Procurement & In-Kind Grants Specialist at USAID Agriculture Growing Rural Opportunities in Ukraine

Background:

USAID Agriculture Growing Rural Opportunities in Ukraine (AGRO) Activity is a seven-year cooperative agreement between the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Chemonics International, Inc. USAID AGRO Activity began on November 15, 2019.

The AGRO Activity aims to accelerate the economic development of rural Ukrainian communities with the greatest need through a better governed agricultural sector that encourages more productive, modern, and profitable micro, small, and medium agricultural enterprises (MSMEs) that are successfully integrated into competitive markets both in Ukraine and internationally.

The Activity objectives are aligned with the three elements of the market systems conceptual framework: the core value chain, supporting functions, and rules and regulations.

To effectively address the food crisis that emerges in Ukraine and internationally caused by Russia’s unprovoked and brutal full-scale war against Ukraine, AGRO works for the restoration of the agricultural sector, in particular its modernization, efficiency improvement, and diversification, which contributes to the long-term economic recovery of Ukraine and the improvement of global food security.

Chemonics-implemented AGRO is one of the executors of the USAID Agriculture Resilience Initiative (AGRI-Ukraine), aimed to strengthening Ukraine’s agricultural resilience and ensuring food security.

AGRO operates utilizing the market system development conceptual approach.

In 2023, the estimated cost of the Activity was extended to $205 million, and its implementation period was extended through November 13, 2026. AGRO employs nearly 84 long-term CCN employees.

Position Description:

To contribute to achieving AGRO’s overall goals, the  Procurement & In-Kind Grants is to provide a wide range of professional support to the AGRO Activity activities through acting as the focal point for a wide range of purchases of goods and services.

Principal Duties and Obligations (Essential Functions):

As Procurement & In-Kind Grants Specialist, the Employee is responsible for the following principle duties and obligations:

• Assist SIF Team and technical staff with drafting procurement contracts and other related documents;
• Prepare and announce RFQs/RFPs, receiving proposals, and screening proposals and budgets for allowability and reasonability;
• Form selection committees and serve as nonvoting member to facilitate evaluation of proposals;
• Draft selection memos and sole-source justification and negotiation memos;
• Ensure that solicitation procedures as well as executed contracts are fully compliant with USAID regulations and Chemonics’ policies and procedures;
• Obtains proper signatures on contracts per field office signing authorities;
• Coordinate overall logistics for procurements & In-Kind Grants, in coordination with SIF managers and AGRO’s operations team.
• Ensure that suppliers and contractors are fully compliant with contract terms and conditions in terms of reports and/or invoices, as well as with USAID regulations and Chemonics’ policies and procedures;
• Check deliveries and invoices against purchase order for type, quantity, and condition;Prepare purchase requests and orders, supplier agreements, and subcontracts for procurements and ensure compliance with USAID regulations and Chemonics’ policies and procedures;
• Drafting memos regarding service providers’ and vendors’ performance
• Participate in regular activity Collaboration, Learning and Adapting (CLA) discussions;
• Participate as directed in collection and analysis of Monitoring and Evaluation (MEL) data;
• Maintain and routinely update AGRO Activity’s agreements database;
• Use Microsoft Teams as needed to carry out tasks and collaborate with other activity staff;Prepare sections of reports, plans, success stories and similar documents as requested;
• Assist with record management by filing, scanning, and maintaining documents;
• Enter and update information on purchase orders and In-Kind grants into procurement database;Comply with Chemonics’ standards of business conduct;
• In collaboration with the AGRO SIF Director, SIF Team Lead and Finance and Administration Director, review how the subrecipients/contractors manage procurement, source, origin, inventory, care, maintenance, and disposition of subaward/contract purchased equipment, and assist in improving their processes as necessary;
• Liaise with other AGRO staff and supervise subrecipients so they are provided with suitable advice and assistance on management, including finance and administration, as well as on all relevant technical components;
• Perform other appropriate tasks as requested.

Terms of work, SOW Timing and Reporting Relations:

One-year fixed term employment agreement with possible extension each work year up to the end of the Project implementation (November 13, 2026), subject to availability of respective tasks in the successive Annual Work Plans of the Project.

The Procurement & In-Kind Grants Specialist works in a SIF Team under a direct supervision of, and reports to the SIF Director and/or his/her designee, or other person(s) as designated by the Chief of Party.

Work place location: Kyiv Office (Kyiv, Ukrane, remotely if required).

Periodic travel to other parts of Ukraine is possible.

Required Skills and Qualifications:

To perform this job successfully, the Employee must be able to perform each essential duty, obligation and responsibility satisfactorily. The qualifications listed below are representative of the required knowledge, skills and/or abilities needed to perform the principal duties.

• Higher education in a relevant field at least to the bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience. Master’s preferred;
• Minimum five years of experience in design, administration, and management of USAID grants and/or subcontracts required; experience managing subawards and contracts under cooperative agreements is a plus;
• Knowledge of the USAID grant and/or subcontract lifecycles, applicable rules and regulations required; knowledge of Chemonics policies and procedures related to grants and subcontract management; graduation from Chemonics Grants Practicum is a plus;
• Ability to work quickly and creatively without sacrificing compliance or quality to operationalize SIF activities;
• Demonstrated excellent ability to effectively interact with local professionals, international donor organizations, civil society and private sector, host country government counterparts, and other implementing partners;
• Native speaker of Ukrainian; demonstrated strong writing and oral presentation skills in English;
• Experienced user of MS Office 365 applications;
• Demonstrated success working in a multinational, multilingual team under pressure and tight deadlines.

Application Instructions

Send electronic submissions by December 10, 2024. Please submit your CV and cover letter with Procurement & In-Kind Grants Specialist and your name in the subject line of your e-mail. No telephone inquiries, please. Only finalists will be contacted.

Chemonics is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in its selection and employment practices on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, or other non-merit factors.

2024-11-27T18:09:15.000 2024-12-10T23:59:59.000 Full time / Повна зайнятість TELECOMMUTE Україна Кімонікс Інтернешнл Інк. Програма USAID з аграрного і сільського розвитку (АГРО)