Program objectives:

To assist USAID in the implementation of priority programs by providing Technical Advisors in AIDS, Child Survival, Infectious Diseases, Population, and Basic Education as authorized annually in the Foreign Assistance Appropriations Act.

Background and Purpose:

Since 1987, the U.S. Congress authorized USAID to seek outside expertise from other U.S. government agencies, institutions of higher learning and private voluntary agencies. This authorization, originally covering child survival and HIV/AIDS, has been expanded to include population, basic education, and infectious diseases. The TAACS Program allows USAID to supplement its technical managerial staff in these high priority areas.

The most recent TAACS contract has been competitively awarded to CEDPA, a private voluntary organization and is managed in the newly formed Bureau for Global Health. These contracts are responsible for recruiting, employing and supporting more than 50 TAACS who provide long term technical and managerial assistance to various USAID technical offices in Washington, D.C. and missions worldwide. TAACS are also recruited and backstopped under a Participating Agency Service Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of International and Refugee Health.

Selection Procedure:

CEDPA recruits TAACS through a network of contacts. New positions are advertised on CEDPA's website, in periodicals and on various listservs. Applications are received by CEDPA and forwarded to the USAID requesting office for consideration. A technical team from the requesting Bureau or Mission interviews qualified applicants and selects a candidate who will be offered the position after obtaining necessary clearances. The new TAACS remains an employee of CEDPA during assignment in USAID headquarters or Missions. Assignments are typically two years; renewals and extensions are possible.

All TAACS must be U.S. citizens who can be approved for high level U.S. Government security clearance. Most TAACS positions are appropriate for experienced senior and middle-level professionals who have developing country experience and foreign language skills. In addition to technical qualifications in health or education, most positions require experience in areas such as:

• Technical assistance and training
• Program planning and design
• Program management
• Monitoring and evaluation
• Use of USAID procedures

Contact Information for the TAACS Program, CEDPA Contract: