INTRODUCTION
The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) is the national representative organization of First Nations people in Canada. The AFN represents and advocates First Nations interests for more than 600 First Nations from across the country.
The AFN now invites qualified individuals and firms to submit proposals to provide professional services for the delivery of a game application tool for First Nations Youth fire and life safety awareness.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this Request for Proposals (RFP) is to select a bidder to provide a high quality of professionalism, integrity and confidentiality and adhere to AFN’s mandate by First Nations-in-Assembly’s Resolution 09/2022 Targeted Support to Improve First Nations Fire Protection.
In follow up to the First Nations Fire Protection Strategy’s main goal is to reduce the risk of fatality in First Nation Youth, an educational tool is being developed. This tool aims to utilize modern technology by creating an interactive app designed for phones and tablets. The app will focus on teaching fire prevention strategies that are tailored to the types of buildings commonly found in the lives of First Nations children, particularly in rural and remote areas.
To ensure the effectiveness of the app, a consultant will be hired, specifically one who has experience in producing similar applications for non-First Nations children. By combining innovative technology and expert guidance, this initiative seeks to empower First Nations children with vital fire safety knowledge.=
Key activities and deliverables include but are not limited to the following:
- Initiations and project meeting;
- Background collection & review, external organizational input, and informational interviews;
- Merging previous project applicability with project deliverable needs; and
- Accurate First Nation content.
- Complete subcontracting and procurement for the app’s entire development team;
- Hiring of First Nations youth to participate in the application’s voice development;
- Coordinating and translation requirements as part of the app;
- The application’s minimum requirement is English and French.
- Coordinating the development, AFN, and any advisors who form a part of the working group;
- Ensuring the consultant hires First Nation digital artists to assign with the graphic design;
- App development and integration with iOS, Android, and web-browser platforms;
- Distribution to the regional offices for public use; and
- Draft report and final report.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
In following AFN mandates below, an educational tool is being developed to reduce the risk of fire fatality in First Nations youth.
AFN is mandated by First Nations-in-Assembly’s Resolution 09/2022 Targeted Support to Improve First Nations Fire Protection. The resolution directs the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) to urge the federal government for funding and resources for the National First Responders Gathering, aimed at improving fire protection for First Nations. It urges the federal government to invest in firefighting equipment to address capacity issues and climate change-related incidents. The AFN is also directed to advocate for sustainable funding for First Nations-led fire protection services and improved community infrastructure. Additionally, it calls for immediate targeted funding support for First Nations under evacuation orders and the establishment of an expedited emergency relief fund for future evacuation events caused by extreme weather.
The Joint First Nations Fire Protection Strategy, 2016 to 2021 concluded on March 31, 2021. The renewed strategy sets out a vision of priorities and identifies specific goals for the period of 2023 to 2028. It is intended to better inform program policy and guide federal investments to promote fire protection on reserves, and to reduce the risk of fire-related deaths and injuries as well as infrastructure losses.
The strategy outlines priorities and specific goals under 6 pillars:
- Partnership for First Nations fire protection
- Fire prevention education
- Community standards
- Fire service operational standards
- Climate change
- Critical infrastructure
The purpose of this strategy is to improve fire and life safety for all First Nations through a series of strategic objectives. Some of the pillars are already in progress and have well established funding streams, while some areas require renewed attention and improved funding.
Fire prevention education is by far the most efficient and effective measure to enhance fire safety. Preventing the incident from occurring in the first place is the best solution. The next solution is educating people on what to do if a fire occurs, with tools like a fire escape plan or building fire safety plan. The final line of defense is the provision of the highest achievable level of fire response. This includes:
- Promoting fire prevention programs nationally.
- Wherever good fire programs are developed, they should be shared and promoted nationally. Assembly of First Nations, National Indigenous Fire Safety Council and the First Nations technical organizations should collaborate to build and promote First Nations fire safety initiatives as well as support non-First Nations initiatives like the Government of Canada Fire Safety Week and other provincial programs.
- Supporting elected officials in adopting fire safety initiatives at administrative level.
- Promoting fire safety at the chief and council level is crucial to developing a fire safety culture. Leaders who understand the importance of fire safety will promote good programs and ensure appropriate funding is allocated.
- Educating and supporting local and regional fire safety manager.
- First Nations that have identified a fire safety manager see the best results in building and maintaining effective fire safety programs.
- Smaller First Nations may not be able to support their own fire safety manager so regional fire safety coordinators should be established to ensure they have the same level of focus on fire safety.
PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS
All proposals shall be received by the AFN no later than November 27, 2023, at 5:00pm ET.
All proposals will clearly identify the name of the proponent and the note “RFP for Fire and Life Safety App Tool” on the sealed envelope.
Late submissions will not be accepted and will be unopened without exception. The use of the mail or courier services for delivery of a bid will be at the risk of the bidder.
Since bids must be submitted by electronic delivery secure site or otherwise [email protected] , submissions by facsimile or sealed envelope, will not be accepted.
PROPOSAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
All proposals shall include the following information:
- Cover Page;
- Table of Contents:
- Project Summary (e.g., introduction, issue statement, objectives, methodology, qualifications of applicant organization, evaluation, long-term project plans, etc.);
- Budget Description;
- Team Biographies/Resumes;
- Appendices (if applicable); and
- List of References
RIGHTS OF THE AFN
The AFN reserves the right to:
- reject any or all proposals received in response to this Request for Proposals;
- enter into negotiation with one or more bidders on any or all aspects of their respective proposals;
- accept any proposal in whole, or in part;
- cancel and/or re-issue the modified version of a given RFP requirement at any time;
- award one or more contracts;
- verify all information provided with respect to a given RFP requirement, including the right to request a confirmation of the bidder’s legal status and signed documentation; and
- award contracts without competition for follow-up work, if any, to the selected bidder for a given project
EVALUATION CRITERIA
The AFN will select the Proponent(s) which, in the AFN’s sole discretion, best serves the needs of the AFN. The following is a summary of the general considerations that will be used to determine the Proponent(s) that will be selected:
| 1. Overall Experience and Demonstrated Results | 20% |
| 2. Budget Approach and Cost Effectiveness | 20% |
| 3. Terms and Conditions | 10% |
| 4. Indigenous Organization | 10% |
| 5. Strategic Thinking and Planning Approach | 40% |
| Total | 100% |
TIMETABLE
The following dates are set forth for informational and planning purposes and may be changed at the AFN’s sole discretion.
Important dates and deadlines:
|
TIMELINE |
MAJOR DELIVERABLES |
|
November 10, 2023 |
App developer contracted – planning/production phase |
|
January 20, 2024 |
Testing phase with game design concepts complete |
|
March 30, 2024 |
Pre-launch game for internal review – beta phase |
|
September 4, 2024 |
Launch of game |
|
December 15, 2024 |
Post-launch review and bug fix phase |
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
The timetable is tentative only and may be changed by the AFN, in its sole discretion, at any time prior to the Proposal Submission Deadline.
Contractors must provide a firm fixed price, including administrative fees, travel, material costs, translation, printing of draft concepts and HST.
AFN will evaluate proposed systems and related costs in a separate process, with recommendations from the successful bidder.
Confidentiality
Responses to this RFP will be considered as confidential information by the AFN and will be used solely for the purposes of selecting the successful bidder.
Clarification/ Questions / Submissions
All on-time proposals will be acknowledged.
Requests for clarification and/or questions regarding this RFP should be directed to:
Alexandra Whiteduck
Jr. Policy Analyst
Assembly of First Nations
Electronic Mail: [email protected]
Questions to this RFP must be received by the close of business (5:00pm EST) on November 23, 2023.
Deadline
Only those submissions that meet the deadline will be considered.
Submissions to this RFP must be received by the close of business (5:00pm EST) on November 27, 2023, and should be directed to:
Alexandra Whiteduck
Jr. Policy Analsyt
Assembly of First Nations
Electronic Mail: [email protected]