INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT BANK OF ZIMBABWE

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST FOR PROVISION OF CONSULTING SERVICES
(Firms Selection)

Subject	Engagement of a Consulting Firm for External Quality Assessment Review of Internal Audit Unit
Brief Description	Expression of Interest for the provision of consulting services for the External Quality Assessment Review of Internal Audit Unit
Proposal Reference Number	IDBZ 107 of 2022

Section I
Background 

The Bank intends to engage independent external professionals who will evaluate IADU’s   conformance with the International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing (the “Standards”) and application of the Code of Ethics, including adhering to internal policy framework of IDBZ and applicable best practices.  
Internal audit operations are guided by the Standards which were developed by the Global Institute of Internal Auditing Board (IIA), to which IADU is affiliated.  The standards provide a mandatory guidance that, in addition to the Internal Quality Assessment and Improvement Program (QAIP), maintained by the head of audit, an independent external assessment of the internal audit function must be conducted at least once every five years by a qualified, independent assessor or competent assessment team from outside the organisation. IADU has not undergone such independent assessment.    
The absence of an independent assessment of the effectiveness of internal audit was raised in stage 2 accreditation review by GCF, and hence, having this exercise conducted may have positive benefits in future financial endeavours.  Having the IADU evaluated will also assist the Unit in identifying and closing any gaps so that the function provides quality services to stakeholders and assist IDBZ accomplish its objectives.   The assessment will, also, include benchmarking IADU with other audit functions in the industry.   Benchmarking results will help IADU to gain an independent perspective about how it performs compared to other audit functions and this enhances the culture of continuous improvement, thereby adding more value to IDBZ.    
 
Geographic Location of the Project
The Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe, No 2 Denmark Avenue Milton Park, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Objectives of the Survey
The objective of this assessment is to evaluate and ensure that the IADU conforms with International Auditing Standards and the Code of Ethics.  The assessment may also identify opportunities to improve internal audit processes, offer suggestions to enhance the effectiveness of the function and promote ideas to elevate its image and credibility.  
Scope of Assignment

The scope of the assignment entails performing the following activities: 
•	Assess IADU’s conformance to the Institute of Internal Auditors’ International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing (Standards). 
•	Evaluate IADU’s adherence to the Code of Ethics and applicable best practice.
•	 Assess appropriateness and adequacy of the IADU’s skill sets, staff, and development programs.  
•	Assess the adequacy of risk assessment, audit planning, audit execution, and effectiveness of the IADU’s working papers.  
•	Review audit reports and assess their value addition to operations of IDBZ. 
•	Assess the extent to which IADU makes use of technology in their activities.

Section II
The IDBZ now invites eligible Zimbabwe Consulting Firms to indicate their interest by way of an Expression of Interest (EOI) in accordance with requirements stated herein in providing the services as specified in this document. Interested Consultants Firms should provide information demonstrating that they have the required experience, competences, skills, and qualifications relevant for performance of the services whether as individual firms, joint ventures or as consortia. The Consultant shall submit Company profiles, Company registration documents, Curriculum Vitae of key personnel and professional staff, brochures, description of similar assignments previously undertaken, experience under similar environment or conditions. The Consulting Firm must demonstrate that they have fully established business offices. Prospective Consulting Firms may constitute joint ventures where necessary to enhance their capacity to undertake the assignment.
A.	Eligibility Criteria
i.	The Consulting firms must be registered with the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (PRAZ). 
ii.	Consulting Firms must be duly registered Zimbabwean Firms. 
B.	Evaluation/Qualification Criteria

The consulting firm must:
•	Have at least 10 years’ experience working in similar assignments.
•	Provide details of previous experience and three (3) projects of QAIP services or assignments of similar nature in the last 10 years.
•	Provide three (3) contactable references of QAIP assignments successfully undertaken. 
•	 Have experience in audit and assurance, and risk and advisory services.
•	Demonstration of sound knowledge in quality assurance reviews for audit functions (local, regional, or international)  


Please Note: The Start and End Date for each previous assignment must be clearly indicated.
The evaluation of Expressions of Interest documents shall be ascertained on compliance-based method.

Minimum Qualifying Criteria	Means of verification	Reference in Documents (Put page numbers from the proposal document)
Duly signed letter of Expression of Interest, which must be in the format of the template in Appendix A of Section III below	Completed and signed letter in the format in Appendix A	
The firms must be registered with the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (PRAZ). 	Copy of excerpt for Government Gazette for 2022/Proof of Payment of Annual Registration/Certificate from PRAZ	
Zimbabwe firms must have valid tax clearance certificates 	Copies of valid tax clearance certificates i.e., expiring on 31 December 2022	
The firm shall have at least 10 years of experience 	Copies of contracts / project sign off / completion certificates / relevant documentary proof	
Provide details of previous experience and three (3) projects of QAIP services or assignments of similar nature in last 10 years.
	Copies of contracts / project sign off / completion certificates / relevant documentary proof	
The Consulting firms should have qualified personnel with expertise in undertaking the assignment. The following Key Personnel must be included in the proposal:
i) The Team Leader 
•	Must have MBA, MSc or MBL. 
•	Must have a professional qualification relevant to auditing eg CIA, ACCA, CPA, CIS /CA. 
•	At least ten (10) years auditing experience with at least five (5) years working as a team leader. 
•	Must have at least three (3) years’ experience working in related assignment in financial or nonfinancial institutions. 
•	Must have local, regional, or international experience working in related assignment.

2) Manager’ qualifications and experience 
•	Must have MBA, MSc or MBL.
•	Must have a professional qualification in field related to auditing.
•	At least Five (5) years working experience in auditing with at least 3 years working as a manager.
•	Must have two (2) year experience working in related assignment in financial or nonfinancial institutions. 
•	Must have local, regional, or international experience working in related assignment. 	CVs with copies of educational documents and certifications	

A.	Document Submission
The following documents should be submitted: 
i.	Duly signed letter of Expression of Interest, which must be in the format of the template in Appendix A of Section III below.
ii.	Detailed company profile or brochures containing:
•	Legal status i.e., sole proprietorship / partnership /public or private limited company / consortium with name and addresses of proprietor / partner(s)/director(s).
•	Experience of the company together with verifiable details of previous / current corporate clientele.
•	Summary of curriculum vitaes of key personnel and professional staff for assessment of capacities related to the assignment.
•	Tax Clearance Certificates.
•	Provide three (3) contactable references of QAIP assignments successfully undertaken.
•	Affidavit to the effect that the government / quasi-government or any autonomous body has never blacklisted the consulting firm.
•	Contact person for all matters related to this EOI including the designation of such person in the firm.
•	Affidavit on history of litigation if any.
•	All other documents which are considered relevant to assess the capability of the consulting firm.

Section III:	Instructions to Consultants
A Consulting Firm will be selected in accordance with the procedures specified in Part VIII of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act [Chapter22:23] (“the Act”) and Part VI of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets (General) Regulations, 2018 (Statutory Instrument 5 of 2018) (“the Regulations”). This opportunity is open to all Consultants who meet the criteria for eligibility as stated in Section 28 of the Act and who have the nationality of an eligible country as defined in Clause 1.10 of the General Conditions of Contract for Consultancy Services. Short-listed Consultants will be invited to submit detailed technical and financial proposals, as described in Part 1 of the Request for Proposals Procedures in the Standard Request for Proposals for the Selection of Consultancy Services. The Consultant submitting the successful proposal will be engaged on the contractual terms set out in that document and in the General Conditions of Contract for Consultancy Services. Copies of the Act and Regulations and the standard documentation are available on the website of the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe; URL 
http://www.praz.gov.zw/index.php?lang=en. Consultants may associate with other firms in the form of a joint venture or a sub-consultancy to enhance their qualifications.

Prospective Consultants are not required to pay an administration fee to the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe for this tender outlined in Section 54 of the Act as set out in Part IV of the Fifth Schedule to the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Regulations (SI 5 of 2018) as amended by Statutory Instrument 219 of 2020. 

The method of selection will be the Least Cost Selection Method in line with section 62 of the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act [Chapter22:23].

The IDBZ will reject an Expression of Interest if it establishes that the Consultant has, directly or through an agent, engaged in corrupt, fraudulent, collusive, coercive, or obstructive practices in competing for the Contract or been declared ineligible to be awarded a procurement contract under section 99 of the Act. An expression of interest shall be rejected in this procurement process if a Consultant Firm engages in anti-competitive practices.

Interested Consulting Firms shall submit only one Expression of Interest document, either individually or as a partner in a joint venture / consortium. In case of joint venture / consortium, total similar projects will be counted as sum of Lead firm and partners / associates.

The Expression of Interest must be submitted electronically to procurement@idbz.co.zw by 10 March 2022 by 10:00hrs local time and clearly captioned “Expression of Interest for the provision of consulting services for the External Quality Assessment Review of Internal Audit Unit: Tender Reference No. IDBZ 107 of 2022.

Late expressions of interest will be rejected in line with the procedure set out in the PPDPA Act. 


Procurement Management Unit
Attn: Fredy Masuka, Acting Head – Procurement Management Unit
IDBZ House
99 Gamal Abdel Nasser Road, Harare, Zimbabwe
PO Box 1720
Harare, Zimbabwe
Tel: +263-24-2750171/8
Email: procurement@idbz.co.zw
Website: www.idbz.co.zw 


 
Appendix A

Letter for submission of expression of interest (To be submitted with the application, signed and unaltered)

To: {Insert name of Procuring Entity}

With reference to your invitation for expressions of interest for {insert subject and proposal reference number}, we express our interest in bidding for a contract to provide these services.

We provide the following information in relation to the short-listing criteria:
1.	Qualifications and experience of the firm: {Insert relevant information}.
2.	Availability of appropriate skills among staff: {Insert relevant information}.
3.	Other short-listing criteria: {Insert relevant information}.

We submit the following documents in support of this information {list any documents that were requested in the invitation for expressions of interest;  if no documents were requested, delete this paragraph }.

{Delete whichever of the following statements do not apply:}
1.	This firm will be the sole provider of the requested consultancy services. or 
2.	We propose to provide the requested consultancy services as part of a joint venture with {provide the name of the joint venture partner and details of the contribution the partner would make to the required consultancy services}. Or
3.	We propose to engage as sub-contractors {provide the name of the sub-contractor and details of the contribution the sub-contractor would make to the required consultancy services}.
{In the case of 2 or 3 above} We confirm that the firm mentioned above has agreed to be associated with this expression of interest.

{Name and postal and physical address of firm submitting the expression of interest, together with name of contact person and contact details, including telephone number and e-mail address. The firm’s website address should be provided, if available.}

Expression of Interest Letter Authorised By:
Signed	……………………………..	Name:	………………………………
In capacity of:	……………………………..	Date:	…………………….(DD/MM/YY)
Duly authorised for and on behalf of:		
Firm	…………………………………………………………………………………
Address:	……………………………………………………………………………………
	…………………………………………………………………………………….
Corporate Seal (where appropriate)