Fund-raising consultancy companies- Chemonics International Retour vers les opportunités

Société: Chemonics International / Projet: USAID Tunisia JOBS

Objet: Request For Proposals (RFP): Fund-raising consultancy companies

Introduction:

Chemonics, through Chemonics Tunisia SARL, the Buyer, acting on behalf of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Jobs, Opportunities, and Business Success (JOBS) Project, under contract number AID-664-C-17-00001 is soliciting offers from companies and organizations to submit proposals to provide business development services to JOBS client firms to increase their competitiveness and stimulate job growth and provide additional areas of technical assistance as required by the project.

The purpose of the USAID-funded JOBS project is to create jobs in Tunisia on a sustainable basis by (1) providing targeted assistance to Tunisian businesses, especially SMEs, to expand their sales and/or exports enabling them to grow and hire additional workers; (2) enhance work force development by reducing the education/training gap between the university and vocational training systems and the actual needs of Tunisian businesses; (3) promote a more effective business enabling environment by working with the public and private sectors to promote policy and regulatory reforms; and, (4) communicate to Tunisians, especially youth, a sense of the importance of market-led economic growth and entrepreneurship, as well as vocational education as an apt career choice.

JOBS also aspires to have project stakeholders and Tunisians at large understand and be aware of USAID’s contribution to these objectives through the JOBS project.

Chemonics anticipates issuing awards to several companies or organizations. The awards will be in the form of a time and materials fixed daily rate (FDR) subcontract (hereinafter referred to as “the subcontract.”). The successful Offerors shall be required to adhere to the statement of work. While most of the work under the awards is expected to involve direct technical assistance to Tunisian businesses under Objective 1, JOBS may also order work in support of the other project components (Objectives 2, 3, and 4 noted above) and to assist with JOBS’ project management needs.

Offerors are invited to submit proposals in response to this RFP in accordance with Section I Instructions to Offerors, which will not be part of the subcontract. The instructions are intended to assist interested Offerors in the preparation of their offer. Any resulting subcontract will be guided by Sections II.

This RFP does not obligate Chemonics to execute a subcontract, nor does it commit Chemonics to pay any costs incurred in the preparation and submission of the proposals. Furthermore, Chemonics reserves the right to reject any and all offers, if such action is considered to be in the best interest of Chemonics.

Unless otherwise stated, the periods named in the RFP shall be consecutive calendar days.

Background:

The purpose of the USAID-funded Jobs, Opportunities & Business Success (JOBS) project is to create jobs in Tunisia on a sustainable basis by

(1) providing targeted assistance to Tunisian businesses, especially SMEs, to expand their sales and/or exports enabling them to grow and hire additional workers;

(2) enhance work force development by reducing the education/training gap between the university and vocational training systems and the actual needs of Tunisian businesses;

(3) promote a more effective business enabling environment by working with the public and private sectors to promote policy and regulatory reforms; and,

(4) communicate to Tunisians, especially youth, a sense of the importance of market-led economic growth and entrepreneurship, as well as vocational education as an apt career choice.

JOBS also aspires to have project stakeholders and Tunisians at large understand and be aware of USAID’s contribution to these objectives through the JOBS project.

Scoop of work:

JOBS is looking to pre-select business development service providers (BDSP) that it can contract through an expeditious mechanism as it supports Tunisian enterprises to increase their competitiveness and carries out other project activities. The primary purpose of this support is to create sustainable jobs. JOBS will use an indefinite quantity contracting (IQC) or a pre-selection mechanism to provide “just-in-time” expertise from BDSPs to our client firms and other project stakeholders, based on the technical needs required.

JOBS’ primary project objective is to provide management consulting technical assistance to client firms, through BDSPs, to improve the Tunisian economy and create sustainable jobs. JOBS will draw business services from BDSPs in the following categories:

1. Provide direct technical assistance to JOBS client firms including, but not limited to, management consulting, strategy, access to finance and preparing companies to access credit, certifications, export promotion and identifying domestic and international clients, value chain development, and productivity, and HR management; and,
2. Identify potential client firms for the JOBS team to consider by using JOBS’s selection criteria

JOBS activities are nationwide, with a presence in Gabes, Zarzis, Djerba, Gafsa, Sfax, Sousse, Kairouan, Bizerte, El Kef, Beja, Nabeul and Tunis Capital area. JOBS will draw business services from BDSPs across a wide variety of sectors, including but not limited to ICT, agriculture and agri-food, textiles and clothing, and mechanical and electrical.

While most of the work under this IQS is expected to involve direct technical assistance to Tunisian businesses under Objective 1, JOBS may also order work in support of the other project components (Objectives 2, 3, and 4 noted above) and to assist with JOBS’ project management needs

Technical Tasks:

This section describes the technical task areas that the BDSP shall perform and are illustrative and should not be considered all-inclusive. For BDS providers/consulting firms pre-qualified under this tender, JOBS will release on an as needed basis specific “Sub Task Orders” with detailed scopes of work.

Provide support to JOBS’ client firms in:

• Preparing business plans and financial modelling
• Preparing teasers, pitch books and information memorandum
• Performing Due Diligence
• Negotiating and closing fund raising transactions

The consultancy firm should show a good track record of fund raising and a large network of potential investors.

The JOBS project will draw services from BDSPs based on the “Access to Finance” category of consulting services.

Chronological List of Proposal Events

The following calendar summarizes important dates in the solicitation process. Offerors must strictly follow these deadlines.

RFP release date                                                            September 02, 2022

Deadline for written questions                                      September 26, 2022

Answers provided to questions/clarifications                 September 28, 2022

Proposal due date                                                         October 7, 2022

Subcontract award (estimated)                                     October 21, 2022

Written Questions and Clarifications. 

All questions or clarifications regarding this RFP must be in writing and submitted to subcontracts@tunisiajobs.org no later than September 09, 2022at 17:00. The subject line of the email with questions should state: JOBS BDSP RFP_Questions_Name of Offeror. Questions and requests for clarification, and the responses thereto, will be circulated to all RFP recipients who have indicated an interest in this RFP.

Only written answers from Chemonics will be considered official and carry weight in the RFP process and subsequent evaluation. Any answers received outside the official channel, whether received verbally or in writing, from employees or representatives of Chemonics International, the Tunisia JOBS project, or any other party, will not be considered official responses regarding this RFP.

Proposal Submission Date. 

All proposals must be received by the date and time and complying with the instructions as provided in Section I.3.

Oral Presentations.

Chemonics reserves the option to have select offerors participate in oral presentations with the technical evaluation committee. Interviews may consist of oral presentations of offerors’ proposed activities and approaches. Offerors should be prepared to give presentations to the technical evaluation committee at the Tunisia JOBS office within 2 days of receiving notification.

Subcontract Award (estimated). 

Chemonics will select the proposal(s) that offers the best value based upon the evaluation criteria stated in this RFP. These are expected to be awarded on October 21, 2022..

Validity Period

Offerors’ proposals must remain valid for 90 calendar days after the proposal deadline.

Instructions for the Preparation of the Proposal:

Cover Letter

The offeror shall use the cover letter provided in Annex 21 of this RFP, which confirms organizational information and consent to the validity of this proposal.

The offeror’s cover letter shall include the following information:

1. Name of the company or organization
2. Type of company or organization (for-profit or non-profit)

iii.           Address

1. Telephone
2. E-mail
3. Full names of members of the Board of Directors and Legal Representative (as appropriate)

vii.          Fiscal ID

viii.         DUNS Number

1. Official bank account information
2. Other required documents that shall be included as attachments to the cover letter:

1. a)           Copy of registration or incorporation in the public registry, or equivalent document from the government office where the offeror is registered.
2. b)           Copy of company tax registration, or equivalent document.
3. c)           Copy of trade license, or equivalent document.
4. d)           Evidence of Responsibility Statement, whereby the offeror certifies that it has sufficient financial, technical, and managerial resources to complete the activity described in the scope of work, or the ability to obtain such resources. This statement is required by the Federal Acquisition Regulations in 9.104-1. A template is provided in Annex 4 “Required Certifications”.
5. e)           Applicable documents listed in I.4

Technical Proposal 

The technical proposal must be submitted in English.

The technical proposal shall comprise the parts below. Please note that the proposal must be responsive to the detailed information set out in Section II of this RFP.

• Part 1: Technical Corporate Capabilities and Past Performance. This part shall be between 2 to 3 pages long but may not exceed 5 pages.
• Part 2: Personnel – Technical Consultants. This part shall be between 1 and 2 pages long but may not exceed 3 pages (not including CVs).

Cost Proposal

The cost proposal must be submitted in English using the provided MS Excel Budget Template. Offerors’ pricing is expected to be fair, reasonable, allowable, allocable and cost-effective, and shall be subject to a cost/price realism analysis.

Offerors must propose fixed daily rates (FDRs) inclusive of salary and any profit or overhead for the applicable labor category levels listed below (Senior, Mid-Level, Junior). Offerors are requested to provide an estimated breakdown of salary and other costs used to develop the proposed FDRs. The salary portion of the FDR should not significantly exceed the 500 TND range. Chemonics may consider limited exceptions to this for senior level consultants, following a thorough review of all bids received and market analysis. Please note that evaluation points are assigned to cost, therefore when proposing FDRs, offerors are encouraged to propose competitive rates.

All cost information must be expressed in Tunisian dinars.

The cost proposal is used to determine which proposals represent the best value and serves as a basis of negotiation before award of a subcontract.

Evaluation and Basis for Award

An award will be made to the offeror whose proposal is determined to be responsive to this solicitation document, meets the eligibility criteria stated in this RFP, meets the technical, personnel, and corporate capability requirements, and is determined to represent the best value to Chemonics. Best value will be decided using the “trade off” process. That means that each proposal will be evaluated and scored against the evaluation criteria and evaluation sub-criteria.

This RFP utilizes the tradeoff process set forth in FAR 15.101-1. Chemonics will award a subcontract to the offerors whose proposals represent the best value to Chemonics and the JOBS project. Chemonics may award to a higher priced offeror if a determination is made that the higher technical evaluation of that offeror merits the additional cost/price.

Personnel 

Each technical service request that JOBS will issue to the BDSP consortium will specify the exact needs for consultants, however we anticipate needing consultants with the following qualifications:

• Degree in finance, accounting, business engineering or any equivalent
• Professional experience working on investment, corporate finance, or investment banking
• Experience with all the steps of closing transactions and their deliverables: Business plans, information memorandum, due diligence, and transaction negotiation.
• Large network of potential investors and business angels.
• Demonstrated experience/network/knowledge of Tunisia’s investment environment, available investment incentives, opportunities and the institutions that provide them
• Ability to introduce and support innovative business development and investment opportunities, including spurring startups and ESOs, supporting early stage and mature organizations, including large scale companies

 Eligibility criteria

Companies and organizations that submit proposals in response to this RFP must meet the following requirements:

(i)                   Companies or organizations, whether for-profit or non-profit, must be legally registered under the laws of Tunisia upon award of the subcontract.

(ii)                 Firms operating as commercial companies or other organizations or enterprises (including nonprofit organizations) in which foreign governments or their agents or agencies have a controlling interest are not eligible as suppliers of commodities and services.

(iii)                Companies or organizations with Personne morale Patent (i.e. registered as a company, not as an individual)

(iv)                Companies or organizations must have a local presence in Tunisia at the time the subcontract is signed.

(v)                 Companies or organizations, whether for-profit or non-profit, shall be requested to provide a DUNS number if selected to receive a subcontract valued at USD$30,000 or more, unless exempted in accordance with information certified in the Evidence of Responsibility form included in the required certifications in Annex 4.^[1]

Offerors may present their proposals as a member of a partnership with other companies or organizations. In such cases, the subcontract will be awarded to the lead company in the partnership. The leading company shall be responsible for compliance with all subcontract terms and conditions and making all partnership arrangements, including but not limited to division of labor, invoicing, etc., with the other company(ies). A legally registered partnership is not necessary for these purposes; however the different organizations must be committed to work together in the fulfilment of the subcontract terms.

Offerors may present their proposals as a member of a partnership with other companies or organizations. In such cases, the subcontract will be awarded to the lead company in the partnership. The leading company shall be responsible for compliance with all subcontract terms and conditions and making all partnership arrangements, including but not limited to division of labor, invoicing, etc., with the other company(ies). A legally registered partnership is not necessary for these purposes; however, the different organizations must be committed to work together in the fulfilment of the subcontract terms.

P.S: This request for proposal applies only for consultancy companies specialized in fund-raising with strong experience in this field.

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