Description
Specific Procurement Notice Cotonou, Benin 4 July 2024 Re: Fiscal Agent Services Ref: BENR-24-4003 The United States of America, acting through the Millennium Challenge Corporation (“MCC”), and the Government of Benin (“Government”) signed a Millennium Challenge Compact (“Compact”) on December 14, 2022, through which MCC will provide funding not to exceed two hundred and two million U.S. Dollars (US $202 million) to the Government for a program to advance economic growth and reduce poverty in Benin. The Government and MCC also signed a Grant and Implementation Agreement (“CDF Agreement”) to facilitate the development and implementation of the Compact, as amended on February 14, 2023. The Government has formed the Millennium Challenge Account-Benin Regional (“MCA-Benin Regional”), for the purpose of implementing the Compact. Subject to the terms and conditions of the Compact, related agreements, and the availability of funds, the Government intends to use a portion of the funds to finance professional procurement agent services from a legally constituted firm (“Fiscal Agent”, ‘FA” or “Offeror”) to assist the Government with the implementation of the Compact program in a transparent and sound manner. The Fiscal Agent will provide support (“Fiscal Agent Services” or “Agency Services”) in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in an agreement (the “Fiscal Agent Agreement”, “FA Agreement” or “FAA”), a form of which is attached to this Request for Offers (“RFO”) in Section VI. In issuing this RFO, the Government is represented by MCA-Benin Regional, which is the accountable entity for implementing the Compact. MCC is a U.S. government agency focused on assisting countries dedicated to good governance, economic freedom, and investments in people. The proposed Compact includes investment from MCC of approximately US $202 million and a contribution of approximately $204 million from the Government. The Fiscal Agent will be required to manage the procurements financed by funding contributed by MCC and any cash portion of the Government’s contribution. For details, please refer to Annex II of the Compact (https://www.mcc.gov/resources/doc/agreement-benin-concurrent-compact/) and Annex III of the Program Implementation Agreement (“PIA”, available at https://www.mcc.gov/resources/doc/pia-benin-regional-transport/) entered into between MCC and the Government. The Compact The Compact consists of the following two (2) projects: 1. The Corridor Infrastructure Project (IC) which aims to reduce the costs of transport along the transport corridor from Cotonou, Benin, to Niamey, in Niger; 2. The Corridor Efficient Operation Project (ECO) which aims to reduce transportation costs, including vehicle operating costs, time-related costs, injuries and deaths as well as costs linked to low process reliability and market inefficiencies. MCA-Benin Regional requires the services of the Fiscal Agent (“FA”) for a base period of 6 (5) months at a fixed price. Thereafter, MCA-Benin Regional will require five (5) 12-month option periods at a fixed price. However, the final option period (Option Period 5) may be more or less than 12 months and will include a 120-day period after the expiration of the Compact. For purposes of preparing Offers, Offerors should assume that the final option period (Option Period 5) will be for full 12 months from the time of option effectiveness. Despite this, Option Period 5 will vary in actual implementation, and could be shorter or longer than 12 months, including the 120-day closure period. At least one year prior to exercising the 5th option, the payment for this period will be adjusted on a pro-rata basis (using the evaluated Option Period 5 price above as the basis) to account for the actual number of days that Option Period 5 will cover. This Request for Offers, the RFO, follows the General Procurement Notice that appeared in dgMarket on 6 March 2024, UNDB Online on 7 March 2024, and the MCA-Benin Regional website on 6 March 2024. MCA-Benin Regional now invites Offers from legally constituted firms and organizations to provide the Fiscal Agent Services (“Offers”). More details on these Agency Services are provided in the Terms of Reference in Section V of this RFO. The RFO is open to all eligible entities (“Offerors” or “Agents”) who wish to respond. Subject to restrictions noted in the RFO, Offerors may associate with other Offerors to enhance their capacity to successfully carry out the assignment. MCA-Benin Regional now invites Offers from legally constituted consulting firms and other organizations to provide the Fiscal Agent services (“Offers”). More details on these services are provided in the Terms of Reference in Section V of this RFO. This RFO is open to all eligible entities (“Offerors”) who wish to respond. Subject to restrictions noted in the RFO, Offerors may associate with other Offerors to enhance their capacity to successfully carry out the assignment. An Offeror will be selected under the Quality and Cost-Based Selection (“QCBS”) method, an evaluation procedure that is described in Section III of the RFO in accordance with the “MCC Accountable Entity Procurement Policy and Guidelines” provided on the MCC website (www.mcc.gov/ppg). The selection process, as described, will include a review and verification of qualifications and past performance, including a reference check, prior to the contract award. The RFO includes the following Sections: PART 1 – OFFER AND SELECTION PROCEDURES Section I Instructions to Offerors (“ITO”) This section provides information to help Offerors prepare their Offers; it also provides information on the submission, opening, and evaluation of Offers and on the award of the proposed contract. Section II Offer Data Sheet (“DS”) This section includes provisions that are specific to this procurement and that supplement Section I, Instructions to Offerors. Section III Qualification and Evaluation Criteria This section specifies the qualifications required of the Offeror and the criteria to be used to evaluate their Offer. Section IV A Technical Offer Forms This section provides the Technical Offer Forms that Offerors are to complete and submit in a separate envelope as part of their total Offers. Section IV B Financial Offer Forms This section provides the Financial Offer Forms that Offerors are to complete and submit in a separate envelope as part of their total Offers. Section V Terms of Reference This Section includes the detailed Terms of Reference that describe the nature, tasks, and duties of the consulting services to be procured. PART 2 – CONDITIONS OF CONTRACT AND CONTRACT AGREEMENT Section VI Contract Agreement This section contains the draft form of a Contract, including the annex, proposed to be entered into between the Accountable Entity and the winning Offeror. Please note that a Pre-Offer Conference will be held as described in the Offer Data Sheet (“DS”), Section II of the RFO. Attendance at the Pre-Offer Conference is not mandatory but is strongly advised for all interested Offerors or their representatives. Offerors interested in receiving the RFO and submitting an Offer should register using the following link: https://ebmse.com/Benin_FA_RFO_Request. Offerors should provide their correct email contact details. This will ensure that the Offerors receive updates regarding this RFO. Offers must be delivered electronically to the address and in the manner specified in the DS ITO 17, no later than 4.00pm WAT (GMT+1), on 6 August 2024. Please note that only electronic Offers shall be accepted. Late Offers will not be accepted under any circumstances. Yours sincerely, ………………………. Afiss Bileoma National Coordinator MCA-Benin Regional DISCLAIMER: THIS NOTICE IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. FOR UPDATES ON THIS SOLICITATION PLEASE FOLLOW THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT AT THE LINK PROVIDED. THIS PROCUREMENT IS NOT CONDUCTED UNDER THE FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATIONS, IS NOT ADMINISTERED BY THE US GOVERNMENT, AND THE RESULTING AWARD WILL BE MADE BY THE COUNTRY INDICATED IN THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS PROCUREMENT PLEASE CONTRACT THE PERSON NAMED IN THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT.