Economic Diversification and Access to Finance in Bahrain Q&A.pdf

Economic Diversification and Access to Finance in Bahrain NOFO Questions Opportunity Number: SFOP0007727

1) The NOFO provides that “All Result Monitoring Plans (RMPs) should include the following objective, based on the proposed project:

Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) create jobs and contribute to a diversified, thriving private sector o Sub-objective: Increased opportunities for entrepreneurship and self-employment”

There seems to be a tension between the objective and sub-objective. The objective speaks to the program’s focus on accelerating / scaling-up growth-oriented SMEs and the job creation that would come with that. The sub-objective is geared more towards early-stage entrepreneurs, startups, and self-employment. These would seem to target different profiles of entrepreneurs, which would require different programmatic approaches. Could NEA clarify this apparent tension and the desired focus for the project?

ANSWER: The main objective and desired focus for this NOFO is that programming should be focused on accelerating/scaling-up growth-oriented SMEs. Please note that the NOFO has been revised to more accurately reflect the sub-objective we are seeking for this project.

2) In Section II of the NOFO, it is noted that, “successful applicants will work with the NEA/AC program and monitoring and evaluation (M&E) teams to create a plan based on the proposed logic model/theory of change to measure qualitative and quantitative indicators as part of the award negotiations process.” However, in Section VII part A, the Achievable Objectives state that, “M&E: The applicant explains how monitoring and evaluation activities will be carried out throughout the award’s period of performance and who will be responsible for them.”

Could NEA clarify what M&E plans and/or documents are required at time of submission?

ANSWER: Per section V., A.1. Required Documents on page 12 of the NOFO, applicants shall provide a logic model at time of application. Please refer to this section for specific information regarding the logic model.