Review of the FFA UST Regional Fisheries Observer Programme

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

 

RFP No:               CP16_2223

 

TO:                     SUITABLY QUALIFIED AND EXPERIENCED CONSULTANTS AND SERVICE PROVIDERS SUBJECT: REVIEW OF FFA US TREATY REGIONAL FISHERIES OBSERVER PROGRAMME

Date:                  31 January 2023

Submissions are invited from interested parties to submit a proposal, in response to the attached request for proposals, for the review of FFA US Treaty Regional Fisheries Observer Programme.

To enable you to submit a proposal for the work, please find enclosed: ANNEX I: Instructions to bidders

ANNEX II: Terms of reference

ANNEX III: FFA Standard Conditions of contract

This letter is not to be construed in any way as an offer of contract to any specific party. Should you have any questions, please contact Mr. Allan Rahari, Director Corporate Services on email: allan.rahari@ffa.int

 

Dr. Manu Tupou Roosen DIRECTOR-GENERAL

PACIFIC ISLANDS FORUM FISHERIES AGENCY | PO Box 629, Honiara, Solomon Islands. Tel +677 21124 Fax

+677 23995/20092 www.ffa.int

Member Countries & Territory: Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

ANNEX I

 

1. Submission of Proposals

• All proposals submitted together with all correspondence and related documents shall be in English. If any of the supporting documentation or printed literature is in any other language, a written translation of the document in English should also be provided. In such cases the interpreted document will be used for processing and evaluation purposes.
• All prices in the proposals must be presented in US Dollars (USD).
• The deadline for submission of proposals is 5.00pm (Solomon Island Time) on Tuesday, 21 February, 2023. Any proposal received after this date will not be considered. FFA may, at its discretion, extend the deadline for the submission of proposals by notifying prospective bidders in writing. The extension of the deadline may accompany a modification of the solicitation documents prepared by FFA on its own initiative or in response to a clarification requested by a prospective bidder.
• In submitting a proposal, interested parties should demonstrate a clear understanding of the Terms of Reference (TOR) as set out, with appropriate explanatory comments, proposed timelines for implementation and delivery of the required work.
• The successful bidder will be required to sign an FFA standard contract for the delivery of services. The FFA Standard Conditions of Contract are not negotiable.
• The proposal should also include:
  1. A cover letter outlining proposed methodology and timelines for undertaking the review as per the terms of reference (ANNEX II)
  2. CVs of the personnel proposed to complete the work, the background and relevant experience of the consultants or agency proposed to complete the work as well as a summary of any similar or related experience.
• A separately enclosed financial proposal providing a detailed cost summary for carrying out the work.

2. Period of validity of proposals

• Proposals shall remain valid for forty (40) days after the date of Proposal submission prescribed by FFA, pursuant to the deadline A Proposal valid for a shorter period may be rejected by FFA on the grounds that it is non-responsive.
• In exceptional circumstances, FFA may solicit the bidder’s consent to an extension of the period of validity. The request and the responses thereto shall be made in writing. A bidder granting the request will not be required nor permitted to modify its Proposal.

3. Objective:

The main objective of this review is to provide an assessment of the services delivered by the US Treaty Observer Programme and to consider options that will be more cost-effective and efficient going forward for a US fleet of only 12-13 vessels, considering the need for IATTC cross-endorsed observers as well as the ability for ATA to source observers from across the FFA membership.

The report yielded by this review should provide a comprehensive overview of the current operational requirements under the Treaty in relation to observer services; an assessment of the relevance of the US Treaty Observer Programme workplan and activities for the implementation of the Treaty including which costs should be recovered from the US industry versus those that should be funded through the overall observer cost recovery levy associated with the FFA Vessel Register; an assessment of the cost effectiveness and efficiency of the current US Treaty Observer Programme budget against the respective work programmes and activities in comparison with other programmes; identify changes that may be required to deliver observer services more efficiently under the US Treaty; and make relevant recommendation to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the US Treaty Observer Programme.

4. Evaluation Criteria

A two-stage procedure will be used in evaluating the proposals, with evaluation of the technical proposal being completed prior to any price proposal being reviewed and compared. The financial proposal will only be reviewed for submissions that have passed the minimum technical score of 70% of the total obtainable score in the evaluation of the technical proposals.

The technical proposal is evaluated on the basis of its responsiveness to the competency requirements as outlined in the following table:

Competency Requirements	Score Weight (%)	Total Obtainable Score
Cited examples of relevant similar or related experience	20	40
The methodology proposed to undertake the required work and timeline proposed for completion of the work and submission of final report	50	100
The qualifications and experience of the personnel proposed to undertake the assignment including experience related to governance of information and development and management of fisheries related information management systems as well as knowledge of market intelligence and economic data reporting and analysis	30	60
Total Score	100%	200
Qualification score	70%	140

 

In the Second Stage, the financial proposal of all bidders who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation will be compared. The contract will be awarded to the bidder offering the best value for money considering the cumulative scores of the technical and financial evaluations.

Note: Submissions may include proposing an individual person to undertake this work or a team of personnel.

5. Financial Proposals

The financial proposal should be submitted by separate cover and should not be included as part of the technical proposal. Financial proposals should provide a budget for the project including professional fees, travel and accommodation and any other costs associated with the completion of this work.

6. Requests for further information

Requests for any additional information, queries or questions are to be emailed to the Director Fisheries Operations, Mr. Allan Rahari (allan.rahari@ffa.int).

7. Award of Contract

FFA reserves the right to accept or reject any Proposal, and to annul the solicitation process and reject all Proposals at any time prior to award of contract, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder(s) or any obligation to inform the affected bidder(s) of the grounds for such action.

8. Closing date for proposal.
9. Proposals should be emailed to procurement@ffa.int in PDF format, with the subject line heading “CP16_2223_CONSULTANCY: Review of FFA US Treaty Regional Fisheries Observer Programme”.

Alternatively, Tender documents can be posted to the following address:

The Director-General, FFA Tender Committee Procurement reference “CP16_2223_CONSULTANCY: Review of FFA US Treaty Regional Fisheries Observer Programme”, PO Box 629, Honiara, Solomon Islands

The deadline for receipt of proposals is 5.00pm (Solomon Island Time) on Tuesday, 21 February 2023.

ANNEX II

1. Background

The Pacific Island Parties (PIPs) have called for a review of the Observer programme for placement of observers on US purse seine vessels operating under the Treaty on Fisheries between Certain Governments of the Pacific Island States and the Government of the United States of America (the “the US Treaty Observer Programme”). The expectation of PIPs is that the review will consider all options for efficient delivery of observer services to US vessels including cost effectiveness of outsourcing the observer programme including to the PNA Observer Agency (POA) or possibly to the national programme(s) of PIPs themselves.

The FFA Secretariat is currently responsible for the implementation of the MOU between the American TunaBoat Association (ATA) and the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) with a current fixed budget provision of US$1.4 mil per annum for the administration of the US Treaty Observer Programme.

The MOU provides the framework for provision of fisheries observer services for vessels licensed to fish under the US Treaty.

The key services that FFA has provided under the MOU include:

• Coordination of placements of observers;
• Facilitating/coordination of transport of observers to point of embarkation and from disembarkation to their home;
• Timely payment of observer wages and incidental costs;
• Briefing and debriefing of observers;
• Communicating to ATA incidents reported at debriefing sessions, taking into consideration the need to not interfere with ongoing investigations;
• Administration and management of the US Treaty observer programme;
• Training of observers and debriefers; and
• Data collection by observers on US flag purse seine vessels, management of the data, and dispersion of data to Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) as the regional Science provider.

2. Budgetary provisions

The Treaty has been in operation for over 32 years, involving several extensions of the financial package since it first came into force in June 1988, noting that the Treaty does not have a sunset clause. The annual budget of the US Treaty Observer Programme has varied over the period but has averaged around US$1 million. The US Treaty Observer programme budget is recovered directly from the US industry (ATA), and while it is in addition to the payment for the observer levy through the FFA Vessel Register (US$2,625 a year for each purse seine vessel), it impacts directly on the ability of the industry to purchase fishing days from PIPs. As such, all parties to the Treaty have an interest in ensuring cost-effective provision of observer services to the US fleet.

The major expenditure of the US Treaty Observer Programme is for the placement of observers on US flagged vessels fishing pursuant to the Treaty which involves air travel and allowances during the period of their engagement. Certain regional observer support services are funded by a levy included as part of the FFA vessel register fee, and it will be important to distinguish these services from those funded under the Treaty.

An average of five staff, comprising a Programme Manager, two Observer Placement Officers and two Data Entry Officers, were engaged permanently to administer and manage the US Treaty Observer programme until 2020 when Covid led to travel restrictions that impacted observer placements.

3. Purpose of the Review

A review is timely given the renegotiation of the Treaty, the reduction in the size of the US fleet and its area of operation, and developments at sub-regional level – particularly the advent of the PNA Observer Programme, now believed to be the largest observer programme in the World and used by purse seine fleets fishing in PNA+ waters (the main area of interest to the UST fleet), and the widespread use of electronic submission of observer reports.

Furthermore, the FFA Strategic Plan (2020-2025) anticipates reviews to ensure structure and delivery models of services provided by the Agency are fit-for-purpose. The last review of the US Treaty Observer Programme was done in 2011.

4. Objective of the Review

The main objective of this review is to provide an assessment of the services delivered by the US Treaty Observer Programme and to consider options that will be more cost-effective and efficient going forward for a US fleet of only 12-13 vessels, considering the need for IATTC cross-endorsed observers as well as the ability for ATA to source observers from across the FFA membership.

The objective of the review is to assess the performance of the current operational functions of the programme that includes, but not limited to:

• Observer equipment(s) and asset(s) resourcing;
• Observer briefing and placement;
• Observer tracking;
• Observer repatriation;
• Observer debriefing; and,
• Observer
• Important to consider as part of the review, the US Treaty Observer Programme has not only provided observer placement services but also provides broader technical support to members such as:
• Implementation of the observer livelihood and safety study recommendations;
• Implementation of the observer compensation scheme;
• Providing advice on technical observer related matters at the WCPFC;
• Leading the annual Regional Observer Coordinators workshop (ROCW);
• Coordination and delivery of observer training to support national observer programs in collaboration with SPC and key partners;
• Continue to engage on regional observer matters relating to the WCPFC ROP;
• Leading role in developing the minimum PIRFO standards in collaboration with SPC and national programmes; and
• Generally, a regional point of contact for observer programme matters and national observer coordinators.

The assessment will provide advice and options for improvement in efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the US Treaty Observer Programme and cost benefit analysis for continuation of the programme under the revised Treaty arrangements for 2023/2024 and beyond.

5. Scope of Work

This Consultant is expected to undertake the following:

1. Review the following specific areas of work of the US Treaty Observer Programme unit within FFA:
   • Observer Programme structure and business services plan;
   • Payment of observer fees by the American Tunaboat Association (ATA);
   • Observer placements;
   • Observer safety and insurance;
   • Trip reports and debriefing;
   • Observer payment of allowances;
   • Observer data management;
   • Annual report to PIPs;
   • Coordination of annual regional observers meeting/workshop; and
   • Formulation and approval of the annual budget and work

1. Consult with PIPs on service delivery areas and with relevant regional organisations (PNAO, SPC) on the observer services provided under the US Treaty.
2. Provide an assessment of the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of the delivery of those services by FFA over this period relative to the costs of the PNA Observer Agency and, if possible, national
3. Consider the services required under future Treaty arrangements considering the size of the US fleet operating under the Treaty and associated observer placement requirements, and availability of observer services provided in the region such as the POA or national programmes.

The Director Fisheries Operation and Observer Programme Manager will be the main informants for this review but the Consultant will report to the steering committee.

6. Deliverables

The review is expected to deliver a report that will cover the following:

1. Overview of the current operational requirements under the Treaty in relation to observer services;
2. Assessment of the relevance of the US Treaty Observer Programme workplan and activities for the implementation of the Treaty including which costs should be recovered from the US industry versus those that should be funded through the overall observer cost recovery levy associated with the FFA Vessel Register;
3. Assessment of the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of the current US Treaty Observer Programme budget against the respective work programmes and activities in comparison with other programmes;
4. Identification of changes that may be required to deliver observer services more efficiently under the US Treaty; and
5. Make recommendations relating to:
   • The required observer services to be provided under revised Treaty arrangements; b. Improving the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of the delivery of these observer services; The observer services costs to be recovered from the US industry;
   • The ability for ATA to source observers from all FFA members; and
   • Observer related services currently carried out by the US Treaty Observer Programme staff that are not specific to the US Treaty, and how these should be funded in future.

7. Time Schedule and Reporting Requirement

This work is to be completed by Thursday 30 March 2023 and a report shall be provided to the Secretariat for circulation to and discussion with members, noting that a draft will be provided to the Steering Committee for feedback and direction.

ANNEX III

1. Definitions

• In this Contract:
  • “Consultancy Services” means the Consultancy Services described in Schedule A;
  • “Memorandum of Agreement” means the agreement executed by and between FFA and the Consultant in which these Conditions have been incorporated by reference;
  • “FFA” means the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency, based in Honiara, Solomon Islands;
  • “Contract” means the Memorandum of Agreement together with these Conditions and all other schedules and documents, if any, annexed to the Memorandum of Agreement or incorporated therein and intended to form part of the contractual relationship between the parties;
  • “Confidential Information” means information that:
    • is by its nature confidential;
    • is designated by FFA as confidential;
    • the Consultant knows or ought to know is confidential; but does not include information which:

• is or becomes public knowledge other than by breach of this Contract;
• is in the possession of the Consultant without restriction in relation to disclosure before the date of receipt from FFA;
• has been independently developed or acquired by the
• “Deliverable” means all reports, notes, drawings, specifications, statistics, plans and other documents and data compiled or made by the Consultant while performing the Consultancy Services;
• “Usual Place of Residence” means the place of residence of the Consultant designated in the Memorandum of Agreement;
• “Term of Engagement” means the entire period during which the Consultant will be expected to perform the Consultancy Services.
• Words importing a gender include any other
• Words in the singular number include the plural and words in the plural number include the
• Clause headings in this Contract are for convenient reference only and have no effect in limiting or extending the language of the provisions to which they refer.
• A reference to a Schedule is a reference to a Schedule to this Contract and includes such Schedule as amended or replaced from time to time by agreement in writing between the parties.

2. Fees

• FFA shall pay fees to the Consultant in respect of the Consultancy Services in accordance with Schedule B on the basis of time spent by the Consultant in performing the Consultancy Services. For the purpose of determining the amount of such fees:
  • Where fees are expressed in terms of a monthly rate each month shall be deemed to be of thirty days, and the time spent in performing the Consultancy Services shall include travel time, weekends

and public holidays. Fees in respect of periods of less than one month shall be computed on a calendar day basis, and one calendar day shall be deemed equal to one thirtieth of one month.

• Where the fees are expressed in terms of a daily rate the time spent in performing the Consultancy Services shall be determined solely on the basis of the number of days actually worked by the Consultant in performing the Consultancy Services, including travel time.
• Except as otherwise agreed between FFA and the Consultant, no fees will be paid in respect of work performed other than during the Term of Engagement.

3. Travel, Allowances and Expenses

• Subject to Schedules A and B, FFA shall pay to or reimburse the Consultant for the following allowances, costs and expenses:
  • A daily subsistence allowance (DSA) at standard FFA rates for every day during the term of engagement during which the Consultant shall be absent from the Usual Place of Residence for the purpose of performing the Consultancy Services; provided that DSA will be paid for the day of departure from the Usual Place of Residence but not for the day of return The DSA covers all accommodation charges, including government taxes (where applicable), meals, laundry and incidental expenses.
  • All transportation costs properly and reasonably incurred by the Consultant in travelling for the purposes of the Consultancy Services whether within the Country of Assignment or elsewhere, including the cost of transportation by an appropriate means of public transport between the Usual Place of Residence and the nearest convenient international airport and the cost of economy class air travel.
  • All other reasonable out-of-pocket expenses of the Consultant arising directly out of the performance of the Consultancy Services, including communications charges, airport and departure taxes, visa fees, taxi fares, and photocopying charges.

4. Payment of Fees, Costs and Expenses

• Fees payable under the Contract will be paid by FFA upon submission of an invoice and acceptance by FFA and subject only to genuine dispute (including that the relevant standard expected by the FFA has not been met) and shall be paid to the Consultant no later than 30 days after the date of the Consultant’s invoice for the Consultancy Services. Where the Consultancy Services have not been performed to the reasonable satisfaction of FFA, FFA may withhold the balance of the fees in whole or in part and may:
  • require the Consultant to carry out whatever additional work is required to complete the Consultancy Services to the satisfaction of FFA; or
  • Terminate the Contract forthwith without prejudice to any right of action or remedy which has accrued or which may accrue in favour of FFA.

• Subject to Schedule B, the travel costs, DSA and reimbursable costs and expenses referred to in clause 3 shall be paid by FFA upon written application made by the Consultant to FFA at the conclusion of the Term of Engagement supported by such receipts or other evidence as FFA may reasonably require to establish that the Consultant was absent for the purpose of the Consultancy Services from the Usual Place of Residence or that the expenditure was incurred in the amount and currency and in the manner Where an advance of DSA has been made, FFA shall require the Consultant to complete a reconciliation of advance against actual entitlement. Subject only to genuine dispute in relation to such costs, such costs and reimbursements shall be paid to the Consultant no later than 30 days after the date of the Consultant’s written application for reimbursement of such costs.
• Unless otherwise agreed between the Consultant and FFA, the fees shall be paid in the currency specified in Schedule B. All travel costs, allowances, and out-of-pocket expenses shall be paid either in the currency in which the same were incurred or in United States dollars or partly in one currency and partly in the other, as FFA shall reasonably determine.
• Whenever it shall be necessary to determine the equivalent of an amount in one currency in terms of another, the conversion shall be made at the rate which FFA shall determine was applicable at the time and place when the Consultant incurred the expenditure or converted currency into the currency of expenditure, whichever first occurred.

5. Medical and Insurance

• All medical and insurance costs shall be borne by the Consultant and FFA shall be under no liability in respect of medical expenses of the Consultant.

6. Indemnity

• Subject to the provision of this Contract, the Consultant shall at all times indemnify FFA, its officers, employees and agent from and against any loss (including legal cost and expenses on a party-party basis), or liability is reasonably incurred or suffered by those indemnified arising from any claim, suit, demand, action or proceeding by any persons against any of those indemnified where such loss or liability was caused by any wilful, unlawful or negligent act or omission of the Consultant in connection with this agreement.

 

• The Consultant’s liability to indemnify FFA under Clause 6.1 shall be reduced proportionately to the extent that any act or omission of FFA or its officer, employees or agents contributed to the loss or

7. General Covenants

• The Consultant covenants and agrees that:
• During the Term of Engagement, it shall at all times act with due diligence and efficiency and in accordance with the Terms of Reference. It shall make or assist in making all such reports and recommendations as may be contemplated by the Terms of Reference and shall at all times cooperate with FFA, its employees and agents. After the termination of the engagement it shall continue to cooperate with FFA to such reasonable extent as may be necessary to clarify or explain any reports or recommendations made by it.
• At all times it shall act with appropriate propriety and in particular refrain from making any public statement concerning the Consultancy Services without the prior approval of FFA.
• It shall have no authority to commit FFA in any way whatsoever and shall make this clear as circumstances warrant.
• It shall report immediately to FFA any circumstances or events which might reasonably be expected to hinder or prejudice the performance of the Consultancy Services, including circumstances and events relating to his transportation and accommodation.
• All reports, notes, drawings, specifications, statistics, plans and other documents and data compiled or made by the Consultant while performing the Consultancy Services shall be the property of FFA and upon termination of the engagement shall be disposed of as FFA may direct. The Consultant may retain copies of such documents and data but shall not use the same for purposes unrelated to the Consultancy Services without the prior approval of FFA.

8. Intellectual Property

• Ownership of Deliverables
  • The Consultant agrees that all Deliverables shall vest in and remain the property of the
  • The Consultant warrants to FFA that FFA’s lawful use of those Deliverables will not breach the Intellectual Property rights of any third party.
  • The Consultant must, when requested by FFA, do all things necessary to vest ownership and title of Deliverables in the FFA.
  • If ownership of or title in Deliverables is not capable of being vested in the FFA under clause 8.1 because the Consultant does not own those Deliverables, the Consultant must at its cost ensure that the FFA is suitably and irrevocably licensed to use those Deliverables.
  • The Consultant acknowledges that the FFA may use the Deliverables in any way notwithstanding that such use might breach the Consultant’s moral rights, but does not include false attribution of

• Licence of Deliverables to Consultant

Subject to clause 8.1 and the confidentiality provisions under this Contract, the FFA grants to the Consultant a royalty-free licence to reproduce the Deliverables only for the purposes of inclusion in the Consultant’s professional portfolio.

• Background Intellectual Property
  • Neither Party assigns any of its background intellectual property to the other Party if that background intellectual property is used under this Contract.
  • Where background intellectual property is incorporated into the Deliverables by the Consultant, the Consultant must at its own cost obtain a licence for the FFA to use that background intellectual property in conjunction with the Deliverables.

9. Conflict of Interest

• The Consultant warrants that, to the best of its knowledge, at the date of signing this Contract, no conflict of interest exists or is likely to arise in the performance of his obligations under this Contract.
• If during the Term of Engagement, a conflict of interest arises, or appears likely to arise, the Consultant undertakes to notify FFA immediately in writing and to take such steps as FFA may reasonably require to resolve or otherwise deal with the conflict. If the Consultant fails to notify FFA or is unable or unwilling to resolve or deal with the conflict as required, FFA may terminate this Contract in accordance with the provisions of clause 11.
• The Consultant shall not engage in any activity or obtain any interest during the Term of Engagement that is likely to conflict with or restrict the Consultant in providing the Consultancy Services to FFA fairly and independently.

10. Disclosure of Information

• The Consultant shall not, without the prior written approval of FFA, disclose to any person other than FFA, any Confidential Information. In giving written approval, FFA may impose such terms and conditions as it thinks fit.
• FFA may at any time require the Consultant to give a written undertaking, in a form required by FFA, relating to the non-disclosure of Confidential Information. The Consultant shall use best endeavours to promptly arrange for all such undertakings to be given.
• The obligation on the Consultant under this clause shall not be taken to have been breached where the information referred to is legally required to be disclosed.

11. Termination

• FFA may, at any time by written notice, terminate this Contract in whole or in part. If this Contract is so terminated, FFA shall be liable only for:
  • payment under the payment provisions of this Contract for Consultancy Services rendered before the effective date of termination; and
  • subject to clauses 3 and 11.4, any reasonable costs incurred by the Consultant and directly attributable to the termination or partial termination of this Contract.

• Upon receipt of a notice of termination the Consultant shall:
  • stop work as specified in the notice;
  • take all available steps to minimize loss resulting from that termination;
  • continue work on any part of the Consultancy Services not affected by the

• In the event of partial termination FFA’s liability to pay fees under Schedule B shall, in the absence of agreement to the contrary, abate proportionately to the reduction in the Consultancy Services.
• FFA shall not be liable to pay compensation in an amount which would, in addition to any amounts paid or due, or becoming due, to the Consultant under this Contract, together exceed the total fees set out in Schedule B.

12. Default

• If either party is in default under this Contract on account of the failure to perform or observe any obligation or undertaking to be performed or observed on its part under this Contract, the party not in default may terminate this Contract in whole or in part without prejudice to any right of action or remedy which has accrued or which may accrue in favour of either party.

13. Waiver

• A waiver by either party in respect of any breach of a condition or provision of this Contract shall not be deemed to be a waiver in respect of any continuing or subsequent breach of that provision, or breach of any other provision. The failure of either party to enforce at any time any of the provisions of this Contract shall in no way be interpreted as a waiver of such provision.

14. Notices

• Any notice, request or other communication to be given or served pursuant to this Contract shall be in writing and dealt with as follows:
  • if given by the Consultant to FFA, addressed and forwarded to the Director-General, Forum Fisheries Agency, P.O. Box 629, Honiara, Solomon Islands.
  • if given by FFA to the Consultant, signed by the Director-General or Deputy Director-General and forwarded to the Consultant at the Usual Place of Residence or, electronic mail address provided by the Consultant or, in the case of a corporate entity, the registered office.

• Any such notice, request or other communication shall be delivered by hand or sent by pre-paid registered post, or electronic transmission to the address of the party to which it is sent. 14.3 Any notice, request or other communication will be deemed to be received:
  • if delivered personally, on the date of delivery;
  • if sent by pre-paid registered post, on the day that the acknowledgment of delivery is completed by the recipient; and

• if sent by electronic transmission, whichever is the earlier of, the day that acknowledgement of receipt is completed by the recipient, or, the day an electronic confirmation of receipt is received.

15. Entire Agreement and Variation

• This Contract contains the entire agreement between the parties and supersedes all communications, negotiations, arrangements and agreements, whether oral or written, between the parties with respect to the subject matter of this Contract.
• No agreement or understanding varying or extending this Contract, including in particular the scope of the Consultancy Services in Schedule A shall be legally binding upon either party unless in writing and signed by both parties.

16. Severability

• Each provision of this Contract and each part thereof shall, unless the context otherwise necessarily requires it, be read and construed as a separate and severable provision or part. If any provision or part thereof is void or otherwise unenforceable for any reason then that provision or part (as the case may be) shall be severed and the remainder shall be read and construed as if the severable provision or part had never existed.

17. Relationship

• Nothing in this Contract shall be deemed or construed as creating a partnership, joint venture, master-servant, principal-agent, employer-employee, or other relationship for any purpose

18. Applicable law

• This Contract shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Solomon Islands as at the date of the signing of this Contract and the parties agree, subject to the Contract, that the courts of Solomon Islands shall have jurisdiction to entertain any action in respect of, or arising out of, this Contract.