SOLICITATION NOTICE
R -- Ambassador's Girls' Scholarship Program
- Notice Date
- 12/31/2002
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- Minerals Management Service Procurement Operations Branch 381 Elden Street, MS 2500 Herndon VA 20170
- ZIP Code
- 20170
- Solicitation Number
- 14350403RP70771
- Archive Date
- 12/31/2003
- Point of Contact
- Susan Benik Contract Specialist 7037871350 Susan.Benik@mms.gov
- E-Mail Address
-
Email your questions to Point of Contact above or IDEASEC HELP DESK
(EC_helpdesk@NBC.GOV)
- Description
- The following questions and answers are being released for this RFQ: NOTE: If offers are providing more than one proposal (i.e. proposals for multiple regions), please clearly indicate on the cover of the proposal, which region the proposal is for. The following Bidder?s Questions and Answers are hereby provided: 1. Are any of the multiple award contracts specifically set aside for small businesses? The program does not have any portion specifically set aside for small businesses. 2. What is the current staff size? Staff Matrix? The program discussed in the RFP is the only scholarship program under the Africa Education Initiative. There is no staff matrix to share on the scholarship program. 3. What percentage of the staff are US based, US expatriates, and local staff beyond the Country Cluster Coordinator in each country? We look to offerors to present the best skills mix to implement the scholarship program. In addition, as this is an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ) Contract, specific information will be called out in each task order. 4. Does the $8M include scholarship funds as well as contractor administrative & staffing costs? Yes. 5. What percentage of the contract value is allocated to the following areas: -Primary, Secondary, and University Scholarships -Girls Mentoring Activities -Educational Support Activities -NGO Capacity Building The activity is to provide scholarships at the primary and secondary levels. Mentoring activities and educational support activities are a part of the scholarship program designed to provide extensive support for recipients in helping them achieve success. NGO capacity building is a part of the implementation of the activity and, through involvement; we look to local partners to be stronger in administering programs The total contract value has not been broken down into the above areas. As this is an ID/IQ Contract, each task order will contain specific information. 6. What are the current strategic growth goals of the GSP to expand into other countries within the 3 existing regions, beyond current 3 regions? It is anticipated that the scholarship program will remain in the three regions of sub-Saharan Africa. 7. Are the facilities located in Abidjan, Addis-Ababa, Bamako, Dakar, and Nairobi, available for future contractor staff or do they belong to the incumbent?are they located inside Embassies or USAID facilities? We have no such facilities. 8. Are these facilities required locations for Country Coordinators, or are the locations flexible? There are no required locations for Country Coordinators. 9. What are the strategic goals to promote community-buy in?is this the goal of the NGO capacity building? Our goals are: to promote basic education to local children, support community drop-in and learning centers; and enlist the community to sustain the momentum of basic education reforms. 10. Can we have a copy of the AFR/SD/Education 2003 goals? AFR/SD will remain focused on access to and retention of girls in school to increase the numbers of girls completing their education. Mentoring programs will provide a basis of support for scholarship recipients. USAID 11. Is the management of the program designed to be top-down from US Management staff or from the bottom-up from local staff? Offerors are encouraged to present what they feel is best. In addition, each task order will contain specific information. 12. Do the NGOs unilaterally evaluate and select recipients? No. USAID expects there to be cooperation among various entities at each site. 13. Who will review the proposals? Will local staff be included in review and award decisions? Development professionals who have expertise in Africa and education will review technical proposals. 14. Do all the countries, or regional offices use a standardized application, evaluation, and tracking system? There is no standardization within or among countries, and none on a regional basis. 15. Is there any of the work that will be performed to fulfill the RFP requirements allowed to be accomplished in the Continental United States? If yes, how much? It is up to the offeror to determine the best way to implement the scholarship program. In addition, each task order will have specifics for the task order?s scope of work. 16. It is assumed that travel will be required to each of the 35 countries mentioned in the RFP. However, we could not locate any instructions relative to travel being performed in accordance with Joint Travel Regulations or any other specific instructions. Are we to assume that travel will be reimbursed as other direct costs? Request clarification. Travel will be proposed on each task order. For purposes of a cost proposal, please indicate if there are any additional add-ons to travel. 17. Has there been any consideration to extending the due date of the proposals beyond the current due date of January 6, 2003 (assuming that January 6, 2002 stated in the solicitation is a typographical error)? The reason for asking this question is that the time lapse between 17 December 2002 and 6 January 2003 is 12 working days, including the posted date and the due date, for a contract worth approximately $20,000,000.00. Consideration has been given to extending the deadline, but it has been determined that the deadline of January 6, 2003 will be maintained. 18. What does the acronym NGO mean or represent? The acronym "NGO" stands for non-government organization. 19. Since the solicitation suggests that multiple contracts will be awarded for activities in east, west, and southern Africa, can you tell us what percentage of the total project amount will be allocated to each region? Additionally, since multiple contracts will be awarded, it is necessary to organize our cost proposal by region? Alternatively, if we are interesting in a particular geographic area, can we dedicate our technical and cost proposals to a particular region as opposed to all three areas? Offerors are requested to state the region for which they are submitting a proposal: east, west, or southern. The $8 million now available will be split approximately $2.6 million per region (i.e. thirds). 20. The solicitation clearly states the requirements for the technical proposal include 1) key staff, 2) organizational experience and facilities, and 3) past performance. However, the evaluation criteria clearly list both technical approach and innovative solutions as evaluation criteria. Should our technical proposal also include a description of our approach for implementing project activities throughout Africa? Offerors are encouraged to present their proposed program as thoroughly as possible and in ways in which they believe best communicate their capabilities and plan. 21. When are project activities awarded under this solicitation scheduled to begin? Activities under the awarded contract will begin as quickly as possible. We do not know whether we will need to have a round of best and final offers. We hope for the contract to begin between January 15-22, 2003. 22. RESERVED ? No Question/Answer. 23. We also have a question related to the different regions for which contracts will be awarded. If we choose to apply to more than one region, must we submit separate proposals? Yes, but the proposal must be CLEARLY MARKED for the specific region for which you are proposing. 24. Are you anticipating firm fixed price fully burdened labor hours with cost reimbursable ODCs task orders? In other words a pricing structure which would anticipate a time and materials arrangement with FFP labor hours? Other than indirect costs and fringe do you anticipate any other costs being included in the fully burdened labor hour rate [for instance costs of corporate backstopping, secretarial support, computer rentals]? Offerors should respond with the fully burdened labor rates to include all burdens associated with this project. 25. Although criteria for evaluation are presented, i.e. Technical approach, innovative solutions, presentation, etc ? are there specific evaluation subfactors under these criteria which would be helpful to us in determining what you are looking for under each of these factors? No, specific subfactors have not been defined. 26. Is there an incumbent contractor and, if so, who is it? Winrock International implemented the Ambassador Girls' Scholarship Program under the Education for Development and Democracy Initiative. The program advertised herein is under the Africa Education Initiative, and is different from the previous program. There is not an incumbent contractor under the Africa Education Initiative. 27. Could you please clarify which countries fall in which region? For example, what region do Congo, Gabon, and the DRCongo fall into? EAST: Madagascar, Rwanda, Kenya, Mauritius, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Burundi, southern Sudan (11 countries). WEST: Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Cote d?Ivoire, Liberia, Burkina Faso, Benin, Sao Tome & Principe, Ghana, Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, Togo Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic (22 countries). SOUTHERN: Angola, Zambia, Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia, Republic of South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland (8 countries). More Sub-Saharan countries may be added to the program. 28. Is the $8,000,000/year for the management and technical assistance for the scholarship program, or does it include the scholarship money as well? The funding is all-inclusive. 29. It states that the proposal is due by 3:00pm January 6, 2002. We assume it is supposed to read 2003. Please clarify. Your assumption is correct. 30. The solicitation states that the technical proposal should not exceed 20 pages, including resumes. Does that mean only key personnel's resumes should be included? Yes. 31. Is there a current scholarship tracking system, or will the contractor be required to design, install, and maintain one? Will there be required coordination between regional database tracking systems (will all three regional tracking systems have to be linked)? For the sake of continuity, all tracking systems will be linked. 32. If the total estimated value for all three regions is $8M over two years, then how does the funding break down by each region?? The initial funding is approximately $2.6 million per region. 33. Are the funds within solicitation strictly for administration of the project or are they the pot from which the scholarships will be funded??? The $8 million includes both the scholarship program and its administration. 34. Are State Department/USAID country Missions supposed to provide matching funds or other types of funds to supplement the scholarship program? There will not be supplemental funding for the scholarship program. 35. Within the EDDI initiative, who were the implementers of the AGSP activity, particularly in the West African countries? Within the EDDI initiative, who were the implementers of the AGSP activity, particularly in the West African countries? An illustrative listing of implementers included Forum for African Women Educationalists; Caritas; Porto Novo Deaf School; Bahai; Association pour la Protection de l?Enfance Malheureuse (APEM); Botswana Christian AIDS Intervention Program; Congo-US Alumni Association; ASAPSU; Congo-American Language Institute; CONAFED; Christina Missionary Alliance; Protestant Confederation; Catholic Confederation of Convention Schools; Kimbanguists and Moslem Federations; Mennonite Community; American Missionary Schools; Catholic Relief Services; Lycee Sacre Coeur; KEPAWE; JJ Roberts Foundation; Restore Another Child?s Hope (REACH); TUCSIN; Institute of Bankers in Southern Africa; Caritas- Orphanaid; Tanzanian Association of Women Leaders in Agriculture and the Environment (TAWLAE); IIEEG; World Vision. 36. Is there a requirement for small business? No. 37. RESERVED ? No Question/Answer. 38. The RFP states that GovWorks "...intends to competitively award multiple contracts (one each for east, west and southern Africa)." Are bidders allowed to propose 1 or 2 of the regions as areas of focus or should each bidder submit proposals that include all 3 regions? Bidders may submit proposals for one, two, or three regions. All proposals must be clearly marked for the region they are proposed for. 39. RESERVED ? No Question/Answer. 40. For the fixed labor categories, does the funder wish labor categories by Senior, Mid-Level and/or Junior Level? If so, do they have prescribed criteria for each of these levels? Offerors should propose all labor categories that are appropriate to the project. In addition, offerors should clearly define the proposed labor categories. 41. While offerors will attempt to think of the maximum number of fixed labor categories possible for this contract, will new categories be allowed to be add new labor categories depending on the country/task? Offerors should propose all labor categories for the life of the project. 42. We are aware that numerous scholarships programs have been carried out in numerous African countries. Will this new effort expect us to build on existing programs in the same countries or will new countries and new programs be chosen? The scholarship program under the Africa Education Initiative will build on the program from the Education for Development and Democracy Initiative. 43. The solicitation does not detail the requirements for the cost proposal. Are funders only required to submit a rate schedule outlining their proposed labor categories and rates for each of the five years of the program (2 base years and three potential one year options?) If more is to be included, could a checklist of the additional items be provided? A cost proposal shall also be submitted. As this will be an indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (ID/IQ), offerors shall submit fully burdened labor rates and proposed labor categories for this effort. In addition, offerors should indicate any indirect costs that will be applied to issuing scholarships, travel, etc. 44. Is there a baseline budget that we may get to determine specific of our overall budget? For example, the costs of scholarships and the ancillary expenses associated to the awards should be apart of a complete budget. We?d like to get a copy of any previous GSP response (s) ? to get a more realistic perspective of the line items to include. USAID will not be releasing this information. 45. Is there a website or an organization that has administered this program that we may reference? We are presently involved in several in-country projects, have an on-going commitment there and understand the basics of initiating and administering programs but would like to get a better handle on any specifics (best practices; lessons learned, etc.) of the GSP that we should be aware of. The website for the Education for Development and Democracy Initiative is www.eddionline.org. 46. What is the award schedule? Due date: Jan 6, 2003. What are the next steps? When is the award announcement expected? The award date is anticipated for on or about January 15, 2003. 47. How many scholarships are expected in each region? What is the approximate average scholarship amount? We expect at least 52,000 scholarships to be awarded per year across all regions. The cost of scholarships varies by country, level, and type of school. 48. Which countries are included in each region? EAST: Madagascar, Rwanda, Kenya, Mauritius, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Burundi, southern Sudan (11 countries). WEST: Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Cote d?Ivoire, Liberia, Burkina Faso, Benin, Sao Tome & Principe, Ghana, Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, Togo Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic (22 countries). SOUTHERN: Angola, Zambia, Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia, Republic of South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland (8 countries). More Sub-Saharan countries may be added to the program 49. If one contractor bids all three regions will the single proposal have a sixty page limit? No Offerors can propose for each region, however the proposals must be separate and be clearly marked. 50. How will ordering be accomplished? May it be assumed that for each task the contractor will propose a price and management approach? The Government intention is for offerors to propos a management and price approach based on the rates provided in the RFQ. 51. When is performance expected to begin? Performance is anticipated to begin on or about January 15-22, 2003. 52. It is our understanding that the offeror will propose labor categories and rates for its administrative/management efforts, plus an indirect rate that will be applied to scholarships, travel and other costs for subcontractors and NGOs. Is this correct? This is an acceptable approach. 53. Is the price estimate provided in the solicitation a total for all three regions? Yes.
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