Standard Solicitation/Bid Documents
The Public Procurement and Contract Administration (Amendment) Act requires the Procurement Office to prepare standard solicitation documents for the various procurement methods prescribed under the Act.

It is accepted procurement practice to use Standard Solicitation Documents in public procurement exercises. Some benefits to the use of standard documents include:

(a) Increased efficiency through reduced time for bid document preparation and review;
(b) Increased predictability and uniformity in procurement exercises;
(c) Increased efficiency in the procurement process and thus reduced costs; and
(d) Increased competition through a reduced number of unresponsive bids

It is very important that bidders spend some time acquainting themselves with the contents of the Standard Solicitation Documents. In particular the Bidders are required to understand all contents of the Instructions to Bidders (Schedule A) and the Bid Data Sheet (BDS) or Conditions for Bidding (Schedule B). These sections of a bid document are important since they direct bidders on how to prepare their bids, including: the list of documents to be submitted; how to seek clarifications during the procurement process; how, when and where to submit bids and the basis on which the submitted bids will be evaluated.

Other important sections in the Bid Document include the Conditions of Contract (Schedule C) which explains the terms under which the contract should be executed. Some of the provisions under the Conditions of Contract schedule have cost implications for the bidder so it is important that the bidder understands the provisions and their effect(s) in terms of costs. The Specifications/Scope of Works section (Schedule D) provides information pertaining to what is to be supplied by the bidder. The Standard Solicitation Documents also provide templates (see Schedule E) to be completed by the bidder in order to ensure that required information is submitted for evaluation. The bidder should ensure that these forms are properly completed and signed and/or stamped as required.