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Disaster Risk Reduction
USAID/Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) | |
United States, Washington | |
May 15, 2023 | |
SOLICITATION NUMBER: 720BHA23R00034 ISSUANCE DATE: May 15, 2023 CLOSING DATE AND TIME: February 14, 2024, 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) 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.
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.
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 offer.
Any questions must be directed in writing to the Point of Contact specified in Attachment 1.
Sincerely, Ousay Wahaj Supervisory Contracting Officer Office of Acquisition & Assistance M/OAA/BHA-CPS/PSC
June 13, 2023, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time October 16, 2023, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time February 14, 2024, 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time
Offerors not selected during a previous review period must reapply in order to be considered for positions available in subsequent review periods. A review period may be canceled at the Contracting Officer’s discretion.
Offerors who meet the minimum qualifications for a GS-13 will be considered for the GS-13 level positions. Offerors who meet the minimum qualifications for a GS-14 will be considered for the GS-14 level only.
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 if approved for remote work. 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.
Relocation expenses will not be reimbursed for U.S.-based positions.
STATEMENT OF LIMITATIONS ON PERIOD AND PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: The purpose of this contract is to establish an employee/employer relationship with the contractor to perform services on a temporary, on-call, basis as part of the SRG. BHA intends to contract for these services for a maximum of 250 days per calendar year. Activation days vary but will not exceed 250 days during each contract year.
The level of effort anticipated under this contract will be provided within the terms of this contract at times mutually agreed to by BHA and the contractor. Upon identification of a temporary need within the scope of work, BHA will contact the contractor and provide the following information:
The contractor will notify BHA within 24 hours of availability. At the time the contractor accepts the assignment, he/she is expected to commit for the duration of the assignment. While the contractor will be required to commit to a certain time period, it is understood that the exigencies of a disaster may require the assignment to be extended (not to exceed 250 days). The contractor shall notify BHA at the time of commitment if their existing schedule would preclude an extension. Notification of schedule conflicts shall not necessarily disqualify the contractor from the assignment but will simply assist BHA in recruiting a replacement. Subsequently, if the contractor agrees to an extension of the duration of a particular assignment, thereafter, the contractor will be required to give BHA 10 days’ notice for release from the assignment.
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 as provided by USAID.
GENERAL STATEMENT OF PURPOSE OF THE CONTRACT The Support Relief Group (SRG) Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Advisors will address acute health risks associated with disasters with a strong focus on identifying and managing risks from poor access to water, sanitation, and hygiene materials in humanitarian emergencies and resilience programming. This includes the provision of expert technical advice and assistance to disaster assistance response teams (DARTs), USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) staff, and partners, support to Office of Technical and Program Quality (TPQ) in providing thought leadership for the sector, and coordination with other USAID and United States Government (USG) colleagues.
STATEMENT OF DUTIES TO BE PERFORMED
The WASH Advisor serves as an expert on the WASH Team in the TPQ’s Public Health and Nutrition (PHN) Division. The WASH Advisor will perform the following duties:
At the GS-13 Equivalent Level:
The SRG WASH Advisor will:
At the GS-14 Equivalent Level
The SRG WASH Advisor will:
All GS Equivalent Levels:
SUPERVISORY RELATIONSHIP:
The USPSC will take direction from and report to the Response Resources Division Chief or his/her designee. When activated, the SRG WASH Advisor will be a part of the WASH Team, receiving day to day guidance and onsite management from the WASH Team Leader.
SUPERVISORY CONTROLS:
At the GS-13 Equivalent Level: The supervisor sets overall objectives. USPSC and supervisor together develop deadlines, projects and work to be done. The USPSC independently plans, designs, and carries out projects, studies, and programs. Completed work is reviewed only from an overall standpoint in terms of feasibility, compatibility with other work, or effectiveness in meeting requirements, or expected results. Technical problems are generally resolved without reference to supervisors.
At the GS-14 Equivalent Level: The supervisor provides administrative direction in terms of broadly defined missions or functions. USPSC independently plans, designs and carries out projects, studies, and programs. Results of the work are considered technically authoritative. There is no higher level official technically responsible for administering the program/project.
The work requested does not involve undue physical demands.
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.)
For the GS-13 Equivalent Level:
Bachelor’s degree with significant study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including environmental health, environmental engineering or a related environmental or engineering fields) and minimum of seven (7) years of relevant work experience in WASH programming, three (3) years of which must include direct implementation experience in managing emergency WASH programs in humanitarian contexts.
OR
Master’s degree with significant study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including environmental health, environmental engineering or a related environmental or engineering fields) and minimum of five (5) years of relevant work experience in WASH programming, three (3) years of which must include direct implementation experience in managing emergency WASH programs in humanitarian contexts.
For the GS-14 Equivalent Level:
Bachelor’s degree with significant study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including environmental health, environmental engineering or a related environmental or engineering fields) and minimum of nine (9) years of relevant work experience in WASH programming, three (3) years of which must include direct implementation experience in managing emergency WASH programs in humanitarian contexts.
OR
Master’s degree with significant study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including environmental health, environmental engineering or a related environmental or engineering fields) and minimum of seven (7) years of relevant work experience in WASH programming, three (3) years of which must include direct implementation experience in managing emergency WASH programs in humanitarian contexts.
OR
PhD with significant study in or pertinent to the specialized field (including environmental health, environmental engineering or a related environmental or engineering fields) plus five (5) years of relevant work experience working WASH programming, three (3) years of which must include direct implementation experience in managing emergency WASH programs in humanitarian contexts.
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.
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.
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 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 rating factors are as follows:
Matrix (GS-13 level) (40 points)
Professional Technical Experience (20 points)
Coordination and Collaboration (10 points)
Communication and Representation (10 points)
Matrix (GS-14 level) (40 points)
Professional Technical Experience (20 points)
Coordination and Collaboration (10 points)
Communication and Representation (10 points)
Interview Performance (50 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 selection.
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. |