ECOWAS Tenders Code Chapter IV: Evaluation of Bids Article 54: Evaluation Process 1. At the meetings and proceedings of the Procurement Committee or the Procurement Board, the Chairman shall ensure compliance with the provisions of this Code. The deliberations of the Committee or the Board shall be treated as absolutely confidential. 2. The procuring entity may ask bidders in writing for clarifications on their bids in order to assist in the evaluation of bids. No change in the substance of the bid, including changes in price, and changes aimed at making an unresponsive bid responsive shall be sought, offered or permitted. Article 55: Conformity to Requirements 1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16 to 21 of this Code, the procuring entity shall retain any bid that conforms to the requirements set forth in the bidding documents. 2. Bidders may also submit a bid consisting of a variant that may be considered by the Procurement Committee or the Procurement Board only where such option has been expressly authorized in the bidding document. Article 56: Evaluation Criteria and Report 1. The procuring entity shall evaluate and compare responsive bids in order to ascertain the successful bid, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 30 and 48 of this Code. 2. The evaluation criteria for goods, works and services shall be objective and quantifiable, and shall be expressed in monetary terms. In the case of intellectual services, evaluation criteria shall be given relative weights specified in the Request for Proposals and evaluation procedure. 3. The procuring entity shall prepare a detailed report on the evaluation and comparison of bids, including the names of the bidders, the specific reasons on which its recommendations for the award of each contract are based, the main conditions of the contract, the contract amount, the implementation period and specific remarks. All bidders shall be notified of this report and the outcome of the evaluation process published on the ECOWAS Institutions Websites following the approval of the Approving Authority.. Article 57: Preference 1. Candidates and bidders residing in an ECOWAS Member State may enjoy a preference in public contracting proceedings. Any preference shall be expressed as a percentage of the price of the bid and shall not exceed ten (10) per cent of the offered price for works and fifteen (15) per cent for goods and services including consultancy services. No preference can be invoked if it is not so provided in the bidding documents. Final Page 25