Issuance Date: October 27, 2023

Closing Date: The Dominican Republic: November 23, 2023

Closing Time: Midnight, Eastern Standard Time

Subject: Request for Applications (RFA) Number: FY24-SG2-Consortium Partner, SHE’s GREAT! 2.0 

Reference: Issued under International Research and Exchange Board (IREX) project and DOS COAG No. SAQMIP23CA0377

This Request for Applications (RFA) outlines the information required by the applicant for the development and submission of a proposal for consideration. The potential applicant is expected to review, understand, and conform with specifications contained in this RFA. Failure to do so will be at the applicant’s own risk.

All reasonable, allocable, and allowable expenses, both direct and indirect, which are related to the subaward program and are in accordance with applicable cost standards (2 CFR 200 Subpart E Cost Principles or the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 31 for-profit organizations), may be charged under the subaward.

For non-US organizations the Department of State Standard Terms and Conditions and 2 CFR 200 Subpart A through E apply.

This RFA is being issued and consists of this cover letter, Schedule A, and Annexes.

Issuance of this RFA does not constitute an award commitment on the part of SHE’s GREAT! 2.0/IREX nor does it commit SHE’s GREAT! 2.0/IREX to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of an application. The application is submitted at the risk of the applicant. All preparation and submission costs are at the applicant's expense.

Thank you for your interest in SHE’s GREAT! 2.0/IREX activities.

Sincerely,

Stanley Currier

Project Director, SHE’s GREAT! 2.0

 

SCHEDULE A

SECTION I: FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION:

SHE’s GREAT! 2.0 is a three-and-a-half-year program funded by the United States Department of State (DOS) and implemented by IREX. The project focuses on positive youth development by challenging and overcoming harmful gender norms. The project’s goal is to create a supportive environment for secondary school-age youth, with an emphasis on girls in all their diversity, and to create a more safe, equitable, and inclusive future by increasing access to science, technology, engineering, math (STEM) careers and addressing harmful gender norms.

Program Objectives:

• Objective 1: Youth are supported in challenging and overcoming harmful gender norms.
• Objective 2: Girls and youth, in all their diversity, are supported in obtaining experiences.
• Objective 3: Amplify community, school, and family/household support for positive peace and youth agency.

USG Regulations:

Department of State Standard Terms and Conditions and 2 CFR 200 Unified Administrative Requirements Subpart A through E apply.

SECTION II: AWARD INFORMATION:

Subject to the availability of funds, IREX expects to award approximately four Partner subawards range of $20,000 up to $40,000 (this is an approximate range based on costing estimates). The expected duration of IREX’s support or the period of performance is dependent on the country of implementation and will range from 1 (one) year to three (3) years.  SHE’s GREAT! 2.0/IREX reserves the right to fund any or none of the applications submitted. 

IREX intends to award subgrants to a consortium of partners to implement in one of the identified countries. IREX encourages applicants to bid as a group, with a Lead Partner (see Lead Partner RfA here). IREX will also accept applications from single organizations with a technical specialty as outlined in Section III: Eligibility Criteria. See Annex 3 for information on the Local Consortium Partner Approach.

SECTION III: ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION:

The applicant / application must meet the following requirements:

• Be officially registered and working in compliance with all applicable civil and fiscal regulations, including, but not limited to pertinent local laws and status.
• Be officially registered as a legal entity and working in compliance with all applicable local laws. An applicant can show proof of effort to secure registration. If an applicant is not registered, they can only receive an in-kind and or fixed amount award subaward.
• Meet the projects objectives and principles.
• Contain expected outcomes and results consistent with and linked to the projects objectives
• Applicant is not a debarred organization
• Received Unique Entity ID (UEI)

Types of Eligible Subawardees:

• U.S Non-Governmental Organizations (U.S. NGOs)
• Non-US Nongovernment Organizations (Non-US NGOs)
• International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs)
• Community Based Organization (CBOs)
• Civil Society Organizations (CSOs)
• Private Enterprises
• Professional Associations
• Universities
• Individuals leading a group

Minimum Requirements:

• Youth-programming experience 
• Gender-programming experience (if applying as Mental Health/Psychosocial Support Lead or Inclusion Lead)
• STEM programming experience with youth (if applying as a STEM Lead)
• Experience facilitating workshops in-person and in virtual formats, i.e. online trainings and in-person trainings 
• Demonstrated safeguarding (or prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse) knowledge and experience in program activities. 
• Eligible organization include those that focus one or more of the following:
  • Mental Health/Psychosocial Support (MHPSS), trauma-informed work with youth;
  • Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics for youth;
  • Organization focusing on a historically excluded group, such as individuals with disabilities, LGBTQIA+ youth, internally displaced persons (IDP), individuals from religious or ethnic minorities, or any other historically excluded group in your context.

For more specific desired areas of experience, please see Annex 3.

• Should applicants be applying as part of a consortium, the applicant should include a conflict-of-interest disclosure statement with regard to the relationships between the organizations as part of the application.

SECTION IV: APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION:

Any questions concerning this RFA should be submitted in writing not later than two (2) days prior to the closing date shown above to Cai Thomas, Technical Advisor, cthomas@irex.org. If applicants would like to schedule a 45-minute call to discuss the application, please contact Cai Thomas. Applicants should retain for their records one copy of all enclosures which accompany their application.

The application must be received at the SHE’s GREAT! 2.0/IREX’s email indicated below no later than the closing date listed on the front page of this RFA. Pre-award costs are not allowable and will not be reimbursed. An application and modifications thereof shall be submitted in electronic format to the following email address: Cai Thomas, cthomas@irex.org. Subject line: RfA Application – Organization Name

Application must be submitted in electronic form. The complete application packet must be submitted in the required format with the required attachments.

• Application: 
  1. UEI number
  2. Organizational background
  3. Program description, focused on outline and activities as described in Annex 2.
  4. Beneficiaries, outcomes and expected impact
  5. Communication Plan
  6. Organizational Staffing Plan (includes the CV of the main project manager and contact information (email)
  7. Budget and budget narrative (Cost Share is not required)
  8. 2 CFR Part 200 Subpart F Audit [if applicable]
  9. Other materials
     1. Safeguarding and/or Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Policy
• Due Diligence Questionnaire

Restrictions:

• Subaward funds provided under the terms of this RFA shall not be used to procure goods or services from suppliers that may be identified on the USG consolidated list of debarred, suspended or ineligible contractors at http://www.sam.gov/.

• Any purchases or activities deemed unnecessary to successfully complete the activity, including any subawardee headquarters’ expenses that are not directly linked to the implementation of the proposed project.
• Previous obligations and/or bad debts.
• Fines and /or penalties.
• Other costs unallowable as referenced 2 CFR 200 Subpart E Cost Principles and FAR 31.2 Cost Principles for Commercial Organizations.

Late Application 

Late applications are marked as “late” and are ineligible for review or award; however, IREX reserves the right to accept and include late applications in the review and award process when it is considered within the best interest of IREX to do so and if applications that were received on time have not been opened and reviewed. Applications that are submitted late or incomplete run the risk of not being considered for review.

SECTION V: APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION:

The application will be evaluated according to the evaluation criteria set below. To the extent necessary (if an award is not made based on initial applications), negotiations may be conducted with each applicant whose application, after discussion and negotiation, has a reasonable chance of being selected for award. 

Evaluation Criteria:

1. Technical Merit 40 points

• Relevance to program goals
• Sustainability of project results
• Anticipated impact on the beneficiaries
• Creativity of approach
• Ability to implement outlined approach

2. Past Performance / Organizational Capacity 40 points

• Past performance in similar projects
• Relevant staff skills to the proposed project
• Experience in geographical region
• Written accounting and procurement procedures
• Capacity to adhere to DOS financial guidelines

3. Feasibility and Cost Effectiveness 20 points

• Are costs reasonable, allowable, and allocable
• Is the proposal cost effective
• Does the proposal have the required percentage of cost share/leveraging if required

SCTION VI: AWARD AND ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION:

The recommendation or selection of an application in accordance with established procedures does not guarantee an award. All applicants must demonstrate that they possess, or have the ability to obtain, the necessary management competence to practice mutually agreed upon methods of accountability for funds and other assets provided. 

A successful applicant can expect to receive an Award Letter, signed by the program. The award letter will be addressed to the organization’s point of contact as stated in the application.  Applicants that were not successful can expect a letter explaining the reason for their unsuccessful application.

Following the Award Letter, final negotiations will take place before the signing of a subaward agreement.

Reporting Procedures:

A description of reporting requirements will be included in the Subaward Agreement. The types of reporting required, along with the schedule of reporting, will depend on the subaward agreement and project duration. Reporting forms will be provided to subaward recipients. Types of reporting will include the following:

• Program report to be submitted during project implementation according to a schedule described in the subaward agreement. This report will include a description of progress made during the period, problems in project implementation; actions taken to overcome them; and activities planned for the next period.   
• Final program report will describe how the project objectives and goals were reached, results of the project, and problems and solutions during implementation.
• Financial reports will be submitted according to a schedule described in the subaward agreements. Types of financial reports, as well as the schedule of reporting, will depend on the type of subaward, length of the project, and amount of funding. In addition, the subawardee is required to submit a detailed Final Financial Report. 

Issuance of the final installment of subaward funds is contingent upon SHE’s GREAT! 2.0’s receipt and acceptance of Final Financial and Final Program Reports.

SECTION VII: OTHER INFORMATION:

Issuance of this RFA does not constitute an award or commitment on the part of IREX, nor does it commit SHE’s GREAT! 2.0 / IREX to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of an application.

IREX reserves the right to fund any or none of the applications submitted. Further, IREX reserves the right to make no awards as a result of this RFA.

 

PUBLIC NOTICE

REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS (RFA) for SHE’s GREAT! 2.0

Issuance Date: 27-Oct-2023

Closing Date: 11-23-2023

I. SUMMARY:

The SHE’s GREAT! 2.0 is a three-and-a-half-year program funded by the United States Department of State (DOS) and implemented by the International Research and Exchange Board (IREX). The project focuses on positive youth development by challenging and overcoming harmful gender norms. The project’s goal is to create a supportive environment for secondary school-age youth, with an emphasis on girls in all their diversity, and to create a more safe, equitable, and inclusive future by increasing access to STEM careers and addressing harmful gender norms.

II. PURPOSE:

This RFA is seeking applicants to propose effective approaches to the development of positive youth development, STEM, gender and social inclusion, prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA)/safeguarding, psychosocial support, and mental health specialization for youth.

III. LOCATION OF ACTIVITIES:

The geographic focus under consideration includes the following countries for regional activities: The Dominican Republic.

IV. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES:

• Objective 1: Youth are supported in challenging and overcoming harmful gender norms.
• Objective 2: Girls and youth, in all their diversity, are supported in obtaining experiences.

• Objective 3: Amplify community, school, and family/household support for positive peace and youth agency.

V. APPLICANTS ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:

• Be officially registered and working in compliance with all applicable civil and fiscal regulations, including, but not limited to pertinent local laws and status.
• Be officially registered as a legal entity and working in compliance with all applicable local laws. An applicant can show proof of effort to secure registration. If an applicant is not registered, they can only receive an in-kind and or fixed amount award subaward.
• Meet the projects objectives and principles
• Contain expected outcomes and results consistent with and linked to the projects objectives
• Applicant is not a debarred organization
• Received Unique Entity ID (UEI)

Types of Eligible Subawardees:

• U.S Non-Governmental Organizations (U.S. NGOs)
• Non-US Nongovernment Organizations (Non-US NGOs)
• International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs)
• Community Based Organization (CBOs)
• Civil Society Organizations (CSOs)
• Private Enterprises
• Professional Associations
• Universities
• Individuals leading a group

VI. Award Information

Subject to the availability of funds, IREX expects to award approximately four Partner subawards range of $20,000 up to $40,000 (this is an approximate range based on costing estimates). The expected duration of IREX’s support or the period of performance is dependent on the country of implementation and will range from 1 (one) year to three (3) years.  SHE’s GREAT! 2.0/IREX reserves the right to fund any or none of the applications submitted. 

IREX reserves the right to fund any or none of the applications submitted. Further, IREX reserves the right to make no awards as a result of this RFA.

VII. CONTACT INFORMATION:

Please contact the following with any questions you have about the RfA or application process: Cai Thomas cthomas@irex.org 

ANNEXES

For additional information, please review these annexes.