th Munich, February 9 , 2016 Ref: Request for Proposal for Supporting SEED activities Dear Sir or Madame, SEED is conducting a competitive negotiated procedure for the above framework contract. Additional documents are attached to this letter. 1. Introduction to tender The purpose of the tender is for SEED to find the most suitable and cost efficient local service provider who can support SEED activities from spring 2016 to spring 2018. SEED is looking for a service provider that can rely on local staff to support in the following Lots: Lot 1.5 Catalyser Support to SAG-SEED Winners in Mauritius Lot 2.5 Training of BDS Providers in Mauritius Lot 3.5 Supporting the SAG-SEED Starter in Mauritius The focus on working with locally based staff carries the aim of building up local capacity and sharing know-how and expertise. The service provider will work in close collaboration with SEED. The selected service provider (Contractor) will need to adopt the SEED approach described in the ToR attached. 2. Language of proposal and service All Proposals have to be prepared in English. The working language under this tender will be English. 3. Time frame and duration of contract SEED is looking to issue a two-year framework contract. The quality of services delivered will decide if an extension will be granted. The selected service providers will receive a framework contract, based on which they will be assigned support services (see Annex I ToR for services needed). Please note that no specific amount is linked to the framework contract. The framework contract establishes only the general outline of the services to be delivered (see Annex II for a draft framework contract) There is the need to sign a specific contract between the contracting authority and the contractor to place the actual order. Therefore, the framework contract does not imply a specific order in itself but is implemented through smaller specific global priced contracts – every specific contract being signed, implemented, invoiced and paid separately. 4. Location of applicant All legal entities and legal persons are eligible to apply. SEED will be looking for service providers with a local base and a strong local network. The applicant can be based outside of the target countries, support however should be delivered by staff based in the target countries. Please note that travel expenses will be assessed in the specific contract as described in the ToR. 5. Budget and price offer All expert fees shall be quoted in Euro only and the budget should be submitted in the format set out in the annexed template (see Annex III tender submission form). Applicants should review the components outlined in the ToR and quote their daily rates to implement the components they apply to. Please consult the ToR to see the number of days needed per component. Applicants applying for several countries cannot charge for coordination costs. Please note that no overhead costs can be charged. Please note that travel expenses for the Contractor will be assessed in the specific contract as described in the ToR. Travel expenses for the activities participants do not have to be carried by the applicant. Eventual additional costs for venue and catering will be assessed in the specific contract as described in the ToR. 6. Procedural questions Please address any commercial, technical and procedural questions at an early stage. Questions will need to be submitted at least five working days before the closing of the tender to ensure enough time is provided to address those queries. Questions can be raised by email to: tender@seed.uno 7. Costs for preparing tenders No costs incurred by the tenderer in preparing and submitting the tender are reimbursable. All such costs must be borne by the tenderer, including the cost of interviewing proposed experts. 8. Ownership of tenders The Contracting Authority retains ownership of all tenders received under this tendering procedure. Consequently, tenderers do not have the right to have their tenders returned to them. 9. Evaluation of Offer We will evaluate the technical and price information in the received bids (see Annex I ToR). The technical offer has a weighting of T: 50%, the price offer F: 50%. The final result is an overall ranking, headed by the most cost-effective bid. Contract negotiations will be initiated on the basis of this overall ranking. Please note that the award of individual global-priced contracts to support SEED in the context of the framework contract is depending on the availability of financial resources. If the quoted daily rates do not fall within the financial frame available, the Contractor is not obliged to award a framework contract for the respective sub-lot. 10. Interviews The Evaluation Committee may interview the key experts proposed in the technically compliant tenders, after having written provisional conclusions but before concluding the technical evaluation. The interview shall be conducted by telephone and the date and time of these interviews will be confirmed or notified to the tenderer at least two days in advance. If a tenderer is unable to participate in an interview by force majeure, a mutually convenient alternative date and time is arranged with the tenderer. If the tenderer is unable to participate in this second scheduled time, its tender will be evaluated based on the information provided in the technical and financial proposal submitted. 11. Date of decision to award contract th The evaluation of the submitted bids is expected to be completed by March 8 , 2016. For procedural reasons, no information on the status of evaluation will be given pending the decision on contract award, and we therefore ask you to refrain from making enquiries. If your bid is rejected, you will be notified in writing. 12. Acceptance period and Commencement of work Work is scheduled to start on 01.03.2016; except in the case of project appraisals, this date applies only if the project agreement has been entered into by then. Offers are valid for 14 calendar days after the deadline for submission. You are bound by your bid until this date. 13. Notification of intention to bid Please notify SEED at tender@seed.uno within five working days of dispatch of our enquiry whether we can expect your bid, stating the transaction number in the subject heading of the email. 14. Documents to be submitted as part of the application All proposals must include information on the company itself, as well as key experts and budget planned for the relevant component. The information has to be submitted by the tenderer using the templates provided vie the tender submission form (see Annex III). 15. How to apply and offer All documents should be sent in electronic format, preferably as pdf versions, to tender@seedi.uno with the subject: Application Tender SEED Capacity Building Support – Lot PLEASE ADD NUMBER – Name of your organisation Your bid, comprising the technical offer and the price offer, must be clearly marked as such and submitted as a separate email for each lot. You can submit an offer for one or more lots. 16. Submission deadline If you are interested in providing these services, please submit a bid in accordance with the bidding conditions and the technical offer via email to tender@seed.uno, no later than February 23, 2016, 12 pm CET. We look forward to receiving your tender application before this deadline. If you decide not to submit a tender, we would be grateful if you could inform us in writing, indicating the reasons for your decision. Yours sincerely Marion Müller vom Berge Project Manager, adelphi research gGmbH Annexes I. Terms of Reference (ToR) II. General conditions of adelphi research gGmbH III. Tender submission form IV. CV Template V. Budget Template