Request for Proposals for: Translation Services – ABA Rule of Law Initiative عودة إلى الفرص

Bid Timetable

The American Bar Association-Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI or ABA) will make every effort to adhere to the following schedule (all deadlines are COB Tunis time):

General Information

Purpose:

This request for proposal (RFP) provides to those interested in submitting proposals (“Bidders”) sufficient information to enable them to prepare and submit proposals for the ABA ROLI Tunisia’s consideration.

Issuing Department:

ABA ROLI Tunisia has issued this RFP. The sole point of contact in the ABA for the RFP shall be Saoussen Moussi, moussi@americanbar.org, the issuing employee for this RFP. Please refer all inquiries to the issuing employee, with a cc. to Michael Lechner, michael.lechner@americanbar.org.

Program Deliverables:

Program deliverables in this contract will be: (a) provision of translation services for the organization of events across Tunisia including simultaneous and consecutive translation (b) written translation and (c) use of translation equipment.

Type of Contract:

The contract must comply with the ABA Contract Policy and will be reviewed by the ABA’s General Counsel’s Office. ABA entities do not have separate legal standing to enter into oral or written contracts in their own names. All contracts are entered into on behalf of the American Bar Association. The issuing department, in its sole discretion, may undertake negotiations with Bidders whose proposal, in the judgement of the issuing department, show them to be qualified, responsible and capable of performing the project or providing the goods. Only staff members authorized by the ABA Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer have authority to execute contractual agreements on behalf of the ABA.

Rejection of Proposals:

The issuing employee reserves the right, in its sole and complete discretion, to reject any proposal received as a result of this RFP.

Incurring of Costs:

The ABA is not liable for any costs the Bidder incurs in preparation and submission of its proposal, in participating in the RFP process or in anticipation of the award of the contract.

Questions and Answers:

If a Bidder has any questions regarding this RFP, the Bidder must submit the questions by email to the issuing employee named in Section 1.2 of the RFP. If the Bidder has questions, they must be submitted via email no later than the date indicated on the Bid Timetable. The Bidder shall not attempt to contact the issuing employee by any other means. All questions and all answers will be provided to all Bidders by the deadline date indicated on the Bid Timetable.

Response Date:

To be considered for selection, electronic submission must arrive to the issuing employee on the date specified in the Bid Timetable.

To be considered, Bidders should submit a complete response to this RFP, using the format provided in Section 2.0, providing an electronic copy in PDF format to the issuing employee. The Bidder shall make no other distribution of its proposal to any other Bidder or ABA employee or ABA consultant. An official authorized to bind the Bidder to its provisions must sign the proposal in Appendix A. For this RFP, the proposal must remain valid until a contract is fully executed. If the issuing employee selects the Bidder’s proposal for award, the contents of the selected Bidder’s proposal will become, except to the extent the contents are changed through Best and Final Offers or negotiations, contractual obligations.

Discussions for Clarification:

Bidders may be required to make an oral or written clarification to their proposals to the issuing employee to ensure thorough mutual understanding and Bidder responsiveness to the solicitation requirements. The issuing employee will initiate requests for clarification.

Prime Contractor Responsibilities:

The contract will require the selected Bidder to assume responsibility for all services offered in its proposal whether it produces them itself or by contractor. The issuing employee will consider the selected Bidder to be the sole point of contact with regard to contractual matters.

Proposal Contents:

Bidders should not label proposal submissions as confidential or proprietary. The issuing employee will hold all proposals in confidence and will not reveal or discuss any proposal with competitors for the contract, unless disclosure is required:

1. Under the provisions of any State or United States statute or regulation; or
2. By rule or order of any court of competent jurisdiction.

All material submitted with the proposal becomes the property of the ABA and may be returned only at the issuing employee’s option. The issuing employee, in its sole discretion, may include any person other than competing Bidders on its proposal evaluation committee. The issuing employee has the right to use any or all ideas presented in any proposal regardless of whether the proposal becomes part of a contract.

Best and Final Offers:

The issuing employee reserves the right to conduct discussions with Bidders for obtaining “best and final offers.” To obtain best and final offers from Bidders, the issuing department may do one or more of the following: enter into pre-selection negotiations; schedule oral presentations; and request revised proposals.

Term of Contract:

The term of the contract will commence on the Effective Date and will end as determined by the project timeline provided in the bid. The Effective Date will be 16 August 2022 or the date of countersignature, whichever is later. The selected Bidder shall not start the performance of any work prior to the effective date of the contract and the ABA shall not be liable to pay the selected Bidder for any service or work performed or expenses incurred before the effective date of the contract. The contract is not considered approved until the terms have been reviewed and approved by the Office of General Counsel. An “American Bar Association Office of General Counsel” approval seal will appear on the contract with the signature of the attorney approving the terms of the contract.

Use of Electronic Versions of this RFP:

This RFP is being made available by electronic means. If a Bidder electronically accepts the RFP, the Bidder acknowledges and accepts full responsibility to ensure that no changes are made to the RFP.

Proposal Requirements:

• • Statement of the Services. Briefly state your understanding of the services required by the RFP. Include a high-level management summary of how your company will effectively satisfy the services required, based on passed experience.
  • Proposed Approach. Describe your approach in detail for accomplishing the work as specified in Section 3.0 of this document. This document should be as detailed and comprehensive as possible.
  • Price Submittal. Bidders must not include any assumptions in their price submittals. If the Bidder includes assumptions in its price submittal, the issuing employee may reject the proposal. All prices must be included so that the total spending required by the ABA is clearly defined.

Criteria for Selection:

Mandatory Responsiveness Requirements.

To be eligible for selection, a proposal must:

1. Be received according to the dates set in the Bid Timetable;
2. Be properly signed by a representative of the Bidder who is eligible to bind them in contract with the ABA;
3. Be in accordance with all instructions as set forth herein.

Technically Nonconforming Proposals. The issuing employee reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to waive technical or immaterial nonconformities in a Bidder’s proposal.

Criteria for Selection.

The following criteria will be used, in no particular order, in evaluating each proposal:

• Demonstrated capacity to deliver translation services throughout Tunisia to accomplish project objectives in accordance with Section 4.0 of this RFP. Please provide information on previous experience providing translation services;
• Existing organizational capacity to support ABA objectives, with documentation protocols in compliance with US government and Tunisian regulations. Please provide information on policies, procedures, and protocols for compliance;
• Experience working carrying out similar work in Tunisia, preferably in target locations, with international organizations and donors. Please provide information on experience with similar work for international organizations and donors;
• Demonstrated ability to securely and properly handle sensitive or personally identifiable information. Please provide explanation on maintenance of sensitive information.
• Overall value (evaluations of costs and fees).

Specifications and Work Statement:

Background:

This RFP concerns translation services for activities across Tunisia. ABA ROLI seeks to recruit a company with demonstrated access to these locations to accomplish the following objectives:

• Support ABA ROLI activities in the provision of translation services including simultaneous and consecutive translation, written translation, and use of translation equipment
• Receive invoices with maintenance of documentation protocols in compliance with US government and Tunisian regulations.

Activities and Approach:

Program deliverables under this contract are described in section 4.0. Contractor should describe the activities it will undertake to accomplish these deliverables.

Organizational Capacity Statement:

Contractor should describe its organizational capacity to carry out the work in this RFP, with focus on its experience working in Tunisia since 2011; including in these areas; knowledge of conflict-sensitivity and working with international organizations.

 Budget:

Contractor must provide a line-item budget for all activities under this program. The budget should include the following major cost-categories:

(1) Simultaneous and written translation based on hourly and daily rate; (2) written translation based on number of words per page; (3) translation equipment.