Southern Africa Trade and Investment Hub – Scope of Work – Contracts, Procurement and Grant Officer

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Background: 

The USAID Southern Africa Trade and Investment Hub (USAID TradeHub) engages with partners across the region  to increase sustainable economic growth, global export competitiveness, and trade in targeted Southern African  countries. It supports these objectives by increasing exports from Southern African countries to South Africa and the  United States (under the African Growth and Opportunity Act [AGOA]), boosting capital and technology flows from  South Africa to other southern African countries, and providing targeted trade facilitation support to Zambia. 

Objectives and duties: 

The Contract, Procurement and Grants Officer (CPGO) will provide support to the Director of Operations of the Hub Pretoria office including overall procurement, contracts and grants. The main responsibility for this position is to  conduct procurement of goods and services in liaison with the Procurement & Administration Officer. The position  requires substantial work experience in the field of procurement, grants, and contracting across a variety of industry  sectors, contract management, dispute resolution, managing interpersonal relationships and communication, and  investigating/following up on vendor issues. He/she will assist in the development and release solicitations and conduct price/cost/reasonability analyses. S/he will manage fast-paced procurement processes, supporting international development activities in the SADC region as well as globally. The position will require close coordination with partners, recipients and /or beneficiaries to accomplish program objectives. 

• Assist with preparation of Requests for Proposals (RFP) /Request for Quotations (RFQ) and manage the RFP/RFQ process, contract preparation and execution of contracts. 

• Submit bids to the Director of Operations to review for completeness, accuracy and responsiveness. 

• Prepare Purchase Orders/Subcontracts and Modifications and ensure proper documentation is collected throughout the procurement process. 

• Prepare complete backup documentation for procurement purchases and submit to Project’s Finance Team 

• Confer with vendors and suppliers (local, regional and international sources) to obtain product or service  information such as price, availability and delivery schedule; also, obtain estimated value of goods and services  through multiple quotations from reliable and competitive suppliers. Conduct price/cost/reasonability analyses. 

• Collaborate with department managers to resolve procurement compliance issues. 

• Respond to alleged violations of rules, regulations, policies or procedures. 

• Contribute to maintaining systems to enable the flow of information and data between teams to track performance and contribute to the completion of reports, data and analysis. 

• Draft, negotiate and /or support effective negotiation of agreements, contracts, sub-contracts, sub-agreements and modifications/ amendments thereto. 

• Assist in monitoring, managing and administration of contracts, grants and sub-recipients across lifecycle of contract or grant (pre-contract through to close-out).

• Assist with drafting of Source Selection Memos/Request to Subcontract Memos, ensure integrity, compliance,  fairness, accuracy, and openness in procurement processes for review and approval by the Director of  Operations. 

• Assist in enforcing use of DAI’s operations & procurement system (TAMIS). 

• Maintain electronic procurement records & files in various DAI’s system platforms. 

• Gather current pricing information independently. 

• Monitor, track and expedite all project procurement activities and delivery status of goods/services. 

• Administrative duties in support of contract and grant management, including daily sorting of paperwork, filing, photocopying documents as necessary, and scanning documents for storage. 

• Assist the Director of Operations in reviewing applications and proposals, by locating or requesting necessary supporting documentation from potential grantees. 

• Maintain financial capability records for each grantee to meet USAID requirements. 

• Provide support with regards to regular monitoring and tracking of grant and subcontract budgets, and  compiling financial reports. 

• Assist in processing grantee and subcontractor vouchers for payment by assuring necessary documentation is  included. 

• Support the tasks of the Procurement and Logistics Officer. 

Reporting: 

• Prepare monthly and quarterly reports to Director of Operations on procurement status to include external factors that will affect procurement in all USAID TradeHub countries of operation. 

Qualifications: 

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Business Administration or related field. 

• 5-10 years of relevant experience and progressive responsibility in procurement at the mid-level of an organization. 

• Experience leading and managing the procurement & acquisition aspects of USAID funded projects, including a demonstrated understanding of applicable procurement-related USG & Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) regulations. Experience with procurement for USAID-funded programs is required. 

• Demonstrated experience in vendor/subcontractor negotiations. 

• Detail-oriented. 

• Ability to prioritize multiple requests. 

• Customer-service oriented.

• Proficiency in Microsoft excel, including the use of formulas. 

• Proficiency using Microsoft office suite, and other relevant software. 

• Ability to manage and prioritize multiple concurrent bids. 

• Fluency in English is required. 

Supervisory responsibilities: 

• The Contract, Procurement and Grants Officer will not have supervisory responsibilities. 

Base of operations:  

• Pretoria, South Africa 

Reporting: 

The Contracts, Procurement, and Grants Officer will report to the Director of Operations. 

Closing date: 13 August 2021. Send applications (CV and Cover letter) to SATIH [email protected]

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.