Request for Proposals (RfP)

Capacity needs assessment of key stakeholders to contribute to coastal and marine resource governance and management, and development of a regenerative blue economy in Kilifi seascape

Coastal and Ocean Resilience, IUCN Kenya Country Office.

RfP Reference: IUCN-24-03-P04216

Welcome to this Procurement by IUCN. You are hereby invited to submit a Proposal. Please read the information and instructions carefully because non-compliance with the instructions may result in disqualification of your Proposal from this Procurement.

1. REQUIREMENTS
   1. A detailed description of the services and/or goods to be provided can be found in Attachment 1.
2. CONTACT DETAILS
   1. During the course of this procurement, i.e. from the publication of this RfP to the award of a contract, you may not discuss this procurement with any IUCN employee or representative other than the following contact. You must address all correspondence and questions to the contact, including your Proposal.

IUCN Contact: Procurement Office, tenders.kenya@iucn.org

1. PROCUREMENT TIMETABLE
   1. This timetable is indicative and may be changed by IUCN at any time. If IUCN decides that changes to any of the deadlines are necessary, we will publish this on our website and contact you directly if you have indicated your interest in this procurement (see Section 3.2).

DATE

ACTIVITY

16 May 2024

Publication of the Request for Proposals

20 May 2024

Deadline for expressions of interest

21 May 2024

Deadline for submission of questions

24 May 2024

Planned publication of responses to questions

5 June 2024

Deadline for submission of Proposals to IUCN (“Submission Deadline”)

7 June May 2024

Clarification of Proposals

12 June 2024

Planned date for contract award

17 June 2024

Expected contract start date

1. Please email the IUCN contact to express your interest in submitting a Proposal by the deadline stated above. This will help IUCN to keep you updated regarding the procurement.
2. COMPLETING AND SUBMITTING A PROPOSAL
   1. Your Proposal must consist of the following four separate documents:

• Signed Declaration of Undertaking (see Attachment 2)
• Pre-Qualification Information (see Section 4.3 below)
• Technical Proposal (see Section 4.4 below)
• Financial Proposal (see Section 4.5 below)
  1. Your Proposal must be submitted by email to the IUCN Contact (see Section 2). The subject heading of the email shall be [RfP Reference – bidder name]. The bidder name is the name of the company/organisation on whose behalf you are submitting the Proposal, or your own surname if you are bidding as a self-employed consultant. Your Proposal must be submitted in PDF format. You may submit multiple emails suitably annotated, e.g. Email 1 of 3, if attached files are too large to suit a single email transmission. You may not submit your Proposal by uploading it to a file-sharing tool.

Proposals must be prepared in English.

IMPORTANT: Submitted documents must be password-protected so that they cannot be opened and read before the submission deadline. Please use the same password for all submitted documents. After the deadline has passed and within 12 hours, please send the password to the IUCN Contact. This will ensure a secure bid submission and opening process. Please DO NOT email the password before the deadline for Proposal submission.

1. Pre-Qualification Criteria

IUCN will use the following Pre-Qualification Criteria to determine whether you have the capacity to provide the required goods and/or services to IUCN. Please provide the necessary information in a single, separate document.

Pre-Qualification Criteria

1

3 relevant references of clients similar to IUCN / similar work

2

Confirm that you have all the necessary legal registrations to perform the work

3

State your annual turnover for each of the past 3 years

4

How many employees does your organisation have who are qualified for this work?

5

Confirm that your organisation has the following qualifications (e.g. ISO certification)

1. Technical Proposal

The Technical Proposal must address each of the criteria stated below explicitly and separately, quoting the relevant criteria reference number (left-hand column).

Proposals in any other format will significantly increase the time it takes to evaluate, and such Proposals may therefore be rejected at IUCN’s discretion.

Where CVs are requested, these must be of the individuals who will actually carry out the work specified. The individuals you put forward may only be substituted with IUCN’s approval.

IUCN will evaluate Technical Proposals with regards to each of the following criteria and their relative importance:

Criterion

Weighing

1.

Concept and methodology

65

1.1

Clarity and completeness of the tender

• Technical understanding of what a Capacity Needs Assessment entails, and detailed description of consultant’s understanding of the assignment

25

1.2

Proposed approach and methods, including workplan

• Detailed description on methodology to be used, target population and broader understanding of the seascape (30)
• Detailed activity plan (10)

40

2.

Qualifications and Experience of proposed consultants [If applicable add separate sub-criteria of specialisms required]

20

2.1

Team leader/portfolio manager

• Advanced degree in economics, development studies, environmental sciences, social sciences or related discipline (10)
• 10 years of work experience (5)
  1. Financial Proposal

15

2.2

Qualification and experience by other key staff (if applicable) to be involved in the assignment

5

3.

Track record

15

3.1

Quality and relevance of references provided (Provide at least 3 references)

10

3.2

Proven history of meeting deadlines

5

TOTAL

100

1. The Financial Proposal must be a fixed and firm price for the provision of the goods/services stated in the RfP in their entirety.
2. Prices include all costs

Submitted rates and prices are deemed to include all costs, insurances, taxes (except VAT, see below), fees, expenses, liabilities, obligations, risk and other things necessary for the performance of the Terms of Reference or Specification of Requirements. IUCN will not accept charges beyond those clearly stated in the Financial Proposal. This includes applicable withholding taxes and similar. It is your responsibility to determine whether such taxes apply to your organisation and to include them in your Financial Proposal.

1. Applicable Goods and Services Taxes

Proposal rates and prices shall be exclusive of Value Added Tax.

1. Currency of proposed rates and prices

All rates and prices submitted by Proposers shall be in Kenyan Shilling (KES)

1. Breakdown of rates and prices

For information only, the price needs to be broken down as follows:

Description

Quantity

Unit Price

Total Price

1

Detailed breakdown of professional fee

2

Logistical costs

TOTAL

1. Additional information not requested by IUCN should not be included in your Proposal and will not be considered in the evaluation.
2. Your Proposal must remain valid and capable of acceptance by IUCN for a period of 90 calendar days following the submission deadline.
3. Withdrawals and Changes

You may freely withdraw or change your Proposal at any time prior to the submission deadline by written notice to the IUCN Contact. However, in order to reduce the risk of fraud, no changes or withdrawals will be accepted after the submission deadline.

1. EVALUATION of PROPOSALS
   1. Completeness

IUCN will firstly check your Proposal for completeness. Incomplete Proposals will not be considered further.

1. Pre-Qualification Criteria

Only Proposals that meet all of the pre-qualification criteria will be evaluated.

1. Technical Evaluation
   1. Scoring Method

Your Proposal will be assigned a score from 0 to 10 for each of the technical evaluation criteria, such that ‘0’ is low and ‘10’ is high.

1. Minimum Quality Thresholds

Proposals that receive a score of ‘0’ for any of the criteria will not be considered further.

1. Technical Score

Your score for each technical evaluation criterion will be multiplied with the respective relative weight (see Section 4.4) and these weighted scores added together to give your Proposal’s overall technical score.

1. Financial Evaluation and Financial Scores

The financial evaluation will be based upon the full total price you submit. Your Financial Proposal will receive a score calculated by dividing the lowest Financial Proposal that has passed the minimum quality thresholds (see Section 5.3.2) by the total price of your Financial Proposal.

Thus, for example, if your Financial Proposal is for a total of CHF 100 and the lowest Financial Proposal is CHF 80, you will receive a financial score of 80/100 = 80%

1. Total Score

Your Proposal’s total score will be calculated as the weighted sum of your technical score and your financial score.

The relative weights will be:

Technical: 70%

Financial: 30%

Thus, for example, if your technical score is 83% and your financial score is 77%, you will receive a total score of 83 * 70% + 77 * 30% = 58.1% + 23.1% = 81.2%.

Subject to the requirements in Sections 4 and 7, IUCN will award the contract to the bidder whose Proposal achieves the highest total score.

1. Explanation of procurement procedure
   1. IUCN is using the Open Procedure for this procurement. This means that the contracting opportunity is published on IUCN’s website and open to all interested parties to take part, subject to the conditions in Section 7 below.
   2. You are welcome to ask questions or seek clarification regarding this procurement. Please email the IUCN Contact (see Section 2), taking note of the deadline for submission of questions in Section 3.1.
   3. All Proposals must be received by the submission deadline in Section 3.1 above. Late Proposals will not be considered. All Proposals received by the submission deadline will be evaluated by a team of evaluators in accordance with the evaluation criteria stated in this RfP. No other criteria will be used to evaluate Proposals. The contract will be awarded to the bidder whose Proposal received the highest Total Score. IUCN does, however, reserve the right to cancel the procurement and not award a contract at all.
   4. IUCN will contact the bidder with the highest-scoring Proposal to finalise the contract. We will contact unsuccessful bidders after the contract has been awarded and provide detailed feedback. The timetable in Section 3.1 gives an estimate of when we expect to have completed the contract award, but this date may change depending on how long the evaluation of Proposals takes.
2. Conditions for participation in this procurement
   1. To participate in this procurement, you are required to submit a Proposal, which fully complies with the instructions in this RfP and the Attachments.
      1. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have submitted a complete and fully compliant Proposal.
      2. Any incomplete or incorrectly completed Proposal submission may be deemed non-compliant, and as a result you may be unable to proceed further in the procurement process.
      3. IUCN will query any obvious clerical errors in your Proposal and may, at IUCN’s sole discretion, allow you to correct these, but only if doing so could not be perceived as giving you an unfair advantage.
   2. In order to participate in this procurement, you must meet the following conditions:

• Free of conflicts of interest
• Registered on the relevant professional or trade register of the country in which you are established (or resident, if self-employed)
• In full compliance with your obligations relating to payment of social security contributions and of all applicable taxes
• Not been convicted of failing to comply with environmental regulatory requirements or other legal requirements relating to sustainability and environmental protection
• Not bankrupt or being wound up
• Never been guilty of an offence concerning your professional conduct
• Not involved in fraud, corruption, a criminal organisation, money laundering, terrorism, or any other illegal activity.
  1. You must complete and sign the Declaration of Undertaking (see Attachment 2).
  2. If you are participating in this procurement as a member of a joint venture, or are using sub-contractors, submit a separate Declaration of Undertaking for each member of the joint venture and sub-contractor, and be clear in your Proposal which parts of the goods/services are provided by each partner or sub-contractor.
  3. Each bidder shall submit only one Proposal, either individually or as a partner in a joint venture. In case of joint venture, one company shall not be allowed to participate in two different joint ventures in the same procurement nor shall a company be allowed to submit a Proposal both on its behalf and as part of a joint venture for the same procurement. A bidder who submits or participates in more than one Proposal (other than as a subcontractor or in cases of alternatives that have been permitted or requested) shall cause all the Proposals with the bidder’s participation to be disqualified.
  4. By taking part in this procurement, you accept the conditions set out in this RfP, including the following:
• It is unacceptable to give or offer any gift or consideration to an employee or other representative of IUCN as a reward or inducement in relation to the awarding of a contract. Such action will give IUCN the right to exclude you from this and any future procurements, and to terminate any contract that may have been signed with you.
• Any attempt to obtain information from an employee or other representative of IUCN concerning another bidder will result in disqualification.
• Any price fixing or collusion with other bidders in relation to this procurement shall give IUCN the right to exclude you and any other involved bidder(s) from this and any future procurements and may constitute a criminal offence.

1. Confidentiality and data protection
   1. IUCN follows the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The information you submit to IUCN as part of this procurement will be treated as confidential and shared only as required to evaluate your Proposal in line with the procedure explained in this RfP, and for the maintenance of a clear audit trail. For audit purposes, IUCN is required to retain your Proposal in its entirety for 10 years after then end of the resulting contract and make this available to internal and external auditors and donors as and when requested.
   2. In the Declaration of Undertaking (Attachment 2) you need to give IUCN express permission to use the information you submit in this way, including personal data that forms part of your Proposal. Where you include personal data of your employees (e.g. CVs) in your Proposal, you need to have written permission from those individuals to share this information with IUCN, and for IUCN to use this information as indicated in 8.1. Without these permissions, IUCN will not be able to consider your Proposal.
2. Complaints procedure

If you have a complaint or concern regarding the propriety of how a competitive process is or has been executed, then please contact procurement@iucn.org. Such complaints or concerns will be treated as confidential and are not considered in breach of the above restrictions on communication (Section 2.1).

1. Contract

The contract will be based on IUCN’s template in Attachment 3, the terms of which are not negotiable. They may, however, be amended by IUCN to reflect particular requirements from the donor funding this particular procurement.

1. About IUCN

IUCN is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development and nature conservation to take place together.

Headquartered in Switzerland, IUCN Secretariat comprises around 1,000 staff with offices in more than 50 countries.

Created in 1948, IUCN is now the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, harnessing the knowledge, resources and reach of more than 1,300 Member organisations and some 10,000 experts. It is a leading provider of conservation data, assessments and analysis. Its broad membership enables IUCN to fill the role of incubator and trusted repository of best practices, tools and international standards.

IUCN provides a neutral space in which diverse stakeholders including governments, NGOs, scientists, businesses, local communities, indigenous peoples organisations and others can work together to forge and implement solutions to environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development.

Working with many partners and supporters, IUCN implements a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects worldwide. Combining the latest science with the traditional knowledge of local communities, these projects work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being.

www.iucn.org

https://twitter.com/IUCN/

1. ATTACHMENTS

Attachment 1 Specification of Requirements / Terms of Reference

Title: Capacity needs assessment of key stakeholders to contribute to coastal and marine resource governance and management, and development of a regenerative blue economy in Kilifi seascape (Takaungu to Marereni)

Objective of the Consultancy

This consultancy has the following objective(s):

1. Analysis of governance structures, technical expertise, coordination and communication systems of key government institutions (to be listed), NGOs, CBOs, CFAs, BMUs and women groups/networks in the selected seascape.
2. Compile a list of existing training programmes, facilities/centres in the Kilifi seascape and assess their capacity in term of human resources, workplan, equipment, technology, infrastructures for training local communities and other relevant stakeholders on coastal and marine resources management and nature-based solutions.
3. Identify training gaps linked to seascape management mechanisms including marine protected areas and locally managed marine areas; conservation and restoration of mangroves, seagrass and coral reefs as nature-based solutions for climate adaptation, and implementation of specific nature-based enterprises by local government, communities and private sector.
4. Analysis on level of understanding of Nature-based solution (NbS) for adaptation, and needs amongst practitioners, decision makers and policy makers.
5. Analysis on available skillset amongst women and youth and soft skills needs for this target group within the seascape.
6. Analysis of essential regenerative blue entrepreneurship skills, capacity and preferences among men, women and youth in the seascape.
7. Develop an organizational development action plan and budget for the key stakeholders in the seascape focusing on coastal and marine governance, financial management and innovative financing, human resources, equipment, research, training, and business opportunities linked to the three project pillars and objectives 1-6 above.

Background

Project Reference: P04216

About IUCN

IUCN is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development and nature conservation to take place together.

Created in 1948, IUCN is now the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, harnessing the knowledge, resources and reach of more than 1,400 Member organisations and around 15,000 experts. It is a leading provider of conservation data, assessments and analysis. Its broad membership enables IUCN to fill the role of incubator and trusted repository of best practices, tools and international standards.

IUCN provides a neutral space in which diverse stakeholders including governments, NGOs, scientists, businesses, local communities, indigenous peoples organisations and others can work together to forge and implement solutions to environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development.

Working with many partners and supporters, IUCN implements a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects worldwide. Combining the latest science with the traditional knowledge of local communities, these projects work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being.

www.iucn.org

https://twitter.com/IUCN/

About the Project

Regenerative Seascape for People, Climate and Nature (ReSea) is a joint initiative by Mission Inclusion and International Union for Conservation of Nature in partnership with local feminist organizations in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar and Comoros with funding from Global Affairs Canada (GAC) as part of the Partnering for Climate engagement. Its broader goal is to enhance the physical and socioeconomic resilience of coastal communities in these five countries by accelerating uptake of nature-based solutions and gender-responsive conservation practices to protect, restore, and sustainably manage ecosystems and unlock regenerative blue economy. It contributes to the Western Indian Ocean-led Great Blue Wall (GBW) Initiative by supporting the establishment of a network of sustainable, resilient, and inclusive seascapes in the target countries. The GBW initiative’s key pillars aim to;

1. scale and enhance management effectiveness, equitable and gender-responsive governance of protected and conserved coastal and marine areas (Pillar 1: Blue Planet). This pillar aligns with Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KM GBF) to which countries committed to effectively conserve and manage at least 30% of terrestrial, inland water, and coastal and marine areas by 2030. Emphasis will be on empowering local stakeholders to become stewards and managers of the ocean;
2. restore and conserve critical ecosystems (Pillar 2: Blue Nature), by providing enabling environment to enhance the adoption of gender-responsive Nature-based solutions (NbS) for climate change adaptation through effective management and sustainable use of coastal and marine resources. This will be guided by the IUCN Global Standard for NbS. The Blue Nature pillar is aligned with Target 2 of the GBF and aims to support countries to restore at least 30% of degraded marine and coastal ecosystems by 2030; and
3. promote a regenerative Blue Economy (Pillar 3: Blue People) through increased women’s, in all their diversity, economic empowerment in nature-based value chains for climate change adaptation. The Blue People pillar aligns with Target 9 of the GBF and is premised on ensuring that conservation provides sustainable social, economic and environmental benefits for people, especially indigenous peoples and local communities. The pillar promotes socio-economic actions that contribute to regeneration of the ocean.

To achieve this, the Program draw on the knowledge and expertise of local conservation actors and women’s organizations. Collaboratively, they design and implement inclusive NbS that are adapted to and address the specific needs, capacities and challenges of coastal communities in adapting to climate change. This Partnership work to deliver inclusive and transformational change at the community and global levels. The three anchor pillars of the GBW are supported by a cross-cutting pillar that ensures the presence of innovative and unconventional partnerships to catalyze their achievement (Blue Partnerships). The Program engage innovation partnerships: On one hand conservation partners who possess a strong understanding of the local context and its environment, conservation expertise and restoration of nature; on the other hand, feminist organisations which have strong experience and understanding of power dynamics and gender barriers, collaborating with key stakeholders such as elders, traditional leaders, and local authorities. Working together, in a feminist perspective, will ensures recognition of challenges and differentiated impact of climate change on people left behind active participation of women and people in situation of vulnerabilities in decision making, equal benefit for all in terms of solutions implemented and strong community leadership in key areas for conservation of nature and the development of economic activities benefiting nature and people. The project aims at strengthening capacities for the coastal communities to respond to biodiversity conservation needs, varying climatic regimes and societal needs.

Description of the Assignment

For impactful implementation of the ReSea Project and alignment with priorities at the seascape level, it’s important to understand the existing capacity needs and structures for coastal and marine conservation, nature-based solutions for adaptation, and support to sustainable regenerative blue economy sector.

This assessment will identify opportunities for strengthening different aspects of coastal and marine conservation, such as governance, technical knowledge on nature-based solutions (NbS), policy integration of NbS, innovation and equipment, knowledge sharing mechanisms to enhance adoption and implementation of NbS for climate adaptation and regenerative blue economy, amongst other conservation approaches.

The capacity assessment will target governmental institutions, non-governmental organizations, community-based organizations, resource use groups such as Community Forest Associations and Beach Management Units, women groups and networks and existing training centres to ascertain areas of improvement that will address the three pillars of the ReSea project.

Duration of the Assignment

31 May- 15 July 2024

Deliverables and Activities

The consultant will provide the following deliverables and carry out the following activities:

Deliverable/Activity

Description

Deadline

1. Deliverable 1

Inception report with clear description of the methodology, data validation and suggested outline of the final report

7 June 2024

2. Deliverable 2

Submission and presentation of draft technical report including detailed description of data collection and analysis methodologies

1 July 2024

3. Deliverable 3

Stakeholders’ online session for results presentation and feedback

8 July 2024

4. Deliverable 4

Submission of final technical report (not more than 25 pages), including executive summary, translation of the report in local seascape language and all technical information and data (maps, photos, interviews, etc) and acceptance by project team

15 July 2024

Payment Schedule

The Timetable below summarises the chronological order of deliverables and indicates milestones at which IUCN will pay the Consultant.

Deliverable

Milestone payment

Inception report with clear description of the methodology and suggested outline of the final report (7 June 2024)

20%

Submission and presentation of draft report (1 July 2024)

50%

Submission of final technical report and acceptance by project team (15 July 2024)

30%

Skills and Experience

The consultant must have the following skills, education and experience as a minimum:

• Advanced degree in economics, development studies, environmental sciences, social sciences or related discipline
• A minimum of ten (10) years’ experience in conducting organizational capacity needs assessments or similar assignments.

Supervision and coordination

The consultant will report to and work under the supervision of Programme Manager-Coastal and Ocean Resilience (COR), IUCN Kenya Country Office.

How to apply

https://www.iucn.org/procurement/currently-running-tenders