WHP-CARSI Independent Media NOFO-Final 5-13-2024.pdf

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL)

Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Revised 05-13-2024

Announcement Type: Request for Federal Assistance Award Applications

Funding Opportunity Title:

Strengthening Independent Media in Central America to Uncover Crime and Corruption

Funding Opportunity Number: OFOP0001331

Program: Central America Regional Security Initiative

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number:

19.705 - Transnational Crime

Total Funding Available: $4,724,000 U.S. Dollars

Funding Source: Post-Funds

Application Ceiling: Up to $4,724,000 U.S. Dollars

Application Floor: At least $2,000,000 U.S. Dollars

Anticipated Number of Awards: 1 – 2 awards

Initial Project Implementation Length: 36 months

Estimated Project Start Date: October 2024

NOFO Issuance Date: March 21, 2024

Deadline for Submission of Questions: April 22, 2024 by 11:59 PM EST via email

Deadline for Submission of Applications:

May 22, 2024 by 11:59 PM EST via www.grants.gov

Assistance Type: Grant

Applicant Types and Eligibility Categories:

Organizations only.

Refer to Section C: Eligibility Information for more information.

INL Points of Contact:

Stefanie Fabrico (FabricoSL@state.gov) and Najar Starr (StarrND@@state.gov) http://www.grants.gov/ mailto:FabricoSL@state.gov mailto:PriceCH@state.gov

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BUREAU MISSION

The mission of the State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) is to keep Americans safe by countering crime, illegal drugs, and instability abroad.

INL uses a wide range of tools to counter crime, illegal drugs, and instability abroad, including foreign assistance, bilateral diplomacy, multilateral engagement, and reporting, sanctions, and rewards. INL has two complementary core competencies: helping partner governments assess, build, reform, and sustain competent and legitimate criminal justice systems, and developing and implementing the architecture necessary for international drug control and cross-border law enforcement cooperation. INL works with partner nations, international and regional organizations, non-governmental organizations, U.S. federal, state, and local criminal justice entities to achieve our mission.

The bureau’s priority programs support four inter-related objectives:

1. Disrupt and Reduce Illicit Drug Markets and Transnational Crime: INL’s work to disrupt and reduce illicit drug markets and transnational crime focuses on both supply and demand aspects of illicit substances, as well as the proceeds of criminal activity.

2. Combat Corruption and Illicit Financing: INL works to ensure the rules-based international system incorporates principles of transparency, integrity, and accountable governance and promotes international standards through the adoption of legally binding treaties, political commitments, and best practices.

3. Strengthen Criminal Justice Systems: INL contributes to broad efforts to strengthen democratic institutions and good governance, building resilient partners that are better positioned to contribute to a stable international system and address shared security threats.

4. Partnerships, Data, and Learning: INL works closely with international groups, non-governmental organizations, other U.S. federal agencies, and U.S. state and local criminal justice entities to increase agility, share best practices, optimize resources, and engage with foreign counterparts to build capacity, improve efficiencies, and deliver effective civilian security and criminal justice services.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

A. PROJECT DESCRIPTION

B. FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION

C. ELIGILIBITY INFORMATION

D. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

E. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

F. AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

APPENDIX A: PERFORMANCE MONITORING PLAN

APPENDIX B: PROJECT RISK ANALYSIS

APPENDIX C: BUDGET AND BUDGET NARRATIVE

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A. PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Overview: The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs of the U.S.

Department of State announces an open competition for organizations to submit applications to carry out a project to strengthen independent media entities and their members as well as local organizations that will support independent media in Central America. This project will assist in conducting better investigations and provide fact-based reporting on crime and corruption through an evolving media landscape to inform populations and hold power-holders accountable, improving transparency and accountability in Central America.

Priority Region: Central America

Problem Statement: Crime and corruption affect the daily lives of most Central Americans and impact the ability of governments to be responsive to their citizens. Recognizing corruption’s ability to corrode democracy, on December 20, 2021, President Biden established the first-ever United States Strategy on Countering Corruption. This comprehensive strategy is intended to improve the U.S. Government’s ability to prevent corruption, combat illicit finance, hold corrupt actors accountable, strengthen the capacity of activists, investigative journalists, and others on the front lines of exposing corrupt acts. The strategy prioritizes enhancing partner governments’ capacities to fight corruption in cooperation with U.S. law enforcement authorities, bolstering prevention and oversight capacities, leveraging innovation to fight corruption, promote transparency, and detect fraud and illicit finance. The Biden-Harris Administration’s Strategy to Address the Root Causes of Migration in Central America (Root Causes Strategy) guides the Department’s engagement in Central America. This includes priorities on combating corruption, strengthening democratic governance, and advancing the rule of law (Pillar II); promoting respect for human rights including free press (Pillar III); countering and preventing violence, extortion, and other crimes perpetrated by criminal gangs, trafficking networks, and other organized criminal organizations (Pillar IV); and combating sexual, gender-based, and domestic violence (Pillar V). Independent media plays an important role in the anticorruption ecosystem, shining a light on corruption where it exists, often at great personal and professional risk. Members of independent media in Central America have increasingly been the subject of spurious attacks to discredit their work or to intimidate them into silence, but a strong democracy cannot thrive without true freedom of the press.

Project Vision: A diverse group of independent media from Central America is resilient in the face of threats and further develops its capacity to investigate and report on corruption and crime in their respective countries, thus strengthening their ability to promote transparent, responsive, and accountable government institutions that foster respect for rule of law and support democracy.

Project Goals and Objectives: The goal of this project is to optimize INL’s resources by filling gaps in the assistance landscape to effectively support a diverse range of independent media actors who play an active role in combatting crime and corruption within their countries, so they may continue to strengthen their important role in the anticorruption ecosystem of actors.

Project General Objectives:

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INL seeks proposals from organizations for a project that can strengthen the ability of a diverse group of independent media from Central American countries to uncover and provide timely and accurate reporting on crime and corruption in each respective country. Proposals may include all or some of the following objectives or additional objectives may be proposed based on needs identified by potential partners and/or intended participants:

a. Assess the capacity of independent journalists, independent media actors and independent media outlets in Central America, based on the unique needs of these actors in and/or from each country, including exiled journalists. Priority will be given to proposals that target non-traditional media and women-led and indigenous-led outlets;

b. Strengthen the capacity of independent journalists, independent media actors, and independent media outlets (including non-traditional media and with emphasis on women-led and indigenous-led outlets) to uncover crime and corruption and to publish and disseminate their investigative reports, including through but not limited to training and/or workshop-like opportunities that address the most pressing needs of participants to carry out their work;

c. Train independent journalists and media outlets with a direct role in investigating and reporting on crime and corruption to increase agility of informing average citizens in a relatable way via a variety of channels in a changing digital media landscape;

d. Build capacity of journalists to combat disinformation;

e. Develop corruption and crime and violence research and investigative journalism skills for the next generation of Central American journalists;

f. Develop contingency plans and mechanisms to support the resiliency of independent journalists and media outlets, including exiled journalists, reporting on crime and corruption in order to maintain their ability to work in the face of threats, including but not limited to planning for small grants that can cover unforeseen or emergency needs to support at risk media outlets and journalists;

g. Strengthen access to professional opportunities that can build the capacity of journalists to grow professionally;

h. Create stronger lines of communication between investigative journalists and trusted institutions, as appropriate and applicable.

Proposals should demonstrate an understanding of existing regional and bilateral initiatives or programs supported by the U.S. government and other donors that also seek to improve transparency and accountability via support for media outlets and journalists in Central America investigating and reporting on crime and corruption. Proposals should explicitly demonstrate how program activities would complement – and avoid duplicating – such initiatives or programs.

Proposals should focus on building capacity of journalists to investigate and report on crime and corruption in/from each specific country, and on building the capacity and capabilities of country-specific media outlets based on the needs in each country or of those from each country. Applicants should propose approaches and methodologies that are practical and tailored to the specific circumstances of journalists from and/or covering each country. Proposals should not primarily focus on transnational or regional approaches to investigative journalism. Proposals should outline approaches to deconflict activities with specific media outlets. Options could include varied geographic focus, sector focus, focus on strengthening specific technical capacities, or other approaches. Given the diversity of resources and mechanisms that support unforeseen or emergency needs, proposals that include this component should describe the gap that it is addressing and coordination with other entities supporting similar efforts.

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Project Activities and Deliverables: Successful proposals will identify project activities and deliverables according to INL’s project goals and objectives listed above. INL encourages creativity in terms of project proposals as well as specific activities (three or more activities per objective and reasonable to the budget of this grant) with indicators and targets to properly monitor the project.

Activities proposed will be evaluated on their merit and not because an applicant provided more activities.

Applicants should budget appropriately for program costs, including travel, required to carry out all activities and may wish to include emergency funding for unforeseen needs of participants involved.

The budget should be tailored to activities with journalists from the Central American countries the applicant deems require the most need, appropriately justified and taking into account other U.S.

and other donor-funded initiatives and programs, though all countries in Central America are eligible to benefit from this project. Mexico is not a beneficiary country of this project.

Participants and Audiences: Beneficiaries should be independent media professionals from Central America with specialized experience and/or potential to better combat crime and corruption in Central America through strengthened capacity to investigate and inform the public about these crimes. Independent journalists or independent media can be considered any news media that is free from influence by the government or other powerful external actors in their reporting and can include television, newspapers, radio, online journalists, and other non-traditional outlets.

Implementing partner(s) should be organizations with expertise in working with independent media and familiarity with the Central American and/or Western Hemisphere Regional media landscape and crime and corruption issues. Implementing partners should have demonstrated experience carrying out similar programs and the existing relationships and networks to ensure the mentoring component of the program can be successful and experience implementing multiple, diverse USG assistance funding streams concurrently. Experience managing more than one distinct USG funding stream per project should be included in the bid narrative. The project should prioritize the inclusion of vulnerable and marginalized groups such as women, LGBTQI+, or indigenous peoples, who work in this space, including journalists and media outlets run by, tailored to, or supporting vulnerable and marginalized groups. Applicants should describe how they will ensure equitable (and safe) inclusion, using participatory, locally-led, and intersectional approaches, as appropriate.

Recognizing there are concurrent programs in the region on similar issues, applicants should detail a plan for coordinating activities and participants with the U.S. Embassy, USAID missions, and implementing entities, where applicable, to avoid duplication and limit burden on local partners.

where applicable, to avoid duplication and limit burden on local partners.

Project Expansion: If the project is successful, INL will consider the option of an award modification to expand the project to other areas or countries in the region, subject to availability of future funding. Applicants may include in their proposal a brief section outlining how additional funds could potentially be used to expand work into additional activities or countries in future years.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to demonstrate how their project might leverage funding through other organizations and should clearly articulate how such an expansion would complement existing U.S. programming in this space.

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B. FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION

Applicants are encouraged to reference the table on the first page(s) of this NOFO to determine the basic federal award information (e.g., project length, amount of funding available, anticipated number of awards, assistance type, etc.). Additional award information is included in this section, although specific aspects of the award(s) issued from this NOFO may differ from program to program.

1. Project Implementation Period

The initial project implementation length is the amount of time (e.g., months) applicants should plan to implement the project. If a range of months is listed, applicants should propose a realistic project length within that range.

INL may extend the project implementation period, contingent on INL priorities, good performance of the recipient, Department of State management approvals, and funding availability. INL projects shall not exceed five (5) total years of project implementation.

2. Assistance Type

Grant

3. Funding Notices

This award will be supported with International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement (INCLE) funds under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. This notice is subject to availability of funding.

• Length of performance period: 36 months

• Anticipated program start date: October 2024

• Number of awards anticipated: 1-2 awards (dependent on amounts)

• Award amounts: awards may range from a minimum of $2,000,000 to a maximum of $4,724,000

• Total available funding: $4, 724,000

• Type of Funding: FY2022 INCLE

C. ELIGILIBITY INFORMATION

1. Eligible Applicant Types The following organizations are eligible to apply:

● U.S.-based non-profit/non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

● U.S.-based educational institutions subject to section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. tax code or section 26 US 115 of the US 115 of the U.S. tax code.

● Foreign-based non-profits/non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

● Foreign-based educational institutions.

2. Cost Sharing or Matching

Cost share is the portion of project costs not borne by the U.S. government. Cost share is recommended but not required for this project. Applicants must be able to ensure cost share is accounted for/tracked through accounting systems and/or supporting documentation (such

8 | Page as Personnel Activity Records, proof of voluntary hours, proof of any purchases for materials being included as cost share, etc.)

Any cost share proposed must be appropriately captured within the SF-424A, budget, and budget narrative.

3. Other Eligibility Requirements

● In order to be eligible to receive an award, all organizations must have a unique entity identifier (also known as UEI), as well as a valid registration on www.SAM.gov.

Individuals are not required to have a unique entity identifier or be registered in SAM.gov. Refer to Section D for additional guidance.

● Applicants are only allowed to submit one proposal per organization. Organizations may form a consortium and submit a combined proposal; however, one organization should be designated as the lead applicant and other organization(s) listed as sub-recipient partner(s).

● To be eligible to receive a federal assistance award, organizations must have a commitment to non‐discrimination with respect to beneficiaries and adherence to equal opportunity employment practices. INL is committed to an anti-discrimination policy in all of its programs and activities. INL welcomes applications irrespective of an applicant’s race, ethnicity, color, creed, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or other status.

● All applicants must provide a workplace free from harassment and bullying for all individuals, including but not limited to grant/cooperative agreement personnel and INL personnel.

● Applicants are reminded that U.S. Executive Orders and U.S. law prohibits transactions with, and the provision of resources and support to, individuals and organizations associated with terrorism. It is the legal responsibility of the recipient to ensure compliance with these Executive Orders and laws. This provision must be included in any sub‐awards issued under this grant award.

Note: Public International Organizations (PIOs) and For-Profit Organizations are excluded from applying to INL grant/cooperative agreement announcements.

D. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Applicants should carefully follow all instructions in this section to ensure their application is formatted properly and includes all required documents. Proposals that do not meet the requirements of this announcement or fail to comply with the stated requirements will be deemed ineligible for review.

1. How to Apply and Submit Questions

This opportunity is posted on www.grants.gov, along with all required application forms and, where applicable, templates for application documents. Applications and all supporting documents must be submitted via www.grants.gov. INL reserves the right to reject any applications submitted through improper channels.

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Applicants are encouraged to closely review the NOFO and email questions to the INL points of contact by the deadline listed on the first page(s) of this document. After the question deadline has passed, INL will respond to all questions publicly through a Questions & Answers document uploaded to the Related Documents tab of this opportunity.

2. Required Application Documents

All documents in the following list must be included in your application, unless explicitly listed as optional. If a document includes a page limit, please adhere to that limit in your application.

Applicants that do not submit all required documents will be notified via email of their ineligibility after the application deadline.

Standard Application Forms

◻ SF-424 (Application for Federal Assistance – Organizations)

Must be signed by an authorized signatory of the applicant’s organization.

◻ SF-424A (Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs)

◻ SF-424B (Assurances for Non-Construction Programs) – Optional The SF-424B is only required for applicants who are not registered in SAM.gov.

Project Proposal The proposal should contain sufficient information that anyone not familiar with it would understand exactly what the applicant is proposing to do. The following documents may be submitted separately or combined into one document. If combined, please be sure to adhere to the page limits for each section.

◻ Proposal Narrative – Maximum 20 pages Applicants may use their own proposal template, but it must include all the sections below. Refer to Appendix A for additional guidance on drafting a proposal narrative.

Cover Page: include organization name, project title, requested number of months, target country(ies), point(s) of contact, and requested funding amount.

Table of Contents: List all documents and attachments with page numbers.

Executive Summary: Provide a synopsis of the project.

Project Context: Include an analysis of the issue to be addressed, including why it is important to address, what the main causes of the issue are, and who has power to effect change on the issue; suggested approaches and solutions, taking into account existing initiatives and programs supported by the USG and other donors focused on the same subject matter (with evidence to support suggestions); and suggestions for revision to NOFO goals and objectives if needed.

Theory of Change & Implementation Plan: Describe the implementation plan (specific activities to implement suggested solutions); explain how or why they should result in accomplishment of the project goals and objectives (i.e., the theory of change). Projects should be designed such that activities, if implemented according to plan, should result in achievement of program objectives; and objectives, if achieved, should result in achievement of program

10 | Page goals. The Theory of Change should clearly demonstrate this causal logic. Finally, discuss likely challenges to implementation, including any risks of harm to project implementers or participants, along with mitigation strategies.

Gender, Equity, and Inclusion Analysis: Include in your proposal an analysis that addresses the ways in which women, gender diverse persons, and members of other marginalized and underrepresented groups (as specified in the “Participants and Audiences” section above) might affect and be affected differently by your work, including a consideration of their safe and meaningful participation. Strengthen your proposal by incorporating the results of this gender, equity, and inclusion analysis into your project design. Include a description of how you will minimize any inequities and identified potential risks.

Description of Prior Work: Provide brief descriptions, including outcomes and deliverables, of any similar projects the organization has implemented.

Future Funding Plan/Sustainability: Briefly discuss the plan for ensuring the sustainability of the project (i.e., that the project continues to have impact beyond the grant period) or note if sustainability is unlikely without continued support. Applicants may also include a brief section outlining how additional funds could potentially be used to expand work into additional activities or countries beyond the initial project period.

◻ Performance Monitoring Plan

See Appendix A for more details and instructions. Applicants MUST submit the following:

● Change Map (see template) or equivalent

● Illustrative Performance Indicator Reference Sheet (see template)

Note 1: If full performance monitoring information is not available at the time of the proposal, applicant should indicate that the indicators and associated information are notional. If selected, a final version of the documents will be required as an early deliverable.

Note 2: Reporting of performance narratives and indicator data in INL’s DevResults database is required once project implementation is underway.

◻ Project Risk Analysis

A template is included under the Related Documents section of this NOFO announcement on www.grants.gov. Refer to Appendix B for additional guidance on drafting a Project Risk Analysis.

◻ Timeline Outline key milestones in the project, project start-up, and closeout, programmatic activities, and monitoring and evaluation activities (e.g., monitoring trips or semi-annual reviews). May be a written schedule and/or a GANTT chart.

Organization, Staff, and Partners The following documents may be submitted separately or combined into one document. If combined, please be sure to adhere to the page limits for each section.

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◻ Biographical Information of Applicant Organization – Maximum 4 pages Introduce the applicant organization, including biographical information such as mission statement, organization size, relevant office location(s), etc.

Provide a summary description of past and present operations, demonstrating the applicant’s ability to carry out the project.

Describe any experience the organization has in the target country or region.

Confirm whether the organization is a registered business entity within the target country or region.

◻ List of Key Personnel – Maximum 3 pages Names, titles, responsibilities, and relevant experience or qualifications of key personnel involved in the management of the project.

◻ Partner Information (if subrecipient) is being proposed) – Maximum 3 pages

Introduce and provide relevant information about key partner organizations and sub-recipients.

Briefly describe the division of labor and/or distinct roles and responsibilities among the applicant organization and its partners.

If proposing a sub-recipient, please briefly describe the applicant organization’s experience related to managing sub-recipients.

◻ Letters of Support – Optional

If desired, applicants may submit letters of support from project partners, host government entities, or other relevant stakeholders.

Project Budget and Cost Documents

◻ Summary and Detailed Budgets

A proposal budget must be submitted in spreadsheet format (e.g., Microsoft Excel). A template is located under the Related Documents section of this NOFO announcement on www.grants.gov for applicants as a reference. Refer to Appendix C for additional guidance on drafting a proposal budget.

One tab of the spreadsheet shall contain the Summary Budget, which lists the OMB-approved budget categories and total estimated cost per category.

One tab of the spreadsheet shall contain the Detailed Budget, which breaks down the OMB-approved budget categories into individual line items and provides detailed cost estimates per line item.

If applicable, federal costs and recipient cost share must be reported in separate columns.

◻ Budget Narrative

The Budget Narrative is a companion document to the summary and detailed budgets and must be submitted in word document format. A template is included under the Related Documents section of this NOFO announcement on www.grants.gov. Refer to Appendix C for additional guidance on drafting a Budget Narrative.

The Budget Narrative should communicate to INL any budgetary information that is not readily apparent in the detailed budget. Rather than simply repeating with

12 | Page words what is stated numerically in the budget, the Budget Narrative should explain the logic behind the amount budgeted for each line item.

If applicable, proposed recipient cost share must be included in the Budget Narrative, including reference to the source of the cost share.

◻ Indirect Costs Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA):

If the applicant has an approved Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA) and includes NICRA charges in the budget, a copy of the organization’s most-recent NICRA must be included in the application.

If the applicant is proposing a sub-recipient that has an approved NICRA, and includes NICRA charges in the sub-award budget, a copy of the sub-recipient organization’s most-recent NICRA must be included in the application.

10% de minimis Rate:

The applicant can elect to charge a de minimis rate of 10% of modified total direct costs (MTDC), which is allowable if the organization does not have a current agreement. (Please see Appendix C: Budget and budget narrative for more information regarding the 10% de minimis rate.)

If the applicant elects to utilize the 10% de minimis rate, that rate is then applicable for the entire period of performance of that award. Should the applicant negotiate and obtain a NICRA, it may not be applied to an award already using the 10% de minimis rate.

Applicant Management Capabilities INL must assess each potential applicant for organizational risks related to the financial and programmatic management of a federal assistance project.

◻ History of U.S. Government Federal Assistance Awards

This document outlines the applicant organization’s experience with implementing U.S.

government-funded federal assistance awards, including current and completed projects.

The list should include the awarding agency, point of contact, name of the project, start and end dates, and amount of the award.

If the applicant has never received a U.S. federal assistance award, please list other projects the organization has implemented, including the information requested in the bullet above.

◻ Organizational Audit

If the applicant organization is required to undergo an audit (per regulations outlined in 2 CFR 200.500 – Subpart F), a complete copy of the organization’s most-recent audit must be submitted. (The financial statement is not a substitute for a single audit report. The Single audit report is an additional requirement for domestic and foreign organizations that spend $750,000 or more in federal funds in the fiscal year.)

If the applicant organization is not required to undergo an audit (per the regulation cited above), a brief explanation must be submitted with the

13 | Page application. This explanation shall include confirmation that the organization is under the threshold for which an audit is required and/or plans for the organization to undergo an audit in the future.

Responses to the Pre-Award Risk Survey in reference to the Organizational Audit does not satisfy this requirement. Please provide the required explanation in addition to the Pre-Award Risk Survey.

◻ INL Applicant Pre-Award Risk Survey This risk survey reviews the applicant organization’s financial capacity, policies, and infrastructure. A template is included under the Related Documents section of this NOFO announcement on www.grants.gov.

Please take note of the questions within the survey that request additional documentation. These documents must be included in the application.

3. Document Formatting

Applicants must ensure that their application documents conform to the following requirements:

◻ The proposal clearly addresses the goals and objectives of this funding opportunity ◻ 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 inch paper, and ◻ All Word documents are, at minimum, single-spaced with 12 point Calibri font and 1-inch margins

4. Required Entity and Account Registrations for Applicants All prospective applicant organizations must register and/or maintain active registration in the systems outlined below in order to submit an application to this NOFO.

Organizations that are first-time applicants may need to register and/or create accounts in these systems. INL encourages prospective applicants to initiate these registrations as soon as possible. Applicants that have previously applied to other opportunities may already have registrations and/or accounts in the necessary systems, though applicants should ensure their registrations are active.

Registration in these systems is free of charge; Applicants will never be asked to pay a fee to register or submit an application in these systems.

Unique Entity Identifier Organizations must have a UEI which will be automatically assigned by SAM.gov.

● If your organization does not have a UEI already, you may obtain one by calling 1-866- 705-5711 or submitting a request at http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform.

Effective April 4, 2022, the DUNS Number will be replaced by the Unique Entity Number (UEI) as the primary means of entity identification for all federal awards U.S. government wide. A DUNS number is no longer required for federal assistance applications. For more information, please go to the following link: https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp

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NCAGE Code Organizations physically located outside the United States and its territories must also register for an NCAGE code. This request can be completed simultaneously with a UEI request. (Note:

CAGE codes for US-based entities will be automatically assigned in SAM.gov).

● NCAGE application: https://eportal.nspa.nato.int/AC135Public/scage/CageList.aspx

● NCAGE application instructions:

https://eportal.nspa.nato.int/AC135Public/Docs/US%20Instructions%20for%20NSPA%2 0NCAGE.pdf

Help with NCAGE Code registration issues:

● Call 1-888-227-2423 (callers within the U.S.)

● Call 1-269-961-7766 (callers outside the U.S.)

● Email NCAGE@dlis.dla.mil

System for Award Management (SAM.gov) Prior to submitting an application in grants.gov, organizations must register in SAM.gov and/or ensure that their SAM.gov registration is active. Organizations are required to renew their SAM.gov registration annually.

● Initiate the registration or renewal process at https://www.SAM.gov. Select “Entity Registration” to begin the registration or renewal request.

● First-time applicants should initiate the SAM.gov registration after receiving their UEI and, if applicable, NCAGE Code (for foreign organizations). CAGE codes will be automatically assigned to US-based organizations.

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), a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code, 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 December 2022, 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 CAGE (NCAGE) code to apply for non-DoD foreign assistance funding opportunities. If an applicant organization is mid-registration and wishes to remove an 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 to seek guidance on how to do so.

Any applicant listed on the Excluded Parties List System (EPLS) in SAM.gov is not eligible to apply for an assistance award. Additionally, no entity listed on the EPLS can participate in any activities under an award. All applicants are strongly encouraged to review the EPLS in SAM.gov to ensure that no ineligible entity is included in their proposal.

https://eportal.nspa.nato.int/AC135Public/scage/CageList.aspx https://eportal.nspa.nato.int/AC135Public/Docs/US%20Instructions%20for%20NSPA%20NCAGE.pdf https://eportal.nspa.nato.int/AC135Public/Docs/US%20Instructions%20for%20NSPA%20NCAGE.pdf mailto:NCAGE@dlis.dla.mil https://www.sam.gov/ https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp?id=gsafsd_kb_articles&sys_id=c81018e71b1601d0937fa64ce54bcb57 http://www.fsd.gov/

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NOTE: As of April 2021, any new or renewed SAM.gov registrations were given a Unique Entity Number (UEI). UEI does not expire, however you must renew your SAM.gov registration annually.

For more information regarding the transition from UEI (DUNS) to UEI (SAM), please click on the following link: https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp

D.3.1 Exemptions

An exemption from these 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.

Note: As of December 2022, 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 CAGE (NCAGE) code to apply for non-DoD foreign assistance funding opportunities.

Grants.gov To submit an application to this NOFO, applicants must register in grants.gov.

● Go to www.grants.gov and select “Register” from the banner at the top of the page.

● This should be the last step of the entity registration processes, completed after obtaining a UEI number, NCAGE/CAGE Code (if applicable), and SAM.gov registration.

Help with grants.gov registrations and application submission:

● Go to the grant.gov support page at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support.html

● Call +1 800-518-4726

● Email support@grants.gov

It is the responsibility of each applicant to ensure that its application was submitted in www.grants.gov correctly. INL bears no responsibility for errors resulting from transmission or conversion processes associated with application submissions. If applicants are unable to resolve technical issues in the system, they should email the INL points of contact listed on the first page(s) of this NOFO with an explanation of the issue and proof of attempts to resolve it (e.g., emails with grants.gov support). INL Grants Office will then determine whether the applicant is allowed to submit application materials via email.

https://www.fsd.gov/gsafsd_sp https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support.html mailto:support@grants.gov

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E. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

1. Technical Evaluation Criteria

A technical evaluation committee, using the criteria shown in this Section, will evaluate the applications. The various functional elements of the technical criteria are assigned weighted scores, so that the applicants will know which areas require emphasis in the preparation of applications.

Where technical applications are considered essentially equal, cost may be the determining factor. Applicants should note that these criteria serve as the standard against which all applications will be evaluated and serve to identify the significant matters which applicants should address in their applications.

The relative importance of each criterion is indicated by the number of points assigned. A total of 100 points is possible.

Project Analysis & Design – Total Possible Points: 50

● Analysis of the problem is insightful and accurate. Insightful analysis includes a thorough discussion of the main causes and scope of the issue the project seeks to address and discussion of who has power to effect change on the issue (10)

● Suggested approaches and solutions (i.e., the theory of change) are: (10) o Based on good evidence; and o Appropriate given the problem, its causes, and its scope

● Proposed implementation plan is: (12) o Aligned with suggested approaches and solutions o Feasible given timeline, resources, and context o Designed such that activities, if implemented according to plan, should result in achievement of program objectives; and objectives, if achieved, should result in achievement of program goals o Complementary to USG- and other donor-funded initiatives that support independent journalists and media outlets.

● Proposal includes a gender, equity, and inclusion analysis addressing the ways in which women, indigenous people, LGBTQI+, and members of other marginalized and underrepresented groups, including those with intersecting aspects of identity, might affect and be affected by this project, (3)

● Description of likely challenges to implementation plan, including risks of harm to organization staff, project participants, and/or others, is thorough and mitigation strategies are appropriate (8)

● Applicant considers the gender, equity, and inclusion analysis as part of risk assessment by identifying possible risks to participants as a result of their participation in line with Do No Harm principles. (2)

● Analysis and plans for sustainability are realistic (5)

Program Monitoring and Risk – Total Possible Points: 20

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● Change Map includes indicators for each goal and objective; and proposed indicators are useful for decision making, accurate in measuring the intended result, reliable, and timely (10)

● Illustrative Indicator Reference Sheet includes selected standard indicators; provides three valid indicators for goals, objectives, or sub-objectives in the change map; and demonstrates a thorough plan for data collection (5)

● Risk assessment is thorough and realistic, addresses challenges in the operating environment, and proposes adequate strategies to mitigate risks to the project (5)

Institution’s Record and Capacity Rating – Total Possible Points: 20

● The applicant demonstrates an institutional record of successful programs in the proposed country/region and program area (4)

● Professional experience of staff and institutional resources are adequate and appropriate to achieve the project's objectives (4)

● The roles and responsibilities are clearly delineated among staff and partners (4)

● Applicant is a current/former INL grantee, and they successfully manage/managed the project OR the applicant has not worked with INL previously and demonstrates experience in managing similar-sized projects (4)

● Applicant submits copies of organization-wide policies and procedures on Preventing Sexual Exploitation and Abuse or explains how the applicant plans to develop such policies, which should also apply to sub-recipients. (4)

Cost Effectiveness – Total Possible Points: 10

● Activity-related costs are realistic, appropriate, and clearly linked to project objectives

(4)

● Personnel costs (e.g., staff salaries, contractor rates, and honoraria) are reasonable given the amount of work and oversight needed to manage the project (3)

● Administrative costs (e.g., staff travel, supplies, office costs) are necessary, justified, and in good proportion to direct activity costs (3)

2. Review and Selection Process

INL first reviews all submitted applications for technical eligibility, based on the list of required documents in Section D: Application and Submission Information. All technically eligible applications are then passed to a review committee, which will evaluate the applications against the Technical Evaluation Criteria listed in the previous sub-section. The application(s) selected by the review committee are then presented to INL management and the Grants Officer for approval.

INL will notify successful applicant(s) via email and pass along any conditions, recommendations, or questions from the review committee. INL will notify unsuccessful applicants via email after an award has been issued to the successful applicant(s); therefore, this notification process may take several months.

INL reserves the right to fund any number of applications or none of the applications submitted and will determine the resulting level of funding for each award(s).

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3. Federal Awardee Performance & Integrity Information System (FAPIIS)

For all awards with a federal total exceeding $250,000, INL is required to review and consider any information about the applicant in FAPIIS.

Organizations are able to review and comment on any information about itself that a federal awarding agency previously entered and is currently in the designated integrity and performance system, accessible through SAM.gov. INL 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 conducting pre-award due diligence.

F. 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 DS-1909 award agreement is the authorizing document and will be provided to the recipient for review and signature via email or MyGrants. The recipient may only start incurring program expenses beginning on the official project start date, unless pre-award costs are authorized in the award agreement.

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 neither constitutes 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.

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

Before submitting an application, applicants should review all the terms and conditions and that will apply to this award to ensure that they will be able to comply. These include, but may not be limited to:

● 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 200 – UNIFORM ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS, COST PRINCIPLES, AND AUDIT

REQUIREMENTS FOR FEDERAL AWARDS

● 2 CFR 600 – DEPARTMENT OF STATE REQUIREMENTS

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

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INL will review and consider applications 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. This may include, but is not limited to:

● 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:

o 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) o 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 (2 CFR part 200.216) o 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) (2 CFR parts 200.300, 200.303, 200.339, and 200.341) o 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) o 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)

3. Program-Specific Requirements

None.

4. Reporting Requirements

Recipient Reports Recipients will be required to submit financial reports and program narrative reports.