SOLICITATION NUMBER: 720BHA21R00025
ISSUANCE DATE: March 30, 2021
CLOSING DATE AND TIME: April 29, 2021, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time SUBJECT: Solicitation for U.S. Personal Service Contractor (USPSC)
Dear Prospective Offerors:
The United States Government (USG), represented by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Africa (OA), is seeking offers from qualified U.S. citizens to provide personal service as a Humanitarian Advisor/Senior Humanitarian Advisor (HA/SHA) under a United States Personal Services Contract (USPSC), as described in the solicitation.
Submittals must be in accordance with the attached information at the place and time specified. Offerors interested in applying for this position MUST submit the following materials:
1. Complete resume. In order to fully evaluate your offer, your resume must include:
(a) Paid and non-paid experience, job title, location(s), dates held (month/year), and hours worked per week for each position. Dates (month/year) and locations for all field experience must also be detailed. Any experience that does not include dates (month/year), locations, and hours per week will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.
(b) Specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work. (c) Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related skills, or job-related honors, awards or accomplishments. Failure to identify an academic discipline will result in disqualification.
(d) U.S. Citizenship
(e) Optional: How did you hear about this opportunity? (beta.SAM.gov, BHA Jobs, Career Fair, etc.).
Your resume must contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the experience requirements as stated in this solicitation for each grade level(s) for which you are applying. This information must be clearly identified in your resume. Failure to provide information sufficient to determine your qualifications for the position will result in loss of full consideration.
2. USPSC Offeror form AID 309-2. Offerors are required to complete sections A through I. This form must be physically signed. Electronic signatures will not be accepted. AID 309-2 is available at http://www.usaid.gov/forms.
NOTE REGARDING DATA UNIVERSAL NUMBERING SYSTEM (DUNS) NUMBERS AND THE SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT
All USPSCs with a place of performance in the United States are required to have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number and be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database prior to receiving an award. You will be disqualified if you either fail to comply with this requirement or if your name appears on the excluded parties list. The selectee will be provided with guidance regarding this registration.
NOTE: As of March 28, 2018, all new SAM.gov entity registrations will now require a signed notarized letter identifying the authorized Entity administrator for the entity associated with the DUNS number. Additional information on the format of the notarized letter and where to submit can be found via the below Federal Service Desk link:
https://www.fsd.gov/fsd-gov/answer.do?sysparm_kbid=d2e67885db0d5f00b3257… sysparm_search=kb0013183
Offerors can expect to receive a confirmation email when offer materials have been received. Offerors should retain for their records copies of all enclosures which accompany their offers. Your complete resume must be emailed to:
Africa Recruitment Team
E-Mail Address: [email protected]
Website: www.BHAjobs.net
Any questions on this solicitation may be directed to the Africa Recruitment Team via the information provided above.
Sincerely,
Renee Newton
Contracting Officer
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
With strong coordination and collaboration with the HART based in Nigeria, the HA/SHA will lead efforts to identify and assess new humanitarian assistance requirements, target beneficiary groups and locations, oversee the general direction of existing relief and transition and resilience-oriented programs, and broadly recommend the types of interventions and budget levels required in Nigeria. The HAs/SHAs will serve as a point of contact in-country for BHA for humanitarian issues and serve as a liaison on program issues among USAID mission staff, the U.S. Embassy and other USG agencies, military representatives, BHA/Washington, and the overall humanitarian community.
Depending on experience, one candidate may serve as either the Deputy Office Director or Office Director. The HAs/SHAs will also be responsible for reporting to BHA West Africa Regional Office in Dakar, Senegal, and to BHA/Washington. Due to the substantial coordination requirements of this position, an individual with a highly collaborative work style is required. The HAs/SHAs must be prepared to function effectively in a challenging and restrictive work environment and be willing to strictly adhere to U.S. Embassy security guidelines.
The individual will perform the following duties:
At the GS-13 equivalent level
Contextual Specialty
● Develop and maintain a specialized understanding of humanitarian developments in Nigeria to include political, social, and operational issues impacting humanitarian efforts. ● Develop and maintain knowledge of USAID, USG humanitarian priorities and strategies in Nigeria, and USAID/BHA’s contributions and comparative advantages to those efforts. ● Provide regular reporting on issues related to humanitarian situations in Nigeria. Provide overviews of patterns and trends in the humanitarian situation and keep the Office Director and other staff current on response issues. Provide regular reports on site visits, meetings, general atmospherics, and other issues that impact humanitarian relief efforts. Monitor incipient disasters, international disaster response plans and efforts, and major
humanitarian issues and challenges in the area of responsibility through a wide range of USG and international sources.
● Identify humanitarian issues, priorities, lessons learned, and opportunities within and relevant to Nigeria and apply those to program strategy development and implementation. ● Provide substantive assistance in the preparation of regular strategic and analytical reports on current or anticipated emergencies, as well as comprehensive preparedness documentation on Nigeria, under the direction of the Office Director.
Portfolio Management
● Develop and maintain a detailed working knowledge of BHA’s humanitarian portfolio in Nigeria.
● Work with BHA’s program staff based in Washington, D.C., and in the field office in the development of BHA’s programming strategies for response and DRR activities in Nigeria.
● Supervise and support team members in assessing emergency response and DRR needs in Nigeria in order to ensure that BHA’s programs are appropriately responsive. ● Assist headquarters-based Agreement Officer’s Representatives in managing humanitarian awards by providing field-based insights, knowledge, and perspectives. ● Assist in humanitarian activities outside of the immediate area of responsibility as needed.
● Travel as permitted to assess, evaluate, and monitor humanitarian conditions in the region and make strategic recommendations for appropriate interventions.
● With strong coordination and collaboration with the Nigeria humanitarian team, the incumbent will support efforts to identify and assess new humanitarian assistance requirements, target beneficiary groups and locations, oversee the general direction of existing relief and transition and resilience oriented programs, and broadly recommend the types of interventions and budget levels required in Nigeria.
● Closely collaborate with Mission colleagues on program coordination to share information, avoid overlap, and explore opportunities for synergies and resilience efforts, ensuring the BHA Regional Team in Senegal is consulted throughout. Maintain ongoing dialogue with BHA West Africa Regional Office and Washington Team Leads for Nigeria on these efforts.
● Monitor ongoing humanitarian assistance efforts in Nigeria. Liaise with partners and other donors, coordinate closely with the BHA West Africa Regional Office, and provide coordinated field feedback to the partners.
● In consultation and collaboration with the HART in Nigeria, coordinate collection of information and provide updates and recommendations through written reports on issues related to the humanitarian situation, including the following:
o Capacity and ability of UN, IOs, NGOs, and local institutions to carry out programs;
o Capacity of the logistics infrastructure to support programs;
o Security situation of beneficiaries, personnel, convoys, and relief operations in general;
o Role of in-country UN leadership and the UN Mission in Nigeria in facilitating humanitarian assistance;
o Contributions by other donors, problems arising from the implementation of relief and reintegration programs, and any other issues that require the attention of BHA and USAID/Nigeria; and
o Humanitarian coordination issues and any recommendations for change. ● In consultation and collaboration with the Nigeria-based humanitarian team, provide guidance to organizations that are developing proposals for BHA, based on “BHA’s Emergency Application Guidelines”, as appropriate.
● In collaboration with the Nigeria-based humanitarian team, review concept papers and proposals and provide timely recommendations/comments to BHA/Washington and the West Africa Regional Office.
● In collaboration with the HART, ensure reporting on a timely basis to BHA/Washington and West Africa Regional Office on the quality of grantees’ work, noting deficiencies, attributes, and evolving operational conditions.
● Along with the HART, maintain regular, close coordination and communication with the West Africa Regional Office and BHA headquarters in Washington, D.C
● Participate in discussions on the current and future directions of BHA’s Nigeria portfolio to include programmatic, budgetary, and human resource requirements.
Representation
● Participate in, and report on, joint donor humanitarian evaluations and UN-led assessments, and participate actively in the international community response structures. ● Assist the Nigeria team to coordinate with the donor community on policy issues affecting humanitarian operations, and develop integrated, non-duplicative programs, as needed.
● Prepare briefing papers, notes, and presentations on BHA programming for official USG visitors interested in humanitarian issues.
● Coordinate on a daily basis with several BHA staff members, as well as with representatives from other USAID offices, Embassy staff, and the humanitarian community. This level of coordination requires a highly collaborative work style.
● Work under the direction of the Office Director to develop BHA Nigeria’s policy and program positions.
● Serve as a point of contact in-country for BHA for humanitarian issues, and serve as a liaison on program issues among USAID mission staff, the U.S. Embassy and other USG agencies, military representatives, BHA/Washington, and the overall humanitarian community;
● Facilitate travel and briefings for official USG visitors to Nigeria interested in humanitarian issues.
Leadership
● Serve as direct supervisor to team members on grants management and portfolio management, including BHA’s business process, portfolio-specific budget and workload management, and post-award monitoring and management.
● Work with NGOs, IOs, and UN agencies that are developing proposals for BHA (including grant amendments and extensions) to ensure compliance with BHA’s guidelines.
● Lead BHA/Nigeria’s planning processes in support of the Office Director, including development, management, monitoring of response strategies, implementation plans, budget requests, and other plans as required.
● Provide guidance and input on BHA/Nigeria’s reporting and information management processes in support of the Office Director.
● Participate, as assigned, in office-wide discussions on initiatives that impact program implementation, to provide field-based perspectives.
General Duties
● Become certified and serve as an Agreement Officer’s Representative/Contracting Officer’s Representative (AOR/COR), as assigned. The AOR/COR provides financial and programmatic oversight of all aspects of managing the agreement or contract; this includes but is not limited to reviewing invoices, requests for approvals, program/project deliverables (i.e. work plans, annual reports, month status reports), travel requests, key personnel requests, and financial/budget reports. They are responsible for drafting and submitting the annual contractor performance evaluation in Contract/Assistance Performance Assessment Review System (CPARS/APARS). They prepare and review contract/assistance modifications documentation and assist the Contracting/Agreement Officer to ensure performance is compliant with the terms and conditions of the contract/agreement, the FAR, and USAID policy. AOR/CORs are responsible for all related requirements in the COR designation letter and the AOR designation letter.
● May serve as needed, on Washington-based Response Management Teams (RMTs), which provide services and support to DARTs deployed in response to disasters. The duties on RMTs will vary.
● May serve on DARTs which may require immediate (within 24 hours) deployment overseas for an extended period of time.
● Work effectively in a challenging and restrictive work environment and strictly adhere to U.S. Embassy security guidelines.
● As needed, may serve on temporary detail within the office to meet operational needs during staff shortages, not to exceed six months. Duties performed while on detail will be aligned with the Team’s existing duties and responsibilities and will be directly related to the scope of work provided.
At the GS-14 equivalent level
Offerors selected at the HA (GS-13) may have an opportunity for advancement to the SHA (GS-14) equivalent after at least two years at the GS-13 level if the individual receives a recommendation from the supervisor for advancement along with an Exceeds Fully Successful performance evaluation. Advancement to the GS-14 level is not guaranteed.
Contextual Specialty
● Develop and maintain knowledge of the key humanitarian, resilience, and DRR issues within Nigeria.
● Maintain an in-depth understanding of political, humanitarian, organizational, and stakeholder interests specific to Nigeria.
● Monitor incipient disasters, international disaster response plans and efforts, and major humanitarian issues and challenges in the area of responsibility through a wide range of USG and international sources.
● Identify humanitarian issues, priorities, lessons learned, and opportunities within and relevant to Nigeria and apply those to program strategy development and implementation. ● Prepare and/or provide substantive assistance in the preparation of regular strategic and analytical reports on current or anticipated emergencies, as well as comprehensive preparedness documentation on Nigeria.
Portfolio Management
● Under the direction of the Office Director, help lead efforts to identify and assess new humanitarian assistance requirements, target beneficiary groups and locations, oversee the general direction of existing relief and transition and resilience oriented programs, and broadly recommend the types of interventions and budget levels required in Nigeria.
● Closely collaborate with Mission colleagues on program coordination to share information, avoid overlap, and explore opportunities for synergies and resilience efforts. Maintain ongoing dialogue with BHA West Africa Regional Office and Washington Team Leads for Nigeria on these efforts.
● Monitor ongoing humanitarian assistance efforts in Nigeria. Liaise with partners and other donors, coordinate closely with the West Africa Regional Office, and provide coordinated field feedback to the partners.
● Coordinate collection of information and provide updates and recommendations through written reports on issues related to the humanitarian situation, including the following: o Capacity and ability of UN, IOs, NGOs, and local institutions to carry out programs;
o Capacity of the logistics infrastructure to support programs;
o Security situation of beneficiaries, personnel, convoys, and relief operations in general;
o Role of in-country UN leadership and the UN Mission in Nigeria in facilitating humanitarian assistance;
o Contributions by other donors, problems arising from the implementation of relief and reintegration programs, and any other issues that require the attention of BHA and USAID/Nigeria; and
o Humanitarian coordination issues and any recommendations for change. ● Provide guidance to organizations that are developing proposals for BHA, based on “BHAs Emergency Application Guidelines.”
● Review concept papers and proposals and provide timely recommendations/comments. Ensure reporting on a timely basis on the quality of grantees’ work, noting deficiencies, attributes, and evolving operational conditions.
● Maintain regular, close coordination and communication with the Team, BHA Regional Office in Dakar, and BHA/Washington.
Representation
● Represent USAID’s humanitarian portfolio in-country at senior level meetings within the USG and with humanitarian stakeholders, and convey humanitarian concerns and priorities from the BHA perspective through oral and written briefings;
● Coordinate policy development meetings such as:
o Meetings with individual and groups of implementing partners discussing programmatic priorities, objectives, progress, results, and challenges;
o Discussions, meetings, and papers informing USG foreign policy in areas with humanitarian concerns or impacts; and
o Donor and implementing partner coordination forums.
● As needed, serve as the principal point of contact in-country for BHA for humanitarian issues, and serve as a liaison on program issues among USAID mission staff, the U.S. Embassy and other USG agencies, military representatives, BHA/Washington, and the overall humanitarian community.
● Present USAID’s humanitarian perspectives to NGOs, IOs, and UN agencies relating to humanitarian assistance strategies and priorities, including USAID’s approach to sustainable, resilience-oriented humanitarian programs. Work closely with the Regional Advisor and BHA’s technical advisors to discuss and understand sectoral priorities.
● Represent USG humanitarian interests at national and international meetings and conferences, and facilitate, as requested, travel and briefings for official USG visitors to Nigeria interested in humanitarian issues.
● Engage as the humanitarian specialist in U.S. Embassy policy conversations, remaining available to provide timely reporting and clearances in response to high-level USG queries originating from the region or from Washington, D.C.
Leadership
● Provide recommendations on current and future directions of BHA’s Nigeria portfolio to include programmatic, budgetary, and human resource requirements.
● As needed, serve in a leadership role within USAID/Nigeria, in coordination with Mission senior leadership, to incorporate humanitarian and resilience concerns into Mission activities and identify opportunities to leverage USAID interventions.
General Duties
● Become certified and serve as an Agreement Officer’s Representative/Contracting Officer’s Representative (AOR/COR), as assigned. The AOR/COR provides financial and programmatic oversight of all aspects of managing the agreement or contract; this includes but is not limited to reviewing invoices, requests for approvals, program/project deliverables (i.e. work plans, annual reports, month status reports), travel requests, key personnel requests, and financial/budget reports. They are responsible for drafting and submitting the annual contractor performance evaluation in Contract/Assistance Performance Assessment Review System (CPARS/APARS). They prepare and review contract/assistance modifications documentation and assist the Contracting/Agreement Officer to ensure performance is compliant with the terms and conditions of the contract/agreement, the FAR, and USAID policy. AOR/CORs are responsible for all related requirements in the COR designation letter and the AOR designation letter.
● May serve as needed, on Washington-based RMTs, which provide services and support to DARTs deployed in response to disasters. The duties on RMTs will vary. ● May serve on DARTs which may require immediate (within 24 hours) deployment overseas for an extended period of time.
● Work effectively in a challenging and restrictive work environment and strictly adhere to U.S. Embassy security guidelines.
● As needed, may serve on temporary detail within the office to meet operational needs during staff shortages, not to exceed six months. Duties performed while on detail will be aligned with the Team’s existing duties and responsibilities and will be directly related to the scope of work provided.
EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION
(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Offerors who do not meet all of the education and experience factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)
For the GS-13 equivalent level
Bachelor’s degree with study in, or pertinent to, the specialized field (including, but not limited to, international relations, economics, food policy, West African studies, or a related field or country) plus seven (7) years of progressively demonstrated humanitarian and/or development experience, at least five (5) of which must be related to emergency relief, food security, DRR and/or disaster preparedness programming and management, including two (2) years of overseas humanitarian field experience.
OR
Master’s degree with study in, or pertinent to, the specialized field (including, but not limited to, international relations, economics, food policy, West African studies, or a related field or country) plus five (5) years of progressively demonstrated humanitarian and/or development experience, at least three (3) of which must be related to emergency relief, food security, DRR and/or disaster preparedness programming and management, including two (2) years of overseas humanitarian field experience.
For the GS-14 equivalent level
Bachelor’s degree with study in, or pertinent to, the specialized field (including, but not limited to, international relations, economics, food policy, West African studies, or a related field or country) plus nine (9) years of progressively demonstrated humanitarian and/or development experience, at least seven (7) of which must be related to emergency relief, food security, DRR and/or disaster preparedness programming and management, including four (4) years of overseas humanitarian field experience.
OR
Master’s degree with study in, or pertinent to, the specialized field (including, but not limited to, international relations, economics, food policy, West African studies, or a related field or country) plus seven (7) years of progressively demonstrated humanitarian and/or development experience, at least five (5) of which must be related to emergency relief, emergency food security, DRR and/or disaster preparedness programming and management, including four (4) years of overseas humanitarian field experience.
III. EVALUATION AND SELECTION FACTORS
The Government may award a contract without discussions with offerors in accordance with FAR 52.215-1. The CO reserves the right at any point in the evaluation process to establish a competitive range of offerors with whom negotiations will be conducted pursuant to FAR 15.306(c). In accordance with FAR 52.215-1, if the CO determines that the number of offers that would otherwise be in the competitive range exceeds the number at which an efficient competition can be conducted, the CO may limit the number of offerors in the competitive range to the greatest number that will permit an efficient competition among the most highly rated offers. FAR provisions of this solicitation are available at https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far.
SELECTION FACTORS
(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Offerors who do not meet all of the selection factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)
● Offeror is a U.S. Citizen.
● Complete resume submitted. See cover page for resume requirements. Experience that cannot be quantified will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements. ● USPSC Offeror form AID 309-2. Offerors are required to complete sections A through I.
This form must be physically signed. Electronic signatures will not be accepted. ● Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret up to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information level clearance as provided by USAID.
● Ability to obtain a Department of State medical clearance.
● Must not appear as an excluded party in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov). ● Satisfactory verification of academic credentials.
OFFEROR RATING SYSTEM
The offeror rating system factors are used to determine the competitive ranking of qualified offerors in comparison to other offerors. Offerors must demonstrate the rating factors outlined below within their resume, as they are evaluated strictly by the information provided. The rating factors are as follows:
Professional Experience (10 points)
● Experience managing humanitarian interventions in an international disaster context across the entire disaster management cycle to include emergency response, early recovery and transition, disaster risk reduction, and resilience.
● Specific experience managing humanitarian interventions including needs assessment, strategy development, budget management, resource prioritization, program development, and program management.
Skills and Abilities (10 points)
● Demonstrated diplomatic, interpersonal, and representational skills in order to work effectively with host governments in the midst of humanitarian crisis situations. ● Demonstrated diplomatic, interpersonal, and representational skills in order to work effectively with other donors and diplomatic missions in the midst of international humanitarian crisis situations.
● Demonstrated diplomatic, interpersonal, and representational skills in order to work effectively with international and national non-governmental humanitarian partners at senior levels in the midst of humanitarian crisis situations.
● Demonstrated diplomatic, interpersonal, and representational skills in order to effectively achieve humanitarian objectives within the USG at senior levels, including with DOD, Embassies, Members of Congress, and senior executive branch staff in the midst of international humanitarian crisis situations.
Leading Teams Experience (10 points)
● Demonstrated experience leading teams of varied nationalities and cultural backgrounds working in a constant state of complex, international humanitarian crisis.
● Experience leading a diverse team of program, technical, and administrative staff, working in a constant state of in complex, international humanitarian crisis.
Interview Performance (50 points)
Satisfactory Professional Reference Checks (20 points)
Total Possible Points: 100
BASIS OF RATING: Offerors who meet the Education/Experience requirements and Selection Factors will be further evaluated in accordance with the Offeror Rating System. Those offerors determined to be competitively ranked may also be evaluated on interview performance and satisfactory professional reference checks.
Offerors are required to address each factor of the Offeror Rating System in their resume, describing specifically and accurately what experience, training, education and/or awards they have received as it pertains to each factor. Be sure to include your name and the announcement number at the top of each additional page. Failure to address the selection factors and/or Offeror Rating System factors may result in not receiving credit for all pertinent experience, education, training and/or awards.
The most qualified offerors may be interviewed and required to provide a writing sample. BHA will not pay for any expenses associated with the interviews. Professional references and academic credentials will be evaluated for offerors being considered for selection. Note: Please be advised that references may be obtained independently from other sources in addition to the ones provided by an offeror. BHA reserves the right to select additional offerors if vacancies become available during future phase of the selection process.
How to apply
Offers must be received by the closing date and time at the address specified in the cover letter. Qualified individuals are required to submit:
1. Complete resume. In order to fully evaluate your offer, your resume must include:
(a) Paid and non-paid experience, job title, location(s), dates held (month/year), and hours worked per week for each position. Dates (month/year) and locations for all field experience must also be detailed. Any experience that does not include dates (month/year), locations, and hours per week will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.
(b) Specific duties performed that fully detail the level and complexity of the work. (c) Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related skills, or job-related honors, awards or accomplishments. Failure to identify an academic discipline will result in disqualification.
(d) U.S. Citizenship
(e) Optional: How did you hear about this opportunity? (beta.SAM.gov, BHA Jobs, Career Fair, etc.).
Your resume must contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you fully meet the experience requirements as stated in this solicitation for each grade level(s) for which you are applying. This information must be clearly identified in your resume. Failure to provide information sufficient to determine your qualifications for the position will result in loss of full consideration.
2. USPSC Offeror form AID 309-2. Offerors are required to complete sections A through I. This form must be physically signed. Electronic signatures will not be accepted. AID 309-2 is available at http://www.usaid.gov/forms.
Additional documents submitted will not be accepted.
By submitting your offer materials, you certify that all of the information on and attached to the offer is true, correct, complete, and made in good faith. You agree to allow all information on and attached to the offer to be investigated. False or fraudulent information on or attached to your offer may result in you being eliminated from consideration for this position, or being terminated after award, and may be punishable by fine or imprisonment.
To ensure consideration of offers for the intended position, please reference the solicitation number on your offer, and as the subject line in any email.
DOCUMENT SUBMITTALS
Via email: [email protected]
