Market System Advisor

SOLICITATION NUMBER: 72066321R000023 ISSUANCE DATE: 12/30, 2021 CLOSING DATE/TIME: 01/29 2022, 5pm (EAT) Previous applicants do not need to resubmit your application packages, but you can notify us of your continued interest SUBJECT: Solicitation for a U.S. Personal Service Contractor (USPSC) – Market System Advisor Dear Prospective Candidates: The United States Government, represented by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), is seeking offers from qualified persons to provide personal services under contract as described in this solicitation. Offers must be in accordance with Attachment 1 of this solicitation. Incomplete or unsigned offers will not be considered. Offerors should retain copies of all offer materials for their records. This solicitation in no way obligates USAID to award a PSC contract, nor does it commit USAID to pay any cost incurred in the preparation and submission of the offers. Any questions must be directed in writing to the Point of Contact specified in the Attached 1. Sincerely, Linda Gregory Supervisory Executive Officer ATTACHMENT1 72066321R00023 GENERAL INFORMATION SOLICITATION NO.: 72066321R00023 ISSUANCED ATE: 12/30 2021 CLOSINGDATE/TIME FOR RECEIPT OF OFFERS: 01/29, 2022, no later than 5:00 p.m (EAT) (close of business). POINT OF CONTACT: Linda Gregory, Supervisory EXO and Fekadu Tamirate, HR Specialist, e-mail at [email protected] . POSITION TITLE: Market System Advisor. MARKET VALUE: $ $ 79,468 to $ 103,309, equivalent to GS- 13. The final compensation will be negotiated within the listed market value based on the successful candidate’s salary history, work experience, and educational background. Salaries over and above the top of the pay range will not be entertained or negotiated . PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: For one year, no option to renew. Estimated to start on 04/01/2022. The base period will be 04/01/2022– 03/30/2023. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with possible travel as stated in the Statement of Work. ELIGIBLE OFFERORS: U.S. Citizens, Resident Aliens. Applicant must: Submit a complete application as outlined in the solicitation section titled SUBMITTING AN OFFER . Be able to obtain facility access security clearance. Be able to obtain a Department of State medical clearance. Be willing to travel to work sites and other offices or locations as/when requested. Note: Preference will be given to U.S. citizens who reside in Ethiopia at the time of contract award. Therefore, applications from resident-hire applicant will be evaluated first; offshore applicants will be evaluated only if there are no qualified Resident-Hire applicants . An applicant hired from off-shore will be entitled to established off-shore benefits (housing, transportation, shipment benefits, and other applicable allowances). U.S. Citizens who reside in Ethiopia will be entitled only to performance and comparability pay increases, annual and sick leave, FICA and reimbursement of life and health insurance. CLEARANCES : The final selected candidates must obtain both the appropriate security and medical clearances within a reasonable period. If such clearances are not obtained within a reasonable time or negative suitability issues are involved, any offer made may be rescinded. STATEMENT OF DUTIES General Statement of Purpose of the Contract: The USPSC Market System Advisor will provide leadership over a suite of activities and interventions to develop self-reliance and reduce dependence on government safety net and welfare support. This position will support implementation of USAID/Ethiopia’s CDCS to break the cycle of need and bolster household and community capacity to withstand shocks and stresses and graduate households from long-term assistance by addressing the root causes of vulnerability. The Market System Advisor will be expected to critically evaluate USAID’s current humanitarian and food security investments and identify sustainable and viable livelihood pathways that enable vulnerable households to escape from poverty and engage in productive economic activity. The incumbent will review existing and/or planned activities to achieve greater resilience and self-sufficiency, including graduation from safety net and welfare programs. S/he will provide strategic direction and guidance on new activity designs that may include on-farm and off-farm employment, entrepreneurship and microenterprise development, microfinance and financial literacy, market linkages, and vocational and technical training. The Livelihoods Adviser will actively foster opportunities for private sector engagement within USAID/Ethiopia’s humanitarian assistance portfolio, and coordinate activities with other technical offices within the Mission to leverage opportunities to sequence and coordinate with Feed the Future investments. He/she will identify opportunities to create greater linkages between urban and rural communities, and ensure that vulnerable communities in rural Ethiopia benefit from growing opportunities in urban areas. The Market System Advisor will support the livelihoods component of Ethiopia’s Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP). USAID has supported the Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) since its inception in 2005. The safety net is resourced through pooled contributions from 11 donors and development partners, with an increasing share covered by the Ethiopian government. Currently in its fifth phase, PSNP 5 aims to reach nearly 8 million chronically food insecure beneficiaries through cash and food transfers, nutrition, and livelihoods interventions. The food/cash-for-work component supports public works programs related to landscape restoration, irrigation, and agro-forestry. The PSNP has demonstrated that safety nets – when provided in a predictable, regular manner – can protect households from the negative impacts of shocks, although shocks experienced in 2020-2021 severely tested the safety net’s capacity and impact. The USPSC Market System Advisor will advise on USAID’s resilience investments in the lowlands in collaboration with the R2 Lowlands Team. USAID’s lowlands resilience investments focus mainly on pastoral areas frequently affected by drought, seasonal flooding, and other shocks, including conflict. He/she will support the identification of livelihoods opportunities for pastoralists seeking to transition out of pastoralism, and pursue diversified livelihoods strategies for pastoralists to stabilize household incomes. This involves establishing linkages with local, national, and international private sector actors who invest or are interested in investing in pastoral regions, strengthening access to finance in pastoral regions, and establishing market linkages for pastoral and non-pastoral value chains. The advisor will also strengthen connections between the R2 and the DG&T office, particularly on cross-border trade. The USPSC Market System Advisor will collaborate with efforts to strengthen Ethiopia’s Disaster Risk Management (DRM) system by identifying potential partnerships among private sector actors to strengthen DRM in Ethiopia. Private sector actors can play significant roles in strengthening and contributing to DRM systems. This includes strengthening the health sector, supporting value chains and services that lead to more resilient livelihoods, as well as facilitating access to credit that can help families overcome shocks. The Market System Advisor will partner with the DRM team to identify opportunities for private sector engagement within the DRM space. The Market System Advisor will coordinate with USAID/Ethiopia’s Economic Growth and Transformation (EG&T) Office to identify areas where R2 and EG&T can jointly promote Feed the Future (FtF), Global Climate Change (GCC) and Power Africa (PA) initiatives. Feed the Future promotes accelerated agricultural-based economic growth as a critical pathway to reducing poverty, food insecurity, and famine vulnerability. USAID provides programming that improves resiliency, in addition to promoting policy changes, adaptation of productive technologies, efficient use of natural resources, competitive market systems and diversification of rural incomes and livelihoods. In recent years, USAID has developed and launched initiatives in agricultural market development, land administration, livestock, trade and private sector promotion. Power Africa accelerates private investments to increase power generation, create efficient power distribution and transmission, and expand the reach of mini-grid and off-grid solutions. The Market System Advisor will have formal reporting lines in USAID/Ethiopia’s Office of Relief and Resilience (R2). However, as the Mission moves toward implementation of its highly integrated strategy, the incumbent may be deployed as a technical expert in Project Teams, which incorporate technical staff across diverse technical sectors and support offices to support the Mission’s Development Objectives (DO) teams. The incumbent will contribute to related cross cutting activities, such as resilience, nutrition, gender, disaster risk management and youth. Within R2, across USAID, and in conjunction with USAID implementing partners and other partners such as other donors and the Government of Ethiopia, the incumbent will support R2’s Learning Agenda and promote adaptive management in alignment with Collaboration, Learning and Adapting (CLA) principles. The incumbent will directly support senior Mission management as well as relevant offices in the Embassy in formulating and articulating appropriate livelihood strategies and activities to address vulnerability among the chronically food insecure. The incumbent will contribute to the Mission’s work under the U.S. Global Food Security Strategy for Ethiopia; including Feed the Future and Food for Peace-supported programming targeted at chronically food insecure populations. Statement of Duties to be Performed: Specific activities include: Technical Expertise (25%) Provide Mission-level expertise and guidance on technical areas related to improved livelihoods in chronically food insecurity regions, including on farm and off-farm job creation, and entrepreneurship opportunities. The incumbent is expected to remain generally informed of the latest research and trends in food security and resilience literature. Familiarity with policy and program discussions on Disaster Risk Management, Social Protection and Climate Change. Provide technical guidance on activities managed by R2 and the Mission to ensure strategic coherence and programmatic coordination with important USG initiatives and requirements, including the Global Food Security Strategy and Feed the Future, Food for Peace Guidance, and Mission strategies around resilience and nutrition. Analyze and draft briefing documents, program descriptions, scopes of work, reports, speeches, responses to queries, inputs for annual reporting and progress updates etc. on USAID programs and progress in the sector. Strategy and Activity Design (20%) Support the design of strategies, concept papers and procurement documents in line with USAID requirements for activities to reduce chronic poverty and improve livelihoods. Ensure coordination and lessons learned from other donors and Government of Ethiopia (GOE) programs are included in design of programs and strategies. Develop scopes of work, design documents, and other inputs to contract, where necessary external support or expertise in support of new activity or strategy designs. Coordination and Representation (40%) USAID at workshops, forums and meetings advocating for USAID related objectives and programming. The incumbent will participate fully in activities programmed under USAID/Ethiopia’s CDCS related to improved livelihoods among food insecure populations. This will include providing strategic guidance to the Mission’s Title II development food assistance programs and Mission-funded livelihood support activities. The incumbent will identify, support, and provide technical support to learning and programming opportunities across the R2 Office and broader Mission including support for R2’s learning agenda. The incumbent is expected to liaise with other R2 teams, including the Program and Resource Management Team, The Emergency Team, the Disaster Risk Management Team, and the Program Management and Monitoring Team, to support R2’s and the broader Mission’s efforts in collaboration, learning and adaptation as they relate to the food security portfolio. The incumbent will seek to share USAID lessons learned and assimilate lessons from other donors through engaging with partners. Performance Report (15%) As necessary, the incumbent prepares progress reports on Livelihood activities. These include the annual USAID Operational Plan and the Annual Performance Report. The incumbent will be responsible for understanding and incorporating USAID core values and USAID Ethiopia’s Leadership Behavior Charter in all aspects of his/her work. Supervisory Relationship The incumbent will report to the Deputy Chief for Development Programs of the R2 Office at USAID/Ethiopia. As required, s/he will provide in-depth briefings on livelihood programming for the Mission Director and Ambassador, as well as Mission staff. S/he may receive guidance from senior Mission management as the situation warrants. The incumbent will be expected to show strong independent initiative and work with minimal supervision. Supervisory Controls: None PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The work requested does not involve undue physical demands. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION Applications will be initially screened by the Mission Human Resources Office to determine whether they have met the minimum qualifications listed below. All candidates who meet the minimum qualifications requirements will be referred to the Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) for further consideration and screening. EDUCATION: Master’s degree in international development assistance, economics, business administration, agriculture, food security and/or another related field WORK EXPERIENCE: . Five years related development experience, rural development, private sector engagement, agricultural development, food aid assistance, poverty reduction or other resilience related development activities EVALUATION AND SELECTION FACTORS The Government may award a contract without discussions with candidates 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 candidates 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 candidates in the competitive range to the greatest number that will permit an efficient competition among the most highly rated offers. The FAR provisions referenced above are available at https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far. EVALUATION FACTORS EDUCATION (10 points): Points will be given for (1) education above the minimum level and/or (2) specialized education pertinent to the position. and/or (3) specialized training pertinent to the position. WORK EXPERIENCE ( 35 points): Points will be given for (1) experience above the minimum levels required, (2) specialized experience pertinent to the position, (3) experience in pertinent development assistance activities, (4) experience in development organizations that are large and/or international and (5) experience in partnering with the private sector to achieve development goals. KNOWLEDGE ( 25 points): Demonstrated knowledge of and experience working on strategy, policy and programs related to resilience, poverty reduction, livelihoods support, linking the poor to markets in a developing country context. SKILLS AND ABILITIES ( 20 points): Ability to coordinate and incentivize disparate teams, activities, or stakeholders towards common action and collective impact. Ability to design, develop and manage programs, coordinate the work of multiple implementing partners, align programs with host country policies and programs, and/or support collaboration, learning and adapting among staff, implementing partners and host government officials. COMMUNICATION (10 points): Operating effectively in cross-cultural environments and working with host country government officials and other donors and development partners. Chairing and facilitating meetings and/or public speaking and presentation experience. Highlight relationship development, negotiation, advocacy, and consensus building experience with donors, development partners, and host government officials. INTERVIEW PERFORMANCE ( 100 points) BASIS OF RATING: Candidates who meet the Minimum Qualifications will be evaluated in accordance with the Evaluation and Selection Factors. Candidates should address these evaluation factors in the offer package, describing specifically and accurately what experience, training, education and/or awards they have received as it pertains to the factors. Failure to address the Evaluation and Selection Factors may result in not receiving credit for all pertinent experience, education, training and/or awards . The highest-ranking applicants may be selected for an interview and written test. Interviews may be conducted either in person or by telephone/video call at USAID’s discretion. Final rating and ranking for the candidates will be based on the initial evaluation of the applications, interview performance, and written test. USAID/Ethiopia will not pay for any expenses associated with interviews. Note: Satisfactory Professional Reference Checks – Pass/Fail (no points assigned) Reference checks will be conducted for the highest-ranking candidates. Please be advised that references may be obtained independently from other sources in addition to the ones provided by an offeror. If a candidate does not wish USAID to contact a current employer for a reference check, this should be stated in the candidate’s cover letter, and USAID will not contact those references without contacting the candidate. SUBMITTING AN OFFER For your application to be considered, the following documents must be submitted: AID 309-2 , “Offeror Information for Personal Services Contracts with Individuals, is attached. Current curriculum vitae (CV). Further Guidance: To ensure consideration of offers for the intended position, offerors must prominently reference the Solicitation Number in the offer submission. Application must be submitted ONLY via [email protected] and the email subject must say –: 72066321R00023 – Market System Advisor. Be sure to include your name and the solicitation number at the top of each page. Please do not submit more than one application; and The application must be submitted before or on the closing date at local Ethiopia time 5 p.m. (Local Ethiopia, Addis Ababa Time, or EAT). Late and incomplete applications will not be considered. Previous applicants do not need to resubmit your application packages, but you can notify us of your continued interest LIST OF REQUIRED FORMS PRIOR TO AWARD Once the CO informs the successful candidate about being selected for a contract award, the CO will provide the successful candidate instructions about how to complete and submit the following forms. Medical History and Examination Form (Department of State Forms) Fingerprint Card (FD-258), and either Questionnaire for Sensitive Positions for National Security (SF-86), or Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions (SF-85), whichever is applicable. BENEFITS/ALLOWANCES As a matter of policy, and as appropriate, a USPSC is normally authorized the following benefits and allowances: BENEFITS: Employer's FICA Contribution Contribution toward Health & Life Insurance Pay Comparability Adjustment Annual Increase (depending on satisfactory performance evaluation) Eligibility for Worker's Compensation Annual and Sick Leave ALLOWANCES (if applicable): Section numbers refer to rules from the Department of State Standardized Regulations (Government Civilians Foreign Areas) Temporary Quarter Subsistence Allowance (Section 120) Living Quarters Allowance (Section 130) Cost-of-Living Allowance (Chapter 210) Post Allowance (Section 220) Separate Maintenance Allowance (Section 260) Education Allowance (Section 270) Education Travel (Section 280) Post Differential (Chapter 500) Payments during Evacuation/Authorized Departure (Section 600), and Danger Pay Allowance (Section 650) TAXES USPSCs are required to pay federal income taxes, FICA, Medicare and applicable state income taxes. USAID REGULATIONS, POLICIES AND CONTRACT CLAUSES PERTAINING TO PSCs USAID regulations and policies governing USPSC a wards are available at these sources: USAID Acquisition Regulation(AIDAR),Appendix D, “Direct USAID Contracts with a U.S. Citizen or a U.S. Resident Alien for Personal Services Abroad,” including contractclause“GeneralProvisions,” availableat https:// www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/aidar_0.pdf. Contract Cover Page form AID309-1 availableat https:// www.usaid.gov/forms. LINE ITEMS ITEM NO (A) SUPPLIES/SERVICES (DESCRIPTION) (B) QUANTITY (C) UNIT (D) UNIT PRICE (E) AMOUNT (F) 0001 Base Period - Compensation, Fringe Benefits and Other Direct Costs (ODCs) - Award Type: Cost - Product Service Code: [e.g. R497] - Accounting Info: [insert one or more citation(s) from Phoenix/GLAAS] 1 LOT $ _TBD__ $_TBD at Award after negotiations with Contractor_ Acquisition and Assistance Policy Directives/Contract Information Bulletins( AAPDs/CIBs ) for Personal Services Contracts with Individuals available at http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapds-cibs. Ethical Conduct. By the acceptance of a USAID personal services contract as an individual, the contractor will be acknowledging receipt of the “ Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch, ” available from the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, in accordance with General Provision 2 and 5CFR2635 . See https:// www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/OGE%20Regulations. PSC Ombudsman The PSC Ombudsman serves as a resource for any Personal Services Contractor who has entered into a contract with the United States Agency for International Development and is available to provide clarity on their specific contract with the agency. Please visit our page for additional information: https://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/personal-service-contracts-ombudsman . The PSC Ombudsman may be contacted via: [email protected]. END OF SOLICITATION EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY : The U.S. Mission in Ethiopia provides equal opportunity and fair and equitable treatment in employment to all people without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, political affiliation, marital status, or sexual orientation. USAID/Ethiopia also strives to achieve equal employment opportunity in all personnel operations through continuing diversity enhancement programs. The EEO complaint procedure is not available to individuals who believe they have been denied equal opportunity based upon marital status or political affiliation. Individuals with such complaints should avail themselves of the appropriate grievance procedures, remedies for prohibited personnel practices, and/or courts for relief.