Request for Proposal ;" Public Perception on Good Governance and Political Parties"

Request for Proposal ;" Public Perception on Good Governance and Political Parties"

East Nusa Tenggara and South Sulawesi Province Public Opinion Poll

SUMMARY

The International Republican Institute (IRI) is a non-profit organization based in the United States that is dedicated to the advancement of democracy worldwide. Since 1983, IRI has conducted a variety of programs to promote and strengthen the development of political parties, parliaments, and other institutions that support the engagement of an active citizenry. IRI has worked in Indonesia since October 1998. Programs have included: local governance, women in politics, political party development, political party reform and democratization, election preparation, campaign management, political communication and legal reform.

At the end of 2011 IRI plans to hold a pre-election provincial public opinion poll. This opinion poll is intended to illustrate the political situation in two provinces South Sulawesi and NTT, Indonesia approaching the 2014 general elections. The opinion poll seeks to identify perceptions about the local government, political parties, parliament, the general election, and other local issues.

IRI, with funding from United States Agency for International Development (USAID), announces an open competition for this pre-election provincial poll.

With this Request for Proposal, IRI looks forward to the opportunity to work with a research institute to conduct the poll. The research institute is welcome to conduct the poll either for one or both provinces. The following is a brief explanation of the public opinion poll IRI expects to carry out, as well as the terms of reference for the submission of proposals.

Opinion Poll Objective

The objectives of the public opinion poll is, among others: to identify citizens' views on the general direction of the province, policy priorities, knowledge of provincial government functions, experiences interacting with provincial government institutions, and satisfaction with government services and accessibility.

The findings from the opinion poll will be used as a source of information for political actors; local government, local parliament and political parties in those provinces in improving public communications and developing programs that more effectively respond the needs of citizens.

Research Questionnaire

The questionnaires to be used in the survey will consist of approximately 50 questions and divided into several sections: local government, political parties, parliament, women and youth in politics, general affairs, demographic information, internal party reform, et cetera. The questionnaire should be created based on input from IRI, political parties, and other parties of interest.

To test the validity of the questionnaire, the research institute will be asked to conduct a pretest of all of the test respondents, and is expected to carry out an analysis of the afore-mentioned pretest results with IRI. After discussing the results, the research institute, in consultation with IRI, is expected to apply the necessary improvements. IRI maintains final say over final formulations of all questions in the questionnaires.

The Scope of the Opinion Poll

The population referred to within the opinion poll is Indonesian citizens who fulfill the voter requirements (born after April 1996 or married; and have not had their right to vote revoked).

It is hoped that the opinion poll can represent the voters and prospective voters for the 2014 general election in Indonesia. The total number and spread of the respondents, and the sample selection techniques that will be used, should be included in the opinion poll proposal. IRI estimates the expected total number of respondents for each province to be as many as 700 respondents.

Sampling Procedure

In its proposal, the research institute is expected to enclose a sampling plan, upon which the opinion poll sampling will be based. It is expected that the sampling method will consider the principle of random probability sampling. It is a requirement that when determining the choice of Regency/City and District, voting patterns from the 2009 General Election will be taken into consideration.

The proposal must include a sketch of respondent sampling; all projected costs must refer to implementation of research at this level. If selected, the research institute will work closely with IRI to determine the final sampling target.

Data Collection

The data will be collected by way of face-to-face interviews with each respondent within their own household. The research institute will take full responsibility for the data collection process in the field, and IRI will assist with the continuous monitoring and work alongside the research institute.

Interviews should be completed within 10-14 calendar days. After the data collection and analysis are complete, it is the responsibility of the research institute to send all of the questionnaires, both those that are valid as well as those that are invalid, to IRI's office in Jakarta, Indonesia to be audited and stored.

Results Reporting

In conjunction with IRI, the research institute will be required to submit an official report on the public opinion poll findings. The reports will be in Bahasa Indonesia and English and two formats: a full narrative, as well as a Microsoft Power Point presentation. The reports produced by the research institute will be the full property of IRI and IRI alone.

Presentation of the Opinion Poll Results

A representative from the research institute is expected to attend each presentation carried out by IRI involving polling results in order to scientifically explain the methods used to conduct the opinion poll. It is not necessary to include projected costs for such travel in the proposal.

Deadline for Proposal

Polling agencies should submit their proposal, description of methodology, short background information on their firm, key personnel, and a references/client list. The proposal to execute the polling program must be forwarded to: Hapsari Sekar Adi, hadi@iri.org, Program Assistant, IRI-Indonesia with the heading "East Nusa Tenggara and South Sulawesi Province Polling Proposal" in duplicate, one copy in Indonesian and the other in English. The proposal must be received on September 30, 2011 at 17.00 WIB. Late submissions will be to the disadvantage of the submitting research institute.

The research institutes with the top three proposals will have the opportunity to make in-person presentations on the polling program to IRI. Invitations to present will be extended soon after proposals are received; presentations are expected to take place at the IRI office in Jakarta. The program can commence immediately after a contract is signed. IRI expects that those submitting proposals will factor this timeline into account. Data collection will take place no later than the first week of November 2011.