Request for Proposal (RFP)

Subject RFP #: RFP-CATALYZE-217772-Ethiopia-2022-0320

RFP Issue Date: August 12, 2022

Terms of Reference / Support for the improved performance of SMEs in WASH Businesses
Specifications:
Project USAID CATALYZE Ethiopia:MS4G

The Company Palladium International, LLC

Country of Performance Ethiopia

Closing Date and Time August 26, 2022, at 11:59PM, Nairobi time (UTC+3)
Accepted at [email protected] by August
Questions Deadline 16, 2022, at 02:00PM, Nairobi time (UTC +3)

Virtually on August 17,2022 at 10:00 - 11:00AM, Nairobi time (UTC +3)

Bidders’ Conference

Submissions will be accepted:

Electronically: email to [email protected]
Details for Submission

Offer Validity Period 90 days

Thank you for your interest in the above procurement. Palladium invites you to submit a proposal for the
scope of work in Annex A. Your proposal must be valid for the Validity Period.

Please email your notice of intention to submit a proposal by the Questions Deadline. Answers to questions
shall be distributed to all offerors that have indicated an intention to submit a proposal by the deadline.

Please submit your proposal in accordance with the Details for Submission above by the Closing Date and
Time. This RFP in no way obligates Palladium to award a contract nor does it commit Palladium to pay any
cost incurred in the preparation and submission of a proposal. Palladium bears no responsibility for data
errors resulting from transmission or conversion processes.

Yours sincerely,

CATALYZE Procurement Team

ARBP PC01 GL01 TL02 Request for Proposal

Revised 18.09.19 1 / 10
 Terms and conditions

Proposal Conditions
By submitting a proposal, potential suppliers are bound by these Price/Cost Basis
terms and conditions. Potential suppliers must submit offers with all Prices or costs quoted must show the tax exclusive price, the tax
details provided in English and with prices quoted in a single component and the tax inclusive price.
currency. The contract price, which must include any and all taxes, supplier
charges and costs, will be the maximum price payable by the
Proposal Lodgement Company for the Goods and/or Services.
The Company may grant extensions to the Closing Time at its
discretion. The Company will not consider any quotes received after Financial information
the Closing Time specified in the RFP unless the Company If requested by the Company, potential suppliers must be able to
determines to do so otherwise at its sole discretion. demonstrate their financial stability and ability to remain viable as a
provider of the Goods and/or Services over the term of any
Evaluation agreement.
The Company may review all proposal to confirm compliance with If requested by the Company, the potential supplier must promptly
this RFP and to determine the best proposal in the circumstances. provide the Company with such information or documentation as the
Company reasonably requires in order to evaluate the potential
Alterations supplier’s financial stability.
The Company may decline to consider a proposal in which there are
alterations, erasures, illegibility, ambiguity or incomplete details. Referees
The Company reserves the right to contact the potential supplier’s
The Company’s Rights referees, or any other person, directly and without notifying the
The Company may, at its discretion, discontinue the RFP; decline to potential supplier.
accept any proposal; terminate, extend or vary its selection process;
decline to issue any contract; seek information or negotiate with any Conflict of interest
potential supplier that has not been invited to submit a proposal; Potential suppliers must notify the Company immediately if any
satisfy its requirement separately from the RFP process; terminate actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest arises (a perceived
negotiations at any time and commence negotiations with any other conflict of interest is one in which a reasonable person would think
potential supplier; evaluate proposals as the Company sees that the person’s judgement and/or actions are likely to be
appropriate (including with reference to information provided by the compromised, whether due to a financial or personal interest
prospective supplier or from a third party); and negotiate with any (including those of family members) in the procurement or the
one or more potential suppliers. Company).

Amendments and Queries Inconsistencies

The Company may amend, or clarify any aspect of the RFP prior to If there is inconsistency between any of the parts of the RFP the
the RFP Closing Time by issuing an amendment to the RFP in the following order of precedence shall apply:
same manner as the original RFP was distributed. Such these Terms and Conditions;
amendments or clarifications will, as far as is practicable be issued the first page of this RFP; and
simultaneously to all parties. the Schedule
Any queries regarding this RFP should be directed to the Contact so that the provision in the higher ranked document will prevail to
Person identified on the cover page of this RFP. the extent of the inconsistency.

Clarification Collusion and Unlawful Inducements

The Company may, at any time prior to execution of a contract, seek Potential suppliers and their officers, employees, agents and
clarification or additional information from, and enter into advisors must not engage in any collusive, anti-competitive conduct
discussions and negotiations with, any or all potential suppliers in or any other similar conduct with any other potential supplier or
relation to their proposals. In doing so, the Company will not allow person or quote any unlawful inducements in relation to their
any potential supplier to substantially tailor or amend their proposal. proposal or the RFP process.
Potential suppliers must disclose where proposals have been
Confidentiality compiled with the assistance of current or former the Company
In their proposal, potential suppliers must identify any aspects of employees (within the previous 9 months and who was substantially
their proposal that they consider should be kept confidential, with involved in the design, preparation, appraisal, review, and or daily
reasons. Potential suppliers should note that the Company will only management of this activity) and should note that this may exclude
agree to treat information as confidential in cases that it considers their proposal from consideration.
appropriate. In the absence of such an agreement, potential Potential suppliers warrant that they have not provided or offered
suppliers acknowledge that the Company has the right to disclose any payment, gift, item, hospitality or any other benefit to the
the information contained in their proposal. Company, its employees, consultants, agents, subcontractors (or
The potential supplier acknowledges that in the course of this RFP, any other person involved in the decision-making process relating to
it may become acquainted with or have access to the Company’s this RFP) which could give arise to a perception of bribery or
Confidential Information (including the existence and terms of this corruption in relation to the RFP or any other dealings between the
RFP and the TOR). It agrees to maintain the confidence of the parties.
Confidential Information and to prevent its unauthorised disclosure
to any other person. If the potential supplier is required to disclose Jurisdiction
Confidential Information due to a relevant law or legal proceedings, This RFP shall be subject to the laws of the District of Columbia,
it will provide reasonable notice of such disclosure to the Company. United States of America. The language of the arbitration will be
The parties agree that this obligation applies during the RFP and English.
after the completion of the process. The Potential Supplier and the Company will use their best efforts to
settle amicably any dispute, controversy, or claim arising out of, or
Alternatives relating to this RFP or the breach, termination, or invalidity thereof.
Potential suppliers may submit proposals for alternative methods of If no agreeable settlement can be found, any dispute, controversy,
addressing the Company’s requirement described in the RFP where or claim arising out of or relating to this RFP or the breach,
the option to do so was stated in the RFP or agreed in writing with termination, or invalidity thereof, shall be settled by mediation
the Company prior to the RFP Closing Time. Potential suppliers are through the American Arbitration Association by filing a request for
responsible for providing a sufficient level of detail about the mediation with the AAA and the other party. The Parties will be
alternative solution to enable its evaluation. bound by any arbitration award rendered as a result of such
arbitration as the final adjudication of any such dispute.
Reference Material
If the RFP references any other materials including, but not limited
to, reports, plans, drawings, samples or other reference material, the
potential supplier is responsible for obtaining the referenced material
and considering it in framing their proposal. And provide it to the
Company upon request.

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 Company Information

Palladium is a global leader in the design, development, and delivery of Positive Impact — the intentional
creationof enduring social and economic value. We work with corporations, governments, foundations,
investors, communities, and civil society to formulate strategies and implement solutions that generate
lasting social, environmental and financial benefits.

Project Background

The CATALYZE Blended Finance Mechanism is a $250 Million, 8-year contract (5-year base period, with a
single 3-year option period) which uses a facilitated partnership model to craft solutions to crowd in $2 Billion
in blended finance (i.e., blended concessional and commercial finance) to USAID partner countries and
initiatives. CATALYZE allows USAID Bureaus and Missions to efficiently deploy investment facilitation
solutions that respond to the needs of specific sectors, issues, and geographies. Initial programs focus on
education finance to implement sustainable education business models serving low-income communities,
and achievement of the W-GDP objectives, but the mechanism can be applied to any development
challenge or region.

USAID CATALYZE Ethiopia: Market Systems for Growth (MS4G) is a four-year buy-in to benefit the
Ethiopian population, build community resilience, and strengthen rural-urban linkages in the areas of
food security; Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH); and COVID-19 economic recovery. MS4G
focuses on facilitating access to jobs and sustainable opportunities for women and youth and enterprise
resiliency, leading to better employment and food security for individuals and communities. MS4G is
designed to provide support to agriculture and WASH focused enterprises by strengthening the
enterprises’ support ecosystem not just in Addis Ababa but also in select secondary cities. MS4G invests
in developing relationships with private sector players, co-investing in inclusive business models,
advisory services, digital solutions, and market-based initiatives that increase the resilience and
sustainability of Ethiopian enterprises and employment for women and youth.

Purpose

The purpose of the RFP is to select multiple business advisory service providers (BASPs) to create a
vibrant network of BASPs supporting growth of enterprises in the WASH sector. MS4G will select multiple
BASPS to each support 5 – 15 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) for up to 75 WASH focused SMEs
in Hawassa, Jimma and Bahirdar. The number of SMEs supported by each BASP (5 – 15) will be
determined by the institutional and technical capacity of the BASP.

Offerors are advised to be aware of definition of WASH as listed below.

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) –the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene sector includes any
improved services, innovations, and/or access to safe drinking water, sanitation solutions, and
hygiene in Ethiopia.

A complete scope of work as Annex A.

Type of Contract

Palladium intends to issue a Firm Fixed Price Subcontract to the selected Offeror under a Pay -for-
Performance (P4P) contracting modality.

Anticipated Contract Period of Performance

Subcontracts will be offered to winning offerors for a period of 12 months with the option for renewal
based on performance and availability of funding at the sole discretion of MS4G.

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 Place of Performance

The activities to be performed under this subcontract will take place in Hawassa, Jimma and Bahirdar. See
the Instruction for Submission of Cost Proposal for the travel assumptions.

Key Deliverables and Timeline

No. Report and Deliverable Deadline

1 Selection of SME Within 90 days from
a. Signing of agreement subcontract date
b. Business diagnostics, recommendation, and
implementationplan.
2 Quarterly report Quarterly basis from
a. Support enterprise in developing date ofsubmission of
sustainableinternal strategic plan the report
b. Financial and digital literacy training
c. Execution of Implementations,
Changemanagement
3 Final Report 12 months after the
a. Verification of 10% sales and revenue growth subcontract is
b. 50 % of the 75 SMEs to be included in awarded
blended finance beneficiary

Instructions to Offerors

Separate technical and cost proposals must be submitted by email no later than the time and date
specified onthe cover page.

1. Technical Proposal
For the technical proposal, the offeror must submit:
Cover letter with the following information:
Firm contact info and address
Type of company or organization
Unique Entity Identification (UEI) Number (Company must have a UEI number or be able to
obtain one before an award can be made. If you the company does not have a UEI please
submit an application to https://sam.gov/content/entity-registration prior to submitting a
response to this RFP as the process can take several weeks. Please see the note below for
more detail)
Signed by an authorized representative of the company
Background on the firm and relevant expertise (max 2 pages)
Past Experience Information/Capability Statement
Technical Proposal & Management Approach
Proposed work plan showing how the firm would execute this project including a timeline (max 2
pages)
Description of relevant projects previously performed by the firm, demonstrating expertise in detail.
(max4 pages)
Contact details for three referees (max 1 page)
Executive summary of project reports for commercial smallholder projects with linkages to
commercial off-takers (max 3 report submissions, max 2 pages each)
All supporting documentation specified below in the pass/fail evaluation criteria.

Note: GSA has developed a useful interactive PDF tool that guides through the most common scenarios
about UEI (https://www.fsd.gov/sys_attachment.do?sys_id=af05f8fb1b44851006b09796bc4bcb6d)

➢ Offerors who already have the Unique Entity Identified (UEI) number, should submit the UEI number with
cost proposal submission.

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➢ Offerors who have no Unique Entity Identified (UEI) are required to apply following the UEI guideline and
submit with the proposal if they secure the number.
➢ Offerors who applied and are waiting to receive the Unique Entity Identified (UEI) number, should attach
proof of application (application screenshot) with proposal submission .

2. Cost Proposal

Offers must submit a cost proposal using the attached budget template (Attachment 3).

The cost proposal consists of:

Budget in Microsoft Excel with all formulas visible (unlocked)

Accompanying Word Document with all cost assumptions and explanations

➢
Key assumptions

Budget must be in Ethiopian Birr

All prices are to be inclusive of relevant taxes
Separate unit cost and number of units
Break down activity costs into as much detail as possible
Offerors should budget for:
Labor, Travel and Other costs
Defense Base Act (DBA) insurance in accordance with FAR 52.228-3, as applicable.

The selected offeror will be required to complete the Due Diligence Questionnaire (attachment 1).

Submission of Offers

Electronic proposals must be submitted by sending two separate emails, one for technical proposal and one
for cost proposal with the RFP number RFP-CATALYZE-217772-Ethiopia-2022-0320 in the subject lines.

The offeror should ensure all required documents are attached.

Offers received past the deadline stated on the cover page will be deemed non-responsive and will not be
considered for award.

Evaluation and Award Process

Proposals will be evaluated using the best value trade-off methodology. This is a three-stage process.

(1) The first set of criteria is graded on a pass/fail basis. Offerors must meet the following minimum
eligibilityqualification criteria and provide supporting documentation:

Requirement Supporting Documentation

Must be a registered legal entity in Copy of certificate (Renewed business
(a)
Ethiopia for a minimum of one year license, TIN, and VAT as applicable) or
articles and memorandum of associate
Must not have any active exclusions from
working with the US government
(b) N/A
(www.sam.gov), the UN (Sanctions List),
or the US Department of the Treasury
Office of Foreign Asset Control

(2) If these minimum criteria are met, the offer’s technical proposal will be evaluated as follows:

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 Evaluation Criteria Documents to be evaluated Points
1. Geographic coverage, sector coverage 15
and firm profiles
a. Evidence of local presence in a. Proof of office rental
secondary cities. agreement in secondary
b. BASP works with SMEs in WASH; cities
c. Identified and profile of a minimum b. Reference to the
of five (5) growth-oriented serviceprovided
companies as per SoW some of c. Indication of Interest
whom are women-owned or fromenterprises
women-led businesses
2. BASP is majority women-owned (50%), Shareholder Agreement 5
women managed or led businesses orequivalent

3. Key personnel and staffing plan 15

a. Proposed team-lead CVs CVs of the proposed Key
demonstrating at least five years’ personnel/Staff
experience supporting enterprises
in business development and
sales-related activities.
b. CVs of two key personnel
demonstrating ability to support
and carry out the SoW
c. Key Personnel experienced in
WASH business
4. Past Performance 30
a. Demonstrated and evidence Evidenced Performance
experience insupporting SMEs in andreference of
WASH. enterprises andcontact
b. Experiences of helping enterprises person.
in sales,marketing, company
strategy and distribution
5. Technical proposal 35
a. Management approach Technical Methodology/Approach
b. Workplan Implementation Timeline/Gantt
Chart
TOTAL POINTS 100

(3) The offeror’s cost proposal will be evaluated for:

• Proposed total price, relative to the number of WASH businesses/SMEs proposed to be supported
• Realism and reasonableness of the work to be performed
• Price reflects a clear understanding of the requirements
• Price is consistent with various elements of the technical proposal
• Compliance with USAID cost principles (select one: Non-profit entities – Cost Principles in 2 CFR
200Subpart E or For-profit entities – Cost Principles in FAR Part 31)

Palladium reserves the right to award under this solicitation without further negotiations. The offerors are
encouraged to offer their best terms and prices with the original submission.

PROCUREMENT INTEGRITY AND ETHICS

It is Palladium’s Policy that no gifts of any kind and of any value be exchanged between vendors/contractors and
Palladium personnel. Discovery of the same will be grounds for disqualification of the vendor/contractor from
participation in any Palladium’s procurements and may result in disciplinary actions against Palladium personnel
involved in such discovered transactions.

Resulting Award

This RFP in no way obligates Palladium to award a contract. Palladium may opt to select multiple offers in
response to this RFP.
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Any contract/purchase order resulting from this solicitation must be signed by both parties in order to be
considered valid and in force. All costs associated with, but not limited to, production, preparation and/or delivery
of goods or services, including deliveries, accepted by Palladium staff, without a fully executed (signed by both
parties) contract/purchase order, are at the vendor’s risk only. Palladium shall not pay for any costs, without
limitation, associated with production, preparation or delivery of goods and/or services under this or any other
contract/purchase order, which has not been signed by both parties.

If your proposal is successful, you will be required to enter into the Company’s standard contract for the types of
goods or services being provided. In the provision of the Goods and Services, you will be required to comply with
the Company’s policies, including (without limitation) its Business Partner Code of Conduct and any relevant client
terms and conditions. Potential suppliers must also comply with the Company’s Business Partner Code of
Conduct in the submission of any proposals pursuant to this RFP.

If you are bidding as part of a joint venture, partnership or similar, please make this clear in your submission.
Likewise, if you propose to subcontract any part of the goods or services provision, then disclose this fact within
your submission. The Company may require additional information from you and approval for subcontracting will
not be automatic as subcontractors will be subject to Palladium’s Due Diligence process.

Attachments

Please review the additional documentation and proposed contracts terms and conditions which should be given
consideration when preparing your proposal. By submitting your bid you will certify that you are in agreement with
the contract terms and conditions as included in this solicitation and that all prices include all aspects of the
required compliance with the terms and conditions of the proposed contract.

Attachment 1 - Due Diligence Questionnaire

Attachment 2 - FFP Subcontract Template

Attachment 3 – Budget Template

Attachment 4 – FFATA Form (will be required only for the successful offeror, where applicable – included
for awareness only)

Palladium Business Partner Code of Conduct and Child Protection Guidelines can be downloaded in full at:
http://www.thepalladiumgroup.com/policies or request through email from
[email protected]

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 Annex A: Scope of Work
1. Objective

The selected Business Advisory Service Providers (BASPs) will support 5 – 15 (minimum 5 and
maximum 15) Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the WASH sector in Hawassa, Jimma
and Bahirdar. The BASP will assess each company’s performance, propose business advisory
services to achieve strategic objectives, to achieve sales and revenue growth goals. Efforts may
include, but are not limited to, strategy work, business development, capacity building, mentoring,
coaching, financial and digital literacy and business development training and management
development.

2. Activities: Selected BASPs will be responsible for the four activities described below.

a. Identify businesses. Each BASP must select between 5 and 15 companies to

support. Companies must be growth-oriented enterprise focused on the WASH
sector. Growth oriented is defined as a company with three or more years of active
business operation with progressive growth and a desire to growth sale and revenue
goals by at least 10% or more over the next 12 months. The company is
characterized by rapid sales and revenue growth with a net cash flow. This activity
will be linked to another MS4G intervention and facility to ensure companies get the
necessary capital to accelerate their growth.
i. Gender Parity: At least 50% of the companies must be women-owned or
led.
ii. Geographic Diversity: Hawassa, Jimma, and Bahir Dar
iii. Firm Commitment: BASPs must obtain signed commitment from
participating firms indicating the firm’s willingness to contribute 25% of
the cost of the BASP’s service costand cooperate in services delivery.

b. Firm-specific Operational and Financial Diagnostic. Identify an appropriate business

diagnostic tool and conduct firm-level business diagnostic. Take stock of the current
situation, identifying gaps, critical issues and immediate future needs to drive business
improvement and gain efficiency. The diagnostic must assess and identify challenges
and opportunities that need to be addressed by the company to grow its sales and
revenue.

c. Based on the diagnostic, submit a proposal for services to be rendered. The firm
must approve the proposed changes required to achieve the objective of sales and
revenue growth. The BASP must recommend the strategy, workplan and timeline to
achieve such objectives. The technical support must produce at minimum 10% sales
and revenue growth annually.

d. Capacity building. The BASP will also provide short-term consultancy and training
services as needed. Technical and managerial skills training, coaching and
mentoring addressing the specific needs of the enterprise may be provided in order
to accelerate growth. All training, mentoring, and coaching must be practical and
specific on the actual challenges confronting the business, as opposed to more
traditional classroom-based theory.

3. Acceptance of Deliverables

Deliverables will be reviewed by the Technical Manager (or his/her designee) for
completeness before being accepted and approved for payment.

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 No Deliverables Acceptance Criteria Due Date Payment
1 Selection of SMEs a. Signed contracts with Within 90 Up to 20%
a. Signing of selected SMEs. days from
agreement b. Company profile, subcontract
b. Business diagnostic and date
diagnostics, recommendation report
recommendation, for each selected SME.
and implementation The report must include
plan implementation plan,
timeline, and expected
outcome. The
enterprise must sign-
off on the report and
the recommendations.
2 Quarterly report Documented progress Quarterly Up to
a. Support on interventions basis 20%
enterprise in outlined in the
developing implementation plan in
sustainable the businessdiagnostic
internal strategic report for each
plan participating
b. Financial and digital enterprise.
literacy training Data on quarterly
c. Execution of revenue, sales,
Implementations, volume and value of
Change exports, cash flow, and
management employment for each
enterprise.
Summary of changes
3 Final Report Final performance report, 12 months Up to
a. Verification of 10% summarizing progress from 60%
sales and revenue against each business’ subcontract
growth implementation plan award
b. 50 % of the 75 a. data on revenue,
SMEs to be sales, volume and
included in blended value of exports, cash
finance beneficiary flow, and employment
for each enterprise, as
well as key learnings
from implementation.
Total Percentage Up to
100%

Payment Scheme Determination:

➢ Total service payment for deliverables 1-3 stated below is capped at $6,666 USD per
enterprise.

➢ The BASP is expected to contribute 25% of cost related to the services. The contribution
can beprovided in cash or in-kind.

➢ 75% will be covered by USAID CATALYZE Ethiopia (about $5,000 per enterprise) for an
overall award maximum of $75,000 ($5,000 per enterprise and a maximum of 15
enterprises).

Note: Offeror should prepare the budget proposal for the 75% to be covered by MS4G matching with
the number of WASH SMEs to be supported and the activities to be performed in providing the
business improvement support. Budgets should be prepared in ETB using the USD values above
as a guide.

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