NOFO - 2024 AMCIP.docx

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

U.S. EMBASSY BANJUL, PUBLIC DIPLOMACY SECTION

Notice of Funding Opportunity

A. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The U.S. Embassy Banjul Public Diplomacy Section (PDS) of the U.S. Department of State is pleased to announce that funding is available to manage two American Corners, ‘American Corner Fajara” located 78 Atlantic Road and Africell located at Bundung. Each corner will be funded by a separate grant.

These grants will be a collaborative agreement with the U.S Embassy Public Diplomacy Section. The U.S. Embassy will work closely with the Recipient to develop this program. The Embassy will be involved in providing feedback, direction, guidance, and vetting for events planned by program participants. The Embassy will also participate in the career development coaching portion of the program. The Embassy will assist in providing speakers and participants for events hosted through the program. The Embassy provides equipment, an internet connection, and other logistical support for the program. The Embassy will have the direction to stop programming at any time.

Purpose of American Corners: American Corners are inviting, open-access learning and gathering places around the world that promote interaction among local communities and the United States in support of U.S. foreign policy.

American Corners are a worldwide network of publicly accessible places that enable U.S. Embassies and Consulates to build and strengthen relationships with host country communities, showcase American culture and values, promote English language learning, encourage study in the United States, and foster goodwill and mutual understanding.

Purpose:

The recipient will host a year-long professional development program for students currently enrolled college or university. This program will provide participants with career and professional group opportunities through staffing the Bundung and Fajara American Corners. The recipient will hire appropriate staff to monitor, mentor, and evaluate participant performance and maintain the documentation required to properly manage an American Space per U.S. Embassy and host institution guidance.

During their internship program interns will be responsible for creating programs around U. S. Government (USG) priorities, hosting programs on topics directed by their supervisor, supporting their fellow program participant's projects, providing timely evaluations on program impact and success, and will provide staffing for American Corners in The Gambia.

Program participants will receive life skills and career coaching. They will be provided with workplace expectations and their performance will be monitored on a quarterly basis, in writing. The program participants will have a minimum of four (4) written performance evaluations during their year-long program.

Objectives for American Corner Fajara:

· Develop and implement year-long professional development program for students. These interns will staff the corner.

· Guide program interns to create programs around U.S Embassy priorities.

· Programing priorities (The embassy can introduce additional programming at any time):

· Facilitate English language learning through access to English language speakers, resources, computers, and the Internet.

· Foster people-to-people connections, increase understanding, and build respect with host-country audiences through cultural programs.

· Support continued engagement with U.S. government alumni, connecting them to local audiences through alumni programs where credible, local voices can share firsthand information about the United States and American values.

· Civic Engagement to encourage democratic participation.

· Promote public health.

· Improve education.

· Empower women and girls.

· Support The Gambia’s growing entrepreneurial sector.

Objectives for Africell:

· Develop and implement year-long professional development program for students. These interns will staff the corner.

· Guide program interns to create programs around U.S Embassy priorities with a special focus on STEM fields as well as:

· Facilitate English language learning through access to English language speakers, resources, computers, and the Internet.

· Foster people-to-people connections, increase understanding, and build respect with host-country audiences through cultural programs.

· Support continued engagement with U.S. government alumni, connecting them to local audiences through alumni programs where credible, local voices can share firsthand information about the United States and American values.

· Programs that educate and encourage youth participation in STEM fields is the focus of this corner.

Organizations Eligible to Apply:

· Non-Profit organizations

· Educational organizations

· Organizations which focus on youth development or women/girls’ empowerment

· U.S. programs alumni (individuals)

B. FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION

Length of performance period: 12 months Expected number of awards: 2 awards - $10,350 for Africell and $45,000 for Fajara.

Total available funding: $55,350 Type of funding: Fiscal Year 2024 Smith Mundt PD Funds & Fulbright-Hays Anticipated program start date: 10/1/2024

This notice is subject to availability of funding.

Funding Instrument Type: The Public Affairs Section will consider projects that are Cooperative agreements. Cooperative agreements are different from grants in that PD staff are more actively involved in the grant implementation. PD can provide direction and promotional assistance for cooperative agreements.

Program Performance Period: Proposed programs should be completed in 1 year.

C. ELIGILIBITY INFORMATION

1. Eligible Applicants The Public Diplomacy Section encourages applications from the United States and The Gambia:

· Non-Profit organizations

· Educational organizations

· Organizations which focus on youth development or women/girls’ empowerment

· U.S. programs alumni (individuals)

For-profit or commercial entities are not eligible to apply.

2. Cost Sharing or Matching Cost sharing is not required.

3. Other Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible to receive an award, all organizations must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number issued via www.SAM.gov as well as a valid registration on www.SAM.gov. Please see Section D.3 for more information. Individuals are not required to have a UEI or be registered in SAM.gov.

D. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Address to Request Application Package Application forms required below are available at www.grants.gov as well as the embassy website.

The PD Encourages Applicants to use the Project Proposal Template available here.

Use of a project proposal template to better organize your application is recommended, however it is not required. The application forms listed below are required.

Content and Form of Application Submission In order to best formulate an application, applicants are encouraged to use the Project Proposal Template. The templates are offered to assist in the application process. Use of the template is not required.

Please follow all instructions below carefully. Proposals that do not meet the requirements of this announcement or fail to comply with the stated requirements will be ineligible.

Content of Application Please ensure:

· The Project Proposal Template or narrative proposal clearly addresses the goals and objectives of this funding opportunity (Not exceeding 3 pages)

· All documents are in English.

· All budgets are in U.S. dollars.

· All pages are numbered.

· All documents are formatted to 8 ½ x 11 paper, and

· All Microsoft Word documents are single-spaced, 12-point Calibri font, with a minimum of 1-inch margins

The following documents are required:

Mandatory application forms

· SF-424 (Application for Federal Assistance – organizations) or SF-424-I (Application for Federal Assistance – individuals) at www.grants.gov

· SF424A (Budget Information for Non-Construction programs) at www.grants.gov

· SF424B (Assurances for Non-Construction programs) at www.grants.gov (note: the SF-424B is only required for individuals and for organizations not registered in SAM.gov)

Proposal (3 pages maximum):

The proposal should contain sufficient information that anyone not familiar with it would understand exactly what the applicant wants to do. Applicants are encouraged to use the Project Proposal Template. You may use your own proposal format, but it must include all the items below.

· Project Summary: Short narrative that outlines the proposed project, including project objectives and anticipated impact.

· Introduction to the Organization or Individual applying: A description of past and present operations, showing ability to carry out the program, including information on all previous grants from the U.S. Embassy and/or U.S. government agencies.

· Problem Statement: Clear, concise and well-supported statement of the problem to be addressed and why the proposed program is needed

· Project Goals: The “goals” describe what the program is intended to achieve.

· Project Objectives and Activities: The “objectives” refer to the intermediate accomplishments on the way to the goals. These should be achievable and measurable. The “activities” are detailed steps taken to support the objectives.

· Explanation of American Content All projects must have an American culturally component and foster a better understanding between The Gambian and American people. What aspect of the relationship between the U.S. and The Gambia will be improved?

· Program Monitoring and Evaluation Plan: This is an important part of successful grants. Throughout the timeframe of the grant, how will the activities be monitored to ensure they are happening in a timely manner, and how will the program be evaluated to make sure it is meeting the goals of the grant?

· Future Funding or Sustainability Applicant’s plan for continuing the program beyond the grant period, or the availability of other resources, if applicable.

Budget Justification Narrative:

After filling out the SF-424A Budget (above), use a separate sheet of paper to describe each of the budget expenses in detail. If you are using the Project Template, please attached the Budget Explanation Template. See section H. Other Information: Guidelines for Budget Submissions below for further information.

Attachments Applicants should provide the following documents as attachments:

· SAM.gov registration screen capture (note: this is only necessary if you are an organization)

· Description of budget expenses (or Budget Explanation Template)

Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM.gov) All organizations, whether based in the United States or in another country, must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and an active registration with the SAM.gov. A UEI is one of the data elements mandated by Public Law 109-282, the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act (FFATA), for all Federal awards.

Note: As of April 2022, a DUNS number is no longer required for federal assistance applications.

The 2 CFR 200 requires that sub-grantees obtain a UEI number. Please note the UEI for sub-grantees is not required at the time of application but will be required before an award is processed and/or directed to a sub-grantee.

Note: The process of obtaining or renewing a SAM.gov registration may take anywhere from 4-8 weeks. Please begin your registration as early as possible.

· Organizations based in the United States or that pay employees within the United States will need an Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and a UEI number prior to registering in SAM.gov.

· Organizations based outside of the United States and that do not pay employees within the United States do not need an EIN from the IRS but do need a UEI number prior to registering in SAM.gov.

· Please note that as of November 2022 and February 2022 respectively, organizations based outside of the United States that do not intend to apply for U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) awards are no longer required to have a NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) code or CAGE code to apply for non-DoD foreign assistance funding opportunities. If an applicant organization is mid-registration and wishes to remove a CAGE or NCAGE code from their SAM.gov registration, the applicant should submit a help desk ticket (“incident”) with the Federal Service Desk (FSD) online at www.fsd.gov using the following language: “I do not intend to seek financial assistance from the Department of Defense. I do not wish to obtain a CAGE or NCAGE code. I understand that I will need to submit my registration after this incident is resolved in order to have my registration activated.”

Organizations based outside of the United States and that DO NOT plan to do business with the DoD should follow the below instructions:

Step 1: Proceed to SAM.gov to obtain a UEI and complete the SAM.gov registration process. SAM.gov registration must be renewed annually.

Organizations based outside of the United States and that DO plan to do business with the DoD in addition to Department of State should follow the below instructions:

Step 1: Apply for an NCAGE code by following the instructions on the NSPA NATO website linked below:

NCAGE Homepage:

https://eportal.nspa.nato.int/AC135Public/sc/CageList.aspx NCAGE Code Request Tool (NCRT):

Exemptions An exemption from the UEI and sam.gov registration requirements may be permitted on a case-by-case basis if:

· An applicant’s identity must be protected due to potential endangerment of their mission, their organization’s status, their employees, or individuals being served by the applicant.

· For an applicant, if the Federal awarding agency makes a determination that there are exigent circumstances that prohibit the applicant from receiving a unique entity identifier and completing SAM registration prior to receiving a Federal award. In these instances, Federal awarding agencies must require the recipient to obtain a unique entity identifier and complete SAM registration within 30 days of the Federal award date.

Organizations requesting exemption from UEI or SAM.gov requirements must email the point of contact listed in the NOFO at least two weeks prior to the deadline in the NOFO providing a justification of their request. Approval for a SAM.gov exemption must come from the warranted Grants Officer before the application can be deemed eligible for review.

Submission Dates and Times Applications may be submitted for consideration at any time before the closing date of July 15, 2024. No applications will be accepted after that date.

Applicants are encouraged to submit proposals early, and decisions will be made on a rolling basis.

Funding Restrictions Funds cannot be used for construction or the purchase of alcoholic beverages.

Other Submission Requirements All application materials must be submitted by email to PublicDiplomacyBanjul@state.gov.

E. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

1. Criteria Each application will be evaluated and rated on the basis of the evaluation criteria outlined below. The criteria listed are closely related and are considered as a whole in judging the overall quality of an application.

Organizational capacity and record on previous grants: The organization has expertise in its stated field and PD is confident of its ability to undertake the program. This includes a financial management system and a bank account.

Quality and Feasibility of the Program Idea – The program idea is well developed, with detail about how program activities will be carried out. The proposal includes a reasonable implementation timeline.

Goals and objectives: Goals and objectives are clearly stated and program approach is likely to provide maximum impact in achieving the proposed results.

Embassy priorities: Applicant has clearly described how stated goals are related to and support U.S. Embassy Banjul’s priority areas or target audiences.

Embassy Priority Program Areas:

· Strengthening Democratic Institutions, including press freedoms

· Empowering Civil Society, with an emphasis on women and youth

· Bolstering Education

· Strengthening economic development and entrepreneurship

· Encouraging cultural exchange

Participants and Audiences:

All proposals should focus on engaging Gambians in The Gambia. Proposals that reach marginalized communities and youth are encouraged.

Budget: The budget justification is detailed. Costs are reasonable in relation to the proposed activities and anticipated results. The budget is realistic, accounting for all necessary expenses to achieve proposed activities.

Monitoring and evaluation plan: Applicant demonstrates it is able to measure program success against key indicators and provide milestones to indicate progress toward goals outlined in the proposal. The program includes output and outcome indicators and shows how and when those will be measured.

Sustainability: Program activities will continue to have positive impact after the end of the program.

Review and Selection Process A Grants Review Committee will evaluate all eligible applications.

3. Responsibility/Qualification Information in SAM.gov (formerly, FAPIIS)

i. The Federal awarding agency, prior to making a Federal award with a total amount of Federal share greater than the simplified acquisition threshold, is required to review and consider any information about the applicant that is in the U.S. government designated integrity and performance system accessible through SAM.gov (see 41 U.S.C. 2313).

ii. An applicant, at its option, may review and comment on any information about itself that a Federal awarding agency previously entered. Currently, federal agencies create integrity records in the integrity module of the Contractor Performance Assessment and Reporting System (CPARS) and these records are visible as responsibility/qualification records in SAM.gov.

iii. The Federal awarding agency will consider any comments by the applicant, in addition to the other information in the designated integrity and performance system, in making a judgment about the applicant's integrity, business ethics, and record of performance under Federal awards when completing the review of risk posed by applicants as described in §200.206 Federal awarding agency review of risk posed by applicants.

F. FEDERAL AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

1. Federal Award Notices The grant award or cooperative agreement will be written, signed, awarded, and administered by the Grants Officer. The assistance award agreement is the authorizing document, and it will be provided to the recipient for review and signature by email. The recipient may only start incurring program expenses beginning on the start date shown on the grant award document signed by the Grants Officer.

If a proposal is selected for funding, the Department of State has no obligation to provide any additional future funding. Renewal of an award to increase funding or extend the period of performance is at the discretion of the Department of State.

Issuance of this NOFO does not constitute an award commitment on the part of the U.S. government, nor does it commit the U.S. government to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of proposals. Further, the U.S. government reserves the right to reject any or all proposals received.

Payment Method: Payments will be made in at least two installments, as needed to carry out the program activities.

Organizations whose applications will not be funded will also be notified via email.

Administrative and National Policy Requirements Terms and Conditions: Before applying, applicants should review all the terms and conditions and required certifications which will apply to this award, to ensure that they will be able to comply. These include:

· 2 CFR 25 - UNIVERSAL IDENTIFIER AND SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT

· 2 CFR 170 - REPORTING SUBAWARD AND EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION INFORMATION

· 2 CFR 175 - AWARD TERM FOR TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

· 2 CFR 182 - GOVERNMENTWIDE REQUIREMENTS FOR DRUG-FREE WORKPLACE (FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE)

· 2 CFR 183 - NEVER CONTRACT WITH THE ENEMY

· 2 CFR 600 – DEPARTMENT OF STATE REQUIREMENTS

· U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE STANDARD TERMS AND CONDITIONS

In accordance with the Office of Management and Budget’s guidance located at 2 CFR part 200, all applicable Federal laws, and relevant Executive guidance, the Department of State will review and consider applications for funding, as applicable to specific programs, pursuant to this notice of funding opportunity in accordance with the following: NOTE:

· President’s September 2, 2020 memorandum, entitled Memorandum on Reviewing Funding to State and Local Government Recipients of Federal Funds that Are Permitting Anarchy, Violence, and Destruction in American Cities;

· Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping (E.O. 13950);

· Executive Order on Protecting American Monuments, Memorials, and Statues and Combating Recent Criminal Violence (E.O. 13933); and

· Guidance for Grants and Agreements in Title 2 of the Code of Federal Regulations (2 CFR), as updated in the Federal Register’s 85 FR 49506 on August 13, 2020, particularly on:

· Selecting recipients most likely to be successful in delivering results based on the program objectives through an objective process of evaluating Federal award applications (2 CFR part 200.205),

· Prohibiting the purchase of certain telecommunication and video surveillance services or equipment in alignment with section 889 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2019 (Pub. L. No. 115—232) (2 CFR part 200.216),

· Promoting the freedom of speech and religious liberty in alignment with Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty (E.O. 13798) and Improving Free Inquiry, Transparency, and Accountability at Colleges and Universities (E.O. 13864) (§§ 200.300, 200.303, 200.339, and 200.341),

· Providing a preference, to the extent permitted by law, to maximize use of goods, products, and materials produced in the United States (2 CFR part 200.322), and

· Terminating agreements in whole or in part to the greatest extent authorized by law, if an award no longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities (2 CFR part 200.340).

Note the U.S Flag branding and marking requirements in the Standard Terms and Conditions.

Reporting Reporting Requirements: Recipients will be required to submit financial reports and program reports. The award document will specify how often these reports must be submitted.

G. FEDERAL AWARDING AGENCY CONTACTS

If you have any questions about the grant application process, please contact PD at: PublicDiplomacyBanjul@state.gov.

Note: We do not provide any pre-consultation for application related questions that are addressed in the NOFO. Once an application has been submitted, State Department officials and staff — both in the Department and at embassies overseas — may not discuss this competition with applicants until the entire proposal review process is completed.

H. OTHER INFORMATION

Guidelines for Budget Justification

· Personnel: Describe the wages, salaries, and benefits of temporary or permanent staff who will be working directly for the applicant on the program, and the percentage of their time that will be spent on the program.

· Travel: Estimate the costs of travel and per diem for this program. If the program involves international travel, include a brief statement of justification for that travel.

· Equipment: Describe any machinery, furniture, or other personal property that is required for the program, which has a useful life of more than one year (or a life longer than the duration of the program), and costs at least $5,000 per unit.

· Supplies: List and describe all the items and materials, including any computer devices, that are needed for the program. If an item costs more than $5,000 per unit, then put it in the budget under Equipment.

· Contractual: Describe goods and services that the applicant plans to acquire through a contract with a vendor. Also describe any sub-awards to non-profit partners that will help carry out the program activities.

· Other Direct Costs: Describe other costs directly associated with the program, which do not fit in the other categories. For example, shipping costs for materials and equipment or applicable taxes. All “Other” or “Miscellaneous” expenses must be itemized and explained.

· Indirect Costs: These are costs that cannot be linked directly to the program activities, such as overhead costs needed to help keep the organization operating. If your organization has a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate (NICRA) and includes NICRA charges in the budget, attach a copy of your latest NICRA. Organizations that have never had a NICRA may request indirect costs of 10% of the modified total direct costs as defined in 2 CFR 200.68.

· “Cost Sharing” refers to contributions from the organization or other entities other than the U.S. Embassy. It also includes in-kind contributions such as volunteers’ time and donated venues.

· Alcoholic Beverages: Please note that award funds cannot be used for alcoholic beverages.

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