Marketing & Communication services – Search for Common Ground Retour vers les opportunités

EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION AGENCY

SUMMARY OF TENDER 

1. Assignment: 

Search for Common Ground, for the Engaging Youth in Addressing Regional Inequalities in Tunisia project, requires suitably qualified and experienced service providers to submit proposals service providers to fulfill Communication and Marketing responsibilities in accordance with the given scope. 

2. Name of the responsible office: 

Search for Common Ground Tunisia 3, Rue Florence, Mutuelleville Tunis,1072 Tunisi 

4.Telephone: +216 71 792 460 

5.Email: contact.tunisia@sfcg.org 

6. Attention: Search for Common Ground 
7. Closing Date & Time for submission of proposals: 25 September 2020 at 18H00 (CET) 
8. Bid Description: Appointment of a suitably qualified and experienced service provider to fulfill Communication and Marketing responsibilities in accordance with the given scope.
9. SEARCH FOR COMMON GROUND BACKGROUND 

1.1. Introduction to Search for common ground 

We are Searchers. We are over 800 strong worldwide. We believe in our mission to end violent conflict. It’s our purpose – our call to action. 

A Searcher understands our vision of a world where: 

• Differences stimulate social progress, rather than precipitate violence; ● Respect for and cooperation with those we disagree with is considered the norm. 

A Searcher is a dedicated, enthusiastic, and passionate individual, committed to our values; Shared Humanity, Empathy, Impartiality, Inclusivity, Courage, Hope, Humility, and Audacity. With headquarters in Washington, DC, and Brussels, Belgium, we implement projects from 55 offices in 34 countries, including in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the United States. You will be joining other highly motivated Searchers with a good team spirit and through commitment and dedication, have opportunities to grow. 

Search in Tunisia SFCG’s mission in Tunisia is to promote the culture of dialogue and diversity through the involvement of all parts of society while building their capacities. SFCG works in Tunisia to help members of Tunisian society to address conflicts and differences constructively through cooperation and dialogue. SFCG Tunisia works across multiple channels, mainly with youth, CSOs, media actors, security forces, and local authorities to build the capacity of individuals and institutions to address challenges including differences and acting on common points. Through this approach and partnerships, SFCG-Tunisia has four main strategic objectives: (i) Promoting Peace Education; (ii) Fostering non-violent social dialogue; (iii) Enhancing participatory and inclusive governance, and (vi) Transforming Violent Extremism in Tunisia. 

2. ENGAGING YOUTH IN ADDRESSING REGIONAL INEQUALITIES IN TUNISIA BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT 

2.1. Background and Context 

As identified by the UK Government’s Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability, Tunisia is displaying indications of a growing risk of instability, which if left unaddressed, threatens to derail its post-revolution transition towards democracy. Youth marginalization based on regional inequalities, one of the main drivers behind the 2011 revolution in Tunisia, has become more entrenched in recent years, leading to growing frustration and despair reflected in youth protest movements across the country. The recently initiated decentralization process provides an

avenue for young people’s increased involvement in decision-making at the local level if youth are indeed listened to and empowered to equally participate. 

Yet, effective youth engagement as part of the decentralization process faces several challenges. First, local authorities have limited capacities and tools for participatory approaches to engage citizens, particularly young people, in local decision-making. Second, civil society organizations (CSOs) also face difficulties in sustaining public engagement with young people on an ongoing basis and show a limited capacity to empower youth to effectively engage with their local governance. These barriers to participation and accountability must be met at the local level through increased youth democratic participation and better engagement between youth and local authorities. Building on existing platforms and increasing the opportunities for Tunisians to engage in local governance will be equally important as it will continue to provide a space for youth to build their capacity. Third, marginalized and disengaged young people report few avenues for leisure at the local level, a finding that is particularly worrying from preventing violent extremism (PVE) lens, but which also demonstrates the further regional marginalization and disengagement of Tunisian youth. 

2.2. Impact and Change 

Search proposes building upon our extensive youth engagement work across all regions of Tunisia to address the lack of positive youth engagement activities at the local level, especially for marginalized youth. Promoting constructive youth engagement with local authorities through activities such as youth-to-youth talks and creative workshops will allow youth to express their concerns around marginalization and inequality issues at the local level, and suggest concrete ideas to address them, invigorating and consolidating their trust in and collaboration with local authorities. By engaging both youth and local authorities through a bottom-up approach that creates space for dialogues, this project will strengthen a more sustainable and constructive relationship between these two groups. 

2.3. Goal, Objectives, and Activities 

The overall goal of the project is to foster a culture of open dialogue around key issues of marginalization and inequality prevalent in local communities that will serve as a means to build trust and collaboration between youth and local authorities. 

As tools to achieve the Theory of Change, the specific objectives of the project are defined as follows: 

• Objective 1: Provide youth with a safe space and opportunities to convene effective discussions around key marginalization and inequality issues in their communities to express their voices in creative and peaceful (non-violent) ways in front of local authorities; and 
• Objective 2: Contribute to a shift that values constructive collaboration, trust, and engagement between youth and local officials through dialogues and discussions.

3. GENERAL GUIDELINES 

Completed Tender submissions should be delivered by email to the address on page one of this document. All enquiries should be joint and must be directed to contact.tunisia@sfcg.org. Enquiries will be allowed from the date of the submission of the invitation (appel d’offre) until seven working days before the closing date for submission of proposals. 

3.1. Purpose of the Terms of Reference (ToR) 

The purpose of this bid is to provide information that will enable the bidder to develop a scope and comprehensive proposal for Media and Communications Services for a period of two months from the date of commencement. Since not all services and requirements can be fully defined, the ToR provides an environmental sketch for Bidders to enable them to formulate their proposal for SFCG. 

3.2. Objectives 

The primary objective of this request for proposal is to invite suitably qualified and experienced service providers to submit proposals to SFCG to render Marketing and Communication Services for a period of two months from the date of commencement. 

3.3. Submission of Proposals 

3.3.1. The bid should be emailed to the address specified on page one in one (1) PDF format presentation. The email should be sent with the subject: 

“Engaging Youth in Addressing Regional Inequalities in Tunisia” Media COMPANY PROPOSAL 

3.3.2. If the bid does not include all the information required or is incomplete, the bid will be non-compliant and thus be invalidated; 3.3.3. Any bid received after the closing date and time will be rejected; 3.3.4. All costs must remain valid and open for evaluation for a period of at least 30 days from the time of submission. 

3.4. Infrastructure 

It is expected that Bidders will be able to provide a detailed list with all resources, equipment, needed for effective and efficient delivery of the ToR requirements. 

3.5. Cost to be borne by Service Provider

All costs and expenses incurred by the Bidder, in any way associated with the development, preparation, and submission of bid documents, responses, and providing any additional information required by SFCG, will be borne entirely and exclusively by the Bidder. 

3.6. Evaluation of Offers 

Each Bidder acknowledges and accepts that SFCG may, at its absolute discretion, apply selection criteria, specific in this document for the evaluation of proposals for shortlisting/selection of eligible Bidders(s), in a phased approach. 

4. SCOPE OF SERVICE 

SERVICE PROVIDER FOR COMMUNICATION AND MARKETING SERVICES. 5. CONTRACT MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS 

The successful bidder will be expected to perform the following: 

5.1 Meetings 

Attend at least one bi-weekly meeting with the SFCG Media officer and the Project Coordinator for activities planning and reporting sessions. Other ad hoc meetings may be called by the SFCG Media officer and should be attended by the successful bidder. 

5.2 Reports 

Prepare and submit formal reports accounting for the period in review for the bi-weekly meetings. 

6. PERFORMANCE STANDARDS 

The following are critical performance standards: The project requires media reports on a monthly basis that is generated/solicited directly by the bidder. The value of the media reports as recorded by the media monitoring and analysis should at least be two times the value of the PR services fees fee (the PR multiplier effect will not be considered; only real values shall count). Failure to achieve this performance requirement (target) for two consecutive months will be considered as underperformance which provides the project to cancel or review the contract including the services fee. Social media uploads of new content should be on a daily and weekly basis in line with a predetermined diary of the project, activities, and in line with the social media strategy. Ad hoc uploads will be in addition to the diary.

7. THE BID 

7.1. Purpose of the Bid 

Part of the key responsibilities is to promote the activities of the project. SFCG will establish the Engaging Youth in Addressing Regional Inequalities in Tunisia project to engage the youth of two selected Tunisian communities in dialogue around the regional inequalities, youth talks, and creative workshops. This responsibility requires a substantial amount of collaborations, changing perceptions, public interaction, and engagement. Public relations and visibility of the project in the designated communities, stakeholders, CSO, and their activities, therefore, to encourage youth Addressing Regional Inequalities through dialogues, protesting form of arts, and engaging with local authorities. 

7.2. Terms of Reference 

The terms of reference serve as a brief on the expectations of SFCG. 

The proposal on the required services will have to detail the communication provided services, the implementation plan with time frames and costs. 

If there are any proposed additional service delivery areas as recommendations or added value, they should be costed separate from the main proposal and be included as an annexure. These will be an added advantage to the bidder. 

The prospective service provider must be prepared to accept the terms and conditions of SFCG which will among others include a ToR Marketing and Communication Services. 

7.2.1 Product Based Deliverables 

The approach and the communication plan of how the following services will be implemented should be included in the Integrated Communication & Marketing project presentation. The development of the following marketing products is an integral part of this assignment. All the items listed under this section will form part of the evaluation criteria. 

1. a) Branding and chart graphic: The recruited agency will provide SFCG and the project with a rechart/update proposition to the existent project visual identity. 
2. b) Print advert: The recruited agency has to provide when it’s needed SFCG and the project; flyer, brochure, portfolio to be distributed in the project activities and for advertisement.
3. c) Media buying and social media implementation The service provider is required to coordinate the media placements requests for selected media and social media. Also, it is required to provide a result report and expenditure after each campaign/online ads. The service provider will, therefore, be requested to provide quotations from the selected media and social media at the time of the campaign. The budget for media and social media buying will not exceed the amount allocated by the project for this service. The service provider is required to explain in detail the methodology, process, and cost structure of the media buying and social media ads. 
4. d) Corporate video [Frequency: once on each activity] Duration: 4 x 5 minutes. Required: Concept development, script, acquiring footage, filming, editing, and production. 
5. f) Brand collateral [Frequency: weekly ] Produce relevant material for the project on a weekly basis and with each project activities based on the requirements for that particular month in line with the Integrated Communications Strategy. The material may vary from week to week. 

The following units will be required with the start of the project (Octobre 2020): 2x standard pull-up banners 2x standard backdrop on an expandable frame. 

1. g) Social media communication 

The service provider is required to relaunch the designated social media platforms for the project; Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and to create and post content according to the brand of the project, the project activities timeline, and daily project subjects related to daily content. The recruited agency has to create content, share and communicate certain information about the project when it’s needed according to SFCG and the project demands or by moderating and answering youth comment/messages on the designated social media platforms. 

7.2.2 Services Fees A proposed Integrated Communication plan with a two months action plan is required for this section. The proposal of this section should be backed up by a previous media coverage report (references), from one of the bidder’s previous clients, that simply describes the nature of the project, the experience in coordinating the publicity, and a list of the media coverage categorized into print, broadcast and online as well as their average advertising equivalent values. The second part of the proposal should be a Social media strategy for the project with clear objectives. The strategy should take into account the creation of social media platforms; Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. 

7.2.2.1 Public relations a) Media relations Provide for building mutual relationships with external mainstream or corporate media, Journalists, Presenters, and media owners. I. Proactively drive the publicity of the project activities and objectives. II. Drive the publicity of the

project partnership activities with third-party stakeholders. III. Identify publicity opportunities and manage the reactive responses to media about matters of the project. b) Media monitoring Provide media monitoring in the following: print, activities coverage, online and social media. c) Social Media [Frequency: weekly ] The social media platforms are a tool of critical engagement with the public, albeit with a certain amount of risk exposure. I. Develop a social media strategy and the implementation thereof. II. Manage content and monitor activities on all social media platforms created for the project (Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter) III. Produce an analytics report and recommend constructive interventions. IV. Recommend any new trends for consideration and implementation. g) Graphic design Graphic designing in line with corporate identity will be required. This service will include the design of all the line material for the project. Some will be for print while others will be for online and social media. This will include but not limited to 

corporate stationery, office templates, PowerPoint presentations, electronic forms, electronic banners, booklets, brochures, leaflets, posters, email signatures, etc. 

8. STANDARD REQUIREMENTS OF THE BID 

8.1. Disclosure extends to any company in the same group of the bidder, including but not limited to parent, subsidiary and sister companies, companies with common shareholders (whether direct or indirect), and parties with whom the Bidder is associated in respect of this tender. 

8.2. Disclaimer 

SFCG reserves the right not to appoint a service provider. SFCG also reserves the right to: 8.2.1. Award the contract or any part thereof to one or more service providers; 8.2.2. Reject all bids; 8.2.3. Decline to consider any bids that do not conform to any aspect of the bidding requirements; 8.2.4. Request further information from any Bidder, after the closing date for clarity purposes; 8.2.5. Cancel this tender or any part thereof at any time; and 8.2.6. Should any of the above occur, it will be communicated in writing to the Bidders. 

8.3. Confidentiality 

8.3.1. Bids submitted will not be revealed to any other Bidders and will be treated as contractually binding; 8.3.2. All information pertaining to SFCG obtained by the Bidder as a result of participation in this Request for Bid is confidential and must not be disclosed without written authorization from SFCG; and 8.3.3. The successful Bidder will be expected to sign an SLA with SFCG.

9. PRICES 

9.1. All services pricing should be inclusive of all taxes and payment shall be made in Tunisian dinar; 

9.2. SFCG may require a breakdown of rates on any of the items priced and the Bidders are to provide the same without any additional costs; 

9.2.1. Application for price adjustments must be accompanied by documentary evidence in support of any adjustment on an annual basis. 

10. PAYMENT TERMS 

10.1. SFCG undertakes to pay valid tax invoices in full within thirty (30) days from the statement date for services rendered; and 10.2. All supporting documents for services rendered should be submitted together with the tax invoice as and when a service has been rendered. 

11. VALIDITY 

11.1. A Proposal shall remain valid for thirty (30) days after the closing date of the submission of proposals. A Proposal that is valid for a shorter period may be rejected by SFCG for non-responsiveness. 

11.2. In exceptional circumstances, SFCG may solicit the Bidder’s consent to an extension of the period of validity of the bid. A Bidder that has been granted the request will neither be required nor permitted to modify the Proposal. 

11. SPECIAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS 

11.1. SFCG reserves the right to accept or reject any submission in full or in part and to suspend this process and reject all proposals or part thereof, at any time prior to the awarding of the contract, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidders.

11.2. This bid and the contract will be subject to the General Conditions of Contract issued in accordance with SFCG Regulation and the general conditions of the contract. 

11.3. Where, however, the special conditions of the contract are in conflict with the general conditions of the contract, the general conditions of the contract will prevail. 

11.4. Bids must only be submitted at SFCG email by the specified date and time. 

11.5. The original valid Tax Clearance Certificate should be submitted together with the completed bid. 

11.6. Failure to comply with the above-mentioned conditions will invalidate the bid. 

11.7. Certified copies of the company registration documents or proof of ownership of the company or agency Shareholders Certificates must be submitted.