| R -- U.S. Personal Services Contractor (USPSC) Regional Education Advisor |
| Program Summary |
 |
| Title: |
R -- U.S. Personal Services Contractor (USPSC) Regional Education Advisor |
| GovCB Opps ID : |
ADP12055763060000901 |
| Document Type: |
Presolicitation Notice |
| FSC Code: |
R - Professional, Administrative and Management Support Services
|
| Solicitation No.: |
486-08-012 |
| Source: |
http://www1.fbo.gov/spg/AID/OM/THA/486%2D08%2D012/SynopsisP.html |
Place of
Performance: |
Address: 93/1 GPF Witthayu Towers A, 5th Floor Wireless Road, Bangkok, Thailand Postal Code: 10330 Country: THAILAND
|
Posted Date:
|
Mar 14, 2008 |
| Last Update: |
Apr 18, 2008 |
| Due Date: |
Apr 17, 2008 |
|
| Description |
|
General Information
| Document Type: |
Presolicitation Notice |
| Solicitation Number: |
486-08-012 |
| Posted Date: |
Mar 14, 2008 |
| Original Response Date: |
Apr 17, 2008 |
| Current Response Date: |
Apr 17, 2008 |
| Original Archive Date: |
|
| Current Archive Date: |
|
| Classification Code: |
R -- Professional, administrative, and management support services |
| Naics Code: |
541990 -- All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services |
Contracting Office Address
Agency for International Development, Overseas Missions, Thailand USAID-Bangkok, American Embassy/Bangkok USAID Box 47, APO, AP, 96546, UNITED STATES
Description
The incumbent will play a key role in identifying the regions needs and defining the scope of the work/role that needs to be carried out by the incumbent and RDMA to meet the needs, as well as taking a lead in establishing the parameters and expectations of the job in reference to working with other missions and organizations in the region.
Over the next 20 years no other region is likely to match the influence of Asia on global prosperity and well being. A broad consensus on the desirability of market driven economic growth to eradicate poverty has enabled unprecedented growth rates and stimulated a deepening of regional collaboration. However, growth itself is creating new sources of instability that threaten progress and US interests. These threats include global climate change, conflict over resources, inequitable growth, disease, and weak states. The RDMA strategy proposes to help manage these threats, while costs are still minimal, through the use of bilateral and regional programs in ways that strengthen regional cooperation and interdependence.
RDMA carries out six distinct functions as follows:
1. managing regional programs (in FY 07 approximately 33% of staff time);
2. managing bilateral programs in six (Burma, China, Laos, Papua New Guinea, Thailand and Vietnam) non or limited presence countries (NPC/LPC) in the region, including the provision of support services (in FY 07 approximately 57% of staff time);
3. providing varying levels of procurement, financial, administrative, and legal support services to four presence countries (in FY 07 approximately 6% of staff time);
4. providing technical services to other USAID Missions and programs (in FY 07 approximately 1% of staff time for facilitating Global Development Alliances and HIV/AIDS activities in the region);
5. hosting personnel of two other operating units: USAID/Afghanistan?s Office of Acquisition and Assistance/East and OFDA?s Asia office (in FY 07 approximately 3% of staff time); and
6. providing the agency the flexibility and surge capacity to respond to fast breaking events and to manage budgetary earmarks and directives.
The Regional Education Advisor for Asia will principally provide technical expertise and services in Basic and Higher Education required to facilitate a growing emphasis on human resource development, education for all, integrating education as a tool to address drivers of conflict and preparing Asian workforces and citizenry to succeed in a rapidly globalizing and changing 21st Century.
The Regional Education Advisor for Asia (including Central Asia) is responsible for providing technical leadership and expertise to USAID programs and key partners across Asia. On occasion depending on Agency priorities and Mission demand the advisor will be called upon to support USAID education indicatives in the Near East as well. The RDMA?s regional Education Advisor for Asia will liaise closely with ANE?s Office of Technical Services (ANE/TS) and with EGAT?s Education Offices.
The advisor?s principal responsibilities include: designing and conducting diagnostics of the constraints and challenges to improving the performance of the education sector in Asia with special emphasis in areas that constitute hotbeds of human conflict and destruction; identifying opportunities and proven approaches for a USAID response that is based on USAID?s comparative advantage in the sector; assisting USAID Missions to design, evaluate and monitor programs to address national priorities; fostering regional integration and approaches, and promoting policy harmonization for improving access to quality education. To successfully carry out his/her responsibilities, the Regional Education Advisor is expected to travel throughout Asia (including Central Asia and occasionally the near East) and the U.S. as required.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: The Regional Education Advisor for Asia will report to an RDMA Office Chief or equivalent (final place within the organization to be finalized) and receive overall direction from Mission Management. The contractor will provide leadership for informing USAID policy, program and activity design and performance monitoring in the education sector in Asia. To this end s/he will:
1. Lead education sector diagnostics and analyses for informing program strategy and activity development and funding decisions for support to the education sector. To this end, draft and finalize scopes of work, terms of reference and selection criteria for the Technical Assistance (TA) required to conduct the diagnostics.
2. Identify points of intersection for introducing education support as a cross-cutting theme to existing regional programs in order to maximize USAID RDMA program and activity complementarities and return to investment.
3. Develop a sub-regional road map for South-East Asia to guide USAID efforts to: (a) achieve greater regional integration in issues and policies dealing principally with education, and secondarily with those of a cross-cutting nature essential to sustainable growth; (b) spur the improvement of workforce skills, enhance the regional pool of skilled workers, and improve labor competitiveness required for the region to successfully participate in an expanding and diversifying regional and global economy; (c) attract greater foreign and domestic investment flows in support of basic and higher education initiatives; and (d) secure a long-term commitment from public and private partners towards meeting the financial needs for improving regional performance of the education sector. This roadmap will serve as a model for discussion and possible replication within and among ASEAN members and with other Asian sub-regions. It is foreseen that, subject to demand, the Advisor would lead and similar planning initiatives in the other sub-regions as appropriate.
4. Provide expert guidance to USAID field Missions principally in Asia for carrying out country level education sector assessments, and promote linkages where appropriate, with other sectors for encouraging sustainable development.
5. Provide written technical input and analyses for the preparation of required USAID documents including relevant USAID sections of annual Operational Plans, Mission Strategic Plans, Country Assistance Strategies, country core team reviews of proposed budgets, indicator reporting.
6. Prepare scopes of work for procuring and conducting evaluations, assessments and strategic information systems aimed at assessing progress and lessons leaned and the effectiveness of USAID-supported efforts by grantees and contractors.
7. Represent USAID RDMA at: (a) USG interagency regional meetings and U.S. Country Team meetings as required to provide briefings and articulate strategic recommendations on future programming needs for education sector support; and (b) regional organizations such as ASEAN, APEC, and multilateral institutions including UNESCO, the World Bank, the Asian development Bank and similar organizations.
8. Provide input to the preparation of briefing materials and talking points on the education sector for use by senior USAID leadership and other USG entities; and draft responses and memoranda as appropriate, to questions posed by Congress or USAID Washington Offices on budgeting, strategic, and programming issues including performance overviews.
9. Collaborate with the RDMA development outreach communications specialist (DOCS) and LPA to ensure timely provision of media-friendly (newsprint, radio, web-based) information on USAID-supported education initiatives in Asia.
10. Identify and promote opportunities for forging Global development Alliances in the education sector in support of the Administrator?s Initiative to leverage significant public and private resources to complement and support USAID efforts in catalyzing the dissemination of proven techniques and approaches as appropriate within the region, and promoting joint programming with regional financial institutions and donor agencies.
11. Serve as an RDMA Activity or Program Manager and in this role manage contracts and/or assistance awards as required (i.e. serve as a Cognizant Technical Officer) for effective and optimal use of USAID resources.
12. Perform other duties and tasks as may be assigned.
To successfully carry out the above duties and responsibilities, it is estimated that 70% - 80% of the incumbent's time will be devoted to providing technical advice and surge support to other USAID Missions and programs, and 20% - 30% to management of regional programs, and monitoring and evaluation efforts.
Point of Contact
Praveena Virasingh, Acquisition Specialist, Phone 662-263-7454, Fax 662-263-7498, Email pvirasingh@usaid.gov - Maria Rosario Arenas, Senior Acquisition Specialist , Phone 66-2-263-7400, Fax 66-2-263-7498, Email marenas@usaid.gov
Place of Performance
| Address: |
93/1 GPF Witthayu Towers A, 5th Floor
Wireless Road,
Bangkok,
Thailand |
| Postal Code: |
10330 |
| Country: |
THAILAND |
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