Informations for contractual partners
This page furnishes FDFA contractors with useful information on the procurement procedures, requirements for tenders and on the types of contract and applicable general terms and conditions (GTC). The relevant contractual documents and GTC for contribution recipients are also provided here
Legal requirements for procurement
Threshold values
Under the tender procedure, the FDFA publishes the mandate on the simap.ch platform. All interested parties and suitable tenderers can submit an offer. The FDFA evaluates the offers using pre-defined, published criteria. The mandate is awarded to the most economically advantageous bid, which is published on SIMAP, the official electronic public procurement platform of the federal government, the cantons and communes.
Under the invitation procedure the FDFA decides which tenderers ae to be invited directly to submit offers. Wherever possible the FDFA must obtain three tenders. The FDFA compares the offers and awards the mandate to the most advantageous bid.
Under the direct award procedure, the FDFA awards the mandate to a supplier directly. When reviewing the bid prior to making the award, the FDFA complies with the requirement to use public funds efficiently and economically.
Conditions for the direct award procedure
With the scope of the FDFA's area of activity, the following exceptions may benefit from the direct award procedure:
- when due to technical particularities or for the protection of intellectual property, the stakes involve only one supplier or no adequate alternative exists.
- related to development cooperation and humanitarian aid:
- Mandates within the frame of agricultural or food-aid programmes;
- Mandates based on an International treaty between the States Parties to the GATT Agreement or Switzerland and third countries;
- Mandates in the frame of a particular procedure of an international organisation;
Legal framework
The awarding of mandates is governed by the legal requirements of the Federal Act on Public Procurement and the Ordinance on Public Procurement as well as by the FDFA's own internal directives.
Federal Act of 21 June 2019 on Public Procurement
Ordinance of 12 February 2020 on Public Procurement
Requirements for offers
A complete offer for a mandate includes concepts and methods, a differentiated depiction of the use of project funds and details regarding the qualifications of the key personnel. In evaluating offers, the FDFA refers to its own internal fee guidelines and to the expense rates of the federal government in respect of reimbursements (fees and expenses).
When drawing up offers, great importance is attached to a good understanding of the project and the project environment. Concepts and methods for carrying out the mandate should be proposed and consideration given to particular opportunities and risks. In addition, an easy-to-follow depiction of the use of project funds (personnel, goods, financial resources) is prefered, as is an illustration of the institutional and organisational processes involved. Qualifications play a particularly important role, along with assurances regarding the availability of the proposed key personnel. To ensure that offers are comparable, structural requirements for drawing up the budget generally apply to financial bids. Although the financial bid is just one element of many in the overall assessment, bids are expected to be in line with the market.
The content and scope of services to be provided and the applicable fee rates are agreed in negotiations. The FDFA fee guidelines are primarily based on the assessments of the requested services, taking into account the particular capabilities of the persons performing the mandate. The FDFA uses these reference values to assess the reimbursement due, which is then contractually agreed with the contractor.
Information for contractors
FDFA contractors and recipients of contributions will find useful information and necessary documents here in connection with a mandate (type A, type B or local mandate) or federal funding beyond the project area.
Contract documents and General conditions
Mandates
Contributions
Index
Contact
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