GH15-1569 Rwanda FINAL FOA 8.26.14.docx

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Division of Global HIV/AIDS Center for Global Health Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

CDC-RFA-GH15-1569

Implementing an Electronic Monitoring and Reporting System in the Republic of Rwanda under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA)

CDC-RFA-GH15-1569 Page 1

Contents

Part I. Overview Information Applicants must go to the synopsis page of this announcement at www.grants.gov and click on the “Send Me Change Notifications Emails” link to ensure they receive notifications of any changes to CDC-RFA-GH15-1569. Applicants also must provide an e-mail address to www.grants.gov to receive notifications of changes.

Federal Agency Name

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Funding Opportunity Title

Implementing an Electronic Monitoring and Reporting System in the Republic of Rwanda under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)

Announcement Type:

New-Type 1

This announcement is only for non-research international activities supported by CDC. If research is proposed, the application will not be considered. Research for this purpose is defined at:

http://www.cdc.gov/od/science/integrity/docs/cdc-policy-distinguishing-public-health-research-nonresearch.pdf.

Agency Funding Opportunity Number

CDC-RFA-GH15-1569

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number

93.067 Global AIDS program

Dates

1. Letter of Intent Deadline Date: N/A

Application Deadline Date: October 10, 2014, 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Standard Time, on www.grants.gov

Informational conference call or pre-application workshop if held in person for potential applicants: Please contact the Project Officer listed at the end of this FOA for information regarding the pre-application workshop.

Executive Summary

1. Summary Paragraph

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) addresses the strong need for an electronic repository system in Rwanda. The system will be a web-based monitoring and reporting system to be used by all USG PEPFAR-funded agencies and implementing partners operating in the country, including the Rwandan Ministry of Health, the Rwanda Biomedical Center, and other PEPFAR implementing partners. An initial assessment of the existing electronic system will provide insights on whether or not maintenance, upgrade, or the development of a new platform will address the needs of PEPFAR Rwanda. A flexible and stable platform is needed and will serve as the unique repository of PEPFAR Rwanda program data at the country level. It will be used to generate PEPFAR periodic reports, including the semi-annual and annual progress reports and additional ad hoc requests. The purpose of this FOA is to develop a new system or upgrade and maintain the existing web-based reporting system that has been in place since 2008 and build local capacity within the USG team to manage and maintain the system. The system should include automated checks for data quality. In doing so, the system will add new functionality (e.g., dashboard to easily view achievement of indicators, etc.) as well as add additional data variables to be used for HIV program planning and implementation. The Division of HIV/AIDS at the Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC) will be one of the major users of the data stored and managed on the system, and the successful applicant will be expected to work closely with this division to refine some of the data elements collected to ensure harmonization with the national system.

a. Eligible Applicants: Fully Competitive

b. FOA Type: Cooperative Agreement

c. Approximate Number of Awards: 1

d. Total Project Period Funding: None

e. Average One Year Award Amount: $310,000.00

f. Number of Years of Award: 5 Years

g. Approximate Date When Awards will be Announced: February 2015

h. Cost Sharing and /or Matching Requirement: N/A

Part II. Full Text

1. Funding Opportunity Description

Background:

The PEPFAR Rwanda programs was established in 2003 and has been an interagency effort implemented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Department of Defense (DOD), Peace Corps (PC) and the Department of State (DOS) in collaboration with the Rwandan government. The program includes prevention, care, and treatment activities as well as system strengthening interventions implemented by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and local and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The prevalence of HIV in Rwanda has dropped to 3% according to the 2010 Demographic and Health survey. As of September 30, 2013, the program cares for 75,013 patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART), representing 60% of the national achievements. In part of its implementation, the PEPFAR program provided substantial support for the design and maintenance of an electronic reporting system managed by the Ministry of Health. Since 2008, the Rwanda PEPFAR program has had its own electronic reporting system used to collect and store program data. This reporting system allows the USG PEPFAR interagency team to meet reporting requirements from the Office of Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC) and agency headquarters in a timely manner.

The partner reporting system under this FOA will allow the PEPFAR interagency team to address challenges meeting the OGAC reporting requirements while working with the government to integrate with or transition to the Rwanda health information system. Activities under this FOA will add automated data quality checks to help ensure that information available through this system accurately informs the implementation of the program and allow reporting to Congress. The system will reside at the Rwanda Ministry of Health and will become ultimately become the property of the Government of Rwanda (GOR).

Statutory Authorities

This program is authorized under Public Law 108-25 (the United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria Act of 2003) [22 U.S.C. 7601, et seq.] and Public Law 110-293 (the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008), and Public Law 113-56 (PEPFAR Stewardship and Oversight Act of 2013).

The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has called for immediate, comprehensive and evidence based action to turn the tide of global HIV/AIDS. The overarching purpose of this FOA is to fund activities to prevent or control disease or injury and improve health, or to improve a public health program or service. Recipients may not use funds for research. Certain activities that may require human subjects review due to institutional requirements but that are generally considered not to constitute research (e.g., formative assessments, surveys, disease surveillance, program monitoring and evaluation, field evaluation of diagnostic tests, etc.) may be funded through this mechanism.

Healthy People 2020:

Healthy People 2020 provides national health objectives for improving the health of all persons by encouraging collaborations across sectors, guiding individuals toward making informed health decisions, and measuring the impact of prevention activities. Additional information on Healthy People 2020 is available at http://www.healthypeople.gov.

PEPFAR Priorities and Strategies

Under the leadership of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator, as part of the President's Emergency Plan, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (HHS/CDC) works with host countries and other key partners to assess the needs of each country and design a customized program of assistance that fits within the host nation's strategic plan and partnership framework.

HHS/CDC focuses primarily on two or three major program areas in each country. Goals and priorities include the following:

In an effort to ensure maximum cost efficiencies and program effectiveness, HHS/CDC also supports coordination with and among partners and integration of activities that promote Global Health Initiative principles. As such, grantees may be requested to participate in programmatic activities that include the following activities:

This announcement is only for non-research activities supported by CDC. If research is proposed, the application will not be reviewed. For the definition of research, please see the CDC Web site at the following Internet address: http://www.cdc.gov/od/science/integrity/docs/cdc-policy-distinguishing-public-health-research-nonresearch.pdf

Other National Public Health Priorities and Strategies:

N/A

Relevant Work:

This FOA will assist the Rwanda interagency PEPFAR team to collect, store, and report PEPFAR program performance to OGAC, agencies’ respective headquarters, and the Government of Rwanda (GOR). The reporting system developed under this FOA will allow the USG PEPFAR interagency team to maintain quality data that will be used to inform the decision making process for the PEPFAR Rwanda program.

CDC Project Description

1. Approach:

Activities

Short-Term Outcomes (1-2 years) Intermediate Outcomes (3-4 years) Long-Term Outcomes (5th year)

Facilitated, guided session with USG team to assist their determination of how to address the gaps (e.g., build on the existing system or use another one) Enhanced understanding of current reporting system by the USG team and the awardee based on assessment report to facilitate USG determination whether - to enhance existing platform or develop a new system

Increased availability and quality of data

Fully functional web-based reporting and storage platform containing PEPFAR program data in Rwanda to allow increased high quality HIV program data for decision -making

Increased access to secured data for end-users including USG team, implementing partners and GOR Maintained level of service availability (24/7)

System administrator’s user manuals for maintenance and SOPs developed Increased capacity and integration of USG interagency team in system maintenance and upgrade requirements

Increased responsibility by the USG interagency team for system maintenance and incorporating upgrades

Maintained capacity of USG interagency team in system maintenance and upgrade requirements and full transition of this responsibility

SOPs and user manuals developed Increased knowledge and usage of the system by all users for quality data reporting of PEPFAR performance

Sustained proper usage of the system by activity managers and implementing partners to collect data and report on PEPFAR performance

Increased responsibility by the USG interagency team for performing data quality checks PEPFAR data

Maintained high quality of PEPFAR program data

Improved quality (completeness, accuracy, and timeliness) of Semi and Annual Progress Reports

Problem Statement:

The Rwanda PEPFAR program is managed by four USG agencies, including CDC, USAID, DOD, Peace Corps and DOS, through various implementing mechanisms. These agencies are required to report to their respective agencies. Additionally and most importantly, the USG country team is mandated to provide periodic reports including the semi-annual report and the annual report to OGAC. The country team also needs to respond to some ad hoc requests either from their respective agencies headquarters or from OGAC. The USG PEPFAR team in Rwanda has provided substantial support for the design and maintenance of an electronic reporting system to collect and store program data in order to meet the OGAC and agency headquarters reporting requirements in a timely manner. There is a need to assess the current system to determine if a new system should be developed or the current system should be upgraded and maintained. There is also a need to build capacity within the USG PEPFAR interagency team to manage and maintain the current system. The key beneficiaries of this system will be the Government of Rwanda (GOR) entities, including the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC), the implementing partners working on the PEPFAR program, and the USG agencies providing PEPFAR assistance.

Purpose

The development and implementation of a strong and reliable electronic health information system is at the core for the PEPFAR country operations plan (COP) technical considerations to guaranty proper data collection, storage and reporting to OGAC collaboratively with the host country. To support this process, the main purpose of this FOA is to fund an implementing partner to:

· Develop or upgrade and initially maintain a flexible and stable web-based reporting system that collects, stores, and generates PEPFAR program data and reports based on the findings of the initial assessment of the system

· Build local capacity within the USG team to manage and maintain the system

· Implement manual and automated processes to validate the quality of the PEPFAR data collected by the implementing partners and to resolve discrepancies

Although the system upgraded or developed under this FOA is primarily for the use of the USG team, it will initiate the migration of the Rwanda health information system into this developed USG reporting system. This intersection of the two systems will allow both the USG as well as the host country to benefit from the same data, so that essentially the two systems will mirror one another. Activities to ensure this migration are covered under a separate FOA.

Outcomes

By the end of the first year of the project, the applicant should be able to provide a flexible and stable reporting system with a friendly-user interface. The expected 24/7 service level availability is expected to be between 99% - 100%. The applicant is fully responsible for this running uptime and will be required to provide regular status reports.

The applicant will provide training to designated USG staff so they can assume responsibility for managing and upgrading the system at the end of the project. Two to three staff will be trained for this purpose. Additionally, all end-users of the system including USG staff and implementing partners will be trained to improve and maintain the quality of data reported under the MER indicators. Data quality must be maintained in the system to generate the semi-annual and annual progress reports as well as any other ad hoc reports in a timely manner.

Funding Strategy

N/A

Strategies and Activities

Strategies and activities for this FOA are as follows below:

· Conduct a thorough review to include current technology, training strategies and materials, management and organizational structure, data quality/use and standard system-generated reports, among other elements.

· Host, maintain, upgrade, and transition a web based reporting system for monitoring USG PEPFAR Rwanda activities, built on a scalable and flexible technical platform that can be adapted for future requirements/needs

· Incorporate new functionalities (as required) to match current stakeholder (USG, Implementing partners) requirements and follow national & international standards

· Maintain/provide secure, role-based access to the web-based reporting system to all end-users including USG Activity Managers, the PEPFAR Strategic Information team, program managers, and PEPFAR prime implementing partners

· Ensure a 24/7 minimum service level availability of 99% of the web based reporting system

· Provide user training and technical support remotely and locally

· Implement periodic update of data entry fields (indicator or data elements) to reflect changes at both PEPFAR and/or GOR level

· Ensure that the system is flexible as far as USG administrators, with minimal external support, have the capacity to modify, change, and adapt data entry screens and forms as reporting requirements evolve or change

· Develop a detailed sustainability plan which includes the transfer of knowledge and skills to USG PEPFAR Interagency team

· Maintain a master service delivery point registry that includes all services supported through PEPFAR

· Incorporate global position system (GPS) codes for all health facilities

· Incorporate MOH health facilities numeric identification codes

· Develop/adapt end-users including super-users training manuals

· Develop/adapt system administration manual that includes clear standard procedures for creating accounts, modifying data representation screens, adapting/modifying forms, trouble shooting, bug reporting, data backup, etc.

· Provide on-site training to all USG Activity Managers and at least two staff members of prime partners for the use of the reporting system including an orientation to the PRS and training in indicator definitions and purpose

· Provide timely and efficient on-site technical support to the USG and Prime Partners during the USG Semi-Annual and Annual Progress Report periods.

1. Collaborations: Left blank intentionally

a. With CDC funded programs:

The applicant will work closely with the CDC Strategic Information team. The CDC Strategic Information team lead will be the primary technical point of contact for the implementation of the project. All programmatic interaction with CDC activity managers, interagency team leads, and the USG Strategic Liaison will go through the CDC SI team lead or designated person.

b. With organizations external to CDC:

The scope of work for this FOA requires the applicant to provide technical assistance (TA) for the use of the system to PEPFAR USG agencies (USAID, DOD, DOS, Peace Corps), GOR Ministry of Health, and other PEPFAR implementing partners.

2. Target Populations:

N/A

Inclusion:

N/A

Evaluation and Performance Measurement:

1. CDC Evaluation and Performance Measurement Strategy:

CDC, in collaboration with the successful applicant, will conduct quarterly periodic process monitoring of the system. Uptime running logs will be implemented on the system to allow easy-generated reports accessible to both CDC and the applicant. Data from the running time logs along with the perspectives of end-users collected through interviews will be used to assess the service availability level of the system, which should not go below 99%. Additionally, the following key performance measures that will be used to assess the applicant:

· The 24/7 service availability level of the system (minimum 99% per day)

· Proportion of end-users of the system that reported that the reporting system is friendly and useful for program monitoring /management at midterm and final evaluation

· Target: 80-90% of the end-users reported that the system is friendly and useful for program monitoring and management

· Proportion of end-users trained who are able to use the system without assistance

· Target: 100% of end-users trained and consistently using the system

· Number of system administrators trained who are able to manage and maintain the system without assistance by the end of the project

· Target: 2-3 system administrators trained

· Proportion of HIV program indicators accurately reported and stored onto the system

· Target: 90-100% of HIV program indicators are accurately reported and stored on the electronic reporting system

· Proportion of HIV program indicators that are timely and completely reported

· Target: 90-100% of HIV program indicators are timely and completely reported on the electronic reporting system

At year 3, CDC will work closely with the applicant and key stakeholders to conduct a process evaluation to assess the performance of the project. This evaluation will focus on the usability of the system, the training process and training outcomes, the usefulness of the system, and the quality of the data collected. Findings from this evaluation will be used to refine the project implementation. This is a participatory project evaluation including all stakeholders (USG, applicant, and users of the system). Key question to address during this midterm review of the program is:

· To what extent is the implementation of the electronic reporting system progressing towards improving PEPFAR data quality through the following dimensions: completeness, timeliness, accuracy?

· What is the level of perceived usefulness and friendliness of the electronic reporting system by all end-users (from USG team, Implementing partners, GOR/MOH)?

At year 5, a final evaluation will be implemented to assess the level of achievement of the outcomes identified in the logic model. The main evaluation question to address during this final evaluation is: To what extent does the implementation of the electronic reporting system contribute to improve and maintain high quality PEPFAR data through a reliable and stable platform? More details are provided below in the table. Additional performance measures and evaluation questions can be provided by the applicant as necessary. It is strongly recommended that 5 - 10% of the budget be allocated to the monitoring and evaluation activities under this FOA.

To what extent is the implementation of the electronic USG reporting system progressing towards improving PEPFAR data quality through the following dimensions: completeness, timeliness, accuracy?

Quarterly review of data during site visit to the implementing partner conducted by the CDC grant and technical team

Elaborate quarterly, semi-annual and annual report provided by the implementing partner to CDC

Develop and action plan to address evaluation findings

USG partner reporting system database Midterm evaluation

Final evaluation Midterm (third year)

Final evaluation (fifth year)

USG partner reporting system database Midterm evaluation

Final evaluation Midterm

What is the level of perceived usefulness and friendliness of the electronic reporting system by all end-users (from USG team, Implementing partners, GOR/MOH)?

Proportion of end-users of the system that reported that the reporting system is friendly and useful for program monitoring /management

Training records Midterm evaluation (third year)

USG partner reporting system database Midterm evaluation

Final evaluation Midterm

USG partner reporting system database

Applicant Evaluation and Performance Measurement Plan:

Organizational Capacity of Awardees to Execute the Approach:

Applicant must be able to manage program performance, evaluation, performance monitoring, financial reporting, and must have capacity to manage the required funds in accordance with the HHS Grants Policy Statement, which can be found at: http://www.hhs.gov/asfr/ogapa/aboutog/hhsgps107.pdf

Work Plan:

Applicant must include a work plan that demonstrates how the outcomes, strategies, activities, timelines, and staffing will take place over the course of the award. Applicants must submit a detailed work plan for the first year of the project and a high level plan for the subsequent years.

CDC Monitoring and Accountability Approach

Monitoring may also include the following activities:

· Other activities deemed necessary to monitor the award, if applicable.

These may include monitoring and reporting activities as outlined in HHS grants policy that assists grants management staff (e.g., grants management officers and specialists, and project officers) in the identification, notification, and management of high-risk grantees.

CDC Program Support to Awardees

In a cooperative agreement, CDC staff is substantially involved in the program activities, above and beyond routine grant monitoring. CDC activities for this program are as follows:

1. Organize an orientation meeting with the grantee for a briefing on applicable U.S. Government, HHS/CDC, and President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) expectations, regulations and key management requirements, as well as report formats and contents. The orientation could include meetings with staff from HHS agencies and the Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC).

2. Review and make recommendations as necessary to the process used by the grantee to select key personnel and/or post-award subcontractors and/or subgrantees to be involved in the activities performed under this agreement, as part of the President's Emergency Plan for Relief (PEPFAR) Country Operational Plan (COP) review and approval process, managed by the OGAC.

3. Review and approve grantee’s annual work plan and detailed budget, as part of the Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief Country Operational Plan review-and-approval process, managed by the Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator.

4. Review and approve the grantee’s monitoring and evaluation plan, including for compliance with the strategic information guidance established by the OGAC.

5. Meet on a regular basis with the grantee to assess expenditures in relation to approved work plan and modify plans as necessary.

6. Meet on a quarterly basis with the grantee to assess quarterly technical and financial progress reports and modify plans as necessary.

7. Meet on an annual basis with the grantee to review annual progress report for each U.S. Government Fiscal Year, and to review annual work plans and budgets for the subsequent year, as part of the PEPFAR review and approval process for COPs, managed by OGAC.

8. Provide technical assistance, as mutually agreed upon, and revise annually during validation of the first and subsequent annual work plans. This could include expert technical assistance and targeted training activities in specialized areas, such as strategic information, project management, and confidential counseling and testing.

9. Provide in-country administrative support to help the grantee meet U.S. Government financial and reporting requirements approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under 0920-0428.

10. Collaborate with the grantee on designing and implementing the activities listed above, including, but not limited to: the provision of technical assistance to develop program activities, data management and analysis, quality assurance, the presentation and possibly publication of program results and findings, and the management and tracking of finances.

11. Provide technical assistance or advice on any data collections on 10 or more people that are planned or conducted by the awardee. All such data collections-- where CDC staff will be or are approving, directing, conducting, managing, or owning data-- must undergo OMB project determinations by CDC and may require OMB PRA clearance prior to the start of the project.

12. Provide consultation and scientific and technical assistance based on appropriate HHS/CDC and OGAC documents to promote the use of best practices known at the time.

13. Assist the grantee in developing and implementing quality-assurance criteria and procedures.

14. Facilitate in-country planning and review meetings for technical assistance activities.

15. Provide technical oversight for all activities under this award.

16. Conduct service delivery site visits through the Site Monitoring System (SMS) to monitor and evaluate site capacity to provide high-quality HIV/AIDS services in all program areas by assessing and scoring key program area elements of site performance and work with the grantee on identified gaps and continuous quality improvement.

17. Provide ethical reviews, as necessary, for evaluation activities, including from HHS/CDC headquarters. Evaluations can be process, outcome or impact.

A. Process Evaluation: measures how the intervention was delivered, what worked/did not, differences between the intended population and the population served, and access to the intervention.

B. Outcome Evaluation: determines effects of intervention in target population(s) (e.g., change in knowledge, attitudes, behavior, capacity, etc.).

C. Impact Evaluation: measures net effects of program and prove of causality

18. Supply the awardee with protocols for related evaluations.

Award Information

1. Type of Award:

Cooperative Agreement: CDC’s substantial involvement in this program is indicated in the “CDC program Support to Awardees” section of this document.

1. Award Mechanism:

U2G-Global HIV/AIDS Non-Research Cooperative Agreements

1. Fiscal Year:

1. Approximate Total Fiscal Year Funding:

$310,000.00

1. Approximate Total Project Period Funding:

None

1. Total Project Period Length:

5 Years

1. Approximate Number of Awards:

1. Approximate Average Award:

$310,000.00

1. Floor of Individual Award Range:

None

1. Ceiling of Individual Award Range:

$310,000.00 (This amount is subject to the availability of funds).

1. Anticipated Award Date:

April 1, 2015

1. Budget Period Length:

12 months

Throughout the project period, CDC will continue the award based on the availability of funds, the evidence of satisfactory progress by the awardee (as documented in required reports), and the determination that continued funding is in the best interest of the federal government. The total number of years for which federal support has been approved (project period) will be shown in the “Notice of Award.” This information does not constitute a commitment by the federal government to fund the entire period. The total project period comprises the initial competitive segment and any subsequent non-competitive continuation award(s).

Note: Applicants must only apply for the first budget period funding, taking into consideration the floor of the individual award range and the ceiling of the individual award range. The proposed budget for the first budget period must not exceed the ceiling of the individual award range. If a funding amount greater than the ceiling of the individual award range is requested, the application will be considered non-responsive and will not be entered into the review process.

1. Funds Tracking:

Applicant is required to track fund by P-accounts/sub accounts for each project/cooperative agreement awarded.

1. Direct Assistance:

Direct assistance is not available through this FOA

1. Indirect Costs:

Indirect costs will not be reimbursed under grants to foreign organizations, international organizations, and foreign components of grants to domestic organizations (does not affect indirect cost reimbursement to the domestic entity for domestic activities). The CDC will not reimburse indirect costs unless the recipient has an indirect cost rate covering the applicable activities and period.

Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants:

Eligible applicants that can apply for this FOA are listed below:

Government Organizations:

Non-government Organizations:

Colleges and Universities

Community-based organizations

Faith-based organizations

For-profit organizations (other than small business)

Hospitals

Small, minority, and women-owned businesses

All Other eligible organizations

PEPFAR Local Partner definition:

To be considered eligible as a local partner under this Funding Opportunity Announcement, the applicant must submit supporting documentation demonstrating how their organization meets one of the three criteria listed below under the “PEPFAR Local Partner definition.” The supporting documentation must be included in the Appendices of the application and must be labeled as “Eligibility Documentation for PEPFAR Local Partner Definition.” Applicants that do not provide and/or label the supporting documentation required to meet the PEPFAR Local Partner definition above will not be considered eligible for review.

Under PEPFAR, a “local partner” may be an individual or sole proprietorship, an entity, or a joint venture or other arrangement. However, to be considered a local partner in a given country served by PEPFAR, the partner must meet the criteria under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) below:

(1) an individual must be a citizen or lawfully admitted permanent resident of and have his/her principal place of business in the country served by the PEPFAR program with which the individual is or may become involved, and a sole proprietorship must be owned by such an individual; or

(2) an entity (e.g., a corporation or partnership):

a) must be incorporated or legally organized under the laws of, and have its principal place of business in, the country served by the PEPFAR program with which the entity is or may become involved;

b) must be at 75% for FY2015 beneficially owned by individuals who are citizens or lawfully admitted permanent residents of that same country, per sub-paragraph (2)(a), or by other corporations, partnerships or other arrangements that are local partners under this paragraph or paragraph (3);

c) at least 75% for FY 2015 of the entity’s staff (senior, mid-level, support) must be citizens or lawfully admitted permanent residents of that same country, per sub-paragraph (2)(a), and at least 75% for FY 2015 of the entity’s senior staff (i.e., managerial and professional personnel) must be citizens or lawfully admitted permanent residents of such country; and

d) where an entity has a Board of Directors, at least 51% of the members of the Board must also be citizens or lawfully admitted permanent residents of such country; or

(3) a joint venture, unincorporated association, consortium, or other arrangement in which at least 75% for FY 2015 of the funding under the PEPFAR award is or will be provided to members who are local partners under the criteria in paragraphs (1) or (2) above, and a local partner is designated as the managing member of the organization. Partner government ministries (e.g., Ministry of Health), sub-units of government ministries, and parastatal organizations in the country served by the PEPFAR program are considered local partners. A parastatal organization is defined as a fully or partially government-owned or government-funded organization. Such enterprises may function through a board of directors, similar to private corporations. However, ultimate control over the organization rests with the government.

Note: To be considered a local partner, the applicant must submit supporting documentation demonstrating their organization meets at least one of the three criteria listed above.

Special Eligibility Requirements:

All applications will be initially reviewed for completeness by the Procurement and Grants Office (PGO) staff. Applications that do not include a budget narrative and project narrative will be determined non-responsive. Complete applications will be jointly reviewed for responsiveness by HHS/CDC Division of Global HIV/AIDS and PGO. Non-responsive applications will not advance through the review process. Applicants will be notified the application did not meet eligibility and/or published submission requirements.

Non-Responsive Criteria The list below contains criteria for determining responsiveness to this FOA:

Page Limitations

Justification for Less than Maximum Competition:

N/A

Other:

N/A

Cost Sharing or Matching:

Cost sharing or matching funds are not required for this program. Although there is no statutory match requirement for this FOA, leveraging other resources and related ongoing efforts to promote sustainability is strongly encouraged.

Maintenance of Effort:

Maintenance of Effort is not required for this program.

Application and Submission Information

Additional materials that may be helpful to applicants:

http://www.cdc.gov/od/pgo/funding/docs/FinancialReferenceGuide.pdf.

1. Required Registrations:

The applicant organization may request a DUNS number by telephone at 1-866-705-5711 (toll free) or internet at http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform/displayHomePage.do. The DUNS number will be provided at no charge.

If funds are awarded to an applicant organization that includes sub-awardees, those sub-awardees must provide their DUNS numbers before accepting any funds.

b. System for Award Management (SAM): The SAM is the primary registrant database for the federal government and the repository into which an entity must submit information required to conduct business as an awardee. All applicant organizations must register with SAM, and will be assigned a SAM number. All information relevant to the SAM number must be current at all times during which the applicant has an application under consideration for funding by CDC. If an award is made, the SAM information must be maintained until a final financial report is submitted or the final payment is received, whichever is later. The SAM registration process can require 10 or more business days, and registration must be renewed annually. Additional information about registration procedures may be found at www.SAM.gov.

c. Grants.gov: The first step in submitting an application online is registering your organization at www.grants.gov, the official HHS E-grant Web site. Registration information is located at the “Get Registered” option at www.grants.gov.

All applicant organizations must register at www.grants.gov. The one-time registration process usually takes not more than five days to complete. Applicants should start the registration process as early as possible.

2. Select Begin DUNS search/request process

3. Select your country or territory and follow the instruction to obtain your DUNS 9-digit #

4. Request appropriate staff member(s) to obtain DUNS number, verify & update information under DUNS number