FY2009 Funding Opportunity Announcement for NGO Programs Benefiting Refugees in Pakistan

Funding Opportunity Announcement

Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration

March 2, 2009

Announcement issuance date: Monday, March 2, 2009

Proposal submission deadlines: (Please note there are two deadlines based on program start dates.)

First round of applications: Friday, March 27, 2009 at 6:00 PM (EST)

Second round of applications: Tuesday, April 28, 2009 at 6:00 PM (EST)

Proposals submitted after these deadlines will not be considered.

Proposed Program Start Dates:
First round of submissions: May 1 – June 30, 2009
Second round of submissions: July 1 – September 30, 2009

Duration of Activity: No more than 12 months.
Applicants with multi-year programs must continue to re-compete for PRM funding each year. Furthermore, in funding a project one year, PRM makes no representations that it will continue to fund the project in successive years and encourages applicants to seek a wide array of donors to ensure long-term funding possibilities.

Current Funding Priorities for: Pakistan
PRM will prioritize currently available funding for proposed non-governmental organization (NGO) activities that best meet the Bureau’s priorities in Pakistan as identified below:

PRM is interested in innovative NGO proposals addressing the long-term needs of Afghan refugees as well as their host communities. NGOs should comply with the general policy guidelines described under “FY 2009 General NGO Guidelines for Overseas Assistance” posted under the “How to Apply” tab in grants.gov and consider the priority areas described below. For projects beginning in May and June, proposals must be received by PRM no later than March 27, 2009. For projects beginning in July through September, proposals must be received by PRM no later than April 28, 2009.Proposals received after these dates willnotbe considered. For FY09, our funding limit per project is $1.5 million. PRM’s funding for NGOs in FY09 is expected to be similar to our FY08 funding level.

PRM will consider proposals from NGOs with proven track records in implementing refugee assistance programs. Higher consideration will be given to organizations that have well-established operations in Pakistan.

International Organizations (IOs) that are engaged in programs relevant to the assistance addressed by this PRM funding announcement should ensure that these programs are made known to PRM on or before the closing date of this funding announcement so that PRM can evaluate all IO and NGO programs for funding consideration.

As in past years, PRM generally supports activities in the areas of: vocational training and preparation for sustainable livelihoods; basic and maternal/child healthcare; primary education, teacher training, and provision of materials and equipment; prevention of and response to gender-based violence (GBV); water and sanitation systems rehabilitation and repair; and supplemental feeding and nutritional programs. The following activities are priority areas for PRM in FY09:

1. Provide or improve access to basic and maternal/child healthcare.
2. Provide access to primary education for boys and girls. Educational programs may include teacher training and rehabilitation of existing school facilities.
3. Conduct vocational training in marketable skills and, as necessary, provide the required tool set for the profession. Programs should seek to identify skills that would be marketable in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Programs must include a description of how program activities will fit into a phased transition strategy to locally available services or to self-reliance strategies. Programs should also include clear and effective plans for moving from relief to sustainability under local or national structures. This must be included even in camp-based situations where local services remain limited. PRM will give particular consideration to NGOs that may be able to present projects that either coordinate with or fit into the UN-proposed Refugee Affected and Hosting Areas/Refugee Affected Areas (RAHA/RAA) Initiative. All projects should seek to address the particular needs of women and children.

NGOs are encouraged to propose programs that include a mix of elements. PRM will consider a broad range of activities, but priority will be given to programs that include one or more of the elements from the above categories. It is important to have an effective and practicable exit/transition strategy as it is unlikely that follow-on funding will be available.

Proposal Submission Requirements:
See “How to Apply” section on Grants.gov for complete details on requirements, and note the highlights below.

Proposal content, formatting and template: Please refer to the “Proposal Submission and Review Process” section in the FY 2009 General PRM NGO Guidelines at http://www.state.gov/j/prm/115597.htm. PRM strongly encourages organizations applying for PRM funding to use the PRM recommended proposal and budget templates. Templates can be requested by sending an email to PRMNGOCoordinator@state.gov. Please include “PRM NGO Templates” in the subject line.

PLEASE TAKE SPECIAL NOTE OF THE FOLLOWING REQUIREMENTS OUTLINED IN THE GENERAL PRM NGO GUIDELINES:

• PRM’s CFDA number for Refugee Assistance Programs for Afghan refugees is 19.519.

• Proposals must be submitted via Grants.gov. Organizations not registered with Grants.gov should sign up well in advance of the March 27, 2009 deadline as it can take up to two weeks for a registration to be finalized (and sometimes longer for non-U.S. based NGOs to get the required registration numbers).

• Please do not wait until the last minute to submit your application on Grants.gov. Applicants who have done so in the past and experienced technical difficulties were not able to meet the deadline. We recommend that organizations, particularly first-time applicants, submit applications via Grants.gov at least one week before the deadline to avoid last-minute technical difficulties that could result in your application not being considered. Note again the two deadlines for this proposal: March 27 for proposed start dates prior to June 30, and April 28 for start dates after July 1.

• If you encounter technical difficulties with Grants.gov please contact the Grants.gov Help Desk at support@grants.gov or by calling 1-800-518-4726. Applicants who are unable to submit applications via Grants.gov due to Grants.gov technical difficulties and who have reported the problem(s) to the Grants.gov help desk and received a case number and had a service request opened to research the problem(s), should contact PRM Program Officer Norman Hastings at (202) 663-3683, (HastingsNS@State.gov); or Amy Wendt at (202) 663-3622 (WendtAR@State.gov) immediately to determine whether an alternative method of submission is appropriate. Please note that e-mail submissions will not be accepted in lieu of submission via Grants.gov!

• Applications must be submitted under the authority of the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) at the applicant organization. Having proposals submitted by agency headquarters helps to avoid possible technical problems.

• Budget must include a specific breakdown of funds being provided by UNHCR, other USG agencies, other donors, and your own organization (where applicable). PRM places great value on multi-lateral support for humanitarian programs. As noted above to receive copies of PRM's recommended templates please send an email with "PRM NGO Templates" in the subject line to PRMNGOCoordinator@state.gov.

• Organizations that received PRM funding in FY 2008 for activities that are being proposed for funding again in response to this funding announcement should include an up-to-date, cumulative progress report against indicators as outlined in the cooperative agreement.

• Focus on impact indicators as much as possible. At a minimum, each objective should have one impact indicator.

• NGOs that have not received PRM funding prior to the U.S. Government fiscal year ending September 30, 2004 must be prepared to demonstrate that they meet the financial and accounting requirements of the U.S. Government by submitting copies of 1) the most recent external financial audit, 2) non-profit tax status under IRS 501 (c)(3), 3) a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number, and 4) an Employer ID (EIN)/Federal Tax Identification number.

• This announcement is designed to accompany PRM’s General NGO Guidelines for Overseas Assistance, which contain additional administrative information and explain in detail PRM’s NGO funding strategy and priorities. Please use both the General NGO guidelines and this announcement to ensure that the proposed activities are in line with PRM’s priorities and that your proposal submission is in full compliance with PRM requirements. Proposal submissions that do not meet all of the requirements outlined in these guidelines will not be considered. PRM recommends using the proposal and budget templates that are available on the Bureau’s website.

• If an organization believes that publicly acknowledging the receipt of USG funding for a particular PRM-funded project could potentially endanger the lives of the beneficiaries and the organization staff, invite suspicion about the organization's motives or alienate the organization from the population it is trying to help, it must provide a brief explanation in its proposal, for PRM's consideration, as to why it should be exempted from this requirement

Proposal review process: PRM’s Regional Assistance Offices conduct formal competitive reviews of all submitted proposals by convening review teams. These teams evaluate submissions based on the above-referenced proposal evaluation criteria and PRM priorities in the context of available funding.

In order to provide NGOs with timely feedback, PRM will inform applicants of the panel’s decision to recommend or not recommend funding proposed activities, and may request revised proposals and/or budgets based on feedback from the panel. PRM will follow up with formal notifications to NGOs of final decisions taken by Bureau management.

PRM Points of Contact:
All applicants for new and follow-on funding are encouraged to contact the PRM staff listed below before submitting proposals:

- Program Officer Norman Hastings (HastingsNS@State.gov) in Washington, DC
- Program Officer Amy Wendt (WendtAR@State.gov) in Washington DC
- Regional Refugee Coordinator Carmela Conroy (ConroyCA@State.gov) in Kabul, Afghanistan