81314049-Supporting SME in selected African countries to achieve export-relevant product quality certifications

Brief description of the project: Supporting SME in selected African countries to achieve export-relevant product quality certifications. On behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung, BMZ), the Alliance for Product Quality in Africa is implemented jointly by GIZ and the National …

CPV: 79000000 Dienstleistungen für Unternehmen: Recht, Marketing, Consulting, Einstellungen, Druck und Sicherheit, 79400000 Unternehmens- und Managementberatung und zugehörige Dienste
Frist:
6. März 2025 12:00
Art der Frist:
Angebotsabgabe
Ausführungsort:
81314049-Supporting SME in selected African countries to achieve export-relevant product quality certifications
Vergabestelle:
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
Vergabenummer:
81314049

1. Buyer

1.1 Buyer

Official name : Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
Legal type of the buyer : Public undertaking, controlled by a central government authority
Activity of the contracting authority : General public services

2. Procedure

2.1 Procedure

Title : 81314049-Supporting SME in selected African countries to achieve export-relevant product quality certifications
Description : Brief description of the project: Supporting SME in selected African countries to achieve export-relevant product quality certifications. On behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung, BMZ), the Alliance for Product Quality in Africa is implemented jointly by GIZ and the National Metrology Institute of Germany (Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, PTB). The GIZ modules separate into a global project financed by the Special Initiative Decent Work for a Just Transition (Invest for Jobs) that focusses on inter-continental trade and an AfCFTA module focussing on regional trade within Africa. This assignment focuses on the Invest for Jobs module (hereinafter referred as "the Alliance"). The Alliance is a multi-stakeholder partnership supported by German development cooperation, specialized institutions of quality infrastructure, and the private sector. Measures are implemented in partner countries of the Special Initiative: Egypt, Ethiopia, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Morocco, Rwanda, Tunisia, and Senegal. The focus is on African and European companies, their investments, and the associated creation of jobs. Exporting African companies" must meet expectations of buyers in the world"s and specifically EU markets, and thus, products must meet a range of quality requirements and expectations. These include binding, legal product regulations (technical regulations), voluntary technical standards of official standardization bodies, and quality and sustainability standards of private organizations. The verification of compliance with these requirements follows prescribed procedures, which leads to certification. Companies in Africa are often unable to produce products of the required quality and/or provide proof of conformity with existing regulations and standards. This restricts trade with buyers in Europe and prevents the development of a supply industry. The low quality of products hampers higher local value creation and participation in global value chains in African partner countries. Certification, however, leads to international acceptance, is a proof of internationally recognized management systems, and thus builds trust amongst international buyers. The Alliance for Product Quality in Africa seeks to improve the quality of products from African partner countries through certification, so that they comply with the demands of international buyers. That way, exports can be increased, and value chains expanded, leading to economic growth and job creation. The project contributes to employment creation and improvement in the partner countries by strengthening the competitiveness of African manufacturing companies through improved product quality and the removal of other barriers to trade and investment. This includes capacity building of company personnel as much as the capacity to install and maintain standards of production or products. It makes direct contributions to the key indicators of the Special Initiative "Decent Work for a Just Transition", particularly in the areas of better jobs, employability, cooperation with companies and investors, sustainability, and better framework conditions.
Procedure identifier : 5e3f63e9-4f52-4a9f-b6d1-7b0f41757d07
Internal identifier : 81314049
Type of procedure : Open
The procedure is accelerated : no
Justification for the accelerated procedure :
Main features of the procedure :

2.1.1 Purpose

Main nature of the contract : Services
Main classification ( cpv ): 79000000 Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security
Additional classification ( cpv ): 79400000 Business and management consultancy and related services

2.1.2 Place of performance

Postal address : Friedrich-Ebert-Allee 32 + 36
Town : Bonn
Postcode : 53113
Country subdivision (NUTS) : Bonn, Kreisfreie Stadt ( DEA22 )
Country : Germany

2.1.3 Value

Estimated value excluding VAT : 528 800 Euro

2.1.4 General information

Additional information : Bekanntmachungs-ID: CXTRYY6YT65V49T5 Communication / questions can only be submitted in English using GIZ's eProcurement Tender Platform for the award of contracts.
Legal basis :
Directive 2014/24/EU
vgv -

2.1.6 Grounds for exclusion

Purely national exclusion grounds : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Analogous situation like bankruptcy under national law : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Corruption : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Participation in a criminal organisation : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Agreements with other economic operators aimed at distorting competition : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Breaching of obligations in the fields of environmental law : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Money laundering or terrorist financing : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Fraud : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Child labour and other forms of trafficking in human beings : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Insolvency : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Breaching of obligations in the fields of labour law : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Assets being administered by liquidator : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Guilty of misrepresentation, withheld information, unable to provide required documents and obtained confidential information of this procedure : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Conflict of interest due to its participation in the procurement procedure : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Direct or indirect involvement in the preparation of this procurement procedure : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Guilty of grave professional misconduct : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Early termination, damages or other comparable sanctions : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Breaching of obligations in the fields of social law : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Payment of social security contributions : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Business activities are suspended : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Payment of taxes : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB
Terrorist offences or offences linked to terrorist activities : In accordance with §§ 123,124 GWB

5. Lot

5.1 Lot technical ID : LOT-0001

Title : 81314049-Supporting SME in selected African countries to achieve export-relevant product quality certifications
Description : Services to be provided by the contractor: The Alliance for Product Quality in Africa ("the Alliance") has the following objective: "Product quality has increased in selected economic sectors and locations in Africa." At the core of the project is the direct hands-on support to companies in Africa (commercial farms, individual farmers and farmer cooperatives, commercial manufacturers of finished products or ingredients) to achieve export-relevant certifications. The primary intended impact is to strengthen Africa´s position on export markets. Being part of the German government´s Special Initiative "Decent Work for a Just Transition" (also called: Invest for Jobs), the Alliance also aims at fostering good employment. Hence the importance of certifications that document an improvement of working conditions in the production processes. The Alliance has been carrying out this work since 2020, gathering substantial experience with the implementation. Cooperation and liaison with other projects of Invest for Jobs and related topics in the partner countries also helps in optimizing the effectiveness and efficiency of the work. The contractor will contribute to the objectives of the Alliance by implementing two work packages. Work package 1 is called "Supporting African companies to achieve certifications" and its main achievement indicator is: "26 supported African companies in at least three of eight Invest for Jobs partner countries have each received at least one certificate of conformity with private standards (e.g. EU-organic, Fairtrade, GLOBALG.A.P., GOTS, COSMOS, of which at least 20 companies obtained certificates that contain requirements on improving the working conditions or on increasing the income of workers/smallholder farmers, reaching a total of 4000 workers/smallholder farmers (certificates must have concrete criteria concerning the improvement of working conditions or higher incomes, e.g. Fairtrade, Fair for Life, Naturland Fair, Demeter, GLOBALG.A.P., GLOBALG.A.P.-GRASP, Rainforest Alliance, ROC, GOTS, WRAP)." To this end, the contractor shall implement the following steps: (1) Organize calls for applications in the focus countries in order to select the companies to be supported. Pre-select the companies based on the applications and validate the pre-selection with the Alliance team. (2) Conduct on-site visits of the companies for fact-checking, validation of the selection, and first diagnosis. (3) Check compliance with ILO Core Labour Standards (4) Facilitate the signing of cooperation agreements between the companies and GIZ. (5) Establish a workplan with each company and conduct group and individual trainings as needed. (6) Organize a qualified mock audit and provide assistance to the companies concerning the non-conformities and organize the official audit with independent Certification Bodies and accompany the supported companies through the certification process. (7) Support the companies to follow up with the external audit and address eventual non-conformities (8) Provide monitoring and other reports to the Alliance team. Work package 2 is called "Trainings on quality management". It is mostly a pre-requisit for successfully implementing work package 1, but nonetheless its achievement is monitored on its own. The indicator measuring its successful implementation is: "250 out of 350 employees of African companies/agricultural enterprises involved in quality management, 175 of them women, who participated in qualification measures on quality requirements demanded by European buyers, confirm the relevance of the contents taught for their work and that they have contributed to improving product quality in their companies after their qualification measures. These activities will initially be implemented in the selected focus countries (Egypt, Ghana, Morocco). In the course of implementation, further activities may be implemented in the other partner countries of Invest for Jobs. The contractor is free to decide how many companies are supported in which countries, in which sectors the companies operate and which standards are supported (taking into account the conditions specified in the indicator). However, it is important here that the companies export or intend to export and therefore also strive for conformity with standards that are in demand on the international market. Also, at least one call for applications shall be carried out in each of the focus countries. Implementation should be carried out in close coordination with the Alliance team, but the contractor retains sufficient freedom to introduce its own innovative approaches and ideas that support the economic implementation of the activities. The main focus here is on approaches and methods for selection of the companies and implementing the support, training and coaching. The Alliance expects the contractor to design the project implementation in a way that documentation, training and other necessary adjustments within the companies to achieve conformity with international private standards be carried out as effectively as possible, while at the same time guaranteeing the sustainability of the measures.
Internal identifier : 81314049

5.1.1 Purpose

Main nature of the contract : Services
Main classification ( cpv ): 79000000 Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security
Additional classification ( cpv ): 79400000 Business and management consultancy and related services
Options :
Description of the options : GIZ may optionally commission contract amendments and/or increases based on the criteria in the tender documents to the successful bidder of this tender. For details, please see the terms of reference.

5.1.2 Place of performance

Postal address : Friedrich-Ebert-Allee 32 + 36
Town : Bonn
Postcode : 53113
Country subdivision (NUTS) : Bonn, Kreisfreie Stadt ( DEA22 )
Country : Germany
Additional information :

5.1.3 Estimated duration

Duration : 27 Month

5.1.4 Renewal

Maximum renewals : 2
Other information about renewals : GIZ may optionally commission contract amendments and/or increases based on the criteria in the tender documents to the successful bidder of this tender. For details, please see the terms of reference.

5.1.6 General information

The names and professional qualifications of the staff assigned to perform the contract must be given : Not yet known
Procurement Project not financed with EU Funds.
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) : yes
This procurement is also suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) : no

5.1.7 Strategic procurement

Aim of strategic procurement : Reduction of environmental impacts
Description : - Compensation of CO2 emissions from flights within a service contract - Supporting African companies to achieve certifications of conformity with private standards (e.g. EU-organic, Fairtrade, GLOBALG.A.P., GOTS, COSMOS) and certificates that contain requirements on improving the working conditions or on increasing the income of workers/smallholder farmers (e.g. Fairtrade, Fair for Life, Naturland Fair, Demeter, GLOBALG.A.P., GLOBALG.A.P.-GRASP, Rainforest Alliance, ROC, GOTS, WRAP)
Aim of strategic procurement : Fulfilment of social objectives
Description : - Supporting African companies to achieve certifications of conformity with private standards (e.g. EU-organic, Fairtrade, GLOBALG.A.P., GOTS, COSMOS) and certificates that contain requirements on improving the working conditions or on increasing the income of workers/smallholder farmers (e.g. Fairtrade, Fair for Life, Naturland Fair, Demeter, GLOBALG.A.P., GLOBALG.A.P.-GRASP, Rainforest Alliance, ROC, GOTS, WRAP) - Observation of compliance with ILO Core Labour Standards - Supporting gender equality and observation of Women's quota
Approach to reducing environmental impacts : Climate change mitigation, Pollution prevention and control
Social objective promoted : Gender equality, Human rights due diligence in global supply chains, Fair working conditions, Other

5.1.9 Selection criteria

Criterion :
Type : Economic and financial standing
Name : Wirtschaftliche und finanzielle Leistungsfähigkeit
Description : 1. Average annual turnover for the last three years (last-but-four financial year can be included in case of tenders held within 6 months of end of last financial year), at least: 800,000.00 EUR 2. Average number of employees and managers in the last three calendar years, at least 15 persons
Criterion :
Type : Suitability to pursue the professional activity
Name : Eignung zur Berufsausübung
Description : 1. Self-declaration: name of company and address, tax ID, registration and commercial register number or equivalent register in accordance with the legal provisions of the country of origin. 2. No grounds for exclusion pursuant to § 123, § 124 GWB, § 22 LkSG 3. Declaration of bidding consortium and/or declaration of subcontractors (if applicable)
Criterion :
Type : Technical and professional ability
Name : Technische und berufliche Leistungsfähigkeit
Description : At least 3 references in the technical field of "private sector development (focus on certification)" that had a minimum commission value of EUR 500,000.00 in the last 3 years and of which at least 2 references in Africa (exclusion criterion).

5.1.10 Award criteria

Criterion :
Type : Price
Name : Preis
Description : Preiskriterium für "Bestangebots-Quotienten-Methode"
Category of award threshold criterion : Weight (points, exact)
Award criterion number : 30
Criterion :
Type : Quality
Name : Total number of points achieved according to technical assessment (incl. minimum criteria)
Description : Tenders are first rated on their technical merits in accordance with the technical assessment grid for offers specified in the tender documentation. Once the tenders have been evaluated in this way, only technical bids awarded 500 points or more will be included in the evaluation of financial bids. Technical bids that fail to reach this cut-off point will be regarded as unsuitable. The technical bid is weighted at T: 70%, the financial bid at F: 30%. Set budgets items stated in the tender documents for the financial bid are not part of the evaluation and weighting of the financial bids. Weighting is based on the formula according to Section 9 "Award criteria and the evaluation of tenders" of the Terms and conditions for application (please refer to the published tender documents).
Category of award threshold criterion : Weight (points, exact)
Award criterion number : 70
Criterion :
Type : Quality
Name : Total number of points achieved according to technical assessment (incl. minimum criteria)
Description : Tenders are first rated on their technical merits in accordance with the technical assessment grid for offers specified in the tender documentation. Once the tenders have been evaluated in this way, only technical bids awarded 500 points or more will be included in the evaluation of financial bids. Technical bids that fail to reach this cut-off point will be regarded as unsuitable. The technical bid is weighted at T: 70%, the financial bid at F: 30%. Set budgets items stated in the tender documents for the financial bid are not part of the evaluation and weighting of the financial bids. Weighting is based on the formula according to Section 9 "Award criteria and the evaluation of tenders" of the Terms and conditions for application (please refer to the published tender documents).
Category of award fixed criterion : Minimum score
Award criterion number : 500
Description of the method to be used if weighting cannot be expressed by criteria :
Justification for not indicating the weighting of the award criteria :

5.1.11 Procurement documents

Languages in which the procurement documents are officially available : English
Deadline for requesting additional information : 25/02/2025 23:59 +01:00

5.1.12 Terms of procurement

Terms of submission :
Electronic submission : Required
Languages in which tenders or requests to participate may be submitted : English
Electronic catalogue : Not allowed
Variants : Not allowed
Tenderers may submit more than one tender : Not allowed
Deadline for receipt of tenders : 06/03/2025 12:00 +01:00
Deadline until which the tender must remain valid : 116 Day
Information that can be supplemented after the submission deadline :
At the discretion of the buyer, some missing tenderer-related documents may be submitted later.
Additional information : GIZ asks the applicant or bidder to submit, complete or correct documents, within the framework laid down by law.
Information about public opening :
Opening date : 06/03/2025 12:00 +01:00
Terms of contract :
The execution of the contract must be performed within the framework of sheltered employment programmes : No
Conditions relating to the performance of the contract : The execution conditions result from the information given in the contract notice and the tender documents.
Electronic invoicing : Required
Electronic ordering will be used : yes
Electronic payment will be used : yes

5.1.15 Techniques

Framework agreement :
No framework agreement
Information about the dynamic purchasing system :
No dynamic purchase system

5.1.16 Further information, mediation and review

Review organisation : Die Vergabekammern des Bundes -
Information about review deadlines : According to Article 160, Section 3 of the German Act Against Restraint of Competition (GWB), application for review is not permissible insofar as 1. the applicant has identified the claimed infringement of the procurement rules before submitting the application for review and has not submitted a complaint to the contracting authority within a period of 10 calendar days; the expiry of the period pursuant to Article 134, Section 2 remains unaffected, 2. complaints of infringements of procurement rules that are evident in the tender notice are not submitted to the contracting authority at the latest by the expiry of the deadline for the application or by the deadline for the submission of bids, specified in the tender notice. 3. complaints of infringements of procurement rules that first become evident in the tender documents are not submitted to the contracting authority at the latest by the expiry of the deadline for application or by the deadline for the submission of bids, 4. more than 15 calendar days have expired since receipt of notification from the contracting authority that it is unwilling to redress the complaint. Sentence 1 does not apply in the case of an application to determine the invalidity of the contract in accordance with Article 135, Section 1 (2). Article 134, Section 1, Sentence 2 remains unaffected. According to Article 160, Section 3 of the German Act Against Restraint of Competition (GWB), application for review is not permissible insofar as 1. the applicant has identified the claimed infringement of the procurement rules before submitting the application for review and has not submitted a complaint to the contracting authority within a period of 10 calendar days; the expiry of the period pursuant to Article 134, Section 2 remains unaffected, 2. complaints of infringements of procurement rules that are evident in the tender notice are not submitted to the contracting authority at the latest by the expiry of the deadline for the application or by the deadline for the submission of bids, specified in the tender notice. 3. complaints of infringements of procurement rules that first become evident in the tender documents are not submitted to the contracting authority at the latest by the expiry of the deadline for application or by the deadline for the submission of bids, 4. more than 15 calendar days have expired since receipt of notification from the contracting authority that it is unwilling to redress the complaint. Sentence 1 does not apply in the case of an application to determine the invalidity of the contract in accordance with Article 135, Section 1 (2). Article 134, Section 1, Sentence 2 remains unaffected.
Organisation providing additional information about the procurement procedure : Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH -
Organisation receiving requests to participate : Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH -

8. Organisations

8.1 ORG-0001

Official name : Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
Registration number : 993-80072-52
Postal address : Dag-Hammarskjöld-Weg 1 - 5
Town : Eschborn
Postcode : 65760
Country subdivision (NUTS) : Main-Taunus-Kreis ( DE71A )
Country : Germany
Telephone : +49 6196794873
Roles of this organisation :
Buyer
Organisation providing additional information about the procurement procedure
Organisation receiving requests to participate

8.1 ORG-0002

Official name : Die Vergabekammern des Bundes
Registration number : 022894990
Postal address : Villemombler Straße 76
Town : Bonn
Postcode : 53123
Country subdivision (NUTS) : Bonn, Kreisfreie Stadt ( DEA22 )
Country : Germany
Telephone : +49 2289499-0
Fax : +49 2289499-163
Roles of this organisation :
Review organisation

8.1 ORG-0003

Official name : Datenservice Öffentlicher Einkauf (in Verantwortung des Beschaffungsamts des BMI)
Registration number : 0204:994-DOEVD-83
Town : Bonn
Postcode : 53119
Country subdivision (NUTS) : Bonn, Kreisfreie Stadt ( DEA22 )
Country : Germany
Telephone : +49228996100
Roles of this organisation :
TED eSender
Notice information
Notice identifier/version : a8b9012e-752f-46af-9195-565fcab02190 - 01
Form type : Competition
Notice type : Contract or concession notice – standard regime
Notice dispatch date : 31/01/2025 16:24 +01:00
Languages in which this notice is officially available : English
Notice publication number : 00076005-2025
OJ S issue number : 24/2025
Publication date : 04/02/2025