U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Embassy Of The United States Of America To Moldova
Public Affairs Section
NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY
Opportunity Title: SPEAKER PROGRAM
Opportunity Number: PAS-CHISINAU-FY20-08-SPEAKER
CFDA Number: AEECA PD Programs
CFDA Title: 19.900
Assistance Program: Speaker Program
Announcement Type: Open Competition
Announcement Date: March 3, 2020
Submission Deadline: April 15, 2020, 18:00
Anticipated Award Date: July 1, 2020
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
The U.S. Speaker Program promotes an understanding of U.S. policies and institutions and the political, economic, social, and cultural context from which they arise. PAS Chisinau invites proposals for programs that engage speakers and experts from the United States in programs including but not limited to: seminars, workshops, conferences, and media engagements. The program should build and consolidate knowledge and skills essential to the development of communities in Moldova.
Program Objectives:
The U.S. Speaker Program provides seed money to sustainable projects that promote mutual understanding between U.S. and Moldovan citizens.
The themes for the speaker program are:
- Anti-corruption
- Entrepreneurship
- Innovation
- Accountable and Democratic Governance
- Cyber-security
- Economic opportunities through investments
- Active citizenship
- Promoting Moldova’s energy diversification efforts
- Judicial Independence
Applicants are encouraged to develop partnerships with relevant stakeholders, including the public and/or private sector as well as local organizations, where applicable. All proposals must include an evidence-based description of: (i) the problem the applicant seeks to address; (ii) the implementation context, including any relevant details and the target beneficiaries of the project; and (iii) the project’s theory of change, i.e., how the proposed project will achieve the program objectives.
Strong proposals will also define how their programs are innovative, which could include one or more of the following elements:
- Demonstrates strong potential for sustainability and positive impact regardless of future funding or lack thereof.
- Presents a new model or a creative way of scaling and building upon successful approaches;
- Responds to a current challenge;
- Involves people from underserved communities or groups in activities that relate to
- American values.
In identifying the specific target populations, proposals must demonstrate a commitment towards the support and inclusion of marginalized communities (including disability status, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, whether they live in a rural or urban setting, etc.).
- FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION
The U.S. Embassy will consider awarding grants ranging from $6,000 up to $25,000. Any requests outside of these limits will not be considered. Please read section C. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION about requirements and criteria.
Total budget for the competition: $60,000
Assistance Instruments: Grants or Fixed Amount Awards
Maximum period of performance: 18 months
- ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION
- Eligible Applicants
Eligibility is limited to educational institutions and not-for-profit organizations (NGOs, CSOs, and Think-Tanks) officially registered in the Republic of Moldova.
Organizations without Moldovan registration can apply only as partners through an eligible organization.
Public Affairs Section reserves the right to request additional background information on applicants that do not have previous experience administering federal grant awards, and these applicants may be subject to limited funding on a pilot basis.
Please note: The Department of State prohibits profit under its assistance awards to for-profit or commercial organizations. No funds will be paid as profit to any recipient. Profit is defined as any amount in excess of allowable direct and indirect costs. The permissibility of costs incurred by commercial organizations is determined in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) at 48 CFR Part 31, Cost Accounting Standards, and Part 31 Contract Cost Principles and Procedures. Program income earned by the recipient must be deducted from the total project or program allowable cost in determining the net allowable costs on which the federal share of costs is based.
Please note: No entity listed on the Excluded Parties List System in the System for Award Management (SAM) is eligible for any assistance or can participate in any activities under an award in accordance with the OMB guidelines at 2 CFR 180 that implement Executive Orders 12549 (3 CFR Part 1986 Comp., p. 189) and 12689 (3 CFR Part 1989 Comp., p. 235), “Debarment and Suspension.” All applicants are strongly encouraged to review the Excluded Parties List System in SAM (www.sam.gov) to ensure that no ineligible entity is included.
- Cost Sharing or Matching
Applicants are not required to include funding from other donors. However, applications that include additional in-kind and/or cash contributions from non-U.S. Government sources will be more competitive, since cost-sharing may demonstrate a stronger commitment to the planned activities and greater cost effectiveness.
- Other
Organizations should have, or demonstrate the capacity to develop, active partnerships with in-country entities and relevant stakeholders, including the public sector, private sector, and civil society, as relevant to the proposed program objectives.
Organizations may form consortia and submit a combined proposal. However, one organization should be designated as the lead applicants
Organizations should not submit multiple grant proposals unless the scope, goal, and substance of the proposals vary significantly.
D. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION
A complete application must contain the following mandatory elements:
- Application Format in MS Word format
- Detailed Budget in MS Excel format
- Bio of the speaker/s in case of a confirmed speaker (free form)
- Speaker letter of intent in case of a confirmed speaker (free form)
Unsolicited attachments will not be read and should not be submitted for this award.
Please see full description of the funding opportunity HERE.
If you have any questions about the grant application process, please contact:
Andrei Cusnir
Alumni and Speakers Program Specialist CusnirAM@state.gov
+373 22 85 17 04; +373 68 22 77 31
