Request for Quotation - Experienced Travel Agency at Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA)

Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA) is an American non-profit NGO whose objective is agricultural and economic development. CNFA helps small producers improve their food security through new agricultural practices, the introduction of new varieties, the diversification of production, storage, the development of farmers' and herders' organizations, and the market linkages.

Applications are hereby invited for:

Title: Request for Quotations (RFQ) - Experienced Travel Agency for Airline Ticket Purchases on Behalf of the PRO-Cashew Project in Nigeria

RFQ Number: RFQ NGA#02-002/2022
Location: Nigeria
For: PRO-Cashew Business Project
Financed by: USDA
Implemented by: CNFA

Introduction

• The five-year West Africa Cashew Project (PRO-Cashew), funded by the USDA and implemented by CNFA, will focus on cashew farmers in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Nigeria.  As part of the implementation of the activities of the PRO-Cashew project, CNFA is launching a request for devis for the selection of a travel agency.  The purpose of this call for tenders is to solicit bidders for the selection of a Travel Agency for the provision of hotel reservation and ticketing services to the Pro-Cashew project.
• Bidders are required to ensure that their bids are received by CNFA in accordance with the instructions, conditions and conditions described in this request for tenders. Failure to comply with the instructions described in this call for tenders may result in the disqualification of a tender.

Technical Requirements

• The table below contains the administrative, tax and social requirements and requirements as well as the services to be provided. Bidders are therefore invited to send citations containing the following information on official letterhead or on the official citation format:

Terms of Reference
The Pro-Cashew project is looking for an experienced travel agency for its travel needs in Nigeria. Service requirements are described in detail in the following sections. The service provider shall manage the required travel services in accordance with the procedures of the CNFA in force. The services concerned include, but are not limited to, the following services:

• Process all requests and services from CNFA delegated contact person, by email even on short notices.
• Arrange and make all necessary flight ticket reservations.
• Issue air tickets
• Organize group travel arrangements at the request of the CNFA,
• Provide travelers, as required by the CNFA, with revisable/adjustable electronic itineraries, when required
• Process changes and cancellations of flight reservations at CNFA's request, within the required time frames to minimize penalties imposed either before, during or after the start of the trip.
• The provider will have to process the travel services based on an email that will be sent by CNFA's dedicated service.
• The service provider must ensure the confidentiality of CNFA's travelers’ personal information
• The supplier must respect his working hours.

Qualifications

• The bidder must have a minimum of 05 years of experience in the country.

Administrative Requirements:
The selected agency must provide the following documents and information in response to this request for quotation:

• Valid document of accreditation by IATA.
• Agency fees for the cancellation and issuance of a plane ticket.
• Validity period of a ticket reservation before confirmation.
• Specify payment terms and payment term after a purchase:
• Confirmation of obtaining a customer support number (Hotline) available outside of normal working hours.
• Documents to be provided:
  • Tax certificate
  • CAC certificate of registration
• List of additional benefits/services that CNFA can benefit from your company if you are the only service provider in this area (Possibly).
• Five (05) certificates of performance from companies with which the supplier has already worked, including non-governmental organizations.

Quote

• Quotes in response to this request for quote must be evaluated at a fixed price, all inclusive, including delivery and all other costs. Prices must be presented in FCFA. Offers must remain valid for at least sixty (60) days after the offer deadline. Applicants are invited to provide quotes on official letterhead in the format set out in Sections 1, 4 and Evaluation Criteria in Section 6.

Evaluation:

• The contract will be awarded to the bidder whose bid meets the RFQ's instructions, meets the minimum eligibility requirements, and is determined to be the best value through the comparison analysis.

Technical Evaluation - 70 points

Price - 30 points: the total service charge for booking a ticket

* These costs include only the costs of the provider.

An offer to be deemed compliant must obtain a minimum technical score of 50 points/70. Bids that have not obtained this minimum score will not be selected for further evaluation.

Proposals for better offers are requested. It is envisaged that the attribute will be made solely based on these original proposals. However, the CNFA reserves the right to do any of the following:

• CNFA may conduct negotiations with any bidder and/or seek clarification prior to the award.
• While preference is given to bidders who can meet all the requirements of this Request for Proposals, CNFA may make a partial award or distribute the award among multiple vendors, if this is in the best interest of the Pro-Cashew project.
• CNFA may cancel this call for tenders at any time.

Please note that if there are gaps in responsiveness to the requirements of this application of offer, an offer can be considered "inadmissible" and therefore excluded from the consideration. CNFA reserves the right to waive intangible breaches at its discretion.

Payment and Award

• The bid will be awarded to the bidder who proposes the best bid for the project.
• Any payment resulting from this call for tenders for orders had to be in the form of a service contract.
• This price is subject to the terms and conditions of the Pro-Cashew project as set out in Appendix 3.

Application Closing Date
8th March, 2022. (17:00).

Method of Application
Interested and qualified candidates must submit their tenders electronically to the email address: procurement@cnfa-procashew.org using the Title as the subject of the mail.
 
Click Here For More Information (PDF)

Protocol

• Please refer to the quote request number in any response to this quote request. Bids received after the specified time and date will be considered late and will only be considered at CNFA's discretion.
• The cover page of this solicitation summarizes the important dates of the solicitation process.
• Initiators must strictly follow the prescribed deadlines to be rewarded.

Questions

• Questions regarding the technical and/or administrative requirements of this request for quotation can be submitted no later than 5p.m. on March 3, 2022 by email to3.  procurement@cnfa-procashew.org . 
• Questions must be submitted in writing. Phone calls will not be accepted. Questions and requests for clarification - and responses thereto - that the NFCC believes may be of interest to other suppliers will be distributed to all recipients of the solicitation who have expressed an interest in bidding.
• Only written responses issued by CNFA will be considered formal and carry weight in the solicitation process and subsequent evaluation. Any verbal information received from employees of CNFA or any other entity should not be considered a formal response to any question regarding this order request.

Offer Format Instructions
Format Instructions: All proposals must be formatted in accordance with the following requirements:

• English language only
• Indicate the name of the person, agency or organization, date, request for quotation number (RFQ 02-002/2022) and page numbers in the header or footer of the document.
• The technical offer must be submitted in the format provided for in Section 4.

A complete offer will include the following documents:

• A checklist of the offer (Annex 01)
• A cover letter on company letterhead, signed by an authorized representative of the offeror (Appendix 2).
• A complete technical offer in response to the evaluation criteria of Section 6 and in the format set out in Section 4.
• A copy of the offeror's operating license or, in the case of an individual, a copy of the offeror's identity card.

3 Contacts for references of organizations or individuals for whom the offeror has successfully carried out similar work.

Appendix 1 - Offer Checklist
To help bidders prepare their proposals, the following checklist summarizes the documentation to include a bid in response to the Call for Bids:

• Cover letter on company letterhead, signed by an authorized representative of the Bidder (see Appendix 2 for the template)
• Technical proposal (including specifications of items, goods and services offered)
• Cost proposal, including specifications of the items offered (See Appendix 4 for the model)
• Copy of the tenderer's registration or business license or, for individuals, a copy of the tenderer's identity card
• At least 3 contacts for references of organizations/individuals for which the offeror has successfully carried out similar work.

02 - Cover Letter from the Offeror
The following cover letter must be placed on letterhead and completed/signed/stamped by a representative authorized to sign on behalf of the offeror:
To:  USDA PRO-Cashew
The City of Refuge Building,
Royalton Road, off Tanke Junction,
2nd floor, No. 14, Station GRA,
Ilorin, Kwara State of Nigeria
procurement@cnfa-procashew.org

Reference: RFQ NGA#02-002/2022

To whom it may relate:

We, the undersigned, hereby provide the attached tender to carry out all the work necessary to carry out the activities and needs described in the call for tenders. Please find our offer attached.

We hereby acknowledge and accept all conditions, special provisions and instructions included in the call for tenders. We further certify that the company below - as well as its principals and all products and services offered in response to this RFQ - are eligible to participate in this procurement in accordance with the terms of this application and USDA regulations.

In addition, we hereby certify that, to the best of our knowledge and belief:

• We have no close family or financial relationship with CNFA or PRO-Cashew project staff members.
• We do not have close, family, or financial relationships with other bidders who submit proposals in response to the call for tenders.
• The prices of our offer have been set independently, without consultation, communication or agreement with any other offeror or competitor for the purpose of restricting competition.
• All the information contained in our proposal and all the supporting documents are authentic and accurate.
• We understand and accept the CNFA's prohibitions against fraud, corruption, and bribery.
• We understand and accept the CNFA's prohibitions regarding financing or association with individuals or organizations engaged in terrorist or human trafficking activities.

We hereby certify that the attached statements, certifications, and other statements are accurate, current and complete.

Authorized Signature:___________    Name & Title of Signatory:________________________

Date:________________________________  Company Name:_________________________

Company Address:_____________________   Telephone:_____________________________

Business Registration Number or Taxpayer Identification Number: _________________________

Does the company have an active bank account? (Yes/No):_______________________________

Official name associated with the bank account (for payment) ______________________________

Annex 3:

• Ethical requirements and professional conduct. CNFA is committed to integrating purchasing and only selects suppliers based on objective business criteria such as price and technical merit.
• The CNFA does not tolerate fraud, collusion between bids, falsified bids/auctions, corruption or refunds. Any person or entity that violates these standards will be disqualified from this offer, excluded from future supply opportunities, and may be reported to the USDA or USG.
• CNFA employees and agents are strictly prohibited from soliciting or accepting money, fees, commission, credit, gift, gratuity, object of value or compensation from current or potential sellers or suppliers in exchange for or as a reward for businesses. Employees and agents engaged in this conduct are subject to termination and will be reported to USAID and the Office of the Inspector General. In addition, CNFA will notify USDA and USG of any offer to provide money, fees, commissions, credits, gifts, gratuities, valuables, or indemnifications to obtain business.

Applicants responding to this order request must include the following as part of the proposal submission:

• Disclose any close family or financial relationship with the NFCC or project staff. For example, if a candidate's cousin is employed by the project, the initiator must indicate this.
• Disclose any family or financial relationships with other suppliers submitting proposals. For example, if the offeror's father owns a company that submits another proposal, the offeror must indicate this.
• Certify that the offer prices arrived independently, without any consultation, communication or agreement with another bidder or competitor to restrict competition.
• Certify that all information contained in the proposal and all supporting documents is authentic and accurate.
• Certify the understanding and agreement of CNFA's prohibitions against fraud, corruption and cash on delivery.
• Please contact Courtney Dehn-Gurbacki a cgurbacki@cnfa.org  with any questions or concerns regarding the above information or to report any potential violations. Potential violations can also be reported directly to CNFA at FraudHotline@cnfa.org  or by phone at 202-296-3920.

Terms and Conditions
This solicitation is subject to CNFA's terms and conditions. Any resulting compensation will be governed by these terms and conditions; a copy of the full terms and conditions is available upon request. Please note that the following terms and conditions will apply:

• CNFA's standard payment terms are net 30 days after receipt and acceptance of the products or deliverables. Payment will only be issued to the entity submitting the offer in response to this request for quotation and identified in the resulting award; payment will not be issued to a third party.
• No product or service may be supplied that is manufactured or assembled, shipped, transported, or otherwise involving any of the following countries: Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria.
• Any international carriage or shipment by air or sea made as part of any prize resulting from this Solicitation shall take place on U.S. flag carriers/vessels.
• United States law prohibits the transactions and provision of resources and support to persons and organizations associated with terrorism. The supplier under the award arising from this order must ensure compliance with these laws.
• Title to any goods supplied as part of a reward arising from this claim shall pass to CNFA after delivery and acceptance of the goods by CNFA. The risk of loss, injury or destruction of the goods is borne by the initiator until the title passes to CNFA.
• United States law prohibits engaging in activities related to trafficking in persons. The supplier under the award arising from this order must ensure compliance with these laws.

Disclaimers
This is a one-time order request. The issuance of this solicitation does not in any way obligate the CNFA, the PRO-Cashew Project or the USDA to award or pay the costs incurred by potential suppliers in the preparation and submission of a bid. Besides:

• CNFA may cancel the solicitation and not the reward.
• CNFA may reject all or all of the responses received.
• The issuance of tenders does not constitute a commitment to award by CNFA.
• CNFA reserves the right to disqualify any offer based on the failure of the offer to follow the instructions in the request for quotation.
• CNFA will not compensate offers for the response to the request.
• CNFA reserves the right to issue a price based on the initial evaluation of the tenders without further discussion.
• CNFA may negotiate with the offers offered for their best and final offer.
• CNFA reserves the right to order additional quantities or units with the selected offeror.
• CNFA may reissue the solicitation or issue formal amendments, revising the initial specifications and evaluation criteria before or after receipt of the proposals.
• CNFA may amend the tender specifications without issuing a formal notice to all offerors where the revisions are not relevant in the scope of the request.
• CNFA may choose to award only a portion of the activities in the solicitation, or issue multiple rewards based on multiple order request activities.
• CNFA reserves the right to waive minor weaknesses in the proposals that can be corrected prior to the determination of the award to promote competition.
• By submitting a response to this Solicitation, the Bids understand that USDA is not a party to this Solicitation and the Proponent agrees that any protests presented below will be submitted - in writing with full explanations - to the Pro-Cashew Project for review. The USDA will not consider procurement events made by executing partners. CNFA, in its sole discretion, makes a final decision on any protest for this contract.

Source / Nationality / Manufacturing:

• All goods and services offered in response to this tender or provided in connection with a resulting award must comply with the United States Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 22 CFR §228.
• Offerors may not offer or provide goods or services that are manufactured or assembled in, shipped from, transported through, or otherwise involving any of the following countries: Cuba, Iran, North Korea, or Syria.

Taxes and VAT:

• As an organization that implements a project on behalf of the USDA, the CNFA is exempt from VAT, customs duties, for goods and services purchased for USDA-funded activities. As such, bidders agree to exclude VAT or any other similar tax or fee from its cost proposal.

Eligibility:

• By submitting an offer in response to this solicitation, the bidder certifies that it and its principal officers are not excluded, suspended, or otherwise considered ineligible for award by the U.S. government. CNFA will not award any contract to any company that is excluded, suspended, or deemed ineligible by the U.S. government.

Delivery:

• The place of delivery of the items described in this call for tenders is The city of refuge building, Royalton Road, Off Tanke junction, 2nd floor; No. 14, Station GRA, Ilorin, Kwara State of Nigeria.
• As part of its response to this call for tenders, each tenderer is required to provide an estimate (in calendar days) of the delivery time (after receipt of the order).
• The estimate of the delivery presented in a tender in response to this call for tenders must be maintained in the performance of any resulting contract.

Warranty:

• Warranty and repair service in the cooperating country is required for all products under this tender. Warranty coverage must be valid for all products for at least 36 months after delivery and acceptance of the products, unless otherwise specified in the technical specifications.