Request for Proposal

Request for Proposal:

Boer Goat Development using Pedigree Performance Recording Software

TERMS OF REFERENCE

PROJECT BACKGROUND:

USAID’s Knowledge-based Integrated Sustainable Agriculture in Nepal (KISAN II) is operating in twenty-five Hill and Terai districts of four provinces: Lumbini, Bagmati, Karnali and Sudurpaschim Provinces. The project’s overall goal is to increase resilience, inclusiveness, and sustainability of income growth through agriculture development. KISAN II works with the private sector such as lead firms, input suppliers, wholesalers and traders, and millers to catalyze agricultural productivity, competitive market systems, a stronger enabling business environment, and business and literacy skills.

KISAN II follows a market systems development approach to strengthen and improve agriculture markets, improve value chain efficiency, and manage unexpected shocks. To ensure this, it is necessary to identify and understand the demand, opportunities, and constraints of the concerned value chain (rice, lentil, maize, vegetables, and goat). To this end, KISAN II is working with key value chain actors to design and implement the best alternatives/interventions for the efficient functioning of the market system benefitting all the value chain actors.

INTRODUCTION

Goat is one of the key livestock species reared by 2.4 million holdings about 45% of the Nepalese households or by 64 % of Nepalese farming households (MoLD 2017)¹. Main aim of goat farming in Nepal is for chevon production. The economic share of goats is 3 % in national GDP and 14% in livestock GDP. Presently, there are over 12 million goats reared in the country, producing 74 thousand MT ton of meat in 2018/19, which contributes about 21% of the total meat production (MoALD, 2020)².

¹ Livestock Statistic of Nepal, Ministry of Livestock Development 2017, Singha Durbar, 

² Statistical Information on Nepalese Agriculture, 2020 (for statistics of 1991/92 to 2018/19). Statistics and Analysis Section, PDCC Division, MoALD, Singha Durbar, Kathmandu Nepal.

Goat Activity in KISAN II

Goat rearing Households (1,284,917 HHs) in KISAN Provinces cover 52 % of the total goat rearing households in Nepal. The average # goat rearing per HHs in KISAN II provinces is 5.0, and offtake rate is 6.27 compared to 4.5 goat per households and 6.02 Kg/yr/animal respectively in Nepal, indicating that there is high potential to increase the number of goats in the households and productivity offtake rate in the four provinces under KISAN II project.

KISAN II is currently supporting 27 partner firms to work with 14,300 goat farmers in 13 districts. Through partners’ technical support, farmers are increasing the production, productivity and offtake rate of goat and are motivated to increase the number of high producing goat in the respective districts of Kisan II Project. Simalthali Unnat Bakhra Utpadan Kendra, Basamadi, Hetauda and Majuwadevei Krishi farm, Belkot Nuwakot are partners and they are producing and selling Boer goat and their derivative goat seed stock to goat farmers to all over the country. These two Boer goat farms are interested and has made provision to install, use and improve/develop the PPRS.  Kisan II has MoU with DLS where provision is made for introducing PPRs in two government farms (Goat unit, NLBO, Pokhara and Goat Genetic resource Center, Buditola). The 2 private partners farms and two government farms of DLS under MoU of KISAN II have planned to introduce the Pedigree performance recording scheme (PPRS) in their goat herds. The Jalkanda Boer Breeding herd Tatha Agricultural Cooperative Ltd, Arghakhanchi has also requested for instalment of the software. The buyers of goat seed stock including smallholder goat farmers are not getting certification for recorded pedigreed goat seed stock. Such computer-based recording system is not well developed, and goat farmers lack knowledge on using software for goat development in Nepal.

Thus, through this RFP KISAN II envisions to install, and improve the pedigree performance recording and evaluation scheme suitable to the Boer goat farms of both public and private sectors and use the PPRS for overall development of Boer Goat in Nepal. This PPRS will facilitate the Boer Goat Farms to integrate, coordinate, and use the improved breeding practices for producing superior breeding stock of purebred Boer goat in Nepal. In addition, PPRS will also help to improve the goat farming efficiency economically and technically. The Boer goat farm groups will also improve linkages among National Livestock Sector Innovation Project (NLSIP), Prime Minister Modernization Agriculture Project) PMAMP), meat Self-sufficiency and other national goat programs for marketing their breeding seed stock of Boer goat and their derivatives.

I. OBJECTIVES:

The overall objective of the RFP is to contribute to improve quality of breed production and productivity and strengthen the overall supply chain of certified quality breeding seed stock materials of Boer and their derivatives to promote goat farming and marketing of meat goat in Nepal. It will be achieved working with (i)  support 5 Boer goat farms (2 DLS, 2 KISAN II Partners and 1 in NLSIP) to use the cloud-based software for record keeping and pedigree improvement (ii) solving problems identified by Boer goat farms for using the software and marketing it to a wider audience.

II. DELIVERABLES:

• Support 5 Boer Goat Farms to use the software for record keeping and improving pedigree performance
• Identification of the problems, issues and needs of these goat farms to incorporate for improvement of the existing version of software 
• Customization and Improvement of existing software incorporating the additional needs of these 5 Boer goat farms  
• Marketing of the software to other potential clients to increase the adoption of digital recordkeeping and pedigree performance system

III. Timeline for the service: APRIL 2021 TO DECEMBER 2022.

IV. Selection Criteria and Weightage

Agency will be selected based on the following weightage value of Technical and Financial score.

• A letter of interest and agency profile.
• Proposal with timeline of deliverables.
• The service provide should already have a functioning record keeping system for goat farms with at-least 2 farms already using the software. 
• The Service provider or the Software developer should provide evidence of experiences, related to software development especially in the goat sector and the clearance certificate of regular registration and renewal from the government offices
• The software developer will be qualified if they have already developed Pedigree Performance Recording Software for goat in Nepal.
• Detailed Budget 
  • provide the instalment cost of the existing software to each Boer goat farms 
  • provide the customization cost for improving the existing software meeting the needs of both private and public sectors
• Agency registration documents with renewal, if applicable.
• VAT registration certificate. 
• Latest audit report and tax clearance certificate. 
• Any other relevant document/s.

Disclaimer

Issuance of this solicitation does not obligate Winrock International to award a Contract, nor will Winrock International pay any costs associated with the preparation or submission of proposals.

Furthermore, Winrock International reserves the right to reject any and all offers, if such action is considered to be in the best interest of Winrock International.  Award of a contract is subject to availability of funds and other internal Winrock International approvals.

Please click here to see and download queries and  responses or go through the link below;

https://Queries-and-Responses/reuestforproposal/