Request for Proposal (RFP)
RFP No. PK-RQ – 0595
Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) Audit
Release Date: 12/03/2024.
Instructions to Offerors
- Offer Deadline: Offers must be received no later than 5:00 PM on March 26, 2024, through Ipas global Procurement Portal, mentioning office contact details (office address, landline number and email address, and office/company website if any).
- Scope of Work: Section 9 contains the scope of work.
- Negotiations: Best- proposals are requested. It is anticipated that awards will be made solely on the basis of these original proposals; however, Ipas reserves the right to conduct negotiations and/or request clarifications prior to awarding a contract.
- Evaluation and Award: The award will be made to a responsible offers whose offer follows the RFP instructions, meets the technical specifications and requirements, and is judged to be the most advantageous in terms of lowest cost.
- Terms and Conditions: Issuance of this RFP does not in any way obligate Ipas-Pakistan to award a contract order, nor does it commit Ipas – Pakistan to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of a proposal. Any resultant award or lease will be governed by these terms and conditions.
- Partner Eligibility Criteria: Experience of conducting gender and diversity audits in organizations, with proven experience of working in the international development sector particularly in SRHR.
- Technical Specifications: The technical application will have more significant importance than cost application in the selection of a successful applicant. It should demonstrate the applicant’s capabilities and expertise with respect to achieving the goals of this proposal. Therefore, it should be specific, complete and presented concisely. The suggested outline for the technical application is: a) Cover Page A single page with the following details:
- RFP number
- The name of the firm law/regulation under which it is registered with Government of Pakistan, date of such registration and corporate website link, if any.
- Contact person for the prime applicant, including individual’s name (both typed and his/her signature), title or position with the organization/institution, postal/ office address, landline and mobile telephone, fax numbers and e-mail address.
- Details of a primary bank account with account number, bank name and branch number will also be required to establish banking experience. b) Institutional Capacity & Technical Approach The technical approach must demonstrate an in depth understanding of expertise in in the required field of with the proof of successful past experiences, particularly in Pakistan. Applicants must demonstrate technical and managerial expertise that would directly benefit implementation and include the following:
- Proposal stating understanding about the SOW, sharing relevant details including past relevant experience (summarized information is required)
- Complete details of the firm.
- CVs of the key personnel proposed for the assignment. c) Financial Proposal: Financial proposal must be submitted as per Statement of Work mentioned in Section 9.
8. Evaluation Criteria for Scope of Work: The various functional elements of the technical criteria are assigned weighted scores, so that the applicant will know which areas require emphasis in the preparation of applications. The relative importance of each criterion is indicated by the number of points assigned.
Mandatory Requirements:
| Mandatory Eligibility Criteria Checklist | Yes/No | |
| 1 | Proof of Certificate of Incorporation or Registration or equivalent with relevant authorities, for instance registration with EAD and/or SECP etc. | |
| 2 | Proof of NTN Certificate | |
| 3 | Original affidavit (not older than one month) on Stamp Paper(s) of worth Rs.100 or more that the applicant is not insolvent, bankrupt and is not blacklisted or debarred by PPRA, Government, Semi-Government, Private, Autonomous body or any other international organization | |
| 4 | Original affidavit (not older than one month) on Stamp Paper(s) of worth Rs.100 or more that the applicant is an active taxpayer and has submitted its tax return for the preceding fiscal year. Taxpayer list serial number (downloadable from FBR’s website) is also to be mentioned. | |
| 5 | Valid bank maintenance certificate in the name organization/firm |
| Technical Evaluation Criteria | Weight |
| a. Proven Knowledge of Technical and applied knowledge (methodology) of gender and diversity principles, analytical frameworks and practice. | 10 |
| b. Writing sample preferably to be a previous GESI/Gender and Diversity Audit report produced or a report about gender and diversity/gender mainstreaming analysis of an initiative. Track record of producing high quality reports of complex information in accessible formats | 10 |
| c. Prior work experience in SRHR and SAS, GBV, and rights-based approach documentation will be an added advantage. This includes knowledge of theories and practical approaches to understand the intersectionality of various identities such as gender, race, ethnicity, class, aged, disability, and sexual orientation. | 10 |
| d. Profiles (CVs) of proposed key personnel for the assignment. | 10 |
| e. Proposed approach and methodology to scope of work (Technical Proposal) | 20 |
| f. Expertise in qualitative and quantitative research methods. | 10 |
| Financial Evaluation Criteria | |
| g. Cost quoted to complete the whole assignment | 30 |
| Total | 100 |
9. STATEMENT OF WORK
Introduction: Ipas is an international non-governmental organization (INGO) which works to assist the Government of Pakistan in achieving the country’s commitment towards the Sustainable Development Goal 3 (good health and wellbeing). It seeks to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity associated with complications due to unsafe practices. Improving reproductive healthcare is vital to preserve women’s reproductive capacity (fertility). We collaborate with provincial governments (in Punjab, Sindh, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and the ICT region to provide technical assistance and support for strengthening the public and private healthcare system. We improve the provision of maternal healthcare services based on nationally approved guidelines and recommended technologies such as uterine evacuation and healthy spacing methods. We help to upgrade government-run hospitals and medical facilities by providing need-based equipment, supplies, and training to health care practitioners.
9.1 Period of Performance: April – May 2024
9.2 Place of performance: Ipas office, Islamabad and remote
9.3 Travel: Not required
9.4 Statement of work: This scope of work focuses on assisting the Ipas Pakistan leadership by providing reliable, timely and up to date advice on:
a) Develop the overall methodology of the GESI Audit including the analytical framework to be used and related tools. Ipas recommends the use of the Gender Integration Framework as the analytical framework to guide the process focusing on Political Will, Accountability, Technical Capacity and Organizational Culture. However, the organization may recommend an alternative globally accepted analytical framework with justification.
b) Conduct a desk review of the actual policies, strategies and guidance documents of Ipas Pakistan. The purpose of this will be to assess the “Accountability” dimension – i.e. the formal policies and procedures that guide and enforce gender and diversity integration in the institutional and programmatic aspects of our operations. This desk review must be conducted against a globally accepted Gender Marker. This desk review will include documents related to GESI in:
- Programs: planning and design, implementation, technical experience, monitoring and evaluation, advocacy, communications and partnerships.
- Institutional Policy & Practice: workforce data, policies and strategies, capacity building, culture and human resources. c) Pretest relevant quantitative and quantitative tools such as anonymous online staff surveys, followed by conducting the staff survey, focused group discussion (FDG’s) and key informant interviews (KII). This stage may be accompanied by co-facilitation of Ipas steering group if deemed appropriate. For the sake of diversity and inclusion it is necessary for the consultant to have online staff survey tool to be translated and executed in both English and Urdu languages.
d)Produce the draft report including the above data analysis, the program de Technical Proposal including the approach to completing the desk review, incorporating findings from the staff survey and focus group discussions and prioritized recommendations. The structure of the report will be proposed by the Consultant to Ipas in advance for feedback and approval. The report will provide both findings and specific recommendations to continue good practices as well as address any gaps identified. In order to do this, the consultant will work closely with Ipas steering group to prioritize the recommendations.
Deliverables
- Finalization of GESI Audit Methodology and Data Collection Tools
- Completion of desk review of policies
- Completion of Staff Feedback, FGD’S and KII
- Draft report submission
- Feedback incorporation and sharing of final report
Terms
Application Process
Interested applicants are invited to submit their offers to Ipas by 5:00pm on 26 March, 2024.
Applications must include the following information:
- Technical Proposal including the approach to completing the deliverables outlined in this SoW and estimated time required for each task.
- Financial Proposal including Estimated cost including the breakdown of daily fee and number of days required for delivering this assignment.
- Confirmation of availability to undertake this assignment within the indicated timeframe.
- The successful applicant will be bound to provide the services of the professional staff proposed in the technical proposal. In case of non-availability of any proposed professional staff during the contract period, the applicant will provide valid reason and documentary justification. The applicant is bound to provide the substitute professional staff with the same technical strength with no delay after mutual agreement of both parties i.e. the bidder and the Company.
This assignment can be carried out in hybrid model whereby certain aspects such as desk review may be carried out remotely while other tasks such as FGD’s and staff interviews will be conducted in person. The consultant would be expected to readily deploy an alternative approach, with prior approval of Ipas in the event unforeseen circumstances to ensure that the assignment is duly completed on time and to satisfactory standard.