Lighting Rural Tanzania Competition 2010 (LRTC 2010)

Deadline : December 31, 2009

Prize : US$ 100,000

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP): LIGHTING RURAL TANZANIA COMPETITION 2010 (LRTC2010)

1. Introduction

Lighting Rural Tanzania Competition 2010 (LRTC2010) is a competitive grant program that will support private enterprises in developing and delivering a wide array of modern lighting products for rural households and businesses. Lighting Rural Tanzania will build upon the base of lighting technologies that exist today, seeking market solutions to provide an array of products with the quality, applications, costs, or configurations needed by the low income market segment. Energy for these lights could be from renewable energy, mechanical, or other non-fossil fuel sources. These small-scale projects not only deliver results, but also have the potential to be expanded or replicated elsewhere.

The competition will focus on increasing access to renewable energies; improve technologies and reduction of uses of weak lamps, kerosene lamps and candles. The objective of (LRTC2010) is to recognize and support innovative initiatives that increase access to sustainable, affordable, and energy services for people in rural Tanzania and have credible potential for replication and scaling-up. The Lighting Rural Tanzania will be held in collaboration with the World Bank.

2. Who Should Participate

Proposals are invited from a range of development innovators - civil society groups, social entrepreneurs, private foundations, government agencies, academia, the private sector, and individuals.

3. Program Objective

The overall Program Objective is the provision of clean, affordable, sustainable and environmentally friendly energy services to rural communities in Mainland Tanzania.

* The following are specific objectives of the competition:
* Increase access to modern lighting systems for households, schools and health centers.
* Improve technology for production of low cost renewable energy products.
* Bring to the market, products that are competitive in terms of price.
* Build sustainable technical and commercial capabilities of rural energy entrepreneurs to operate and sustainably manage renewable energy systems.
* Enhance project developers’ competencies in preparing viable and bankable project proposals.



4. Lighting Rural Tanzania Competition Themes

* Service Delivery: Sustainable and large scale delivery of lighting products and services in rural Tanzania, including removal of existing barriers.
* Product Innovation: Responding to consumer and market needs via development and commercialization of high quality, durable, efficient, low cost lighting products/services.
* Environment: Renewable energy, clean energy technologies, energy efficiency, and/or environmentally sustainable solutions to meet lighting needs of households, small enterprises, communities, etc.
* Health: Protecting health from environmental risk factors, such as indoor air pollution and improper disposal of hazardous material. Reliance on wood fuels combined with inadequate housing/cooking facilities lead to a high incidence of respiratory infection from indoor air pollution, and contributes to deforestation, soil erosion, and environmental degradation. Moreover, the lack of energy for basic human activity such as agriculture, transport, medical care, communication, education, and enterprise further marginalizes poor people and limits their ability to increase their incomes.
* Natural Resources: Sustainable management of natural resources (land, water, forests) specifically for the provision of water supply, sanitation and energy to off-grid rural communities.

The competition seeks to support innovative and sustainable local-level solutions that improve the quality of and access to modern energy services for off-grid communities in Mainland Tanzania. In doing so, the Rural Energy Agency and the community will gain valuable insights on providing effective and efficient service delivery to these people.

5. Eligibility Criteria

The competition is open to a wide variety of organizations, including Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and other Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), international partners, private foundations, universities and schools, private sector groups, individuals, and local and municipal governments. Proposals will be screened to ensure that they conform to the following criteria:

* Sub-themes: Proposals must reflect the theme of Innovations in Energy Services for Poor People, in any of the following areas:
o Service Delivery: Sustainable delivery of energy services to poor households and communities.
o Environment: Renewable energy, clean energy technologies, energy efficiency, and/or environmentally sustainable solutions to poor households and small enterprises.
o Health: Protecting health from environmental risk factors, such as indoor air pollution and improper disposal of hazardous.
o Natural Resources: Sustainable management of natural resources (land, water, forests) specifically for the provision of water supply, sanitation and energy to the poor. Type of organization (NGO, private enterprise, local).
o Minimum and maximum grant requested.
o Duration of project existence.
o Legal status of applying organization.
o Partnership requirement (with local partners).
o Innovation: The extent to which the idea is creative.
o Measurability: Measurable project with clear result/impact to target population.
o Sustainability: Organizational capacity and financial viability of the project.
o Growth potential: Extent to which project could be scaled up to reach additional beneficiaries or replicable elsewhere.
o Project risk: What are the potential risks to successful project execution? What risk mitigation strategies are proposed?
* Implementing organization and partnerships: LRTC2010 is particularly interested in proposals from local organizations.
o Proposals from international organizations will be considered eligible only if their implementing partner is a local organization.
o Private businesses, individuals, non-profit organization such as NGOs/CSOs, foundations and universities/schools are eligible.
o Municipal and local government agencies are eligible to apply in partnership with at least one of the other different organizations mentioned above.
* Implementation time frame: Proposed activities must be completed within 18 months of receiving the initial disbursement from LRTC2010.
* Results: The output or results outlined in proposals should be measurable and demonstrate a direct impact on improving the access to services by poor and marginalized households in an environmentally sound manner. Projects with the sole output of research, such as publications or conferences/forums with no directly verifiable results on the ground, will be ineligible. The proposals should also demonstrate financial viability and the potential to scale up.
* Maximum award size: The maximum award size for LRTC2010 is US$ 100,000.00 Award to winners will vary in size according to the needs outlined in their proposals.
* Past winners and applicants of Lighting Africa: If your project is already being funded by the World Bank Group or if you are a past winner (Global or Country-level), you may submit a proposal that is significantly different from the project or idea for which you have received funding. You may not submit the same idea or project.
* Multiple submissins: If you have submitted a proposal to any of the on-going regional and country competition (Albania, Benin, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Burkina Faso, China, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Kosovo, Lebanon, Macedonia, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Senegal, and Serbia and Montenegro) you may not be eligible to send a proposal to LRTC2010. Please contact the LRTC2010 team at lrtc2010@rea.go.tz or info@rea.go.tz for further clarification.
* Language: Proposals must be submitted in English.



6. Assessment Criteria

Proposals will be assessed according to the following criteria:

* Innovation: Extent to which idea varies from current approach – e.g. a novel approach to implement an idea or in a new country/region. The LRTC2010 is especially interested in a variety of innovations, such as affordable technologies; application of advanced technologies to services to the poor; financing mechanisms; institutional arrangements and partnerships designed to unblock constraints to service delivery; innovative contracting instruments; people-centered approaches to service delivery; behavioral change; and innovative use of technology for capacity building and training; among others.
* Realism and Results: Extent to which project outputs or results are clear and have a direct impact on improving service delivery to the poor. Project teams should present a realistic implementation time frame and budget.
* Financial Viability: Extent to which the implementing organization is able to sustain their activities beyond LRTC2010 funding phase. Project teams should demonstrate their ability to make the project financially viable by leveraging funds from grants and non-grant resources (such as user fees, community contributions, etc) to make the project financially viable.
* Sustainability (organizational, social, and environmental as relevant): Extent to which the proposal addresses organizational capacity, environmental sensitivity, and local support and participation.
* Replicability and Scaling up: Extent to which project could be transferred or replicated elsewhere (internally or in another country). In particular, the potential for the idea to be applied at a large scale.
* Project Risks: What are the potential risks to successful project execution? What risk mitigation strategies are proposed?



7. How to Apply

Applicants are encouraged to apply online, click here to start applying online. To use our online proposal form, you must register and have a valid account profile with www.rea.go.tz. Registration is free.

If you are not able to access the internet or our website, please contact the LRTC2010 Team by phone at +255 787 760020 or +255 784 969313; by Fax at +255 732 999582 or via e-mail at rltc2010@rea.go.tz. Other methods of application include a downloadable e-mail template for e-mail or print/postal submissions.

Please note that all proposals must be submitted before 14:00 East African Time (17:00 GMT) on Thursday, December 31st, 2009. Online proposals are only considered completed when they have been officially submitted (i.e., you must specifically select the option “Yes (Please OFFICIALLY SUBMIT my proposal.)” on line #95 before clicking the “Save/Submit Proposal” button).

Applications will only be accepted in English. If successfully submitted, the LRTC2010 Team will acknowledge receipt of your application for your records. Any proposals in draft form will automatically be deleted.

8. LRTC2010 Timeline and Key Steps

The program competition is guided by the values of inclusiveness, diversity, fairness, and transparency. The overall process is described below.

* October 23rd, October 2009 – December 31st, 2009; Call for proposals: All proposals for LRTC2010 should be submitted through our website (www.rea.go.tz), or REA postal address (P.O. Box 7990, Dar Es Salaam) clearly marked LRTC2010 on top of the envelop.
* January 1st 2010 – January 30th, 2010; Review of proposals: Proposals will be reviewed against the assessment criteria mentioned above.
* February 15th, 2010; Announcement of finalists: Assessors will select 40 finalists.
* February 15th-March 15th, 2010; Submission of finalists detailed proposals: All finalists will be asked to submit a more detailed proposal by March 15th, 2010 Finalists will be invited to showcase their ideas before an international jury. The Rural Energy Agency will cover the expense for one representative from each finalist team to attend the event.
* April 8th- 9th, 2010; Meeting on Knowledge Exchange and proposal exhibitions: The meeting will be on April 8-9, 2010 at Arusha. Independent jury comprised of and leading individuals in energy development (academia, civil society, foundations, government, other donor institutions, and the private sector) and World Bank staff will evaluate each of the 40 shortlisted proposals and select about 10 winners.

To take advantage of the presence of a variety of development actors in one place, LRTC2010 will convene a Knowledge Exchange workshop to share ideas and engage finalists with other representatives of the development community in productive and inventive partnerships and networks.

9. Awards

The Rural Energy Agency expects to provide maximum US$ 1,000,000.00 as awards to the winners selected by an international jury.

Click here to download PDF version of this document

About REA

The Rural Energy Agency (REA) was established by the Act of Parliament No.8 of 2005 as an autonomous institution to administer the Rural Energy Fund (REF). REA is governed by the Rural Energy Board (REB).

The main function of REA is to promote investment in modern energy services by working with key partners and collaborators from the private sector, NGOs, CBOs, and Government agencies to mobilize resources in order to achieve its objectives. The Agency, in partnership with investors, identifies modern energy projects, provides training, in project identification and preparation, technical assistance, and provides managerial and financial assistance in order to enhance energy projects sustainability.

In collaboration with key service sector institutions and ministries responsible for rural services (e.g. health, education, rural development, water, etc.) the Agency promotes modern energy supply for productive use aiming at reducing poverty and raising the livelihood of communities in the rural areas.

Click here for more information about REA

Contacts

Director General
Rural Energy Agency - REA
dg@rea.go.tz
info@rea.go.tz

Source : REA TANZANIA

Republish by : NORBERTUS CITRA IRAWAN, SP - www.competitions.co.nr

Related :