Decentralization Offering Better Results and Efficiency (DOBRE)
Supporting the Development of Amalgamated Territorial Communities of Ukraine
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS RFP 0015
Oblast Economic Resource Audits: Economic Mapping of 7 Oblasts
Date of Solicitation Notice: February 21, 2017
Deadline for Questions: March 3, 2017
Due Date for Applications: March 10, 2017
Global Communities is committed to providing equal opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, age, or disability.
- Overview
Global Communities is implementing the USAID funded Decentralization Offering Better Results and Efficiency (DOBRE) program in Ukraine. This 5-year program is helping leaders of newly formed Amalgamated Territorial Communities (ATC) to effectively manage resources, increase the quality of public services, stimulate local economies, and improve citizen engagement. DOBRE is now in the process of guiding community stakeholders through a participatory strategic planning process that engages citizens, identifies issues, allocates resources, and creates and implements programs that address priority needs off the communities.
Using the Strategic Planning process as a framework, DOBRE will provide practical trainings and consulting services so that community leaders develop the skills needed to implement their Strategic Plans and supporting programs. The knowledge, practical skills, and learning tools and approaches used will later be institutionalized within Ukrainian educational institutions and other local government service organizations so that developing communities will continue to have access to needed services in the future. DOBRE currently wishes to contract a:
LOCAL GOVERNMENT SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS (LGSO) to
Conduct Oblast Economic Resource Audits
in Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kirovohrad, Mykolayiv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil Oblasts.
The select LGSO will gather and organize Oblast level information regarding economic development strategy, resources, barriers and viewpoints of key stakeholder groups. This opportunity is open to any organization capable of providing consulting, research or advisory services to municipal governments. Examples of eligible organizations include:
- Educational institutions, including universities; academies; institutes; business schools; professional schools and continuing education providers;
- Training and consulting companies; and
- Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Associations, Think Tanks or Consortiums.
- DOBRE Project Description
Many leaders of Amalgamated Territorial Communities lack the capacity to fulfil their new responsibilities resulting from decentralization and consolidation. Through a series of trainings and consultations, DOBRE will help these community and municipal leaders to develop this capacity and effectively apply new knowledge and skills to improve their community.
DOBRE’s Consortium comprised of international and Ukrainian organizations, led by Global Communities, unites a broad set of expertise and practical experience in decentralization and community development. This Consortium is partnering with multiple Ukrainian educational institutions, NGOs, associations and other organizations to deliver a series of practical trainings, on-site consultations, and community engagement activities that result in local economic and community development strategies for the amalgamated territorial communities. The community-driven strategic planning processes will result in the creation of “action plans” and tailored projects that improve public services, stimulate economic development, and increase the quality of life in the communities. The successful projects and results achieved will serve as models and motivation for other communities working to improve services and the quality of life for their citizens.
III. Scope of Work and Deliverables
Context
DOBRE wishes to identify a LGSO to collect and organize key economic information about Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kirovohrad, Mykolayiv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil Oblasts. Additionally, the LGSOs will gather representative viewpoints of key stakeholders (and their contacts) from government, business, education, civil society and international assistance programs. The newly amalgamated communities DOBRE is assisting will consider this important information about the Oblasts’ strategies, resources, and activities to ensure their community development strategies take into account their regional settings. Accordingly, DOBRE will use the information when tailoring the program’s assistance activities designed to support efforts of the communities.
Goals and Objectives:
Local Economic Development (LED) is an essential component of any community’s comprehensive strategic development as leaders work to expand their tax base and improve citizens’ lives through the creation of jobs, retaining or attracting of new businesses, stimulating entrepreneurism and innovation, and increasing incomes.
For a community’s LED strategy to be effective in supporting long-term growth in terms of employment, income and competitiveness, they must be based upon a complete picture of the geographic region or Oblast where it is being implemented. As part of the analysis to create a local strategy, it is important to identify and consider regional and Oblast decision makers, transportation and other key resources, prominent industry sectors, major businesses, universities, technology centers, and civil society players. Both the strengths and weaknesses of various institutions within the region need to be understood, as do opportunities for private sector growth. Local planners need to understand existing regional/oblast economic development strategies and have knowledge about ongoing and planned programs and projects that will impact their community efforts.
To ensure community leaders have and consider this important contextual information about their Oblast, Global Communities will select and contract an organization (a Service Contractor) to complete the related assignments described below:
- Conduct Oblast Economic Resource Audit:
This audit includes the identification and cataloging of all major assets relevant to regional development, along with collecting basic information about each asset. The compilation of this “asset inventory” will be accomplished by:
- Collecting, organizing and analyzing oblast economic reports and profiles (including “Investment Passports”)
- Scanning the media and other information resources for current/updated information
- Obtaining views and input from leaders/contacts of relevant public agencies/departments, private companies, academic institutions, international agencies and non-profit or civil society organizations
Note: In addition to the asset inventory, the completed Audit should include an Executive Summary (this summary will be in Ukrainian and English languages) that highlight specific strengths/ weaknesses/ constraints and opportunities that local communities should consider when creating their LED strategy. The service contractor shall describe the key factors that drive each Oblasts’ economy and identify possible linkages between the regional/oblast assets and those off a local community.
Deliverables include the Audit (with Executive Summary) and Asset Inventory document that can be used to further support the development of individual community profiles, provided in an electronic form that can be updated regularly by DOBRE.
NOTE: Annex 1 to this SOW includes a suggested outline of the Audit.
- Identify Key Oblast Level Stakeholders and Stakeholder Groups:
Identify important organizations and key individuals within these organizations, and provide all relevant contact information, that community leaders (and DOBRE) should be aware of and in contact. This includes leaders of government, business, education, civil society, media and international technical assistance organizations active in the Oblast.
NOTE: Annex 2 provides an example of suggested format of collected information.
- Collect existing Oblast level strategic development strategies
Many (if not all) of the Oblasts, that DOBRE is currently working have created strategic development plans to guide their policy, programs and projects in working toward a common vision. Some of the Oblasts received extensive international assistance while applying a participatory process to create these documents. A few but not all have complimentary documents that focus on supporting the creation of SMEs and growth of entrepreneurism in the Oblast.
The selected contractor will collect and organize Oblast level strategic documents in a way that the documents are readily accessible. Documents will be segregated by Oblast and will include Ukrainian and, whenever possible, English.
- List Ongoing/Planned Assistance or Funding Programs available to Communities
Service Contractor will create a register of national and other programs administered at Oblast and/or at the Rayon level that can potentially provide technical, financial or other resources beneficial to communities. These include Ukrainian national programs, oblast level programs, and those programs being implemented by international technical assistance organizations and private foundations or firms operating in the specific Oblasts.
Activities:
For implementation of the above objectives, it is expected that the Service Contractor will conduct activities such as:
- Desk Research review of each Oblast, collecting and organizing relevant information
- Contact (phone/email/other) key leaders of government, business, education, civil society, media of each of the 7 oblasts to collect their insights and recommendations
Upon completion of the Audit and creation of other required documents, the Service Contractor will submit drafts to DOBRE
After consideration, response and making necessary adjustments, the Service Contractor will make a presentation of the documents to DOBRE.
Deliverables:
- Oblast Economic Audit and Inventory (7) (including Executive Summary
- Oblast contact listing of key individuals and organizations
- Catalogue of Oblast Level Strategic Planning documents
- Guidebook of Ukrainian, international, and private resources available to local communities in each of the 7 oblast.
- Application Process
The application is available to download here or at http://gurt.org.ua, http://www.prostir.ua, DOBRE FB page, USAID FB page, DOBRE Program partners. Applying organizations should clearly identify and describe their proposed approach/vision regarding the Tasks they propose to implement. Additionally, applying organizations must clearly identify which Oblasts they are located or represented, which they have experience, and which they are proposing to provide training and services in the DOBRE program.
The Application must be completed and submitted (along with the attachments, if any) to DOBRE via email: dobreprocurement@globalcommunities.org by the deadline of 10 March 2017 to be considered. Please make sure to write “Oblast Economic Profiles Application” and write a name of your organization in the Subject line of your email.
All the questions should be submitted to DOBRE via email: dobreprocurement@globalcommunities.org by the deadline of 03 March 2017 with subject: “RFP 0015: QA”
Documentation, including service history, sample work products, CVs/Resumes of staff personnel and outsource human resources, and references are required. If you have additional documentation to provide only in hardcopy, you can submit those in person to a DOBRE representative in Kyiv, or in one of the regional offices in Dnipro or Ternopil by the deadline of 10 March 2017 to be considered.
Please prepare and submit budget accordingly to the “Proposal Budget” file in USD. Please use office NBU exchange rate for the calculations.
All payments under RFP 0015 shall be done in UAH (based on actual NBU rate) and exempt from VAT. Global Communities is exempt from taxes within the customs territory of Ukraine and will provide a certified copy of its registration card issued by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine for VAT exemption process.
Authorized geographic code for RFP 0015 is Code 110, which includes the following countries: Ukraine, U.S.A., independent countries of Former Soviet Union, or another developing country which is not included in the USAID list of prohibited source countries.
Please use the following link to check the USAID list of developing countries: http://www.usaid.gov/policy/ads/300/310maa.pdf
Please use the following link to check the USAID list of prohibited source countries:
https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1864/310mac.pdf
- Selection Process
DOBRE will complete the transparent and competitive LGSO selection process by 24 March, 2017 using an objective grading system.
Evaluation: The selected LGSOs will be those best positioned to contribute to the successful implementation of DOBRE Tasks (activities and services) during the program period while demonstrating a high potential for increasing their capacity to deliver similar services long after DOBRE’s completion. The evaluation and selection of LGSO applicants will be based on:
- Type and quality of services previously (or currently) provided to ATCs, municipalities or other similar entities/organizations
- Demonstrated quality of research and other services
- Described approach to implement proposed DOBRE Tasks proposed
- Personnel (on-staff and contracted history)
- Proposed Budget
DOBRE’s evaluation committee will review and evaluate all applications received prior to the stated deadline. The final total score for each LGSO will be the summation of the scores of indicators given by each evaluation committee member for each answer in ATC’s proposal. The committee recommendation for selected LGSOs will be based on comparing all applicant LGSOs final total sums of scores on a Task by Task basis and while comparing LGSOs applying to work in each Oblast separately. The evaluation committee will determine which LGSO(s) are best suited to deliver individual Tasks and where.
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