Eligibility of Bidders
• Information evidencing that they are qualified and experienced to perform the required services. For that purpose, documented evidence of at least one (01) recent - less than ten (10) years old - and similar contracts shall be submitted.
Determination of the similarity of the experiences will be based on:
i. The contracts size; Audit services for Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Projects
ii. The nature of the services : operational audit, encompassing organisational, procurement, and technical aspects;
iii. The context : planning and implementation of large drinking/potable water supply systems and/or sanitation infrastructure;
iv. The location: Sub- Sahara Africa or in any comparable developing countries.
• Information on the Appplicant's organisational structure, indicating number and qualifications of in-house personnel, including home office, backstopping and quality assurance personnel;
• Very brief curriculum vitae of in-house experts available to provide home office, backstopping and quality assurance services (max. 3 pages per staff). Brief CVs shall consist of name, professional qualification and year obtained, number of years with firm , position in firm, technical field and specialisation, languages and foreign service (country, year, duration, project, task, function) if applicable. All CVs must be signed by the respective proposed staff and signatory to the bid;
• The name of a lead auditor from amongst their proposed staff with suitable academic qualifications to manage the assignment. It will be an advantage if this lead auditor is familiar with the Uganda Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority (PPDA), AFD, and KfW procurement guidelines. It is recommended that the lead auditor be supported by local experts with economic and technical background especially in the Water and Sanitation sector;
• A Statement of Integrity to observe the highest standard of ethics during the bidding process and the execution of the contract. Applicants should be aware that any fraudulent or corrupt activities disqualify them immediately from participation in the selection process and will be subject to further legal investigation. The said declaration shall be submitted and duly signed by the firm and by all co-operating parties (including sub-contractors). according to the form in Appendix 2;
• Certified statements of financial capacity of the lead firm and all members of the consortium for the last three years showing the necessary turnover (proof documents: balance sheets and profit and loss accounts of the last three years. Documents must be in English language (or original with authorised translation) and issued by a certified auditor). The firm, or all members of the consortium individually must have an annual turnover of at least EUR 4,000,000. Sub-contractors must not present financial statements. Moreover, the applicant (in case of a consortium all members) shall prove its solvency by presenting confirmation of a valid guarantee limit / credit line from its bank, which must not be more than six months old;
• Demonstration of the Applicant’s Quality assurance procedures Availability of a valid ISO 9001 Quality Management certificate or internationally recognized equivalent (equivalence may be demonstrated by the Applicant). If the Applicant is a JV, each member must provide individual evidence.
Firms with local offices, or in joint venture or association with local consultants are encouraged to apply.
This Request for Expressions of Interest is open to Consulting firms..
To minimize conflict of interests, the following firms shall be ineligible to participate in the contemplated tender:
• Firms who have been contracted to offer consultancy or works services (ongoing and/or completed) under the KW-LV WATSAN program;
• Firms who have had capitalistic relations with a company of which a subsidiary is any of the firms mentioned above within a period of 10 years prior to the publication of this REoI.
Eligibility criteria to AFD financing are specified in sub-clause 1.3 of the "Procurement Guidelines for AFD Financed Contracts in Foreign Countries", available online on AFD’s website: http://www.afd.fr.