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UNCLASSIFIED

UNCLASSIFIED

UNCLASSIFIED

STATEMENT OF WORK

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT AND DELIVERY ADVISORY SERVICES

A. Introduction

The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is a U.S. Government corporation whose mission is to provide assistance that will support economic growth and poverty reduction in carefully selected developing countries that demonstrate a commitment to just and democratic governance, economic freedom, and investments in their citizenry. For more information on the MCC, please visit www.mcc.gov.

On January 23, 2003, the United States established the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), an innovative foreign assistance program designed to reduce poverty by promoting sustainable economic growth. MCC, a U.S. government corporation, is based on the principle that aid is most effective in countries that promote good governance, economic freedom, and investments in people. Key MCC operating principles relating to the award of grants include emphasis on economic impact, reward for performance, partnership with recipient countries, and focus on results. Eligible countries are invited to develop and submit grant proposals to MCC for consideration. MCC will seek to enter into a Compact for assistance with those countries that submit quality proposals for poverty reduction through economic growth. All proposed projects and activities are subjected to MCC’s comprehensive project appraisal process prior to approval of a Compact. Once a Compact is signed and has entered into force, MCC continues to conduct reviews, analyses and assessments in consultation with the host country accountable entity and it’s implementing partners on an as-needed basis to carry out post-Compact oversight responsibilities.

MCC, through its Integrated Project Management Service, employs a rigorous, structured project methodology for its international development programs, focusing on sustainable economic growth beyond financial aid. This strategy integrates global standards of project management, emphasizing precision in design, efficiency in implementation, and thorough evaluation. IPM’s strategies include the management of communications, risks, schedules, change, estimates, budgets, contracts, staffing and affiliated interpersonal skills. Key to MCC's approach, facilitated by the Integrated Project Management Service, is fostering partnerships with governments, communities, and stakeholders, ensuring projects align with local priorities and achieve impactful, sustainable outcomes. MCC also prioritizes capacity building and institutional development to enhance governance and economic resilience, aiming to leave a lasting legacy and advance its mission to reduce poverty through strategic, effective development interventions.

MCC requires consultant services to support MCC’s IPM Service to assess and advise on program delivery modalities, risks, and opportunities associated with the development, implementation, and closure of MCC-supported projects. MCC requires support from senior technical experts who have significant experience working with MCC and who have a solid understanding of MCC’s investment cycle.

B. Scope

The vendor shall support MCC’s IPM Services team members in their efforts to provide oversight, support and advisement on project delivery modalities. This includes assessing the impacts, risks, and opportunities associated with program development, implementation, and closure, as well as provide ad-hoc support to the IPM Services team, as needed.

C. Country Assignment

MCC shall require consultant services in MCC eligible countries – both threshold and compact, as well as assignments in support of the Division’s corporate priorities and knowledge learning.

D. Tasks

The Consultant may be asked to do any or all of the following tasks:

Due Diligence:

1. Identify Opportunities: The Consultant shall identify major opportunities to enhance MCC's project planning and execution processes, specifically for its Compact and Threshold Agreement projects. These opportunities will focus on developing a project methodology that can be used repeatedly and adapted as needed.

2. Propose Improvements: They will suggest ways to make the management of investment development tasks more efficient and thorough. This includes looking at how projects are planned, executed, and monitored to find areas for improvement.

3. Implement Solutions: If MCC agrees with the Consultant's suggestions, the Consultant might be asked to put these measures into action themselves or oversee their implementation.

4. Conduct Site Visits and Reviews: The Consultant may need to visit locations where projects are planned to get a better understanding of the situation on the ground. They will also review existing documents to assess the management capabilities present and identify any potential risks and issues.

5. Advise on Further Actions: After assessing the project(s), the Consultant will advise MCC on any additional research or studies needed as part of MCC's oversight process. This includes understanding the costs and impacts of implementing their suggestions, especially how these changes might affect the ability of the organizations responsible for carrying out the projects to deliver the expected results and benefits.

Program Oversight: The Consultant will help the MCC oversee and manage the implementation and performance of program and project management services. They will offer advice to MCC by regularly reviewing and providing feedback on the delivery methods used by MCC and its Accountable Entities (AEs), ensuring that projects align with predefined specifications, timelines, milestones, and budgets. Furthermore, the Consultant will help identify any unexpected issues arising during the implementation process and suggest solutions to address these challenges.

General Technical Advisory Support: In addition to above, the Consultant may be asked to provide general technical advisory support, including:

· Assist in defining what's needed for Integrated Project Management (IPM) strategies, tools, and methods to ensure successful and sustainable delivery of projects funded by MCC.

· Evaluate technical documents related to project design and planning (like preliminary designs, studies, and health and safety plans) to help select the best methodologies for MCC-funded programs and projects.

· Promote awareness and learning about the social and working cultures in MCC's partner countries through guidance, tools, and support.

· Examine local laws and regulations to identify their impact on project management and execution strategies.

· Guide MCC's partner countries in managing and overseeing projects effectively, covering areas such as quality assurance, project review cycles, decision strategy, FIDIC, contract management, and solutions with management and legal components.

· Guide MCC and their partners in methodologies to assess issues and risks to project outputs and outcomes to include impacts associated with program and project identification, design, construction, climate change, policy reform and institutional strengthening.

· Strengthen institutional project management capacity by providing guidance and support to integrate international and local best practices in project delivery into MCC-funded projects.

· Draft terms of reference for hiring project management services to oversee projects.

· Advise on implementation and work plans developed by country teams, assessing their technical suitability and providing feedback for decision-making.

· Ensure consistency with best practices by reviewing draft tender documents and contracts.

· Assess proposal evaluations from technical and procurement perspectives to ensure the best selections are made.

· Review partnership arrangements to ensure effective collaboration between different teams and entities involved in project delivery.

· Verify the qualifications of key project staff before they are hired, ensuring they meet the necessary technical standards.

· Provide general technical advice on proposed programs, helping MCC make informed decisions.

· Evaluate the capacity of project teams and partners, offering recommendations for capacity building and improvements to ensure successful project implementation.

· Facilitate the development and implementation of IPM programs for MCC and its partners, ensuring effective project management.

· Address other specific needs for the successful and sustainable delivery of MCC-funded projects as required.

E. Technical Directive

The Expert shall provide services to MCC on an as needed basis, as required. To support MCC in the flexible and timely manner needed to meet the evolving needs of Compact development, negotiation, implementation and evaluation, technical directives under this statement of work shall be issued by the COR/PM and the Expert deployed each time the Expert’s services are needed over the course of this contract. No additional directive shall imply any additional costs to the United States Government (USG) beyond the amount allowed for in the initial statement of work; however, this this statement of work may be amended to reflect additional costs associated with implementation planning and oversight requirements.

In each technical directive, the COR/PM will define the specific tasks, dates and location of services, and assignment deliverable(s) at least one week prior to date of expert deployment. The technical directive will, in one paragraph to two pages, provide clear and concise instructions on tasks and deliverables requested of the expert. Upon acknowledging acceptance of the technical directive by the expert to MCC in writing (email or fax to the COR/PM is acceptable), the expert will be deployed by MCC to conduct the specific tasks described therein. The expert shall not conduct any specific work under this contract unless such a technical directive is issued and acknowledged in writing. The expert will notify the contract officer if the tasks appear to fall outside the scope given herein. The expert is expected to submit electronic copies of all written deliverables in English and to brief MCC staff verbally upon request.

F. Deliverables

The Consultant shall assist MCC in conducting project due diligence, appraisal and implementation oversight activities in MCC eligible countries and Washington, DC, as needed. The consultant shall provide services to MCC on a regular but intermittent basis, as required.

Acceptance Criteria Deliverables will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

· Thoroughness and timeliness in complying with all of the elements in the tasks specified.

· Quality and clarity of analyses and work produced.

· Timeliness and efficacy of communications with relevant counterparts at MCC, the AE, and other relevant organizations.

· All reports are to be submitted in English in hard and electronic copy (in MS Word), with tables, data and calculations in MS Excel.

G. Period and Place of Performance

All work shall be completed between the dates of the award through a one-year base period of performance, with three additional one-year options.

The estimated level of effort is estimated at up to 1,220 hours for the first year and 1,280 hours per year for following 3 years. There is an estimated 12 trips for the first year and 7 trips per year for the following 3 years.

Below is a breakdown of the anticipated LOE:

MCC anticipates this level of effort but does not guarantee this level of effort as it may increase or decrease.

The Consultant shall perform the tasks under this contract at his/her own facilities with occasional travel to MCC offices in Washington DC and eligible countries as requested.

H. Subcontracting

Experts are authorized to subcontract data collection, data preparation, data or economic analysis, and related services as needed. The overall costs for subcontracting shall not exceed 25% of the expert’s total negotiated unloaded direct labor cost.

I. Evaluation Factors

The Consultant shall have a background appropriate to the tasks and output set out above shall have

Mandatory:

· Minimum of fifteen (15) years of experience managing large complex development projects. Complexity can be characterized as having one or more of the following factors: multiple significant stakeholders, senior government engagement, community acceptance issues, multiple working languages, ex-patriot design and construction modalities, FIDIC contracts, changes in national policy and, environments with low rule of law, poor market availability of services and/or short implementation seasons.

· Familiar with MCC’s Compact and Threshold development and implementation cycles.

· Previous experience working with MCC during project development and implementation.

· Demonstrated expertise applying project methodologies in MCC partner or similar LMIC countries.

· Proven experience identifying major risks, and opportunities associated with large infrastructure projects during project development/design and proposing mitigation measures as necessary.

· Proven experience carrying out visits to project areas to provide oversight to projects under implementation, ensuring that investments are being owner managed to achieve agreed-upon specifications, schedules, milestones, and budgets.

· Proven experience developing approaches/options to enhance sustainability and resiliency of project designs within an integrated project management framework, and translating those into scopes of work.

· Experience providing training and developing guidance on project management systems in organizations that have yet to develop such resources.

· Strong diplomatic and interpersonal skills required.

· Minimum qualifications: Bachelor’s Degree.

· Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.

Preferred:

· Experience and/or certification in project methodologies (e.g. Prince2, PMI, PM4R).

· Experience with Project Assessment Tools (e.g. Project Definition Rating Index).

· Experience with digital project management platforms.

· Excellent oral and written communication skills in other languages relevant to MCC’s portfolio such as Spanish, Portuguese, and French.

· Demonstrated experience in developing and delivering educational resources to professionals in a global environment.

· Demonstrated experience in the civil infrastructure delivery field.

· Demonstrated experience collaborating among multi-disciplinary teams including engineers, environmental specialists, resettlement specialists, legal specialists, policy specialists, evaluation specialists.

· Minimum five (5) years working on multiple MCC funded programs across sectors and regions.

J. TIMING AND REPORTING

All formal communication with MCC, including reports, will be submitted to the COR/PM. The COR/PM for this requirement will be identified via separate correspondence.

The COR/PM will have technical responsibility for monitoring the contractor’s performance. The COR/PM will review and evaluate the contractor’s performance, and also will coordinate any communications with relevant counterparts and other donor agencies and organizations.

Any changes in the terms of the Call Order will be made in writing and approved by the Contracting Officer. No representation of the COR/PM shall serve as a basis for an alteration in the general scope of this Call Order or of the terms and conditions of the Call Order unless confirmed in writing by the Contracting Officer. The contractor must communicate with the Contracting Officer on all matters that pertain to the Contract terms. Proceeding with the work without proper contractual coverage could result in nonpayment for that work.

The designated Expert would be expected to coordinate with local authorities responsible for MCC Compact implementation as well as other donors, where relevant. However, designated Expert would report directly to the designated COR/PM.

K. Other requirements:

International travel is required. The Consultant may be requested to mobilize on a short notice and will be expected to deliver high quality finished products in a timely manner.

The Consultant is authorized to subcontract data collection, data preparation, technical analyses (such as structural or maintenance), and related services as needed. The overall costs for subcontracting shall not exceed 50% of the Consultant's total negotiated unloaded direct labor cost.