Ambassadors’ Special Self Help Fund (Niger)

Deadline: 31-May-22

The U.S. Embassy Niamey / Bureau of African Affairs of the U.S. Department of State announces an open competition for organizations to submit applications for the Ambassador’s Special Self-Help (SSH) to carry out a program to support the Socio-Economic development of communities in Niger.

The Ambassadors’ Special Self-Help (SSH) program is a grass-roots assistance program that allows U.S. embassies to respond quickly to local requests for small community-based development projects. Special Self-Help projects are community-based, initiated locally, administered at the local level, and include significant community contributions in cash, labor, or materials. The Special Self-Help program is structured to encourage communities to be self-reliant and undertake similar activities on their own in the future.

Objectives:

Despite significant strides made by Niger over the past decade, the country’s extreme poverty rate remained high at 42.9% in 2020, affecting more than 10 million people.
Niger’s economy depends primarily on subsistence agriculture and hence faces multiple development issues.
The most crucial is rapid population growth (a fertility rate of over seven live births per woman) contrasted with low economic growth.
Consequently, population growth outpaces the government’s ability to offer sustained basic services. In such situations, community members often organize themselves for community development and improvement.
The Self-Help fund provides small, short-term grants to community groups that are working to improve the basic economic and social conditions of their communities.
In other words, the fund provides groups with resources to implement projects that improve living and social conditions in their communities.
The Niger 2022 Ambassadors’ Special Self-Help (SSH) program aims at improving basic economic or social conditions at the local community or village level.
Specific results could include the following:
- Improved educational facilities
- Improved health facilities

Funding Information

Length of performance period: 03 to 12 months
Number of awards anticipated: 5 to 10 awards (dependent on amounts)
Award amounts: awards may range from a minimum of $3000 to a maximum of $10000
Type of Funding: FY2021 Economic Support Funds under the Foreign Assistance Act

Priority Region: Applicants can submit project proposals to be implemented in any area of the eight regions of the Niger Program

Eligibility Criteria

Eligible Applicants An SSH project must be submitted by an organized group that is motivated has identified a real need and has already successfully implemented projects in the community.
The project should be feasible and based on the socio-economic context of the local community.
All applicants must be registered with Non-Profit Organizations.
They welcome proposals from Community and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that work directly with communities.
Organizations must be able to demonstrate that they have adequate internal controls and financial systems in place.
Local Community Involvement
All Special Self-Help projects are community-based, initiated locally, administered at the local level, and include significant community contributions in cash, labor, or materials.
Substantial community participation in the activity is required.
Contributions may include labor, materials (bricks, sand, gravel, seeds, etc.), land, buildings, or money to ensure the success of the project.
Local involvement of the organization or group must be at least 10% in cash or kind of the total project costs.
The personal contribution of funding may be crucial to choose between two viable requestors.