Dear Stakeholders:

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission in Malawi,

(USAID/Malawi) is offering an engagement opportunity with interested organizations to review and comment on approaches for the implementation of an upcoming activity called “Resilient Modern Energy for Healthy Forests and Livelihoods in Malawi”.

The following are the purposes of this Request for Information (RFI): 

1)     To allow stakeholders and interested organizations to review, comment, and provide suggestions on the proposed scope of upcoming subject procurement; and

2)     To increase USAID's knowledge of capabilities among potential organizations, and solicit information that will enable USAID to better prepare a solicitation that meets the Agency’s needs for this potential procurement.

Stakeholders and industry comments are requested to help refine the potential activity scope to ensure clarity, maximum development impact, sound coordination with existing activities, adoption and use of prevailing technologies and alignment with the Government of Malawi’s top priorities.

This is a Request for Information (RFI) only and is issued solely for information and planning purposes. It does not constitute a request for proposal/application/quotation, an invitation for bids or solicitation, and any proposals/applications submitted in response to this request will not be considered. The information provided in the RFI is subject to change and is not binding on the Government.

This RFI does not commit the U.S. Government to issue a solicitation. Furthermore, USAID/Malawi is not at this time seeking applications and will not accept unsolicited applications. Responders are hereby notified that all costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the interested party’s expense. The U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this RFI, and release of this RFI shall not be construed as such a commitment or as authorization to incur costs for which reimbursement would be required or sought.

Responses to this RFI are strictly voluntary and will not be returned. Respondents will not be notified of the result of the review. If a solicitation is issued, it will be announced on www.grants.gov or www.fbo.gov at a later date.

It is the responsibility of interested parties to monitor said websites for further information and updates. USAID is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information, answer questions, or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. Respondents to this RFI will not obtain any advantage and will not be precluded from participation in future solicitations, if any are issued.

RESPONSES:

Interested parties are requested to respond to this RFI and provide any documents that support their comments. Responders may provide responses through email or through attachments to email in Microsoft Word compatible format or Adobe Acrobat formats electronically to                       [email protected] with a copy to [email protected] by not later than December 19, 2018 at 4:00 P.M. Lilongwe time. Responses to the RFI must be written in English, in Microsoft Word compatible formats and use 12pt font. Please number each page consecutively and please include the title RFI-612-18-MEHFL-02 Resilient Modern Energy for Healthy Forests and Livelihoods in Malawi in the subject line of your e-mail.

Please note that there will not be a question and answer (Q&A) opportunity during this RFI.

Please ensure your comments are concise and specific. To expedite USAID’s review of responses, please keep responses to 5 (five) pages or less in length (including any attachments).  Responses must at a minimum contain the following:

(1)  Name and address of the responding organization;

(2)  Primary point of contact, phone number and e-mail address. 

Responses may be used by USAID without restriction or limitation, therefore, proprietary information should not be sent. Responses will be used to inform USAID’s strategy and activity design and may be incorporated into any future solicitation. Please note that responders will not receive individualized feedback and that all submissions become Government property and will not be returned.

USAID is in no way obligated to utilize submitted information or issue a solicitation as a result of this RFI. USAID is not obligated to procure any of the services described herein, nor should the release of this request be construed as such a commitment on the part of USAID. Thank you for your interest in USAID/Malawi projects.