Hiring a Consultancy firm to undertake detailed design study for irrigation development works of Kiryango marshland.

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

(CONSULTING SERVICES -– FIRMS SELECTION)

COUNTRY: Rwanda

NAME OF PROJECT: Commercialization and De-risking for Agricultural

Transformation (CDAT) Project

Credit A No: 7084-RW, Credit B No: 7085-RW and Grant No: E017-RW

Assignment Title: Hiring a Consultancy firm for detailed design study of Base-Kiryango-Nyirakiyange marshlands.

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Reference No: RW-RAB-356362-CS-QCBS

The Government of Rwanda has received financing from the International Development Association (IDA) toward the cost of the Commercialization and De-risking for Agricultural Transformation (CDAT) Project and intends to apply part of the proceeds for consulting services of hiring a Consultancy firm for detailed design study of Base-Kiryango-Nyirakiyange marshlands.

The Terms of Reference (TOR) related to this assignment are attached to this request for expressions of interest.

The Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB) / Commercialization and De-risking for Agricultural Transformation (CDAT) Project now invites eligible consulting firms (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the above Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services. Expression of Interest (EOI) will include: core business and years in business, relevant experience, technical and managerial capability of the firm.

To be able to submit an expression of interest, International and National consulting firms who are not registered in E-procurement system, are advised to register themselves through www.umucyo.gov.rw

N.B.:

Submission of expression of interest via other channels than Umucyo E-Procurement System shall not be considered. In case of Joint-Venture, only the lead firm must submit the Expression of Interest, the Joint-Venture must be done through e-procurement system, otherwise the EOI will be rejected.

The shortlisting criteria are:

• The firm should have at least ten (10) years of general experience in Consultancy Services and three (3) specific references proven by certificate of good completion and signed contract in consultancy services related to the feasibility and detailed design studies on irrigation projects, supervision of construction for irrigation dams and the dam command area development.

The shortlist will contain five (5) to eight (8) firms.

The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” Fourth Edition September, 2023 (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

Consultants may associate with other firms to enhance their qualifications, but should indicate clearly whether the association is in the form of a joint venture and/or a sub-consultancy. In the case of a joint venture, all the partners in the joint venture shall be jointly and severally liable for the entire contract, if selected.

A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the criteria set out in the Request for Proposals.

Expressions of interest must be delivered through e-procurement system on www.umucyo.gov.rw by the time indicated in the system.

TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR FEASIBILITY AND DETAIL DESIGN STUDIES FOR A NEW DAM, RAISING AN EXISTING DAM, AND IRRIGATION FOR BASE-KIRYANGO-NYIRAKIYANGE (245 HA EXISTING MARSHLAND IN BASE-KIRYANGO, 136 HA IN NYRAKIYANGE AND 1,210 HA NEW HILLSIDE COMMAND AREAS) LOCATED IN RUHANGO AND NYANZA DISTRICTS OF SOUTHERN PROVINCE

• BACKGROUND

The World Bank approved $300 million in financing under the International Development Association’s (IDA’s) grant, credit, and Scale Up Window to help the Government of Rwanda increase the use of irrigation and commercialization among producers and agribusiness firms in supported value chains, and to increase access to agricultural finance.

The Commercialization and De-Risking for Agricultural Transformation Project (CDAT) will support the Government to provide services and create an enabling environment for the private actor throughout the agricultural value chain. It will finance public investments in the seeds sector, develop and rehabilitate irrigation systems on over 17,600 ha, provide accompanying land husbandry development on about 11,000 ha in surrounding water catchment areas to increase productivity and promote climate smart agriculture.

The project will also support commercialization by helping farmers access markets and availing matching grants for investments in mechanization, post-harvest infrastructure and processing equipment. A CDAT challenge fund will invest in particularly innovative solutions for the sector that can be brought to scale. The project is nationwide and is foreseen to directly benefit at least 235,000 households, including women and youth. In partnership with financial institutions, the Commercialization and De-Risking for Agricultural Transformation Project will seek to enhance access to affordable financial services and products in the agricultural sector by providing short and long-term financing and reducing risks and challenges faced by agricultural value chains through strengthening market linkages and scaling up agriculture insurance.

One of the projects being considered for implementation by CDAT is the rehabilitation and upgrading of Nyarubogo scheme located in Kibirizi, Muyira and Busoro Sectors, Nyanza District, Southern Province. Rice is primarily grown throughout the 150 ha command area by gravity surface irrigation with some farmers switching to maize and other crops due to lack of water while the hillside is rainfed agriculture with different seasonal crops mainly maize, beans, soybeans, cassava, and banana. A study is required to consider alternatives for raising the dam, identifying a potential site for a new dam, controlling river bank and bed erosion, improving and possibly expanding the command area, and if reasonable alternatives are found, an Interim Study is needed to present the most viable alternatives to the Client for selection of the alternative to undergo a detail design study.

• OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT

Rwanda’s economy relies heavily on agriculture as a sector contributing around 30% to the GDP. Nearly 70% of the rural population is employed in agriculture. The Government of Rwanda in its national policies indicates agriculture as a vehicle for economic growth. The National Strategy of Transformation and PSTA IV emphasizes agriculture development as a means to achieve the goal of poverty reduction and ensuring food security.

The goal of the project is to develop financially sustainable irrigation and drainage services and increase farmers’ agricultural revenue in the project area.

The overall objective of the study is to undertake a Feasibility and Detail Design Study to rehabilitate and expand the Base, Kiryango and Nyirakiyange command areas. The study must meet the World Bank project appraisal requirements and should ensure the development is technically feasible, economically and financially viable, socially acceptable, and environmentally sustainable.

The specific objectives of the assignment are to carry out relevant technical investigations and studies comprising of water resources (hydrologic and hydro-geologic) assessment, socio-economic assessment, agricultural soils and agronomic studies, irrigation water requirements, topographical surveys, geotechnical investigations, hydraulic studies and design, and undertake Feasibility and Detail Design studies for rehabilitating and expanding the existing Base Dam and command area, the Kiryango command area, and a new dam for the Nyirakinyange-Kihene command areas, to ensure optimum use of available water.

The study will be carried out in two phases; Feasibility Study and Detail Design Study. The Feasibility Study will select, examine, and rank various alternatives for increasing water harvesting, improving drainage, expanding the command area, developing low-head (less 50m) solar pumped irrigation, and if additional water storage is needed, to investigate raising Base Dam and designing a new dams for Nyirakiyange-Kihene, to maximize the command area and meet the irrigation demands. The Feasibility Study will examine different alternatives and provide preliminary design drawings, cost estimates, and economic analyses sufficiently detailed to enable decisions to be made on project viability. If the Feasibility Study results in alternatives that seem reasonable to the Client, then the Consultant will proceed with the Detail Design Study for the selected alternatives which will examine selected alternatives and provide detail design drawings, cost estimates, technical specifications, tender documents, bill of quantities, and unit price surveying to enable the client to proceed to the tendering of works. In addition, the definition of the project components, organizational arrangements, and procedures will be detailed enough to permit the executing agencies to use the study as guidance on project implementation.

The Consultant should take into consideration the World Bank policies, guidelines, and safeguards requirements, especially those for environmental and social impact assessment as well as dam safety to prepare the studies.

• SCOPE OF THE STUDY

• General

The study will entail Feasibility and Detail Design studies that include the preparation of designs, cost estimates, and implementation arrangements for the finally agreed development alternative for water harvesting, drainage and irrigation development, infrastructure, and watershed management associated with the project.

The Feasibility and Detail Design studies will comprise Data Collection (land surveys, topographic maps, soil samples, climate data, water availability, and any existing infrastructure that may affect the project), F