Procurement Notice 

Request for Proposal (RFP)

Independent Evaluation of the APO Secretariat’s Performance, Management, and Compliance by a Third Party (Third Cycle: 2024–26) 

The purpose of this Request for Proposals (RFP) is to enter into a contractual agreement to conduct an independent evaluation of the APO Secretariat’s performance, management, and compliance over the two-year period of 2024 to 2026. The selected evaluator is expected to develop and present annual assessment reports as follows:

Initial report on the APO Secretariat’s performance, management, and compliance consisting of findings, conclusions, and recommendations to the APO Governing Body (GBM) at its 67th Session in May 2025 in Bali, Indonesia.

Second annual report as a continuation of the evaluation into the second year, which also includes detailing the outcomes from the entire two-year period. This report will submitted and presented to the 68th GBM in May/June 2026.

The submission package for the RFP 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.

1. Language of the proposal and other documents

The proposals prepared by bidders and all correspondence and documents relating to the proposals exchanged by bidders and the APO Secretariat shall be written in English.

2. Cost of proposals

Bidders shall bear all costs associated with the preparation and submission of proposals, including but not limited to the possible cost of discussing the proposal with the APO Secretariat, making presentations, negotiating a contract, and any related travel.

The APO Secretariat will in no case be responsible or liable for those costs, regardless of the conduct or outcome of the selection process.

3. Contents of proposals

Each proposal should be prepared in two parts: a technical proposal including the details of the independent evaluation; and a financial quotation. Proposals must be accompanied by an Executive Summary of a maximum of two pages introducing proposed solutions and approach/methodology.

Financial quotations must provide total prices and breakdowns per phase and per area of expertise in Japanese yen or US dollar amounts.

4. Selection criteria and notification of results

The selected bidder will be awarded a contract with the APO for conducting the evaluation, based on the following selection criteria:

4.1. Technical qualifications

4.1.1. Independence

4.1.2. Proven experience in the field

4.1.3. Relevant accreditation

4.2. Additional qualifications

4.2.1. Capability

4.2.2. Resources

4.2.3. Methodology

4.2.4. Communication

4.2.5. Flexibility and responsiveness

4.2.6. Ability to grasp highlights

Bidders requiring any clarification of the document or the process itself should submit queries in writing only to the following email address by the deadline of 25 December 2024.

Kiyoshi Matsukawa (Mr.)
Senior Officer
Executive Support Unit
Executive Office
Asian Productivity Organization (APO Secretariat)
1-24-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan

Email: kmatsukawa@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 25 December to the APO Secretariat.

The APO Secretariat reserves the right to amend the RFP prior to the bid closing date. Accordingly, 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.

1. 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.

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

3. The APO also reserves the right to change the scope of work in case of need or depending upon 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.

1. 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.

2. 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.

A prospective institution requiring any clarification of this document, or the process itself, should submit queries in writing only to the following email address by the deadline of 25 December 2024:

Kiyoshi Matsukawa (Mr.)
Email: kmatsukawa@apo-tokyo.org