Component I: Request for Quotes

1. Introduction:  Catholic Relief Service (CRS) is a global humanitarian and development organization, providing emergency response and recovery programming to over 255 million project participants worldwide in fiscal year 2022. With over 75 years of experience managing complex multi-year relief to development projects and over 15 years of experience implementing cash-based market recovery, CRS is an industry leader in Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) and market-based programming. In FY22, CRS and partners processed over $149 million in global CVA programming alone. In its new strategy through 2030, CRS has made market-based rapid response and recovery a priority focus and continues to contribute significant resources to building and maintaining program quality, innovation, and thought leadership in CVA programs and market-based approaches.

In Sudan, CRS assisted around 2 million people through its programs in Food, Health, Nutrition, Shelter, WASH, and Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (MPCA) in FY22. CRS Sudan implements programming across West Darfur, Central Darfur, and East Darfur. In 2023, CRS opened an office in Gedaref. CRS is also aiming to expand programming to Khartoum and Red Sea. By the end of 2023, CRS Sudan will have used cash and voucher assistance to allow 8,855 households to meet their emergency needs, restore lost assets, and build livelihoods. Cash and voucher assistance support local economic recovery by circulating funding within crisis-impacted and nearby markets while allowing project participants the dignity to purchase the items that best meet their individual needs. CRS cash programs include both rapid response, one-off, cash payouts to families in need, and longer-term, regular cash payouts to households recovering from the on-going conflict to help them rebuild their livelihoods.

2. Scope and Objectives: CRS is seeking framework agreements with one or more financial service providers (FSPs)[1] responsible for cash payments to 5,275 households under the Darfur Emergency Response Activity (DERA) funded by the United States Agency For International Development (USAID), Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), and other projects in Sudan starting in 2023.

Financial service providers will be capable of making one-time or regular payments through:

• Electronic payment mechanisms (e.g. electronic vouchers using smart cards or mobile phones, mobile money), and/or
• Non-electronic mechanisms (e.g. paper vouchers or direct cash delivery to beneficiaries).

CRS will consider local, national and international financial institutions.

Please, refer to Component II – Scope of Work (SoW) for additional information about the Scope, Objectives, Deliverables, and Deliverable Schedule.

3. Deadline for Submission of Bids

The deadline for receiving proposals is November 25, 2023, at 04.00 PM Sudan time.

Bidders are responsible for ensuring that their offers are received in accordance with the instructions stated herein. Late submissions after the aforementioned deadline date and time will not be considered by CRS. If your organization is encountering any problems submitting the proposal, please, contact the CRS Sudan Procurement unit via email at tenders.sudan@crs.org.

4. Submission of Bids

Duly completed Technical and Financial Proposals should be submitted SEPARATELY via email at: tenders.sudan@crs.org. Please indicate Reference No: CRS-RFQ-PSD5.2023 on all submissions.

Please, refer to Component III – Technical and Financial questionnaires for additional information about the Technical and Financial Proposals.

CRS Sudan realizes that bidders may have additional questions after reading this RFP. Interested Bidders can submit their questions to the Sudan Procurement Unit, by email to tenders.sudan@crs.org, by November 20, 2023, 04.00 PM Sudan time. CRS will provide answers to all relevant questions by email by November 21, 2023, 04.00 PM Sudan time.

5. Special Procurement Conditions and Additional Information:

Bidders that submit proposals in response to this RFQ should submit their Financial and Technical proposals following the guidance below:

• 1. Bidders must meet the following requirements:
• Have fulfilled obligations related to payment of government taxes and have a legal business permit/license that allows the service provider to work in Sudan to provide financial services.
• Must have not declared or be in the process of declaring bankruptcy.
• Have not been convicted for an offense concerning professional conduct.
• Are not in situations of conflict of interest (e.g., with primary relationship to family or business relationship to parties on a tender committee or any person in CRS).
• Have the capacity, operational personnel, and capital to provide the required services.
• Are not on any list of sanctioned parties issued by the United States Government, the United Nations or the European Union as detailed below:
  • The website of the System for Award Management (SAM) formally known as the Excluded Party List System (EPLS): https://www.sam.gov; 
  • The website of the United Nations Security (UNSC) sanctions committee established under UNSC Resolution 1267 (1999) (the “1267 Committee”): http://www.un.org/sc/committees/1267/aq_sanctions_list.shtml,
  • The Office of Foreign Assets Control Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List https://www.treasury.gov/ofac/downloads/sdnlist.pdf

1. 2. The proposals submitted in response to this RFQ must include the following information and documents. CRS reserves the right to disqualify incomplete bids:

1. 1. 1. Cover Letter

The Bidder’s cover letter shall include the following information:

1. Contact information (full name and address, telephone and fax numbers, e-mail address, website and contact person)
2. Type of company or organization
3. If the Bidder is working through a Sudanese FSP, contact information of the local FSP (full name and address, telephone and fax numbers, e-mail address, website and contact person)
4. Lots the Bidder is bidding for.
5. List of documents (e.g. technical proposal, financial proposal, any additional supporting documents) shared as part of the bid.

1. 1. 2. Technical Proposal

The technical proposal consists of a detailed response to Component IIIa: Questionnaire – Technical Proposal. Bidders are required to answer all questions as they pertain to the bidder’s respective proposal in the order presented in the questionnaire with sufficient detail for CRS to determine the bidder’s capacity to undertake the Scope of Work.

Under no circumstances may financial information be included in the technical proposal. No financial information or any prices, whether for deliverables or line items, may be included in the technical proposal. Financial information must only be shown in the financial proposal.

Potential bidders are asked to refer to Component II: Scope Of Work (SoW) for technical guidance.

1. 1. 3. Financial Proposal

The Financial Proposal shall consist of a response to Component IIIb: Questionnaire – Financial Proposal.

The financial proposal is used to determine which proposals represent the best value and serves as a basis for negotiation before the award of a framework agreement. The financial proposal will include all costs associated with the implementation of the technical proposal.

No profit, fees, taxes, or additional costs can be added after the award.  All financial information must be expressed in USD.

6. Timeline for Contract:

CRS aims to enter into a contract with the selected FSPs by December 2023 for one year ending November 2024, with the possibility for renewal.

7. Validity period  

Bidders’ proposals must remain valid for 90 calendar days after the proposal deadline.

8. CRS Sudan Contact Information

9. Additional information

The following documents are annexed to Component I – Request For Quotes:

• Component II – Scope of Work
• Component III – Financial and Technical questionnaires

This RFQ does not obligate CRS to execute any contract nor does it commit CRS to paying any costs incurred in the preparation of the bids. Furthermore, CRS reserves the right to reject any and all bids, if such action is considered to be in the best interest of CRS.

Due to the high volume of communications, we will not issue confirmation of receipt of bids.

CRS may ask the bidders for additional information at any time during the solicitation process.