Request for Proposals for Translation and Interpretation services

Request for Proposals for

Translation and Interpretation services

Submission of Proposal Deadline: 23:00 Hanoi time, Sunday, August 6, 2023

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP)

I. Project Background

Social Impact, Inc. (SI) is implementing the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Learns contract. The scope of the five-year project is to support USAID/Vietnam staff and partners to implement more efficient, effective, and transparent programs by improving: (1) USAID and implementing partners’ (IPs) capacity to achieve expected results; (2) USAID’s understanding and tracking of project performance; and (3) collaborating, learning, and adapting (CLA).

Scope of Work

SI seeks qualified independent translators/interpreters to provide translation and interpretation services to the USAID Learns team in support of its activities. SI invites Applicants to submit proposals for translation and interpretation services under the criteria below. SI will require both translation and interpretation services from English into Vietnamese and from Vietnamese into English.

Responsibilities:

• Provide Vietnamese to English (and vice versa) translation support to the team throughout an activity.
• Provide Vietnamese/English language interpretation for SI employees and consultants in meetings with local relevant stakeholders, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews.
• Provide Vietnamese/English language simultaneous interpretation for SI’s events, training, workshops.
• Provide transcription service if needed.

Qualifications:

Required:

• 5+ years of work experience as a translator/interpreter.
• Proven experience translating for evaluations and various subject technical areas. 
• Excellent communication and language skills.
• Good skills in Microsoft Office applications.
• Demonstrated organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Able to work under pressure and meet deadlines.

Preferred:

• Previous experience working on USAID or other international funded projects in similar size and scope.

Ordering Process

Under this solicitation, SI intends to select qualified translators/interpreters and issue a Firm Fixed Price Independent Blanket Consultant Agreement (FFP BCA) to establish pricing levels and parameters for ordering services in the future. This will allow SI to issue specific Work Orders (WO) under each BCA, on an as-needed basis, for the ordering of translation/interpretation services over the length of the duration of the BCA. The Translator/Interpreter shall furnish the services described in any WO issued by SI under the BCA. SI is only obligated to pay for services ordered through WOs issued under the BCA and delivered by the Translator/Interpreter in accordance with the terms/conditions of the BCA and WO. At this time, the quantity of services to be requested under any BCA resulting from this RFP are unknown. Specific quantities will depend on the needs of the project and individual WOs will be issued under the BCA as the need arises for services. This solicitation does not commit SI to award a contract nor to a specific level of engagement.

Confidentiality

All selected consultants with access to or involved in the translation and interpretation services under this BCA will be asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement (to be provided upon award) signifying their understanding of ethical behavior in the field and proper handling of confidential and private information, including personally identifiable information (PII). Similarly, the selected Applicants will be required to read and acknowledge SI’s Standards for Business & Ethical Conduct [1].

II.        Submission Instructions

Applicants must submit the following as part of their proposal:

• Curriculum Vitae (CV): Provide anupdated Curriculum Vitae.
• Cover Letter: Introduce yourself, briefly summarize your professional experience and include an expression of interest.
• Quotation (Appendix A [2]): The Applicant is required to prepare a quotation covering all items in Appendix A_Requirements. The Applicants shall submit the price in a lump-sum form, including personal income tax, and expressed in Vietnamese Dong (VND). Applicants are responsible for ensuring that their offers are received by SI by the instructions, terms, and conditions described in this RFP. Failure to adhere to instructions described in this RFP may lead to disqualification of an offer from consideration. The unit prices included in the quotation will be considered final and carried over into the BCA. Changes to unit prices upon Applicant selection may result in disqualification of the Applicant.

Offer Deadline and Protocol

Apply here
https://phg.tbe.taleo.net/phg02/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=SOCIIMPA2&cws=43&rid=4541 [3]

To apply, please merge your CV, cover letter, and Appendix A into one pdf file and submit it through the online portal.

The closing date for application: Sunday, August 6, 2023.

Eligibility

By submitting an offer in response to this RFP, the Applicant certifies that it and its principal officers are not debarred, suspended, or otherwise considered ineligible for an award by the U.S. Government. SI will not award a contract to any firm that is debarred, suspended, or considered to be ineligible by the U.S. Government.

Taxes and VAT

The agreement under which this procurement is financed is not exempt from the payment of taxes, VAT, tariffs, duties, or other levies imposed by any laws in effect in the Cooperating Country. Therefore, Applicants must include taxes, VAT, charges, tariffs, duties, and levies in accordance with the laws of the Cooperating Country.

III.     Evaluation

The selection will be made to responsible Applicants whose offer follows the RFP instructions, meets the eligibility requirements, and is determined via a trade-off analysis to be the best valuebased on the candidate’s qualifications and cost reasonableness.

Please note that if there are significant deficiencies regarding responsiveness to the requirements of this RFP, an offer may be deemed “non-responsive” and thereby disqualified from consideration. SI reserves the right to waive immaterial deficiencies at its discretion.

To learn more about Social Impact, please visit our website: http://www.socialimpact.com [4]

SI is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

Only selected candidates will be contacted. Please, no phone calls and/or office visits.