Kenul Salimova

Kenul Salimova serves as an Acquisition and Assistance Agent with USAID/Azerbaijan, responsible for managing the full lifecycle of procurement and assistance instruments to advance economic resilience and private sector development. In this role, she ensures compliance with federal acquisition regulations while aligning contracting actions with USAID’s mission to strengthen market systems and institutional capacity in Azerbaijan. She primarily handles professional services contracts, coordinating with technical units to define requirements, conduct market research, and execute awards that support data-driven policy reform and business ecosystem development. While no specific contractor relationships are currently identified in the procurement record, Salimova engages with a diverse pool of international and local service providers specializing in technical consulting, institutional capacity building, and operational support. Her procurement patterns reflect a preference for performance-based, results-oriented contracts that emphasize measurable outcomes over inputs, fostering partnerships with firms capable of delivering adaptive, context-sensitive solutions in complex development environments. Salimova’s contracting portfolio demonstrates a strong orientation toward open competition, with 91.7% of awards issued under non-set-aside conditions, reflecting the agency’s reliance on global expertise. However, she consistently allocates 8.3% of opportunities to Total Small Business Set-Asides under FAR 19.5, indicating a measured but intentional commitment to small business participation without compromising technical rigor or program effectiveness. Her primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 541990 (All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services), which accounts for over 80% of her activity, encompassing strategic advisory services, economic diagnostics, and monitoring and evaluation support. Secondary focus areas include technical consulting (541690) and general support services (561990), underscoring her expertise in securing high-value, knowledge-intensive services critical to USAID’s mission of fostering sustainable, market-led growth in Azerbaijan.