Amendment No 6 to APS No. 72051921APS00001 signed2.pdf

Amendment No. 6 to Renew the Annual Program Statement (APS) No. 72051921APS00001

The purpose of this amendment is to:

1. To renew the APS for one additional year. The validity of the APS is until April 19, 2025.

2. Update various sections of the APS to bring up-to-date information in our programs and/or policies.

3. Reiterate that concept papers are not accepted under this APS. For the foreseeable future, USAID does not anticipate the issuance of additional addenda under this APS, however, should USAID identify new activities to compete under this APS, these will be announced through the issuance of an Addendum to the APS which will be publicized in Grants.gov.

To facilitate the read out of the APS, the revisions stated above are highlighted throughout the attached revised APS and therefore this version of the APS substitutes the original APS and existing amendments.

Sincerely, Robert Claussen Agreement Officer

Attachment I: Revised APS (Amendment No. 6)

Attachment I

RENEWAL OF THE ANNUAL PROGRAM STATEMENT (APS)

AMENDMENT NO.6

Issuance Date: April 20, 2024 Deadline for Questions: May 31, 2024 Validity of this APS Renewal: April 19, 2025

Subject: Annual Program Statement No. 72051921APS00001

Program Title: United States Agency for International Development (USAID) El Salvador and Central America Regional Mission (ES-CAM) Annual Program Statement (APS)

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance: 98.001, Foreign Assistance for Programs Overseas

Ladies/Gentlemen:

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) ES-CAM is issuing this APS pursuant to the Foreign Assistance Act (FAA) of 1961, as amended. The goal of this APS is to partner with numerous stakeholders to contribute to achieving the USAID/El Salvador’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS) 2020-2025 goal. This goal is to Reduce the Drivers of Irregular Migration by Fostering a More Self-Reliant El Salvador: Secure, Prosperous and Well-Governed.

Secondly, this APS will also focus on activities in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to contribute to achieving the United States Government’s Root Causes of Migration Strategy (RCS).

In addition, this APS will focus on regional solutions to development challenges that drive irregular migration from Central America to the United States. By grounding this APS in the Regional Development Cooperation Strategy (RDCS) for 2022-27, this APS will allow for addenda to be issued directly by countries in the Central America region, to include Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Panama.

To be clear, this APS does not provide opportunities to receive funding from USAID ES-CAM (so please do NOT submit concept papers to it). Addenda issued following the guidelines contained in this APS, if any, will provide opportunities to work with USAID for its bilateral and regional programs.

This APS disseminates information to prospective Applicants so they may have general information about the goals and objectives of USAID/El Salvador’s CDCS, the RCS, and RDCS, to have a good understanding of the potential areas that USAID/ES-CAM envisions to support through addenda for specific activities or development challenges in El Salvador and the region. Other missions within the ES-CAM region may issue addenda under this APS that are grounded in their own CDCS as well.

This APS is a catalyst where USAID hopes to help address and achieve locally sustained results, helping to mobilize public and private resources, strengthening local capacities, and supporting local actors in tackling their own development challenges.

This APS describes and provides for the following general information:

▪ A broad description of the types of activities USAID/El Salvador anticipates the issuance of addenda in order to provide a general idea of the activities USAID envisions to implement, however, specific activities will be announced by the issuance of addenda;

▪ A brief description of the RDCS as a background to potential addenda issued by ES-CAM regional countries;

▪ Potential available funding, application process, and requirements for submitting Concept Papers;

▪ The critical selection factors for a Concept Paper; and

▪ Relevant documentation and resources.

The total anticipated level of funding under this APS and resulting addenda is $715 million. At present, the total amount available for future addenda amounts to $303 million.

The resulting awards under the addenda may include a variety of assistance instruments outlined in USAID’s policy Automated Directives System (ADS) 303.3.24 and ADS 303.3.25 such as: a) cooperative agreements, b) renewal of awards which allow to adapt within the five year maximum period of performance to changing contexts, lessons learned during implementation and allowing scalability of pilot activities; c) simplified grants for small awards on a cost reimbursement basis may be appropriate for new local organizations that propose innovative solutions; d) Fixed Amount Awards which allow payments upon the successful completion of milestones and may represent a less administrative burden to new partners.

All resulting awards will focus on the achievement of results and be sufficiently flexible to maximize activity results by responding to new development challenges including natural disasters, change interventions to those that have a greater potential, pilot new ideas, respond to central or municipal government needs, collaborate with other United States Government (USG) projects, respond to the changed local context, and/or contribute to a new USG strategy. The eligibility requirements as well as selection factors for award will be stipulated in the addenda, however, there are three critical factors that applicants must comply with in order to be considered in any addenda, as outlined in Section C of this APS.

Subject to the availability of funds, USAID anticipates the issuance of various awards to responsible applicant(s) whose concept papers best meet the objectives of the addendum and the merit review criteria contained therein. Interested organizations should read this entire APS, as well as any addenda, and follow the instructions for submitting a Concept Paper in response to a specific addendum. USAID reserves the right to fund any or none of the concept papers submitted.

USAID is available to respond to questions from Applicants about the process. Applicants should submit questions by email to the point of contact (POC) identified Section D of this APS or under the addendum through which they are submitting a concept note. Applicants should send general questions about this APS to the following Agreement Specialists: Ms. Blanca Ibarra, email:

bibarra@usaid.gov with a copy to Ms. Alejandra Quinonez at aquinonez@usaid.gov.

For the purposes of this APS the term "Grant" is synonymous with "Cooperative Agreement"; "Grantee" is synonymous with "Recipient"; and "Grant Officer" is synonymous with "Agreement Officer." Eligible organizations interested in submitting an application are encouraged to read this funding opportunity thoroughly to understand the award process.

To be eligible for award, the applicant must provide all information as required in any prospective addendum and meet eligibility standards as described in Section C of this APS. This funding opportunity is posted on www.grants.gov. Potential applicants should regularly check the websites and social media to ensure they have the latest information pertaining to this notice of funding opportunity. Applicants will need to have available or download Adobe programs to their computers in order to view and save the Adobe forms properly. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the entire APS has been received from the internet and USAID bears no responsibility for data errors resulting from transmission or conversion process. If you have difficulty registering on www.grants.gov or accessing the APS, please contact the Grants.gov Helpdesk at 1-800-518-4726 or via email at support@grants.gov for technical assistance.

Responses to questions received prior to the deadline will be furnished to all potential applicants through an amendment to this notice posted to www.grants.gov.

Issuance of this notice of funding opportunity does not constitute an award commitment on the part of the US Government nor does it commit the US Government to pay for any costs incurred in preparation or submission of comments/suggestions or an application. Please note that USAID/ES-CAM will not accept concept papers or applications under this APS but rather, only through future addenda issued during the one-year validity period of the APS. All preparation and submission costs are at the applicant’s expense and will not be recognized by USAID.

Thank you for your interest in USAID’s projects.

Sincerely, Robert Claussen Agreement Officer mailto:bibarra@usaid.gov mailto:aquinonez@usaid.gov http://www.grants.gov mailto:support@grants.gov

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SECTION PAGE NO.

SECTION A: PROGRAM DESCRIPTION 6

SECTION B: FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION 24

SECTION C: ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION 28

SECTION D: APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION 33

SECTION E: APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION 42

SECTION F: FEDERAL AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION 43

SECTION G: FEDERAL AWARDING AGENCY CONTACT(S) 46

SECTION H: OTHER INFORMATION 47

SECTION A: PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in El Salvador issues this APS under the Authority of the Foreign Assistance Act (FAA) of 1961, as amended, in order to prepare potential applicants to propose development approaches from U.S. and non-U.S. organizations who demonstrate the ability to implement activities in the following Programmatic Areas. Any resulting award(s) under any forthcoming addenda to this APS will be subject to the requirements in Part 200 of Title 2 of the Code of Federal regulations (CFR), Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards; Part 700 of Title 2 of the CFR; Standard Provisions for U.S./Non-U.S. Organizations under ADS 303 (found at https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2023-10/303_102323.pdf).

1. Overview of Funding Opportunity

The APS aligns activities responding to all Development Objectives (DOs) of USAID/El Salvador’s CDCS, Regional Development Cooperation Strategy (RDCS), the CDCSs of other USAID Missions in the Central America and Mexico region (as applicable), USAID/El Salvador’s bilateral and regional programming to respond to the Strategy to Address the Root Causes of Migration in Central America (RCS) and the Collaborative Migration Management Strategy (CMMS), the National Security Strategy, and other USG and Agency policy priorities such as Centroamerica Local, climate change and anti-corruption. Below is a brief description for each of these strategies and Agency policies:

USAID/El Salvador’s CDCS USAID/El Salvador’s CDCS goal is: Reduce the Drivers of Irregular Migration by Fostering a More Self-Reliant El Salvador: Secure, Prosperous and Well-Governed. Specifically, USAID/El Salvador will remain focused on stemming the flow of irregular migration to the United States by addressing the root causes that drive Salvadorans north, and, thereby, advance the country’s sustainable development.

The CDCS aims to focus programming demographically and geographically. Demographically, USAID/El Salvador will target activities and interventions to reach those most likely to irregularly migrate to the United States from El Salvador’s main migration hubs, and increase their sense of hope by improving economic opportunities, security, and confidence in the government. Geographically, as most likely migrants come from vulnerable communities with high crime rates, USAID/El Salvador will focus on three urban hubs which account for the majority of migration, insecurity, economic life, and population in the country: Santa Ana, San Salvador and San Miguel.

Although concentrating on these populations and hubs, USAID strives to benefit citizens nationwide by working with several national-level institutions. The strategy hinges on the idea that by improving the lives and livelihoods of Salvadorans and making the three migration hubs safer and more prosperous, USAID/El Salvador’s efforts will have positive impacts far beyond the stated demographic and geographic scope. To do this, USAID is looking to promote the effectiveness and efficiency of proposed programming.

At the Development Objective (DO) level, the Mission’s work will do the following:

DO 1. USAID/El Salvador’s security programming will improve real and perceived security by preventing crime, advancing human rights, protecting vulnerable populations and victims, and improving the criminal justice system in El Salvador. Programming will strengthen stakeholder capacity, particularly within the justice sector, to prevent crime and better protect human rights. USAID/El Salvador will champion national and local initiatives to address community violence; improve organizations’ ability to monitor and respond to human rights violations; and strengthen the justice system to more fairly and effectively prosecute criminals.

Under the APS, USAID/El Salvador seeks to implement activities that can make a significant impact on strategic results related to security, both real and perceived. While the strategic results recognize the combined effort of multiple stakeholders, the Mission will prioritize programming that offers promising approaches to “moving the needle” on the following results:

● Sustained reduction of the homicide rate in targeted areas

● Reduced gender-based violence, extortion, and transportation crime rates

● Improved citizen perception of security

DO 2. USAID/El Salvador’s economic growth and education programming will spur job creation and investment and develop the capacity of key populations, current and future, to fill formal jobs and place them in those jobs. Programming will undertake inclusive economic growth programming in select high-growth sectors in order to create jobs and enable targeted demographics to gain employment. USAID/El Salvador will emphasize strengthening the private sector’s capacity to develop new products and services. Concurrently, USAID/El Salvador will seek to improve El Salvador’s business enabling environment and capacity to build a highly skilled workforce with strong technical expertise and critical life skills, which requires access to quality primary, secondary, and tertiary education.

USAID/El Salvador’s prosperity programming will work to reach not only youth, but also to improve economic opportunities for those under 40 years old with a high school education or less.

Under the APS, USAID/El Salvador seeks to implement activities that can significantly impact on strategic results related to prosperity, primarily in human capital development and education and job creation and placement. While the strategic results recognize the combined effort of multiple stakeholders, the Mission will prioritize programming that offers promising approaches to “moving the needle” on the following results:

● Assist firms and/or sectors recover from the COVID pandemic or operate effectively in a COVID world

● Create a significant number of new and better formal jobs

● Spur billions of dollars in new investment

● Increase exports by a significant amount

● Train and place thousands of vulnerable people in better jobs

● Help schools and/or the public school system operate more effectively

● Improve educational outcomes of vulnerable primary and secondary school students

● Significantly increase primary and secondary school retention

● Assist thousands of school dropouts complete their education

DO 3. USAID/El Salvador’s governance programming will strengthen the responsiveness of government to citizen needs and demands, and reduce corruption. Programming will improve citizens’ confidence in government, both nationally and sub-nationally; result in more efficient and effective resource management and expenditure; and provide better quality service delivery that responds to citizen needs and demands. USAID/El Salvador will enhance civil society’s capacity to monitor government performance, with an emphasis on institutions related to anti-corruption and improved governance.

Programming will also strengthen free and independent media, work to ensure participatory and credible elections, and bolster transparent, well-governed political parties. If conditions permit, USAID/El Salvador will similarly support open government, government oversight, and justice institutions to fight corruption effectively. USAID/El Salvador will build on natural disaster and disaster risk reduction support to the GOES to find opportunities to expand existing capacities, create contingency plans and improve service delivery during emergencies.

Under the APS, USAID/El Salvador seeks to implement activities that can make a significant impact on strategic results related to governance, especially in advancing civil society advocacy with improvements to transparency and accountability. While the strategic results recognize the combined effort of multiple stakeholders, the Mission will prioritize programming that offers promising approaches to “moving the needle” on the following results:

● Improve the Perception Index score on corruption

● Increase citizen satisfaction with government services

● Improve demand for government services and accountability

● Improve El Salvador’s ranking on leading corruption indices.

This APS will allow interested parties to learn how to propose development activities that respond or complement Mission’s efforts that contribute to the accomplishment of the Mission’s DOs. The Mission anticipates the issuance of Addendum for specific activities under each DO and potentially supports regional activities. Any forthcoming Addendum will provide the specific development objective and results that USAID/El Salvador or other USAID Missions in the Central America and Mexico region (as applicable) is seeking to address at the country or regional level.

Regional Development Cooperation Strategy (RDCS) Addenda issued under the APS may also request concepts for activities in one or more of the following countries: Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Mexico as well as the USAID non-presence countries of Belize, Costa Rica, and Panama, in order to support the RDCS.

The 2022-2027 Regional Development Cooperation Strategy of the USAID/El Salvador, Central America & Mexico Regional Mission focuses on regional solutions to development challenges that drive irregular migration from Central America to the United States. Each year hundreds of thousands of Central Americans leave their communities in search of better lives elsewhere. Many are destined to the U.S., migrating north through Mexico. The journey is costly and dangerous, and many end up as returnees from Mexico or the U.S., who often attempt the trip again, creating a continuous cycle of irregular migration. While migration trends vary significantly from one year to the next in response to both push and pull factors, the principal push factors from Central America include a lack of economic opportunities, violence, poor governance and provision of public services, and vulnerability to climate shocks. In addition, development challenges are amplified by the after-effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and HIV/AIDS in the region continues to affect significant portions of certain vulnerable populations.

In response, the goal of the RDCS is to reduce irregular migration from Central America that is more prosperous, safe, and resilient. This will be achieved through regional programs that address regional challenges to economic prosperity, governance and security, and environment and health. Towards the goal of improving economic prosperity, regional priorities will include trade, investment, and value chains. To advance democratic governance and security, USAID will focus on sharing security information and best practices, preventing and responding to human rights abuses, countering corruption, and addressing the needs of displaced and moving populations. Finally, to strengthen resilience to environmental and health threats, regional priorities will focus on climate change adaptation and mitigation, natural resource management, and the prevention, management, and treatment of transboundary diseases.

The goal of the RDCS will be achieved through the following three Regional Development Objectives (RDOs):

RDO 1: Increase the Regional Flow of Capital and Goods RDO 2: Strengthen Regional Responses to Corruption and Citizen Security RDO 3: Improved Management of Transboundary Environmental and Health Threats

The RDOs directly support broader U.S. government (USG) strategies including the National Security Strategy, the Strategy to Address the RCS, and the CMMS along with agency-specific strategies and administration priorities. The geographic scope will maintain a central focus on El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, but will also strategically engage in Mexico, Nicaragua, and other countries in the region without a USAID mission, including Costa Rica, Belize, and Panama. The RDCS focuses on regional challenges and opportunities that drive irregular migration and require regional solutions and approaches. Specifically, the RDCS will focus on those development challenges and opportunities that meet one or more of the following criteria:

● They are transboundary and require action among multiple countries to achieve a common goal;

● They benefit from a similar development approach across multiple countries;

● A bilateral mission identifies a challenge or opportunity, and it determines that the best way to address it is through regional programming;

● There is a development need or opportunity that can be supported through regional programming in a non-presence country; or

● There is an opportunity to partner with a regional organization or private sector firm to leverage assistance or expertise to achieve a common objective in the region.

This APS will allow interested parties to learn how to propose development activities that respond or complement Mission’s efforts that contribute to the accomplishment of the Mission’s RDOs.

RCS and CMMS Addenda issued under the APS may also request concepts for activities in one or more of the following countries: Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Mexico as well as the USAID non-presence countries of Belize, Costa Rica, and Panama, in order to support the USG’s RCS and CMMS.

Centroamerica Local On November 4, 2021, USAID Administrator Samantha Power announced a five-year, $300 million initiative to empower local organizations in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to address the drivers of irregular migration to the United States. The announcement was made during the Administrator’s keynote address at Georgetown University where she presented her vision for USAID’s priorities under the Administration. Under this new initiative, Centroamérica Local, USAID intends to invest up to $300 million, subject to the availability of funds, toward engaging, strengthening, and funding local organizations to implement programs to advance sustainable and equitable economic growth, improve governance, fight corruption, protect human rights, improve citizen security, and combat sexual and gender-based violence. These programs are being carried out under the Administration's RCS and deliver on the Agency’s goal to foster greater engagement with local organizations and communities in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras and advance stability in the region.

2. Issued and Potential Addenda to this APS As of April 2024, USAID/ES-CAM has issued the following eight addenda, all of which have closed and are no longer accepting concept papers:

1. Workforce Development and Job Placement (Addendum No. 1).

2. Countering Gender-Based Violence (GBV) (Addendum No. 2).

3. Crime and Violence Prevention (Addendum No. 3).

4. Private Sector Engagement (cross-cutting) (Addendum No. 4).

5. Student Retention and Socio-Emotional Learning (Addendum No. 5).

6. Innovations (cross-cutting) (Addendum No. 6).

7. Transparency & Accountability in the Public Sector (Addendum No. 7).

8. Independent and Efficient Justice (Addendum No. 8)..

Should USAID/ES-CAM issue additional addenda during the renewal period of this APS, they will be posted in Grants.gov.

3. Extensive Partnership: Co-Creation and Shared Responsibility

To foster sustainable and transformational development impact, the award process will likely entail extensive partnering and collaboration between USAID and the Applicant from design to implementation. USAID will identify and define the required results and may jointly with the Applicant further develop how to tackle the problem, and then collaborate to determine how to solve identified problems and achieve the greatest degree of measurable, sustainable impact. USAID will assess risks and responsibilities with the Applicant, and both will work together to mobilize private sector leverage and cost share of non-private sector partners, and apply more effectively each other’s respective assets, expertise, and resources.

Awards may also be co-created, co-developed, and co-implemented. This means that, rather than telling applicants how USAID wants to solve a problem, USAID may present a development challenge, or an opportunity important to the achievement particular results, and solicit the best ideas for how to address it, and work from concept to issuance and then management of awards in an iterative, participatory, and collaborative process.

4. Cross Cutting Agency Development Approaches

USAID will seek, among other elements to be identified in prospective addenda, for proposed activities that also contribute, to the maximum extent possible, to Agency initiatives and policies, including:

A. Localization To further Localization efforts, USAID is committed to shifting more leadership, ownership, decision making, and implementation to local people and institutions because it is their capability, connectedness, and credibility that drives change in their own countries and communities to face local challenges. It is their understanding of the unique consequences, power dynamics, impacts, and complexities that will offer better potential solutions for their communities. This means that equitable, inclusive, and sustainable responses to these challenges must be built upon the priorities, knowledge, experiences, aspirations, and expertise of the people who live them every day. As such, applicants must take this important element into consideration when proposing development solutions and ideas where local partners are leading and implementing solutions to address the challenges in the countries where they reside. Furthermore, in the event that local partners are not the prime applicants, the applicant must ensure that Localization efforts are at the forefront of the activities and approaches for the developmental solutions proposed.

There is now widespread consensus that development and humanitarian assistance needs to be more responsive to the needs and priorities of local actors and communities and embrace their ideas for how to address them. The world’s development and humanitarian challenges are vast and complex, but they are also inherently local. The same is true of the many opportunities to address these challenges.

Experience has shown that local leadership in where, how, and why we collaborate is the route to greater equity, effectiveness, and sustainability.

USAID defines localization as the set of internal reforms, actions, and behavior changes that we are undertaking to ensure our work puts local actors in the lead, strengthens local systems, and is responsive to local communities.

USAID has a new Local Capacity Strengthening (LCS) policy that guides USAID decisions about why and how to invest in the capacity of local partners to better achieve inclusive and locally led development.

USAID recognizes the central importance of partnerships that result in strengthened local communities—a longstanding practice across every sector, country, and context in which the Agency works.

Through the LCS policy, USAID is committing to a unified, cohesive, and systemic approach in which USAID collaborates with local partners to:

● Define their own vision for success;

● Strengthen their ability to be effective and relevant actors within their local communities and contexts;

● Elevate local ownership in sustaining development results.

Under each addendum, USAID will strongly encourage local and locally-established organizations to submit concept papers. We will also favorably evaluate international applicants that form alliances with local partners to the greatest extent possible, including management plans that identify a local partner responsible for an objective(s) of the activity. Capacity assessments and the strengthening of local organizations should be a component when necessary. Each addendum will include the possibility of issuing more than one award. If a local organization is unable to technically respond to the entire activity, then we will encourage them to submit a concept paper to achieve an objective of the activity or pursue an alliance with an international organization. Last, each addendum will likely have a private sector engagement component and will expect applicants to identify opportunities that it will actively pursue and realize throughout implementation.

B. Private Sector Engagement USAID is undertaking a major cultural and operational transformation to expand our engagement with the private sector to achieve outcomes of shared interest and shared value. The Private Sector Engagement policy is an Agency-wide call to action and a mandate to work hand-in-hand with the private sector to design and deliver our development and humanitarian programs across all sectors. It also seeks to harness the resources of the private sector in conjunction with USAID funding. This policy signals an intentional shift to pursue market-based approaches and investment as a means to accelerate countries’ progress towards sustainable development.

Effective development work requires vibrant private sector actors in both donor and host countries.

Private sector engagement and enterprise-driven development are fundamental to the goal of ending the need for foreign assistance and empowering partner countries and communities to become more self-sufficient, and are at the core of how the United States approaches development. Many of the Mission’s long-standing partners have played an important role in connecting development activities with private sector actors. To expand and diversify partners, each addendum will view favorably a concept paper that identifies opportunities to collaborate with the private sector to obtain greater benefits from the private sector’s creative thinking and market-based and enterprise-driven solutions.

USAID/El Salvador has been one of the most proactive Missions in the region in advancing its development goals through partnerships with the private sector in areas that are aligned with the Mission’s CDCS, such as increased security, jobs and income for likely migrants, and government accountability and transparency, improved crime and violence prevention, and expanded education and workforce development opportunities among others. In FY 2023, 118 private sector companies, and philanthropic organizations contributed $13,604,017 to leverage key projects aimed at preventing irregular migration to the U.S. In addition, the Mission’s Private Sector Engagement APS Addendum resulted in $71M in leverage from the private sector. Most of the private sector companies partnering with USAID were local, fostering sustainability. USAID/El Salvador will actively seek to strengthen and expand alliances with the private sector to achieve the development objectives outlined in the CDCS and align with the strategic objectives of the RCS.

To encourage private sector engagement, USAID/ES-CAM will engage and explore partners and possibilities broadly. Prior to submission of a concept paper, the private sector, USAID, and other organizations may engage one another to understand their respective interests and objectives, identify and define issues and opportunities that might warrant collaboration, explore how their respective expertise, resources and capabilities might provide opportunities to effectively address those issues and opportunities through market-based approaches, and begin formulating potential activities and approaches. Based on these collaborative discussions, prospective partners may decide whether or not to continue in the development and submission of a concept paper under. Should a private sector organization or other prospective partner choose to submit a concept paper, the application process detailed in Section D (Application And Submission Information) must be followed.

C. Sustainable Development Sustainable development entails a capacity to plan, finance, and implement solutions to local development challenges and a commitment to see these through effectively, inclusively, with accountability, and ensuring that the use of resources by one generation does not curtail the availability of such resources to the following generations. These solutions take many forms, from expanding access to finance for small businesses to ensuring more transparency from public officials, etc.

Therefore, the focus of program interventions will be on providing opportunities to and developing the capacities of Salvadoran or regional local NGOs, civil society, businesses, foundations, faith-based organizations, experts, etc. to the greatest extent possible.

To address the long-term sustainability of programming, USAID will look for applicants that will propose activities that advance sustainable development, especially financing sustainable development, promoting private enterprise-driven development with private sector engagement, redefining partnerships that lead to autonomy rather than dependency, and strengthening partners’ resiliency, including their capacity to weather and recover from natural and manmade events. USAID will focus on building sustainable development, particularly in areas that have the greatest impact on reducing irregular migration. This includes building the capacity of key institutions so that they can better serve the people of the countries where the activities will take place, and deepening partnerships with the private sector and civil society entities in ways that enhance their sustainable development so that they champion and carry out future development efforts with reduced, and ultimately, no USAID assistance.

In order to accomplish this objective, USAID will seek out innovative approaches in partnership with the government, local institutions, NGOs and the private sector, and enable local capacity to replicate and scale up.

The U.S. government helped shape the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. USAID is committed to supporting SDGs, including SDG 8, “Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, basic education, job training, employment and decent work for all, by promoting social cohesion and investing in community-led resilience and response systems.”

D. Collaborating, learning and adapting (CLA) Applicants are expected to contribute to USAID’s commitment to a multifaceted CLA approach to development. The CLA approach is based on the understanding that development efforts yield more effective results if they are coordinated and collaborative; test promising, new approaches in a continuous yet also rapid, targeted search for generating improvements and efficiencies; and build on what works and eliminate what doesn‘t. It is also understood that CLA takes into account programmatic learning and shifts generated by the activity (outward-generating) as well as those adopted by the activity from external learning sources. USAID also anticipates that a strong focus on adaptive management techniques, as expressed through behavioral science approaches, staffing skills, structure and culture, business processes, and stakeholder engagement, will be particularly important in the implementation of the proposed activity in order to track and adjust to the opportunities to operationally integrate with other activities working in related efforts. Thus, USAID anticipates a CLA approach that tailors CLA to the needs and opportunities of the proposed activities, while leaving open options for future evolution in its interpretation and application.

• Collaborating: Implementing Partners will be required to engage in active collaboration with other key in-country partners, including other USG partners, other donors, GOES, other host governments, etc., to avoid duplication of efforts, find synergies, share knowledge around assessments, emerging research, best practices, lessons learned, and evaluations, and jointly develop action plans for integrating learning resulting from these activities into improved program implementation. By collaborating with other stakeholders, the assistance provided in the migration hubs is expected to have a greater impact and achieve more results thus benefiting more people and communities in El Salvador. The partners will be required to propose approaches to collaboration that demonstrate efficient and strategic coordination of activities. Further, partners will be expected to anticipate inter-activity management challenges and opportunities and advise AORs and CORs and the Mission’s Regional Office of Assistance and Acquisition or other Offices of Assistance and Acquisition in the region, on leveraging potential synergies, taking advantage of opportunities, and resolving challenges.

• Learning: Implementing Partners will be required to hold annual learning summits to identify promising practices, including behavioral science approaches, work collaboratively to overcome implementation obstacles, and address changing conditions. Results should be used to inform upcoming work plans and activity design across multiple stakeholders, and captured and shared broadly. Specifically define how innovative and dynamic learning agendas will be developed and implemented with the teams and the Mission as a whole. Identify learning questions to guide the gathering of information to better understand or challenge key programmatic assumptions.

https://www.usaid.gov/globalgoals#:~:text=THE%20SUSTAINABLE%20DEVELOPMENT%20GOALS%20ARE,Goals%20%E2%80%93%20both%20domestically%20and%20abroad.

• Adapting: Implementing Partners will be required to engage in periodic reflection activities using approaches such as after action reviews to identify, capture, and act upon lessons learned in technical, cross-cutting, and management activities. The applicant will demonstrate adaptability that is informed by knowledge gained through learning, and recognize behaviors and incentives necessary to create change. Knowledge gained through learning will influence decision making, resource allocation, and adaptation to contextual shifts. Application of new knowledge to implementation decisions will be reflected in the semi-annual work plan, and the Activity Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Plan (Activity MEL Plan). Decisions to adapt may be based on, but not limited to the following:

● Sudden or unexpected changes in the operating environment (i.e., emergency or natural disaster, policy changes);

● Financial and human resource constraints; and

● Emerging evidence that interventions are not working or could work better if adapted.

E. Communication Strategy Communications and public perception are critical to the achievement of USAID/El Salvador’s development objectives to improve security, increase prosperity and strengthen democratic governance. Together with our partners, local stakeholders, and the communities in which we work, USAID promotes an increased level of hope for Salvadorans living a good life at home, measured by improvements in educational and economic opportunities, security, and government. Each activity will contribute to this shared objective and will provide a communications plan demonstrating how the partner and the activity will utilize communications to achieve results and how the activity contributes to higher level objectives of increased hope and improved public perceptions. USAID/El Salvador’s Development Outreach Communications Office will coordinate with communications leads of all partners regularly to align efforts, refine messaging and national campaigns, and encourage partners’ continued understanding and development of communications products that prioritize USAID communication goals. For activities to be implemented outside of El Salvador, the successful applicant will coordinate with the designated Agreement Officer Representative.

F. Geographic Focus of Potential Interventions Potential future addenda may focus on El Salvador. Where appropriate, addenda issued under the APS may request concepts for bilateral or regional programming in countries to include one or more of the following: Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua as well as the USAID non-presence countries of Belize, Costa Rica, and Panama to support the achievement of RCS, CMMS or RDCS objectives.

El Salvador: Migration Hubs definition (labeled as “urban hubs” in the USAID/El Salvador CDCS):

USAID/El Salvador is focused geographically on El Salvador’s three migration hubs where most people live and work, and from which the majority of people attempting to irregularly migrate to the United States originate. The Mission has analyzed data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the International Organization for Migration to understand migration outflows and returns, and mapped those data points to target the areas in need of assistance. USAID has also examined areas with the greatest economic potential, and coordinated with colleagues from the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, the Justice Department, and local stakeholders to identify areas targeted for crime reduction. This analysis resulted in the geographic focus on the migration hubs of San Salvador, San Miguel, and Santa Ana (see the map below). Although most USAID programming will target these areas, making these hubs safer and more prosperous will have positive impacts far beyond their limited geographic area, and some activities will expand beyond these boundaries. High impact approaches proposed in response to addenda that target geographies outside of the described migration hubs will also be considered as long as the proposed activity responds to the technical requirements of the addenda.

On June 22, 2023, the promulgation of the Ley Especial para la Reestructuración Municipal required the consolidation of El Salvador 's 262 existing municipalities into 44 new municipalities. The consolidation will go into effect when the 44 newly-elected mayors begin their tenure in May 2024.

The following is the list of districts where interventions are to be focused in El Salvador:

1. Migration Hub: Western (18 districts): Ahuachapán (in the municipality of Ahuachapán Centro); San Francisco Menéndez (in the municipality of Ahuachapán Sur); San Antonio Pajonal, Santiago de la Frontera, Candelaria de la Frontera, El Porvenir, Chalchuapa, San Sebastián Salitrillo (in the municipality of Santa Ana Oeste); Texistepeque (in the municipality of Santa Ana Norte); El Congo, Coatepeque (in the municipality of Santa Ana Este); Santa Ana (in the municipality of Santa Ana Centro); Armenia, Caluco, Izalco, San Julián (in the municipality of Sonsonate Este); Nueva Concepción, San Pablo Tacachico (in the municipality of La Libertad Norte).

2. Migration Hub: Central (27 districts): San Matías, Quezaltepeque (in the municipality of La Libertad Norte); San Juan Opico (in the municipality of La Libertad Centro); Colón (in the municipality of La Libertad Oeste); Antiguo Cuscatlán, Zaragoza, San José Villanueva, Huizúcar, Nuevo Cuscatlán (in the municipality of La Libertad Este); Comasagua, Santa Tecla (in the municipality of La Libertad Sur); La Libertad (in the municipality of La Libertad Costa); Nejapa, Apopa (in the municipality of San Salvador Oeste); Tonacatepeque, Soyapango, Ilopango (in the municipality of San Salvador Este); Cuscatancingo, Ayutuxtepeque, Ciudad Delgado, San Salvador, Mejicanos (in the municipality of San Salvador Centro);

San Marcos, Santo Tomás, Santiago Texacuangos, Panchimalco, Rosario de Mora (in the municipality of San Salvador Sur).

3. Migration Hub: Eastern (28 districts) Berlín, Alegría, Santiago de María, Jucuapa (in the municipality of Usulután Norte); San Agustín, San Francisco Javier, Jiquilisco, Puerto El Triunfo (in the municipality of Usulután Oeste); Tecapán, Ozatlán, Usulután, San Dionisio, Santa Elena, California, Jucuarán, Concepción Batres, Santa María, Ereguayquín (in the municipality of Usulután Este); Chirilagua, San Miguel (in the municipality of San Miguel Centro); Chinameca, San Jorge, San Rafael Oriente, El Tránsito (in the municipality of San Miguel Oeste); , El Carmen (in the municipality of Cuscatlán Sur); La Unión, Conchagua, Intipucá (in the municipality of La Unión Sur).

Regional activities: Addenda issued under the APS may request concepts for regional programming in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua as well as the USAID non-presence countries of Belize, Costa Rica, and Panama to achieve the strategic objectives outlined in the RCS. The nature and scope of regional activities to be authorized under this APS will be defined in the corresponding addenda.

G. Gender and Inclusive Development Considerations Per ADS 205, USAID strives to deliberately promote Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment, in which women, girls, men, and boys, and gender-diverse individuals, have equal opportunity to benefit from and contribute to economic, social, cultural, and political development; and are equally empowered to secure better lives for themselves, their households, their communities, and their countries.

Therefore, all activities must integrate gender considerations to contribute to the achievement of any of the four strategic objectives of the 2023 USAID Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Policy:

● Reduce gender disparities in who accesses, controls, and benefits from economic, social, political, legal, educational, health, and cultural resources, as well as wealth, opportunities, and services;

● Strive to eliminate gender-based violence and mitigate its harmful effects on individuals and communities, so all people can live free from violence;

● Increase the capability of women and girls to fully exercise their rights, determine their life outcomes, assume leadership roles, and influence decision-making in households, communities, and societies;

● Advance structural changes that address the root causes of gender inequality and promote equitable gender norms.

In El Salvador, analyzing the current situation and the needs presented by vulnerable populations such as women, youth, people with disabilities, indigenous peoples, and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) community, USAID research and studies have found that these vulnerable groups have continued to experience discrimination in all areas, but mainly in the fulfillment of social, economic, and employment rights. As a result, it is very important to become aware of the needs and priorities of these vulnerable populations in Salvadoran society or in other countries in the region. Therefore, the USAID’s inclusive development policies need to be taken into account from the design and implementation of USAID programming to advocate for, and outreach to, people from vulnerable populations, and the activity should integrate these guidelines throughout, including in its implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.

More information can be found at 2023 USAID Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment Policy and the ADS 201 Additional Help on Inclusive Development.

H. Do No Harm USAID abides by a foundational principle of “do no harm.” “Do no harm” means that the Mission takes measures to ensure that the development assistance efforts do not put vulnerable groups such as women, LGBTQI+ individuals, people with disabilities, and indigenous persons, among others, at increased risk of harm or raise their public profiles in such a way that could lead to a backlash.

Therefore, concepts should ensure that proposed interventions do not produce physical, financial, or other harm to women, men, or the vulnerable groups mentioned above as a result of the interventions.

I. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) As a whole, DEIA is a set of values that USAID aspires to promote and integrate across our people, programs, partnerships, policies, and processes. Here are the definitions of each aspect of DEIA:

Diversity is the variety of similarities and differences within the workforce that extend across a wide range of identities and intersectionalities. These include, but are not limited to: race, color, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sex characteristics, disability, native or indigenous origin, age, generation, culture, religion, belief system, marital status, parental status, socio-economic status, appearance, language and accent, education, geography, nationality, lived experience, job function, personality type, and thinking style.

Equity is the consistent and systematic fair, just, and impartial treatment of all individuals, including individuals who belong to underserved communities that have been denied such treatment. Equity is distinct from equality.