Deadline: 1 November 2019

The purpose of this announcement is to solicit Expressions of Interest (EOIs) for the engagement of qualified, legally registered Serbian non-profit, for-profit, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for the provision of professional services to further advance the objectives of the USAID Cooperation for Growth Project (“the Project” or “USAID CFG”).

The USAID Cooperation for Growth Project is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (“USAID”) and is being implemented by Cardno Emerging Markets USA, Ltd. (“Cardno”). The Project is a four-year initiative designed to expand conditions for broad-based economic growth through improvements in Serbia’s business enabling environment and access to diversified financial instruments in response to demand from the private sector, particularly SMEs throughout Serbia.

The central focus of USAID CFG is to stimulate change by identifying the cause of problematic behaviors that are contributing to business environment and finance obstacles and introducing a variety of change management tools to drive change within institutions and individual mindsets.

Objectives

• The Project’s Objective 1 is to facilitate improvements that have the greatest potential impact on increasing overall predictability and stability of the business environment, focusing first on simplifying and streamlining the regulatory framework in tax administration and business inspections, then ensuring that they are implemented broadly by public servants and monitored through private sector engagement and public-private dialogue.
• The Project’s Objective 2 is developing approaches to expand the volume and diversity of financial services available to SMEs and improving the internal management systems and governance structures of SMEs to make them more attractive targets for finance.

Through this Request for EOIs, USAID CFG is seeking ideas and methodologies that will improve the capacity of SMEs to articulate their specific needs and advocate for solutions by strengthening their ability to engage with government and financial institutions through advocacy, public private dialogue (PPD), evidence-driven analysis, the power of coalitions and outreach, capacity building, facilitating consensus around solutions and monitoring and evaluation.

Eligibility Criteria

• This request for EOIs is open to legally registered Serbian non-profit, for-profit, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Eligible organizations must have the capacity to achieve the proposed activity and produce the desired results and have a satisfactory performance record and record of integrity and business ethics.
• Ineligible organizations include:
  • Entities that have misused USAID funds in the past;
  • Organizations that advocate, promote or espouse anti-democratic policies or illegal activities;
  • Political parties or institutions;
  • Organizations that intend to use the funding for religious objectives;
  • Organizations that are on the list of parties excluded from federal procurement and nonprocurement programs or the United Nations Security Sanctions Committee.
• Prior to the award of a subcontract under this request for EOIs, successful organizations will be required to sign a Certification Regarding Terrorist Financing certifying that the organization does not provide and has never provided assistance to terrorists for terrorist activities. Successful offerors may also be required to sign other Certifications as applicable to the award.

Evaluation and Selection

The Project will convene a Selection Committee (SC) that will review EOIs submitted in response to this request for EOIs. The SC will score the EOI based on the following evaluation criteria:

• Technical Approach (70 points) incorporating the following elements:
  • Understanding of the Key Issues: Does the EOI demonstrate a clear understanding of the problems/key issues that the proposed activity will address?
  • Activity Goals and Objectives: Is the overall goal of the proposed activity clearly stated and achievable? Does the EOI list specific objectives that will contribute to achieving the activity’s goal?
  • Outcomes / Expected Results: Do the expected results of the proposed activities relate to the key issues and overall project objective? Are anticipated results directly linked to a specific objective? Are the results verifiable?
  • Proposed Tasks and Activities: Does the EOI propose specific activities that are logical, realistic, and relevant to the activity’s goal? Will the proposed activities have a significant adverse effect on the environment?
• Staffing/Management Plan (15 points): Does the proposed staffing/management plan reflect the personnel/management needs of the activity? Does the EOI propose personnel with experience and skills necessary to successfully implement the proposed activities?
• Past Experience (15 points): Does the organization have relevant past experience successfully engaging with SMEs?

How to Apply

Interested organizations should submit written EOIs to the USAID CFG Subcontracts Specialist electronically via email at the address given on the website.

For more information, please visit https://saradnja.rs/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/USAID-CFG-EOI-2019.pdf