Land O’Lakes Venture37 (Venture37) is soliciting proposals from qualified providers of digital training services for dairy and forage farmers as described in this Request for Proposals (RFP).

Firms invited by Venture37 (hereinafter “Bidders”) to submit offers for the services described in this RFP are under no obligation to do so. The Bidder shall bear all costs associated with the preparation and submission of the Proposal; Venture37 will in no case be liable for those costs, regardless of the conduct or outcome of the solicitation.

This Request for Proposal includes the following sections:

1. Instructions to Bidders
2. Technical Specifications

Submission of offers must be completed in accordance with the Instructions to Bidders and complete offers must be received by the date and time indicated.

All correspondence and/or inquiries regarding this RFP must be requested in accordance with the enclosed Instructions to Bidders.

Background

Land O’Lakes Venture37 (www.landolakesventure37.org) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to helping communities around the world thrive through agriculture. We strengthen economies by improving local agriculture, help agribusinesses create jobs, and link farmers to markets. We deliver integrated solutions that help build and improve food and agriculture systems by providing solutions for more competitive markets, more resilient systems, more nutrition-secure communities, and more inclusive societies.

Venture37’s long-standing affiliation with Land O’Lakes, Inc. (www.landolakes.com) sets us apart. Land O’Lakes Inc. is one of America’s largest farmer-owned cooperatives. It supports Venture37 project implementation with 100 years of experience in dairy, animal nutrition, crop inputs, and agricultural insights and technologies. This gives our development projects a unique global view of agriculture, food, and the power of well-functioning market systems. Land O’Lakes, Inc. supports these efforts as part of its enterprise purpose of Feeding Human Progress at home and around the world.

Venture37 is implementing the Nourishing Prosperity Alliance (NPA) project in Kenya. NPA is a five-year project to increase productivity and incomes of small-scale dairy farmers through access to improved animal feed sources. NPA aims to establish commercially viable and sustainable forage markets that equitably strengthen the regional competitiveness of the dairy industries in Kenya and Ethiopia. Forage markets will be developed through the implementation of activities that drive demand and improve supply of forage, as well as improve the enabling environment for market development.

SECTION 1: INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS

1.         Introduction

Request for Proposal (RFP) No. 2025-NPA-KE-PROC-018, dated July 8, 2025: Venture37, acting on behalf of the Nourishing Prosperity Alliance, is hereby soliciting bids for the supply of comprehensive digital training services as described in Section 2, Technical Specifications.

2.          Eligibility

1. This RFP is open to firms that are legally registered to conduct business in Kenya. Small and/or disadvantaged businesses, minority-owned, and women-owned businesses are encouraged to submit proposals.
2. A bidder will be considered ineligible if it has been suspended, debarred, or deemed ineligible, as indicated on (1) the “List of Parties Excluded from Federal Procurement and Non-procurement Programs” and/or (2) the “Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List”.

3.         Preparation of Offers

1. Bidders are expected to examine the Technical Specifications and all instructions contained in this RFP. Failure to do so shall be at the Bidder’s risk.
2. The offer prepared by the Bidder and all correspondence related to the offer exchanged by the Bidder and Venture37 shall be in English.

4.         Contents of Offer

1. Submitted bids are required to consist of the following documents:

Technical Proposal

1. Organizational background showing evidence of prior performance in supplying digital training services in East Africa, especially those with a focus on agriculture and business development.
2. Outline of proposed services, solutions, and team, reflecting how the Bidder will undertake all the tasks in Section 2, Technical Specifications.
3. Plan of action with specific activities and implementation timetable to address the Specific Tasks under Section 2, Technical Specifications.
4. Statement of Qualifications including evidence in support of its technical qualifications and ability to perform the servicesif its offer is accepted, such as references to successful prior projects of a similar nature.

Price Offer

1. Detailed budget outlining Bidder’s Price Offer, in Microsoft Excel, unlocked, and with formulas intact.
2. Budget must give a detailed unit price breakdown and the total price of the services being offered in response to this RFP. If there is a discrepancy between the unit price and the total amount, the unit price shall be considered correct and the total amount adjusted accordingly.
3. All prices should be indicated in Kenyan Shillings.

 Supporting Documentation

1. Official business registration or license documenting eligibility to do business in Kenya.
2. Two references including contact names, e-mail addresses, and telephone numbers of persons who can be contacted regarding the Bidder’s prior performance for similar work within the past three years.
3. The Bidder must certify, using the attached Vendor Certification Letter, whether the equipment and/or services offered are prohibited by U.S. Government regulations. Venture37 retains the right to disqualify any offer from a Bidder that does not complete the Certification Letter. Venture37 will prioritize Bidders offering equipment/services that are NOT prohibited by U.S. Government regulations.

1. The Bidder shall prepare one complete offer with all the required sections of the proposal and supporting documentation typed or written in legible ink. Only complete offers will be accepted and evaluated; incomplete offers will be eliminated.

5.       Offer Validity Period

Offers shall remain valid for a minimum of sixty (60) daysafter the offer deadline. An offer valid for a shorter period shall be rejected as non-responsive. Bidders shall clearly indicate their offer’s validity period within the proposal documents.

6.       Clarification of Bidding Documents

Clarifications may be requested in writing up to five (5) business days prior to the Offer Deadline. The contact for requesting clarifications is:

Peter Bowman, Sustainable Livestock Systems Specialist, pbowman@landolakes.com

7.          Offer Deadline and Late Bids

1. All offers must be submitted to Venture37 by 5pm Eastern Africa Time, July 22, 2025. Please submit electronic proposals to pbowman@landolakes.com with a copy to imuthama@landolakes.com and dkaveli01@landolakes.com with the RFP Number referenced in the subject line.  Late proposals will not be accepted.

 It is the Bidder’s sole responsibility to ensurethat offers are received by Venture37 on or before the Offer Deadline of 5pm Eastern Africa Time, July 22, 2025.Only electronic submissions will be accepted.

1. Offers received after the deadline for submission shall be rejected. A late offer will be considered only if the sole cause of its lateness was attributable to Venture37, its employees or agents.

8.          Submission of Bids

1. Only electronic submissions will be accepted. Complete offers, including technical, price, and all supporting documentation must be received by 5pm Eastern Africa Time, July 22, 2025,by Peter Bowman, Sustainable Livestock Systems Specialist, pbowman@landolakes.com, with a copy to Ian Mutua Muthama, Technical Manager, imuthama@landolakes.comand Damaris Kaveli, Finance Manager, dkaveli01@landolakes.com.Please reference the RFP number in the subject line.
2. Ensuring successful transmission and receipt of the bids is the responsibility of the Bidder. It is recommended that no e-mail exceed the size of 10 MB, inclusive of attachments.

9.          Amendment of Bidding Documents

Venture37 may at its discretion and for any reason, modify bidding documents by amendment. All prospective Bidders that have received bidding documents will be notified of the amendment by e-mail and such amendments will be binding on them.

10.        Modification of Offers

1. Any Bidder has the right to withdraw, modify, or correct its offer after it has been delivered to Venture37, provided the request for such a withdrawal, modification, or correction together with full details of such modification or correction is received by Venture37 at the submission point of contact above before the Offer Deadline.
2. Venture37 may ask any Bidder for a clarification of its offer or conduct negotiations with the apparent winner after evaluation of offers; nevertheless, no Bidder will be permitted to alter its price or make any other material modification to its offer after the deadline unless the RFP has been amended or the deadline extended. Clarifications which do not change the price or other material aspects of the offer may be accepted.

11.       Criteria for Award and Evaluation

1. Subject to Clause 15, Venture37 will award the contract to that Bidder whose offer is deemed acceptable and which offers the best value based upon the evaluation criteria. All complete, eligible offers will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Innovativeness of the digital platform’s proposed training model: scalability and feasibility of reaching the intended audience (25%)
• Relevance of the firm or organization’s core capability/skills, experience and capacity to implement and manage the assignment (30%)
• Cost realism and value per farmer trained (45%)
• Sustainability of the platform and access to the developed training content after the termination of the contract (10%)

*Diverse background: up to 5 bonus points may be awarded for diverse background, including, but not limited to, businesses owned and/or led by members of a disadvantaged or historically under-represented group.

In order for a bid to be deemed acceptable, it must comply with all the terms and conditions of the RFP without material modification. A material modification is one which affects the price, quantity, quality, delivery or installation date of the equipment or materials or which limits in any way any responsibilities, duties, or liabilities of the bidders or any rights of Venture37. In addition, the successful bidder must be determined to be responsible. A responsible bidder is one who has the technical expertise, management capability, workload capacity, and financial resources to perform the work.

12.        Venture37’s Right to Accept Any Offer and to Reject Any or All Offers

Venture37 will reject any offer that it deems nonresponsive. Further, Venture37 reserves the right to waive any minor errors in any offer received if it is in Venture37’s best interests to do so, to reject the offer of any Bidder if, in Venture37’s judgment, the Bidder is not fully qualified to provide the services as specified in the contract, or to reject all bids.

13.        Notification of Award

1. Before the expiration of the period of offer validity, Venture37 will notify the successful Bidder in writing that its offer has been accepted.  Venture37 may negotiate with the successful bidder on any details and terms of the contract which do not materially change the scope or specifications of the goods or services to be provided.
2. Upon the successful Bidder acknowledging receipt of the Notification of Award, Venture37 will promptly notify each unsuccessful Bidder that their bids were rejected. If, after notification of award, a Bidder wishes to ascertain the grounds on which its offer was not selected, it should address its request to Venture37 in writing.

14.       Acceptance of Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.

By submitting a proposal to Venture37, Bidder consents to and provides Venture37 with permission to process the Bidder’s personal data specifically for the performance of, and purposes identified in, this solicitation document and in compliance with Venture37’s legal obligations under applicable United States and European Union laws, data protection and regulations, and any other applicable legal requirements. The bidder may withdraw their consent at any time by contacting Ian Mutua Muthama. If consent is withdrawn, Venture37 reserves the right to either accept or reject the offer.

SECTION 2: TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

1.          Scope of Work

Between September 2025 and June 2026, NPA aims to train 30,000 dairy producers in Nakuru, Baringo, Kericho, Uasin Gishu, and Nyandarua counties on improved animal nutrition practices, climate-smart forages, and optimized rationing through a digital training platform. This digital training platform could take the form of a mobile application, SMS messaging, interactive voice recording hotline or call blasting, web-based content, USSD codes, or any other digital training method or combination of methods. The contents could be in the form of video, audio, images, text, or any combination of content delivery mediums. After facilitated piloting to test viability and scalability of the digital training approach, implementation at scale will be conducted in partnership with NPA partner organizations, including dairy cooperatives, women’s groups, and private sector partners.

The digital platform provider will develop trainings that will address the following key topics as four separate topics or chapters based on technical content provided by NPA:

• Gender and Youth inclusion in Forage production.
• Climate Smart Forage Production.
• Balanced Dairy Nutrition.
• Forage Business Development.

Following the training, producers should have increased knowledge of the topics covered such that they apply improved cattle nutrition knowledge and use climate-adapted forage varieties. The NPA Kenya team will link the digital platform provider to partner organizations to aid in user identification and will develop materials to help users overcome enrollment and utilization issues; however, it is ultimately the responsibility of the digital training platform provider to reach the targeted number of farmers. The NPA Kenya team will expect to receive monthly reports containing information on number of farmers trained, including geographic locations (county, sub county, and village), date trained, phone number, gender, age, number of cattle owned, number of acres farmed, and if the farmer is producing forage.

2.          Suggested Timeline

September 2025 through June 2026

Task	S	O	N	D	J	F	M	A	M	J
Onboarding, familiarizing with NPA technical content
Develop digital training packages with NPA technical content
Pilot digital training with support alongside in-person trainings for 1,000+ producers
Roll out training platform in full through NPA partners, train a total of 30,000 producers on balanced dairy nutrition

3.        Expected Deliverables To Be Completed by Implementer

User Engagement & Training Rollout

• Rollout plan to reach target farmers (segmented by region, gender, and age)
• Facilitation of digital training sessions (synchronous or asynchronous)
• Regular engagement via SMS reminders, WhatsApp groups, or voice calls

Farmer Support & Feedback Mechanism

• Digital helpdesk, chatbot, interactive feedback tools, and/or live Q&A sessions with experts

 Monitoring, Reporting & Analytics

• Real-time dashboard for:
  • User sign-ups and activity
  • Course completion rates
  • Gender/youth disaggregation
• Quarterly progress summary with analysis and recommendations

Capacity Building of Field Teams

• One recorded training for staff, local extension officers, youth leaders or agro-entrepreneurs on how to use and enroll on the platform
• Resource kits and facilitation guides for hybrid (digital + in-person) training

Sustainability and Handover Plan

• Collaboration with NPA Kenya team and project partners to develop long-term sustainability plan

Farmer Support Beyond Training

• Post-training refresher sessions or tip messages
• Access to downloadable or printable materials for reference

Feedback & Farmer Satisfaction

• Periodic farmer satisfaction surveys (digital or assisted)
• Capture of ratings, comments, and suggestions in the platform
• The ability to make adjustments to content or delivery based on feedback after the pilot phase

4. Expectations: What NPA Will Provide

• We will provide the technical content and review integration into the platform.
• We will support identification and enrollment of the 30,000 producers on the platform through partnerships with private sector organizations, dairy cooperatives, and civil society organizations.
• We will develop guidance to help platform users overcome enrollment and utilization issues.