Support for Independent Media in Syria NOFO- Q&A.pdf

Support for Independent Media in Syria (Opportunity # SFOP0006326)

Questions and Answers

Q1: Can NEA please provide further details on what documentation would be required to satisfy the requirement of the "necessary legal paperwork and government permissions to manage activities out of either Istanbul, Turkey or Berlin, Germany"?

A1: It is up to the applicant to determine how to most effectively demonstrate the legal paperwork and government capabilities. Possible examples include copies of valid registration documents, a demonstration of the applicant’s understanding of registration requirements, and a plan/ timeline for meeting them, etc.

Q2: Would all partners in a consortium need to demonstrate the ability to manage activities out of Germany and Turkey or would it suffice to have just one partner registered? If it is only one of the partners, would the partner have to be the prime organization, or could it be a sub?

A2: Applicants are strongly encouraged to base operations in either Istanbul, Turkey or

Berlin, Germany to facilitate coordination with other NEA/AC implementers. An applicant (a prime) which does not propose basing operations in Berlin or Istanbul will not be disqualified but will be at a significant disadvantage.

Q3: Is it the Prime that has to have an office in, or the right to work out of, Turkey/Germany or can the sub or local partner have the office/right?

A3: Yes, applicants are strongly encouraged to base operations in either Istanbul, Turkey or

Berlin, Germany to facilitate coordination with other NEA/AC implementers. An applicant (a prime) which does not propose basing operations in Berlin or Istanbul will not be disqualified but will be at a significant disadvantage.

Q4: Does the prime have to be registered in Berlin or Turkey or can the project be managed out of Lebanon, if some of the partners are registered in either Germany or Turkey; Can an organization be eligible if registration is underway in Germany or Turkey?

A4: Applicants are strongly encouraged to base operations in either Istanbul, Turkey or

Berlin, Germany to facilitate coordination with other NEA/AC implementers.

Applicants which do not propose basing operations in Berlin or Istanbul will not be disqualified but will be at a significant disadvantage. Applicants should demonstrate that they can obtain all necessary legal paperwork and the German or Turkish governments permissions to manage their activities out of Berlin, Germany, or Istanbul, Turkey.

Applicants which demonstrate that registration in Germany or Turkey is underway will be eligible to apply to this award.

Q5: In the NOFO, it says the prime must report any changes in the budget or delays in implementation as any changes require prior approval of the GOR - does this mean even those under the 10% rule?

A5: Recipients must report immediately when a program faces unplanned delays in implementation, fails to meet program targets or milestones, or costs increase. Any changes or revisions to the approved budget require prior approval from the NEA/AC

Grants Officer. This does not include those under the 10% rule.

Q6: If the GOR is required to approve all travel prior to it taking place, does this mean they approve the total cost per flight or hotel stay beforehand?

A6: Selected applicants will be required to provide prior notification of all international travel as a requirement of the agreement. This includes travel, which is already included in the approved budget and Scope of Work. This does not mean that the Grants Officer will approve the total cost per flight or hotel stay for travelers.

Q7: What is the total amount of required sub awards under this project (either monetarily or in number of awards)?

A7: It is up to the applicants to propose the total amount of required sub awards- either monetarily or in number of awards- which they believe will have the greatest potential to achieve the program objectives.

Q8: Does NEA have any preferred media outlet partners whom they want to see continued support for?

A8: Although NEA/AC has supported a core group of independent Syrian media outlets to provide accurate, reliable, and locally relevant news and information, changes to this group are possible. NEA/AC will exercise substantial involvement to work with the successful applicant at the start of the project to determine the composition of this group.

Successful applicants for this award will demonstrate how their organizational strengths will contribute to ongoing NEA/AC capacity building and content production trainings for beneficiary media partners and advance U.S. Syria assistance objectives.

Q9: The SAMS Domestic portal lists a Gender Analysis as a required attachment for the application, but a Gender Analysis is not listed as a required or optional attachment in the

NOFO on pages 15-17. However, the NOFO does reference a Gender Analysis on page 9

“Applicants should consider how to foster productive relationships between media outlets, as well as between media outlets and local governance entities and civil society organizations in Syria. Additionally, NEA/AC requires that all activities fully address gender considerations, ensuring that both men and women benefit from support and that gender awareness is built into all project activities. This should be documented by a gender analysis that identifies relevant gender gaps and ways the activity will address those gaps. Proposals should demonstrate how addressing relevant gender gaps will enhance the program’s goals and objectives” Can NEA please confirm whether a Gender

Analysis is required for this application? If so, can NEA please provide guidance on page limitations?

A9: Gender Analysis is required for this application, and the page number should not exceed two pages.

Q10: May offerors provide a cover page, table of contents, acronym list, and/or executive summary that are excluded from the page count of the Project Narrative?

A10: Applicants may provide a cover page, table of contents, acronym list, and /or executive summary as part of the project narrative, and the documents are excluded from the project narrative page count.

Q11: On page 11 of the NOFO, it states that the “estimated start date for this project is March

1, 2020”. On the coversheet it states that the expected date of notification is April 30, 2020. Given the expected date of notification, should applicants use a later expected start date, such as May 1, 2020?

Q11: The expected start date for this project is May 1, 2020 or sooner.

Q12: Would NEA consider excluding Letters of Support from partners from the page limitations?

A12: A letter of support is an optional document in section A.2 of the NOFO (Optional

Documents) and is included in the 10-page limit for this section of the application.

Q13: On page 24 of the NOFO it states, “Grantees awarded under this announcement will be required to report all sub-awardees receiving funds of $25,000 or more to http://www.fsrs.gov”. Considering this is a sensitive award, would NEA consider requesting a waiver from FSRS on reporting for this opportunity to avoid risk to potential subawardees?

A13: The Grants Officer can waive this requirement if public disclosure pose a danger to the award recipients, sub-recipients, or beneficiaries. Applicants may request that the

Grants Officer waive this requirement prior to issuing an award.

Q14: The NOFO references a sub-grant mechanism on page 5 that is intended to allow content producers to compete for programming funding. Is the applicant expected to set aside money in their application for a future fund to be used by these sub awardees?

A14: Applicants are expected to set aside contractual funding in their budget to support the sub-grant mechanism.

Q15: Does NEA expect all of the applicant’s local and regional partners to be named at time of submission?

A15: Applicants do not need to identify all their sub- recipients at the time of the application.

In the case of Syrian media partners, NEA will work with the successful applicant to determine partners to fund.

Q16: Previous NEA Syria opportunities required the applicant to declare which geographic region of the country they intended to work in. Does NEA expect specific geographic regions to be identified in the proposal as the focus of the applicant’s work?

A16: Yes, applicants are expected to identify in their applications the specific geographic region of the country they intend to work in.

Q17: The NOFO states that the estimated start date of the project is March 1, 2020, but that the expected date of notification is April 30, 2020. Could NEA clarify what is the estimated start date and expected date of notification?

A17: See the response to question 11 above.

Q18: In the Award Information section of the NOFO, the estimated number of awards is listed as 1, but later, the NOFO states, “1-2 awards will be awarded through this announcement.” Could NEA clarify how many awards will be awarded from this announcement?

A18: The estimated number of awards is 1 (one).

http://www.fsrs.gov/