Legislative Strengthening Technical Assistance services

Added: Aug 24, 2009 4:23 pm

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) anticipates award of a multiple-award Indefinite Quantity Contract (IQC) to provide Legislative Strengthening Technical Assistance services for the Office of Democracy and Governance in the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance (DCHA).  It is the objective of USAID's legislative strengthening programs, and of these contracts, to assist legislatures and other deliberative bodies to become more effective, democratic institutions through programs and activities designed to increase their transparency, accountability, and pluralism; to strengthen public participation and representation; and to build policy, law-making, and oversight capacities, in the context of addressing other strategic objectives, policy goals, or issues and problems affecting a particular country. Technical assistance under these contracts could be provided to national parliaments and legislatures, regional, municipal, and city deliberative bodies, and other types of elected or appointed government deliberative and decision-making entities.   These may be permanent, transitional, or interim bodies.  In the context of a legislative strengthening program, assistance could also be provided to citizen groups involved in public advocacy, and other individuals, groups and organizations that are part of the general legislative community within a particular country, including media and journalists that cover the legislature, lobbying groups, and think tanks and research organizations that contribute to the legislative process.  In addition, the contractors may award and administer a grants program to strengthen institutional capacity within Deliberative Bodies and/or to strengthen various segments of the broader legislative community.  USAID estimates awarding five (5) contracts as a result of this solicitation, including four (4) unrestricted and at least one small business set-aside.  USAID anticipates that the maximum ordering limitation of the contracts resulting from this RFP will be $500,000,000 over the five (5) year ordering period.  Note that this ceiling applies across all contracts and cannot be exceeded in the aggregate; each successful contractor will be eligible to compete on all task orders until the shared ceiling for all contracts is reached.  There is no guarantee on the number of contracts awarded, the number of task orders that any one firm will receive, or the amount of money each firm is entitled to beyond the minimum monetary amount stated in the RFP. The NAICS Code for this procurement is 541990.  The solicitation will be posted on the FEDBIZOPPS web page (i.e., www.fedbizopps.gov) not less than fifteen (15) days after this notice is issued.  In accordance with FAR 5.102(d), availability of the solicitation is limited to this electronic medium only. Requests for other copies of the solicitation will be disregarded without notice to the requestor.  No phone requests will be accepted, no solicitation will be available for pick-up, and no walk-ins will be allowed.  Questions must be directed to Ms. Peggy Manthe, Contract Specialist, U.S. Agency for International Development, M/OAA/DCHA/DOFDA, Ronald Reagan Building, Room 7.09-131, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave, NW Washington, D.C. 20523, (Phone: 202-712-5318) (Fax: 202-216-3132) (email: pmanthe@usaid.gov).