The OTI Country Representative is a full-time Personal Services Contract (PSC) position at the GS-14 equivalent level and located in Niger. Offers for this position are due no later than June 7, 2021 at 1:00pm Eastern Time. For full information about this position, as well as instructions on how to apply, please read the entire solicitation at www.OTIjobs.net.
INTRODUCTION:
The OTI Country Representative is a member of the Conflict Prevention and Stabilization (CPS) Bureau and within OTI reports to the OTI Regional Team Lead.
Niger’s location and robust security relationship with the United States makes the country a key ally in disrupting terrorist threats in the Sahel. In the last two years, the region experienced a sharp increase in violent extremism (VE) activity, with significantly destabilizing effects in neighboring Mali, Burkina Faso, and northeast Nigeria. For six years, USAID/OTI Niger worked with communities in the Lake Chad Basin and Liptako Gourma regions to counter VE threats. Recognizing that this threat adds to an already complex set of development challenges for Niger, USAID/OTI is shifting to support the Government of Niger's stabilization and decentralization efforts, and to work with the USAID/Niger Mission to strengthen conflict responsive programming.
USAID/OTI’s Niger program began in 2014 to increase community engagement with government leaders and identify the key drivers of youth isolation and recruitment by VEOs. USAID/OTI worked in some of the most marginalized and remote areas of Niger, partnering with local leaders to increase their ability to address violent extremist threats, focusing on providing communities with the knowledge, skills and resources to resist VEOs, connecting Nigerien governing authorities with their constituents to address historical grievances and understand long-held feelings of exclusion among select ethnic groups, and reducing the reach of VEOs into areas of influence, especially with youth and at-risk populations by promoting livelihoods training and cash-for-work activities.
USAID/OTI’s current iteration of the program seeks to provide assistance to civilian ministries of the Government of Niger and other national institutions and regional stakeholders to support stabilization and peacebuilding efforts. It also looks to strengthen the connection between national, regional, and local level governance in key areas. Finally, the program aims to support the broader USAID/Niger Mission efforts to adapt programming across sectors and to bolster USAID/Niger stabilization and peacebuilding objectives.
OTI intends to address these critical issues through a flexible, small-grants mechanism that tailors approaches to the varied needs of communities in Niger. The program may utilize both “soft” (e.g. cultural and recreational activities, media and strategic communications) and “hard” (e.g. small-scale infrastructure) activities to strengthen linkages between communities, local actors, and the Nigerien government and to increase community cohesion. The program may also support national level activities, or other emerging transition needs.
Due to the sensitive, fragile, and challenging environments in which OTI works, the office’s approach to programming is one that seeks to find creative, entrepreneurial, and unique ways to approach problem sets. These dynamic contexts require that programs adapt to rapidly evolving situations and that teams continually explore assumptions and test innovative tools and methods to achieve program objectives. Given OTI’s short-term political mission, its unpredictable working environments and the diffuse problems it seeks to address, OTI has developed ways to get smart quickly and act fast. OTI has honed a program approach that uses iterative strategic planning, where staff constantly review the current political situation, create relationships with communities and key actors, and undertake activities that will test what works and what doesn’t in order to inform future activities and priorities. Core qualities of a successful OTI program are characterized by a team that is able to be: fast, flexible, iterative, adaptive, and entrepreneurial.
The Country Representative’s principal responsibility will be development, oversight, and management of USAID/OTI's country program. The incumbent will be called upon to support the OTI Deputy Country Representative with managing an implementing partner and may be called upon to represent OTI’s mission and programs to U.S. Embassy, Host government officials, in-country visitors, and senior officials from other international organizations, bilateral donors, and local government officials.
Aligned with USG policy priorities, USAID/OTI’s rapid and targeted programming addresses emerging issues and empowers local implementing partners to leverage timely and locally driven activities that enhance engagement between government and citizens and promote norms of tolerance, coexistence, and dialogue.
The USAID/OTI program coordinates with, and complements, other USAID Missions and Department of State assistance efforts, as well as those of other donors.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
Note: Duties and responsibilities are listed in order of importance for this position
Manage a high-profile program in a dynamic environment and provide programmatic, operational, and strategic guidance to OTI’s implementing partners (contractors and/or grantees) ensuring that activities contribute to OTI’s program objectives and are within the implementing partner’s scope;
Conceptualize and design program strategies and objectives in close coordination with OTI staff in Washington and in the Field, U.S. Embassy, Host Country government, and local civil society officials based on political analysis and U.S. Government policy;
Articulate program strategy, as well as communicate and coordinate OTI’s in-country activities between OTI and its implementing partners, USAID, and other donor organizations; prepare and disseminate programmatic, financial and periodic reports to the USAID Mission, OTI/Washington and other organizations as appropriate;
Design and review staffing plans to meet overall program objectives as well as recruit, train, supervise, and evaluate the performance of in-country OTI staff;
Monitor local and regional political developments and regularly brief OTI and implementing partner on potential programmatic impact;
Analyze and report on current political developments, security concerns, and other pertinent information required to achieve OTI’s program objectives;
Provide recommendations to the Washington-based Contracting Officer Representative (COR) and/or the Regional Team Leader on implementing partner performance, the appropriateness of the implementing partner’s scope to OTI’s country objectives, implementing partner’s budgets, and modifications thereto;
Provide USAID concurrence on all implementing partner activities, including final approval of grantees for grants under contract, in accordance with the USAID’s Automated Directives System (ADS);
Ensure the use of OTI systems and procedures to maintain effective and efficient management of funds, programming, as well as monitoring and evaluation;
Ensure that OTI’s programs and activities are monitored and evaluated and that lessons learned are applied to ongoing and future activities;
Reviews and concurs on OTI program budgets for field operations;
Serve as OTI’s primary liaison with USAID Mission personnel, U.S. Embassy staff, Host-Country Government Officials, UN Organizations, Indigenous and International Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and other pertinent organizations. Develop and maintain collaborative relationships to ensure close coordination at the field level, identify the widest range of potential local partners and opportunities, and achieve maximum synergy with other programs;
Prepare operational plans in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy, including logistics and property use guidelines, closeout and hand-over, security procedures, and contingency and evacuation plans; and,
Ensure that all OTI and implementing partner, field staff adhere to in-country security guidelines set by the U.S. Embassy Regional Security Officer and other organizations such as the United Nations or host country government.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
At a minimum, the offeror must have:
At the GS-14 Country Representative level:
- ) A Master’s Degree with seven (7) years of work experience;
OR
A Bachelor’s Degree with nine (9) years of work experience;
AND
2.) Minimum of six (6) years of project management experience with a USG foreign affairs agency, international assistance organization, or non-governmental organization, in community development, stabilization programming, economic development, mediation/arbitration, conflict resolution, democracy and governance, international law, human rights activities, and/or political analysis;
3.) Two (2) years of overseas field experience working in developing countries;
4.) Three (3) years of supervisory experience (including mentoring, guiding, and/or training staff);
5.) Working proficiency in French is strongly preferred.
Please direct questions about this position or the offer process to the OTI Recruitment Team at otijobs@usaid.gov.
How to apply:
For full information about this position, as well as instructions on how to apply, please visit www.OTIjobs.net.
