TITLE: Master Service Agreement (MSA) Specialist

LOCATION: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: on/about September 15 to November 14, 2025

REPORTS TO: Deputy Chief of Party, Operations

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Research Triangle Institute (RTI) has over 30 years’ experience assisting governments, communities, and the private sector. As a not-for-profit, independent research institute based in North Carolina, USA, RTI has roughly 5,000 employees with global experience implementing international development projects.

The Food Security and Agriculture team works to strengthen agricultural markets, engage youth and women as critical leaders of the on- and off-farm workforce, and tackle the dual burden of malnutrition around the globe. RTI’s work is helping foster stronger food systems, reduce malnutrition in all its forms, build resilience and engage the next generation of food security leaders.

The goal of the Department of State-funded Feed the Future Ethiopia Transforming Agriculture activity is to increase access to healthy diets, particularly for women and children, by improving competitiveness, inclusiveness, and resilience of the Ethiopian food and agriculture system. This activity uses a nutrition-

led approach which aligns food systems to consumer preferences by using RTI’s Food Environment (FE) toolkit that focuses on specific nutritious foods versus food groups—a major innovation. To accomplish the activity goal, we will:

• Better align food and agriculture supply with demand for nutritious foods
• Increase food safety and quality
• Increase enterprise growth and employment in the food and agriculture sectors
• Advance key social priorities through public private partnerships

This will make safe, diverse, nutritious foods more available, affordable, convenient, and desirable, and will improve the competitiveness, inclusiveness, resilience, and sustainability of the food and agriculture system.

OBJECTIVES

The Feed the Future Ethiopia Transforming Agriculture Activity, funded by the United States Department of State, supports U.S. strategic interests by advancing agricultural transformation, local enterprise development, and economic resilience in Ethiopia. The project is committed to delivering measurable results and ensuring every U.S. taxpayer dollar is used responsibly and transparently. To uphold these principles, the program is looking to hire a master service agreement (MSA) specialist, who can support establishment of MSAs with key vendors in an effort to further streamline the procurement process. These agreements will define overarching terms and conditions governing ongoing procurement of goods and services, reduce negotiation timelines for future transactions, and ensure compliance with internal policies and donor/partner requirements.

ACTIVITIES

The MSA Specialist will draft, negotiate, and finalize MSAs with identified high-value and strategic vendors, ensuring alignment with organizational procurement policies, legal frameworks, and operational needs. Specifically, they will be responsible for the following:

   1. Vendor Assessment & Prioritization

• Review the current vendor database and procurement spend analysis to identify top strategic vendors.
• Confirm selection of vendors to target for MSAs in consultation with the procurement teams and Deputy Chief of Party, Operations.

   2. Information Gathering

• Collect relevant existing contracts, purchase orders, and vendor performance data.
• Review applicable donor, legal, and organizational compliance requirements.
• Develop detailed specifications (goods) and scopes of work (services) for each of the following key areas: office supplies (e.g., stationary, cleaning supplies); hotel/workshop services; catering; tablets. Following the review of the procurement pipeline, the consultant may propose additional areas to the team for consideration.
• Refine template for due diligence to ensure supplier meets all necessary standards.
• Draft and release request for quotations aligned to the final specifications/SOWs.

   3. Drafting Master Service Agreements

• Coordinate the bid evaluation committees to review all proposals received.
• Facilitate due diligence for top ranked suppliers.
• Using RTI’s existing MSA template, tailor the MSA to cover scope of services, pricing framework, service levels, dispute resolution, termination, confidentiality, compliance, and other relevant areas.
• Consolidate all other required supporting documentation per organizational standards.

   4. Engagement and Negotiation

• Coordinate with identified vendors to present draft MSAs.
• Facilitate discussions and negotiate terms where required, ensuring mutual alignment and benefit.

   5. Finalization and Approval

• Revise MSAs based on feedback from vendors and internal stakeholders (procurement, ETA leadership).
• Secure internal approvals and finalize execution of agreements.

   6. Handover and Knowledge Transfer

• Provide final signed MSAs and all required supporting documentation for organizational records.
• Prepare a brief report summarizing process, key outcomes, and recommendations for ongoing vendor management.

DELIVERABLES

• Bachelor’s degree in supply chain management, business administration, or a related field and more than 8 years of experience.

• Minimum of 5 year’s work experience with US government or other donor-funded organizations.

• Experience developing and issuing long-term vendor agreements.

• Strong negotiation and vendor management skills.

• Familiarity with donor compliance requirements and international procurement standards.

• Outstanding and effective oral communication and writing skills in English and Amharic. Additional local language is a plus.

• Must be detail and solution-oriented and able to work independently.

• Willing to travel to field sites as necessary.

How To Apply

Qualified applicants may apply through Ethiojobs

APPLICATIONINSTRUCTIONS

To be considered assignment, individuals must submit:

Brief CV (not to exceed three pages per person) of the individual undertaking this assignment describing their relevant expertise, education, and experience.

Technical proposal of not more than five pages that outlines your approach to all components of the assignment as outlined in the “activities” section of this Scope of Work.

Financial proposal for cost of undertaking the assignment in the template provided by ETA below.

Note: all application materials must be submitted in one pdf file titled “MSA consultancy’’ page not later than September 12,2025.