Media Training for Somali Journalists to UNICEF Somalia Programs

1.0 PROCEDURES AND RULES

UNICEF is the agency of the United Nations mandated to advocate for the protection of children’s rights, to help meet their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full potential. Guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child UNICEF strives to establish children’s rights as international standards of behaviour towards children. UNICEF’s role is to mobilize political will and material resources to help countries ensure a “first call for children". UNICEF is committed to ensuring special protection for the most disadvantaged children.

UNICEF carries out its work through its headquarters in New York, 8 regional offices and 125 country offices world-wide. UNICEF also has a research centre in Florence, a supply operation based in Copenhagen and offices in Tokyo and Brussels. UNICEF’s 37 committees raise funds and spread awareness about the organizations mission and work.

1.2 PURPOSE OF THE RFP

The purpose of this RFP is to invite proposals from qualified institutions to provide Media Training for Somali Journalists to UNICEF Somalia Programs.

1.3 FORECAST SCHEDULE

The schedule of the contractual process is as follows:

Closing date and time for submission of full proposal: 20/05/2016 at 10.00 a.m. Nairobi Time

b) Award Notice: To be determined

c) Signature of contract: To be determined

1.4 RFP CHANGE POLICY

All requests for formal clarification or queries on this RFP must be submitted in writing to: somsupply@unicef.orgvia e-mail. Please make sure that the e-mail mentions the RFP reference number.

Only written inquiries will be entertained. Please be informed that if the question is of common interest, the answer will be shared with all potential RFP bidders.

Erasures or other corrections in the proposal must be explained and the signature of the applicant shown alongside. All changes to a proposal must be received prior to the closing time and date. It must be clearly indicated that it is a modification and supersedes the earlier proposal, or state the changes from the original proposal. Proposals may be withdrawn on written request received from bidders prior to the opening time and date. Bidders are expected to examine all instructions pertaining to the work. Failure to do so will be at bidder’s own risk and disadvantage.

1.5 RFP RESPONSE FORMAT

Full proposals should be submitted in ENGLISH and must be received not later than 20/05/2016 by 10.00 am Nairobi Time at UNICEF SOMALIA SUPPORT CENTRE OFFICE, UN GIGIRI COMPLEX, BLOCK Q, 1st FLOOR. Proposals received prior to the stated closing time and date will be kept unopened in the Bid Box and proposals received after the stipulated date and time will be invalidated.

Bidders must submit three (03) sealed original copies of the proposal duly signed and dated, in the following manner (clearly marked):- Proposals received in any other manner will be invalidated.

· Outer envelope: Name of company

RFP number

UNICEF Somalia Support Centre

Address

· Inner envelope – technical proposal: Name of company, RFP number - technical proposal

· Inner envelope - price proposal: Name of company, RFP number - price proposal

UNICEF will accept no responsibility for the premature opening of a proposal not properly addressed or identified.

Due to the nature of this RFP, there will be no public opening of proposals and responsible officers will open technical proposals when the specified time has arrived.

1.6 BIDDER RESPONSE

1.6.1 Formal submission requirements

The formal submission requirements as outlined in this Request for Proposal must be followed, e.g. regarding form and timing of submission, marking of the envelopes, no price information in the technical proposal, etc.

1.6.2 Mandatory criteria

All mandatory (i.e. must/have to/shall/should/will) criteria mentioned throughout this Request for Proposal have to be addressed and met in your proposal.

All references to descriptive materials should be included in the appropriate response paragraph, though the material/documents themselves may be provided as annexes to the proposal/response.

It is important that you read all of the provisions of the request for proposal, to ensure that you understand UNICEF’s requirements and can submit a proposal in compliance with them. The bidder must also provide sufficient information in the proposal to address each area of the Proposal Evaluation to allow the evaluation team to make a fair assessment of the candidates and their proposal. Note that failure to provide compliant proposals may result in invalidation of your proposal.

1.7 CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION

Information, which the bidder considers proprietary, should be clearly marked "proprietary", if any, next to the relevant part of the text, and UNICEF will treat such information accordingly.

1.8 RIGHTS OF UNICEF

UNICEF reserves the right to accept any proposal, in whole or in part; or, to reject any or all proposals. UNICEF reserves the right to invalidate any Proposal received from a Bidder who has previously failed to perform properly or complete contracts on time, or a Proposal received from a Bidder who, in the opinion of UNICEF, is not in a position to perform the contract. UNICEF shall not be held responsible for any cost incurred by the Bidder in preparing the response to this Request for Proposal. The Bidder agrees to be bound by the decision of UNICEF as to whether her/his proposal meets the requirements stated in this Request for Proposal. Specifically, UNICEF reserves the right to:

• contact any or all references supplied by the bidder(s);
• request additional supporting or supplementary data (from the bidder(s));
• arrange interviews with the bidder(s);
• reject any or all proposals submitted;
• accept any proposals in whole or in part;
• negotiate with the service provider(s) who has/have attained the best rating/ranking, i.e. the one(s) providing the overall best value proposal(s);
• contact any number of candidates as required to achieve the overall evaluation objectives.

VALIDITY

Proposal must be valid for a minimum of ninety (90) days from the date of opening of this RFP and must be signed by all candidates included in the submission. For proposals from institutions, the proposal must also be signed by an authorized representative of the institution. Bidders are requested to indicate the validity period of their proposal in the Proposal Form. UNICEF may also request for an extension of the validity of the proposal.

1.8.1 Technical Proposal

The technical proposal should address all aspects and criteria outlined in this Request for Proposal, especially in its statement of work, terms of reference and paragraph 1.10 of this Request for Proposal. However, all these requirements represent a wish list from UNICEF. The bidders are free to suggest/propose any other solution. UNICEF welcomes new ideas and innovative approaches. (NOTE: No price information should be contained in the technical proposal).

1.8.2 Price Proposal

The price proposal should be in line with the TOR, indicating overall/total cost of assignment and itemized budget.

1.9.0 PROPOSAL EVALUTION

After the RFP opening, each proposal will be assessed first on is technical merits and subsequently on its price. The proposal with the best overall value, composed of technical merit and price, will be recommended for approval. UNICEF will set up an evaluation panel composed of technical UNICEF staff and their conclusions will be forwarded to the internal UNICEF contracts Review Committee.

The evaluation panel will first evaluate each response for compliance with requirement of the RFP. Responses deemed not to meet all of the mandatory requirements will be considered non-compliant and rejected at this stage without further consideration. Failure to comply with any of the terms and conditions contained in this RFP, including provision of all required information may result in a response or proposal being disqualified from further consideration.

2.0 TECHNICAL PROPOSAL (100 points)

The technical proposals will be evaluated against specified criteria below. The total amount of points allocated to the technical proposal is 100 points and only technical proposals which receive a minimum of 60 points will be considered further.

The Request For Proposal (RFP) will be evaluated against the below criteria:

CATEGORY

TOTAL AVAILABLE POINTS

1. OVERALL RESPONSE TOTAL 15

Overall concord between UNICEF requirements and the proposals of the candidate organization 10

· Understanding of, and responsiveness to the requirements of the assignment in terms of technical and expert services as per the attached ToR

· Detail and thoroughness of the proposal in respect of the requirements of the ToR and assignment 5

2. STRATEGY/METHODOLOGY OF ASSIGNMENT

The Technical Offer including Work Plan and Approach, comprising of;

· Proposed design of the process, methodology, preparations and implementation of the program design process and description of how the institution or company is intending to carry out the tasks (e.g. how to organize the required staff/experts and support their activities in the three zones of Somaliland, Puntland and Central South Somalia, schedule of planned activities, proposed implementation of the required work, etc) TOTAL 15

· Proposed overall process and design of the assignment, including timetable and required deliverables - (work plan) 10

· Logistical and staff/expert arrangements in Somaliland, Puntland and Central South Somalia for efficient implementation in all 3 zones 5

3. TECHNICAL CAPACITY: Organization’s Background, Experience, Expertise and Other AttributesTOTAL 35

· Institution’s or Company’s Background

• Full address and location of registered offices
• Details of registrations (certificate of incorporation/ documentation as a registered company or institution).
• Evidence of ability to mobilize qualified personnel and experts
• Summary of corporate structure and business area
• Organigram
• Details of infrastructure in office
• Number and type of employees or available experts
• Audited financial statements for previous 2 years
• Incorporation documents
• Financial status/yearly turn over for the last two years → supported with appropriate proof/certificates 5

· Experience

· The company should have experience in the relevant field of work as per the ToR

· Proven record and experience in carrying out similar work

· Familiarity with Somalia and specific contexts of Somaliland, Puntland and Central South; Experience and good knowledge of local Somali social, cultural, political, economic context

· Experience in complex emergencies or conflict-affected contexts preferred 20

· Expertise

· Sufficient human resource capacity, competent staff or experts with suitable experience and expertise as per the assignment and ToR Demonstrated managerial capacity to undertake the assignment 5

· Other Skills and Attributes Required as per the ToR:

ü Strong communication, writing and presentation skills

ü Able to work in multicultural settings

ü Strong analytical and leadership skills

ü Excellent interpersonal and team work skills including good judgment and capacity to deal with counterparts of different levels and background

ü Setting of high standards for work

ü Necessary language skills in English and Somali

ü Proficiency in ICT (MS Word, Excel, Power point, etc.) 5

TOTAL POINTS FOR TECHNICAL PROPOSAL 70

4. DETAILED FINANCIAL OFFER AND PRICE:

Overall Price and budget covering the entire assignment - both technical and logistical aspects of the assignment as per the ToR and its annex

· Unit costs like fee rates, expenses, etc.

· Level of detail of the financial offer and budget

TOTAL (30)

· Overall price

· Completeness and detail of budget and offer

· Unit costs, rates, etc.

TOTAL MARKS (TECHNICAL/FINANCIAL PROPOSAL) (100)

3.0 TERMS OF REFERENCE

MEDIA TRAINING ON CHILD RIGHTS

Background

The media is in a critical position to bring about changes that will result in an improvement in children’s rights. Sadly, many of Somali journalists are lack of training. Not only this undermines the overall journalistic standards, it prevent them from carrying out their obligations to child rights. Consequently, the rights of children, their right to expression, to have a say in matters affecting them, to have their opinions heard, are all at risk of being overlooked.

In October 2015, Somalia joined the rest of the world and became the latest - 196th country - to ratify the Convention on the rights of the Child. By ratifying the CRC, the Somali Government has committed itself to protecting and fulfilling children's rights, and be accountable before the international community. It has committed itself to undertake all actions and develop policies to ensure that the best interests of the child are well looked after.

The ground-breaking development offers UNICEF a great window of opportunity to advocate for children’s rights. UNICEF supports the Government in the implementation process, making sure that the principles of the CRC are well reflected in the Somali policy and law. One of the key ways of ensuring that this takes place is by supporting the media.

UNICEF Somalia would therefore like to hire a service provider with experience in journalism training and child rights, and the ability to organize such training in Somalia.

Scope of work

1. Conduct desk review to understand the capacity and gaps within Somali journalists, particularly those related to child rights
2. Develop a sound approach to strengthen the existing capacity and more importantly address the gaps
3. Draw up a curriculum for a three-day training workshop focusing on child rights and the CRC – against the Somali social, economic and cultural context
4. Take care of all aspects of workshop organization, i.e., course/training material, venue, ITC, transportation, refreshment, etc.
5. Take care of selection and invitation of participants, including facilitators, guest speakers, etc.
6. Conduct the workshop
7. Conduct client satisfactory survey
8. Produce workshop reports and participants feedback reports
9. If asked, M&E

End Product

1. One workshop in each location - Hargeisa, Garowe and Mogadishu
2. Workshop reports
3. Client satisfactory report
4. If asked, M&E report

Conditions

a. The contractor shall handle all aspects of the workshops. UNICEF will give strategic guidance, but will not be involved in the physical organization of the workshops

b. Payment is made as lump sum upon receipt of an invoice, and deliverables that meet UNICEF’s quality standards

c. UNICEF will not cover any costs related to the operations-related costs, such as travel/hiring of personnel/venue/equipment/transportation/catering services/etc.

Qualifications

· Expertise in Journalism, Human Rights, Somali and International Law or a similar field.

· Experience in media capacity building

· Experience working with the media, a good understanding of Somali media landscape

· Knowledge of Somali context, including challenges facing children, the latest trends in development and humanitarian aid for Somalia and beyond

· Ability to assimilate and communicate complex messages in an engaging manner

· Capacity to produce high quality reports

· Familiarity with UNICEF’s mandate and work

· Respect culture diversity, especially cultural norms of Somalia

Contract Duration

12 months

Terms of Payment

As per the agreed upon rate sheet, payments will be made by UNICEF upon submission of invoices, and deliverables that meet UNICEF’s quality standards.

HOW TO APPLY:

Sealed Bids should be hand-delivered or submitted by Courier to reach UNICEF Somalia Support Centre offices by 10.00am on 20 May 2016, Nairobi Time. Bidders are requested to provide details of persons delivering the bids (Name/Id No.) 24 hours in advance for security clearance to access the UN Compound.

Address:
UNICEF Somalia Support Centre (USSC)
UN Gigiri Complex, Block Q Ground Floor
P.O. Box 44145-00100
Nairobi, Kenya.

Email enquiries: somsupply@unicef.org