Applications open for Local Partner Fund – Congo DR

Deadline: 15-Sep-2024

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is currently accepting applications for the Local Partner Fund (LPF).

Purpose

• The USAID/DRC Local Partner Fund (LPF) will strive to ensure that, in all activities, local partner and/or local communities lead development and humanitarian efforts, including problem identification, priority setting, design, partnership formation, implementation, and measuring results as defined by the Agency locally-led program indicator. The LPF will make a significant contribution to the USAID direct funding to local organizations objectives while enhancing the application of best practices for locally led development.
• USAID LPF will advance USAID DRC localization agenda by addressing competition requirements and allowing an open solicitation process to receive concepts for partnering with local organizations and increasing their ability to generate and achieve locally led solutions to major development challenges, and by providing direct awards to local organizations to implement activities. USAID LPF will work in tandem with USAID Localization Capacity Strengthening Mechanism to respond to capacity building needs in partner organizations and help to strengthen the abilities of local partners beyond the donor-awardee relationship in a way that guarantees consistency, mutual accountability, and sustainability. USAID LPF will consider inclusive development as a key element of USAID local programming across the DRC and CAR, and will foster collaboration, learning, and adapting, as prerequisites for successful implementation.

Programmatic Focus

• The 2024 Annual Program Statement (APS) concept notes from local organizations may have one or more themes from the technical areas. Local organizations submitting concept notes may apply to one or several themes in a technical area as deemed appropriate.
  • Technical Area One: Democracy, Human Rights and Governance (DRG)
    • USAID/DRC will receive concept notes that tackle one or several issues described under technical area one in the following provinces: Congo Central, Equateur, Haut Katanga, Haut Uele, Ituri, Kasai, Kasai Oriental, Kinshasa, Maniema, North Kivu, North Ubangi, South Kivu, South Ubangi and Tanganyika.
    • Concept notes from Congolese Civil Society Organizations to respond to the gaps highlighted include:
      • Electoral Reform and Political Participation: Concept notes should focus on the revision and improvement of the electoral system and legal framework to improve the transparent electoral processes:
        • Build on 2020-2022 civil society consultations and advocacy campaign for electoral reform; update revisions and recommendations in light of post-election assessments and design of an inclusive dialogue process; establish an election reform working group.
        • Promote civic education among Congolese citizens, with an emphasis on marginalized groups, e.g. Youth, Women, People with Disabilities (PwD), Indigenous Groups, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), and minorities.
        • Support and build the capacity of newly elected female municipal counselors so that they are empowered to serve in leadership roles.
        • Collaborate and coordinate with the parliamentary women’s advocacy efforts to increase women’s political participation and leadership in legal framework.
      • Media: Concept notes that strengthen DRC’s media landscape:
        • Advance the role and sustainability of community radio networks to provide essential information and raise awareness of critical issues.
        • Support and advocate for an improved legal framework for the media in the DRC, including the Law on Access to Information (LAI).
        • Promote information integrity to prevent and counter content manipulation and take actions that empower audiences in media literacy and critical thinking among other information and communication resilience techniques.
      • Governance: Concept notes that support anti-corruption efforts:
        • Support civic education and raising awareness around corruption and the impacts. This may include supporting communities to advocate for more accountability from extractive industries.
        • Denounce cases of corruption and advocate for appropriate responses from the Government of the DRC (GDRC) institutions to promote more transparency and accountability.
      • Rule of Law: Concept notes that advance people-centered justice solutions:
        • Support access to justice for vulnerable groups including people with disabilities, survivors of GBV and trafficking, and indigenous groups.
        • Enhance the capacity of local actors to promote justice and anti-corruption efforts within the judiciary system.
      • Human Rights: Concept notes that promote an enabling environment for greater citizen participation and freedom:
        • Support and empower human rights defenders, including women’s rights, victim’s rights, sexual and gender minority rights, journalists’ rights, and indigenous population’s rights.
        • Address human rights violations including gender-based violence (GBV) and trafficking in persons (TIP).
        • Support specific interventions that promote and protect consumer rights in the DRC.
        • Support Civil Society initiatives that encourage human rights compliance in the extractive industry.
  • Technical Area Two: Economic Growth (EG)
    • USAID/DRC’s Economic Growth Office promotes inclusive economic growth that reduces poverty and enhances food security through investments in key aspects of the Congolese economy, namely agriculture, responsible mining, energy, and finance. Local actors and organizations, including the private sector play a critical role as agents of development in identifying and adopting market-based solutions to address development challenges in these sectors. Such local actors include business associations like the Fédération des Entreprises du Congo (FEC), Chamber of Commerce, Chamber of Mines, seed producers, input dealers, energy providers, private sector companies, financial institutions (commercial banks, Microfinance institutions [MFIs], foundations), civil society organizations, and research institutions (i.e. universities, laboratories and think tanks).
    • The Economic Growth Office actively seeks opportunities to directly support local organizations and market actors to promote and scale innovation, improvements, and efficiencies through the local market system.
    • USAID/DRC Economic Growth’s geographic scope is all provinces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for Energy and Mineral thematic areas. For the Agriculture and Food Security thematic area, only portions of Kasai Central and Kongo Central Provinces as described in the Feed the Future Country Plan and as described as the “Zone of Influence” will comprise the geographic scope.
      • Agriculture and Food Security: Concept notes from the local organizations seeking to:
        • Create public private dialogue platforms, conduct regulatory and policy analysis, and carry out advocacy,
        • Innovate post-harvest practices that enhance market potential,
        • Improve the capacity and efficiency of MFIs,
        • Provide off-farm vocational training for youth and women including business incubation,
      • Critical Minerals: Concept notes from local Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) (i.e. Industry associations, watch groups, and/or nongovernmental organizations [NGOs]) that aim to counter corruption, improve policy framework/policy reforms, minimize fraud and smuggling, increase transparency and accountability, enforce environmental, social and governance standards in critical minerals supply chains with focus on:
        • Coltan in North Kivu,
        • Lithium in Tanganyika, or
        • Coper/cobalt in Haut-Katanga and Lualaba
      • Energy: Concept notes from local organizations (i.e. energy operators, private utility companies, watch groups, and/or business associations) that aim to:
        • Promote innovation and efficiency in energy production and use,
        • Improve energy policy and regulatory reforms, or
        • Facilitate investments in both on-grid and off-grid energy systems.
      • Private Sector Engagement: Concept notes from local institutions (i.e. consulting companies, private companies, service providers, investment promotion foundations, business associations, financial institutions, trade associations, and/or NGOs) that focus on expanding:
        • Business development services, including risk mitigation,
        • Public private dialogue around policy reforms and improving the business enabling environment,
        • Technological innovation and practices that enhance and enlarge the market potential of DRC’s key economic sectors, including agriculture and mining,
        • Improving access to finance,
  • Technical Area Three: Education (EDU)
    • USAID/DRC’s Education Office (EDU) aims to raise education quality standards in the DRC by expanding access to education and improving service delivery. EDU’s interventions strive to provide and improve education services to marginalized populations, including indigenous people, women and girls, and people with disabilities.
    • USAID/DRC will receive concept notes that tackle one or several issues in the following provinces: Lomami, Mai-Ndombe, Kwilu, Kwango, Sankuru,Tshopo and Mongala.
      • Early Childhood Development (ECD) and Pre-Primary Education (PPE): Concept notes from local organizations which seek to:
        • Strengthen mothers’ ability to provide nurturing play-based learning in adapted home or community non-school spaces which can be equipped with PPE facilities, playgrounds, and age-appropriate learning materials, and
        • Provide pre-service education, in-service technical training, facilitator well-being programs, and supportive supervision for teachers implementing ECD interventions.
      • Marginalized Communities: Concept notes from local organizations seeking to:
        • Improve access to quality education, and
        • Increase student retention for formal and non-formal education in indigenous communities.
      • Teacher Training and Mentorship – USAID/DRC’s Education Office aims to raise education quality standards in the DRC by expanding access to education and improving service delivery. Concept notes from local organizations seeking to build the capacity of local schools and Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) institutions to:
        • Recruit and retain teachers and instructors,
        • Provide preliminary and in-service training for the duration of the teachers’ tenure), and/or
        • Mentor teachers and instructors to improve their instruction and facilitation skills.
      • Workforce Development – Concept notes from local organizations seeking to build the capacity of local Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) institutions to better educate and train learners, both youth and adults, for in-demand jobs in the Congolese economy. This includes building the capacity of TVET institutions to recruit, retain, educate, and certify learners.
        • In marginalized communities, and
        • In crisis and conflict settings.
  • Technical Area Four: Peace and Security (PSO) 
    • USAID/DRC’s Peace and Security Office (PSO) partners with civil society and governmental bodies to support communities affected by conflict, primarily in Eastern Congo and the Central African Republic, to build the foundations for peace and stability. It seizes windows of opportunity to manage, mitigate, and prevent conflict as well as support holistic services for victims of violence through adaptive and integrated programming. It pursues locally led solutions to provide protection to those at risk, countering discrimination and disinformation, and reducing violent conflict within and among communities as well as between communities and other structures such as protected areas. Its programs promote gender equity and empowerment of ethnic minorities, and secure human rights for the disabled and sexual and gender minorities.
    • USAID/DRC will receive applications that tackle one or several issues in the Central African Republic and in Eastern DRC.
      • Stabilization and social cohesion measures in conflict-affected communities: Innovative concepts notes from local organizations seeking to bring conflicting parties together to resolve any disagreements peacefully. This includes efforts to strengthen community organizations that promote peaceful dialogues and resolution of conflicts, activities that can set a foundation for peace as a clear and fair distribution of resources to people in communities, and livelihood support activities designed to prevent recruitment by armed groups.
      • Countering Gender Based Violence and Stigmatization of Sexual and Gender Minorities: Concept notes from local organizations that prevent or respond to gender-based violence and/or support sexual and gender minority communities to combat stigma, discrimination, sexual violence, and other human rights violations that community members face.
      • Strengthening Human Rights in Central African Republic: Concept notes seeking to:
        • Strengthen democratic institutions with the potential to advance human rights over the long-term, and/or
        • Mitigate against changing threats to human rights, including from armed groups and foreign actors.
      • Countering Disinformation and Hate Speech in Central African Republic: Concept notes that put in place means to counter local hate speech and the spread of disinformation that can foment conflict.

Funding Information

• The total estimated program budget is up to $1 million annual funding per activity for each awardee. Budgets submitted should reflect the organization’s absorptive capacity.
• The period of performance for each activity awarded under the LPF is three to five years that will depend on the starting date.

Theory of Change

• If local partners lead responses to the development and humanitarian challenges they face,
• If local partners’ readiness and organizational capacity to work with the USG is strengthened,
• If they harness the necessary resources, technical support, and learning opportunities,
• Then local actors will be empowered to lead the implementation of locally led solutions that are more effective and sustainable, while allowing USAID to support evidence-based approaches that advance the outcomes of development and humanitarian programs.

Program Geographic Targeting

• The Local Partner Fund provides a broad framework for USAID DRC’s interest in supporting partner-driven solutions, diversifying the partner base, and increasing local leadership over USAID development goals.
• Potential applicants will submit concept notes to specific themes under technical areas and specify their geographic coverage. The choice of the geographic coverage is informed by the need for increased interventions in post-conflict zones, the inclusion of marginalized communities as stakeholders and recipients of development interventions, the integrated Country Strategy and needs assessment reports, and evaluation reports. Potential applicants to the USAID LPF do not have to consider all geographic zones mentioned under each technical area unless it is relevant, feasible and justified by the problem(s) to which the application intends to provide a solution. The geographic coverage may be confirmed during the co-creation phase based on priorities defined with involved USAID local partners.

Geographic Code 

• The geographic code for the procurement of commodities and services under this program is 937, (the United States, the recipient country, and developing countries other than advanced developing countries but excluding any county that is a prohibited source).

Eligibility Criteria

• USAID/DRC welcomes submissions from local organizations who bring an understanding of the development challenges facing their communities, country, or regions and who demonstrate a way to determine local priorities in their approach.
• Eligible applicants:
  • Must be local entities in DRC. When determining if an entity is a “local entity” for the purposes of this APS, USAID will consider:
    • Whether the entity is legally organized under the laws of DRC,
    • Whether the entity has its principal place of business or operations in DRC,
    • Whether the entity is majority owned and controlled by individuals who are citizens or lawful permanent residents of DRC, and
    • Whether the entity is managed by a governing body, the majority of whom are citizens or lawful permanent residents of DRC.
  • Cannot have received more than $5 million in direct funding (as a prime awardee) from USAID in the previous five years.
  • Cannot be a U.S. based organization. US based organizations are not eligible as prime awardees under this APS.
• Submissions can include one or more entities as partners working together (teaming arrangements) to achieve a common goal in a consortium. If the consortium itself is not a separate registered entity, then one of the organizations will receive the award as the prime recipient. In that case, the prime recipient must meet the eligibility requirements noted above.

For more information, visit Grants.gov.