Consultancy Firm Recruitment at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is a regional grouping with 15 Member States in West Africa (three landlocked and one island) with a population of about 300 million with an annual economic growth rate of around 6%. The ECOWAS Commission is one of the eight Regional Economic Communities supporting the African Union to coordinate the implementation of continental and regional integration and development programmes in the West African region.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Consultancy Firm (To Undertake a Study Related to the Modernization of the Dakar - Bamako Railway)

Location: West Africa
Type: Expression of Interest (EOI)

Job Description

• Source of Funding: ECOWAS Budget and the Spanish cooperation for international development (AECID)
• The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission has received financing from the Spanish Cooperation for International Development (AECID) towards the cost of the ECOWAS Project Preparation and Development Unit (PPDU), and intends to apply part of the proceeds for consulting services.
• The consulting services include conducting preliminary design studies towards the modernization of the Dakar - Bamako-Koulikoro Railway Line including transaction advises on institutional arrangements and resource mobilization towards the modernzaton of this cnhcal regional railway link.
• The Dakar-Bamako railway links the capitals of Senegal and Mali. It contributes to the opening up of Mali via the port of Dakar and facilitates economic exchanges between member countries of the sub regional integration spaces (WAEMU, ECOWAS) and to the opening up of the regions it covers. The railway was built at the beginning of last century and is a 1,286 km long metric gauge railway.
• This railway line experienced very little rehabilitation or maintenance work. Consequently, it was under exploited and unable to cover the potential freight and passenger traffic. In order to.. improve the competiveness of the route, concessions arrangement were initiated in April 2001. However, due to various challenges and difficulties, these concession arrangements did not yield the desired result and the insufficiencies on the line still remain.

In line with the above, the ECOWAS Commission is seeking to engage the services of a Consultancy Firm undertake the following services towards the modernization of the Dakar- Bamako Railway Line,

• Transaction advise and support to institutional reforms to enhance the oversight, management and operation of the Dakar-Bamako Railway Line
• Formulate a resource mobilization strategy to encourage investment in the Dakar - Bamako Railway line
• Undertake technical preliminary design studies to facilitate the rehabilitation works on the Dakar - Bamako Railway line

Qualifications
For the realization of the mission, the firm shall:

• Have an overall experience of at least ten (10) years in Railway Infrastructure;
• Completed at least one similar assignment in the past ten (10) years;
• Have working experience n at least 2 ECOWAS countries in the past 10 years;
• Have an average annual turnover of at least US$300,000.00 as confirmed by audited financial statements;
• Have the capacity to produce reports and all other relevant documents in English and French.

Selection Procedure

• The selection procedure will be Quality and Cost Based Selection method (QCBS) in accordance with the ECO WAS Tender Coda. The ECOWAS Commission is under no obligation to shortlist any Consultant who expresses interest,
• A shortlist of six (6) firms which present the best profiles shall be drawn up after the expression of interest.
• The firms that are part of an international network are to submit one expression of interest.

The ECOWAS Commission now invites eligible Consultancy Firms to indicate their interest in providing these services. Interested Consultancy Firms must provide information showing that they are qualified to perform the services:

• List of staff and expertise of the firm for the mission;
• The firm should have on its team, members with a combined knowledge of English and French;
• Evidence of verifiable technical references similar to this mission: list of previous clients and contacts for this type of mission stating the year and the cost of the mission;
• The Office Address (location, contact, PB, Telephone, Fax, email).

The attention of interested firms is drawn to Article 87 of the ECOWAS Tender Code ("Infringements by Candidates, Bidders and Awardees”), setting forth corrupt or fraudulent practices in competing for or executing a contract. In addition, please refer to the following specific information on conflict of interest related to this assignment as per Article 17. (h) of the ECOWAS Tender Code.

Interested firms may wish to apply as a consortium to enhance their profile and chance of being qualified.

Application Closing Date
11:00 am (GMT +1) Thursday 15th September, 2016.

Method of Application
Expression of Interest must be delivered in sealed envelope and clearly marked "Recruitment of a Consultancy Firm To Undertake A Study Related to the Modernization of the Dakar - Bamako Railway", Do not open except in the presence of the Tender Committee" to the address below:
The ECOWAS Tender Box.
The Office of the Commissioner,
General Administration & Conference,
5th Floor ECOWAS Commission,
101 Yakubu Gowon Crescent,
Asokoro District,
P. M. B. 401,
Abuja-Nigeria.

Note
Expressions of Interest can be submitted in any of the ECO WAS official languages (English, French or Portuguese) Please note that electronic submissions are not accepted and will therefore not be considered.

Interested Consultants may obtain further information at the address below during office hours: Monday to Friday from 9.00 am GMT+1 to 5.00 pm (GMT+1):
Procurement Division,
Directorate of General Administration,
ECOWAS Commission,
Plot 101, Yakubu Gowon Crescent,
Asokoro District,
P M. B. 401,
Abuja- Nigeria.
Or
By E-mail to this following address: [email protected] , [email protected] , [email protected] with copy to [email protected]