Maura O'Brien

Ms. Maura O’Brien serves as a contracting professional with USAID/South Sudan, where she plays a pivotal role in securing critical services that sustain U.S. diplomatic and development operations in one of the world’s most complex humanitarian environments. Her responsibilities encompass the full lifecycle of acquisition activities, from needs assessment and market research to contract award and performance monitoring, with a focus on life support, infrastructure maintenance, and technical assistance essential to mission continuity. She primarily manages acquisitions under the International Affairs NAICS code, ensuring alignment with USAID’s strategic imperative to build institutional resilience and enable safe, functional operations for U.S. government personnel and programs in austere conditions. Ms. O’Brien engages with a diverse range of contractors, including international service providers, logistics specialists, and technical consultants with proven experience in fragile-state environments. While no single contractor dominates her portfolio, her procurement patterns reflect a preference for vendors with demonstrated capacity in security-compliant operations, rapid-response logistics, and culturally competent service delivery. She maintains collaborative, performance-driven relationships with firms capable of operating under high-risk conditions and adhering to strict compliance frameworks, often requiring specialized certifications and on-the-ground presence. Ms. O’Brien’s contracting activity is exclusively non-set-aside, with 100% of procurements conducted under full and open competition. This reflects the urgent, mission-critical nature of the requirements and the limited pool of qualified vendors capable of meeting operational standards in South Sudan. While socioeconomic set-asides are not utilized, her approach prioritizes capability, compliance, and continuity over programmatic preferences, ensuring mission readiness above all. Her primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 928120 (International Affairs), encompassing services such as security support, facility management, transportation, communications infrastructure, and specialized technical assistance for governance and peacebuilding initiatives. She possesses deep expertise in procuring high-risk, low-latency services critical to sustaining U.S. government presence in conflict-affected regions.