Job Description

1. STATEMENT OF DUTIES:

General Statement of Purpose of the Contract

The Strategic Information Advisor (SI) is responsible for managing and enhancing the availability and use of a range of programmatic and epidemiological data within the Health Office. The position will support the team in regularly reviewing, analyzing & interpreting Health programs and supporting the efforts to ensure effective program implementation. The Advisor will liaise with appropriate USAID teams and Clusters and will be assigned to provide focused technical support to a specific team within the Health Office and a specific cluster within the Infectious Disease Team at the discretion of the Operations Team Leader. Under the supervision of the relevant Cluster Coordinator and Team Leader, the SI Advisor will provide technical, operational and management support to Health Office teams through in-depth assessments of Health programs in health facilities and communities. While the primary focus will be on USAID-funded programs, the SI Advisor is also responsible for compiling observations on additional Health programs that are operationally linked to USAID-funded partners, including those supported by other USG agencies and the Global Fund. The successful applicant is expected to be familiar with the health program of the country and will perform a wide range of consultative and advisory roles on reporting, surveillance, informatics, monitoring, and evaluation functions related to the health delivery system. The Advisor will coordinate the design, implementation, and strengthening of Strategic Information systems of USAID-supported Health projects. S/he will also provide technical assistance to the relevant government of Ethiopia (GOE) ministerial Offices including the Ministry of Health (MOH). The SI Advisor will facilitate communication and maintain collaborative working relationships with regional government officials, site-level health teams, USG agencies and their implementing partners, working group technical teams and other stakeholders as needed. The SI Advisor will collaborate and liaise with the broader President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and USAID monitoring and evaluation (M&E) and Strategic Information staff to support team efforts to improve data quality and ensure that health information collected by the U.S. Government team is effectively utilized. The Advisor will be a member of and work actively on the PEPFAR/Ethiopia SI TWG, as well as the TWG related to their respective Cluster. The SI Advisor will provide management support to selected USAID activities, serving as Agreement or Contracting Officer Technical Representative (AOTR/COTR), once required training has been completed.

1. Statement of Duties to be Performed

Technical Leadership and Expertise for strategic information activities of USAID health programs (45%)

• Provide technical leadership and support for the development and implementation of programmatic interventions, program monitoring, operational research, data analysis and use, surveillance, and health informatics to USAID, the broader USG, Implementing Partners, and host country stakeholders.
• Provide support to USAID partners on M&E, including establishing and rationalizing indicators and ensuring a balance set of indicators that include input, output, and outcome indicators.
• Provide support on the development of standards and indicators for assessing program effectiveness and quality and apply these in their assessment visits together with program staff, in cases where standards and indicators are lacking.
• Provide support to strengthen the capacity of USAID and partners staff in the use of appropriate data management systems to measure and track progress made toward achieving targets based on required indicators. Advise on and design enhancements to data collection and program monitoring tools and systems.
• Provide technical support to synthesize trends data at different levels including the regional/national levels and incorporate learning from all analyses into current and future programming and share extensively across all stakeholders.
• Assist in the analysis and interpretation of quantitative and qualitative data from various sources including SIMS (Site Improvement Monitoring System), Data for Accountability, Transparency and Impact Monitoring (DATIM), District Health Information System 2 ( DHIS2), COMM_CARE, and facility and partner-level data.
• Support SI-related processes required for the development of the annual PEPFAR Country Operational Plan (COP) and quarterly PEPFAR interagency data review calls; oversee the fiscal year and planning year target setting exercises in the assigned programmatic areas.
• Provide support for the design and implementation of performance and outcome evaluations for USAID funded HIV projects.
• Serve as one of the systems and site administrators for Data for Accountability, Transparency and Impact Monitoring (DATIM) as well as other systems.
• Ensure that SI and monitoring, evaluation and learning components of all Health Office program activities are implemented in compliance with relevant USAID, USG, PEPFAR and PMI guidelines, policies, regulations and procedures.
• Take part in the review and approval of annual work plans and periodic reports of USAID partners.

Program Performance Management functions (40%)

• Serve as Contracting or Agreement Officer’s Representative (COR/AOR) for awards that focus on performance or SI-related activities and provide technical assistance to the assigned activity.
• Support AOR/CORs to ensure suitable monitoring and reporting systems are in place; provide technical input in the development of Performance Monitoring Plans; provide significant guidance to the design and implementation of the SI and monitoring, evaluation and learning components of health projects and activities.
• Ensure that implementing partners follow all relevant USAID regulations and procedures, including Data Quality Assurance standards and End-Use regulations.
• Provide support on monitoring and evaluation of the overall Health Office in partnership with relevant CORs/AORs and Activity Managers.
• Track performance data from partners implementing USAID activities on a routine basis and communicate M&E and performance-related challenges to the health teams and other USG senior staff as needed.
• Analyze and visualize data in accessible ways for a range of audiences, from management to technical teams and public audiences.
• Work with SI and program staff to develop a comprehensive program monitoring system for USAID, including how data should flow, be regularly analyzed and shared either internally or to partners for utilization.
• Assist in the drafting or reviewing of research and program evaluation proposals and protocols for appropriateness of research topic, study design and statistical analysis plan.
• Maintain a regular schedule of project site visits, ensuring that identified actions requiring follow-up are implemented.
• Periodically monitor activities to track progress against their Performance Monitoring Plans and work plans, assess progress and potential barriers to achievement of expected results, and recommend any relevant modification to improve program performance and management in coordination with the AOR/COR.
• Analyze portfolio/program-level results across a range of dimensions and variables for the USAID Health Office and other relevant stakeholders.

Representation (15%)

• Represent USAID, and the USG as appropriate, in relevant host government, USG interagency, and other health development partner working groups and in technical discussions on issues related to strategic information programming.
• Attend regional and international meetings, as appropriate, such as conferences on SI, epidemiology and other relevant topics.
• Actively engage in local SI capacity building of host country governments and other local organizations to strengthen the collection, analysis and use of data for program planning and direction.
• Participate with PEPFAR Country Teams in the various National HIV/AIDS SI Technical Working Groups and coordinate the SI components of the various technical working groups involving national governments and other stakeholders.
• Work closely with Regional Health Bureaus, Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), Federal HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office (FHAPCO), zonal and woreda health offices to ensure partners’ program objectives correspond with agreed-upon Government of Ethiopia (GOE). objectives and are being achieved.

1. Supervisory Relationship

Strategic Information Advisor will be supervised by the Health Office Director or his/her designee, within the USAID Health Operation team. The SI Advisor should require minimal supervision in carrying out routine responsibilities and expect only general guidance for most tasks. The scope and flexibility of the duties will demand a great deal of initiative to identify and test innovative approaches and solutions in complex situations and requires the ability to work independently. 

1. Supervisory Controls
2. PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The work requested does not involve undue physical demands.

Job Requirement

EDUCATION: Minimum of Master’s degree in public health, Statistics, Epidemiology, Demography/Population Studies, Monitoring and Evaluation or another related subject is required.

PRIOR EXPERIENCE: Minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in health-related activities focusing on monitoring and evaluation is required.

LANGUAGE: Level IV (Fluent) spoken and written English and Amharic are required and spoken mastery of one other Ethiopian language is desirable.

MARKET VALUE: FSN – 11, $22,927 to $41,263. In accordance with AIDAR Appendix J and the Local Compensation Plan of USAID/Ethiopia. Final compensation will be negotiated within the listed market value.

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: Five (5) years. The services provided under this contract are expected to be a continuing nature that will be executed by USAID through series of sequential contracts, subject to the availability of funds. Estimated to start on 03/02/2021.

The base period will be five years. Estimated to start on 03/02/2021.

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: US Embassy, Entoto Road, Addis Ababa with possible travel as stated in the Statement of Duties.

ELIGIBLE OFFERORS: All CCN interested applicants. Cooperating Country National Personal Service Contractor (CCNPSC). Cooperating country national means an individual who is a cooperating country citizen, or a non-cooperating country citizen lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the cooperating country.

SECURITY LEVEL REQUIRED: Regional Security Office certification.

BENEFITS AND ALLOWANCES

As a matter of policy, and as appropriate, a PSC is normally authorized the following benefits and allowances:

1. BENEFITS:

Group life insurance, medical coverage, annual leave and sick leave.

1. ALLOWANCES (as applicable):

Meal allowance and miscellaneous benefit allowance.

1. TAXES

Per the Mission’s policy.

How to Apply

CLOSING DATE AND TIME FOR RECEIPT OF OFFERS: November 02, 2020 before and/or on 5:00PM Ethiopian local time (close of business).

POINT OF CONTACT: Annmarie McGillicuddy, Supervisory EXO and Fekadu Tamirate, HR Specialist, e-mail at addisusaidjobs@usaid.gov 

1. 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. The FAR provisions referenced above are available at https://www.acquisition.gov/browse/index/far.

Therefore, the TEC may conduct interviews with all offerors in the competitive range and provide the final rating and ranking of the offerors based on the interview and the written test which will be administered to assess technical knowledge and writing skills. The CO will consider findings from the reference checks as part of the responsibility determination.

EDUCATION (10 points): Minimum of Master’s degree in public health, Statistics, Epidemiology, Demography/Population Studies, Monitoring and Evaluation or another related subject is required. Additional evaluation points will be given to offerors who exceed the minimum requirement.

EXPERIENCE (30 points): Minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in health-related activities focusing on monitoring and evaluation is required.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES (60 points – Interview 40 points and Written Exercise 20 points):  Required: 1) Thorough knowledge of Health program design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation is required; 2) An in-depth understanding of and familiarity with HIV prevention, care and treatment services, the Ethiopian government’s national health related policies and the Ethiopian health care system.

The incumbent should have the ability to establish and maintain contacts with a wide-range of government officials, implementing partners, and site-level providers engaged in Health treatment and care services. The incumbent should also be able to obtain and rapidly analyze information, evaluate data, and prepare reports and related documents. S/he must be able to communicate effectively in writing and verbally in English and Amharic (verbal skills in another major Ethiopian language is desirable); and participate in discussions and meetings effectively. The selected candidate must be capable of producing high-quality work, often under time pressure and in complex situations. Excellent computer skills with proficiency in word processing and Excel. knowledge on at least one data analysis and visualization software such as SPSS/SAS or Tableau is also required.

SUBMITTING AN OFFER

1. Eligible Offerors are required to complete and submit the offer form and submit the offer form DS-174 Application for U.S. Federal employment along with a cover letter and resume written in English. The DS-174 Application form can be found in the U.S. embassy website https://et.usembassy.gov/embassy/jobs/; or https://www.usaid.gov/ethiopia/work-with-us/careers/ds-form-174-ccn-application.
2. Offers must be received by the closing date and time specified 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.
4. Application must be submitted ONLY via [email protected] and the email subject must say– solicitation 72066320R10024, USAID Project Management Specialist (Strategic Information). This solicitation can also be access from USAID Ethiopia website. Be sure to include your name and the solicitation number at the top of each page.
5. Please submit the application only once; and
6. Late and incomplete applications will not be considered; the application must be submitted before or on the date of filing at 5 p.m. (Close of Business).

• LIST OF REQUIRED FORMS PRIOR TO AWARD

Once the Contracting Officer 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 the following forms.

1. Medical History and Examination Form (Department of State Forms)
2. Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions (SF-85)
3. Fingerprint Card (FD-258)

USAID REGULATIONS, POLICIES AND CONTRACT CLAUSES PERTAINING TO PSCs

USAID regulations and policies governing CCN awards are available at these sources:

• 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
• Contract Cover Page form AID 309-1 available at https://www.usaid.gov/forms. Pricing by line item is to be determined upon contract award as described below:

1. Acquisition & Assistance Policy Directives/Contract Information Bulletins (AAPDs/CIBs) for Personal Services Contracts with Individuals available at http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapds-cibs
2. 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

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.

The EEO complaint procedure is 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.