Assistance Specialist (Heath and Education/Office Deputy Director)

Information

Common information

1. SOLICITATION NO.: 18/2024

2. ISSUANCE DATE: August 09, 2024

3. CLOSING DATE/TIME FOR RECEIPT OF OFFERS: September 06, 2024 (6 p.m. Bishkek Time)

4. POINT OF CONTACT: USAID/Central Asia Human Resources Office, e-mail: CentralAsiaJobs@usaid.gov (with autoreply) and/or almatyhr@usaid.gov

5. POSITION TITLE: USAID Development Assistance Specialist (Health and Education/ Office Deputy Director), FSN-12

6. MARKET VALUE: $ 45,328 – $ 63,460 gross per annum equivalent to FSN-12 In accordance with AIDAR Appendix J and the Local Compensation Plan of USAID/Kyrgyz Republic. Final compensation will be negotiated within the listed market value.

7. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: Full-time: 40 hours per week

8. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: USAID/Kyrgyz Republic (USAID/KR), Bishkek

9. ELIGIBLE OFFERORS: Kyrgyzstani nationals and other nationals with valid permanent residence on the territory of the Kyrgyz Republic

10. SECURITY LEVEL REQUIRED: FSN SBU

BASIC FUNCTION OF POSITION:

The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director serves as the Health and Education Office (HEO) Deputy Director located in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director is in a critical mission leadership position and plays a key role in the strategizing, formulation, implementation, workflow and human resource management, and performance reporting of the U.S. development assistance in the Kyrgyz Republic, particularly Development Objective 2, Intermediate Results 1: Improved Education and Skills of the Kyrgyzstani Population, and 2. Improved Equitable Access to Quality Health Services. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director manages foreign assistance budgets and programming for the HEO. They also provide technical leadership, guidance, and management of USAID/Kyrgyz Republic’s health and education programs. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director independently performs the full range of professional consultative, advisory, monitoring, analytical, operational, and informational services of a broad scope in connection with a health and education portfolio of approximately 15 instruments with a Life of Project value of approximately $70 million. USAID’s total portfolio for the Kyrgyz Republic is valued at more than $190 million. Furthermore, s/he is a primary HEO contact on matters relating to the health and education with the USAID/Kyrgyz Republic’s Strategy and Program Office (SPO), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention office in Bishkek, the Department of State Environment, Science, Technology, and Health (ESTH) officer and other members of interagency Technical and Assistance Working Groups. The incumbent is a primary contact for responding to routine and special health and education requests from USAID/Washington and USAID regional platforms, State Department, and USAID’s partners. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director also serves as a principal advisor on health and education to the Mission Director and Deputy Mission Director. S/He represents USG at senior levels with the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic (GoKR) and multilateral stakeholders, and manages high-visibility, technically complex portfolios. This includes, for example, USG participation in the Global Fund, Pandemic Fund, Joint Sector Evaluations for health and education, and cross-sectoral donor coordination committees.

This position is regularly involved in work that is high-volume, fast-paced with long hours, and critical for the overall operation and reputation of the mission. S/he leads a variety of analytics, reporting, program, and budget tasks and produces high-quality products within a short time frame. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director ensures that HEO staff members are flexible, able to work under rapidly changing priorities, are personally responsible for the quality of their work, and actively engage the mission as part of an effective and productive team.

The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director reports to the HEO Director and will directly supervise four FSNs. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director provides work guidance to other FSN professional HEO staff. In the absence of the Office Director, the Deputy OD will assume acting OD duties, sometimes for prolonged periods. In the case where s/he may be called upon to supervise a U.S. Direct Hire officer, s/he may provide daily oversight of the USDH and, when necessary, the formal supervisory duties would be delegated to another USDH staff in the mission.

Qualification requirements

II. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION

a. Education: Master’s degree in a field of public health, epidemiology, biostatistics, education, international development, international relations, or related fields is required.

b. Prior Work Experience: A minimum of seven (7) years of progressively responsible, professionallevel experience developing, implementing, and/or monitoring and evaluating health systems strengthening or education activities (such as: health leadership, education policy, pedagogy, governance and policy; human resource planning and management; health financing; pharmaceutical supply chain management; health information systems; quality improvement of primary health care; and/or another closely related area of health systems education) or is required. At least three (3) years’ experience collaborating with and/or working for international organizations, donor agencies, host country government, private-sector institutions, universities, foundations or other organizations on development related activities.

c. Language Proficiency: Level 4 (advanced professional proficiency) English and local language proficiency (if appropriate), both oral and written, is required. Language competency may be tested.

d. Job Knowledge: Thorough knowledge of development assistance program planning and budgeting processes. At the full performance level must have an understanding of the U.S. foreign assistance, of the wide range of USAID programs and how the Agency functions and is organized. Must have a thorough knowledge of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic’s health and education development priorities, policies, and procedures. At the full performance level must have an understanding of USAID’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS), the USG’s Integrated Country Strategy (ICS) for the Kyrgyz Republic; the USG’s strategy for Central Asia; and USAID sector policies in the health and education sector, as well as cross-cutting priorities such as Gender, Equity and Social Inclusion, Youth, and engaging with Local Institutions. The incumbent will have a solid knowledge of Monitoring and Evaluation, Environmental Compliance, and Development Outreach. Understanding of the development context, including Kyrgyz economic and political processes and their impact on development programs - is essential. e. Skills and Abilities: At an advanced level, must have exceptional diplomacy, technical, strategic thinking, teamwork and analytical skills, as well as the ability to identify and troubleshoot collaboratively wide-ranging budget and operations issues. Must be able to network with, establish and maintain an extensive range of contacts with senior and key officials of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic and the USG Interagency, technical experts, other donors and stakeholders. Must exercise good judgment in his/her responsibilities, such as in planning and executing work assignments, be a skilled communicator, be able to work under pressure, and produce results quickly, be able to predict issues of concern and interact directly at the highest operational levels with the U.S. embassy and GoKR. Must have strong advocacy, analytical, communication (oral and written), interpersonal, and leadership skills; ability to analyze implementation, financial, and budget management systems, identifying practices and procedures which require modification, develop recommendations, and present them in writing or orally in a clear, concise manner; communicate effectively in specialized subjects with non-budget or - programmatic personnel is important. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director must demonstrate excellent computer skills including relevant software and the Google suite of applications (Docs, Sheets, Slides, etc.) to accomplish assigned tasks. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director must have strong conceptual and analytical skills to be able to quickly grasp and translate new concepts into operational plans and results. This position requires an outstanding ability to exercise flexibility and prioritization skills to be able to accept and react to evolving planning and implementation contexts. Ability to exercise sound judgment, take initiative and offer leadership. They demonstrate timely decision-making and extensive judgment in planning and carrying out tasks. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director must have the ability to identify significant economic, political and social trends in the host country and assess their importance and impact on USAID development assistance objectives and programs.

Duties

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Principal functions are: 1. Supervision and Portfolio Management (45%) The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director serves as the senior FSN Specialist and Advisor to the Health and Education Office (HEO). The incumbent provides responsibility for direct supervision of up to five professional staff up to the FSN 11 grade, managing a portfolio of 15 complex mechanisms with a five-year Life of Project (LOP) value of approximately $70 million. The assignment includes performance monitoring and performance management, as well as leading processes for selection, mentoring/coaching, training and supervision of subordinate staff. The incumbent provides individual coaching on setting professional development goals and identifying relevant training opportunities to advance those personal goals that will strengthen the cross-cutting portfolio. The incumbent provides multi-disciplinary mentoring support to the team in the entire process of planning, design, project implementation, technical strategies, information systems, and monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) agenda for the Health and Education Portfolio. The incumbent is primarily responsible for timely submission of HEO contributions to resource requests, such as the Operational Plan, the Congressional Budget Justification, and Mission Resource Requests; and supervises the team for ensuring compliance with all reporting requirements related to the Health and Education portfolio. The incumbent is primarily responsible to ensure proper management of the overall HEO portfolio budget and finances, including procurement planning, use of program funds, and monitoring of pipelines to avoid funding gaps or excess forward funding. The incumbent may serve as COR/AOR/Activity Manager for strategically important and high priority bilateral and/or regional activities.

The incumbent is responsible for the HEO portfolio management on a day-to-day basis, identifying and resolving program and management issues, assuring that all activities are carried out in an evidencebased, and cost-effective manner, and in accordance with all applicable Mission and Agency program priorities, directives, and regulations. The incumbent is responsible for establishing systems to ensure the timely review and approval of HEO partner implementation plans, partner annual work plans, and budgets; and the monitoring of activities to ensure compliance with approved work plans and budgets.

2. Strategic and Technical Thought Leadership (30%)

The incumbent provides technical leadership and strategic high-level advice to the Mission leadership and the HEO Director on all issues related to the Health and Education portfolio. As a technical leader in the health and/or education sectors, the incumbent serves as the principal USAID/Kyrgyz Republic Advisor to Mission leadership on solutions to address improving the health and education outcomes of the Kyrgyz population. The incumbent assesses existing research, analyses, and modeling conducted in the Kyrgyz Republic, Central Asia and other countries for possible use in designing strategies and future interventions in the relevant Health and Education sectors. The incumbent guides USAID efforts related to policies in the Health and Education sector in close collaboration with the interagency and with the GoKR agencies, donors, civil society organizations, and other partners from the public and private sectors, in order to develop a better understanding of key challenges and policy impediments in USGtargeted sectors. The incumbent utilizes existing and new policy analyses in the relevant sectors to define and identify policy reform interventions, especially those that leverage innovations, incorporate technological solutions, focus on the role of women and marginalized communities in the sector, and can be scaled up in multiple contexts. The incumbent actively drives the Mission agenda for investing and increasing innovations in the Health and Education sectors and identifies innovative and practical actions in consultation with GoKR and private sector stakeholders to address challenges and scale up successful strategies and interventions. This is accomplished through interacting with Kyrgyz stakeholders in order to produce evidence to guide policy change; engaging various stakeholders in order to respond to such changes; and supporting the development of a sustainable approach to policy change implementation. The incumbent designs, leads or participates in designing new health and education interventions to improve human capital. The incumbent actively engages with the private sector, seeking opportunities for market-based partnerships and solutions, as well as local or global development alliances, that can help to promote effective, efficient, socially and financially viable sustainable development interventions in the Health and Education sectors. The incumbent ensures internal coordination, particularly across other USAID offices and programs that may offer opportunities to leverage investments and further targeted objectives.

3. Representation, Coordination and Negotiation (25%)

The incumbent has a significant representational and coordination role, building and sustaining close collaborative and professional relationships with GoKR’s Ministries of Health and Education, national, regional (oblast) and district (rayon) government bodies, other related GoKR agencies such as the National TB Program (NTP) and the Republican AIDS Center (RAC), the incumbent represents USAID at key engagements and high-level meetings to advance USAID priorities and investments. S/he participates in meetings with GoKR leadership officials at the highest levels to apprise them of progress and seek support to resolve bottlenecks in sustaining/scaling USAID investments across the Kyrgyz Republic, using local resources. As part of this effort, the incumbent is responsible for handling many complex issues, including leading sensitive negotiations and dealing with matters of a high degree of difficulty. The incumbent is responsible for building relationships with private sector partners to leverage private sector innovation, expertise, interests and assets to solve critical development challenges in the health and education sectors. The incumbent represents the Office, USAID, and the USG to stakeholders and external development partners in a wide variety of fora sponsored by USAID development partners, at conferences and workshops, at donor sub-group meetings, and in other relevant fora; and, in negotiations with the GoKR, regional governments, and the private sector on project design and implementation, ensuring that host-country officials at the highest levels are apprised of program progress. The incumbent takes the lead in coordinating sector specific issues with other USAID Missions, particularly in Central Asia. External coordination responsibilities require the incumbent to demonstrate highly developed professional judgment, and to provide exceptional technical direction, leadership in the field, and management oversight. S/he also leads information sharing efforts across all relevant internal and external stakeholders to identify, prioritize and develop opportunities for integration and collaboration. Along with other duties, the incumbent will be the main USAID/Kyrgyz Republic point of contact for efforts related to health and education donor and/or GoKR coordination groups and coordinating country mechanisms, and joint sector evaluations.

Supervision Received: Under the general direction of the USDH Supervisory HEO Director, the Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director carries out assignments with a high degree of independence receiving specific guidance from the supervisor or directly from the Mission Director and Deputy Mission Director. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director exercises considerable latitude for independently monitoring and adjusting the HEO program implementation, budget, programming needs, strategic direction, and other functions assigned to HEO and its staff.

Supervision Exercised: Directly supervises four FSN staff. The Senior Specialist/Deputy Office Director prepares work plans to ensure that subordinates remain current in multiple aspects of HEO responsibilities and techniques. Assigns operational tasks to all subordinates and provides instructions and guidance for completion of assigned tasks in a timely and efficient manner. Periodically reviews and monitors actual performance with subordinates and provides feedback. Mentors newly hired USAID FSN and USDH staff across the mission. In the absence of the Office Director, the Deputy OD will assume acting OD duties, sometimes for prolonged periods. In the case where s/he may be called upon to supervise a U.S. Direct Hire officer, s/he may provide daily oversight of the USDH and, when necessary, the formal supervisory duties would be delegated to another USDH staff in the mission.

12. PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The work requested does not involve undue physical demands.

Conditions

III. EVALUATION AND SELECTION FACTORS Applicants will be evaluated against the following criteria: 1. Education

2. Prior Work Experience

3. Language Proficiency

4. Job Knowledge

5. Skills and Abilities

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. The FAR provisions referenced above are available at https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far. The technical evaluation committee may conduct reference checks, including references from individuals who have not been specifically identified by the offeror, and may do so before or after a candidate is interviewed.

IV. SUBMITTING AN OFFER 1. Eligible Offerors must fully meet the minimum qualification requirements. Qualified individuals are requested to submit a cover letter and curriculum vitae addressing each selection criterion detailed above with specific and comprehensive information supporting each item; names, contact numbers, and addresses of three professional references. Packages should be received by COB Friday, September 06, 2024 via e-mail: CentralAsiaJobs@usaid.gov (with autoreply) and/or almatyhr@usaid.gov Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. No late submissions will be accepted. USAID/KR reserves the right to obtain from previous employers’ relevant information concerning the applicant's past performance and may consider such information in its evaluation. If an applicant does not wish USAID to contact a current employer for a reference check, this should be stated in the applicant’s cover letter, and USAID will delay such reference check pending communication with the applicant. 2. Offers must be received by the closing date and time specified above and in Section I, item 3, and submitted to the Point of Contact in Section I. 3. Offeror submissions must clearly reference the Solicitation number on all offeror submitted documents.

V. LIST OF REQUIRED FORMS PRIOR TO AWARD

1. Once the CO informs the successful Offeror about being selected for a contract award, the CO will provide the successful Offeror instructions about how to complete and submit necessary forms.

VI. BENEFITS/ALLOWANCES According to the Local Compensation Plan.

VII. TAXES The contractor is solely responsible for all taxation obligations in accordance with cooperating country laws. USAID reserves the right to request proof of payment of taxes by the employee. VIII. USAID REGULATIONS, POLICIES AND CONTRACT CLAUSES PERTAINING TO PSCs USAID regulations and policies governing CCN/TCN PSC awards are available at these sources:

1. USAID Acquisition Regulation (AIDAR), Appendix J, “Direct USAID Contracts With a Cooperating Country National and with a Third Country National for Personal Services Abroad,” including contract clause “General Provisions,” available at https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/aidar_0.pdf .

2. Contract Cover Page form AID 309-1 available at https://www.usaid.gov/forms .

3. Acquisition & Assistance Policy Directives/Contract Information Bulletins (AAPDs/CIBs) for Personal Services Contracts with Individuals available at http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapdscibs .

4. 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 5 CFR 2635. See https://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/OGE%20Regulations

5. 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: PSCOmbudsman@usaid.gov.