Important information | |
Title | Canadian economic development plan for OLMCs |
Contracting Authority | Jean Léger, RDÉE Canada |
Date of issue | November 18, 2013 |
Closing date | November 28, 2013 |
Questions | Questions are submitted by email to Stéphanie Beauregard at sbeauregard@rdee.ca. |
Submission | Proposals are submitted by email to Stéphanie Beauregard at sbeauregard@rdee.ca. |
Background
RDÉE Canada and CÉDEC are partners in developing a Canadian economic development plan for official language minority communities (OLMCs). The intent of this plan is to identify the priority initiatives in a coherent and articulated manner in order to ensure the development of those communities over the next five years. Its objective therefore is develop consistency in the action taken in the communities in the area of economic development. Through joint efforts and increased consistency, the impact of such action will be enhanced, to the benefit of the communities, the stakeholders and the partners.
Objective
The identified requirement is to determine the needs and assets of the communities and describe them in a clear, concise document that will enable all potential partners to understand the priority initiatives, areas and axes for the economic development of OLMCs. The plan will be a compilation document for identifying and focussing on the efforts invested in the communities’ economic development.
Description
The current work in economic development and the stakeholders’ and partners’ knowledge will provide the foundations for the strategy. The intent is not to re‑invent the wheel, but to compile, analyze and prioritize in order to identify the priorities for action over the next five years. The strategy will be built primarily on the following:
Consultations with the stakeholders and communities in the areas that have a role in the OLMCs’ economic development, including, but not limited to, culture, youth, education, health, immigrants, infrastructure, tourism, municipalities, rurality, demography and - agriculture (areas could be prioritized on the basis of criteria related to economic development);
- Work done by the primary stakeholders at the regional, provincial/territorial, national and federal levels, including consultations with key people in such organizations;
- Work done by RDÉE Canada and its members;
- Work done by CÉDEC.
Specifically, the plan will be developed at three levels. The first level will focus on two important axes: entrepreneurship and employability, which are two essential components of economic development. These two terms will be clearly defined, and they will also apply to the other components of the strategy.
At the second level, the areas of focus will be prioritized on the basis of the action under way in the communities and areas with high potential for development. These areas will be identified following research and consultations. A client group selected as a priority is also an area of focus.
Lastly, at the third level, growth-generating initiatives will be proposed in each focus area; a single initiative may cover more than one area. This section will describe the initiative (origins, objectives, course of action, potential funding) and identify the results to be achieved.
Methodology
The supplier will provide a description of the methodology that it recommends. For example, here are a few considerations:
· The literature review will have to go beyond university research. It will have to include relevant documents developed at all levels: local, regional, provincial and federal.
Consultation with the stakeholders should, as much as possible, be carried out using distance communication and focus on regional strengths to leverage efforts. For example, it would be possible to work with the national associations and organizations to present the initiative to them and outline their potential contribution to the contents of the plan. They · could then consult their members or their local and regional chapters about contributing to the content.
· The supplier could play an enabling and support role so that stakeholders at all levels and the communities could participate through organizations and associations that are firmly established in their area of focus (for example, culture, youth, education, health, immigrants, infrastructure, tourism, municipalities, rurality, demography, etc.).
· The literature review and consultations will not be exhaustive, but as much as possible they will be representative of the various realities in the regions of Canada and will cover as many of the diverse areas as possible.
A strategic analysis of the literature review and consultations to identify the important aspects to be considered, elements in common and differences, converging and diverging results, etc. will be included.
Outputs and timelines
Date | Output | Amount |
End of December | Communication strategy (key messages, etc.) Consultation process developed (report submitted) | 20% of overall contract amount |
End of February 2014 | Literature review and results of consultations (report submitted) | 30% of overall contract amount |
Mid-March 2014 | Strategic analysis of literature review and consultations (report submitted) | 25% of overall contract amount |
March 31, 2014 | Drafting of strategy: axes, areas and priority initiatives (plan developed) | 25% of overall contract amount |
Budget
The maximum budget allocated for the project is 50 000$. Proposals will be evluated based on the expertise of the supplier and the evaluation grid provided in the next section.
The supplier must however provide a budget aligned with the work and schedules included in the proposal. The budget must include all expenses related to fulfilling the mandate, including, but not limited to, all consultation fees, rental of equipment or telecommunications services, travel expenses (if applicable) and all applicable taxes.
Evaluation
The following evaluation criteria will be used in the proposal evaluation process:.
| Evaluation Criteria | Details |
1 | Knowledge of OLMCs in the country: reality and issues in official language minority communities | The team members have knowledge of the OLMCs and have already taken action in such communities during the past two years. In this respect, the bidder has a proven reputation and is a recognized leader in the OLMCs and can demonstrate this (two letters of support). The bidder will be required to provide the relevant résumé(s) to be evaluated. |
2 | Clear understanding of the concepts of economic development and employability | The team members have a clear understanding of the key concepts in this regard. They will be able to propose strategies to build the OLMCs’ capacity in terms of employability and entrepreneurship. |
3 | Ability to propose a simple, innovative, interactive research methodology | The bidder will be required to show that it knows qualitative and quantitative research and evaluation methods that are appropriate for achieving the targeted results and that it has relevant experience. It will be required to provide a description of the recommended approach, including a description of specific outputs. It will also need to show that it has used such approaches in the past. |
4 | Proven capability in facilitating groups and evaluation meetings | The proposed team members have considerable experience in facilitating groups. The bidder will be required to provide the résumé(s) to be evaluated. |
5 | Ability to conduct research | One of the team members has qualifications and relevant experience in relation to research. At least one of the résumés submitted will be used to evaluate this criterion. The bidder should indicate the résumé(s) to be evaluated. |
6 | Ability to conduct evaluations of key players in OLMCs | At least one of the proposed team members has relevant qualifications in the field of program development and evaluation. At least one of the résumés submitted will be used to evaluate this criterion. The bidder should indicate the résumé to be evaluated. |
7 | Ability to engage partners and support them in a consultation process | The bidder has expertise in engaging partners and ensuring participatory support in the development of an initiative. |
8 | Ability to provide strategic leadership and communicate with decision‑making authorities in regard to positioning | The bidder has expertise in strategic communication (positioning) with government leaders and decision makers. It knows how to take advantage of opportunities and develop courses of action and collaboration among the parties concerned, in addition to proposing innovative strategic positioning action. |
9 | Ability to lead the work in French and to express themselves clearly in Canada’s two official languages | The lead manager should be able to work in French and at least one of the team members can express himself or herself clearly and lead groups in both official languages. The bidder is required to provide the résumé(s) to be evaluated. |
RDÉE Canada will not automatically select the lowest‑cost proposal. The evaluation factor related to the budget will be considered only after the above criteria have been evaluated.
Proposal components
The proposal will include at least the following:
- Description of the mandate
- Detailed methodology
- Budget
- Schedule of work
- Supplier’s expertise (résumé, experience, etc.)
