Sudan: USPSC Senior Program Officer

Position Title: Senior Program Officer

Solicitation Number: SOL-OFDA-15-000076

Salary Level: GS-13 Equivalent: $73,115 - $95,048

Issuance Date: August 19, 2015

Closing Date: September 19, 2015

Closing Time: 5:00 P.M. Eastern Time

Dear Prospective Applicants:

The United States Government (USG), represented by the U.S. Agency for International

Development (USAID) Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), is seeking

applications from qualified U.S. citizens to provide personal services as a Senior Program

Officer (SPO) under a United States Personal Services Contract (USPSC), as described in the

attached solicitation.

Submittals must be in accordance with the attached information at the place and time specified.

Applicants interested in applying for this position MUST submit the following materials:

1. Complete resume. In order to fully evaluate your application, 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) Names and contact information (phone/email) of your current and/or previous

supervisor(s). Current and/or previous supervisors may be contacted for a reference.

(d) Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related

skills, or job-related honors, awards or accomplishments.

(e) U.S. Citizenship.

Your resume should contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you

fully meet the experience requirements as stated in this solicitation. This information should

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.

1. USPSC Application form AID 302-3. Applicants are required to complete and sign the form.

Additional documents submitted will not be accepted. Incomplete or late applications will not

be considered. OFDA reserves the right to select additional candidates if vacancies become

available during future phases of the selection process.

Applicants can expect to receive a confirmation email when application materials have been

received. Applicants should retain for their records copies of all enclosures which accompany

their applications. Your complete resume must be emailed to:

OFDA Recruitment Team

E-Mail Address: recruiter@ofda.gov

Website: www.OFDAjobs.net

Any questions on this solicitation may be directed to OFDA Recruitment Team via the

information provided above.

Sincerely,

Renee Reed

Contracting Officer

INTRODUCTION

To fulfill its mandate to effectively respond to the complex emergency in Sudan, OFDA operates

an office headquartered at the USAID Mission in Khartoum, Sudan, which is responsible for

overseeing $65 million in OFDA funding during fiscal year 2015. The Senior Humanitarian

Advisor (SHA) is OFDA’s principal humanitarian representative in Sudan and is located in

Khartoum. The Senior Program Officer (SPO) for Sudan supports the SHA by providing

program strategy development and implementation oversight. The SPO oversees field

monitoring of OFDA programs and ensures reporting on humanitarian needs and programming

in Sudan, to include Darfur, the Two Areas, and country-wide issues. The SPO assists the SHA

with assessment, analysis and reporting on existing or evolving crises, maintenance of partner

relationships, and coordination of award management activities.

Under the guidance of the SHA, the SPO will coordinate closely with USAID Mission and

Embassy staff and exchange information regularly with colleagues covering the South Sudan

portfolio, as well as with the field and headquarters-based OFDA regional team. This includes

sharing project ideas, strategies, and soliciting advice and guidance. The SPO will also work

closely with the Agreement Officer’s Representative for all assigned awards.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The OFDA SPO will primarily provide full time in-country coordination and management of

OFDA programming for humanitarian emergency and disaster risk reduction activities

throughout Sudan. The SPO may assist in humanitarian assistance activities elsewhere in or

outside of the region as needed.

This position requires effective daily coordination with several OFDA staff members, as well as

with representatives from other USAID offices, Embassy staff, and the humanitarian community,

and therefore requires a highly collaborative work style. The SPO 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 SPO may be required to serve as a critical component of a

USG disaster assessment team, DART, RMT, or to backfill other staff members in the overseas

office.

The SPO’s responsibilities are:

 Serve as the principal point of contact for OFDA programming in Sudan, which includes

the Two Areas, and Darfur. Coordinate closely with both field and headquarters-based

staff of OFDA’s Regional Team and maintain regular contact with relevant staff in both

the Khartoum and Juba USAID Missions and U.S. Embassies.

 Lead OFDA’s Sudan-based program staff in the development of OFDA’s programming

for response and disaster risk reduction activities in Sudan, ensure complementarity

between the two strategies, and oversee implementation of each.

 Continually assess emergency response and disaster risk reduction needs in Sudan in

order to ensure that OFDA’s programs are appropriately responsive.

 Support the SHA in maintaining relations with the senior leadership of the Sudan

humanitarian community in representing USAID and OFDA on humanitarian issues. This

will include, but will not be limited to senior officials of UN agencies, IOs, and NGOs,

other USG agencies, donors, and with senior officials of the host government.

 Travel as permitted to assess, evaluate and monitor humanitarian conditions in Sudan,

and make strategic recommendations for appropriate interventions.

 Participate in and report on joint donor humanitarian evaluations and UN - led

assessments, and participate actively in the international community response structures.

 Provide regular reporting, through official cables and other means, on issues related to

the humanitarian situation in Sudan. Provide overviews of patterns and trends in the

humanitarian situation and keep the SHA, Team Lead, and other staff current on response

issues. Provide regular reports on site visits, meetings, general atmospherics and other

issues that impact humanitarian relief efforts.

 With guidance from the SHA, coordinate with the donor community on policy issues

affecting humanitarian operations, and develop integrated, non-duplicative programs.

 Prepare briefing papers, notes and presentations on OFDA programming for official USG

visitors interested in humanitarian issues.

 Conduct performance reviews and evaluations, and coordinate staff development plans

for OFDA Sudan program team members, with guidance from the SHA.

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION

(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Applicants who do not meet all of the education

and experience factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)

Bachelor’s degree with significant study in or pertinent to a specialized field (including, but not

limited to, international relations, economics, food policy or a related field) and a minimum

of seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in emergency relief and humanitarian

assistance, which must include at least two (2) years of on-the-ground international field

experience working on multi-agency relief operations in a humanitarian emergency setting.

OR

Master’s degree with significant study in or pertinent to a specialized field (including, but not

limited to, international relations, economics, food policy or a related field) and a minimum

of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in emergency relief and humanitarian

assistance, which must include at least two (2) years of on-the-ground international field

experience working on multi-agency relief operations in a humanitarian emergency setting.

SELECTION FACTORS

(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Applicants who do not meet all of the selection

factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)

● Applicant is a U.S. Citizen.

● USPSC Application form AID 302-3. Applicants are required to complete and sign the

form.

● Complete resume submitted. See cover page for resume requirements. Experience that

cannot be quantified will not be counted towards meeting the solicitation requirements.

● 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.

● Satisfactory verification of academic credentials.

APPLICANT RATING SYSTEM

The applicant rating system factors are used to determine the competitive ranking of qualified

applicants in comparison to other applicants. Applicants 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 monitoring and reporting on rapidly evolving humanitarian crises in an

international disaster context.

 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 at senior levels in the midst of humanitarian crisis

situations.

 Demonstrated diplomatic, interpersonal, and representational skills in order to work

effectively with other donors and diplomatic missions at senior levels 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 the midst of

international humanitarian crisis situations.

 Demonstrated ability to communicate complex humanitarian issues to a range of

audiences through written products.

Leading Teams Experience (10 points):

 Demonstrated knowledge of USG acquisition and assistance regulations.

 Experience developing, designing, or evaluation proposed humanitarian interventions

against response or disaster risk reduction strategies and identified needs.

 Demonstrated experience managing USG acquisition or assistance awards to include post

award administrations and regulation compliance.

Interview Performance (40 points)

Writing Test (20 Points)

Satisfactory Professional Reference Checks (10 points)

APPLYING:

Applications 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 application, 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) Names and contact information (phone/email) of your current and/or previous

supervisor(s). Current and/or previous supervisors may be contacted for a reference.

(d) Education and any other qualifications including job-related training courses, job-related

skills, or job-related honors, awards or accomplishments.

(e) U.S. Citizenship.

Your resume should contain sufficient information to make a valid determination that you

fully meet the experience requirements as stated in this solicitation. This information should

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 Application form AID 302-3. Applicants are required to complete and sign the form.

Additional documents submitted will not be accepted.

By submitting your application materials, you certify that all of the information on and attached

to the application is true, correct, complete, and made in good faith. You agree to allow all

information on and attached to the application to be investigated. False or fraudulent information

on or attached to your application 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 applications for the intended position, please reference the solicitation

number on your application, and as the subject line in any email.

DOCUMENT SUBMITTALS

Via email: recruiter@ofda.gov

For full information about this position, as well as instructions on how to apply, please visit www.ofdajobs.net.