CALL FOR PARTNERSHIPS (CFP)
From
Not-for-Profit Institutions
Ref: STEPCam/C2/EGM_KRKC
(Please quote this UNESCO reference in all correspondence)
Date: 14 September 2020
Closing date:
Inquiries via email to: Ilaria Vanzin
I. BACKGOUND:
The United Nation Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) seeks to build peace through international cooperation in Education, the Science and Culture. UNESCO’s programmes contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in Agenda 2030 adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015. This Call for Partnerships (CFP) for Implementation Partners relates to the UNESCO project:
Strengthening Teacher Education Programmes in Cambodia (STEPCam)
The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS), under the Framework of the National Strategic Development Plan, developed the Education Strategic Plan (ESP) 2019-2023 with the ambition to develop human capital to lead Cambodia’s transformation to an upper-middle income country by 2030. To achieve these national goals, the Teacher Policy Action Plan (TPAP) was formulated aiming at providing clear direction for systematic reform and implementation of teacher policies, including concrete programmes, activities, timelines, expected outcomes, and projected budget for implementation.
The GPE3 grant for Cambodia consists of two parts: a ‘fixed part’ of US$14.4 million managed and co-funded by UNESCO as the Grant Agent, and a ‘variable part’ of US$6.2 million having UNICEF as the Grant Agent. The two parts of GPE3 will work in a complementary manner to achieve impactful results.
For the fixed part, under the leadership of the MoEYS and in consultation with the development partners, UNESCO formulated the Strengthening Teacher Education Programmes in Cambodia (STEPCam), for the period 2018 -2021, to institutionalize continuous professional development for teachers in Cambodia, as envisaged in the MoEYS CPD Policy.
The objective of the programme is to improve the quality of teaching to improve student learning, providing assistance at five levels: system, trainers, teachers, teaching and learning environment. STEPCam will (i) develop continuous professional development systems; (ii) support the government's efforts in enhancing competencies of in-service teachers, specifically those in early grades, as part of improving learning outcomes; (iii) upgrade qualification of trainers at Provincial Teacher Training Centres (PTTCs); and (iv) upgrade PTTCs infrastructure.
The second component of the Programme is about “in-service training (INSET) for the professional development of teachers on Early Grade Learning (EGL)”. This component supports the Cambodian Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sport (MoEYS) in developing and piloting a national Early Grade Learning programme, through revision of the teaching and learning materials, teachers training, and on-going support to teachers for improved teaching in Khmer reading/ writing (Early grade reading - EGR) and mathematic (Early Grade Maths - EGM) subjects.
II. OBJECTIVES AND EXPECTED OUTPUTS/DEVERABLES:
This Call for Partnership aims to complement the teaching and learning that is happening in schools and to assist parents to support their children. STEPCam and MoEYS have developed Maths Grade 1 (G1) and Grade 2 (G2) Teaching and Learning Materials Packages (TLMP). Each of grade 1 and grade 2 TLMP consists of a teacher guide, student exercise (support) book, student workbook and teaching and learning materials. Now that MoEYS has approved the Maths Grade 1 and 2 TLMP, these materials need to be turned into digital formats to be uploaded on the KRKC Facebook page. Given COVID-19 and the new context in which education needs to be delivered, this intervention will contribute to strengthening the online learning initiative of the MoEYS; the Early Grade Khmer Literacy Teaching Learning Packages have been already digitalized and uploaded on the official MoEYS EGL Komar Rien Komar Cheh (KRKC) Facebook page.
This Call for Partnership will allow the Primary Education Department (PED) to increase its available portfolio of resources for children to learn in enjoyable ways. The resources will include materials accompanying short texts and audio files that guide, remind and encourage students to learn at home every day. Furthermore, the resources will incorporate sign language videos for children and adults who have a hearing impairment. The contents and materials for this programme will be derived and aligned with the existing EGM Grade 1 and Grade 2 TLMP. The online material will be posted on the KRKC Facebook page and will complement the EG Khmer literacy that has already been posted. The MoEYS will post these new Maths materials each day, and this material will cover the entire academic year, which is expected to run from January to November 2021.
Hence, UNESCO Phnom Penh office is seeking an innovative, dynamic, creative and experienced organization/institution/ NGO to support PED of MoEYS to turn the recently approved Maths Grade 1 and Grade 2 TLMP into daily online content to be posted in the MoEYS Official EGL Komar Rien Komar Cheh Facebook Page, The expected deliverables are:
- An inception report that details the work plan, layout/structure, design of online materials, and key messages for the KRKC Maths Grade 1 and 2 resources.
- Online Maths materials and worksheets with accompanying, photos, images, short texts and audio (in Khmer language) that can guide, remind and encourage student to learn every day at home. The resources will incorporate sign language videos for children and adults who have a hearing impairment where appropriate.
- Online Maths material and accompanying photos, images, short texts and audio instruction that guide parents to support their children to use the online Maths materials.
III. ELIGIBILITY:
A UNESCO Implementation Partner is an entity with a not-for-profit status to which UNESCO has entrusted partially or fully with the implementation of programmes or projects specified in a signed document. Along with the assumption of full responsibility and accountability for the effective use of resources and the delivery of outputs as set forth in such a document.
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Main features of a UNESCO Implementation Partners’ Agreement |
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The partner brings added value, including monetary or in-kind contribution, to the project/activity |
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The partner shares in the risks and rewards of the project/activity implementation and is responsible and account for delivering expected results |
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The partner is involved at each step of the process, from detailed work plan elaboration to project/activities evaluation. |
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The partnership will include aspects beyond the delivery of a service to include capacity-building elements with respect to the partner and/or beneficiary |
The parameters that will determine whether an entity is eligible to be considered by UNESCO will be based on the UNESCO Partner Identification form - Annex 2
IV. PROPOSAL
Proposed Methodology, approach, Quality Assurance Plan and Implementation Plan
This section should demonstrate the entity’s response to the Terms of Reference by identifying the specific components proposed, how the outputs/deliverables shall be addressed, as specified; providing a detailed description of the essential performance characteristics proposed, Identifying the work/portions of the work that will be subcontracted.
Moreover, the proposal should demonstrate how the suggested methodology meets or exceeds the objective, expected outputs/deliverables and methodology set in TOR, while ensuring appropriateness of the approach to the local conditions and the rest of the project-operating environment. This methodology must be laid out in implementation timetable and a quality assurance plan.
Management Structure and Resource (Key Personnel)
This section should include the comprehensive description of the management structure and information regarding required resources including:
- The curriculum vitae (CVs) of key personnel that will be assigned to support the implementation of the proposed methodology, and
- An explanation of how the qualifications of key personnel’s are relevant to areas in the TOR.
V. EVALUATION CRITERIA AND METHODOLOGY:
Proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
- Sound technical proposal that includes innovative and replicable inclusion mechanisms to maximize the value transfer to the beneficiaries.
- High impact interventions directly targeting and responding to the needs established in the TOR.
- Size of budget requested commensurate with the organization’s proven administrative and financial management capacity.
- Participatory monitoring and evaluation that will contribute to building a sense of ownership among the beneficiaries to promote the sustainability of the interventions.
VI. BUDGET SIZE AND DURATION:
The amount requested in the proposal should be commensurate with the organization’s administrative and financial management capabilities. In principle, project duration will not exceed 12 months.
Regarding the budget of the technical proposal of the partner, UNESCO retains the right to elaborate the work plan and negotiate the budget with the partners, prior to signing agreement, to ensure value of the money. Likewise, UNESCO will ensure that in accordance with its policies the selected Partner will be able to provided added value in terms of financial or in-kind contribution. The partner’s financial or in-kind contribution will be indicated in the budget proposal. No overheads in terms of administrative or service fees are accepted (direct budgeting based on activities).
VII. SELECTION PROCESS:
UNESCO will review proposals through a five-step process; (i) determination of eligibility; (ii) technical review of eligible proposals; (iii) Cumulative scoring of Technical and Financial proposal and ranking of the eligible proposals; (vi) round of clarification (if necessary) and work plan elaboration with the highest-scoring proposal; and (v) Implementation Partners’ Agreement (IPA) signature.
VIII. SUBMISSION PROCESS:
Applicants shall bear all costs related to proposal preparation and submission
Applicants must submit their proposals and required documents in Two envelopes( one for Technical one for Financial) to:
- UNESCO Phnom Penh Office: P.O Box 29, #38, Samdech Sothearos Blvd., Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
- Number of copies: 1
The following documents must be submitted in order for the submission to be considered:
- Proposal documents (technical and financial, including project outline)
- Partners’ Identification Form (duly filled in, with supporting documents[1])
- Audited financial statements for past two years (If available. If not please provide justification why not)
- CD or flash drive with soft copy of the entire application dossier
Only one submission per organization is allowed. Once the application is completed and submitted, revised versions of proposal documents will not accepted.
Submission deadline
Proposals, with supporting documents, should be submitted by
For additional questions about the Call for Proposals Guidelines or application forms, please e-mail i.vanzin@unesco.org
Note: UNESCO reserves the right not to fund any proposals arising from this Call for Partnerships.
Depending on the value and context of the implementation partners’ agreement, the final financial report must be audited by the External Auditor of the Partner. The audit requirement will be confirmed during work plan elaboration and contract finalization.
UNESCO may conduct on site reviews (“spot checks”), subject to such standards, scope, frequency and timing as decided by UNESCO. The Partner shall provide its full and timely cooperation with any such spot checks, which shall include Partner’s obligation to make available its personnel and any relevant documentation and records for such purposes at reasonable times and on reasonable conditions and to grant to UNESCO access to Partner’s premises at reasonable times and on reasonable conditions.
Below is an estimated timeline for this Call for Partnerships:
14 September 2020: Call for Partnership Publication.
5 October 2020: Deadline for organizations to submit proposals under this call.
6 October – 23 October 2020: Assessment and selection process will take place
30 October 2020: Selected applicants will be notified.
IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
UNESCO requires that partners, bidders and their sub-contractors adhere to the highest standards of moral and ethical conduct during the implementation of the partnership agreement and do not engage in corrupt and fraudulent practices.
United Nation Agencies have adopted a zero tolerance policy on gifts and, therefore, it is of overriding importance that UNESCO staff should not be placed in position where their actions may constitute or could be reasonably perceived as reflecting favorable treatment of an individual or entity by accepting offers of gifts, hospitality or other similar favours. Partners are therefore requested not to send or offer gifts or hospitality to UNESCO Personnel.
UNESCO will:
- Reject a proposal to award and agreement if it determines that a partner recommended for award has engaged in fraud and/or corruption in competing for the agreement in question.
- Cancel or terminate an agreement if it determines that a partner has engaged in a fraud and/or corruption in competing for or in executing a UNESCO contract.
- Declare a partner ineligible to become a “United Nations registered vendor”, either indefinitely or for a stated period, if it determines at any time that the partner has engaged in fraud and/or corruption in competing for or in executing a UNESCO agreement.
This Call for Partnerships is not to be construed in any way as an offer to contract with your organization. Your proposal could, however, form the basis for a contract between your organization and UNESCO.
You are requested to acknowledge the receipt of this Call for Partnership and to indicate whether you will be submitting a proposal. For this purpose, and for any requests for clarification, please contact
For and on behalf of UNESCO
Education / Phnom Penh
Ilaria Vanzin, STEPCam Programme Manager
IX. ANNEXES:
Annex 1 - Terms of Reference
Annex 2 - UNESCO Partner Identification form
Annex 3 - Budget Template
Annex 4 - Implementation Partners’ Agreement (example)
[1] Supporting document is required such as annual report, organizational strategic plan, organizational policy for governance structure, financial management, and others. These supporting documents could be submitted in soft copy.