Provision of Food and Beverage Services across UNECA Headquarters, including Cafeteria, Conference Catering, Café/Bistro and Delegate Hospitality Outlets

1. OBJECTIVE AND DISCLAIMER This Request for Information (RFI) is issued solely for information and planning purposes to conduct market research. It does not constitute a solicitation or a commitment to implement a procurement process, nor does it bind the United Nations (UN) or the Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) to issue a contract or pay for any costs incurred in the preparation or submission of responses. The primary objective of this RFI is to evaluate market capabilities, determine commercial viability, and obtain industry feedback on the most appropriate operational and procurement structure for UNECA’s food and beverage services. UNECA is considering different models, including a single integrated operator, separate lots, or a hybrid structure under which some services may be bundled while others may be operated separately by specialized providers. Information provided will be treated as strictly confidential and used exclusively for internal UN planning 2. BACKGROUND AND CURRENT FOOTPRINT UNECA serves a highly diverse international ecosystem at its headquarters in Addis Ababa. The daily consumer base fluctuates dynamically and comprises: • High-level VIPs, diplomats, conference dignitaries. • International conference delegates and summit participants (ranging from small working groups to summits with over 1,500 attendees). • UN staff members (ECA as well as 22 UN-agencies operating from the ECA campus). • External contractors, technical crews, and facility support staff. Physical & Kitchen Infrastructure The selected operator will be expected to manage a multi-location, multi-concept food and beverage footprint consisting of: • Two (2) Industrial Kitchens: Full-fledged, heavy-duty production and preparation hubs capable of large-scale banquet preparation, high-volume conference meal generation, and simultaneous site-wide supply. • Three (3) Small-Scale Outlets with Kitchens: Specialized service nodes capable of independent finishing and localized, fast-turnaround cooking. • For market research purposes, vendors are requested to note that not all services may necessarily be procured or operated under a single contract. UNECA is particularly interested in understanding which services should be bundled together for operational reasons, and which services could be separated into distinct lots to attract specialized operators and improve service quality, commercial viability and accountability. • UNECA is seeking market feedback on whether the UNCC cafeteria and conference/event catering services should be combined under one lot due to their reliance on common kitchen infrastructure, or whether alternative arrangements may provide operational, commercial, or service-quality advantages. 3. PROPOSED OPERATIONAL & SERVICE CONCEPT UNECA intends to introduce an agile, multi-tier service model capable of catering to different price points, cultural diets, and operational hours simultaneously. UNECA CATERING ECOSYSTEM: - UNCC Cafeteria and Conference Catering: High-Volume buffet lanches, delegate coffee breaks, cocktail reception Africa Hall + Africa Hall Visitor Centre: Mixed service (buffet lunch, fast food & snack, restaurant), deligate coffe breaks, fresh juice & breakfast continuous operations, cocktail receptions Express Café/Press Bar Services: fast food and snack focus, Fresh Juice and breakfast Delegates Bar/ Premium Bistro-Lounge: premium restaurant , continuous operations The desired programmatic concepts include: • UNCC Cafeteria and Conference/Event Catering: Provision of daily cafeteria services, staff dining and large-scale conference/event catering supported by the UNCC kitchen infrastructure. This may include delegate lunches, buffet service, synchronized coffee/tea breaks, receptions, cocktail arrangements, and special event catering, while ensuring that regular daily services for staff and other campus users are not disrupted during major conferences. • Africa Hall and Africa Hall Visitor Centre: The Africa Hall combines both conference/events catering as well as individual service as it includes a ‘Visitor Centre’ that is open to the public. Therefore, service provision is expected to be mixed; i.e. it will be of conference/event catering as well as high-speed, high-quality café and light food services including barista-style coffee, tea, fresh juices, pastries, sandwiches, snacks, healthy grab-and-go options and light meals. The operation will be supported by the Africa Hall kitchen infrastructure. In this regard, UNECA is seeking market feedback on whether these services could be combined and operated under one specialized operator. • Express Café / Press Bar Services: High-speed, high-quality café and light food services, including barista-style coffee, tea, fresh juices, pastries, sandwiches, snacks, healthy grab-and-go options and light meals. UNECA is seeking market feedback on whether these services should be operated separately from the main cafeteria/catering operation, and whether they could be combined with the Delegates Bar under one specialized café/bistro operator. • Delegates Bar / Premium Bistro-Lounge: A premium but practical hospitality outlet offering bistro-style food, beverages, light meals, lounge-style service and delegate/VIP-oriented hospitality. Vendors are requested to advise on the commercial and operational feasibility of operating this outlet either separately or together with the Press Bar. Any alcoholic beverage service would be subject to applicable laws, UN rules, UNECA policies, licensing requirements and event-specific authorization. • UNECA is also considering whether smaller outlets, such as the Press Bar and Delegates Bar, could be operated separately from the main cafeteria and conference catering operation. These outlets may be more suitable for a specialized café, barista, bistro or lounge operator offering premium bistro food, beverages, snacks, grab-and-go items, light meals, and hospitality services for delegates, press, staff, visitors and conference participants. Vendors are requested to advise whether the Press Bar and Delegates Bar should be operated together under one specialized operator, or whether another structure would be commercially preferable. 4. INFORMATION REQUESTED FROM VENDORS Preliminary Feedback on Interest Vendors are requested to indicate whether they would be interested in participating in a future solicitation for: a. the full integrated package of food and beverage services; b. the UNCC cafeteria and conference/event catering services as one combined lot; c. the Press Bar / express café services; d. the Delegates Bar / premium bistro-lounge services; e. a combined Press Bar and Delegates Bar café/bistro operation; or f. another structure recommended by the vendor. Vendors are also requested to indicate which model would make them more likely to participate in a future solicitation and why. Interested vendors are requested to provide their responses organized explicitly under the following sections: Section A: Company Profile & Capabilities • General Corporate Data: Legal company name, corporate structure, country of registration, headquarters address, and number of years operating in commercial or institutional catering. • UN Registration: Confirm your company's United Nations Global Marketplace (UNGM) registration number and your level of registration (Basic, Level 1, or Level 2). • Relevant Experience: Provide a brief summary of your experience managing multi-site corporate, embassy, international organization, or luxury hospitality food operations over the past three (3) to five (5) years. Section B: Technical & Operational Feedback Multi-Concept Management: • Peak-Load Conference Operations: Describe your operational strategy for executing large-scale conference buffet lunches and synchronized coffee breaks within tight timeframes without disrupting the regular daily outlet services for permanent staff. • Banquet & Cocktail Capabilities: Detail your experience and creative concepts for hosting upscale international diplomatic cocktail receptions (menus, setup aesthetics, and dynamic service staffing). • Detail your capacity to simultaneously manage fine-dining restaurant services, with alcohol service, and high-volume express breakfast/snack counters. • Supply Chain & Food Safety: Briefly outline your established local and international procurement channels in East Africa and your alignment with international food safety baselines (such as HACCP or ISO 22000). • Staffing & VIP Delivery: How does your company recruit and train front-of-house staff to meet the distinct etiquette demands of high-level diplomatic VIPs versus quick-service retail employees? Section C: Commercial & Financial Models • Preferred Business Models: What commercial model do you consider most sustainable for an international commission ecosystem like UNECA? (e.g., Concession Fee to the UN, Rental fee for usable space to the UN, Management Fee model, Profit-Sharing model, or a fully independent Profit-and-Loss commercial lease model). • Pricing Elasticity: How would your company structure a pricing architecture that stays accessible to contract workers and general staff while supporting a premium pricing strategy for the fine-dining/VIP lounge? Section D: Procurement Structure and Lotting Strategy Vendors are requested to provide feedback on the most viable procurement and operational structure for UNECA’s food and beverage services. In particular, vendors should address the following: 1. Would your company be interested in operating the full food and beverage package under one integrated contract? Why or why not? 2. Would your company be more likely to participate if the services were divided into separate lots? 3. Do you consider it operationally sound to combine the UNCC cafeteria and UNCC conference/event catering services under one lot, given their shared kitchen infrastructure? How would you manage kitchen-sharing arrangements if the services were awarded under separate lots? 4. Would your company be interested in operating smaller café, bar or bistro-style outlets such as the Press Bar and Delegates Bar? 5. Would it be commercially and operationally viable to combine the Press Bar and Delegates Bar under one specialized café/bistro operator? 6. Which services, if any, should not be bundled together? 7. What commercial, operational, staffing, licensing, access, security, infrastructure or equipment-related risks would discourage your company from bidding? 8. What minimum information would your company require in a future solicitation in order to submit a serious and competitive offer? 9. Please recommend any alternative lotting structure that UNECA should consider. 5. UN Registration and Vendor Eligibility CRITICAL COMPLIANCE NOTICE FOR VENDORS UNGM registration is not mandatory for responding to this RFI. However, vendors interested in participating in any future solicitation are strongly encouraged to register in the United Nations Global Marketplace (UNGM). Registration and eligibility requirements applicable to any future solicitation will be specified in the solicitation documents. Vendors that are already registered in UNGM are requested to provide their UNGM registration number and level of registration.