Invitation to Bid (ITB)

A nonprofit organization invites sealed bids from “Chartered Accountancy Firms” to conduct the Audit of One of its donors funded project.

Interested bidders having valid Registration with Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP) or Embassy of Germany, experience and registered with relevant tax authorities are requested to send their documents according to attached TORs on address given below not later than November 14^th 2024.

Introduction:

Foundation for Rural Development (FRD) is a not for profit, non-political and non-governmental organization registered in 2008 under The Voluntary Social Welfare Agencies (Registration and Control) Ordinance 1961 having registered office situated at House No. 6, Gul Mohar Lane, University Town Peshawar.  FRD is currently executing the Re-Food Project, funded by Helvetas Intercooperation (gGmbH) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), named “Resource efficient food production in Pakistan – Re-Food Pakistan” focused on vertical tunnel farming. The project started in April 2023 and is ending on January 31, 2025. To ensure transparency and compliance with donor requirements, FRD is seeking the services of an independent auditor to conduct a comprehensive audit of the project based in House No. 6, Gul Mohar Lane, University Town, Peshawar having total volume of expenditures for amounting to rupees 90M.

Scope of Work: 1. Audit Objective: 

The independent auditor will review and verify the accuracy and completeness of financial transactions, ensuring that all funds have been utilized according to the project’s objectives and donor guidelines.

2. Audit Period: 

The audit shall be divided into two phases and will be conducted in English;

• Phase 1;

1. Auditor will verify, check the vouchers, receipt list(s) and supporting documentation from April 1^st 2023 until October 31^th 2024 and make sure that the documentation is compliant with BMZ regulations.
2. The Auditor will provide FRD and Helvetas with a certified interim evaluation or expenditure verification report, that includes recommendations for improvement of documentation
3. The Auditor will verify that the expenditures are in line with the planned and approved which was signed in the project agreement

• Phase 2;

1.     The Auditor will verify the expenditures and project documentation for the period from November 1st 2024 to January 31st 2025. In case of an extension of the project duration the extended period shall also be included.

2.     The Auditor will check the compliance of transactions highlighted during the audit of phase I – as a follow up activity. Audit phase II will cover only predefined period – see point 1.

3.     Auditor will provide an audit report according to guidelines of the donor.

3. Qualifications of Audit Firm: 

   - The auditor/Audit firm must have a valid qualification (at the time at which the audit certificate is issued) as recognized, independent auditor. This audit certificate must be confirmed by the German Embassy or a relevant, recognized institution in Pakistan, such as a chamber of commerce or the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP). Furthermore, the firm will provide the following (registration) documents:

v Excellent language Skills in English (C1 according to CEFR standard)

v Proved experience in auditing projects of similar scale and complexity.

v Familiarity with donor-funded projects (especially with BMZ Funded projects) and adherence to international auditing standards.

 4. Scope of external audit: 

The external auditor should include the following auditing and control measures.

v Auditor will verify all accounting records for Correctness and completeness.

v  Auditor will verify the financial report in which all project related revenues and expenditures must be shown and for which it must be confirmed receipts are provided for all revenue and expenditures.

v Audit will check and verify how the project funds have been managed. This includes.

• Project funds transferred to the project’s partner in the current budget year or during the project term.
•  Interest earned in the current budget year or during the project term from project’s fund transferred to the partner.
• Other revenue from the project activity

v Auditor will verify to what extent the funds have been used appropriately for the purpose of carrying out the planned project objectives and activities.

v Auditor will verify the cost-effectiveness of expenditure regarding financial resources (to be used economically and as effectively as possible). Audit will check the personnel cost and other social security contributions to ensure that these are in line with local standards, legal as per national law, comply with contracts, and that contributions required by law are being withheld.

v Auditor will verify that the cost plan is being adhered to by means of a comparison objectives and effects (based on most recent valid budget)

v Auditor will verify the economic use of project equipment.

v Auditor will verify the procured inventory, where it is being held, and whether it has been /is being used appropriately for the purpose of carrying out the planned project objectives and activities.

v Audit will verify and confirm that project relevant documentation is complete and correct.

v Auditor will verify that all agreements fundamental to the projects are being complied with (contracts, German private executing agency guidelines, BMZ funding requirements, BNBest-P/private executing agencies and BMZ contract award guidelines).

v Auditor will issue an audit report in English language providing a detailed assessment on the expenditures and its compliance with donor regulations  

5. Timeline: 

v The audit should commence within 5 days after the contract is awarded for Phase-1 as mentioned above, and should commence the Phase-2 as mentioned above upon intimation from Helvetas Pakistan after smooth consolidation of financial at the end of project.

v The draft audit report should be submitted 45 days after the end of the project.

v The final audit report should be submitted 60 days after the end of the project.

Your technical and financial proposal, coherent with enclosed TORs

Among others, we expect your proposal to contain the following precisions:

1. Detail your firm’s experience in providing auditing and tax services to the organizations in the not-for-profit sector, as well as nonprofits
2. Provide information on your relationships with related industry associations or groups.
3. Discuss commitments you will make to staff continuity, including your staff turnover experience in the last three years.
4. Identify the partner, manager, and in-charge accountant who will be assigned to our job if you are successful in your bid and provide biographies.
5. Describe how your firm will approach the audit of the organization, including the use of any association or affiliate member firm personnel and the areas that will receive primary emphasis.
6. Also discuss the firm’s use of methodology in the audit. And finally, discuss the communication process used by the firm to discuss issues with the management.
7. Set forth your professional fee proposal for the 2024 audit with assigned limits to out-of-pocket expenses.
8. Provide any value-added services that are included within the fee.
9. Describe how and why your firm is different from other firms being considered, and why our selection of your firm as our independent accountants is the best decision we could make.

Evaluation of Proposals:

FRD and Helvetas will evaluate proposals based on fee and qualitative analysis. This includes the collaborative review of the firm’s reputation experience (if any), interviews with senior engagement personnel to be assigned to our organization, results of discussions with other clients, and the firm’s completeness and timeliness in its response to us.

Please submit your response to this request for proposal by November 14, 2024. We would also appreciate a response if you declined to submit a proposal.