Solicitation Number:

Reference-Number-0781011B

Notice Type:

Presolicitation

Synopsis:

POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1600, Arlington, VA 22209-3901, Tel: (703) 875-4357, Fax: (703) 875-4009.
***Please do not contact contracts office***

Proposal Submission Place:
Chairman, Azerbaijan State Social Protection Fund
Zardabi Str. 80, Baku, Azerbaijan
Phone: +994 12 434-38-62
Fax: +994 12 434-38-62

Azerbaijan: Pension Reforms Project Technical Assistance

The Grantee invites submission of qualifications and proposal data (collectively referred to as the "Proposal") from interested U.S. firms which are qualified on the basis of experience and capability to develop technical assistance to review individually insured funded pension account systems in place in various countries and design a national pension system for Azerbaijan, while taking into account the macroeconomic impacts, the management of the accounts, the range of investment options and the administration of individual accounts. The technical assistance will also design state-funded individually insured funded pension accounts, while determining the entitlement rules/structure, how the State's portion would be valued for the individual pensioner, the timing of contributions, the legal ownership of assets, the management of the assets, and other issues.

The Grantee, the State Social Protection Fund (SSPF), is the state agency with responsibility for social insurance and pensions in Azerbaijan. SSPF is an independent state agency that collects social insurance contributions (social security taxes on wages). Pensions are supposed to be financed by social insurance contributions. However, the social insurance contributions are not sufficient to provide for a decent pension. Therefore, for the funding of various categories of pensioners the Government of Azerbaijan allocates subsidies from the state budget. These subsidies constitute approximately 28% of all SSPF expenses. In order to reduce dependence on the state budget, reduce poverty levels among the elderly in Azerbaijan and improve their standard of living, savings and financial support for pensions need to be increased.

With the help of the United Nations Development Program and the World Bank, SSPF has modernized much of its operations and its management information systems. However, in order to determine uses for the increasing wealth of the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) that do not have a negative macroeconomic effects, to develop a pension system that is a true safety net for the population and to give the citizens of Azerbaijan a concrete stake in their future, the SSPF desires to develop pension programs with individually insured funded pension accounts. One program would allow citizens to invest their own savings into personal accounts, similar to IRA or 401K accounts available in the United States. The structure of these accounts and their nature would be determined as part of the technical assistance. The second pension program would involve putting funding from SOFAZ into individual pension accounts. SSPF expects to implement individually insured funded pension accounts by 2010, so it is important that it determine the best pension system design for both individually insured funded pension accounts and state-funded individual accounts as soon as possible. The Terms of Reference for this Technical Assistance include:

Task 1: Pension system framework
Task 2: Incentive elements framework
Task 3: Actuarial and insurance framework
Task 4: Investment framework for individually insured funded pensions
Task 5: Structure of individually insured funded pension accounts
Task 6: Demographic modeling
Task 7: Modeling impact of alternative benefit program design
Task 8: Review and analysis of domestic capital markets and their inclusion in the funded pension scheme
Task 9: Analyze alternative investment strategies and their implementation
Task 10: Model alternative scenarios for awards to existing pensioners
Task 11: Pension program structural and implementation issues
Task 12: Final report (including development impact analysis)

The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $511,400 Grantee cost share and a $600,000 grant to the Grantee from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), for a total of $1,111,400.

A detailed Request for Proposals (RFP), which includes requirements for the Proposal, the Terms of Reference, and a background desk study report are available from USTDA, at 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1600, Arlington, VA 22209-3901. To request the RFP in PDF format, please go to:

https://www.ustda.gov/businessopps/rfpform.asp

Requests for a mailed hardcopy version of the RFP may also be faxed to the IRC, USTDA at 703-875-4009. In the fax, please include your firm's name, contact person, address, and telephone number. Some firms have found that RFP materials sent by U.S. mail do not reach them in time for preparation of an adequate response. Firms that want USTDA to use an overnight delivery service should include the name of the delivery service and your firm's account number in the request for the RFP. Firms that want to send a courier to USTDA to retrieve the RFP should allow one hour after faxing the request to USTDA before scheduling a pick-up. Please note that no telephone requests for the RFP will be honored. Please check your internal fax verification receipt. Because of the large number of RFP requests, USTDA cannot respond to requests for fax verification. Requests for RFPs received before 4:00 PM will be mailed the same day. Requests received after 4:00 PM will be mailed the following day. Please check with your courier and/or mail room before calling USTDA.

Only U.S. firms and individuals may bid on this USTDA financed activity. Interested firms, their subcontractors and employees of all participants must qualify under USTDA's nationality requirements as of the due date for submission of qualifications and proposals and, if selected to carry out the USTDA-financed activity, must continue to meet such requirements throughout the duration of the USTDA-financed activity. All goods and services to be provided by the selected firm shall have their nationality, source and origin in the U.S. or host country. The U.S. firm may use subcontractors from the host country for up to 20 percent of the USTDA grant amount. Details of USTDA's nationality requirements and mandatory contract clauses are also included in the RFP.

Interested U.S. firms should submit their Proposal in the English and Azeri languages directly to the Grantee by 4:00 PM (Baku time), May 14, 2008, at the above address. Evaluation criteria for the Proposal are included in the RFP. Price will not be a factor in contractor selection, and therefore, cost proposals should NOT be submitted. The Grantee reserves the right to reject any and/or all Proposals. The Grantee also reserves the right to contract with the selected firm for subsequent work related to the project. The Grantee is not bound to pay for any costs associated with the preparation and submission of Proposals.
B Azerbaijan: Pension Reforms Project Technical Assistance

POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1600, Arlington, VA 22209-3901, Tel: (703) 875-4357, Fax: (703) 875-4009. Azerbaijan: Pension Reforms Project Technical Assistance. Reference is made to the March 18, 2008, announcement, reference number 0781001B, inviting submission of qualifications and a proposal to perform the technical assistance on the proposed Azerbaijan Pension Reforms Project. USTDA has received inquiries requesting clarification regarding the USTDA Nationality, Source, and Origin Requirements. Because USTDA will be funding only a portion of the total cost of the TA, those Requirements apply only to the USTDA contributions. Accordingly, USTDA hereby provides the following clarification:

For the purposes of the USTDA Nationality, Source, and Origin Requirements, the following shall apply with respect to the total US$1,111,400 of funding for this TA:

(i) The Contractor shall be either a U.S. firm or U.S. consultant;

(ii) At least US$480,000 shall be used for the U.S. Contractor and/or U.S. subcontractors;

(iii) Up to US$120,000 (20% of the USTDA Grant amount) may be used for Host Country subcontractors; provided, however, that any portion thereof not used for Host Country subcontractors shall be used for the U.S. Contractor and/or U.S. subcontractors;

and

(iv) US$511,400 shall not subject to the USTDA Nationality, Source, and Origin Requirements and may be used for the U.S. Contractor, U.S. subcontractors, Host Country subcontractors, and/or third-country subcontractors.

USTDA is making available this information for the benefit of all prospective bidders. The response date for this RFP remains 4:00 P.M. Baku Time, May 14, 2008.

Reference is made to the March 18, 2008, announcement, reference number 0781011B that was also modified on April 18, 2008, inviting submission of qualifications and a proposal to perform the technical assistance on the proposed Azerbaijan Pension Reforms Project. USTDA has received inquiries requesting clarification regarding the application of the Award Criteria detailed in Section 4 of the Request for Proposals. In response to these inquiries, USTDA hereby provides the following clarification:

The Azerbaijan State Social Protection will apply the Award Criteria detailed in Section 4 of the Request for Proposals to both the Offeror firm and the personnel proposed for the project.

USTDA is making available this information for the benefit of all prospective bidders. The response date for this RFP remains 4:00 P.M. Baku Time, May 14, 2008

Contracting Office Address:

United States Trade and Development Agency, USTDA, USTDA, 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1600, C/O US TDA 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1600, Arlington, VA, 22209-3901, UNITED STATES

Primary Point of Contact.:

Point of Contact(s):

Evangela Kunene, Procurement Data Manager, Phone 703-875-4357, Fax 703-875-4009, Email ekunene@ustda.gov