each section: “Institutional Capacity and Experience” and “Past Performance Information”. In general, past experience demonstrates the offeror’s previous work experience on similar projects while past performance measures how well offerors performed similar work.

21) On page 66, Section L.8 (b) lists three annexes labeled as A, B, and C, however page 69 of the proposal lists an Annex D. Could USAID kindly confirm the number of annexes that are required for the proposal?

This was an error, and it should read Annex A, Annex B, and Annex C. Therefore, there are three required annexes. This has been corrected in Amendment 1.

22) On page 67, SectionL.8 (b).8 Annexes (a)1) USAID instructs contractors to, “Please only include for each past performance reference the title of the project, the contract number, and the contract information (name, email address and phone number) of the Contracting Officer’s Representative (or equivalent).” However, on page 68, SectionL.8 (b).8 Annexes (a)2) USAID instructs contractors to, “Provide for each of the contracts listed above a list of contact names, job titles, phone number, email addresses, and a description of the performance…” Can USAID please clarify which information should be included for the past performance references? Is there a preferred template for Past Performance?

This has been clarified in Amendment 1. Please see below as revised in Section L.8(b)8 “Annex A:

Past Performance Information” paragraph (a)(2)

2) Provide for each of the contracts listed above the following information:

• The title of the project,

• Contract number,

• Contact information of the COR or equivalent (name, e-mail address and phone number),

• Brief description of the scope of work or complexity/diversity of tasks,

• Primary location(s) of work,

• Term of performance,

• Skills/expertise required,

• Dollar value, and

• Contract type, i.e., fixed-price, cost reimbursement, etc.

23) On page 76, Section M.2 Technical Evaluation Criteria is listed as:

a) Technical Understanding and Approach

b) Key Personnel and Team Composition

c) Past Experience

d) Past Performance

However, on page 77, Section M.2 is titled “Institutional Capacity and Experience” and “Past Experience” is missing. Could USAID kindly confirm the Technical Evaluation Criteria?

It should read “Institutional Capacity and Past Experience” throughout the document. This has been corrected in the Amendment 1.

24) Can USAID please confirm that the annexes outlined on pages 67-69 are not included in the 20 page limit?

The annexes outlined on pages 67-69 are included in the 20 pages limit.

25) Can USAID clarify if expatriot [sic] staff in Sudan, and under this award, are expected to follow RSO guidance on travel? If yes, are there specific travel limitations?

No, contractors are not expected to follow RSO guidance on travel and are responsible for their own security.

26) Could USAID please provide the Local Employee Compensation Plans for Sudan?

The local compensation plan (LCP) is considered sensitive but unclassified information, so while we cannot share it, we will provide you with the range of salaries in the Sudan LCP as follows:

27) Would the Mission please provide a copy of its Local Compensation Plan?

The local compensation plan (LCP) is considered sensitive but unclassified information, so while we cannot share it, we will provide you with the range of salaries in the Sudan LCP as follows:

28) On page 69 of the RFP it states, “The detailed narrative for the cost proposal must be written in

English in Microsoft Word, be readable, and be text accessible,” while the delivery instructions on page 64 state that “all files are to be in PDF except for cost spreadsheets”. Please clarify whether the detailed narrative should be submitted in MS Word or PDF format.

The budget narrative must be submitted in PDF. This has been clarified in Amendment 1.

29) Does USAID intend to provide criteria for selecting TEPS Transition Activities Pool grants to be evaluated?

No, there are no specific criteria. It is up to the offeror to determine the best approach to selecting an appropriate sample of TAP to be evaluated.

30) Is contact information for grant recipients maintained in the TEPS Activity Database?

Yes, and these will be provided on award to the successful Offeror.

31) Is USAID able to provide additional detail about the customer satisfaction survey of key stakeholders

(Section C.5, Page 11)? Are the key stakeholders intended to include all Beneficiaries listed in Section C.3, Page 10?

The list of key stakeholder will be made available to the contractor; however, Section C.3 (D) of the RFP lists the types of beneficiaries. The customer satisfaction survey must include an appropriate sample from each type of beneficiary listed in Section C.3.

32) Could USAID specify how many grants have been issued under TEPS thus far? Could USAID approximate the proportion of grants issued by project site?

Please see the table below:

State # of Activities

West Kordofan , Abyei 0

Blue Nile State 12

Darfur, All States 11

South Kordofan 2

Khartoum 10

West Kordofan, Muglad 8

Red Sea State 4

33) Could USAID specify the ceiling price for this award?

This is a firm-fixed-price contract, so a ceiling price will not be provided. Per ADS 302.3.5.7 “The Government Cost Estimate in Negotiated Procurements:”

“The Contracting Officer (CO) must not include the Government cost estimate in a competitive solicitation or a Request for Task Order Proposals.”

34) Section C.5, Page 11 specifies that a Team Planning Meeting will be held in Khartoum to develop the work plan. Section F.5, Page 14 indicates that the work plan is due October 20, 2016. Could the Mission clarify whether team members are expected to remain in Sudan from October through the Draft Report Presentation on January 25, 2017?

It is not necessary for the team to remain in Sudan to draft the report, but it is up to the offeror to propose the best approach.

35) Could the Mission confirm whether TEPS program activities have taken place in Abyei? Is the evaluation team expected to travel to Abyei?

The team is not expected to travel to Abyei. TEPS has not yet implemented activities in Abyei.

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