Proposed grading of Lungalunga-Lwayoni Kasemeni Road…

What is being bought

Kwale County Government invites sealed tenders for the proposed grading of Lungalunga-Lwayoni Kasemeni Road in Lungalunga Constituency, Kwale County, under an open tender restricted to women-owned firms. The bills of quantities include preliminaries, grading and gravelling works (for example heavy grading of 117,000 m2 listed as item 10.01), and an environmental mitigation item of Ksh 80,000 for an ESIA study.

What could disqualify you

A tenderer proven to have been involved in corrupt, coercive, obstructive or fraudulent practice is automatically disqualified. Standard rule D1 p.7
Late tenders are rejected and returned unopened. D1 p.2
Any tender not accompanied by a substantially responsive Tender Security or Tender-Securing Declaration is rejected as non-responsive. Standard rule D1 p.15
Missing any mandatory preliminary requirement is outright disqualification. Bidders' BoQs will be scrutinised; any bidder found to have frontloaded its BoQ will have its bid expunged. D1 p.39
Every item in the bills of quantities must have a price or rate entered in ink. No nil, included or lump-sum rates are accepted; bidders who fail to comply are disqualified. Standard rule D1 p.81
All declarations must be witnessed by an active magistrate or Commissioner for Oaths, and all declaration forms must be commissioned. D1 p.39
Forms must be completed without any alteration to the text and all blank spaces filled in. Standard rule D1 p.11

Key facts

Closing: Tue 10 Nov 2026, 10:00 am
Completed tenders must be delivered to the address on or before Tuesday 10 November 2026 at 10:00 am. Portal shows the same closing date and time. D1 p.2
Bid / tender security: Tender securing declaration required (form in Section IV, dully filled and attached). TDS says acceptable tender security is a bank guarantee in the PPRA prescribed format; no amount is stated. Tender security if required is valid 30 days beyond validity. Conflicting D1 p.27
Tender fee: Tender documents may be obtained electronically free of charge; no fee is stated for the hard copy. D1 p.2
Site visit: Optional
No pre-arranged site visit is scheduled (TDS: pre-tender site visit N/A). Tenderers are encouraged to visit the site at their own cost and risk. Standard rule D1 p.8
Pre-bid meeting: Not stated in the documents we reviewed Not stated D1 p.27
Reserved for: Tender is reserved to women-owned firms. Invitation says tendering is open to all qualified and interested women-owned firms. Portal also lists the reserved group as women. D1 p.2
Contract value: Not stated in the documents we reviewed Not stated D1 p.2
Tender opening: Tenders are opened publicly immediately after the deadline, at the Procurement Office, Kwale County Treasury Building, in the presence of tenderers' representatives who choose to attend. D1 p.28
Tender validity: Tenders remain valid for 126 days. The start date conflicts: invitation says from the date of opening, while ITT 18.1 says from the submission deadline. Conflicting D1 p.27

Who can apply

Only women-owned firms may tender. AGPO women-category certificate is also required as a preliminary document. D1 p.2
Joint ventures are not applicable to this tender (maximum number of JV members not applicable; JV requirements marked not applicable). D1 p.27
A Kenyan tenderer is eligible only if it provides evidence of having fulfilled its tax obligations by producing a valid tax compliance certificate issued by the Kenya Revenue Authority. Standard rule D1 p.8
A tenderer that has been debarred from public procurement is ineligible to tender or be awarded a contract. Debarred list is on the PPRA website www.ppra.go.ke. Standard rule D1 p.7
Registration with the National Construction Authority is not a condition for tender but must be obtained before contract award and signature. Standard rule D1 p.8

Application checklist

Tick items off as you prepare. Your ticks stay on this device only.

Required from every bidder

Experience, licences and financial capacity

Technical

Technical evaluation pass mark is 50 out of 70 marks. D1 p.40
Similar works: four previous civil road works of similar nature, magnitude and complexity, each of Kshs 8 million and above (scored), with notification of award, LSO/LPO/contract, completion certificate and proof of payment. D1 p.40
Site Agent: BSc Civil Engineering or equivalent, registered Professional Engineer with EBK with valid practising licence, at least 5 years in construction of roads; scored in technical evaluation. D1 p.37
Key personnel also include an Assistant Site Agent, a Site Foreman (Diploma in Civil/Structural Engineering), a Site Surveyor and an Environmentalist, each with minimum experience stated in the evaluation criteria, with CVs and academic certificates to be attached. D1 p.40
Work methodology should demonstrate understanding of the scope of works. D1 p.37
Environmental Management Plan must be submitted within four weeks of the order to commence work, with progress reports every three months (contract obligation). D3 p.7

Financial

Minimum cash flow capacity (working capital) of KShs 50,000,000.00, shown through financial statements for the last two years. Conflicting D1 p.35
Minimum average annual construction turnover of KShs 100,000,000.00, calculated from total payments received for construction works within the last two years. Conflicting D1 p.35
Preliminary financial test in the post-qualification template states cash flow of KShs 100M and average annual turnover of KShs 300M; these figures conflict with the qualification criteria. Conflicting D1 p.32
Specific experience: participation as contractor, subcontractor or management contractor in at least one contract of KSH 100 Million successfully and substantially completed and similar to the proposed works. Conflicting D1 p.36
Average annual construction turnover above Kshs 10 million scores highest in technical evaluation (Kshs 5-9 million scores less). D1 p.41

How and where to submit

Tenders must be in hard copy in a plain sealed envelope clearly marked with tender name and tender number, addressed to the Accounting Officer, Executive Services Finance and Economic Planning, and dropped in the tender box at the front of the Procurement Office. D1 p.28
Submission address: County Department of Finance and Economic Planning, Kwale County Treasury Building, P.O Box 4-80403, Kwale, opposite Kwale Police post, Chief Officer. D1 p.3
Inner envelopes must bear the name and address of the procuring entity, the name and address of the tenderer, and the tender name and reference number. Standard rule D1 p.18
Tender attachments must be submitted in PDF format, sequentially serialised, with all pages of the tender document in order. Conflicting D1 p.2
All pages must be chronologically serialised. Standard rule D1 p.11

Lots and categories

No lot structure is stated in the tender data sheet; multiple-contract lot options appear only as template text. Not stated D1 p.30

What the addenda changed

No addenda were provided in the material reviewed, so no changes are recorded. Not stated P

Points to confirm with the procuring entity

The documents do not agree with each other on these points. Ask the procuring entity for a written clarification before you submit.

Tender validity start date: Invitation says tenders remain valid 126 days from date of opening; ITT 18.1 says validity starts from the submission deadline. Ask the procuring entity which applies. (D1 p.2 (Invitation para 6); D1 p.15 (ITT 18.1); D1 p.27 (TDS 18.1))
Tender security form: TDS ITT 19.1 accepts a tender securing declaration; TDS ITT 19.2 says acceptable tender security is only a bank guarantee in PPRA format. Ask which applies and the amount if any. (D1 p.27 (TDS 19.1 and 19.2); D1 p.39 (preliminary item 4))
Submission method: Tenders must be hard copy sealed envelopes per TDS, but invitation and evaluation require attachments in PDF format. Ask whether electronic copies are also needed. (D1 p.2 (Invitation para 8); D1 p.28 (TDS 20.1); D1 p.39 (preliminary item 7))
Tender reference number: Portal reference is CGK/ FEP/043/EQU/2026-2027; TDS reference is CGK/FEP/43/EUQ/2026-2027. Confirm the correct reference for envelope marking. (P (portal record); D1 p.27 (TDS ITT 1.1))
Cash flow and turnover requirements: Section III 3.1 requires cash flow of KShs 50,000,000 and 3.2 requires average annual construction turnover of KShs 100,000,000; the post-qualification template states KShs 100M cash flow and KShs 300M turnover. Ask which thresholds apply. (D1 p.32; D1 p.35)
Experience threshold: Section III 4.2(a) requires one contract of at least KSH 100 Million, while the technical scoring asks for four similar road works of Kshs 8 million and above. Ask which applies. (D1 p.36; D1 p.40)
NCA registration class: Section III 1.4 requires NCA Class NCA-6 Road Works Contractor (minimum); the preliminary appendix requires Certificate of registration for Civil Works - Roads 8. Ask which class is required. (D1 p.34; D1 p.39)

Not covered in the documents we reviewed

Any addenda (A1, A2 etc.) and their changes; none were provided
Bid security amount and form if a bank guarantee is required
Performance security amount for the successful bidder
Contract value or engineer's estimate; BoQ totals are not filled in
Number of hard copies required
Whether a pre-tender meeting is held
Lot structure, if any
Forms in Section IV (Form of Tender, FIN and EXP forms), and remaining BoQ bills (2 to 9 and totals) not reviewed
Full technical specifications and drawings beyond the pages reviewed
Preliminary evaluation template details and the financial scoring thresholds for the current ratio
Exact validity start date (opening vs submission deadline)

Terms explained

TDS: Tender Data Sheet: the tender-specific rules that supplement the standard Instructions to Tenderers (ITT).
ITT: Instructions to Tenderers: the standard rules for preparing and submitting a tender.
Tender Securing Declaration: A signed, commissioned declaration in the prescribed form, given instead of a bank guarantee, promising to honour the tender if awarded.
AGPO: Access to Government Procurement Opportunities: a set-aside for youth, women and persons with disability, requiring a valid registration certificate.
Responsive: A tender that meets all the mandatory requirements of the tender documents; a non-responsive tender is rejected.
CR12: Company Registry certificate showing current directors and shareholders, dated within one month of submission here.
NCA: National Construction Authority: registration needed to undertake construction works in Kenya.
EBK: Engineers Board of Kenya: professional registration for engineers.
NEMA: National Environment Management Authority: environmental licence for the environmental personnel.
BoQ: Bill of Quantities: the priced list of works items; every item must carry a rate.
Frontloading: Placing higher prices on early work items; bids found to do this may be rejected.
Joint venture (JV): Two or more firms bidding together; not permitted in this tender.
Levy: 0.03% levy on the signed contract value (exclusive of taxes) under the Levy Order 2023.

Proposed grading of Lungalunga-Lwayoni Kasemeni Road, Lungalunga Constituency, Kwale County (women-owned firms)