Request for Quotations (RFQ)
RFQ Number: ICTEC-2020-007
Issuance Date: 17.09.2020
Deadline for Offers: 28.09.2020
Description: IT equipment Purchase for Private Sector Engagement Initiatives program
For: Moldova ICT Excellence Center Project (ICTEC)
Funded By: United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Contract Nr. AID-117-A-15-00002
Issued by: National Association of ICT Companies (ATIC)
ATIC Point of Contact: ion.corbu@ict.md , contact person Ion Corbu, technical manager.
Section 1: Instructions to Offerors
Introduction: The National Association of ICT Companies (ATIC) is soliciting proposals from eligible and responsible firms regarding to IT equipment purchase for one of the projects within the Private Sector Engagement Initiatives program, as described below in Section 1 (Instruction to Offerors). The ICTEC Project is an official program of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Contract Nr. AID-117-A-15-00002, and is being carried out in Republic of Moldova.
About ATIC/Tekwill
Tekwill has been designed as a national public private partnership between the Government of Moldova, USAID, Microsoft, and IBM to answer the needs of the ICT industry to close the gap of the human capital shortage, as well as support the development of the entrepreneurship ecosystem. The initial goal of the project was to contribute to the extension of the Tekwill project as a sustainable network and deploy its programs on regional/national level. The project aims at determining the operation model of the network, determining business plans for the relevant created centers or partners in the regions, deploy scalable activities to connect an estimated of 150,000 people to ICT (school and university students, community, etc.), deploy entrepreneurship programs aiming at both scaling up existing programs, as well as create inclusive innovation platforms for the regions, with their respective specifics and potential to absorb/apply ICT. We envision a minimum 10,000 beneficiaries/year for each direction (education and entrepreneurship) As a result of the project, 2 main outcomes of the project are expected: more and better qualified skills and workforce developed leading to a stronger ICT industry in Moldova, as well as creating the premises for a Startup Moldova program driving opportunities for companies seeking capitalization.
The first phase of the project represented a USAID grant for Development matched by both cash and in-kind contributions provided by private and government partners that brought significant new resources, ideas, software, technologies and development activities, such as trainings, practical assignments, and mentorship. Private partners included multinational companies, IBM and Microsoft, but also members of the Information Technology and Communications Association (ATIC) comprised of local Information and Communications Technology (ICT) companies. Among government partners which have provided their support are the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research, the e-Government Center and the Technical University (TUM). Hosting the first Center in its premises, the Technical University of Moldova has contributed with resources for initial investment and maintenance costs during the startup phase.
On September 19, 2017 USAID/Moldova has entered into a partnership with the Government of Sweden to join forces in the establishment and creation of the ICT Excellence Center (Tekwill). It included an arrangement that governs the relationship between the Parties regarding the financing, implementation and reporting methods of the activity.
Tekwill has officially opened on March 15, 2017. During 2.5 years of the project activity, Tekwill has completed or supported 429 educational initiatives, and 388 entrepreneurship initiatives, transforming Tekwill into one of the most successful Tech initiatives in Moldova. It has helped over 389 teams to reach better results in business, create opportunities and seek investment. Altogether it trained and oriented over 43,000 people.
The next phase of the project is envisaged to fortify the existing Tekwill’s capacity, create linkages with other universities and expand the activities to the national level. New activities are planned to transform Tekwill into a strategic focal point for Moldova, in relation to boosting creativity, innovation and growth in the ICT sector. The Government of Moldova envisages the creation of a network of mini Tekwills around Chisinau and throughout the country, keeping all main stakeholders (academia, private sector, donors, government) in the loop, aiming to reach high impact on the economy, as a whole. Few more universities are seeking to be part of this initiative and benefit of private sector and development partners involvement in upgrading their curricular content. At the same time, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research is willing to promote the optional programs, developed by Tekwill, to be accessible in schools under the program „Tekwill in every school“. Throughout the implementing process, each program will be designed and developed in accordance with the context of the region, school or university specifics. All programs will be inclusive, involving different target groups such as children, women, students, etc.
The overarching goal of Tekwill as a network is to ensure maximum impact on Moldova’s economy through enhancing the entrepreneurial and educational capacity, as well as Research&Development potential of the higher education institutions in line with the industry needs; hence achieving quantitative and qualitative increase in qualified ICT professionals and ICT skills and nurturing successful technology startups based on modern ecosystem and world-class sales and marketing force. The project will expand the current areas of cooperation and continue to contribute to growing competitiveness of the ICT industry and of other economic sectors on a national level.
The project aims to:
1.
Mitigate the human capital gap identified as the major problem for the ICT sector growth;
2.
Expand successful Tekwill projects into the regions;
3.
Impact the IT related educational system by contributing at nurturing STEM education;
4.
Develop curricular and extracurricular educational programs to be adopted nationwide in partnership with leading private ICT Companies;
5.
Expand existing Tekwill or Tekwill-related/supported programs to be adopted in the regions;
6.
Assess the existing startup ecosystem and improve its investment opportunities;
7.
Create linkages between ICT and non-ICT businesses;
8.
Provide support to projects/startups in accessing the global market;
9.
Create premises for favorable investment instruments such as seed funding, acceleration programs, venture funding, etc.;
10.
Encourage and support tech community events;
11.
Get affiliated to international hubs, innovation centers, camps (such as google campus, Station F, etc.);
12.
Empower women/girls to participate in ICT educational programs and entrepreneurial activities;
13.
Provide access to Tekwill content and programs for talented kids from underserved and remote areas, supporting career orientation, STEM educational programs, etc.
During the new project phase, ATIC intends to consolidate and extend various educational programs and trainings; targets being students, IT-professionals, those who look for a change in the career path, with a focus on market demands. The Center will continue to be the major attraction point for all the IT training programs, events, projects, and entrepreneurship initiatives. The set of initiatives and activities planned are training courses and events, followed by internship programs and entrepreneurship services. Over 3,000 participants are expected to benefit annually of the Center’s workforce programs, entrepreneurship and other capacity building programs. With an expansion model and business driven model, it is expected that the rate and number of beneficiaries will significantly grow.
Several factors are to be taken into consideration:
a)
With current benefits under the law on IT Parks, the industry requires even more human capital than before due to considerable relocation to Moldova activity of various IT companies and higher retention grade of local companies in the country.
b)
The demographic condition of the Republic of Moldova is degrading, therefore a dedicated campaign and activities on quality and internationally accredited programs should be envisaged.
Overall Objective:
One of the directions of the ICTEC project will be supporting third party initiatives, which aim at expansion of educational, innovative and entrepreneurial opportunities and reaching out different regions, with potential for the ICT sector. Considering the expansion of Tekwill programs in the regions, the project will delegate private companies to examine and propose the most relevant actions, which would permit the creation of new pools of IT specialists and of new IT companies in the regions.
About Private Sector Engagement Initiatives program
Main goal of the Private Sector Engagement Initiatives program is to support to private sector companies and engage with them in accelerated achievement of ICT development goals, mainly through direct and matching cash and knowledge support provided to companies for developing and implementing innovative initiatives, aiming at attracting more people to IT, raising industry profile, educating more IT professionals, initiatives and/or services aiming at connecting IT with non-IT sectors, for an increased transparency, further sector development, entrepreneurship support, community development initiatives run and driven by private sector and/or provide support for sustainable development based on digital innovation.
One of the projects within the Private Sector Engagement Initiatives has the purpose to create in three regions of Moldova three dedicated spaces to digital and entrepreneurial education, as well as women’s training. The program is focused on 3 pillars: digital equipment, educational content and learning assistance with the goal to encourage the social and professional integration of women through trainings in IT and launching and promoting their own businesses.
Offerors are responsible for ensuring that their offers are received by ATIC in accordance with the instructions, terms, and conditions described in this RFQ. Failure to comply with the instructions described in this RFQ may lead to the disqualification of an offer.
Offer Deadline and Protocol: Offers must be received no later than 17:00, local Chisinau time, on September 28, 2020 electronically and/or in hard-copy at the Moldova ICT Excellence Center Project office.
Any email offers must be sent to the following address:
In attention of, Ion Corbu
Tehnical manager ICTEC Project
Any hard copy offers must be stamped and signed by the offeror’s authorized representative and delivered to the following address:
In attention of Mrs. Ana Chirita,
Strategic Projects Director/ Senior Project Coordinator ICTEC Project
Moldova ICT Excellence Center Project
Str. Studentilor 9/11, Chișinău, Republic of Moldova
Please reference the RFQ number in any response to this RFQ. Offers received after the specified time and date will be considered late and will be reviewed only at ATIC discretion.
1.
Questions: Questions regarding the technical or administrative requirements of this RFQ may be submitted no later than 17:00, local Chisinau time on September 28, 2020, by email to ion.corbu@ict.md. Questions must be submitted in writing; phone calls will not be accepted. Questions and requests for clarification—and the responses thereto—that ATIC believes may be of interest to other offerors will be circulated to all RFQ recipients who have indicated an interest in bidding.
Only the written answers issued by ATIC will be considered official and carry weight in the RFQ process and subsequent evaluation. Any verbal information received from employees of ATIC or any other entity should not be considered as an official response to any questions regarding this RFQ.
2.
Specifications: Section 4 contains the technical specifications of the required items. All commodities offered in response to this RFQ must be new and unused. In addition, all electrical commodities (if applicable), must operate on 220V, 50Hz.
Please note that, unless otherwise indicated, stated brand names or models are for illustrative description only. An equivalent substitute, as determined by the specifications, is acceptable.
3.
Quotations: Quotations in response to this RFQ must be set on a fixed-price, all-inclusive basis, including delivery and all other costs. Pricing must be presented in MDL. Offers must remain valid for no less than thirty (30) calendar days after the offer deadline. Offerors are requested to provide quotations on their official quotation format or letterhead; in the event this is not possible, offerors may complete the table in Section 3.
In addition, offerors responding to this RFQ are requested to submit a copy of their official registration or business license.
4.
Delivery: The delivery location for the items described in this RFQ is 9/11, Studentilor str., Chisinau, Republic of Moldova. As part of its response to this RFQ, each offeror is expected to provide an estimate (in calendar days) of the execution timeframe (after order receipt). The delivery estimate presented in an offer in response to this RFQ must be upheld in the performance of any resulting contract.
5.
Source/Nationality/Manufacture: The authorized geographic code under this specific agreement is 110. In any case, offerors may not offer or supply any goods or services that are manufactured or assembled in, shipped from, transported through, or otherwise involving any of the following countries: Burma (Myanmar), Cuba, Iran, North Korea, (North) Sudan, Syria.
6.
Warranty: The warranty coverage must be valid on all services/works for a minimum of three (3) years after delivery/execution and acceptance of the services/works, unless otherwise specified in the technical specifications (Section 4).
7.
Taxes and VAT: The agreement under which this procurement is financed does not permit the financing of any taxes, VAT, tariffs, duties, or other levies imposed by any laws in effect in the Cooperating Country. No such Cooperating Country taxes, VAT, charges, tariffs, duties or levies will be paid under an order resulting from this RFQ. In the event that any exempt charges are paid by the Subcontractor, they will not be reimbursed to the Subcontractor by ATIC. The Subcontractor shall immediately notify ATIC if any such taxes are assessed against the Subcontractor or its subcontractors/suppliers at any tier. The Subcontractor is responsible for payment of all applicable taxes, as prescribed under the applicable laws, associated with wages/salaries/compensation for services rendered by individuals employed by the Subcontractor and who are directed to work as required under this Subcontract. The Subcontractor is liable for payment of all applicable taxes associated with revenues (profit), and other such taxes, fees, or dues for which Subcontractor is normally responsible as a result of operating its business.
8.
Eligibility: By submitting an offer in response to this RFQ, the offeror certifies that it and its principal officers are not debarred, suspended, or otherwise considered ineligible for an award.
9.
Evaluation and Award: The award will be made to a responsible offeror whose offer follows the RFQ instructions, meets the eligibility requirements, and meets or exceeds the minimum required technical specifications, and is judged to be the best value based on a lowest-price, technically-acceptable basis, business experience, the visual aspect of the work to be performed, similar objects in the past and short production and installation terms.
Please note that if there are significant deficiencies regarding responsiveness to the requirements of this RFQ, an offer may be deemed “non-responsive” and thereby disqualified from consideration. ATIC reserves the right to waive immaterial deficiencies at its discretion.
Best-offer quotations are requested. It is anticipated that award will be made solely on the basis of these original quotations. However, ATIC reserves the right to conduct any of the following:
·
ATIC may conduct negotiations with and/or request clarifications from any offeror prior to award.
·
While preference will be given to offerors who can address the full technical requirements of this RFQ, ATIC may issue a partial award or split the award among various suppliers, if in the best interest of the Project.
·
ATIC may cancel this RFQ at any time.
Please note that in submitting a response to this RFQ, the offeror understands that USAID is not a party to this solicitation and the offeror agrees that any protest hereunder must be presented – in writing with full explanations – to the ICTEC Project for consideration, as USAID will not consider protests regarding procurements carried out by implementing partners. ATIC, at its sole discretion, will make a final decision on the protest for this procurement.
10.
Terms and Conditions: This is a Request for Quotations only. Issuance of this RFQ does not in any way obligate ATIC or the ICTEC Project to make an award or pay for costs incurred by potential offerors in the preparation and submission of an offer.
This solicitation is subject to ATIC’s standard terms and conditions. Any resultant award 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:
a)
|
Payment No. |
Installments |
Payment Amount |
|
1 |
In 15 days after signing the contract |
30 % of subcontract fixed price |
|
2 |
In 15 days after delivery of the services and receipt of the services and goods |
70% of subcontract fixed price |
b)
Payment will be made in MDL, via wire transfer to the account specified in the Subcontractor’s invoice. Payment of unpaid balances will be made upon completion and final acceptance of all works and deliverables by ATIC. Any invoices for services rendered and deliverables submitted – but not accepted by ATIC – will not be paid until the Subcontractor makes sufficient revisions to the deliverables such that ATIC may approve the deliverables and thus the invoice.
c)
Payment will only be issued to the entity submitting the offer in response to this RFQ and identified in the resulting award; payment will not be issued to a third party.
d)
Any award resulting from this RFQ will be firm fixed price, in the form of a purchase order.
e)
No goods or services may be supplied that are manufactured or assembled in, shipped from, transported through, or otherwise involving any of the following countries: Burma (Myanmar), Cuba, Iran, North Korea, (North) Sudan, Syria.
f)
Any international air or ocean transportation or shipping carried out under any award resulting from this RFQ must take place on U.S.- flag carriers/vessels.
g)
United States law prohibits transactions with, and the provision of resources and support to, individuals and organizations associated with terrorism. The supplier under any award resulting from this RFQ must ensure compliance with these laws.
h)
The title to any goods supplied under any award resulting from this RFQ shall pass to ATIC following delivery and acceptance of the goods by ATIC. Risk of loss, injury, or destruction of the goods shall be borne by the offeror until title passes to ATIC.
Section 2: Offer Checklist
To assist offerors in preparation of proposals, the following checklist summarizes the documentation to include an offer in response to this RFQ:
o
Cover letter, signed by an authorized representative of the offeror (see Section 3 for template);
o
Official quotation, including detailed specifications of works in accordance with attached Design Documentation (see Section 4 for example format);
o
Copy of offeror’s official registration and business license;
o
Bank Account Award Certificate – copy – issued by the bank holding the account;
o
The financial report for the last year – copy – confirmed by the signature and seal of the offeror.
o
In case the Offeror’s cost proposal exceeds the equivalent of USD 50.000, the Offeror shall provide a bank guarantee in amount of 10%. The bank guarantee must be annexed to Cost Proposal.
Section 3: Letter of Transmittal
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: Moldova ICT Excellence Project
Str. Studentilor 9/11, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
Reference: RFQ No. ICTEC-2020-007
To Whom It May Concern:
We, the undersigned, hereby provide the attached offer to perform all work required to complete the activities and requirements as described in the above-referenced RFP. Please find our offer attached.
We hereby acknowledge and agree to all terms, conditions, special provisions, and instructions included in the above-referenced RFQ. We further certify that the below-named firm—as well as the firm’s principal officers and all commodities and services offered in response to this RFQ—are eligible to participate in this procurement under the terms of this solicitation.
Furthermore, we hereby certify that, to the best of our knowledge and belief:
·
We have no close, familial, or financial relationships with any ATIC or ICTEC project staff members;
·
We have no close, familial, or financial relationships with any other offerors submitting proposals in response to the above-referenced RFQ; and
·
The prices in our offer have been arrived at independently, without any consultation, communication, or agreement with any other offeror or competitor for the purpose of restricting competition.
·
All information in our proposal and all supporting documentation is authentic and accurate.
·
We understand and agree to ATIC’ prohibitions against fraud, bribery, and kickbacks.
We hereby certify that the enclosed representations, certifications, and other statements are accurate, current, and complete.
Authorized Signature:
Name and Title of Signatory:
Date:
Company Name:
Company Address:
Company Telephone and Website:
Company Registration or Taxpayer ID Number:
Does the company have an active bank account (Yes/No)?
Official name associated with bank account (for payment):
Section 4: Specifications and Technical Requirements
The table below contains the Task List of the goods/services. Offerors are requested to provide quotations, including specifications of works in accordance with attached Design Documentation, containing the information below on official letterhead or official quotation format. In the event this is not possible, offerors may complete this Section 4 and submit a signed/ stamped version to ATIC.
This RFQ is for a total quantity of 30 units only. Please submit 2 cost offers, one for each category of technical specification detailed in the table below, keeping the same quantity of 30 units.
|
№ d/o |
Option proposal |
Specification of proposed concept |
Country of Import |
Measure unit |
Quantity |
Unit Price, MDL, without TVA |
TOTAL, MDL, without TVA, |
|
1 |
15.6″ Full HD (1920×1080) Non-glare, Intel Core i5 , 8Gb (1x 8Gb), SSD512Gb, HDMI, Gbit Ethernet, 802.11ax,RJ 45, Bluetooth, 1x USB-C , 2x USB 3.1, 1x USB 2.0, HD Webcam, Card Reader, OS, Windows 10 |
|
Units |
30 |
|||
|
|
1 |
15.6″ Full HD (1920×1080) Non-glare, Intel Core i3 , 4Gb (1x 4Gb), SSD512Gb, HDMI, Gbit Ethernet, 802.11ax,RJ 45, Bluetooth, 1x USB-C , 2x USB 3.1, 1x USB 2.0, HD Webcam, Card Reader, OS, Windows 10 |
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Installation costs |
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Transportation costs |
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Other Direct Costs |
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TOTAL option A, B, C… |
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Other Costs (Describe:_____________________) : __________________
GRAND TOTAL, MDL, no VAT: __________________
Delivery time (after receipt of order): calendar days;
Length of warranty on offered works/services: years.