PPOE_Supporting_Statement_final Dec 2012 (3)

Supporting Statement for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

Information Collection Request for the Public-Private Partnerships Opportunity Explorer (PPOE)

A. JUSTIFICATION

1. Explanation of necessity.

The Public-Private Partnerships Opportunity Explorer (PPOE) gives private-sector organizations an opportunity to indicate their interest in a public-private partnership with Feed the Future (FTF), the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative (online at FeedtheFuture.gov). This information is used to provide interested private-sector organizations with further information and to provide them points of contact within the U.S. Government who can best respond to their interest in a partnership with FTF. Any entity that submits the form indicating interest in a partnership will receive a response from the U.S. Government via the Bureau for Food Security at the U.S. Agency for International Development, the lead agency for the Feed the Future initiative.

Submission of the form is not the only way for an organization to indicate interest in a public-private partnership, but is meant to help reduce the burden for both the private-sector organization and the U.S. Government in exploring coinciding interests and potential for a public-private partnership.

This form is part of a larger information technology system that provides a common platform for all types of private-sector organizations to learn about public-private partnerships with FTF, and then to indicate their interest via the form. This system also provides additional transparency about where the U.S. Government is working and interested in working under FTF, and how the U.S. Government determines who would be a good partner (i.e., coinciding interests), per President Obama’s Open Government Directive.

The authority for this activity is provided in the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and recurring Foreign Operations Appropriations Acts. FTF is a presidential initiative, created by the Obama Administration. The Administrator of USAID serves as the de facto coordinator for the initiative—the authority for the PPOE is provided by a request from the Administrator. Additionally, the tool aligns with USAID Forward reforms, which call for USAID “to more effectively achieve high impact development while making the best use of limited resources” and for USAID to contract with more and varied local partners (including private sector organizations), and create partnerships that help create the conditions where aid is no longer necessary in the countries where USAID works.

The tool was approved by an interagency group of officials from USAID, the State Department, and the U.S. Agency for International Development, including the deputy coordinators for Feed the Future, Tjada McKenna (USAID) and Jonathan Shrier (State Department), and senior officials from the USAID Bureau for Food Security. It was developed in consultation with representatives from USAID and the Millennium Challenge Corporation.

2. Purpose of collection and use of information collected.

Information collected as part of the Public-Private Partnerships Opportunity Explorer (PPOE) will be used to initially respond to private-sector interest in a partnership with Feed the Future and provide additional information and contacts regarding partnerships (i.e., how to get the process started if it looks like a good fit or alternative options for partnership).

The information will be collected from private-sector organizations that are interested in partnering with the U.S. Government. Responses are voluntary. The information will be collected electronically via an online decision tree and related online form. The form will be collected by the Bureau for Food Security at USAID. The decision tree and form help reduce the transaction costs for initial exploration of a partnership for both the private-sector organization and the U.S. Government. They also provide the initial point of entry for private sector organizations into partnerships with the U.S. Government. Electronic submission ensures the creation of a record. Submissions will be stored within an Excel spreadsheet (database) created for the purpose of archiving these submissions and managed by the Bureau for Food Security at USAID. At a later date, the Bureau for Food Security may use a more formalized system to maintain the records, such as CRM software. Electronic record retention will adhere to USAID ADS Chapter 502 regulations (USAID ADS 502.3.4.10) and in cases where a registration of interest turns into a public-private partnership, record retention will adhere to procurement record regulations outlined in USAID ADS 324 (USAID ADS 324.3.7).

In rare cases where completing the form via the online tool is impossible, USAID will provide the form in PDF or Word document format for completion and submission via email or fax.

3. Use of information technology.

Wherever possible, Feed the Future applicants will be able to submit application forms in an automated, electronic format. Once the form receives PRA approval, it can be completed via the PPOE, a web-based application, and can be filled out and submitted online via an online form to a USAID email account. We do not require organizations without sufficient technology to use the on-line tool – a a PDF or Word document version of the form, as well as a contact form for submitting questions/comments, are provided on the website to accommodate those who do not wish to use the on-line tool or who are unable to due to lack of required technology (such as not having Javascript enabled).

4. Duplication of effort.

Since Feed the Future is an interagency, whole-of-government initiative, we do expect to share information across agencies, where relevant. For example, if an organization requests funding for a partnership that would fall more under the work of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) under Feed the Future, we direct the private-sector organization to contact them and may pass the private-sector organization information and interest on to OPIC. However, information collected will be stored within USAID resources and other agencies will not have access to it without a USAID employee or contractor sharing it with them.

5. Impact on small businesses or other small entities.

The PPOE provides a benefit to small businesses and other small entities. It helps reduce the transaction costs for initial exploration of a partnership for both the private-sector organization and the U.S. Government. In doing so, and in providing transparency into how and with whom the U.S. Government partners, the tool levels the playing field for organizations of any size and from any country to engage the U.S. Government in exploring a partnership, including indicating interest and receiving a response. The tool makes knowledge of partnerships and opportunities more accessible to all types of organizations.

Additionally, the tool is consistent with USAID Forward reforms by changing the way we partner with others, embracing a spirit of innovation, and strengthening the results of our work, saving money and reducing the need for U.S. assistance over time. We are embracing the following three tenets, all of which the tool supports and helps facilitate:

• Building Local Sustainability and Partnerships – Working with more local organizations. The tool makes partnerships more accessible to all types of organizations, anywhere in the world.

• Fostering Innovation – Accelerating progress at lower cost and bringing new ideas to market. The tool is the first point of entry for any business to submit their idea for a partnership.

• Strengthening Our Capacity to Deliver Results – The tool helps reduce the transaction costs of doing business with the U.S. Government, making it more accessible to smaller organizations. The dual benefit in the tool is that it not only reduces these costs for interested private sector partners, but also for the U.S. Government.

The private sector is a key piece of sustainability (creating lasting progress on food security and the conditions where U.S. aid is no longer necessary) and this tool helps improve the way the U.S. Government and private sector organizations explore partnerships, helping accelerate progress through private sector involvement and capacity building.

6. Consequences to the Federal program.

Without this information, Feed the Future will be less efficient in directing partnership interest to the part of the U.S. Government best suited for partnering with the specific interested organization. The tool and subsequent submittable form will reduce the time it takes for government employees to respond to requests and ensure all interested private-sector organizations who submit a form receive an answer and additional information. The information on the form will be collected at the time of completion of the tool. Private-sector organizations may submit multiple forms, but no additional submissions are required.

7. Explanation of special circumstances.

There are no special circumstances that apply to this information collection.

8. Solicitation of public comments.

The Agency published XXX

9. Explanation of payment or gift to respondents.

The U.S. Government, through Feed the Future, does not provide payment or gifts in exchange for a benefit sought.

10. Assurance of confidentiality.

The information collected by the tool about private-sector organizations and their interest in doing business with Feed the Future does not constitute Personally Identifiable Information. USAID intends nevertheless to keep the information provided confidential, within applicable legal requirements, and will require supporting contractors to so as well. Relevant non-disclosure forms will be signed when appropriate. Organizations providing information on the form will be offered the option of indicating that they consider the information provided to be privileged or confidential commercial or financial information.

11. Justification for any questions of a sensitive nature.

There are no questions of a sensitive nature.

12. Estimate of hour burden.

Annual Reporting Burden:

a. 120 submissions (10 per month)

b. 30 burden hours (15 minutes per submission)

We estimate that approximately 120 private-sector organizations will submit the form to indicate their interest in partnering with us during the first year. We estimate it will take approximately 15 minutes for an organization’s representative to complete the online form via the on-line system (read, navigate, select, complete and submit the form). Therefore, we estimate annual burden hours for prospective private-sector partners to complete the tool will be 30 hours. This is fewer burden hours than if a private-sector partner were communicating back and forth with a partnership representative at USAID to complete essentially the same process (learn where USAID is working and determine if a partnership is a viable business option).

13. Estimate of cost burden.

There are no start-up, capital, operation, maintenance, or recordkeeping costs to respondents as a result of this collection. This tool actually reduces the transaction costs of doing business with the U.S. Government.

14. Annualized costs to Federal government.

a. Total Tool Development Costs

1. Tool Design & Development $300,000

Total Tool Development Costs $345,000

b. Operation and maintenance (O&M) costs

1. USAID/Agriculture Commercialization & Innovation labor $75,000

2. Standard website maintenance and updates $10,800

Total O&M costs $85,800

c. Total cost burden $430,800

The tool development costs include the budget allocated for a contractor to lead design and development of the Private-Sector Engagement Hub on the Feed the Future website (of which the PPOE is the largest portion of new development). The operation and maintenance costs were based on two components: the costs of labor associated with the response process and costs associated with hosting the tool on the FeedtheFuture.gov website

Estimated cost for standard website maintenance and updates was based on monthly costs to host the website and tool on servers, use of designers to update tool components, and labor of web developers to provide ongoing support for website and tool as well as regular maintenance and updates.

Labor costs were calculated based on one GS-11 program analyst position in the Bureau for Food Security, whose scope of work includes processing submissions from the PPOE. This position, in BFS’ Office of Markets, Partnerships and Innovations would initially respond to and process submissions by the private-sector via the PPOE. This position would also be supported by the Agriculture Commercialization and Innovation team, a contract through USAID. Together, we estimate the cost for these two labor resources to be about $75,000 a year, though only a portion of their scopes of work actually involve managing the back end of the PPOE. It will take approximately 30 minutes for a partnership representative in USAID to respond to an initial submission and provide additional information on pursuing a partnership.

The PPOE will run on the Feed the Future website’s current servers, with the possibility for the website and thus the tool to move to USAID network servers..

Also, it is important to note that this tool is the initial pilot and we will need to evaluate it after implementation to determine whether or not the current structure and costs are appropriate and whether the tool needs adjustments to enhance user experience and utility.

15. Program changes.

The optional form used to collect information from potential private-sector partners is a new collection. The cost burden to the federal government is calculated taking into consideration the current capital costs associated with website development and hosting and labor to maintain, improve and manage the tool and information submitted.

16. Published results.

USAID does not intend to publish the results from this collection of information.

17. Waiver of display of expiration date.

USAID is not requesting a waiver of the display of the expiration date of OMB approval.

18. Exception to the certification statement.

USAID does not request an exception to the certification of this information collection.

B. COLLECTION OF INFORMATION EMPLOYING STATISTICAL METHODS

USAID will not employ statistical methods for this information collection.

C. CERTIFICATION AND SIGNATURES

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