What is the Prosperity Fund?

In order to help promote economic growth in developing countries, the government has created a new Prosperity Fund worth £1.3 billion over the next five years. Its priorities include improving the business climate, competitiveness, and operation of markets, energy and financial sector reform, and increasing the ability of governments to tackle corruption. These reforms will drive sustainable development in developing countries, and create opportunities for international business, including UK companies.

Although increasing numbers of developing countries are able to finance their own development, many still face considerable challenges, such as rapid urbanisation, climate change, and high and persistent inequality, which can lower long-term growth prospects, including in middle income countries where more than 70 per cent of the world’s poor live. The Prosperity Fund supports the broad-based and inclusive growth needed for poverty reduction to make development sustainable.

The Prosperity Fund forms a strategic proportion of the UK’s total Official Development Assistance (ODA) commitment of 0.7 per cent of Gross National Income (GNI). It represents a step-change in the ODA resources spent on assisting countries to grow and develop, which will help to make the world a more prosperous place.

The Fund will provide expertise and technical assistance in areas of UK strength to:

• promote economic reforms and remove barriers to trade;
• strengthen policy capacity and build strong institutions;
• develop sectors which support growth, such as infrastructure, energy, finance, education and healthcare.

All projects and programmes comply with the International Development Act, including the International Development (Gender Equality) Act 2014; meet the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC)’s criteria; are untied; and meet UK government transparency commitments on ODA spend. There is also a small non-ODA allocation through the Fund in order to support the government’s wider prosperity goals.

What is the Cross Government Prosperity Fund Framework?

The UK Government requires a cost effective and legally compliant multi-supplier Prosperity Framework Agreement (the Framework Agreement) enabling the appointment of specialist suppliers with the right capabilities to meet the requirements of agreed intervention programmes and assist in the delivery of long-term programme goals.

The purpose of the Framework Agreement is to provide timely access to a wide range of cost effective, high-quality strategic, advisory, delivery and management technical assistance services covering ODA eligible work in diverse countries, sectors and themes from a range of Potential Providers, each of which must demonstrate that they possess the capabilities needed to meet Prosperity Fund objectives and deliver value for money in doing so. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) will deliver and own this Framework, which will be available to other government departments as required.

The services required in support of the Prosperity objectives of inclusive growth, economic development and poverty reduction include (amongst others) strategy, analysis, planning, design, build/implementation, operational and programme/project and fund management services.

The FCO has received approvals from Cabinet Office Ministers to proceed with an Open Competition under the OJEU and Pubic Procurement Regulations. Under the Open Procedure, any potential supplier may submit a tender (or bid), which will then go through a robust evaluation process to determine the best value for money and legally compliant tenders for award to the Framework, subject to final approvals.

The Framework will essentially provide a list of pre-qualified ‘preferred’ suppliers and will help to facilitate faster and more robust procurements at the call-off stage. It is envisaged that the majority of commercial contracts under Prosperity Fund will be called-down from this framework via Calls for Further Competition (call-offs) within the relevant and appropriate Lots, once the framework commencement date has passed.

The publication of the notice is also available on the Contracts Finder under the heading of Cross Whitehall Prosperity Framework.

Scope

The Framework will encapsulate the full scope of established Prosperity Themes, programme and geographical requirements – a potential total spend of £800 million spread across two Lots.

These are:

Lot A – the Enabling Environment – estimated value: £200 million

Lot B – Specialist Sectors – estimated value: £600 million

Suppliers may bid for any and/or both lots.

Evaluation Process

The evaluation of tender responses (bids) will be conducted in order to determine the most economically advantageous tenders and will be conducted over three stages:

• Compliance (with the instructions to tender)
• Standard questionnaire (SQ)
  •  Grounds for exclusion
  •  Economic and financial standing
  • Technical and professional ability

• Award stage evaluation – technical response and price

  Tenders may be excluded at any point should they fail to reach the minimum requirements.

  Evaluation will be undertaken by a combination of the internal specialist team, external resources, and programme resources.

Key Dates

Compliance

• Please ensure you follow ALL guidance in the Instructions to Bidders.
• Please keep to word/page count where specified.
• All communication via Bravo (https://fco.bravosolution.co.uk).
• All Q&As to be published and available in the Public Domain.
• Please do not miss the deadlines. Late tenders will not be accepted.
• Invitation to tender documents are immediately available to registered suppliers on the FCO's e-Sourcing Procurement Portal BRAVO.