USAID requests recommendations from interested parties on activities to improve Georgia's (1) economic governance, (2) private sector competitiveness, (3) economic security and (4) access to information and skills development. This could include assistance across a range of different industry sectors - urban and rural, traditional and advanced. It could include technical and/or financial assistance to help further strengthen economic governance and private sector productive capacities, and should help to sustain Georgia's economic growth not only during the period of this initiative, but for years after the assistance is complete. Activities should seek to maximize the involvement of Georgian government counterparts, institutions, organizations, and individuals. Recommendations should fall within the following four broad objective areas: (1) Expand and Deepen Georgia's Economic Governance Capacity and Country-Level Competitiveness (2) Improve Private Sector Competitiveness (3) Improve Economic Security for Georgian citizens (4) Improved Access to Information and Skills Development USAID is particularly interested in approaches that: 1. Strengthen and develop local capacity. 2. Can develop and utilize clear benchmarks, targets and end-states to be achieved. Use of Global Indices: USAID would also be interested in feedback on the use of Global indices, such as the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Annual "Global Competitiveness Report", to identify and target reforms and assistance activities, particularly for use in areas 1 and 2. For example, while WEF's indicator set is not without flaws, its comprehensive nature, its economic rationale, and its global applicability make it a strong candidate for establishing a broad reform agenda and for benchmarking improvements. The following list is indicative of the areas that Georgia might consider targets for future reform activities, as a way of enhancing economic growth and foreign investment: World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2009 - 2010 Indicator Ranking 1.01 Property Rights 109 1.02 Intellectual Property Protection 100 1.05 Judicial Independence 117 1.19 Protection of minority shareholder's interests 117 5.05 Quality of management schools 106 5.07 Local availability of research and training services 122 6.01 Intensity of local competition 115 6.03 Effectiveness of anti-monopoly policy 125 6.08 Agricultural policy costs 103 6.14 Degree of customer orientation 119 8.02 Financing through local equity market 125 8.08 Regulation of securities exchanges 117 9.01 Availability of latest technologies 93 9.02 Firm-level technology absorption 115 11.01 Local supplier quantity 130 11.02 Local supplier quality 129 11.07 Production process sophistication 101 11.08 Extent of marketing 97 12.01 Capacity for innovation 119 12.04 University-industry collaboration in R&D 122 Mechanisms for Program Implementation: USAID also welcomes recommendations regarding the best mode of implementation to maximize impact. This is not a Request for Proposals. Please do not submit proposals or statements of qualifications in response to this request. Please submit your comments via email to Eka Gamezardashvili at
[email protected] by December 4, 2009 at 10:00 AM Tbilisi local time. This announcement is a Request for Information (RFI), not a Request for Proposals (RFP) and is not to be construed as a commitment by USAID to issue any solicitation or ultimately to award a contract on the basis of this RFI or otherwise compensate an organization or individual for any information submitted as a result of this request. It should be noted that responding to this RFI will not give any advantage to any organization or individual if a subsequent procurement is publicized. USAID will not provide answers to any questions submitted in response to this request. Thank you for your assistance and interest in USAID programs.