Deadline: 10-Jul-23
The Public Diplomacy Section (PDS) of the U.S. Mission to Afghanistan is pleased to announce an open competition for eligible organizations to submit applications to carry out a program aimed at supporting higher education opportunities for Afghans, in particular women and girls.
Successful proposals will focus on at least one of three areas of support for higher education:
- Individual and/or series of short online courses (at least three weeks and up to six months in duration) to assist educated young professional Afghans in maintaining or developing professional skills in target fields;
- Mentorship, coaching, and/or networking support for young professionals to further develop their skills through relationships with other Afghans in their field and/or;
- Post-secondary “bridge” programs that prepare students who have already studied at the secondary level but may lack an internationally recognized diploma or qualification for university admissions, or to otherwise prepare them for university studies.
Program Goal: To support higher education opportunities for Afghan students and young professionals, particularly women and girls, inside Afghanistan, and to maintain an educated workforce in which will be the basis for political and economic stabilization in Afghanistan.
Project Objectives
- Objective 1: Equip Afghan professionals, primarily women, across various fields inside Afghanistan with additional skills needed in their career fields and support them to maintain and extend existing skills in an environment in which opportunities to use them professionally is limited.
- Objective 2: Increase connections between Afghan professionals inside Afghanistan and others in their field, both inside Afghanistan and in outside of Afghanistan, to share knowledge and opportunities.
- Objective 3: Increase the ability of young Afghans in Afghanistan to access to higher education opportunities, in particular women and girls and those from marginalized and lower-income communities.
Funding Information
- Estimated Total Program Funding: $1,500,000
- Award Ceiling: $1,000,000
- Award Floor: $500,000.
- Length of performance period: 24 to 36 months.
Target Audiences: The primary audience for this project is Afghans ages 18 – 35 inside Afghanistan, particularly women and girls who, are able to benefit from higher education opportunities. The program should focus on supporting study and training in fields such as business/entrepreneurship, information technology, education, law, and allied health sciences and should support those who are interested in taking an active part in contributing to the social and economic future of Afghanistan. The participants should reflect the diversity of Afghanistan and include women and men, Afghans from urban and rural areas, as well as a mix of ethnic groups.
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligibility is open to all types of applicants except for individuals. Organizations may sub-award/contract with other entities, but only one entity may be the prime recipient of the award. When sub-awarding/contracting with other entities, the responsibilities of each entity must be clearly defined in the proposal.
Ineligible
- This opportunity will not support:
- Projects relating to partisan political activity;
- Charitable or development activities;
- Construction projects;
- Projects that support specific religious activities;
- Fund-raising campaigns;
- Lobbying for specific legislation or programs;
- Scientific research or surveys;
- Commercial projects;
- Projects intended primarily for the growth or institutional development of the organization;
- Projects that duplicate existing projects; or
- Illegal activities.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.