Program Office: Public Affairs Office, U.S. Embassy Gaborone, Botswana
Funding Opportunity Title: FY 2022 Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund
Announcement Type: Grant
Funding Opportunity Number: PAS-AF-22-GR-002
Funding Amount: $10,000 – $40, 000 per submission
Deadline for Applications: First round: 1:59 pm on Friday, February 18, 2022
Second round: 11:59 pm on Thursday, March 31, 2022
Program Description
The U.S. Embassy, Public Affairs Section is pleased to announce the FY 2022 Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF) Competition. AEIF is designed to support alumni as they develop their leadership capacity and implement projects in their communities. It seeks to increase the impact of the U.S. government’s investment in exchange participants and programs by helping alumni develop and implement projects that support U.S. foreign policy objectives, promote shared interests, and benefit local communities. The AIEF seeks to bring alumni together from different exchange programs to build or expand an alumni network capable of working together on common interests and increase regional and global collaboration of alumni. More information about this opportunity is available here: https://alumni.state.gov/aeif
Pending availability of funds, AEIF will consider proposals between $10,000 and $40,000. Proposals can be submitted at two times during the application cycle.
USG Alumni are invited to submit project proposals and request up to $40,000 to implement them. All proposals must be submitted by:
- First round deadline: 11:59 pm on Friday, February 18, 2022
- Second round deadline: 11:59 pm on Thursday, March 31, 2022
All submitted projects must address one of the three U.S. foreign policy themes below.
- Fostering a Culture of Entrepreneurship
- Empowering Women and Girls to Participate in Governance
- Promoting and Advancing Climate Change and Renewable Energy
All AEIF projects must also address at least one of the following:
- Bring alumni together from different exchange programs to build or expand an alumni network capable of working together on common interests and increase regional and global alumni collaboration.
- Strengthen the relationship between alumni and the U.S. government to work together on activities that address mutual goals and challenges.
- Support alumni as they develop their leadership capacity and implement projects in their communities.
Eligible Applicants:
The following individuals are eligible to apply:
- Applicants must be alumni of a U.S. government-funded exchange program (https://alumni.state.gov/list-exchange-programs) or a U.S. government-sponsored exchange program (https://j1visa.state.gov/).
- Projects teams must include teams of at least two (2) alumni.
- Alumni who are U.S. citizens may not submit proposals, but U.S. citizen alumni may participate as team members in a project.
- Alumni teams may be comprised of alumni from different exchange programs and different countries.
The role of the grantee will be the following:
- Organize logistics, present information and host a series of events or educational/cultural sessions, each focused on at least one of the priority areas listed above. Additionally:
- Admittance to the events must be free of charge.
- Events should be tailored to the information needs of an audience while supporting the priority areas of engagement.
- The award amount is inclusive of venue, travel, speaker, media, refreshment or any other fees. No funding above or beyond the $40,000 award ceiling will be considered.
Federal Award Information
- The type of assistance instrument will be a grant that will be awarded if applications are successful.
- The Public Affairs Office will notify all applicants as to whether their applications are successful.
- The total amount of funding is between $10,000 and $40,000 per submission and the anticipated total number of awards is two, contingent upon availability of funds.
- The award duration is six (6) months.
Guidelines and Eligibility Information
This competition is open ONLY to alumni of U.S. exchange programs. Businesses and government entities do not qualify. Applicants must be individuals or registered NGOs run by U.S. alumni.
Recipients can demonstrate their commitment by either contributing to the project financially or providing labor or supplies to carry out the project. Cost-sharing is not required but highly encouraged.
Application and Submission Information
Content and Form of Application Submission
To be considered for funding, applicants must submit the following documents and address the following items:
- Application Narrative, which should include, at minimum:
- Project description (goals, implementation plan and timeline, activities)
- Projected results and anticipated beneficiaries
- Details about alumni involved and capacity to manage and lead the project
- Please note this narrative should not be longer than three (3) pages total.
- Application Budget, including any cost sharing, in USD
- Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424). This form can be found on-line at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants/forms.html
To request an application please email: PASGaborone@state.gov. Address the email subject line of the email as follows: REQUESTING – AIEF GRANT PROPOSAL APPLICATION so that your email is clearly identified as a request for a grant application.
Completed grant proposals may be submitted at the same email address: PASGaborone@state.gov with the email subject line stating: AIEF GRANT PROPOSAL SUBMISSION – [insert title of project here].
Disclaimer: This notice is subject to availability of funding. U.S. Embassy Gaborone does not guarantee availability of funding by receiving applications under this announcement.
