SOLICITATION_-_US_or_TCN_PSC_Health_Systems_Advisor_(MALI).pdf

U.S. Agency for International Development ACI 2000, Rue 243, Porte 297

B.P. 34 Bamako, Mali

Tel: (223) 20-70-23-00

Fax: (223) 20-22-39-33 http://mali.usaid.gov

ATTACHMENT 1 72068818R00005

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

1. SOLICITATION NUMBER: 72068818R00005

2. ISSUANCE DATE: June 20, 2018

3. CLOSING DATE AND TIME: July 19, 2018 at 17:00 GMT

4. POSITION TITLE: Senior Health Systems Strengthening Advisor

5. MARKET VALUE: $89,370 - $116,181 equivalent to GS-14

Final compensation within the GS-14 grade range will be based on the candidate’s salary history, work experience and educational background. Salaries over and above the top of the pay range will not be entertained or negotiated.

6. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: Immediate upon receipt of security/medical

Clearances.

(12 months from date of appointment and with an option to extend for up to five years.

Exercising the options to extend will depend on continuing need of services, availability of funds, and satisfactory or better performance, pursuant to FAR 52.217-9)

7. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE: Bamako, Mali (with possible travel as stated in the Statement of Duties)

8. SECURITY LEVEL REQUIRED: Secret if a USPSC, otherwise Facility Access

9. MEDICAL CLEARANCE: Receipt of Medical clearance certifying aptitude to work is a prerequisite for employment

10. STATEMENT OF DUTIES:

10.1. BACKGROUND

Mali is a landlocked low-income country in West Africa with a population of 19.1 million, about

68 percent of which is rural. More than 90 percent of the population lives in the southern part of the country, including 1.3 million in the capital city of Bamako. Half of Mali’s population is under the age of 15, and two-thirds are younger than 25.

Despite recent progress, health service delivery in Mali remains uneven and insufficient. High rates of maternal mortality (368 deaths per 100,000 live births), infant mortality (58/1,000 live births) and under-five child mortality (95/1,000 live births) persist. The modern contraceptive prevalence rate in Mali is extremely low at 9.9 percent. Unmet need for contraception among women of reproductive age is high, at 31 percent of women overall and 70 percent of postpartum women.

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10.2. BASIC FUNCTIONS OF THE POSITION

The Health Systems Team Lead/Sr. Health Systems Advisor will serve as the lead technical health systems expert for USAID/Mali. S/he will provide strategic direction, technical guidance, and leadership on issues related to health systems strengthening (HSS). S/he will advise USAID/Mali on all aspects of governance and HSS to support sustainable programs in maternal, neonatal, and child health (MNCH), family planning/reproductive health (FP/RH), malaria, nutrition, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), and pandemic preparedness. The incumbent will represent

USAID with the highest levels of government and development partners, and will directly engage with senior Washington technical leadership.

In carrying out his/her responsibilities, the incumbent will need to coordinate with other USAID systems strengthening and governance activities (Mission-wide) and work on broader policy and systems issues. S/he will also be expected to participate in the senior USAID/W Health Systems

Strengthening working group and provide technical leadership to the Agency as a whole.

The Health Systems Team Lead/Sr. Health Systems Advisor will provide managerial oversight to the USAID/Mali Health Office’s Health Systems Team (comprising six staff), ensuring a holistic approach and rational calibration of interventions to support health programs. Through mentoring and coaching, s/he will help strengthen the capabilities of a diverse multicultural Health Systems

Team, including mentorship of the FSN Deputy Health Systems Team Leader to eventually take on a full leadership role. S/he will functionally oversee the inputs of other PSC and FSN staff who manage a combination of bilateral agreements and buy-ins to USAID/Global Health mechanisms.

These activities work to ensure effective supply chain management, strengthen local governance, enhance the policy and governance environment for priority health programs, strengthen health financing approaches, strengthen Malian human resource systems and approaches to build the health workforce, and build Mali’s laboratory system to detect emerging pandemic threats and prepare ministries to prevent and respond to them. Technical assistance for HSS programs occurs at the national, regional, and local levels and necessitates timely oversight of activities managed by other teams within the Health Office. The Health Systems Team Lead/Sr. Health Systems Advisor will manage some mechanisms, but primarily will have overall responsibility for ensuring that the

Health Systems Team members are properly coordinating interventions within the health sector and horizontally with other sector colleagues. Systems strengthening inputs will be planned in consultation with technical staff for health programs, analyzing process bottlenecks and barriers in the health system, and identifying solutions and opportunities for partnering with other sectors. All significant program corrective actions will be taken in consultation with the Health Office Director.

10.3. MAJOR DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

As the Senior Health Systems Strengthening Advisor, the incumbent will:

(a) Serve as the Mission’s principal advisor on health governance and systems strengthening.

S/he will keep abreast of international best practices and technical developments in HSS, and interpret and advise the Mission on technical and policy implications and implementation options.

(b) Manage the Health Systems Strengthening Team within the Health Office. This includes management and supervisory responsibilities for staff, as well as direct management of HSS activities.

(c) Represent USAID/Mali at high-level meetings with donors, the GoM, USG agencies, and international and local partners.

(d) Carry out a full range of consultative, advisory, strategic, and planning responsibilities.

More specifically, the incumbent will perform the following tasks:

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A. Provide HSS Strategic and Technical Leadership (35%)

The incumbent will provide the strategic vision and technical knowledge and the ability to catalyze linkages within USAID, the Government of Mali, and other development partners on systems strengthening issues as they pertain to health activities in Mali.

S/he will support a range of consultative, advisory, strategic planning and evaluation activities related to health systems issues in Mali and those emerging from USAID/Washington and global technical fora, and provide recommendations on options in shaping USAID health programs in this area. These issues will include, at a minimum, strategies for sustainably financing health coverage;

improving national and subnational level governance and financial management processes;

improving major costing models and analytical tools used for planning, budgeting, resource tracking, and financing; and formulation of national policy/strategy, including strategies for recruiting and retaining the health workforce.

S/he will work with USAID technical staff in Mali and Washington involved in components of systems strengthening to ensure that strategies, interventions, and implementation approaches form a coherent and holistic response to the needs of the health system in Mali, particularly to support priority health programs as identified in USAID/Mali’s Mission-wide Operational Plan and Malaria

Operational Plan, as well as those that support the Global Health Security Agenda. S/he will participate in preparation of procurement documents and technical evaluation committees for the

Health Systems Team. S/he will provide guidance to the Health Systems Team in developing budgets, plans, and advocacy strategies for systems strengthening interventions to achieve the goals of various USAID funding elements.

To better link with other activities, the incumbent must maintain a working knowledge of: (1)

USAID priority health issues and modeling/forecasting/costing of health trends and needs; and, (2) national and local systems strengthening (including human capacity development, health financing, health and civil service reform, and local government reform) and the critical factors that make these elements interrelated and highly vulnerable to unintended consequences. Based on a better understanding of technical objectives of the Health Office (FP/RH, MNCH, Nutrition, WASH, infectious diseases, malaria and pandemic security), Democracy, Human Rights and Government, Economic Growth, and Education programs, s/he will identify opportunities for integration of health and non-health programs to achieve management and programmatic efficiencies that result in leveraged improvements in health and non-health outcomes. S/he will apply analytic skills to integrate—wherever possible—evidence-based policy and systems strengthening interventions to enhance cost-effectiveness, economies of scale, and synergy in line with the Mission’s CDCS.

As a senior representative of USAID/Mali at meetings with Government of Mali entities (e. g.

Ministry of Health Technical Working Groups, and meetings with the Permanent Secretary in other ministries), s/he will provide input into strategic, technical and systems strengthening issues such as improved service delivery (human resources, accountability, costing, infrastructure, and quality), and health financing and reform. S/he will assist the Government of Mali with policy development, ensuring that programs funded through the private and public sectors are structured to address key health systems needs. S/he will provide input directly or through technical assistance on issues such as ways to promote accountability under decentralization, help local government authorities prioritize and design cost-effective health interventions, improve host country budgeting/financing/contracting, address the health workforce crisis, and identify alternate sources of funding for the health system. S/he will facilitate the use of information and costing to impact and shape policy, systems reforms, and influence resource allocation decisions.

Similarly, s/he will meet with senior leaders in the private sector, civil society, and donor and UN community for strategic and technical discussions to devise collaborative activities to strengthen health systems in Mali.

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B. Direct the USAID Health Systems Team (40%)

A critical aspect of the responsibilities will be to work with his/her direct reports on the Health

Systems Team to ensure a cohesive program that capitalizes on USAID’s comparative advantages, and to stay current with changes that will require technical course corrections in health systems strengthening approaches. There are administrative, staff development, and coordination responsibilities, as well as strategy development and strategic oversight and activity design. Most importantly, the Health Systems Team Leader will need to stay on top of the results of interventions to ensure there are no unintended consequences that would poorly serve the interests of USAID or Mali. S/he will oversee five staff members and participate in the senior management team of the Health Office. Her/his major duties and responsibilities will involve personnel management, fiscal administration and technical leadership. These responsibilities include:

1. Personnel Management

● Proactively lead and guide team members in strategic vision, program integration, prioritization, and results-based execution

● Identify opportunities for staff to expand technical expertise and/or present in technical fora

● Maintain updated work objectives and performance measures for individual team members

● Provide ongoing and consistent feedback and complete annual and semi-annual evaluations for all team members in a timely manner

● Provide coaching and mentoring to team members to achieve professional program objectives (e.g. work objectives, targets and intermediate results)

● Build the leadership skills of the FSN Deputy Health Systems Team Leader to eventually assume overall direction of the Health Systems Team

● Responsibly delegate appropriate tasks to members of the team and follow up to support timely completion

● Resolve and document any conflicts or issues, both performance and behavioral, and facilitate problem-solving within the team

● Identify and complete recruitment to fill key staffing and technical assistance needs within the team

● Ensure staff coverage at all times, to include quality verbal briefings and transition notes provided by each staff member going on leave or TDY

● Prepare orientation materials for and assign an office sponsor for all new staff on the

Team

● Provide opportunities for professional development for all members of the Team

● Maintain an updated list of AOR/CORs, Alternate AOR/CORs, and Activity Managers for all partners within the Team portfolio

● Schedule and facilitate information sharing among members of the Team to ensure joint understanding of programs, activities, and challenges and key Health Office updates

2. Fiscal Administration

● Maintain an updated table of financial information for all implementing partners managed by the Team

● Develop and effectively manage the Team’s budget, by maintaining updated budget information, ensuring timely obligations, reviewing accruals, and analyzing quarterly pipeline analyses

● Assume responsibility for follow-up with AOR/CORs on all partner pipelines and ensure that partner pipelines are periodically reviewed and assessed before funding decisions are made

● Ensure the timely, updated completion and management of the procurement plan for all actions within the Team http://mali.usaid.gov

3. Program & Technical Leadership

● Provide vision, strategic direction and leadership to Team members in the design and implementation of all activities in the Health Systems Team portfolio.

● Clearly define written goals and strategic programmatic results for the team; e.g.

targets/goals under the CDCS, Development Objectives, etc.

● Ensure all team deliverables and associated reporting are met in a timely manner

● Serve as the Health Office’s contact person for USAID/Washington and USAID/Mali for all programmatic activities within the Team’s portfolio.

● Support the Team’s use of existing and new program data and reports by facilitating quarterly reviews of partner targets/results to assess overall partner performance across the team.

● Monitor the overall strategic direction, relevance, coverage and quality of Health

Systems Team activities and programs.

● Oversee the management of all vital records (both electronic and written) according to agreed-upon office norms and Automated Directive System guidance.

● Ensure that Team activities are coordinated and complementary with those of other teams within USAID, the wider inter-agency USG team, and other donors and stakeholders in Mali, maximizing opportunities for integration and cost efficiencies.

● In collaboration with COR/AORs and Activity Managers, participate in site visits and meetings with key partners and stakeholders to review program implementation.

● Proactively participate in USAID strategic planning processes, including drafting and editing report documents.

● Stay updated (e.g. USAID policies and guidelines, technical journals, training and conferences) and recommend appropriate actions to implement new technical developments, policy initiatives, and research.

C. Provide Activity Management (25%)

To provide analytical and capacity-building support for health systems development, the Health

Systems Team engages institutions and individuals to support its strategic and technical work. In the capacity of AOR/COR or Activity Manager for specific systems strengthening activities, the incumbent will provide day-to-day oversight, as well as strategic and technical input and direction on annual work plans and monitoring and evaluation plans.

S/he will review financial and performance reports to ensure that partners are in compliance with bilateral government agreements and the performance expectations outlined in their work plans and contracts/agreements with USAID. S/he will ensure compliance with Development Objectives, USAID regulations and host government agreements as they relate to the specific mechanisms managed. S/he will maintain specific and in-depth knowledge of applicable USG laws and legislative directives, as well as regulations regarding allowable use of funds (e.g. family planning, HIV/AIDS, and Global Health Security Agenda).

S/he will assure that assigned activities are designed, implemented, evaluated, and documented in an appropriate manner. Further, s/he will assist the USAID/Mali Communications Specialist to maintain relevant sections of the Mission’s website and prepare USAID-specific communication pieces with regard to USAID/Mali health systems activities.

10.4. POSITION ELEMENTS

Supervisory Controls: Work will be performed under the direct supervision of the Health

Office Director. Performance will be evaluated annually based on accomplishments. Health systems activities often transcend the health sector, sharing constraints that are experienced in other sectors. Consequently, the incumbent will have exceedingly broad latitude to plan, http://mali.usaid.gov design and carry out work, which is technically authoritative, with other technical offices in the Mission.

Supervision Exercised: The incumbent will lead the six-person Health Systems Team and will directly supervise four FSNs and one USPSC, providing overall policy guidance and coordinating the work of the employees to achieve program objectives. Sound leadership, mentoring and coaching abilities will need to be applied to ensure that the Team achieves the Mission’s CDCS objectives and specific health policy and systems strengthening program objectives.

Nature, Level, and Purpose of Contacts: Health systems strengthening is a challenging area of investment, supporting all other aspects of the health portfolio. The position requires considerable influencing skills to diplomatically negotiate and persuade, but also justify, defend, and settle matters among decision makers.

The incumbent will maintain contacts and work with senior staff at USAID/Mali, with considerable interaction with USAID/Washington Global Health and Africa Bureau staff.

S/he interacts with senior officials in the Government of Mali and Chief Executive Officers in the private sector and civil society organizations. In addition, s/he will work closely with senior technical officers from other development partners such as the World Bank, European Union, Global Fund, Netherlands, Germany, Canada, France, and UN agencies who are involved in the highly specialized systems areas.

Work Environment & Travel: The primary place of work is USAID/Mali located on the

U.S. Embassy compound in Bamako. The incumbent will be required to travel within Mali to meet the responsibilities of the position.

11. AREA OF CONSIDERATION: U.S. Citizens or Third Country Nationals

12. PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The work requested does not involve undue physical demands.

13. POINT OF CONTACTS:

Robert P. Schmidt, Jr or Aba Diallo: bamakoaidmalipsc@usaid.gov

II. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION

In order to be considered for the position, a candidate must meet the Minimum Qualifications.

Applications will be pre-screened and only those that meet the Minimum Qualifications will be considered. These are the minimum qualifications necessary to be considered for the position:

● Master’s degree in a relevant discipline such as health systems management, economics/business, public health, health economics, or other field related to international development and/or public health.

● Minimum of seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience working for a U.S.

Government agency and/or a development organization, at least five (5) of which were spent in a developing country context supporting health systems-related programs.

● Experience with successfully directing and supervising large international health programs and systems strengthening activities, as well as demonstrated experience in catalyzing systems change, performance and/or achieving sustainability.

● Expertise in health governance and financing and at least one of the other World Health

Organization’s Systems Strengthening building blocks.

● Experience with working closely with high-level host government officials and leaders in the private sector, civil society, and multilateral organizations.

● Demonstrated experience in advocating for systems strengthening approaches to diverse groups of stakeholders.

mailto:bamakoaidmalipsc@usaid.gov http://mali.usaid.gov

● Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor and coach diverse teams in developing country settings.

● Demonstrated ability to manage administrative responsibilities (e.g. complying with procedural requirements and reporting on activities).

● Level IV English ability and Level III French ability is required. The incumbent must possess a high degree of professional proficiency in both written and spoken English and

French.

● U.S. citizenship (offshore or resident) or Third Country Nationals.

III. EVALUATION AND SELECTION FACTORS

The Evaluation Factors listed will be the basis for evaluating and ranking applicants for the position. Applicants will be scored based on the documentation submitted within the application.

Applicants must submit a supplemental document outlining their responses to the evaluation factors here listed in order to be considered. Only the highest-ranked applicants will be interviewed.

Factor#1: Knowledge and Abilities (50 points) -The incumbent must be able to:

i. Demonstrate the ability to provide strong analysis to understand and design appropriate strategies and activities to address issues concerning health systems and governance.

ii. Demonstrate good interpersonal and communication skills and leadership qualities with regard to collaborating with host-country officials in program implementation and interacting with implementing partners, and other stakeholders at the highest levels, such as Ministerial, Chief

Executive Officer, Chief of Party, or equivalent.

iii. Demonstrate the ability to be proactive and work independently with minimum supervision, including ability to supervise technical and support staff, and work collaboratively with senior managerial and technical host-country counterparts, donors, and other stakeholders at national and decentralized levels.

iv. Demonstrate the ability to defend a position to external stakeholders and build consensus around potentially politically-driven approaches to the subject matter. This includes justifying, negotiating, and/or settling matters with other donors and host government entities to achieve common goals and objectives (i.e. “getting to yes”).

Factor#2: Experience (30 points)

i. At least seven (7) years of increasingly responsible and solid professional experience in planning, design, supervision, and management of health programs. At least five (5) years of this experience should have been in implementing health systems-related programs in a developing country context.

ii. Solid experience managing or implementing activities with governmental, nongovernmental, and/or community-based organizations.

Factor#3: Communications & Interpersonal Skills (20 points)

i. Level IV English is required. The incumbent must possess excellent English writing and editing skills, as well as an excellent ability to process information from a wide variety of sources into a cohesive, polished document.

ii. The incumbent must possess a professional level of French (Level III).

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iii. Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work in a multicultural setting required. Demonstrated positive and productive teaming abilities are absolutely critical; must be able to get along with others and help elevate and empower those around. Experience supervising or leading teams of professionals required. Ability to motivate team members and work toward positive overall performance, work as a member of a technical or office management team, mentor junior staff, and work on his/her own.

iv. Excellent verbal communication skills, tact and diplomacy are required to establish and develop sustainable working relationships at the highest level and a high level of trust with public/private organizations. Verbal communication skills are also needed to negotiate activity plans and resolve activity implementation issues with counterparts, partners and team members. Excellent written communication skills in English are required to prepare regular and ad hoc reports, activity documentation and briefing papers.

Maximum Points Available: 100

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted, and requested to provide educational documents such as degrees, diplomas, certificates and other pertinent documents as needed. Failure to provide the required documentation will result the rejection of their application from further consideration.

The Agency retains the right to cancel or amend the solicitation and associated actions at any stage of the recruitment process.

IV. APPLYING & INSTRUCTIONS TO APPLICANTS

Interested applicants must submit:

1. His/her resume or most current curriculum vitae (CV) -The CV/resume must contain sufficient relevant information to evaluate the application in accordance with the stated evaluation criteria;

2. Signed AID 302-3;

3. Written statements that addresses the minimum qualification requirements in this solicitation;

4. Applications must be received by the closing date and time specified in this solicitation.

Full application package must be submitted to the PoC at bamakoaidmalipsc@usaid.gov

5. To ensure consideration of applications for the intended position, Applicants must prominently reference the solicitation number in the applicant submission;

6. Three (3) professional references, who are not family members or relatives, with working telephone and email contacts;

USAID/Mali reserves the right to obtain from previous employers relevant information concerning the applicant’s past performance and may consider such information in its final decision.

The U.S. Agency Forms (available at Federal Offices or at the USAID/State websites) https://www.usaid.gov/forms or www.fedforms.gov or http://fillform.gsa.gov).

https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/a302-3-5-03-18.doc mailto:bamakoaidmalipsc@usaid.gov http://www.usaid.gov/procurement_bus_opp/procurement/forms http://www.usaid.gov/procurement_bus_opp/procurement/forms http://www.fedforms.gov/ http://mali.usaid.gov

V. LIST OF REQUIRED FORMS

Once the CO informs the successful Offeror about being selected for a contract award, the CO will provide the successful Offeror instructions about how to complete and submit the following forms:

(a) Security Clearance Investigation (Form AID 6-1)

(b) Medical History and Examination (Forms DS-1843; DS-1622; DS-6561; AID 1420-62)

(c) Questionnaire for Sensitive Positions for National Security (SF-86), or

(d) Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions (SF-85)

(e) Finger print Card (FD-258)

The Contractor will be required to obtain a medical clearance prior to service overseas. Also, a temporary employment authorization security clearance must be obtained prior to travel to post.

VI. BENEFITS/ALLOWANCES

As a matter of policy, and as appropriate, a PSC is normally authorized the following benefits and allowances:

1. BENEFITS (if applicable)

(a) Employer’s F.I.C.A & MEDICARE*

(b) Contribution toward Health & Life Insurance

(c) Shipment and Storage of Household Effects Shipment of POV (Privately Owned Vehicle)

(d) Pay Comparability Adjustment

(e) Annual Increase (pending a satisfactory performance evaluation)

(f ) Eligibility for Worker's Compensation

(g) Annual & Sick Leave

(h) Access to Embassy medical facilities, commissary and pouch mail service as per post policy.

2. ALLOWANCES (if applicable or When Eligibility Requirements are Met)*

(a) Temporary Lodging Allowance (Section 120)

(b) Living Quarters Allowance (Section 130)

(c) Cost-of-Living Allowance (Chapter 210)

(d) Post Allowance (Section 220)

(e) Separate Maintenance Allowance (Section 260)

( f ) Supplemental Post Allowance (Section 230)

(g) Education Allowance (Section 270)

(h) Education Travel (Section 280)

(i) Post Differential (Chapter 500)

(j) Payments during Evacuation/Authorized/Ordered Departure (Section 600)

(k) Danger Pay (Section 650)

(l) Consumables Allowance

Note: * Standardized Regulations (Government Civilian Foreign Areas) based on the type of appointment and Mission Policy.

VII. TAXES

USPSCs are required to pay Federal income taxes, FICA, Medicare and applicable State Income taxes.

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VIII. USAID REGULATIONS, POLICIES, AND CONTRACT CLAUSES INFORMATION

PERTAINING TO PSCs

USAID regulations and policies governing USPSC awards are available at these sources:

1. USAID Acquisition Regulation (AIDAR), Appendix D, “Direct USAID Contracts with a U.S.

Citizen or a U.S. Resident Alien for Personal Services Abroad,” including contract clause

“General Provisions,” available at https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/aidar_0.pdf

2. Contract Cover Page form AID 309-1 available at https://www.usaid.gov/forms

3. Acquisition and Assistance Policy Directives/Contract Information Bulletins (AAPDs/CIBs) for Personal Services Contracts with Individuals available at http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapds-cibs

4. Ethical Conduct. By the acceptance of a USAID personal services contract as an individual, the contractor will be acknowledging receipt of the “Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch,” available from the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, in accordance with General Provision 2 and 5 CFR 2635. See https://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/OGE%20Regulations

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES:

USAID is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer and provides equal opportunity and fair and equitable treatment in employment to all people without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, political affiliation, marital status, or sexual orientation.

~End Of Solicitation~ https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/aidar_0.pdf https://www.usaid.gov/forms http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapds-cibs http://www.usaid.gov/work-usaid/aapds-cibs https://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/OGE%20Regulations