Olga Ekkert

Olga Ekkert serves as an Acquisition Specialist with USAID/Central Asia/Kazakhstan (Agency Code: 720115), where she plays a pivotal role in executing technical assistance contracts aligned with U.S. foreign assistance objectives. Her responsibilities encompass the full lifecycle of procurement for professional services that support governance, health, education, and economic development initiatives across Central Asia. She ensures compliance with federal acquisition regulations while advancing USAID’s mission of fostering sustainable, locally led solutions through strategic, transparent, and results-driven contracting. Ekkert primarily manages task orders and indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contracts for advisory services, capacity-building programs, and technical evaluations. Ekkert collaborates with a diverse array of international and local professional service providers, including consulting firms, research institutions, and technical implementation partners with deep regional expertise. Her contractor relationships are characterized by long-term engagement on multi-year programs requiring specialized knowledge in public sector reform, nutrition policy, and enterprise development. She prioritizes vendors with demonstrated experience in Central Asian contexts and a track record of delivering adaptive, evidence-based solutions under complex operating environments. Ekkert’s procurement portfolio reflects a strong preference for open, non-set-aside competitions, with 100% of her acquisitions conducted under general market solicitations. While she does not routinely utilize socioeconomic set-asides such as 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB programs, she ensures equitable access for all qualified bidders and emphasizes merit-based selection grounded in technical capability and local relevance. Her primary procurement focus is on NAICS 541990—All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services—encompassing technical advisory services, monitoring and evaluation, institutional strengthening, and policy analysis. She routinely procures expertise in public financial management, health systems improvement, and private sector development, ensuring that contract deliverables are grounded in rigorous methodology and aligned with USAID’s performance frameworks.