SOLICITATION NUMBER: 720BHA22R00063

ISSUANCE DATE: September 20, 2022
CLOSING DATE AND TIME: October 21, 2022, 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 services as Senior Regional Humanitarian Program Officer (SRHPO) under a United States Personal Services Contract (USPSC), as described in this solicitation.
USAID will evaluate all offerors based on stated evaluation criteria. USAID encourages all
individuals, including those from disadvantaged and under-represented groups to respond to 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. 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? (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. 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. Certified electronic signatures may be accepted. AID 309-2 is available at http://www.usaid.gov/forms.
U.S. Agency for International Development 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW on, DC 20523
ww.usaid.gov

NOTE REGARDING ENSURING ADEQUATE COVID-19 SAFETY PROTOCOLS FOR FEDERAL CONTRACTORS

Please be advised that upon award, the contractor will be required to show proof that the
contractor is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 on or before the first date of onboarding, or
submit an approved reasonable accommodation to the CO. If the contractor does not meet this
requirement the contract may be terminated. USPSCs performing overseas must follow the Mission
policies and/or directives from the U.S. Department of State regarding COVID-19 requirements.

NOTE REGARDING UNIQUE ENTITY IDENTIFIER (UEI) NUMBER AND THE SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT

All USPSCs with a place of performance in the United States are required to have a Unique Entity
Identifier (UEI) 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.

All new SAM.gov entity registrations require a signed notarized letter identifying the authorized
Entity administrator for the entity associated with the UEI 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/gsafsd_sp

Instructions to obtain a UEI can be found via the SAM.gov link.
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:

OA Recruitment Team
E-Mail Address: BHA.AfricaRecruitment@usaid.gov Website: www.BHAjobs.net
Any questions on this solicitation may be directed to the OA Recruitment Team via the information
provided above.

 

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sonja Stroud-Gooden

Contracting Officer

 

 

 

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

1. SOLICITATION NO.: 720BHA22R00063

2. ISSUANCE DATE: September 20, 2022

3. CLOSING DATE AND TIME FOR RECEIPT OF OFFERS: October 21, 2022, 12:00
P.M. Eastern Time

4. POINT OF CONTACT: OA Recruitment Team, BHA.AfricaRecruitment@usaid.gov

5. POSITION TITLE: Senior Regional Humanitarian Program Officer

6. MARKET VALUE: $81,216 - $105,579 equivalent to GS-13 (not eligible for locality pay)

Final compensation will be negotiated within the listed market value and will include Locality Pay
for domestic USPSCs based on the location of the Official USAID Worksite, or the approved
alternative worksite when remote work is authorized. USPSCs performing overseas are not entitled to Locality Pay. Salaries over and above the top of the pay range will not be entertained or negotiated.

7. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: Five (5) years

8. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: Dakar, Senegal

There may be an initial training program in Washington, D.C. for three months, which will include
formal classroom training and on-the-job training; and may include security training. After
completion of Washington training, the Senior Regional Humanitarian Program Officer will be
assigned to the place of performance.

Overseas USPSCs may be authorized to telework or remote work only from a location within the
country of performance, in accordance with Mission policy. Telework or remote work from outside the country of performance may only be authorized in certain situations in accordance with the terms and conditions of the contract.

9. ELIGIBLE OFFERORS: U.S. Citizens

10. SECURITY LEVEL REQUIRED: Secret (If there is a change in circumstances requiring access to
National Security information classified at the Top-Secret level, the offeror may be asked to
obtain and maintain a Secret up to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information level clearance
after award)

11. STATEMENT OF DUTIES

BACKGROUND

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) is responsible for facilitating and coordinating U.S. Government (USG) humanitarian assistance overseas in response to all types of international disasters, including slow-onset disasters such as droughts or famine, natural disasters such as earthquakes or floods, or man-made disasters such as conflict or war. BHA is responsible for planning, coordinating, developing,
achieving, monitoring, and evaluating international humanitarian assistance falling into two
conceptual areas:
● Humanitarian Response activities comprise needs-based humanitarian assistance provided to
save lives, alleviate suffering, and protect human dignity during and in the aftermath of
emergencies. Humanitarian assistance is grounded in humanitarian principles and is directed
toward the most vulnerable populations.

● Early Recovery, Risk Reduction, and Resilience (ER4) activities will set the initial foundations
for longer-term recovery as appropriate, and will work in close conjunction with humanitarian
assistance. Early recovery is an approach that supports communities impacted by crises to protect
and restore basic systems and service delivery. Early recovery builds on humanitarian response
efforts and establishes the initial foundations of long-term recovery. Early recovery activities
are implemented for a specified, appropriate timeframe that assists populations recovering from an
identifiable shock. Risk reduction is the prevention of new and reduction of existing disaster risk
and management of residual risk, which contributes to strengthening resilience and to the
achievement of sustainable development. Resilience is the ability of people, households,
communities, countries, and systems to mitigate, adapt to, and recover from shocks and stresses in
a manner that reduces chronic vulnerability and facilitates inclusive growth.
BHA has seven offices, as follows:

The Bureau’s three geographic offices are: (1) Office of Africa; (2) Office of Asia, Latin America
and the Caribbean; and (3) the Office of the Middle East, North Africa and Europe. Each geographic
office designs, provides, and assesses humanitarian assistance for their respective regions,
including assistance related to responding to, recovering from, and reducing the risk of man-made
and natural disasters, while linking with other USAID investments that build resilience.

The Office of Global Policy, Partnerships, Programs, and Communications (G3PC) shapes and
influences USAID’s role within the international humanitarian system; leads engagement on a range of policy, programmatic, and operational issues; and positions the Agency to influence collective response to emergency needs across the globe.

The Office of Technical and Program Quality (TPQ) leads the Bureau's efforts to provide
high-quality programmatic and technical leadership, oversight, and guidance. In addition, TPQ leads the Bureau’s external engagement with academia and coordinates research to advance the
effectiveness, efficiency, and impact of humanitarian and multi-year programming.

The Office of Humanitarian Business and Management Operations (HBMO) is responsible for maintaining
24/7 operability by providing leadership, planning, quality assurance, technical expertise, and
process management. HBMO ensures effective stewardship of the Bureau’s support services,
including workforce planning, staffing, financial management, internal controls, facilities
operations and infrastructure.

The Office of Field and Response Operations (FARO) leads and manages operational assistance and the purchase and delivery of goods and services in response to declared foreign disasters and
international humanitarian needs in key functional areas, including supply-chain management,
procurement, logistics, oversight, and operational coordination with the U.S. military.

INTRODUCTION

BHA is committed to fostering an equitable and inclusive workplace with a diverse workforce. BHA
encourages qualified candidates of all races/ethnicities, genders, cultural backgrounds, abilities,
and socioeconomic statuses to apply.

The Office of Africa (OA) designs, provides, and assesses humanitarian assistance, including
assistance related to responding to, recovering from, and reducing the risk of human-induced and
natural disasters, while linking with other USAID investments that build resilience. OA consists of
five (5) geographic divisions: East Africa; Central Africa; Sudans; West Africa; and Southern
Africa. These divisions are responsible for the provision of emergency humanitarian assistance
through grants and cooperative agreements to non-governmental organizations (NGOs);
international organizations (IO) including United Nations (UN) agencies; and to other partners.
These divisions also oversee BHA OA’s nonresponse efforts in disaster risk reduction (DRR),
resilience, and humanitarian transition.

To fulfill its mandate, and to effectively respond to disasters worldwide, BHA has established six
regional offices in the following locations: San Jose, Costa Rica; Nairobi, Kenya; Dakar, Senegal;
Pretoria, South Africa; Budapest, Hungary; and Bangkok, Thailand. BHA also has other, smaller
sub-regional and program offices around the world.

The BHA West Africa Regional Office (WARO) is composed of approximately 16 BHA staff and is
responsible for regional level oversight of approximately $700 million in emergency, DRR, and
resilience programming across 21 countries. WARO provides targeted technical, strategic planning,
budgetary, staffing, and management support to BHA presence-country teams in Burkina Faso,
Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria. The Regional Office and the six BHA bilateral teams are
diverse and composed of Foreign Service Officers, United States Personal Service Contractors
(USPSCs), and national staff and are led by experienced Senior Humanitarian Advisors. WARO also
directly oversees a cross-cutting regional portfolio as well as direct management and monitoring of
humanitarian programs in non-presence countries such as Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, Mauritania, and Sierra Leone. WARO ensures BHA humanitarian leadership and representation in regional humanitarian fora and manages relationships with key Dakar-based humanitarian stakeholders in the USG, UN, and NGO communities. Additionally, the BHA Regional Office ensures greater linkages, coordination and complementarity between humanitarian assistance programs and development programming in the Sahel and throughout the West Africa region.

WARO staff are expected to travel frequently to monitor programs throughout the region, provide
short-term surge support to fill vacant positions in presence countries, and deploy on short notice
to respond to emerging crises worldwide.

The Senior Regional Humanitarian Program Officer (SRHPO) plays a major role in the OA’s effort to promote excellence in humanitarian assistance and meet BHA’s mandate to save lives, alleviate
suffering, and reduce the social and economic impact of disasters. Under the guidance of the
Regional Director or his/her/their delegate, the SRHPO supports the coordination and management of BHA disaster response, preparedness, mitigation, and training programs in the region of responsibility. The SRHPO will ensure that BHA’s objectives for disaster response and assistance, strategic reporting, and analysis are met.

OBJECTIVE

BHA requires the services of a SRHPO for WARO, based in Dakar, Senegal, to ensure that BHA’s
objectives for disaster assistance, DRR, resilience programming, strategic reporting, and
interagency coordination for the region are met.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Working under the guidance and supervision of the Regional Director or delegate, the SRHPO supports BHA/WARO through the management of humanitarian activities in the region, assisting with program analysis, strategy development, and coordination with partners in the humanitarian community. The SRHPO will work closely with a program team that includes field-based Senior Humanitarian Advisors, Humanitarian Program Officers, and Program Management Specialists.

This position requires effective daily coordination with several BHA staff members, as well as
representatives from other USAID offices, Embassy staff, and the humanitarian community, and
therefore requires a highly collaborative work style. The SRHPO will perform the following:

Contextual Specialty:
● Learn and stay up to date on political, social, and operational issues affecting the
humanitarian context and programming across West Africa.
● Develop and maintain knowledge of USAID and USG humanitarian priorities and strategy within the region, and BHA’s contributions and comparative advantages to those efforts.
● Provide regular reporting on site visits, meetings, relevant current events, and other issues
that impact humanitarian relief efforts within the region.

Portfolio Management:
● Lead BHA’s WARO program staff in the day-to-day management of emergency response activities and program budget within the region.

● Travel as permitted to assess, evaluate, and monitor humanitarian conditions in the affected
region, and make strategic recommendations for appropriate interventions.
● Provide field-based insights, knowledge, and perspectives to support and inform award management.
● Guide implementing partners in developing applications based on BHA’s Emergency Application
Guidelines. Review concept papers and applications and provide timely recommendations to
BHA/Washington D.C. Provide guidance on USAID award regulations and policies to partners
● Participate in office-wide discussions on initiatives that impact program implementation to
provide field-based perspectives, as assigned.
● Coordinate with USAID/Senegal and other USAID missions in West Africa to ensure complementarity with development programming and help to leverage BHA funding for longer term sustainability.

Representation:
● Support BHA Country Team Lead in maintaining relations with senior leadership in UN agencies,
IOs, NGOs, USG personnel, donors, and host government authorities.
● Coordinate with other humanitarian donors on program strategy, joint donor evaluations and
UN-led assessments, and participate actively in humanitarian coordination fora.
● Prepare briefing papers, notes, and presentations on BHA programming for official USG visitors
interested in humanitarian issues.
● Represent BHA with various audiences, as requested.

Leadership:
● Serve as peer mentor to team members on grants and portfolio management, to include BHA’s
business process, portfolio-specific budget and workload management, and post-award monitoring and management.
● In close coordination with program team members in the WARO, and Washington, DC office, 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.
● Participate in technical evaluation committees for staffing and programming, as requested.
● Participate in both field-led and Washington-based working groups and committees, as requested.
● Consistently model behaviors that demonstrate a commitment to fostering a non-hostile, inclusive work environment that values diversity, equity and is free of discrimination, bias, unfairness, bullying, offensive behaviors, and harassment of any kind.

General Duties:
● Become certified and serve as an Assistance Officer’s Representative (AOR)/Contracting Officer’s
Representative (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,
monthly status reports), travel requests, key personnel requests, and financial/budget reports.
They are responsible for drafting and submitting the annual contractor performance evaluation in the Contract/Assistance Performance Assessment Review System. 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 Federal Acquisition Regulation, and USAID policy. AOR/CORs are responsible for all related requirements in the COR designation letter and the AOR designation letter.
● May be requested to be on-call or serve as needed on Washington-based Response Management Teams (RMTs) or in other international locations on Disaster Assistance Response Teams (DARTs). The duties on RMTs will vary.
● As needed, serve on DARTs which may require immediate (within 24 hours) deployment overseas for an extended period of time.
● As needed, may serve on temporary detail within the Bureau to meet operational needs during
staff shortages. Duties performed while on detail will be aligned with the Team’s existing duties
and responsibilities and will be directly related to the statement of duties provided.

SUPERVISORY RELATIONSHIP:
The USPSC will take direction from and will report to the Regional Director or his/her/their
designee in WARO and collaborate and consult with other USAID and U.S. Embassy staff.

SUPERVISORY CONTROLS:
Supervisor sets overall objectives and resources available; the USPSC consults with the supervisor
to develop deadlines, projects, and work to be done. The USPSC is responsible for planning and
carrying out assignments. The USPSC is responsible for planning approaches or methodology to be
used in carrying out assignments.

12. PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The work is generally sedentary and does not pose undue physical demands. During deployment on
DARTs (if required), and during site visits, there may be some additional physical exertion
including long periods of standing, walking over rough terrain, or carrying of moderately heavy
items (less than 50 pounds).

13. WORK ENVIRONMENT

Work is primarily performed in an office setting. During deployment on DARTs (if required), and
during site visits, the work may additionally involve special safety and/or security precautions,
wearing of protective equipment, and exposure to severe weather conditions.

14. START DATE: Immediately, once necessary clearances are obtained.
II. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION 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.)

 

Bachelor’s degree in any discipline and at least seven (7) years of work experience with a
humanitarian or development focus. This experience must include responsibility in: 1) determining
budget levels; 2) selecting programs for funding; or 3) managing or evaluating programs.

Experience must include one (1) year of cumulative international experience in at least one of the
following: humanitarian assistance, emergency management, relief, DRR, post-emergency
rehabilitation, recovery, or resilience.
OR
Master’s degree in any discipline and at least five (5) years of work experience with a
humanitarian or development focus. This experience must include responsibility in: 1) determining
budget levels; 2) selecting programs for funding; or 3) managing or evaluating programs. Experience must include one (1) year of cumulative international experience in at least one of the
following: humanitarian assistance, emergency management, relief, DRR, post-emergency
rehabilitation, recovery, or resilience.

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 may be accepted.
● Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret level clearance. (If there is a change in circumstances
requiring access to National Security information classified at the Top-Secret level, the offeror
may be asked to obtain and maintain a Secret up to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information level clearance after award)
● Ability to obtain and maintain a Department of State medical clearance throughout the contract.
● 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
evaluation of writing tests will also take into consideration the quality of written responses.
Aspects of written responses including, but not limited to typos, grammatical errors, spelling
errors, and incomplete sentences will be factored into the evaluation process. The rating factors
are as follows:

Matrix (30 points)

● (Grantmaking Experience) At least six months experience working in a grantmaking organization (4 points)
● (Donor Experience) At least six months of experience working for a humanitarian or development
donor organization. (4 points)
● (International Humanitarian Experience): Two years of international experience supporting or
directly implementing humanitarian programming, experience can be overseas or domestic supporting
international work. (4 points)
● (Program Design and Management): Experience designing strategies or programs (4 points)
● (Program Design and Management): Experience developing or reviewing proposals (4 points)
● (Program Design and Management): Experience monitoring or evaluating programs (4 points)
● (Communication) Demonstrated experience delivering internal written or oral briefings to senior
leadership on humanitarian program or policy issues. (3 points)
● (Communication) Demonstrated experience delivering external written or oral briefings to senior
level staff including donors, host or local governments, UN officials, or USG officials on
humanitarian policy or programming matters. (3 points)

Interview Performance (40 points) Timed Writing Test (20 points)
Satisfactory Professional Reference Checks (10 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 the selection package.

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 the future phase of the selection process.

IV. SUBMITTING AN OFFER

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. 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? (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. 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.