Procurement Notice

The purpose of this Request for Proposals (RFP) is to invite a qualified institute capable of providing comprehensive services to the APO Secretariat to manage the project titled Development and the Spread of Climate-Resilient Agriculture and Low-Carbon Food Systems in the ASEAN Region with the use of Japan-ASEAN Integration Fund (JAIF).

The RFP package, including the scope of work for the successful vendor, will be provided to applying vendors after signing nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) with the APO Secretariat. All information and data provided by the APO Secretariat to applicant vendors and all other documents to which vendors’ employees have access during the preparation and submission of proposals shall be treated as confidential and dealt with in accordance with the signed NDAs. Any oral or written disclosure to unauthorized individuals is prohibited.

For more details, please see the Project Notification and Implementation Procedures.

The vendor must have proven experience in planning, implementing, monitoring, reporting, and completing training programs in an international setting in Asia, including Cambodia, Japan, the Philippines, and Vietnam. The vendor should possess all of the following qualifications:

1. 1. An advanced university degree or PhD from a recognized university in economics, agriculture or natural resource management, agricultural studies, development studies, or related disciplines from a recognized institution
2. 2. A minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience in the agricultural sector with extensive working knowledge on carbon crediting systems
3. 3. Proven experience in capacity development and project-related experience in cooperation with the APO or other similar international organizations
4. 4. Excellent written and oral communication skills in English; proficiency in Japanese would be an advantage
5. 5. Demonstrated experience in organizing and facilitating expert meetings or committees, including preparation of agendas, background materials, and meeting reports

Experience in developing or supporting the development of agricultural or climate-related methodologies is highly desirable.

The successful vendor must demonstrate experience aligned with qualifications 2 and 3 above, particularly in agricultural crediting, policy and methodology development, and coordination with government and research stakeholders at regional and international levels.

The Expert Committee (EC) will be established under the project, composed of experts from multiple organizations, including representatives from participating ASEAN member states, Japan, and relevant international research institutions. The APO is tasked under the project with serving as the Secretariat of the EC. The successful vendor will support the APO in fulfilling this function and will play a lead role in coordinating the EC’s discussions and ensuring effective meeting management as follows:

1. 1. Identify and list relevant laws and regulations that need to be taken into account and implement compliance procedures.
2. 2. In collaboration with the EC, advise private project developers to organize a farmers’ group to enable greenhouse gas emission monitoring while developing their capacities for accurate and constant monitoring.
3. 3. Collect and review relevant literature and conduct field-based data collection on greenhouse gas emissions, as needed. Based on the data and applicable national emission factors, propose technical inputs for the EC’s consideration.
4. 4. Prepare input materials and discussion guides to support effective and informed deliberations in EC meetings and facilitate structured discussions.
5. 5. Organize and conduct public consultations (hearings) on draft methodologies developed by the EC and compile summaries of received comments for further review and validation.
6. 6. Organize and conduct technical workshops and dissemination events to promote the adoption and visibility of the developed methodologies among stakeholders across ASEAN member states.

Thirty-six months (May 2026–April 2029), full-time equivalent. The vendor is expected to play an active role in the project.

Note: Subject to the satisfactory performance of the vendor and budget availability.

1. 1. Cover letter of interest including the proposed project methodology, approaches, and timeline (Annex 1)
2. 2. Basic organizational details, profile of institution (maximum one A4-sized page), or CV of the research team (Annex 2)
3. 3. Details of experience conducting projects in similar areas (Annex 3)
4. 4. Financial proposal to indicate the cost of services (Annex 4):
   1. Consultancy fee is USD 12,000.00 per month per year, over a period of three years (total: USD 432,000.00). The expected time input is approximately 21 working days per month.
   2. Total costs and breakdowns for conducting the research should be given only in US dollar amounts.
   3. All national taxes and levies applicable should be stated and included in the total costs. The APO will consider the inclusive costs as the final quoted prices when evaluating proposals.
   4. All rates and costs quoted in financial proposals should be written in both numeric and alphabetic forms, e.g., USD 2,500.00 (two thousand five hundred US dollars).

Download: Annexes.

The selected bidder will be awarded a contract with the APO to conduct the program based on the following selection criteria:

1. 1. Technical qualifications
   1. Proven experience in the field with demonstrated success in similar international environments
   2. Relevant accreditation, that is, official recognition or certification relevant to the development and productivity improvement sectors
   3. Experience in organizing and facilitating multistakeholder expert committees
   4. Experience in supporting government engagement in international climate policy processes, including activities related to Article 6 of the Paris Agreement

2. 2. Additional qualifications
   2. Capability: Ability to manage and execute projects effectively in the targeted regions.
   3. Resources: Availability of sufficient appropriate resources, including financial and legal stability.
   4. Methodology: Innovativeness and effectiveness of proposed development and productivity enhancement methods.
   5. Communication: Proficiency in English and Japanese and ability to manage cross-cultural communication effectively.
   6. Flexibility and responsiveness: Adaptability to changing project requirements and ability to address unforeseen challenges.
   7. Ability to grasp highlights: Competence in identifying and emphasizing the most critical aspects of the program.
   8. Cultural competence: Understanding and navigating the complexities of working within diverse cultural contexts.

The APO reserves the right to annul the RFP or the bidder selection process, or to accept or reject any or all proposals in whole or part at any time, without stating any reason and without incurring any liability to the affected bidders.

The APO is not obligated to respond to any objections or to inform the affected agencies, companies, or firms of the grounds for such decisions.

The APO also reserves the right to change the scope of work in case of need or depending on changes in requirements before or during the implementation phase. However, if changes are made during the implementation phase, the APO will negotiate the costs for the additional work separately with the successful bidder.

The APO will not bear any costs related to research, planning, design, or any other such activity related to the preparation of proposals in response to this RFP by bidders for sending proposals to the APO.

The APO may, at its own discretion, extend the submission deadline by notifying all bidders of the extension in writing. Any proposal received after the deadline will be rejected.

Bidders requiring any clarification of the documents or the process itself should submit queries in writing only to the following email address by the deadline of 19 August 2026.

Asian Productivity Organization (APO Secretariat)
1-24-1 Hongo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
Email: ksugita@apo-tokyo.org and ynakajima@apo-tokyo.org

A consolidated, anonymous list of all queries received, together with responses, will be shared with bidders who signed NDAs.

Proposals must be submitted via email by the deadline of 17:00 (Japan Standard Time), 19 August 2026 to the APO Secretariat.

The APO Secretariat reserves the right to amend the RFP prior to the bid closing date. Bidders should check the APO web page (https://www.apo-tokyo.org/procurement-notice/) periodically to ascertain whether any amendments or communications have been posted.