Request for Proposal (RFP) to Conduct Vocational Training

FEED THE FUTURE NEPAL KNOWLEDGE-BASED INTEGRATED SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE IN NEPAL (KISAN) II PROJECT

Request for Proposal (RFP) to Conduct Vocational Training for migrant Returnees toward Increased Employment in Agriculture Sectors

Project Background

KISAN II is operating in twenty-five Hill and Terai districts of Bagmati, Lumbini, 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, create competitive market systems, ensure a stronger enabling business environment, and promote 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 within 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 value chain actors.

Statement of Purpose

The consequences of COVID-19 have negatively impacted almost all sectors of Nepali economy, leaving many people jobless. In addition to these impacts, the economy is also absorbing the return of hundreds of thousands of migrant laborers into both urban and rural communities. Hence, KISAN II plan to provide agricultural skill trainings to selected migrant returnees to increase their involvement in agricultural sector and make them more resilient; and to contribute to the development of KISAN IItargeted value chains.The training programs willbe implemented in selected districts and these are Kanchanpur, Kailali, Bardiya, Banke, Surkhet, Dang, Kapilbastu and Palpa.

KISAN II is seeking the service of a Nepali firm with core competency in conducting vocational training. The objective of this RFP is to train 300 migrant returnees through CTEVT- (Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training) accredited vocational trainings toincrease employment opportunities in the agricultural sector. 

Scope of Work

Identification of employment opportunities

To ensure adequate employment opportunities for selected training participants, the selected sub-contractor will conduct a quick survey to assess the demand/potential of the skills that will be disseminated to them. Sub-contractor will explore the possibilities and ensure benefitting such people by providing training on required skills. The sub-contractor, in consultation with KISAN II district-based staff, is also required to consult with GON and other stakeholders so that the resources planned for migrant returnees by these organizations can be leveraged in their interest. 

KSAN II has preliminary collected information on migrant returnees and various stakeholders’ programs planned for them. KISAN II will provide this information to selected sub-contractor. The selected Sub-contracted is required to review this information, explore more, and establish effective and fruitful collaboration with these programs and organizations. 

Identification of training participants 

Selected participants should be migrant returnees (both in-country and abroad). The selected Sub-contractor should prioritize women, youth, individuals with disability; and disadvantaged groups such as, Dalit, Madhesi, Muslim and Janajati. Sub-contractor should prioritize participants having, at a minimum, a smart phone so that they can further learn about and use various agriculture related applications. The sub-contractor should focus to select those participants who do not intend to re-migrate.The sub-contractor must consult KISAN II district team while finalizing training participants. 

Conduct vocational trainings including soft-skill and financial literacy

The selected sub-contractor will conduct agricultural vocational trainings in village/field setting (non-residential). Training should be conducted in all 8 districts. Considering continuous threat of COVID-19 and scatteredness of potential participants as well as business potential, the sub-contractor should plan to conduct training events in small groups1 (up to 15 participants). Hence the total training events for 300 participants could be 20 to 30. Prior to training, Sub-contractor is responsible to ensure each participant against accident.

Sub-contractor will be required to conduct trainings in the following (but not limited to) CTEVT-accredited technical subjects:

• Off Season Vegetable Producer (390 hours)
• Community Agriculture Assistant (390 hours)
• Vegetable Processor (550 hours)
• Mushroom Producer (390 hours)
• Village Animal Health Worker Training (390 hours) 
• GoatKeeping (390 hours) 
• Slaughterhouse Technician (390 hours)
• Community Livestock Assistant (422 hours)
• Power Tiller Repairer (390 hours)
• Repairing and Maintenance of Pump Set (Diesel Engine and Water Pump) (280 hours)

In addition to training on these technical skills, the selected sub-contractor is required to provide a package of 20-30 hours on soft-skills, financial literacy and use of ICT. Soft skill training would include, but is not limited to:

• Communication 
• Self-motivation 
• Leadership 
• Responsibility 
• Teamwork
• Problem solving 
• Decisiveness 
• Ability to work under pressure 
• Time management 
• Flexibility 
• Negotiation and conflict resolution

KISAN II’s Access to Financial Services team will orient trainers of sub-contractor on financial literacy so that they can disseminate information during trainings. Sub-contractor is also required to bring the personnel of financial institution to orient trainees on financial package of these institution during the training so that more participants are encouraged and able to access financial services to establish and/or expand their agricultural enterprises.  

The sub-contractor is also required to monitor all training events, prepare all required forms, and enter required information into KISAN II’s online database.

Counseling and linkage with GON and other stakeholders

Selected sub-contractor should counsel training participants during the training and immediately after the training (within two weeks) on how to tap available GON and other financial or technical resources. For example: sub-contractor help support or guide training graduates to register their existing or new entrepreneur in required GON office

Deliverables

Sub-contractor should conduct trainings in three batches, 100 participants in each batch. To train 100 participants in each batch, sub-contractor should conduct 7 to 10 training events. Sub-contractor will not be allowed to train more than 15 participants in each training event. One batch can overlap with other/s but there should not be a gap of more than one month from first to second and second to third batch. Sub-contractor should submit two reports for each batch of training. The detail of deliverables is below.

• Batch-wise inception report. 
• Batch-wise training completion report 2 , including KISAN II’s Personal Enrollment Form (PEF) and Activity/Training Form; Participant Attendance Sheet (ATF/PAS). Sub-contractor should submit this report within one month of completion of all training events of each batch. Batch-wise training completion report including brief plan(half page)for each training graduate.

1Trainings must be held in groups no bigger than 15 participants with measures in place to address required social distancing and hygiene norms. This will be monitored.

2 Format and schedule for report submission will be shared with Sub-contractor after contract signing.

Selection Criteria

The criteria presented below have been tailored to the requirements of this RFP. A total of 100 points are possible. The weightage of technical application will be 60% and financial will be 40%. 

In evaluating the applications, Winrock will examine overall merit and feasibility, as well as specific criteria relevant to each component as elaborated below. One or more award will be made to the overall highest scorers. Applicants should note that these criteria: (1) serve as the standard against which all applications will be evaluated, and (2) serve to identify the significant matters which applicants should address in their applications.

Evaluation of Technical Application: 

It is anticipated that award will be made within two months of the submission deadline. Final negotiations and award will be managed by Winrock.

Instruction to Applicants

Technical Application

Applicants will develop their applications based on their understanding of the program’s needs, their prior institutional experience and their determination of the approaches that would be feasible and successful. In all cases, applicants shall clearly explain the rationale for the proposed approaches chosen.

Submissions must clearly state the implementation plan (approach/strategy) of proposed training and expected results with a proposed time frame and budget. 

Monitoring and reporting of the funded activities will be the responsibility of the applicant. 

The technical proposal should contain the following. 

1.  Organizational Background:

2.  Organizational Capacity

3.  Past Performance(Please annex all the vocational training conducted by your organization in last five years. Please indicate separately for both agricultural (agriculture and livestock) and other trainings.)

4.  Background(Please provide a brief and necessary background information on the issues and the problems that the proposed grant will address.)

5.  Goals and Objectives(Please state the goal and its corresponding objectives to address the problems identified above.)

6.  Summary(Please provide a summary of the proposed concept including objectives and outcomes.)

7.  Technical Approach/Strategy

8.  Activities (Please provide a detailed description of all the activities to achieve objective. Explain the logical connection between the proposed activities and the fulfillment of objectives.)

9.  Expected Outcomes and Targets/Deliverables Narrative (What are the expected results that the work will bring about? Please describe how data will be gathered and analyzed, and how performance will be monitored, measured, and reported.)

10.  Targeted Households (Please describe the type and number of beneficiaries.)

11.  Project Work-Plan and Timeline (Please provide a summary narrative of the work-plan and timeline in addition to attaching a copy of the proposed work-plan table. Include a description of how the project will be managed and operated administratively; for example, which staff will perform certain tasks.)

12.  Team composition and assigned task including CVs of proposed personnel (Please include a table in the proposal with names of proposed team members, area of expertise, position assigned, and task assigned.  Should be Nepali Citizen. Please annex CVs)

13.  Attachments: Include any necessary attachments in support of your application.

Technical proposal should not exceed 12 pages (excluding annexes), using Gill Sans MT font size12, single-spaced.

Cost Application

Cost applications shall be submitted separately from the technical application. Applicants shall submit a summary and detailed budget in Microsoft Excel with budget notes identifying how the applicant would allocate funds received during the term of the potential agreement. The budget narrative should explain and justify the need for the costs proposed in the budget. The narrative should help the reviewer understand why an item of cost is necessary and how it will be used to support the activity for which it will be incurred. The budget narrative should demonstrate the relationship between the proposed activities and the budget. Just as the technical application should reflect the applicant’s understanding of the objectives and the proposed approach to achieve those objectives, the budget and the accompanying narrative should be realistic and show a similar understanding of the financial requirements of the proposed activities.

Please click here to download the Summary of cost Application or by following the link below;

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MPdcAt3Nl_JENML7ZhxudARtyigQHMvO/view?usp=sharing

Please click here to see the queries for Conduct Vocational Training or by following the link below;

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-60C82arLTPiGFNl0WaPOkUWrAWHs8Q4/view?usp=sharing