Request for Expressions of Interest at Growth & Employment (GEM) Project Through the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI)
Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI)
Growth & Employment (GEM) Project
Credit No. NG- 4882
Grant Administrator Firm
Request for Expressions of Interest
The Growth and Employment (GEM) Project aims to increase firm growth and employment in participating firms in Nigeria. The project is being delivered through the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI) by the Federal Implementation Unit (FPIU) to focus on manufacturing and service sectors, specifically supporting ICT, entertainment, hospitality & Tourism, light manufacturing and construction sectors. Project support will address cross cutting issues, assistance to specific clusters, and more direct support to firms channeled through various training and grant schemes.
The project team is developing an integrated transaction enabled web-portal as the primary means of interaction between the project and its beneficiaries. The name of the portal is Business Innovation and Growth Support (BIG). More specifically, the BIG Platform will:
• Enable potential beneficiaries to register on the GEM program,
• Provide a facilitated access to training programs,
• Track the progress of the beneficiaries (participation to training programs and achievement during training),
• Enable potential beneficiaries to apply for grants and automatically test the eligibility of firms for the grants.
The GEM program will comprise of six grant windows, namely: –
(i) Equity
(ii) Matching/Innovation
(iii) Performance
(iv) Institutional
(v) Worker Retention and
(vi) Innovative Market.
Details of the six windows is provided in the terms of reference (TOR).
Objective of Assignment:
The GEM Project wishes to engage a firm/consortium (hereinafter called ‘Firm’) to administer the grants of GEM in accordance with the guidelines set out in the grants/operations manual. The grants manual establishes the procedures, controls and criteria required to solicit, award and administer grants under this Project.
Scope of Work:
The Firm will administer the GEM grants which are targeted at five clusters, namely: ICT, Entertainment, Hospitality & Tourism, Light Manufacturing and Construction sectors. Most tasks will be done through the BIG Platform. Key tasks of the Firm will include but not limited to the following:
(i) Marketing of the BIG Platform and the various grants available to the firms registered on the BIG Platform:
(ii) Launching and advertising the various Windows on different communication platforms (newspapers, BIG platform, social media etc);
(iii) Administering the selection process on the BIG platform in accordance with the grants manual including the completion of all due diligence;
(iv) Collecting, documenting and verifying all documents submitted to the various grant windows;
(v) Preparing the grant disbursement agreements, signing off on these agreements and submitting the counter signatures to the Project Coordinator;
(vi) Preparing disbursement forecasts and disbursement instructions for the Project Accountant through the Project Coordinator;
Submission of Expressions of Interest (EQls):
Prospective Grant Administrators should submit Expression of Interest detailing the following information as basis for pre-qualification:
The firm to be selected shall have a broad background in Grant Administration.
• Profile of firm/consortium including ownership structure and role of each corporate entity with full contact details of each firm;
• Track records in Grants Administration and financial management in public or private sectors with names of organizations and the year of assignment;
• Proof of capacity to recruit and deploy teams to Administer/Manage Grants with names of organizations and the year of assignment
• Evidence of clearly set out estimates of grant administration costs, and justification of the cost in comparison with the program size and resources.
• Experience/knowledge of the Nigeria business environment and or Sub-Saharan Africa
• Evidence of Grants Administration and financial management with international donor agencies;
The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to paragraph 1.9 of the World Bank’s Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits & Grants by World Bank Borrower, Revised January 2011. Firms may associate with other firms in the form of a joint venture or a sub consultancy to enhance their qualifications and must be supported with evidence of partnership agreement and MoU.
A firm will be selected in accordance with the Quality and cost Based Selection (QCBS) Method set out in the Consultant Guidelines. Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours 9.00 am to 4.00 pm, Monday through Friday (except public holidays) from the Project Coordinator,Tel: +2348039265356 or +2348057763523
Expressions must be submitted in five (5) hard copies (one original and four copies plus one CD Rom), in a sealed envelope clearly marked “Expression of Interest for Grant administrator” to the address below in person or by courier mail not later than Tuesday July 7th 2015.
Project Coordinator
Growth and Employment (GEM) Project
The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment
Block G, Room 225
Old Federal Secretariat
Area 1, Garki, Abuja
Email: sanyunus2002@yahoo.com or procurement@gemng.com
Interested firms should note that:
• Submission shall be in English language only
• Submission through electronic media shall be rejected; and
• Submission received after the deadline shall be rejected
Only shortlisted firms will be contacted
