About Us
International Business & Technical Consultants, Inc. (IBTCI), a U.S. based international development consulting company established in 1987, has worked in over 100 countries and implemented over 300 projects. IBTCI serves government agencies, private sector companies, and several donor agencies. IBTCI specializes in monitoring, evaluation, research, and learning (MERL) and institutional support across many areas and sectors including, but not limited to, conflict and crisis, democracy and governance, agriculture, economic growth, food security, education, environment, and global health.
Job Title: Health Supply Chain Specialist
Department/Location: DRC Kinshasa / USAID Office of Health
Reports To: IBTCI ISPI Project Manager
Type: Consultancy – 235 days full time
Clearance Required: Facilities Access, applied for once hired
Overview: USAID/Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC’s) 2020-2025 Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS) is: A More Peaceful and Prosperous DRC with Improved Opportunities for Communities and Individuals to Thrive. This high-level goal encapsulates USAID’s long-term vision of a DRC where all communities and people are empowered to move their country closer to self-reliance. Throughout this period, USAID will partner with individuals, communities, and institutions and increase their ability to generate and achieve locally-led solutions. However, significant obstacles, including pervasive corruption, weak and ineffective state institutions, extreme poverty, an extractives-dependent economy, and ongoing conflict and instability may affect the Mission’s ability to achieve this goal. These daunting challenges arise from a lack of capacity as well as weak government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (GDRC) commitment at both the national and sub-national levels.
The USAID Project Management Specialist – Supply Chain (the “Specialist”) provides strategic, technical, analytical, and management support on health logistics and supply chain management. The Specialist provides technical guidance to Health Office staff and other mission leaders, and the broader USAID Mission. They work closely with implementing partners (IPs), the host government, and support USAID’s efforts within the interagency community via technical working groups and other fora. The Specialist is a key member of the Health Office, Health Systems Strengthening (HSS) Team. The incumbent has no formal supervisory responsibility.
Responsibilities
Essential Duties/Tasks and Responsibilities:
Program Management
- Support Activity Managers on health logistics and supply chain programs/projects/activities awarded through the Health Office, providing financial and programmatic oversight to ensure contracts and grants achieve anticipated results, and are linked to and enhance attainment of the Health Office, Mission, and USG objectives.
- Conducts site visits as required in order to monitor progress, and to provide technical and programmatic recommendations to ensure effectiveness, efficiency and judicious use of U.S. Government (USG) funding.
Technical Guidance and Leadership
- Stay abreast of state-of-the-art knowledge, programming and best practices related to supply chain management and utilize this information to improve DRC supply chain management.
- Coordinate exchanges and sharing of best practices among USAID, USG and other stakeholders to strengthen health logistics and supply chain systems improvement.
- Provide technical guidance and leadership to the DRC government in coordinating health supply chain systems support, supply planning, forecasting, quantification and programming.
- Guide USAID and DRC government on strategic decisions and policy formulation to strengthen supply chain management, including transparency and accountability.
- Provide technical guidance and coordination to Health Office colleagues to ensure development of key systems that effectively integrate across the entire health portfolio.
- Provide guidance to Health Office colleagues to monitor the achievement of milestones of IPs supporting health logistics and supply chain system implementation.
- Support DRC efforts to ensure health supply chain systems fully integrate with key commodity management and information systems that will allow end to end data visibility.
Other Coordination and Reporting
- Supports the Health Office, Mission, and USG at national and/or international technical and
programmatic meetings, within various working groups, and in consultations with other social sector donors, government officials, and IPs. - Advises on supply chain issues for USAID staff in preparation for interagency discussions
involving senior leadership from USAID, CDC, other interagency partners, the PEPFAR
Coordination Office and the U.S. Embassy. - Provides technical and strategic leadership in the preparation of key annual and mid-term planning reporting documents including the Country Operational Plan, Operational Plan, Congressional Budget Justifications, Quarterly, Semi-Annual and Annual Progress Reports.
- Prepares ad hoc reports as required for the Mission, USAID/Washington, Office of Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC), donor coordination groups, and others.
- Support internal coordination with USG agencies on HIV, Malaria, Family Planning, Tuberculosis and other disease-related commodities management to guide and oversee procurement via the current USG supply chain mechanism. This includes forecasting, quantification, andprocurement of commodities, as needed for the implementation of the overall health portfolio
and to ensure adequate stock monitoring at site and above-site levels. - Participate in workshops, special committees, and other fora as a technical advisor on logistics and supply chain management.
NOTE: The consultant will not perform other inherently governmental functions or duties (e.g. will not serve as AOR/COR or supervise staff), but rather will advise, mentor, and facilitate as appropriate on the performance of inherently governmental functions on the part of the Office or Mission.
KEY DELIVERABLES: (SMART – tangible outcomes)
- Develop technical guidance on health supply chain programs for use by mission personnel,
implementing partners, and DRC government officials. - Complete site visit reports and presentations for knowledge management and transfer.
- Compile meeting minutes approximately 1–4 times per week and maintain file and activity
management and organization. - Monthly reports of activities performed during the work period, as agreed upon by the Senior Supply Chain Advisor or their designee.
- Prepare briefing papers, presentations and assist with site preparations for visits by delegations of high-level USG officials.
- Prepares ad hoc reports as required for the Mission, USAID/Washington, Office of Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC), donor coordination groups, and others.
- Maintain satisfactory performance as reviewed by supervisors.
Qualifications
Minimum Requirements:
Prior work Experience
- A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible, professional-level experience in
developing, implementing, and/or monitoring and evaluating health supply chain performance
improvement activities, including supply chain management, logistics, health commodities
management, rational drug use, and/or other closely related areas. - Experience collaborating with and/or working for key donors, development partners, or NGOs.
Post Entry Training
- Familiarization training in USAID-specific procedures, regulations, and methods.
- On-the-job training regarding USAID, PEPFAR and PMI policies, procedures, and regulations,
including the Automated Directives Systems (ADS), Mission Orders, and all planning and
reporting databases. - Training to maintain professional capability in the field, and other courses offered for professional USAID staff, as appropriate; and, courses, seminars, conferences, and other activities in fields related to the function and needed to maintain and update professional qualifications may be provided as they become available, subject to availability of funds.
Language Proficiency
- Level III (fluent proficiency) in English, and in the appropriate DRC business language, both written and
spoken, is required. Language competence may be tested.
Job Knowledge
- Knowledge of national supply chain management systems and Health and HIV/AIDS service delivery in the DRC, including but not limited to procurement, warehousing and distribution, receipt and ordering of commodities, supply planning, quantification, and/or use of supply chain management information and management systems.
- Knowledge of donor engagement in supporting health systems strengthening efforts and health
commodities.
Skills and Abilities
- Project management skills, including data and information management, administrative, and
monitoring skills used to track the performance of implementing partners and activities. - Excellent communication skills both orally and in writing, especially in being able to present
information, analyses, and recommendations to individuals with nontechnical background. - Ability to respond professionally and adjust in fluid situations in order to meet deadlines in the face of competing priorities and time pressures.
- Ability to work both independently and as part of a team.
- Ability to negotiate difficult issues and build consensus to achieve results with a wide range of individuals.
- Excellent computer and software skills including ability in excel.
Education: University Bachelor’s Degree in a field related to social science, supply chain management, logistics, statistics, mathematics, economics, computer science, epidemiology, health informatics, public health, infectious disease, zoonotic disease, biology or other quantitative discipline, or the local equivalent.
Preferred Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
- Eight (8) years of progressively responsible, professional-level experience in developing,
implementing, and/or monitoring and evaluating health supply chain performance improvement activities, including supply chain management, logistics, health commodities management, rational drug use, and/or other closely related area. - Extensive experience collaborating with and/or working for key donors, development partners, or NGOs.
- Software skills in SPSS, STATA, R and/or other analytical databases.
Working Environment: Work is typically performed in an office environment.
Physical Requirements: This is largely a sedentary position that requires the ability to speak, hear, see, and lift small objects up to 20 lbs.
Supervisory Responsibility: This position does not have supervisory responsibilities.
Travel: May include travel to fragile and/or conflict-prone zones.
Work Authorization: Candidate must be authorized to work in the DRC.
Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
About the Organization:
IBTCI has been in business since 1987. We specialize in Monitoring, Evaluation, Research & Learning (MERL), Institutional Support (IS), Financial & Risk Management (FRM), Supply Chain Management & Procurement (SCMP); Social & Behavior Change (SBC) and Capacity Building. We provide these services across many sectors including, but not limited to, agriculture, resilience & food security, conflict & crisis, democracy & governance, economic growth & trade, education & human capacity development, energy & infrastructure, environment & climate change, global health & WASH and humanitarian and disaster assistance. At IBTCI, our colleagues are encouraged to collaborate and be part of the solution while getting the tools and guidance needed to grow and support our clients’ missions.
IBTCI is committed to a policy of equal employment opportunity for all persons without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identification, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, disabled veteran or Vietnam-era veteran, or any other classification protected by applicable anti-discrimination laws. We prohibit and do not tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment. VEVRAA Federal Contractor.
If you are an applicant with a disability that requires a reasonable accommodation to complete any part of the application process or are limited in the ability, or unable to use the online application system and need an alternative method for applying, you may contact the Talent Acquisition team at TalentAcquisition@ibtci.com (Do not send your resume to this account, for consideration please apply in our career page, https://careers.ibtci.com/jobs).