Project Description:
Cairo Governorate (the “Governorate” or “Client”) is the largest Governorate in Egypt, with a population of about 10 million people at the heart of Greater Cairo Metropolitan Area of more than 18 million. Cairo Governorate faces significant municipal solid waste management (“MSWM”) challenges, many of which are exacerbated by the density of areas and narrow streets. The waste management system in Cairo is currently subpar with municipal solid waste (“MSW”) collection rates at roughly 65 per cent of the total solid waste generated in the Governorate.
The MSWM strategies vary across the Governorate due to the system that divides Cairo into four service region categories, each of which has a different collection arrangement overseen by Cairo Cleaning and Beautification Authority (“CCBA”). In the northern, eastern and western zones of the Governorate, waste management, including collection, has been contracted out to international private firms since 2002. However, the overall experience of international private sector participation in MSWM has been mixed.
The Ministry of State for Urban Renewal and Informal Settlements of the Arab Republic of Egypt (hereafter, “MURIS” or the “Ministry”), is responsible for setting of the national municipal waste management strategy, drawing related policies and supporting the governorates in its implementation. It is also mandated with establishing comprehensive national plans to upgrade informal settlements and works on ensuring the solid waste management services across the Arab Republic of Egypt are provided in the most environmentally friendly, safe, responsible and reliable manner through optimised sorting, recovery and recycling. It has been extensively working on incorporating the informal collectors into the sector through licensing them and creating SMEs and NGOs.
Current waste management contracts with international companies expire in 2017, and it is crucial that steps be taken now to establish new policy, contract and system arrangements that would result in increased coverage, environmental compliance, higher economic value attached and balanced contractual relations.
Recognising the need to improve the waste management practices further, the MURIS and the Governorate are seeking to develop a comprehensive MSWM programme which would provide for a new contractual framework, new efficient services and enhance the overall solid waste management service quality, including through maximisation of municipal waste collection, waste sorting, recycling, recovery and reduction of waste going to landfills moving gradually to minimum waste, and safeguarding the socio-economic needs of citizens and improving the quality of life and public health in the solid waste sector of Cairo. It is important to ensure that the new service provider(s), who will be responsible for the waste services, will work closely with the current waste collectors to put in place appropriate arrangements to warrant better collection, maintain or increase currently high recovery and recycling rates and improve overall quality of services.
In light of the above, the Governorate of Cairo has approached the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the “Bank” or the “EBRD”) with a request to assess the possibility of financing the Study phase of the Project as well as the Project related investments to be identified following a more detailed due diligence to be undertaken separately.
The Bank wishes to engage a suitably qualified consultant (the “Consultant”) to prepare a high level feasibility study (the “FS”) to determine the best option(s) going forward in terms of the institutional, operational, technical, contractual and financial arrangements which should take into account the lessons learned of the past, develop an indicative priority investment programme (the “PIP”) and evaluate its benefits (the “Assignment”).
Assignment Description:
The objective of the Assignment is to review the current MSWM set-up in Cairo, determine key issues, including the issues which led to the private sector’s failure to deliver the services under the existing contractual arrangements and prepare a set of recommendations regarding the best option(s) forward in terms of the MSWM and improving the overall quality of services through maximisation of collection coverage, recycling and recovery and engagement with the formal and informal waste collectors.
The Consultant will review all available studies (the “Studies”), including technical and financial due diligence, as and if appropriate.
The Consultant will also identify approximate investment needs and components for the solid waste programme, review key risks and requirements (institutional, legal, contractual, environmental and social) and verify a series of bankable projects meeting the objectives below that can be prepared. This Project will be based on an effective least-cost and best value for money investment programme. The investment plan will be justified on the basis of technical, legislative, financial and economic as well as environmental and social analysis. Furthermore, the Consultant will carry out an assessment of the resource efficiency opportunities (including energy efficiency and the impact on GHG emissions).
Under the Assignment the Consultant will, inter alia:
• Review the needs of the Governorate including definition and establishment of the area to be covered by the investment.
• Review the specific needs for municipal solid waste management in the area.
• Review the applicable legislation at local and national level in place regarding waste (e.g. targets on material recovery, employment generation, SMEs and value chain aspects of the waste hierarchy), and assess the implications on the Project.
• Review and analyse the current system of solid waste separation, collection and reprocessing for recycling and, if appropriate, make recommendations on how this could be improved, taking into consideration international best practices in waste management (e.g. BREFs) and following the EU waste hierarchy options at the maximum extent. Identify potential industrial users of separated materials and barriers existing to the development of a market for such products.
• Review and analyse the current situation of the waste treatment/separation/recycling/landfilling in the area in terms of condition of major social development aspects, value chain SME status equipment and facilities, recent past years’ performances, operation and maintenance (“O&M”) practices, capacity of the Governorate to manage and/or monitor and address all relevant environmental and social risks and impacts, compliance with national laws and regulations and any liability issues.
• Review and analyse the current informal waste collection processes, including key activities undertaken by the Zabblaeen and other wastepickers, materials traders, junk shop dealers and others; review of previous program and identifying key issues which caused the failure of the initial private sector project; and recommendations of how such impacts can be avoided in future projects.
• Carry out a detailed analysis to select the best municipal waste management options: collection system, source segregation options, transfer stations, processing sites and technologies, financing possibilities, contracting options, institutional setup, monitoring systems, and identify initial potential site location(s) for treatment and disposal (and where appropriate, separation and recycling), including existing and new locations, taking into consideration international best practices in waste management. The Consultant will produce a multi-criteria analysis justifying the selected option and summarise it in tabular form.
• Estimate potential reductions in greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions arising from the possible closure of any old landfills, as well as assess possible utilisation of biogas from existing and planned landfill sites, and the impact on climate change mitigation.
• Based on the results of the above, draw up a priority indicative investment programme (“PIP”), including but not limited to collection vehicles, recycling stations, wells, piping, and in case future use of the exiting dumpsite is not recommended, closure of the existing landfills and opening of a new sanitary landfill.
• Make necessary recommendations for institutional changes (organisation of solid waste management, changes in laws or institutions, financing schemes, including human resources, changes) regarding solid waste management in Cairo.
• Review the potential for private sector participation (“PSP”) in waste collection and disposal while closely examining current SME private sector operations at the local levels in collection, transport, recovery, recycling, manufacturing and value chain operations – both formal and informal and if appropriate, recycling) (e.g. design-build-operate for any part of the Project, privatisation to both SME and large companies, of collection in parts of the City, operation of the landfill, etc.).
Status of Selection Process: Interested firms or groups of firms are hereby invited to submit expressions of interest.
Assignment Start Date and Duration: The Assignment is expected to start in August 2015 and has an estimated overall duration of 4 months.
Cost Estimate for the Assignment: EUR 74,500 (exclusive of VAT). Subject to availability of funding, the performance of the selected Consultant and the specific needs of the Bank the Assignment may be extended beyond the current scope.
The Consultant must determine whether any VAT would be chargeable on the services and the basis for that determination, without taking into consideration the special status of the Bank as an IFI and state this to the Bank in their response to the Invitation for Expressions of Interest. To the extent that a Consultant incurs input VAT on goods and services purchased in connection with the provision of services (e.g. VAT on airline ticket) which is not otherwise recoverable by the consultant from the local tax authority, the gross cost to the consultant of such expenses shall be treated as a reimbursable expense.
Funding Source: It is expected that the Assignment will be funded by EU Neighbourhood Investment Facility. Please note selection and contracting will be subject to the availability of funding.
Eligibility: There are no eligibility restrictions.
Consultant Profile: Corporate services are required. The Consultant will have a previous background in municipal waste management in low and middle income countries and/or in the MENA region, a broad knowledge of international best practices in the sector, and of a variety of institutional, contractual, operational, technical and financial options. The Consultant should ensure that the appropriately qualified experts are available, as required, for each of the different tasks outlined above.
It is expected that the Assignment will be led by an appropriately qualified team leader/solid waste specialist, accompanied by both key and supporting experts. Based on the fields of expertise and the tasks mentioned above, it is proposed that the team of the Consultant should consist at least of the following expatriate and local experts:
• Project Manager/Team Leader with a university degree or equivalent qualification with preferably 15 years’ professional experience in the field of solid waste management, with comprehensive experience of similar assignments in Egypt and other countries in the region, as well as in institutional and commercial management of solid waste companies. He/she should demonstrate management and administration experience, including experience with procedures of international financing agencies (preferably EBRD procedures).
• Financial specialists with knowledge of the public financing and modelling.
• Technical specialists and solid waste engineers.
• Institutional expert with experience of similar assignments.
• Environment expert with preferably 10 years’ experience in waste management and familiar with EBRD PRs.
• Social expert with preferably 10 years’ experience in waste management and familiar with EBRD PRs.
• Local expert with good communication skills and evidenced technical knowledge of solid waste sector planning, design, implementation and operations.
• Contract Administration Expert
The Consultant should integrate local professional skills/cooperate with local consultants. The Consultant shall engage Arabic-speaking staff on their team or arrange for translation/interpreting when necessary. All experts must be independent and free from conflicts of interest in the responsibilities accorded to them.
Submission Requirements: In order to determine the capability and experience of Consultants seeking to be selected for this Assignment, the information submitted should include the following:
1. Company/group of firms’ profile, organisation and staffing (max. 2-4 pages).
2. Details of previous project experience or similar assignments particularly undertaken in the previous five years, including information on contract value, contracting entity/client, project location/country, duration (mm/yy to mm/yy), expert months provided (if different from duration) , main activities, objectives.
3. CVs of key experts who could carry out the Assignment detailing qualifications, experience in similar assignments, particularly assignments undertaken in the previous five years, including information on contracting entity/client, project location/country, duration (mm/yy to mm/yy), expert months provided, assignment budget, main activities, objectives.
4. Completed Consultant Declaration Form and Contact Sheet, the template for which is available from the following web-link:
http://www.ebrd.com/pages/workingwithus/procurement/notices/csu/contact_sheet.doc.
The above information should not exceed 25 pages excluding CVs and contact sheet.
The complete expression of interest (including CVs, Consultant Declaration and Contact Sheet) should be submitted, in English electronically through e-Selection, to reach the Bank not later than the closing date. The expression of interest shall be one file (pdf). The EBRD reserves the right to reject applications of firms submitting more than one file. Only if the permissible file size is exceeded (4MB), the Consultant may split the expression of interest into further files.
Bank Contact Person:
Julie Michel
Technical Co-operation
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
One Exchange Square
London EC2A 2JN
Tel: + 44 20 7338 7556
e-mail: MichelJ@ebrd.com (submissions should be sent through eSelection and NOT to this email address)
Notes:
1. 1. The selection will normally be made from responses to this notification only. Consultants will not be asked to submit a proposal. The highest-ranked Consultant will be selected from a shortlist and be invited to negotiate the contract, subject to availability of funding.
2. The shortlist criteria are:
(i) Firm has preferably 10 years’ practical experience in developing feasibility studies for IFIs and a good knowledge of IFI procedures and rules on public procurement and disbursement policies (10%)
(ii) Firm has preferably 10 years’ knowledge of the solid waste sector, with international experience in countries in the MENA region (30%)
(iii) Qualifications and competence of the consultant's team of experts to include: Project manager, technical specialists, environmental and social experts; and local experts (60%)
