1. Introduction: The Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) is a USAID program implemented by CNFA in Nigeria. The goal of the Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity is to strengthen the business enabling environment in order to promote private sector investment in agriculture. To achieve this goal, the Activity focuses on four interrelated components: improving the enabling environment for agricultural sector growth; broadening access to finance by mitigating the credit risks of agribusinesses; promoting and facilitating investment opportunities for agribusinesses to expand and scale up operations; and sustainably enhancing the performance of agribusiness micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). In line with the U.S. and Nigerian governments’ commitment to growing the non-oil-based economy, these efforts will increase the depth, breadth, dynamism, and competitiveness of Nigeria’s agribusiness sector. 

For the Activity’s states and country office close-out events, the Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) Project requires the purchase of branded souvenirs. The purpose of this RFQ is to solicit quotations for these items.

Offerors are responsible for ensuring that their offers are received by CNFA in accordance with the instructions, terms, and conditions described in this RFQ.  Failure to adhere with instructions described in this RFQ may lead to disqualification of an offer from consideration.

CNFA will consider proposals in response to this RFQ from eligible Individuals and Firms. 

2. Offer Deadline and Protocol: Offers must be received no later than 11:00 PM, WAT, on July 23, 2023. Offers must be submitted by email to [email protected]. 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 considered only at the discretion of CNFA. The cover page of this solicitation summarizes the important dates of the solicitation process. Offerors must strictly follow the provided deadlines to be considered for award. 

3. Questions: Questions regarding the technical or administrative requirements of this RFQ may be submitted no later than 11:00PM WAT on July 17, 2023 email to Clinton Okwuonu at [email protected]. Questions must be submitted in writing; phone calls will not be accepted. Questions and requests for clarification—and the responses thereto—that CNFA 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 CNFA will be considered official and carry weight in the RFQ process and subsequent evaluation. Any verbal information received from employees of CNFA or any other entity should not be considered as an official response to any questions regarding this RFQ.

4. Technical Requirements: The table below contains the technical requirements of the commodities/services. Offerors are requested to provide quotations containing the information below on official letterhead or official quotation format. 

Line Item	Description and Specifications	Qty	Sample Picture	Unit PriceNGN	Total PriceNGN
1	Branded Clock Pen Holder	100
2	Branded Notepad	350
3	Branded Powerbank 10,000MHA	130
4	Branded Tote Bag	150
5	Branded Tee-shirt	400
6	Branded Flash drive (16G)	400
7	Branded Flask	200
Subtotal:
Delivery Costs:
Other Costs (Describe:______________________) :
GRAND TOTAL [enter currency]:

Delivery time (after receipt of order): 30 calendar days

Length of warranty on offered equipment: 1 year

Location of service center(s) for after-sales service, including warranty repair: ______________________

Any commodities offered in response to this RFQ must be new and unused. In addition, all electrical commodities must operate on 240V/50Hz. 

Please note that, unless otherwise indicated, any stated brand names or models are for illustrative description only. An equivalent substitute, as determined by the specifications, is acceptable.

5. Quotations: Quotations in response to this RFQ must be priced on a fixed-price, all-inclusive basis, including delivery and all other costs. Offerors are required to submit proposed payment terms and payment schedule if applicable. Failure to submit proposed payment terms may lead to disqualification of an offeror from consideration. Pricing must be presented in Naira.  Offers must remain valid for not less than thirty days (30) calendar days after the offer deadline. Offerors are requested to provide quotations on official letterhead in the format provided in Section 4 – Technical Requirements. 

• Evaluation: 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. Only offerors determined to be technically acceptable will be considered for award. The evaluation committee will assess offerors’ acceptability in accordance with the following criteria: 
• Delivery time
• Warranty period
• Proof of similar work done
• Payment terms
• Compliance with donor branding guidelines

Best-offer proposals are requested. It is anticipated that award will be made solely on the basis of these original proposals. However, CNFA reserves the right to conduct any of the following:

• CNFA 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, CNFA may issue a partial award or split the award among various suppliers, if in the best interest of the Feed the Future (FTF) Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity;
• CNFA may cancel this RFP at any time.

Please note that if there are deficiencies regarding responsiveness to the requirements of this RFQ, an offer may be deemed “non-responsive” and thereby disqualified from consideration. CNFA reserves the right to waive immaterial deficiencies at its discretion.

6. Payment and Award: The award will be awarded to the offeror whose quotation represents the best value to the Project. Award will be issued only to the entity which submits a proposal in response to this RFQ. CNFA will not issue an award to different offerors, entities, or third-parties other than the selected offeror(s). Any award and payment resulting from this RFQ is anticipated to be in the form of a purchase order. This award is subject to the FTF Project’s terms and conditions as stipulated in Annex 03.  

7. Offer Format Instructions: Format Instructions: All proposals must be formatted in accordance with the below requirements:

1. English language only
2. Include the individual/agency/organization name, date, RFQ number, and page numbers as a header or footer throughout the document. 
3. The Technical Offer must be in the format provided in Section 4. 

A full offer will include the following documents:

1. An offer checklist (Annex 01).
2. A cover letter on company letterhead, signed by an authorized representative of the offeror (Annex 02).
3. A complete Technical Offer in response to the evaluation criteria in Section 6 and in the format provided in Section 4.
4. A copy of the offeror’s business license, or, if an individual, a copy of his/her identification card.
5. Three contacts for references from organizations/individuals for which the offeror has successfully performed similar work. 
6. Payment terms
7. Soft copy mockup of branding on souvenirs

Annex 01 – Offeror Checklist

To assist offerors in preparation of proposals, the following checklist summarizes the documentation to include an offer in response to this RFQ:

□ Offeror Checklist (Annex 01)

□ Cover letter, signed by an authorized representative of the offeror (see Annex 02)

□ Official quotation, including specifications of offered items (see Section 4)

□ Copy of offeror’s registration or business license

□ USAID Branding Guidelines – FtF (Annex 04)

□ Three contacts for references from organizations/individuals for which the offeror has successfully performed similar work. 

□ Payment terms

□ Soft copy mockup of branding on souvenirs, please see the table below for specific branding guidelines for the souvenirs

Annex 02 – Offeror Cover Letter

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: USAID Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity  

28A Danube Street, off IBB Way, Maitama, Abuja. 

Reference: RFQ no. RFQ_2023_07_Branded Souvenirs

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 RFQ. 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 and under USAID regulations.

Furthermore, we hereby certify that, to the best of our knowledge and belief:

• We have no close, familial, or financial relationships with any CNFA or Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) 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 CNFA’s prohibitions against fraud, bribery, and kickbacks.
• We understand and agree to CNFA’s prohibitions against funding or associating with individuals or organizations engaged in terrorism or trafficking in persons activities. 

We hereby certify that the enclosed representations, certifications, and other statements are accurate, current, and complete.

Annex 03 – CNFA Terms and Conditions

1.  Ethical and Business Conduct Requirements. CNFA is committed to integrity in procurement, and only selects suppliers based on objective business criteria such as price and technical merit. 

CNFA does not tolerate fraud, collusion among offerors, falsified proposals/bids, bribery, or kickbacks. Any firm or individual violating these standards will be disqualified from this procurement, barred from future procurement opportunities, and may be reported to both USAID and the Office of the Inspector General.

Employees and agents of CNFA are strictly prohibited from asking for or accepting any money, fee, commission, credit, gift, gratuity, object of value or compensation from current or potential vendors or suppliers in exchange for or as a reward for business. Employees and agents engaging in this conduct are subject to termination and will be reported to USAID and the Office of the Inspector General. In addition, CNFA will inform USAID and the Office of the Inspector General of any supplier offers of money, fee, commission, credit, gift, gratuity, object of value or compensation to obtain business.

Offerors responding to this RFQ must include the following as part of the proposal submission:

• Disclose any close, familial, or financial relationships with CNFA or project staff. For example, if an offeror’s cousin is employed by the project, the offeror must state this.
• Disclose any family or financial relationship with other offerors submitting proposals. For example, if the offeror’s father owns a company that is submitting another proposal, the offeror must state this.
• Certify that the prices in the offer have been arrived at independently, without any consultation, communication, or agreement with any other offeror or competitor for the purpose of restricting competition.
• Certify that all information in the proposal and all supporting documentation are authentic and accurate.
• Certify understanding and agreement to CNFA’s prohibitions against fraud, bribery and kickbacks.

Please contact Olumide Ojo at [email protected] with any questions or concerns regarding the above information or to report any potential violations. Potential violations may also be reported directly to CNFA via email at [email protected] or you may make an anonymous report by calling the CNFA Global Complaint Hotline at 202-991-0931.

2. Terms and Conditions: This solicitation is subject to CNFA’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 the following terms and conditions will apply:

1. CNFA’s standard payment terms are net 30 days after receipt and acceptance of any commodities or deliverables. 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.
2. No commodities or services may be supplied that are manufactured or assembled in, shipped from, transported through, or otherwise involving any of the following countries: Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. The title to any goods supplied under any award resulting from this RFQ shall pass to CNFA following delivery and acceptance of the goods by CNFA. Risk of loss, injury, or destruction of the goods shall be borne by the offeror until title passes to CNFA.
6. United States law prohibits engaging in any activities related to Trafficking in Persons. The supplier under any award resulting from this RFQ must ensure compliance with these laws. 
7. The offeror is prohibited from providing certain telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as a critical technology as part of any system, produced by the following covered companies, and their subsidiaries and affiliates, in the performance of any resulting award: Huawei Technologies Company; ZTE Corporation; Hytera Communications Corporation; Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Company; Dahua Technology Company; and any other company as determined by the United States Government. The offeror certifies it will not provide covered telecommunications equipment or services to CNFA in performance of the resulting award. If covered telecommunications equipment or services are offered, the offeror must disclose it.

3. Disclaimers: This is a RFQ only. Issuance of this RFQ does not in any way obligate CNFA, the Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity, or USAID to make an award or pay for costs incurred by potential offerors in the preparation and submission of an offer. In addition:

1. CNFA may cancel RFQ and not award;
2. CNFA may reject any or all responses received;
3. Issuance of RFQ does not constitute award commitment by CNFA;
4. CNFA reserves the right to disqualify any offer based on offeror failure to follow RFQ instructions;
5. CNFA will not compensate offerors for response to RFQ;
6. CNFA reserves the right to issue award based on initial evaluation of offers without further discussion;
7. CNFA may negotiate with short-listed offerors for their best and final offer;
8. CNFA reserves the right to order additional quantities or units with the selected offeror;
9. CNFA may reissue the solicitation or issue formal amendments revising the original RFQ specifications and evaluation criteria before or after receipt of proposals;
10. CNFA may modify the specifications without issuing a formal notice to all offerors when the revisions are immaterial to the scope of the RFQ;
11. CNFA may choose to award only part of the activities in the RFQ, or issue multiple awards based on multiple RFQ activities;
12. CNFA reserves the right to waive minor proposal deficiencies that can be corrected prior to award determination to promote competition;
13. CNFA will contact all offerors to confirm contact person, address, and that the bid was submitted for this RFQ;
14. CNFA will contact all offerors to inform them whether or not they were selected for award;
15. In submitting a response to this RFQ, offerors understand 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 Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity for consideration. USAID will not consider protests regarding procurements carried out by implementing partners. CNFA, at its sole discretion, will make a final decision on any protest for this procurement.

4. Source/Nationality/Manufacture: All goods and services offered in response to this RFQ or supplied under any resulting award must meet USAID Geographic Code 937 in accordance with the United States Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 22 CFR §228. The cooperating country for this RFQ is Nigeria. 

Offerors may not offer or supply any commodities or services that are manufactured or assembled in, shipped from, transported through, or otherwise involving any of the following countries: Cuba, Iran, North Korea, or Syria.

5. Taxes and VAT: As an organization that is implementing a project on behalf of USAID, CNFA is exempt from being charged VAT, customs duty or fee, excise tax, road tax, or any other form of tax or tariff for goods and services purchased for USAID funded activities. As such, offerors agree to exclude VAT or any similar taxes or fees from its cost proposal. . CNFA has a duty and obligation under the CITA to withhold tax on all forms of contracts; CNFA will therefore be withholding 5% tax, Contractor will provide his/her tax identification number, and CNFA on payment of deduction to relevant tax authority provide evidence of remittance to the service provider

6. 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 by the U.S. Government. CNFA will not award a contract to any firm that is debarred, suspended, or considered to be ineligible by the U.S. Government.

7. Delivery: The delivery location for the items described in this RFQ is Abuja, Nigeria. As part of its response to this RFQ, each offeror is expected to provide an estimate (in calendar days) of the delivery timeframe (after receipt of order). The delivery estimate presented in an offer in response to this RFQ must be upheld in the performance of any resulting contract.

8. Warranty: Warranty service and repair within the cooperating country is required for all commodities under this RFQ. The warranty coverage must be valid on all commodities for a minimum of 12 months after delivery and acceptance of the commodities, unless otherwise specified in the technical specifications.

Annex 04 – Branding Guidelines

Branding Strategy and Marking Plan (ACQUISITION AWARDS)

In accordance with ADS 320.3.2, the USAID Graphic Standards Manual, 2 CFR 700.16.2, 22 CFR 226.91, and the Feed the Future Graphic and Naming Standards Manual, CNFA has developed a Branding Strategy, Branding Implementation Plan and Marking Implementation Plan that describes how the Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) will be branded, communicated, and marked throughout implementation. Our strategy ensures that Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) deliverables will reflect the exclusive USAID and Feed the Future branding and marking policy for acquisition awards. Additionally, the strategy addresses target audiences, the desired level of visibility for program communications, and examples of cases in which CNFA would seek USAID approval for exceptions on branding and marking.

Branding Strategy

Project name: Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF)

Positioning: CNFA will brand the Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) materials and communications to position the activity appropriately as “Assistance from the American People through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).”

Branding: Program Communications and Publicity

Main program message: The 5 years Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF)  is designed to is to strengthen the business enabling environment in order to promote private sector investment in agriculture. To achieve this goal, the Activity focuses on four interrelated components: improving the enabling environment for agricultural sector growth; broadening access to finance by mitigating the credit risks of agribusinesses; promoting and facilitating investment opportunities for agribusinesses to expand and scale up operations; and sustainably enhancing the performance of agribusiness micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). In line with the U.S. and Nigerian governments’ commitment to growing the non-oil-based economy, these efforts will increase the depth, breadth, dynamism, and competitiveness of Nigeria’s agribusiness sector. 

Target audiences: USAID expects the activity to promote and publicize USAID sponsorship to the following target audiences:

1. The primary audiences for program communications and publicity include direct activity participants, and local, regional, and international private sector companies including agribusinesses and agrodealers. Other primary audiences include the Nigerian government, civil society organizations, and local organizations.
2. The secondary audiences include indirect beneficiaries, other donors and cooperating implementers.
3. The tertiary audiences include indirect beneficiaries, USAID, Feed the Future, the international development community at large, and the American public.

Level of visibility: The activity will establish a high level of visibility in public communications (such as print, digital and broadcast), as well as in program publications and events where the message that USAID supports this activity through Feed the Future will be conveyed to direct beneficiaries. 

Decisions on the level of visibility of the USG throughout implementation of this activity will take into consideration the multi-country and wide-ranging nature of stakeholders and the need for flexibility in coordinating and collaborating with all interested parties. For example, when Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) promotes client ownership and leadership, or when materials and communications must appear to come directly from the host country government or a local organization, it may be beneficial to downplay the role of USG assistance. In addition, strategic documents, draft laws and regulations, or draft policies for the Nigerian government that will need to be vetted through a host country cabinet approval process may not be subject to USAID branding policy. 

In all such cases, CNFA will request formal exceptions and will adhere to USAID’s waiver for materials and communications to be exempted from branding and marking requirements and will look to the activity’s CO/COR for specific guidance on the positioning USG assistance.

Security. Threats and restrictions to the security of the program associated with display of USAID marking in Nigeria will be assessed on an ongoing basis. In some cases, direct or indirect security risk to staff, property, or project success may result from prominently displaying the USAID brand. In such situations, CNFA might consider it beneficial to downplay the role of USG assistance.

In all such cases, CNFA will request formal exceptions and will adhere USAID’s waiver for materials and communications to be exempted from branding and marking requirements and will look to the activity’s CO/COR for specific guidance on the positioning USG assistance.

Marketing collaterals. Wherever appropriate, all Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) materials and communications will make it clear that the product (e.g., study, report, video, website, etc.) was produced with the support of USAID. 

The activity will employ the following methods, among others, to achieve the desired level of visibility and will work with Development Outreach Communications Advisor at the USAID Nigeria and the CNFA HQ Communications Team to finalize these products: 

1. News releases.
2. Publication of technical and training materials.
3. Public relations materials, including program brochures, fact sheets, and case studies.
4. Public events, including press conferences, ribbon cutting ceremonies, etc.
5. Public service announcements (PSAs), including radio, newspaper, TV, advertorials, and advertisements, when applicable. 
6. Success stories and beneficiary testimonials. 
7. CNFA’s corporate website and social media channels.
8. Webcasts, e-invitations, or other e-mails sent to group lists. 
9. Program videos/documentaries.
10.  USAID media channels, including Frontlines, Flickr, USAID Impact Blog, website page, social media, photo contests, and others.

CNFA will notify and obtain permission from USAID before making public any findings of USAID-funded studies or reports (e.g., at conferences or public meetings) that are produced as part of the Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF).

Marking Plan

Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) materials and communications will be marked exclusively with the USAID and Feed the Future identities, and will use local language logos where appropriate (see below and https://www.usaid.gov/branding/translated-brandmarks). 

CNFA will apply Feed the Future branding and marking guidelines as outlined in the Feed the Future Graphic and Naming Standards Manual, as well as those outlined in the USAID Standard Graphic Standards Manual and described in ADS 320. All program materials will include both Feed the Future and USAID messaging as provided in narrative guidance, emphasizing that the activity is possible as a result of support from the American people. 

Per USAID’s updated brand guidance in June 2020, the creation of project logos is not permitted. In certain rare cases, a project may require a unified identity or logo to achieve its programmatic objectives. For example, in a campaign to mobilize voters, the project may need to have a unified face that can be easily identified by target audiences, a goal that cannot be accomplished by using myriad unrelated logos.

All public communications such as studies, reports, digital assets, audio, and video productions funded by USAID, in which the content has not been approved by USAID will contain the following disclaimer: 

“This (publication, video or other information/media product (specify)) was made possible by the support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents are the responsibility of CNFA and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.” 

At the discretion of CNFA and the COR, public communications may contain this alternate language: Whenever the USAID identity is used to mark a page or website, that page, the index page of the site, and every major entry point to the website shall also include the following:

“This (publication, video or other information/media product (specify)) was made possible through support provided by Feed the Future through the U.S. Agency for International Development. The opinions expressed herein are those of CNFA and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Agency for International Development.” 

Whenever the USAID identity is used to mark a page or website, that page, the index page of the site and every major entry point to the website shall also include the following: 

The information provided on this website is not official U.S. Government information and does not represent the views or positions of the Unites States Agency for International Development (USAID) or the United States Government. 

Co-branding and other organizations to be acknowledged. CNFA will mark activities, public communications, and commodities with the Feed the Future and USAID Standard Graphic Identity, and, where applicable, the Nigerian government and/or ministry symbol and/or another US Government (USG) logo. 

Contractor logos are not permitted on any programmatic materials, and co-branding of implementers is therefore not permitted. All contract project materials will be branded exclusively with the USAID identity and will not use the CNFA or other partner identities. USAID marking requirements also extend to any potential sub-contractors under this agreement. 

In addition, ADS 320.3.2.4 states that grants under contract, when authorized in accordance with ADS 302, must be branded and marked like grants following the same brand application as assistance awards, and may be co-branded with the Feed the Future and USAID identity of a size and prominence equivalent to or greater than the logo of the grantee. In the event the grantee chooses not to require marking with its own identity, USAID may, at USAID’s discretion, require marking by the grantee with the Feed the Future and USAID identities. 

If Feed the Future Nigeria Agribusiness Investment Activity (FTF) receives funding directly or as a matching contribution from a contributor other than USAID, CNFA may then apply the branding and marking guidelines in accordance with the USAID ADS 320.3.3. If the activity collaborates with other organizations or if other organizations contribute funds to publications, products, and events, CNFA will follow the guidelines for co-branding outlined in ADS 320, assuming the contributed funding is more than a token amount. 

Administrative Materials

Activity staff will not be identified as Feed the Future or USAID employees but will be identified as USAID contractors. Therefore, CNFA will not use the USAID logo on staff business cards. Instead, staff business cards will display the CNFA logo. All internal communications and other non-USAID-funded communications will use CNFA letterheads without the USAID logos.

MARKING MATERIALS

Events

At each public event, USAID and the support from the American People will be verbally acknowledged in the following—or in an analogous—way: 

“This training / conference / seminar / fair / workshop is made possible by the support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The content discussed is the sole responsibility of the Contractor and does not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the US Government.” 

Where possible, project events will be visually marked by banners, podium signs, or other materials. All event materials should be cleared for marking requirements through the COR. 

Modifications

In the event of a change in implementation of this Branding Implementation Plan and Marking Plan, CNFA will request appropriate approvals of modification through its COR.