R -- USAID Diplomacy Fellow Program

This is a SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE issued by the Unites States Agency for International Development, Bureau for Economic Growth, Agriculture and Trade, Office of Professional Development Administrative Management (USAID/EGAT/PDAM), to determine the availability of potential sources to manage the USAID Diplomacy Fellow Program, that selects outstanding postdoctoral-level to mid-career scientists, medical doctors, political scientists, and engineers to serve for one year in one of the pillar or regional bureaus of USAID.USAID/EGAT/PDAM is seeking information in the form of capability statements from all interested parties with capabilities in the areas noted below. PURPOSE The purpose of The Diplomacy Fellows Program is to select outstanding postdoctoral-level (PhD) to mid-career scientists, medical doctors (MDs), political scientists, and engineers to serve for one-year in one of the pillar or regional bureaus of USAID as well as field missions. The placement of Fellows at USAID traditionally has been in offices that carry out the Agency's long-standing programmatic emphasis: agriculture, energy, forestry, disaster assistance, health/population, the environment, education, and democracy/governess. OBJECTIVES The three principal objectives of the Science, Engineering, and Diplomacy Fellows Program are: 1. To make practical contributions to the more effective use of scientific and technical knowledge in the foreign affairs and international development programs of the U.S. government; 2. To demonstrate the value of science and technology in working on important social problems; and 3. To provide a unique, internationally-oriented, public policy learning experience. SERVICES REQUIRED The contractor will be required to coordinate and facilitate the competitive recruitment process for all fellows. This process includes the following: 1. Developing and designing a standardized application for potential fellows; 2. Advertise and market the program to the science and technology communities utilizing trade journals and other relevant sources for attracting qualified applicants: 3. Organize and assist with the panel interviews which will be comprised of representatives of science and technology communities with a focus on international development. The contractor will be responsible for coordinating travel for potential fellows; 4. Negotiation of salaries for salaries; 5. Coordinating with USAID Cognizant Technical Officer (CTO) to place fellows in appropriate Washington, D.C. bureaus and overseas mission; and 6. The contractor will be responsible for all administrative issues and monitoring of the fellow's performance, etc... The contractor will be required to facilitate the federal security clearance process for each potential candidate. Orientation Program The contractor will be responsible for organizing and handling the logistics for an Orientation Program for the fellows and invited guest speakers. The orientations are normally held prior to the beginning of their fellowship assignment. The orientation program should be designed to provide background in the legislative and executive branch operations, the policy process, and both domestic and international science and technology policy issues. Portions of the orientation need to be broken out into separate tracks, providing a specialized program to prepare the Fellows for placement in their respective parts of the government. In addition, strategic objectives and overall administrative related matters will be discussed, as well as guidelines on travel to missions. Seminars/Retreats The Contractor will be responsible for organizing various seminars and other social events throughout the year as requested by USAID. The main focus of these seminars should be to provide an added dimension to assigned activities by providing exposure to a broad range of national issues. Overseas Diplomacy Fellowships Those who have completed one year as a USAID Diplomacy Fellow in USAID/Washington, are eligible to apply for a fellowship at one of the USAID missions in the program titled, - Overseas Science, and Engineering, and Diplomacy Fellowship Program. The contractor would be responsible for recruiting candidates that have expertise in the following areas: health, education, economics, the environment, agriculture, and democracy/governess. The contractor would be responsible for assisting with the security clearance approval process for the overseas fellows. The contractor will be responsible for advertising, recruitment, organizing the selection committee and interviewing the applicants. The contractor will be responsible for handling the travel and other logistics if the Mission requests to interview the applicants prior to selection. The contractor facilitates the placements and, when both the missions and the potential Fellow agree, an official letter of offer is sent to the Fellow by the contractor. Moving Allowances and Travel Funds The contractor will be responsible for handling the logistics and travel arrangements for fellows that outside of the Washington Metropolitan area. All travel and associated costs must be reimbursed in accordance with Federal Guidelines. CAPABILITY STATEMENT REQUIREMENTS: An interested party must be able to demonstrate in the capability statement the related experience and ability to perform the kind of work described in this notice. This documentation may include examples of contracts both governmental and commercial the offeror has performed, references including title, names, and telephone numbers, and any other relevant information. Responses to this Sources Sought Notice shall include: 1) Three page capability statement including the firm's relevant work and prior work experience; 2) one page for corporate qualifications; 3) statement identifying if the offeror is a large business, small business, 8(a) firm, small disadvantaged business, women-owned business, or HUBZone firm; and 4) indicate if your organization has a security clearance. USAID anticipates awarding a cost reimbursement type contract with option years. Any organization responding to this SOURCES SOUGHT notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the government to determine the organization's qualifications to perform this work. A government employee will evaluate all submissions for responsiveness to this announcement. This is not a Request for Proposals and this notice in no way commits the Government to award a contract. The Government does not intend to award a contract based solely on this submission to this Sources Sought Notice nor does it intend to pay for any costs incurred in response to this announcement. Written capability statements must be received no later than January 31, 2005 by 1:00 p.m. EST. These submissions must be submitted by E-mail (ONLY) to Monique Bryant at mbryant@usaid.gov. In the Subject line Reference: Diplomacy Fellowship Program - Sources Sought Notice. Facsimile and Hand Carried submissions will not be accepted. All inquiries concerning this announcement shall be directed to Monique Bryant, Contracts Specialist at mbryant@usaid.gov.