Invitation for Pre-Qualification & Expression of Interest (EOI) at the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF)

The Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF) was established by the Federal Government of Nigeria to facilitate the achievement of national policy goals for universal access and universal service to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in rural, un served and under-served areas in Nigeria.

Applications are invited for:

Title: Invitation for Pre-Qualification & Expression of Interest (EOI)

Preamble
To achieve the above statutory mandate and in compliance with the provisions of the Public Procurement Act 2007, the Universal Service Provision Fund under its 2022 budget hereby invites qualified, competent and reputable contractors, consultants and service providers to submit Pre-Qualification Documents & Expression of Interest for the following Goods and Services.

Scope of Works

Category A - Invitation for Pre-Qualification:

Lot No	Services	Location
BA(E)-1	Provision, Upgrade & Management of Bandwidth	North Central
BA(E)-2	Provision, Upgrade & Management of Bandwidth	North East
BA(E)-3	Provision, Upgrade & Management of Bandwidth	North West
BA(E)-4	Provision, Upgrade & Management of Bandwidth	South East
BA(E)-5	Provision, Upgrade & Management of Bandwidth	South South
BA(E)-6	Provision, Upgrade & Management of Bandwidth	South West
Lot No	Goods	Location
GD 2	Supply of Furniture & Fittings	HQ, Abuja

Category B - Expression of Interest (EOI):

Lot No	Services	Location
BA(N)-1	Installation, Provision, Upgrade & Mgt. of Bandwidth	North Central
BA(N)-2	Installation, Provision, Upgrade & Mgt. of Bandwidth	North East
BA(N)-3	Installation, Provision, Upgrade & Mgt. of Bandwidth	North West
BA(N)-4	Installation, Provision, Upgrade & Mgt. of Bandwidth	South East
BA(N)-5	Installation, Provision, Upgrade & Mgt. of Bandwidth	South South
BA(N)-6	Installation, Provision, Upgrade & Mgt. of Bandwidth	South West
TA	Technical Auditors for USPF Projects	Various Locations
AR	Preparation & Publication of USPF Annual Report	HQ, Abuja
AG	Update of USPF Access Gap	Various Locations
IA	Impact Assessment of USPF Projects	Various Locations
SMP	Development of Strategic Management Plan	HQ, Abuja
FM	Engagement of Fund Manager	HQ, Abuja

Eligiblity Requirements
All submissions must comply with the requirements of Public Procurement Act, 2007 and interested bidders must submit the following documents:

• Evidence of Certificate of Incorporation issued by Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) including forms CAC 1.1 or CAC 2 & CAC7;
• CTC of Articles and Memorandum of Association of the Company. It must show that the company has ICT related activities as part of its objectives (Not a requirement for GD2, AR, SMP & FM);
• Evidence of filing annual returns for the preceding three (3) years (2019, 2020, and 2021) by inclusion of an acknowledgment letter from CAC,
• Evidence of Company Income's Tax Clearance Certificate for the preceding three (3) years (2019, 2020, and 2021) valid till 31" of December 2022 (with an average minimum annual turnover in the last three years of N238 million for BACE), N108 million for BA(N));
• Company's audited accounts for the last three (3) years (2019, 2020, and 2021) duly acknowledged by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS);
• Evidence of current Pension Clearance Certificate valid till 31" December, 2022 (applicable where number of staff is at least 15);
• Evidence of current Industrial Training Fund (ITF) compliance certificate valid till 31" December, 2022 (applicable where number of staff is at least 5 or the bidder's annual turnover is at least N50m);
• Evidence of Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) Clearance Certificate valid till 31" December, 2022;
• Evidence of registration on the National Database of Federal Contractors, Consultants and Service Providers by submission of an Interim Registration Report (IRR) expiring by 31" December, 2022 or valid certificate issued by BPP;
• Sworn Affidavit disclosing whether or not any officer of the relevant committees of the Universal Service Provision Fund or the Bureau of Public Procurement is a former or present Director, shareholder or has any pecuniary interest in the bidder and has to confirm that all information presented in its bid are true and correct in all particulars;
• Reference Letter from a reputable commercial bank in Nigeria, indicating willingness to provide credit facility for the execution of the project when needed;
• Documentary evidence proof of at least three (3) similar projects carried out in the past five (5) years including Letters of Award, Job Completion Certificates and photographs of the projects;
• Proponents must be an Internet Service Provision (ISP) Licence holder (for BA (E) & BA(N));
• Company's Profile with Curriculum Vitae of Key Staff to be deployed for the project, including copies of their Academic/Professional qualifications,
• Evidence of Firm's registration with relevant regulatory professional body(ies);
• For Joint Venture/Partnership, the following documents must be provided for each JV partner: Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Certificate of Incorporation, Tax Clearance Certificate, Pension Clearance Certificate, ITF Compliance Certificate, NSITE Clearance Certificate, IRR & Sworn Affidavit. Note: Not more than twocompanies should form joint venture;
• All documents for submission must be transmitted with a Covering/Forwarding letter under the Company/Firm's Letterhead Paper bearing amongst others, the Registration Number (RC) as issued by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Contact Address, Telephone Number (preferably GSM No.), and e-mail address. The letterhead Paper must bear the names and Nationalities of the Directors of the Company at the bottom of the page, duly signed by authorized officer of the firm.

Application Closing Date (Category B - EOI)
10:00am, 9th May, 2022.

Application Closing Date (Category A - Invitation for Pre-Qualification)
10:00am, 16th May, 2022.

N/B: kindly note that bids will be opened immediately after the deadline for submission at 10:00 on 9th May, 2022 for category B and 10:00am on 16th May, 2022 for category A respectively.

Submission of EOI and Pre-Qualification Documents
Bids must be in English Language and signed by an official authorized by the bidder. Interested Firms are to submit two (2) bound documents separately in a sealed envelope. All Documents should be addressed to:
The Secretary,
Universal Service Provision Fund,
Nigerian Communications Commission Head Office,
9th Floor, 423, Aguiyi Ironsi Street
Maitama District,
F.C.T - Abuja.

Note

• Each Package shall be clearly marked with the following information on both sides of the envelope:
  • Technical Bid marked 'USPF/LOTX/TECHNICAL/2022 at the top right hand corner for Category A;
  • Expression of Interest marked USPF/LOTX/EOI/2022 at the top right hand corner for Category B;
  • Bid Bond 'USPF/STD/LOTX/BB/2022;
• Please note that X denotes the Lot Name
  • Name of Proponent on each of the enclosed document;
  • Contact Name, Phone Number and E-Mail Address:
• An authorized representative of the Bidder shall duly sign all copies of the documents. In the event of any discrepancy between copies, the original shall govern;
• Interested Parties shall not bid for more than two (2) Lots of all 2022 USPF Goods, Works and Services;
• USPF will assume no responsibility for the content of tamper evident bids or for non compliance with this instruction. Bids that do not comply with this requirements shall be returned un-opened;
• Proponents can submit through Post (Courier Services);
• Kindly note that submissions shall be subjected to verification from relevant authorities, Fake documents and false declaration may be forwarded to the relevant prosecution authorities. Failure to comply with the tendering instructions shall lead to disqualification.

Disclaimer

• Submissions after the date and time specified above shall be returned un-opened;
• All cost incurred by proponents in response to this advert or enquiries shall be borne by such bidders and not the USPF;
• The USPF is not bound to pre-qualify/shortlist any bidder and reserves the right to annul the Procurement process at any time without incurring any liabilities in accordance with Section 28 of the Public Procurement Act 2007;
• This advertisement is published for information purposes, and should not be construed as a commitment or obligation on the part of the USPF to award contract;
• Presence of bidders/representatives and members of the public shall not be required during the bid opening ceremony in compliance with COVID-19 Guidelines. The Bids Opening will be covered by video recording invitation link will be sent to bidders to join the bid opening online) with the physical presence of two (2) representatives of private sector professional bodies and Civil Society Organisation in the areas of Anti-Corruption/Transparency
• Pre-qualification: Only pre-qualified bidders will be invited at a later date for collection of Tender documents;
• Service: Only shortlisted firms will be invited at a later date for collection of Request for Proposals;
• Interested parties shall not bid for both the Technical Audit and Implementation of any one project.

For further clarification on the advertisement, please email: uspfprocurement@ncc.gov.ng , uspfbids@ncc.gov.ng , uspfprocurement@uspf.gov.ng , uspfbids@uspf.gov.ng