[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 86 (Thursday, May 2, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19655-19658]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-10596]
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UNITED STATES INFORMATION AGENCY
Training Programs in Bosnia, Request for Proposals; Notice
SUMMARY: The Office of Citizen Exchanges of the United States
Information Agency's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
announces an open competition for an assistance award. Public and
private non-profit organizations meeting the provisions described in
IRS regulation 26 CFR 1.501(c)(3)-1 may apply to develop media and
parliamentary training programs for Bosnia. Projects should include
both in-country and U.S. training programs for professionals in the
above-mentioned fields.
Overall grant making authority for this program is contained in the
Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, Public Law 87-
256, as amended, also known as the Fulbright-Hays Act. The purpose of
the Act is ``to enable the Government of the United States to increase
mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the
people of other countries * * *; to strengthen the ties which unite us
with other nations by demonstrating the educational and cultural
interests, developments, and achievements of the people of the United
States and other
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nations * * * and thus to assist in the development of friendly,
sympathetic and peaceful relations between the United States and the
other countries of the world.'' The funding authority for the program
cited above is provided through the Exchanges appropriation.
Programs and projects must conform with Agency requirements and
guidelines outlined in the Solicitation Package. USIA projects and
programs are subject to the availability of funds.
ANNOUNCEMENT TITLE AND NUMBER: All communications with USIA concerning
this announcement should refer to the above title and reference number
E/P-96-35.
DEADLINE FOR PROPOSALS: All copies must be received at the U.S.
Information Agency by 5 p.m. Washington, D.C. time on Friday, June 14,
1996. Faxed documents will not be accepted, nor will documents
postmarked June 7, 1996, but received at a later date. It is the
responsibility of each applicant to ensure the proposals are received
by the above deadline.
Grants should begin after September 9, 1996.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT: The Office of Citizen Exchanges,
European Division, Room 224, U.S. Information Agency, 301 4th Street,
S.W., Washington, D.C. 20547, telephone (202) 619-5319, fax (202) 619-
4350, Internet address [cminer@usia.gov] to request a Solicitation
Package containing more detailed award criteria, required application
forms, and standard guidelines for preparing proposals, including
specific criteria for preparation of the proposal budget.
TO DOWNLOAD A SOLICITATION PACKAGE VIA INTERNET: The Solicitation
Package may be downloaded from USIA's website at http://www.usia.gov/ or from the Internet Gopher at gopher://gopher.usia.gov. Select
``Education and Cultural Exchanges'', then select ``Current Request for
Proposals (RFPs).'' Please read ``About the Following RFPs'' before
beginning to download.
Please specify USIA Program Officer Christina Miner on all
inquiries and correspondences. Interested applicants should read the
complete Federal Register announcement before sending inquiries or
submitting proposals. Once the RFP deadline has passed, Agency staff
may not discuss this competition in any way with applicants until the
Bureau proposal review process has been completed.
SUBMISSIONS: Applicants must follow all instructions given in the
Solicitation Package. The original and eight copies of the application
should be sent to:
U.S. Information Agency, Ref.: E/P-96-35, Office of Grants Management,
E/XE, Room 326, 301 4th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20547
DIVERSITY GUIDELINES: Pursuant to the Bureau's authorizing legislation,
programs must maintain a non-political character and should be balanced
and representative of the diversity of American political, social, and
cultural life. ``Diversity'' should be interpreted in the broadest
sense and encompass differences including, but not limited to
ethnicity, race, gender, religion, geographic location, socio-economic
status, and physical challenges. Applicants are strongly encouraged to
adhere to the advancement of this principle both in program
administration and in program content. Please refer to the review
criteria under the `Support for Diversity' section for specific
suggestions on incorporating diversity into the total proposal.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Overview
Proposals must focus on one of the following topics:
Media Training
Programs in this general topic should fall under one or more of
three sub-categories: journalistic training (both print and broadcast);
management of media organizations; and/or government/press relations.
Media projects should include cities outside of Sarajevo.
Journalistic training should emphasize skills such as effective
writing, investigative reporting, objectivity, evaluation of sources,
clear labeling of editorials and opinion pieces, conformance to
copyright laws, and ethics.
Media management training should focus on management of media as a
profitable business. Topics to be addressed might include management
techniques, desk top publishing, sales, and advertising, marketing,
distribution, staff development, and accountability.
Public affairs training should cover the relationship between
journalists and spokespersons for political parties and/or government
agencies. Following the Fall elections the interaction between both
national and municipal government spokespersons and the media will be
critical to the development of democracy.
Parliamentary Training
Training should focus on the administration and structure of a
parliamentary government. The role of support offices, the structure of
parliamentary committees and parliamentary procedures and process,
including the basics of drafting legislation, should all be addressed.
These projects may be regional in focus.
Guidelines
Projects must be two-way exchanges and include in-country
workshops, consultations, and U.S.-based training (including
internships, where possible).
University faculty are invited to work as project directors;
however, the U.S.-based training should include professional
development and the Bosnian participants should be professionals
working in the fields of media or government.
Exchange programs for students or faculty or proposals that request
support for the development of university curricula or for degree-based
programs are ineligible under this RFP. Proposals to link university
departments or to exchange faculty and/or students are funded by USIA's
Office of Academic Programs (E/AE) under the University Affiliation
Program and should not be submitted in response to this RFP.
In the selection of all foreign participants, USIA and USIS posts
retain the right to nominate participants and to approve or reject
participants recommended by the program institution. Programs must also
comply with J-1 visa regulations.
Programs that include internships in the U.S. should provide
letters tentatively committing host institutions to support the
internships.
Funding
Proposals for less than $135,000 will receive preference.
Grants awarded to eligible organizations with less than four years
of experience in conducting international exchange programs will be
limited to $60,000.
Applicants must submit a comprehensive budget for the entire
program. There must be a summary budget as well as a breakdown
reflecting both the administrative budget and the program budget. For
better understanding or further clarification, applicants may provide
sub-budgets for each program component, phase, location, or activity in
order to facilitate USIA decisions on funding.
Allowable costs for the program include the following:
1. International and domestic air fares; visas; transit costs;
ground transportation costs.
2. Per Diem. For the U.S. program, organizations have the option of
using a flat $140/day for program participants or the published U.S.
federal per diem
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rates for individual American cities. For activities outside the U.S.,
the published Federal per diem rates must be used.
Note: U.S. escorting staff must use the published Federal per
diem rates, not the flat rate.
3. If needed, interpreters for the U.S. program may be provided by
the U.S. State Department Language Services Division. A pair of
simultaneous interpreters is provided for every four participants. USIA
grants do not pay for foreign interpreters to accompany delegations
from their home country. Grant proposal budgets should contain a flat
$140/day per diem for each Department of State interpreter, as well as
home-program-home air transportation of $400 per interpreter plus any
U.S. travel expenses during the program. Salary expenses are covered
centrally and should not be part of an applicant's proposed budget.
4. Book and cultural allowance. Participants are entitled to and
escorts are reimbursed a one-time cultural allowance of $150 per
person, plus a participant book allowance of $50. U.S. staff do not get
these benefits.
5. Consultants can be used to provide specialized expertise or to
make presentations. Daily honoraria generally do not exceed $250 per
day.
6. Room rental, which generally should not exceed $250 per day.
7. Materials development. Proposals may contain costs to purchase,
develop, and translate materials for participants.
8. One working meal per project. Per capital costs may not exceed
$5-8 for a lunch and $14-20 for a dinner, excluding room rental. The
number of invited guests may not exceed participants by more than a
factor of two-to-one.
9. A return travel allowance of $70 for each participant which is
to be used for incidental expenditures incurred during international
travel.
10. Other costs necessary for the effective administration of the
program, including salaries for grant organization employees, benefits,
and other direct and indirect costs per detailed instructions in the
application package.
Please refer to the Solicitation Package for complete budget
guidelines and formatting instructions, including information on audit
requirements.
Review Process
USIA will acknowledge receipt of all proposals and will review them
for technical eligibility. Proposals will be deemed ineligible if they
do not fully adhere to the guidelines stated herein and in the
Solicitation Package. Eligible proposals will be forwarded to panels of
USIA officers for advisory review. All eligible proposals will be
reviewed by the program office, as well as the USIA Office of Eastern
European and NIS Affairs and the USIA post overseas, where appropriate.
Proposals may be reviewed by the Office of the General Counsel or by
other Agency elements. Funding decisions are at the discretion of the
USIA Associate Director for Educational and Cultural Affairs. Final
technical authority for assistance awards (grants or cooperative
agreements) resides with the USIA grants officer.
Review Criteria
Technical eligible applications will be competitively reviewed
according to the criteria stated below. These criteria are not rank
ordered and all carry equal weight in the proposal evaluation:
1. Quality of the program idea: Proposals should exhibit
originality, substance, precision, and relevance to Agency mission.
Program objectives should be reasonable, feasible, and flexible.
2. Program planning: Detailed agenda and relevant work plan should
demonstrate substantive undertakings and logistical capacity. Agenda
and plan should adhere to the program overview and guidelines described
above.
3. Multiplier effect/impact: Proposed programs should strengthen
long-term mutual understanding, including maximum sharing of
information and establishment of long-term institutional and individual
linkages.
4. Cross Cultural/Area Expertise: Proposals should reflect the
institution's expertise in the subject area and should address specific
areas of concern facing countries involved in the project.
Additionally, projects should show evidence of sensitivity to
historical, linguistic and other cross cultural factors and should
demonstrate how this sensitivity will be used in practical aspects of
the program, such as pre-departure orientations or briefings of
American hosts.
5. Support of Diversity: Proposals should demonstrate substantive
support of the Bureau's policy on diversity. Achievable and relevant
features should be cited in both program administration (selection of
participants, program venue and program evaluation) and program content
(orientation and wrap-up sessions, program meetings, resource materials
and follow-up activities).
6. Institutional Capacity: Proposed personnel and institutional
resources should be adequate and appropriate to achieve the program or
project's goals.
7. Institution's Record/Ability: Proposals should demonstrate an
institutional record of successful exchange programs, including
responsible fiscal management and full compliance with all reporting
requirements for past Agency grants as determined by USIA's Office of
Contracts. The Agency will consider the past performance of prior
recipients and the demonstrated potential of new applicants.
8. Follow-on Activities: Proposals should provide a plan for
continued follow-on activity (without USIA support) which ensures that
USIA supported programs are not isolated events.
9. Project Evaluation: Proposals should include a plan to evaluate
the activity's success, both as the activities unfold and at the end of
the program. A draft survey questionnaire or other technique plus
description of a methodology to use to link outcomes to original
project objectives is recommended. Successful applicants will be
expected to submit intermediate reports after each project component is
concluded or quarterly, whichever is less frequent.
10. Cost-effectiveness: The overhead and administrative components
of the proposal, including salaries and honoraria, should be kept as
low as possible. All other items should be necessary and appropriate.
11. Cost-sharing: Proposals should maximize cost-sharing through
other private sector support as well as institutional direct funding
contributions.
12. Value to U.S.-Partner Country Relations: Proposed projects
should receive positive assessments by USIA's geographic area desk and
overseas officers of program need, potential impact, and significance
in the partner country(ies).
Notice
The terms and conditions published in this RFP are binding and may
not be modified by any USIA representative. Explanatory information
provided by the Agency that contradicts published language will not be
binding. Issuance of the RFP does not constitute an award commitment on
the part of the Government. The Agency reserves the right to reduce,
revise, or increase proposal budgets in accordance with the needs of
the program and the availability of funds. Awards made will be subject
to periodic reporting and evaluation requirements.
Notification
Final awards cannot be made until funds have been appropriated by
Congress, allocated and committed through internal USIA procedures.
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Dated: April 23, 1996.
Dell Pendergrast,
Deputy Associate Director for Educational and Cultural Affairs.
[FR Doc. 96-10596 Filed 5-1-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8230-01-M
