DEADLINE: 11TH SEPTEMBER, 2023
ECONOMIC COMMUNITY OF WEST AFRICAN STATES (ECOWAS)
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FOR CONSULTANCY SERVICES FOR THE HARMONIZATION OF HIGHWAY DESIGN CODES FOR THE ECOWAS REGION
(1) The ECOWAS Commission, within the framework of the execution of its 2023 Annual Work Program, intends to recruit a Consulting Firm for the Consultancy Services for the Harmonization of Highway Design Codes for the ECOWAS Region. The Harmonized Highway Design Manual for West Africa shall essentially focus on the Trans-African Highways (TAH 1, 2, 5, 7) within the ECOWAS Region as defined by the African Union (AU), as well as priority corridors identified in PIDA and the ECOWAS Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan.
(2) The main services to be provided by Consultant under this project shall include the following:
(i) Review of the existing road design manuals, guides, codes and standards in use in ECOWAS Member States and other best practices in Africa namely South Africa and Kenya;
(ii) Conduct a literature review on appropriate international best practices on road design manuals, guides, codes and standards aligned with the appropriate UN Geneva 1986 Convention on Road Traffic ;
(iii) Prioritize the drafting of harmonized highway design manual elements (in various document volumes) in coordination with ECOWAS;
(iv) Develop design case studies (examples) for each chapter to aid in interpretation of the specifications;
(v) collect information from selected Member States on their current highway design practices and experiences and analyze the survey results to find out the current practices and experiences in the member countries on road infrastructure safety facilities. ;
(vi) Conduct star rating scenario testing for the pre-selected road infrastructure safety facilities (RIFs) using the international road assessment programme (iRAP) methodology
(vii) develop a new harmonized ECOWAS Highway Design Manual that considers practical industry practices in West Africa, local conditions and practices, skills, use of local materials, construction quality, cost-effectiveness, road safety, and minimizing environmental and social impacts;
(viii) conduct two Regional Validation Workshops on submission for every milestone after the preparation of the draft final report to aid understanding and adoption of the revised standards; and
(ix) finalizing the harmonized ECOWAS Highway Design Manual based on comments and observations from ECOWAS and Member States and outcomes of the workshops . The final versions shall be produced in English, French and Portuguese.
(3) The overall duration of the contract is estimated at five (5) months.
(4) The ECOWAS Commission invites Consultants (firms specialized in transport infrastructure engineering studies) to submit their candidacy for the services described above. Interested eligible and qualified consultants must provide information on their qualifications and experience, demonstrating that they are qualified to provide similar services.
(5) The Firms shall be shortlisted based on the following criteria:
(a) Shall demonstrate a minimum of fifteen (15) years of General experience in the supervision and/or design of road Infrastructure (highways);
(b) Shall demonstrate having a minimum of three (3) specific experiences in preparation of road engineering design standards, and/or design of highway projects in the past 10 years;
(c) experience in donor-funded road projects in sub-Sahara African;
(e) availability of appropriate skills staff and organization arrangements for similar services (List, qualifications, and experience); ,
(f) capacity to produce reports and all other relevant documents on the study in English, French and Portuguese and
(g) partnership with a West African Regional engineering design firm will be an added advantage.
NB: Each reference will be summarized on a project sheet with all supporting documents indicating the contact information of the contracting authorities to facilitate verification of the information provided.
The Supporting documents to make a project eligible shall be an ATTESTATION OF GOOD PERFORMANCE. WITHOUT THIS EVIDENCE, A PROJECT WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.
Interested Consulting firms may apply as a consortium or partnership to ensure and/or boost their consolidated capacities to execute the assignment.
(6) The eligibility criteria, the preparation of shortlist, and the selection procedure shall comply with the ECOWAS Rules and Procedures for the Use of Consultants” (ECOWAS Procurement Code), available on its website: http://www.ecowas.int. The selection procedure will be based on Quality and Cost Based Selection Method (QCBS), and a shortlist of six (6) firms, which present the best profiles with all claims dully verified, shall be drawn up for further consideration after the Expression of Interest stage. Also, firms that are part of an international network are to submit only one expression of interest as a network.
(7) The attention of interested Consulting firms is particularly drawn to Article 118 of the ECOWAS Revised Procurement Code (“Infringements by Candidates, Bidders and Awardees”), providing information on 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 1119 of the ECOWAS Revised Procurement Code.
(8) Interested consultants can obtain further information at the e-mail addresses mentioned below during working hours: 9.00am – 1.00pm, Nigerian Time, (GMT + 1) Mondays through Fridays (except public holidays): (Abuja Time): sbangoura@ecowas.int with copy to procurement@ecowas.int, cappiah@ecowas.intik kamara@ecowas.int amaliki@ecowas.int;
(9) Expressions of Interest must be delivered in a physical hard copy (one (1) signed original plus three (3) copies) to the address below, not later than Monday, September 11, 2023, at 12:00 noon (GMT + 1), Nigerian Time and must be clearly marked: “Expressions of Interest for the Consultancy Services for Harmonization of Highway Design Codes for the ECOWAS Region’’.
For the delivery in person or by registered mail
ECOWAS Commission,
Directorate of General Administration, Procurement Division,
Plot 101, Yakubu Gowon Crescent, Asokoro District, Abuja, NIGERIA.
(10) The working languages shall be English and French. The Expression of Interest should be submitted in English OR French.
