Annual Financial Audit Request for Offers 01/2021 - Skat ...
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INTEGRATED WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT IN KOSOVO
(IWRM-K)
Phase 1
May 2020 – April 2024
Annual Financial Audit
Request for Offers 01/2021
February 02, 2021
The IWRMK Program is funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)
implemented by Skat Consulting Ltd. (Switzerland) in consortium with the Environment Agency Austria (EAA)Table of Contents 1. INVITATION FORM....................................................................................................... 3 2. DESCRIPTION OF REQUIREMENTS .......................................................................... 5 Annex 1: Terms of Reference/Schedule of Requirements ..................................................... 8 Annex 2: Bidder Information ................................................................................................ 22 Annex 4: Evaluation Criteria ................................................................................................ 27 Annex 5: Terms and Conditions for Contracts ..................................................................... 28 Acronyms/Abbreviations CSO Civil Society Organization CGS Competitive Grants Scheme EAA Environment Agency Austria ECSO Environmental Civil Society Organisation EU WFD European Union Water Framework Directive HMI Hydro-Meteorological Institute IWRM Integrated Water Resource Management IWRM-K Integrated Water Resource Management in Kosovo KEPA Kosovo Environmental Protection Agency MEE Ministry of Economy and Environment NGOs Non-Governmental Organization RBDA River Basin District Authority RBMP River Basin Management Plan WIS Water Information System
1. INVITATION FORM
Integrated Water Resources Manage- DATE: February 2, 2021
ment in Kosovo (IWRM-K) Program REFERENCE: Financial Audit
Dear Sir / Madam:
The “Integrated Water Resources Management in Kosovo” Program1 (hereinafter the Program
or IWRM-K) kindly invites you to submit your Offer2 in EUR (VAT excluded) for RFO 01/2021
for Annual Financial Audit. The offer must be submitted in a sealed envelope on or before
16.30 CET on February 11, 2021, to the address below:
Skat Consulting Kosovo, IWRM-K Program
RFO 01/2021 for Annual Financial Audit
136 Pashko Vasa street
Floor I. No.5, Pejton, Pristina, Kosovo
DO NOT OPEN BEFORE 11 February 2021
Alternatively, the Offers can be submitted electronically to the following dedicated email:
tender@skat.ch
Please use the following e-mail subject: RFO 01/2021 Financial Audit
The offer must be submitted in one PDF document. The offer must be submitted in
one file as well and encrypted with a password. The offer shall be DIGITALLY signed
or signed and scanned in the .pdf format. The same submission time as for hard copy
offers to pertain.
Max. size of uploaded files (per document) must not exceed 20 MB
Password for OFFER SHALL be provided to IWRM–K only upon conclusion of the
deadline and required by e-mail3.
Companies failing to meet this requirement will be disqualified. Your Offer must be valid for a
minimum period of 120 days.
In the course of preparing your Offer, it shall remain your responsibility to ensure that it reaches
the address above on or before the deadline. Offers that are received after the deadline indi-
cated above, for whatever reason, shall not be considered for evaluation.
Services proposed shall be reviewed and evaluated based on completeness and compliance
of the Offer and responsiveness with the requirements of the RFO and all other annexes
providing details of this procurement.
Any discrepancy between the unit price and the total price shall be re-computed by the IWRM-
K Program, and the unit price shall prevail, and the total price shall be corrected. If the Service
1
The Program is funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and implemented by the Consor-
tium of Skat Consulting Ltd., St. Gallen, Switzerland and the Environment Agency Austria. This procurement is
organized by Skat Consulting Branch Office in Kosovo.
2 Please be guided by the form attached hereto as Annex 2, in preparing your Offer.
3 Password protection of a PDF document can be done by using free software, such as Adobe Reader for example.
Open the PDF and choose Tools > Protect > Encrypt > Encrypt with Password. Companies that will pass the
technical evaluation will be approached by IWRM-K to share the passwords to the financial offers.Provider does not accept the final price based on IWRM-K’s re-computation and correction of errors, its Offer will be rejected. No price variation due to escalation, inflation, fluctuation in exchange rates, or any other mar- ket factors shall be accepted by IWRM-K after it has received the Offer. At the time of Award of Contract or Purchase Order, IWRM-K reserves the right to vary (increase or decrease) the quantity of services and/or goods, by up to a maximum twenty-five percent (25%) of the total offer, without any change in the unit price or other terms and conditions. Any contract that will be issued as a result of this RFO shall be subject to the Terms and Conditions indicated herein. The mere act of submission of an Offer implies that the Service Provider accepts without question the General Terms and Conditions of IWRM-K. Please be advised that IWRM-K is not bound to accept any Offer, nor award a contract, nor be responsible for any costs associated with a Service Providers preparation and submission of an Offer, regardless of the outcome or the manner of conducting the selection process. IWRM-K encourages every prospective Service Provider to prevent and avoid conflicts of in- terest, by disclosing to IWRM-K if you, or any of your affiliates or personnel, were involved in the preparation of the Terms of References, or other requirements, cost estimates, and other information used in this RFO. Thank you and we look forward to receiving your Offer.
2. DESCRIPTION OF REQUIREMENTS
The objective of the assignment is the provision of financial audit
Brief Description of the services for a period of 3 years with possibility of extension to
1 Required Services maximum 4 years. The scope of audit services is described in the
attached Terms of Reference.
Deadline for the Sub- 11 February 2021, 16.30h CET
2 mission of Offer
☒ Exact Address/es 136 Pashko Vasa street, Floor I. No.5, Pe-
3 Location of work jton, Pristina, Kosovo
☐ At Contractor’s Location
Expected duration of 36 months from the signing of the contract
4
work
5 Target start date 15 March 2021
Estimated completion 15 March 2023
6
date
7 Language of the Offer English
8 Pre-bidding conference Not Applicable
Implementation Sched- ☐ Required
9
ule indicating break- ☒ Not Required
down and timing of ac-
tivities/sub-activities
Names and curriculum ☒ Required
vitae of individuals ☐ Not Required
10 who will be involved in
completing the ser-
vices
☐ Other currency (if required)
11 Currency of Offer
☒ Euro
Value Added Tax on ☐ must be inclusive of VAT and other applicable indirect taxes
12
Price Offer4 ☒ must be exclusive of VAT and other applicable indirect taxes
13 Bid Security Will not be applied
14 Liquidated Damages Will not be applied
15 Performance Security Not Required
16 Financial Standing Not Required
☐ 60 days
☐ 90 days
Validity Period of Of- ☒ 120 days
fers (Counting for the
17
last day of submission In exceptional circumstances, IWRM-K may request the Bidder
of quotes) to extend the validity of the Offer beyond what has been initially
indicated in this RFO. The Offer shall then confirm the extension
in writing, without any modification whatsoever on the Offer.
☒ Not permitted
18 Partial Quotes
☐ Permitted
Joint Venture, Consor- ☒ Not permitted
19 tium or Association ☐ Permitted
Instal-
20 Payment Terms5 ment Deliverable Tentative timeline
4 IWRM-K is VAT exempt in the country and all activities implemented by the Program directly or through contracts
are also VAT exempt.
5 IWRM-K’s preference is not to pay any amount in advance upon signing of contract. If the Service Provider strictly
requires payment in advance, it will be limited only up to 20% of the total price quoted. For any higher percentage,(months upon
signing of con-
tract)
Paid upon completion of each
annual financial audit, within
100% maximum 30 days upon sub- n/a
mission of auditor’s report for
the given year
Type of Contract to be ☒ Contract for Professional Services – Long Term Agreement
21
Signed ☐ Other Type of Contract [pls. specify]
☒ The Contract will be awarded to the lowest price substantially
compliant offer
☒ Full acceptance of the IWRM-K’s Contract Terms and Condi-
Evaluation tions (GTC). This is a mandatory criterion and cannot be de-
22 leted regardless of the nature of the services required. Non-ac-
Method/Criteria
ceptance of the GTC may be grounds for the rejection of the Of-
fer.
☒ Other: Full compliance with the requirements as outlined
in the ToR and evaluation criteria
☒ One and only one Service Provider
IWRM-K will award the
23
contract to: ☐ One or more Service Providers, depending on the following
factors:
Contract General Terms and Conditions for contracts
24
Terms and Conditions6
☒ Annex 1: Term of Reference/Schedule of Requirements
☒ Annex 2: Bidder Information
25 Annexes to this RFO7 ☒ Annex 3: Technical and Financial Offer
☒ Annex 4: Evaluation Criteria
☒ Annex 5: Terms and conditions
Email to: kosovo@skat.ch
Contact for Inquiries
Any delay in IWRM-K’s response shall be not used as a reason
26 (Written inquiries sent
for extending the deadline for submission unless IWRM-K deter-
by email only)8
mines that such an extension is necessary and communicates a
new deadline to the Proposers.
Deadline for Submis- 3 working days before the deadline
27 sion of requests for
clarification
Manner of Disseminat- By e-mail to the potential bidders and also posted on the Skat
ing Supplemental Infor- Consulting Ltd., St. Gallen website (https://skat.ch/jobs/)
28 mation to the RFO and
responses/clarifica-
tions to queries
Conditions for Release ☐ Completion of Training on Operation and Maintenance [spec-
of ify no. of trainees, and location of training, if possible
29
Payment ☒ Written Acceptance of Goods, Services and Works, based on
full compliance with RFO requirements
or any amount advanced exceeding $30,000, IWRM-K shall require the Service Provider to submit a bank guaran-
tee or bank cheque payable to IWRM-K, in the same amount as the payment advanced by IWRM-K to the Service
Provider.
6 Service Providers are alerted that non-acceptance of the terms of the General Terms and Conditions (GTC)
may be grounds for disqualification from this procurement process.
7 Where the information is available in the web, a URL for the information may simply be provided.
8 This contact person and address is officially designated by IWRM-K. If inquiries are sent to other person/s or
address/es, even if they are IWRM-K staff, IWRM-K shall have no obligation to respond nor can IWRM-K confirm
that the query was received.☒ Others: Completed audit report
☒ Annex 2: Bidder Submission Form
☒ Copy of the registration from relevant Registry in the country
of origin defining the constitution or legal status, place of regis-
tration, and principal place of business; (no translation required)
☒ Annex 3: Format of the Technical and Financial Offer includ-
ing CVs of experts for the assignment
Documents to be sub-
31
mitted: ☒ Quality Certificate (e.g., ISO, etc.) and/or other similar certifi-
cates, accreditations, awards, and citations received by the Bid-
der, if any
☒ Proof of professional licenced for audit as per national legis-
lation in Kosovo and in accordance with International Standards
on Auditing (ISA) for the company, as per the ToR
☒ Proof of professional qualification for the proposed key staff
as per the ToR
N/A
32 Other:Annex 1: Terms of Reference/Schedule of Requirements
TERMS OF REFERENCE
FINANCIAL AUDIT
The Financial Information of the project/program shall be audited in accordance with Interna-
tional Standards on Auditing (ISA 805) “Special Considerations Audits of Single Financial
Statements and Specific Elements, Accounts or Items of a Financial Statement”.
1. Fundamental principles
1.1 The financial audit of projects (“financial audit”) is to be carried out by an independent
licensed auditor in Kosovo (“the auditor”), having the required professional competence and
experience (e.g. Certification by National Audit Oversight Authority), and in accordance with
International Standards on Auditing (ISA).
1.2 These Terms of Reference (“TOR”) define the mandate of the auditor in connection
with the financial audit of projects/programs of the partner, financed by the Federal Depart-
ment of Foreign Affairs (FDFA). The financial audit is based on the professional requirements
and guidelines governing the professional work to be undertaken by an auditor.
1.3 In planning, conducting and reporting on the financial audit, the auditor has to follow
the ISA 805.
In addition, the relevant standards of the local accounting profession as well as the local leg-
islation on accounting and reporting in force in the country in which the financial audit is car-
ried out need to be taken into consideration by the auditor.
2. Overall principles of the procedures to be performed
The auditor is required to plan, execute and report on the financial audit engagement in order
to conclude on the following matter:
2.1 Principles of orderliness (financial regularity/reporting)
Furthermore, the auditor is required to assess whether the partner has adequate policies and
procedures in place relating to the following matters (those matters are not covered by the
audit engagement in accordance with ISA as mentioned above):
2.2 Existence, adequacy and effectiveness of the Internal Control System (ICS)
2.3 Conformity with the project objectives and adherence to the contract conditions
2.4 Economical conduct of business and effective use of financial resources
In order to respect these principles, the auditor has to analyse the questions mentioned in the
annexed Questionnaire (Annex 1). While item 2.1 will be reflected in the audit report prepared
in accordance with ISA, items 2.2 to 2.4 will be reflected by the answers of the auditor to theQuestionnaire in the Annex 1. Recommendations to the management shall be formulated ac-
cording to Annex 2 (Management Letter).
3. Documents of reference
The following documents and matters are to be considered by the auditor as basic refer-
ences for performing the financial audit:
Legislation: National law
Project/program: Agreement between FDFA and the partner relative to the project; Pro-
ject Document / TOR; Budgets, financing plans, programs of project ac-
tivities; Project management procedures; Any other documents con-
cerning the project/program.
Accounting: Accounting documents subject to the financial audit;
Financial and operational reports concerning the project/program.
Auditor: Prior internal and external audit reports of the partner; Any other infor-
mation requested from the partner by the auditor.
4. Planning the financial audit
The auditor shall adequately plan the financial audit engagement well in advance of the work
and ensure the execution of the financial audit of highest professional quality in an economical
and efficient manner as agreed upon in the respective mandate in the name of the partner and
the auditor.
On the basis of the information received during the planning phase, including the auditor’s
risk assessment, the auditor shall determine:
the type of transactions to be audited and the audit methods (full audit or sample se-
lections);
the type of physical counts or examination and the sites to be selected;
the number of site visits to be planned.
The auditor ensures continuity in the audit approach of the financial audit engagement and
the audit team, even if there is a change in the leader of the engagement team from the prior
year.
5. Place of financial audit
The financial audit is to be carried out at the project/program environment (administrative of-
fices and/or decentralised sites, if applicable).
6. Management representation of full disclosure
The auditor shall obtain a management representation letter signed by the management of
the partner organization, certifying:
a) The acknowledgement of the organization's responsibility for the keeping of accounts
and financial documents that are correct, complete, fair, representing the true facts, in
conformity with the objectives of the project, the documents of reference (description
of the project, contracts, budgets, etc.) and national legislation;
b) That all accounting records, supporting and other documents, minutes and any other
pertinent information necessary for the audit be at the disposal of the auditor;
c) The completeness of information concerning property and goods;
d) The completeness of information concerning financing received or due and own financ-
ing concerning the audited period, for the project being examined;e) The availability of any information and explanations, either orally or by written confir-
mation, which might be required by the auditor in the execution of his mandate;
f) In the case of contributions to local NGOs, the declaration has to certify the complete-
ness of information concerning financing received or due and own financing concern-
ing the audit period, for the project being audited and for the examination of the con-
solidated financial statements of the organization. The consolidated financial infor-
mation, including balance sheets and profit and loss statements of the project are to
be attached to the declaration and form an integral part thereof. This declaration shall
be provided together with the financial audit report.
7. Detailed financial audit procedures
Appropriate audit procedures are to be applied by the auditor in order to form a conclusion on
the matters outlined below. These procedures applied, either on a full coverage or a sample
selection basis may include: controls, checking, evaluation, inspection, interview, analysis and
other audit techniques. When selecting the audit procedures, the auditor shall give consider-
ation to the results of his risk assessment (during planning stage and during the course of the
audit work).
Accordingly, the auditor must define and carry out suitable audit procedures in order to obtain
an overview of the aforementioned aspects before the auditor assesses the individual findings
and reaches a final independent opinion on the audit.
The auditor is expected to select and apply any other audit procedures that the auditor may
consider necessary in the professional execution of the financial audit engagement.
Upon receipt of the financial audit report, the FDFA or any third persons designated by the
FDFA reserve the right to request other audit procedures to cope with the change in circum-
stances in the project or of the organisation of the partner.
In addition, in order to respect the principles mentioned under Art. 2 above, the auditor has to
analyse the questions in the annexed Questionnaire (Template Annex 1). Any answers with
“no” have to be taken up as recommendations in the Management Letter (Template Annex 2).
8. Closing meeting
After the completion of the financial audit engagement, but before leaving the project or the
premises of the partner, the auditor shall hold a closing meeting with the persons responsible
for the project/program (directors) and the staff responsible for accounting and reporting. The
meeting shall address the results of the audit, discuss major weaknesses in the project, ad-
ministrative and financial management (including the deficiencies of individual staff members)
and propose recommendations to improve the project management, the accounting proce-
dures and the internal control system (ICS).
9. Financial audit deliverables
The audit report of the auditor shall provide an opinion on the financial information of the part-
ner as per ISA (Template Annex 3).
The answers to the Questionnaire (Template Annex 1) and recommendations to the manage-
ment (Management Letter according to Template Annex 2) as well as the management rep-
resentation letter shall be provided as separate deliverables together with the audit report.
9.1. Currency and language of the financial audit report
The financial information contained in the financial audit report of the auditor is to be expressed
in the currency provided for in the contract. The financial audit report of the auditor and all
other documents resulting from the financial audit engagement must be prepared in English.
9.2. SignatureThe financial audit report is to be signed by the leader of the audit team. The financial reporting
subject to audit shall be signed by a representative of the management of the partner.
Place and date: __________________________
For the partner: __________________________
For the auditor: __________________________
Annex 1: Questionnaire on the Overall principles of the procedures to be performed
(2.2, 2.3 and 2.4)
Annex 2: Management Letter
Annex 3: Independent auditors’ report (Basis: ISA 805)Annex 1.1 Questionnaire Instruction to the auditor: If the answer is “no” to one of these questions, further explanation is required in the form of a management letter point. Questions Yes No n/a Comments Existence, adequacy and effectiveness of the Internal Control System (ICS) – Principle 2.2 1. Is the internal organization (structures, functions, tasks, competencies, responsibilities, methods, procedures, segrega- tion of duties etc.), based on your impression, adequate to the size and operations of the partner? 2. Are duties for vital functions and processes sufficiently seg- regated (e.g. entering commitments, entering and signing of contracts/agreements, authorizing and accounting of expendi- tures, reconciliation of cash on hand and in banks, follow- up on long outstanding debtors and creditors, etc.)? 3. Dou you obtain comfort that the ICS of the organization is in adequacy with its size and type of activities? 4. Is the ICS known, applied and documented? 5. Do you obtain comfort on compliance with applicable laws, regulations and instructions (e.g. taxes, salaries, social contri- butions etc.)? 6. Is an Organization Manual with local context specific regula- tions (threshold in amount and number of offers to be solicited for local procurements of goods and services, cash limit, etc.) in place and are they followed? Are they in line with local legis- lation? 7. Did you obtain an understanding of the design of the infor- mation and financial reporting system? 8. Has the Partner advised staff, beneficiaries etc. to whom to report any suspect of fraud, misuse, or waste of resources or property?
Questions Yes No n/a Comments Conformity with the project objectives and adherence to the contract conditions – Principle 2.3 9. Is it ensured that signed project agreements (FDFA with partner and/or partner with subcontractor/s) exist before any payments are made? 10. Are the payments within your audit / review scope in ac- cordance with the contract conditions and the agreed budget? 11. Is the classification of expenses and income in accordance with the agreed contractual budget? 12. Are approvals for variations from the budget/work plan re- quired in advance of commitment of expenditure? 13. Is the financial reporting in accordance with the project agreement? 14. Is the financial reporting of the period under audit / review in line with the reporting timetable? 15. Do project responsible (operational and finance staff) visit field activities and are the findings of these visits documented? 16. Is a written confirmation of the balance of the FDFA ad- vances available at project year end? 17. Are the management letter points by the project auditor brought up in past years resolved adequately and/or properly monitored by the management? 18. Is it ensured that any significant issues (e.g. fraud, man- agement override of controls, etc.) noted in a review / audit re- port has been communicated to FDFA? 19. Are the partner and any subcontractor/s familiar with re- gard to VAT and any other tax regulation procedures on the procurement of material and services for the activities funded by FDFA? 20. Are there instructions on the approval of expenses (e.g. 4 eyes principle) and are they followed? 21. Is the correct application of fees and allowances as per contract ensured (e.g. fees, rent, travel expenses, hotel ac- commodation, per diem and other allowances for project ex- perts/consultants)?
Questions Yes No n/a Comments 22. Are control procedures in place to match labor costs (hours) charged to the project with time sheets of the relevant personnel? 23. Is it ensured that the partner has correctly accounted for his hours on the project (effectively rendered services) in order to avoid double- charging of expenses (e.g. to different pro- jects)? 24. Are all items (fixed assets) representing property of the project maintained and safeguarded? Economical conduct of business and effective use of financial resources – Principle 2.4 25. Is it ensured that project specific financial resources are only utilized for the particular activities and projects? 26. Do adequate measures and procedures in the ICS exist, to ensure economical and effective utilization of committed re- sources? 27. Is it ensured that prices and rates for material, services and overheads are subject to regular verification? 28. Is the calculation of fees (charged for services to FDFA) transparent and documented? 29. Are all expenditures of expatriate employees reviewed and substantiated (rent, travel expenses, etc.)? 30. Are all expenditures related to local staff reviewed and substantiated (gross salary, social and pension contributions, income taxes, travel expenses, rent, etc.)? 31. Are there instructions on the non-use of project/program vehicles for private purposes? 32. Are there instructions for the use of equipment after the end of the project? 33. Are there instructions on the non-use of mobile and fix net phones for private purposes? Any other issues 34. 35.
Annex 1.2
Management Letter (suggested format)
project/programme – financial statement period of:
partner’s name and address
auditor’s name and address
Date and Signature
The auditor was required to assess with the enclosed questionnaire whether the partner has ad-
equate policies and procedures in place relating to the following matters:
Existence, adequacy and effectiveness of the Internal Control System (ICS)
(principle 2.2 as mentioned in the standard ToR)
Conformity with the project objectives and adherence to the contract conditions
(principle 2.3 as mentioned in the standard ToR)
Economical conduct of business and effective use of financial resources
(principle 2.4 as mentioned in the standard ToR)
All questions answered with a “no”, are subject of a Management Letter Point, to be risk rated
by the auditor and followed up by the partner.
Risk rating of Management Letter Points
Matters of large or significant importance regarding control environment, accounting poli-
cies or practices, which might entail a material loss or material reporting error shall be
rated by the auditor as a high Priority;
Matters of medium importance regarding control environment, accounting policies or prac-
tices, which would be unlikely, entail a material financial loss or reporting error shall be
rated by the auditor as a medium Priority;
Matters of low importance regarding control environment, accounting policies or practices
or comments relating solely to local reporting matters shall be rated by the auditor as a
low Priority.Findings and Recommendations
No. Findings Recommendations Prior- Management comments Dead-
ity and proposed actions lines
Existence, adequacy and effectiveness of the Internal Control System (principle 2.2)
Conformity with the project objectives and adherence to the contract conditions (princi-
ple 2.3)
Economical conduct of business and effective use of financial resources (principle 2.4)
16Annex 1.3
Audit Report Template
Financial Information Audit of the Project/Program for the period of xy 20XX
(name of project/program, project- and contract-number, period of financial statement)
Name and address of FDFA’s Partner
Background of the mandated organization
Short description of the general background of the partner organization:
Project objectives
Short description of the project/program objectives:
Name and address of Auditor
Independent auditor’s report
Independent auditor’s report on financial information
17Implementing partner’s address and name of responsible person
Opinion
On the FDFA Standard Terms of Reference, we have audited the financial information for the
above mentioned project, which comprise the balance sheet as at 31 December xxx and the
income statement for the year [period] ended, [….], and the notes to the financial information
including a summary of significant accounting policies.
In our opinion, the accompanying financial information on project xxxx for the year [period] ended
xxx are prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with the accounting policies described in
the notes and comply with the requirements of the FDFA Standard Terms of reference dated xxxx.
Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). Our re-
sponsibilities under those provisions and standards are further described in the “Auditor’s respon-
sibilities for the audit of the financial information” section of our report.
We are independent of the entity in accordance with the requirements of the IESBA Code of Ethics
for Professional Accountants, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance
with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and
appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
Management’s Responsibility for the Financial Information
Management is responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of the financial information.
This responsibility includes: designing, implementing and maintaining internal control relevant to
the preparation and fair presentation of financial information that is free from material misstate-
ment, whether due to fraud or error; selecting and applying appropriate accounting policies; and
making accounting estimates that are reasonable in the circumstances.
Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial information
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial information as a
whole is free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s
report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a
guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs always detect a material misstatement
when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individ-
ually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions
of users taken on the basis of these financial information.
As part of an audit in accordance with ISAs, we exercise professional judgment and maintain
professional scepticism throughout the audit. We also:
Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial information, whether
due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and
obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for
one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions,
misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.
Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit
procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of express-
ing an opinion on the effectiveness of the entity’s internal control.
18 Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of ac-
counting estimates and related disclosures made by Management.
Auditor’s signature
Date of audit report
Auditor’s address
Annex: Financial Information (including notes), Questionnaire, Management Letter
19Annex 1.4
Scope of the Audit
This TOR is directed at the audit of annual financial statements of IWRM-K Program in Kosovo,
which must be part of the contents of the audit report.
The services shall include audit of three consecutive years of the IWRM-K Program work in Ko-
sovo (20209, 2021, and 2022), upon conclusion of each year, covering all funds received during
the given year with a possibility to extend for another year (fourth year, 2023) subject to the
donor’s approval.
Once the bidding process is completed, IWRM-K Program will enter into Long Term Agreement
with the most responsive Offeror as the audit services will be required intermittently.
The tasks and requirements include:
Auditing the record of expenditures in the total amount of around 5,5 million CHF for 4
years (approximately 200-400 records for the period of one project year for which originals
of supporting evidence will be provided);
Delivering the final audit report to IWRM-K Program by 15 March of each reporting year,
or the following working day if this day falls on a weekend.
The audit report shall be submitted in English
The submission of all documents to be audited is four weeks before the audit report deadline;
Qualifications of the Auditor
The auditors will be engaged through an Audit firm contracted by IWRM-K Program work in Ko-
sovo through the competitive bidding exercise. The firm must have registration Certificate and
previous auditing experience of minimum of 10 years. The selected firm is required to provide an
Audit Team Leader and Auditors to conduct the auditing under the scope of this ToR. Audit Team
Leader is the main contact point in Auditing firm concerning the overall management of audit work
as well as management of the contract with IWRM-K Program work in Kosovo through. Below is
the minimum required qualifications for each category of expert required:
Audit Firm Years of Experience
- Ten years of experience in core auditing business as required by TOR.
- International audit companies are required to have local presence in Kosovo.
- The company shall be licenced for audit as per national legislation in Kosovo
Number of auditors Years of Experience in Auditing
Audit Staff Cate- Education Qualifica- International or bilateral organi-
gory tion zations
Certified Auditor’s 1 - Minimum 10 year of work
Audit Team Qualification (na- experience as Team
Leader tional or interna- Leader of the Field Audit
9 The year 2020 includes months May to December only
20tional) by IFAC quali- - Chartered Auditor Qualifi-
fied body cation as per national
standards in Kosovo or
other IFAC certifying body
- At least five completed fi-
nancial audits for 3 differ-
ent clients in the past 5
years i.e. international or-
ganization or multi-national
organizations
Auditors (Field Chartered Account- Minimum 1 - Minimum 5 years of expe-
Work) ants (CA) of Auditors rience as Field Auditors
as per conducting
- Previous work experience
in Kosovo would be an ad-
vantage.
The auditor should be experienced in applying either ISA audit standards or Kosovo Audit Stand-
ards, whichever is applicable for the audit. The auditor team must employ an Audit Team Leader
and Field Auditors as per the table enclosed. All the staff proposed should have appropriate
professional qualifications and suitable experience with ISA standards.
21Annex 2: Bidder Information
The legal name of Bidder
Legal address
Year of registration
Bidder’s Authorized Representa-
tive Information
Country/ies of operation
No. of full-time employees
Quality Assurance Certification10
(e.g. ISO 9000 or Equivalent) (If
yes, provide a copy of the valid
Certificate):
Does your Company hold any
accreditation such as ISO 14001
related to the environment? (If
yes, provide a copy of the valid
Certificate):
Person IWRM-K may contact for
requests for clarification during
the Offer evaluation
10
The possession of such certification is not a mandatory requirement. However, it may result in acquiring
slightly higher score on the Bidder’s qualifications, capacity and experience assessment
22Bidder’s Declaration
Yes No
☐ ☐ Requirements and Terms and Conditions: I/We have read and fully understand the RFO.
I/we confirm that the Bidder agrees to be bound by them.
☐ ☐ I/We confirm that the Bidder has the necessary capacity, capability, and necessary licenses to
fully meet or exceed the Requirements and will be available to deliver throughout the relevant
Contract period.
☐ ☐ Ethics: In submitting this Quote I/we warrant that the bidder: has not entered into any improper,
illegal, collusive or anti-competitive arrangements with any Competitor; has not directly or indi-
rectly approached any representative of the Buyer (other than the Point of Contact) to lobby or
solicit information in relation to the RFO; has not attempted to influence, or provide any form of
personal inducement, reward or benefit to any representative of the Buyer.
☐ ☐ Conflict of interest: I/We warrant that the bidder has no actual, potential, or perceived Conflict
of Interest in submitting this Quote or entering a Contract to deliver the Requirements. Where
a Conflict of Interest arises during the RFO process the bidder will report it immediately to the
Procuring Organisation’s Point of Contact.
☐ ☐ Bankruptcy: l/We have not declared bankruptcy, are not involved in bankruptcy or receivership
proceedings, and there is no judgment or pending legal action against them that could impair
their operations in the foreseeable future.
☐ ☐ Offer Validity Period: I/We confirm that this Quote, including the price, remains open for ac-
ceptance for the Offer Validity.
☐ ☐ I/We understand and recognize that you are not bound to accept any Offer you receive, and we
certify that the goods offered in our Offer are new and unused.
☐ ☐ By signing this declaration, the signatory below represents, warrants and agrees that he/she
has been authorised by the Organization/s to make this declaration on its/their behalf.
Signature:
Name: Click or tap here to enter text.
Title: Click or tap here to enter text.
Date: Click or tap to enter a date.
23Annex 3: Technical and Financial Offer
Bidders are requested to complete this form, sign it and return it as part of their offer along with Annex 2
Offer Submission Form. The Bidder shall fill in this form in accordance with the instructions indicated. No
alterations to its format shall be permitted and no substitutions shall be accepted.
Name of Bidder: [Insert Name of Bidder] Date: Select date
RFO reference: [Insert RFO Title]
Documents to be submitted:
- a brief description of your qualification, capacity and expertise that is relevant to the
Terms of Reference.
- a brief methodology, approach and implementation plan;
- team composition and CVs of key personnel to be involved directly in the audit process
If JV/Consortium/Association, to be completed by each partner; N/A
TECHNICAL OFFER
A: BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF YOUR QUALIFICATION, CAPACITY AND EXPERTISE THAT IS RELE-
VANT TO THE TERMS OF REFERENCE.
Please list only previous similar assignments successfully completed [as per the requirements in
the Terms of Reference related to relevant experience].
List only those assignments for which the Bidder was legally contracted or sub-contracted by the
Client as a company or was one of the Consortium/JV partners. Assignments completed by the
Bidder’s individual experts working privately or through other firms cannot be claimed as the rel-
evant experience of the Bidder, or that of the Bidder’s partners or sub-consultants, but can be
claimed by the Experts themselves in their CVs. The Bidder should be prepared to substantiate
the claimed experience by presenting copies of relevant documents and references if so re-
quested by IWRM-K
No. Project name and a brief Client & Refer- Contract Period of activity
description ence Contact De- Value and status
tails
1
2
3
B: TEAM COMPOSITION AND CVS OF KEY PERSONNEL
Please list all experts and their qualifications in the list provided in addition to their CVs [as per
the requirements in the Terms of Reference related to relevant experience].
24Relevant pro- Qualification
jects are
(please check Total-experi-
Position
the require- Educa- ence/experience
No.
ments in TOR tion in relevant pro-
for the rele- jects (years)
vance of pro-
jects)
1. 1.
2.
3.
2. 1.
2.
3.
Financial Offer
Provide a lump sum for the provision of the services stated in the Terms of Reference your tech-
nical offer. The lump sum should include all costs of preparing and delivering the Services. All
daily rates shall be based on an eight-hour working day.
Currency of Offer: EUR
Ref Description of Deliverables Price
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Total Price
Compliance with Requirements
You Responses
Yes, we will No, we If you cannot comply, pls. indi-
comply cannot cate counter - offer
comply
Delivery Lead Time ☐ ☐ Click or tap here to enter text.
Validity of Offer ☐ ☐ Click or tap here to enter text.
Payment terms ☐ ☐ Click or tap here to enter text.
Other requirements [pls. specify] ☐ ☐ Click or tap here to enter text.
I, the undersigned, certify that I am duly authorized to sign this offer and bind the company below in event
that the offer is accepted.
25Exact name and address of company Authorized Signature:
Company NameClick or tap here to enter text.
Date: Click or tap here to
Address: Click or tap here to enter text.
enter text.
Name: Click or tap here to enter
Click or tap text.
here to enter text.
Functional Title of Authorised
Phone No.: Click or tap here to enter text.
Signatory: Click or tap here to enter
Email Address: Click or tap here to enter text. text.
Email Address: Click or tap here to enter text.
26Annex 4: Evaluation Criteria
Contract will be awarded to the Bidder that meets the criteria based on pass/fail method and offers
the lowest offer.
YES/NO for mini-
mum requirements
Company
1 Ten years of experience in core auditing business as required by TOR YES/NO
International audit companies are required to have local presence in Ko-
2 sovo
YES/NO or N/A
The company shall be licenced for audit as per national legislation in Ko-
3 sovo
YES/NO
Experts
Audit Team Leader
- Minimum 10 year of work experience as Team Leader of the Field Au-
dit
- Chartered Auditor Qualification as per national standards in Kosovo or
1 other IFAC certifying body YES/NO
- At least five completed financial audits for 3 different clients in the past
5 years i.e. international organization or multi-national organizations
Auditors (Field Work)
- Minimum 5 years of experience as Field Auditors conducting audits
2 YES YES/NO
- Previous work experience in Kosovo (for international auditors)
NOTE: Failure to meet any of these requirements is considered grounds for disqualification
.
27Annex 5: Terms and Conditions for Contracts
1. LEGAL STATUS
The Contractor shall be considered as having the legal status of an independent contractor vis-
à-vis the IWRM-K. The Contractor’s personnel and sub-contractors shall not be considered in any
respect as being the employees or agents of the IWRM-K. For the purposes of this agreement,
the Contractor is defined as a business that agrees to conduct work for the IWRM-K as specified
under the terms of a contract. The term “Contract” includes the general terms and conditions set
forth in the body of this document (the “Terms and Conditions for Contracts Terms”).
2. SOURCE OF INSTRUCTIONS
The Contractor shall neither seek nor accept instructions from anyone else but the IWRM-K in
connection to its services under this contract. The Contractor shall refrain from any action that
may adversely affect the IWRM-K and shall fulfil its commitments with the fullest regard to the
interests of the IWRM-K.
3. CONTRACTOR'S RESPONSIBILITY FOR EMPLOYEES
The Contractor shall be responsible for the professional and technical competence of its employ-
ees and will select, for work under this Contract, reliable individuals who will perform effectively
in the implementation of this Contract, respect the local customs, and conform to a high standard
of moral and ethical conduct.
4. ASSIGNMENT:
The Contractor shall not assign, transfer, pledge or make other disposition of this Contract or any
part thereof, or any of the Contractor's rights, claims, or obligations under this Contract except
with the prior written consent of the IWRM-K.
5. SUB-CONTRACTING
In the event, the Contractor requires the services of sub-contractors in the course of the imple-
mentation of the assignment (unless specified in the Proposal/Offer/Bid), the Contractor shall ob-
tain the prior written approval and clearance of the IWRM-K for all sub-contractors. The approval
of IWRM-K of a sub-contractor shall not relieve the Contractor of any of its obligations under this
Contract. The terms of any sub-contract shall be subject to and conform to the provisions of this
Contract.
6. OFFICIALS NOT TO BENEFIT
The Contractor warrants that no official of IWRM-K has received or will be offered by the Contrac-
tor any direct or indirect benefit arising from this Contract or the award thereof. The Contractor
agrees that breach of this provision is a breach of an essential term of this Contract.
7. INDEMNIFICATION
The Contractor shall defend, indemnify and hold harmless, at its own expense, the IWRM-K, its
officials, agents, servants, and employees from and against all third-party claims, suits, obliga-
tions, causes of action, demands, and all losses, damages, judgments, the liability of any nature
or kind, including their costs and expenses, arising out of acts or omissions of the Contractor, or
the Contractor's employees, officers, agents or sub-contractors, in the performance of this Con-
28tract. This provision shall extend, inter alia, to claims and liability in the nature of workmen's com-
pensation, products liability, and liability arising out of the use of patented inventions or devices,
copyrighted material, or other intellectual property by the Contractor, its employees, officers,
agents, servants or sub-contractors. The obligations under this Article do not lapse upon termi-
nation of this Contract.
8. INSURANCE AND LIABILITIES TO THIRD PARTIES
The Contractor shall provide and thereafter maintain all appropriate workmen's compensation
insurance, or the equivalent, with respect to its employees to cover claims for personal injury or
death in connection with this Contract.
The Contractor shall also provide and thereafter maintain liability insurance in an adequate
amount to cover third party claims for death or bodily injury, or loss of or damage to property,
arising from or in connection with the provision of services under this Contract or the operation of
any vehicles, boats, airplanes or other equipment owned or leased by the Contractor or its agents,
servants, employees or sub-contractors performing work or services in connection with this Con-
tract.
9. LIENS
The Contractor shall not cause or permit any lien, attachment, or other encumbrance by any per-
son to be placed on file or to remain on file in any public office or on file with the IWRM-K against
any monies due or to become due for any work done or materials furnished under this Contract,
or by reason of any other claim or demand against the Contractor.
10. TITLE TO EQUIPMENT
Title to any equipment and supplies that may be furnished by IWRM-K shall rest with IWRM-K
and any such equipment shall be returned to IWRM-K at the conclusion of this Contract or when
no longer needed by the Contractor. Such equipment, when returned to IWRM-K, shall be in the
same condition as when delivered to the Contractor, subject to normal wear and tear. The Con-
tractor shall be liable to compensate IWRM-K for equipment determined to be damaged or de-
graded beyond normal wear and tear.
11. COPYRIGHT, PATENTS, AND OTHER PROPRIETARY RIGHTS
Except as is otherwise expressly provided in writing in the Contract, the IWRM-K shall be entitled
to all intellectual property and other proprietary rights including, but not limited to, patents, copy-
rights, and trademarks, with regard to products, processes, inventions, ideas, know-how, or doc-
uments and other materials which the Contractor has developed for the IWRM-K under the Con-
tract and which bear a direct relation to or are produced or prepared or collected in consequence
of, or during the course of, the performance of the contract and the Contractor acknowledges and
agrees that such products, documents, and other materials constitute works made for hire for the
IWRM-K.
To the extent that any such intellectual property or other proprietary rights consist of any intellec-
tual property or other proprietary rights of the Contractor: (i) that pre-existed the performance by
the Contractor of its obligations under the Contract, or (ii) that the Contractor may develop or
acquire, or may have developed or acquired, independently of the performance of its obligations
under the Contract, the IWRM-K does not and shall not claim any ownership interest thereto, and
the Contractor grants to the IWRM-K a perpetual license to use such intellectual property or other
proprietary right solely for the purposes of and in accordance with the requirements of the Con-
tract.
29All maps, drawings, photographs, mosaics, plans, reports, estimates, recommendations, docu-
ments, and all other data compiled by or received by the Contractor under the Contract shall be
the property of the IWRM-K, shall be made available for use or inspection by the IWRM-K at
reasonable times and in reasonable places, shall be treated as confidential, and shall be delivered
only to IWRM-K authorized officials on completion of work under the Contract.
12. USE OF NAME, EMBLEM OR OFFICIAL SEAL OF IWRM-K
The Contractor shall not in any manner whatsoever use the name, emblem, or official seal of the
IWRM-K in connection with its business or otherwise unless expressly allowed in writing by au-
thorized IWRM-K officials.
13. CONFIDENTIALITY
Information and data that is considered proprietary by either Party and that are delivered or dis-
closed by one Party (“Discloser”) to the other Party (“Recipient”) during the course of performance
of the Contract, and that is designated as confidential (“Information”), shall be held in confidence
by that Party.
The recipient (“Recipient”) of such information shall:
a) use the same care and discretion to avoid disclosure, publication or dissemination of the Dis-
closer’s Information as it uses with its own similar information that it does not wish to disclose,
publish or disseminate; and,
b) use the Discloser’s Information solely for the purpose for which it was disclosed.
Provided that the Recipient has a written agreement with the following persons or entities requir-
ing them to treat the Information confidential in accordance with the Contract, the Recipient may
disclose Information to:
a) any other party with the Discloser’s prior written consent; and,
b) the Recipient’s employees, officials, representatives, and agents who have a need to know
such information for purposes of performing obligations under the Contract, and employees
officials, representatives, and agents of any legal entity that it controls it, or with which it is
under common control, who have a need to know such information for purposes of performing
obligations under the Contract.
The Contractor may disclose Information to the extent required by law, provided that the Contrac-
tor will give the IWRM-K sufficient prior notice of a request for the disclosure of information in
order to allow the IWRM-K to have a reasonable opportunity to take protective measures or such
other action as may be appropriate before any such disclosure is made.
The IWRM-K may disclose Information to the extent as required by national law in Kosovo.
These obligations and restrictions of confidentiality shall be effective during the term of the Con-
tract, including any extension thereof, and, unless otherwise provided in the Contract, shall remain
effective following any termination of the Contract.
14. FORCE MAJEURE; OTHER CHANGES IN CONDITIONS
In the event of and as soon as possible after the occurrence of any cause constituting force
majeure, the Contractor shall give notice and full particulars in writing to the IWRM-K, of such
occurrence or change if the Contractor is thereby rendered unable, wholly or in part, to perform
its obligations and meet its responsibilities under this Contract. The Contractor shall also notify
the IWRM-K of any other changes in conditions or the occurrence of any event that interferes or
threatens to interfere with its performance of this Contract. On receipt of the notice required under
30this Article, the IWRM-K shall take such action as, in its sole discretion; it considers to be appro-
priate or necessary in the circumstances, including the granting to the Contractor of a reasonable
extension of time in which to perform its obligations under this Contract.
If the Contractor is rendered permanently unable, wholly, or in part, by reason of force majeure to
perform its obligations and meet its responsibilities under this Contract, the IWRM-K shall have
the right to suspend or terminate this Contract on the same terms and conditions as are provided
for in Article 15, "Termination", except that the period of notice shall be seven (7) days instead of
thirty (30) days.
Force majeure means acts of God, war (whether declared or not), invasion, revolution, insurrec-
tion, or other acts of a similar nature or force.
15. TERMINATION
Either party may terminate this Contract for cause, in whole or in part, upon thirty (30) days’ notice,
in writing, to the other party.
IWRM-K reserves the right to terminate without cause this Contract at any time upon 15 days
prior written notice to the Contractor, in which case the IWRM-K shall reimburse the Contractor
for all reasonable costs incurred by the Contractor prior to receipt of the notice of termination.
In the event of any termination by the IWRM-K no payment shall be due from the IWRM-K to the
Contractor except for work and services satisfactorily performed in conformity with the express
terms of this Contract.
Should the Contractor be adjudged bankrupt, or be liquidated or become insolvent, or should the
Contractor make an assignment for the benefit of its creditors, or should a Receiver be appointed
on account of the insolvency of the Contractor, the IWRM-K may, without prejudice to any other
right or remedy it may have under the terms of these conditions, terminate this Contract forthwith.
The Contractor shall immediately inform the IWRM-K of the occurrence of any of the above
events.
16. SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTES
The parties shall use their best efforts to settle amicably any dispute, controversy, or claim arising
out of this Contract or the breach, termination, or invalidity thereof. This Contract shall be con-
strued and interpreted and the legal relations created hereby shall be determined in accordance
with the laws of the Republic of Kosovo. The parties’ consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of, and
agree that venue lies solely with, the state courts located in the Republic of Kosovo.
17. TAX EXEMPTION
IWRM-K is exempt from all direct taxes, except charges for public utility services, and is exempt
from customs duties and charges of a similar nature in respect of articles imported or exported
for its official use. In the event any governmental authority refuses to recognize the IWRM-K’s
exemption from such taxes, duties, or charges, the Contractor shall immediately consult with the
IWRM-K to determine a mutually acceptable procedure.
Accordingly, the Contractor authorizes the IWRM-K to deduct from the Contractor's invoice any
amount representing such taxes, duties, or charges, unless the Contractor has consulted with the
IWRM-K before the payment thereof and the IWRM-K has, in each instance, specifically author-
ized the Contractor to pay such taxes, duties or charges under protest. In that event, the Contrac-
tor shall provide the IWRM-K with written evidence that payment of such taxes, duties, or charges
has been made and appropriately authorized.
3118. OBSERVANCE OF THE LAW
The Contractor shall comply with all laws, ordinances, rules, and regulations bearing upon the
performance of its obligations under the terms of this Contract.
19. AUTHORITY TO MODIFY
Only the IWRM-K Authorized Official possesses the authority to agree on behalf of the IWRM-K
to any modification of or change in this Contract, to a waiver of any of its provisions, or any addi-
tional contractual relationship of any kind with the Contractor. Accordingly, no modification or
change in this Contract shall be valid and enforceable against the IWRM-K unless provided by an
amendment to this Contract signed by the Contractor and jointly by the IWRM-K.
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