AGRI Coordinator

13 December 2023

Kyiv/Odesa

Since 2018, USAID Economic Resilience Activity (ERA) has focused its activities on eastern Ukraine. In 2022, it expanded its geography of cooperation to other regions due to Russia’s full-scale invasion and occupation of part of Ukraine. In 2023, given the military and political circumstances and challenges, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) changed ERA’s priorities.

ERA is one of the implementers of the U.S. Government’s Interagency Agriculture Resilience Initiative – Ukraine (AGRI – Ukraine), which aims to support Ukrainian agricultural production and exports and help address the global food crisis exacerbated by Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine. USAID supports the Government of Ukraine, including working with the State Agency for Restoration and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine (SARDI) and the State Customs Service, through ERA, to modernize border crossing points to improve grain trade and exports, passenger traffic, and perceptions of Ukraine. ERA is also implementing the Economic Stability and Recovery Initiative (ESRI), which focuses on job retention and creation and assists small and medium-sized enterprises.

USAID ERA prioritizes work on AGRI and rehabilitating EU-facing border crossing points (BCPs). The AGRI component is extending its technical assistance to Ukrainian Agri-traders and logistics companies supporting them in increasing capacity and potential of grain export logistics. The BCP component includes complex construction management and procurement of equipment and service for BCPs to become more efficient in processing big cargos of grain and other commodities through the border.

About the job

The AGRI Coordinator is responsible for coordinating AGRI team efforts in the promotion of reconstruction and repairing of the AGRI objects, including but not limited to general logistics facilities, grain railway logistics facilities, trans-border crossing infrastructure, and seaport infrastructure. The AGRI Coordinator also coordinates USAID ERA’s efforts to support the Ukrainian government and local government authorities to get external funding for infrastructure projects from international financial institutions (IFIs) to address critical infrastructure needs connected with economic recovery and transformation. The AGRI Coordinator is based in Odesa or Lviv and reports to the AGRI Operations Manager.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

AGRI Coordination:

  • Coordinate ERA activities to support governmental and private partners in improving the export capacity of Ukrainian Agriculture commodities.
  • Prepare RFPs for procurement of the equipment for governmental institutions and private partners to improve the export abilities of Ukrainian Border Crossing Points.
  • Prepare MOUs with partners for receiving goods and services under the AGRI.
  • Prepare Scope of Work for independent consultants to prepare specific technical documents for public and private sector partners and oversee the work of independent consultants.
  • Coordinate the organization of public events, reports, and other communication efforts to raise awareness of critical infrastructure needs.
  • Prepare a schedule of visits to the field sites for the AGRI team, and work in close coordination with Admin/Logistics to make all necessary arrangements for the trips.
  • Provide Administrative support to the technical specialists on a daily basis to ensure smooth coordination inside the team.

Procurement Coordination: in coordination with the Procurement Team:

  • Coordinate gathering information for procurement, monitoring, and Environmental Assessments of ERA program activities related to energy production and efficiency.
  • in coordination with Procurement teamwork, monitor procurement technical assistance progress and ensure that activities are aligned with the USAID ERA plans and performance indicators.
  • manage procurement for infrastructure projects, including coordination with suppliers/contractors engaged and collection of match documentation.

Monitoring & Evaluation: in coordination with the M&E Team:

  • support the MEAL team in conducting necessary data collection in order to report against Activity performance indicators.
  • coordinate support for beneficiaries in the design of the monitoring and evaluation plan for the proposed project.
  • monitor implementation of direct interventions and provide required information and data for M&E reporting in the required format.

Communication: in coordination with the Communications Team:

  • introduce the AGRI program to relevant stakeholders, including government authorities, local business owners, and business service providers. Foster ongoing positive cooperation with these stakeholders.
  • represent ERA in a professional manner in coordination with the Communication team.
  • other related tasks as requested by agency management staff.

Reporting:

  • Produce reporting documents on AGRI activities and performance results.
  • prepare accurate and timely field reports and other project documentation as required; maintain project files.
  • keep respective activity records in DAI corporate system (TAMIS).

About you

  • MA degree and 5 years of experience in a relevant field.
  • Demonstrated technical experience in the preparation of AGRI projects, including but not limited to general logistics facilities, grain railway logistics facilities, trans-border crossing infrastructure, seaport infrastructure social infrastructure reconstruction, building or repairing of highways, WASH infrastructure.
  • Proven experience in infrastructure project development and implementation on the local, national, and international levels.
  • Proven understanding of the IFs requirements for the preparation and administration of the project.
  • Excellent professional communications and negotiation skills and who can relate to people at all levels of an organization.
  • Ability to work independently and in close cooperation with a team remotely.
  • An energetic, thinking-forward, and creative individual with high ethical standards and an appropriate professional image.
  • An extremely well-organized and self-directed individual with sound technical skills, analytical ability, good judgment, and strong operational focus.
  • Fluency in English and Ukrainian is required.

WE OFFER

Contract length: 12-month employment agreement with a possibility of extension.

Benefits Package:

  • 28 calendar days of annual leave
  • 10 days of internal wellbeing paid leaves per annum
  • Medical Insurance for ERA staff and their families
  • Life Insurance for ERA staff
  • Coverage of all expenses for the business trips
  • Military reservation is possible and granted if you are on a relevant military register

Start date: January 2024

Application process

All applicants must send a cover letter and updated CV (no longer than four pages) in English to ukraine@dai.com

Closing date for applications: January 01, 2024.

For further information about DAI GLOBAL LLC, please consult our website era-ukraine.org.ua.

USAID installs 50-kW generator at the railway border crossing point in the Volyn region

Modernization of the BCPs
12 December 2023

On December 6, USAID Economic Resilience Activity (ERA) delivered a 50-kW generator to the railway border crossing point in the Volyn region. The generator will provide backup power to one of the largest cargo BCPs on Ukraine’s borders and help manage the disruptions to the flow of cargo out of Ukraine.

As Ukraine continues to deal with challenges brought on by the war, and Russia’s attacks on critical infrastructure in particular, support such as this is vital in managing the disruptions to the flow of cargo out of Ukraine, thereby safeguarding grain exports.

“Continuing to secure the railway infrastructure with alternative power sources and enhancing its energy resilience is of paramount importance. The previous batch of industrial generators received from USAID has been installed at our facilities throughout Ukraine, and this generator will provide backup power for one of the international border crossings. Even in the face of electricity shortages due to hostile shelling, we will be able to maintain the transportation of goods. Thanks to our partners who assist us in managing these challenges,” said Oleksiy Statnik, Director of the Electrification and Power Supply Department at JSC Ukrzaliznytsia.

USAID ERA is working on the rapid modernization of the BCPs to increase operational efficiency, to improve the logistics of cargo transportation, and increase the volume of trade and the export of grain.

Between 2023-2026, USAID, through the Economic Resilience Activity (ERA), is dedicating $115 million to support the State Agency for Restoration and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine (SARDI), Ukrainian Railways (UZ), and State Customs Services, to upgrade border crossing points (BCPs) to improve grain trade and export volumes.

USAID ERA signs subcontract with Miyamoto International in a partnership to upgrade Ukraine’s border crossing points 

Modernization of the BCPs
06 December 2023

On November 21, DAI Global LLC, implementer of the USAID Economic Resilience Activity (ERA), signed a subcontract with the U.S.-licensed global architecture and engineering (A&E) company Miyamoto International, Inc. to improve the transport logistics infrastructure and modernize Ukraine’s border crossing points. 

Miyamoto, which has an engineering team of about 128 professionals located in their Ukraine office, will provide design and quality assurance for ERA’s construction work to improve Ukrainian border crossing points (BCP). 

“The modernization of Ukraine’s border crossing points holds great significance in the face of the logistics challenges facing Ukraine’s grain exports. Miyamoto brings years of experience, necessary expertise, and professionals here in Ukraine, and I am confident that our collaboration will be successful and yield meaningful results that will not only enhance Ukraine’s economic development but also support global food security”, says Timothy Madigan, ERA’s Chief of Party. 

Within the framework of the signed contract, Miyamoto will complete the feasibility, Technical Economic Justification, pre-design documentation for designing new cargo terminals, and pre-design and post-design services as needed for the nine high-priority BCPs being supported under ERA in western Ukraine. 

“For the economic development of the country, especially now, when the country is at war, the opportunity for export is extremely important, and as a result, the inflow of currency. Therefore, we, the Miyamoto Ukraine team, consciously acknowledge the existing challenges in export logistics and will do everything in our power to achieve successful implementation of the border crossing points modernization activity. In the Miyamoto Ukraine team are highly qualified engineers work, so we are confident that we will propose new and effective solutions and proudly execute this important project for Ukraine,” says Pavlo Pokhalchuk, General Director of Miyamoto International Ukraine says “, emphasizing the significance of upgrading border crossing points in Ukraine. 

Miyamoto International has official representation in 27 countries worldwide. The company has 20 years of experience gained globally, including in the United States, Japan, Mexico, Afghanistan, and Indonesia, which will be valuable in the modernization of transport and logistics infrastructure at Ukraine’s BCPs within the cooperation with USAID ERA. 

In Ukraine, Miyamoto International Ukraine began its operations in September 2022. Since then, specialists from Miyamoto International Ukraine have: 

  • Conducted inspections and assessed the scale of destruction of more than 30,000 ruined objects. 
  • Participated in joint projects with international charitable organizations to rebuild more than 5,000 objects and continue work in seven regions of Ukraine (Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, Chernihiv). 
  • Inspected over 100 educational institutions where work on shelter arrangements and building restoration has started, is ongoing, or has been completed. 

Miyamoto International Ukraine has also initiated active collaboration with the State Agency for Restoration and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine, as well as regional and military administrations in various parts of the country. 

Currently, the engineers of Miyamoto International Ukraine are engaged in the reconstruction of Ukrainian cities and towns that have suffered from Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine. 

Background: USAID, through the Economic Resilience Activity (ERA), is upgrading Ukraine’s border crossing points (BCPs) with Poland, Hungary, Romania, Moldova, and Slovakia to improve grain export logistics. Between 2023-2026, USAID, through the Economic Resilience Activity (ERA), is dedicating $115 million to support the State Agency for Restoration and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine (SARDI), Ukrainian Railways (UZ), and State Customs Services, to upgrade border crossing points (BCPs) to improve grain trade and export volumes.  

Relocated Entrepreneur from Luhansk oblast receives USAID grant and increases production in new location

05 December 2023

In the spring of 2022, Dmytro Kosilkyn, an entrepreneur from the Luhansk Oblast, moved his garment production to Dnipro. This year, he received a grant from the USAID Economic Resilience Activity (USAID ERA) to purchase new, high-performance industrial equipment consisting of 15 different sewing machines and associated parts.  Since 2015, the Kosilkyn family from their base in Lysychansk, Luhansk Oblast have been making children’s outerwear and hats from natural materials under their family brand – Be Easy. However, with Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine, Kosilkyn was forced to move to the safer region of Dnipro.

In Dnipro, he rented production space, set up his equipment, and resumed production. He restarted his business by making raincoats as needed by the military, but all this time he dreamed of returning to what he had been doing – making quality clothing for children. Step by step, he began making children’s jackets and overalls again. 

However, Dmytro needed new equipment to increase production and expand his product line. As he did not have enough working capital to buy it, he applied for and successfuly obtained a USAID ERA grant. The new equipment purchased with the grant funds was delivered between July and September this year. The equipment includes an industrial laser machine, three overlock sewing machines, a tacking machine with a button sewing clamp kit, a flatlock sewing machine, a pattern sewing machine, a buttonhole machine, three single-needle lockstitch machines, a cover stitch machine, an industrial lockstitch machine, a heat press, a steam generator, console and rectangular ironing tables, and a diesel generator.  

Five people are currently learning to operate this machinery. The equipment has made it possible to automate the process of cutting material with an automatic laser cutter and improve the quality of finished products by using automatic needle-feed sewing machines, overlock machines, and a heat press. As a result, the team has reduced the time needed to sew some garments by 25% and increased the number of orders processed per working hour. 

They also have a new automated production process – printing on fabrics and garments. The printing equipment is in place and has already been used to print an outsourced order. Now, Kosilkyn is working on a new spring collection of clothes and will use this printer to print some elements to make the clothes more attractive. 

When the planned new staff are hired, Kosilkyn and three other employees will undertake a study tour to Progress Service in Lviv, a leader in the Ukrainian market in the production of high-quality and affordable shoes, as he wants to learn from them and to implement similar lean manufacturing methods.  

“When we lived in our hometown, Lysychansk, we implemented most of the desired lean production practices. We are returning to these practices now and will implement them in our work with the new team,” says Kosilkyn. 

Meanwhile, the entrepreneur is already introducing innovations in his production – he has created ‘cells’ that allow one worker to perform several operations on different equipment in sequence. This increases labor efficiency. The embedded quality standard – don’t accept, don’t make, and don’t pass on defects – helps to reduce control over production and strengthen the team-based approach. 

Kosilkyn has received orders to sew cosmetic bags and handbags for humanitarian kits, signal vests for the Red Cross, and patriotic T-shirts. He also makes clothes for the Bambi brand, is negotiating with the Modnyi Karapuz brand, and has agreements to make clothes for the Pobedov brand – which are all Ukrainian brands.  

Among the challenges he has had to deal with include the lack of personnel, as skilled workers require much higher wages than he can afford, and so he hasdecided to train people on the job. He also plans to develop a line of thermal underwear and work with sportswear manufacturers to outsource orders. All these initiatives will help the Kosilkyn family business increase sales, create new jobs, and become more competitive in the Ukrainian market. 

Environmental Officer

05 December 2023

Lviv/Kyiv/Odesa

Since 2018, USAID Economic Resilience Activity (ERA) has focused its activities on eastern Ukraine. In 2022, it expanded its geography of cooperation to other regions due to Russia’s full-scale invasion and occupation of part of Ukraine. In 2023, given the military and political circumstances and challenges, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) changed ERA’s priorities.

ERA is one of the implementers of the U.S. Government’s Interagency Agriculture Resilience Initiative – Ukraine (AGRI – Ukraine), which aims to support Ukrainian agricultural production and exports and help address the global food crisis exacerbated by Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine. USAID supports the Government of Ukraine, including working with state- and private owned companies, namely the State Agency for Restoration and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine (SARDI), the State Customs Service, the State Border Guard Service through ERA, to modernize border crossing points (BCPs) to improve grain trade and exports, and perceptions of Ukraine. ERA is also implementing the Economic Stability and Recovery Initiative (ESRI), which focuses on job retention and creation and assists small and medium-sized enterprises.

USAID ERA prioritizes work on AGRI and rehabilitating EU-facing border crossing points. The AGRI component is extending its technical assistance to Ukrainian Agri-traders and logistics companies supporting them in increasing capacity and potential of grain export logistics. The BCP component includes complex construction management and procurement of equipment and service for BCPs to become more efficient in processing bulk cargoes and other commodities through the border.

About the job

The Environmental Officer is a key member of the Environmental Compliance Team and plays a pivotal role in assuring adherence to environmental policies and regulations, environmental controls, and reporting systems. The Environmental Officer will invest in providing environmental analysis support to the technical team and ensure the preparation of environmental assessments for project activities and interventions. The Environmental Officer supports field examinations, reports on environmentally hazardous locations and materials, and maintains environmental documentation related to Agricultural and BCP projects. The Environmental Officer works in close coordination with the AGRI and BCP technical staff to ensure environmental assessment for AGRI- and BCP-related interventions. The Environmental Officer will report to the Senior Manager for Environmental Compliance and be based in Lviv or Kyiv or Odesa.

Responsibilities and Duties:

Environmental Assessment for AGRI-Ukraine activities:

  • Coordinate and review testing and analysis of potential environmental hazards;
  • Support the AGRI-Ukraine program, ensuring environmental compliance of activities and interventions;
  • Monitor project environmental impact and report on compliance with USAID environmental policy;
  • Oversee and monitor field implementation of environmental mitigation measures;
  • Ensure submission of required internal environmental documentation related to AGRI-Ukraine projects to the DAI ‘s experts based in headquarter and coordinate with them further documentation preparation process;
  • As required, coordinate environmental training and technical assistance;
  • Undertake additional actions required by the Deputy Chief of Party to ensure compliance with USAID and Ukraine environmental regulations policies;
  • Perform other tasking as directed by the ERA senior management.
  • Participate in evaluation of environmental risks of proposals submitted by subcontractors, grantees, or beneficiaries in line with their reliability and ability to achieve the goals with focus on safely export of Ukraine’s agricultural products; The Black Sea ports are the most commercially viable to ensure that Ukraine’s agricultural products can be cost-effectively transported to food insecure countries around the world.
  • In coordination with Big Infrastructure Lead, work to ensure that AGRI-Ukraine activities are aligned with the USAID ERA’s environmental compliance standards;
  • Conduct site visits to assess subcontractors, grantees, or beneficiaries’ environmental compliance, provide guidance on environmental hazards mitigation;

Communication:

  • In close collaboration with the Director for Communication and Change Management, represent ERA in a professional manner to the key audiences;
  • Proactively engage with target communities to identify opportunities to promote environmental attentiveness of the local communities.

Monitoring & Evaluation:

  • Manage activities to implement workplan at improving ERA’s indicator for environmental compliance;
  • Coordinate with MEL team regular data collection, its progress, relying on innovative data gathering methods when appropriate;
  • Capture the output and outcome level data, document and report the results in timely manner.

Reporting:

  • Compile the Environmental Compliance reports for the ERA management on a regular basis;
  • Oversee Environmental Compliance of the awards through the review of reports, correspondence, site visits, etc.
  • Prepare accurate and timely progress reports on a quarterly basis and contribute to preparation of annual reports;
  • Perform other duties as assigned by the DCOP and COP.

Job Expectations

In this position, you are expected to share the DAI four core values:

  • Integrity: commit to civil and ethical behavior, play by the rules, and do the right thing;
  • Responsibility: be accountable to clients, partners, grant recipients, beneficiaries, colleagues, and communities where we work. If you fall short, you own up, fix the problem, and get it right the next time;
  • Excellence: adhere to the highest technical and professional standards in innovation, learning, and service;
  • Global Citizenship: respect the cultural diversity and treat everyone everywhere with professionalism and dignity to make the world a better place.

About you

  • Advanced degree in Ecology, Environmental Management, or relevant field;
  • Experience in Ukrainian environmental and technical compliance procedures for Agricultural and agricultural products processing enterprises;
  • Minimum 5 years of relevant professional experience;
  • Work experience with international companies or donor-funded projects preferred;
  • Spoken and written fluency in English and Ukrainian is a must;
  • Experience producing technical reports and managing data;
  • Demonstrated ability to work and coordinate effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders.

WE OFFER

Contract length: 12-month employment agreement with a possibility of extension.

Benefits Package:

  • 28 calendar days of annual leave
  • 10 days of internal wellbeing paid leaves per annum
  • Medical Insurance for ERA staff and their families
  • Life Insurance for ERA staff
  • Coverage of all expenses for the business trips
  • Military reservation is possible and granted if you are on a relevant military register

Start date: January 2024

Application process

All applicants must send a cover letter and updated CV (no longer than four pages) in English to ukraine@dai.com

Closing date for applications: December 19, 2023.

For further information about DAI GLOBAL LLC, please consult our website era-ukraine.org.ua

USAID ERA Delivers Generators to Agrcultural Exporter IMC to Sustain their Operations this Winter 

AGRI-Ukraine Export Logistics Support
01 December 2023

USAID’s Economic Resilience Activity (ERA) has delivered three 600-kilowatt generators to IMC, one of Ukraine’s top ten agricultural holding companies. The generators will be used at the company’s grain elevatorsin Chernihiv, Poltava, and Sumy Oblasts, to enable them to remain operational during power outages.   

The generators will enable IMC to remain resilient in the face of power challenges that are expected during the 2023-2024 winter. A repetition of the previous year’s occurrences, Russia`s attacks on the energy infrastructure, are expected to cause periodic power outages. These, sometimes last for several days, which completely disrupted the entire production process and the export of grain. A such, the delivery of the generators is a timely assistance that will ultimately support the resilience of Ukraine’s economy.   

Additionally, USAID ERA provided IMC with three scales for weighing automobile transport at the company’s elevators. 

Background: Assistance to agricultural producers and infrastructure companies is under part of the Agriculture Resilience Initiative (AGRI) – Ukraine, implemented by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). It aims to help Ukraine increase its capacity to produce, store, transport, and export grain.