Deadline: 23 August 2019
United States Department of State, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations (CSO) has announced an open competition for organizations interested in submitting applications for programs addressing and enhancing community resilience to extremism and outside influence in the Western Balkans.
This program’s overall goal is to enhance community resilience to violent extremism and outside influence in the Western Balkans through increased connectivity among networks of stakeholders and by providing targeted resources opportunities to vulnerable communities.
Project Objectives and Activities
Specific activities will be proposed by the applicant, but examples include:
- Objective #1 – Increase broad regional connectivity and partnerships among critical regional stakeholders to reduce violent extremism and outside influence by convening a 2nd Annual Western Balkans Resilience Forum.
- 150-200 participants
- Multi-sector: local government officials, high-level national government officials, civil society and academia representatives, journalists and representatives of religious communities.
- Strengthen existing relations (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia), and make new connections (Croatia, Bulgaria, possibly other Visegrad 4 countries).
- Target location: Bulgaria
- Objective #2 – Increase regional cooperation and information sharing by creating a network of local government officials.
- Convene a meeting of 50 local government officials to assess community risks, targeted interventions, and support needs from national government or the international community.
- Set agenda and objectives for actionable and lasting cooperation between municipalities.
- Ensure network priorities and operations compliment, not duplicate, the work of existing networks.
- Objective #3 – Increase security and stability in local communities vulnerable to VE and outside influence by providing resource support through targeted interventions.
- Using the needs assessments determined at the local government officials’ convening event, identify a set of targeted interventions and opportunities for support.
- A small tranche of this funding opportunity should be devoted to providing micro-grants for small-scale, community-based projects. Implementer must also identify and attract other funding streams to make available for local applicants.
Regional Geographic Focus
Applicants should design a program that is regional in scope that includes all (or nearly all) of the following countries of the Western Balkans: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia. Applicants must provide detailed justification if they choose not to include any of the countries listed here or if the proposed program seeks to include countries not on this list. In addition, CSO welcomes program designs featuring enhanced coordination between the countries of the Western Balkans and Central and Eastern Europe (Bulgaria/Romania, Visegrad 4) that advance mutual security goals.
Funding Information
CSO expects to award one cooperative agreement based on this NOFO and in an amount not to exceed the total ceiling amount of $395,000. The period of performance is 12-months with an anticipated start date of October 2019.
Eligibility Criteria
- Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Foreign Public Entities and Public International Organizations (PIOs)
- Applicant must have acute awareness of conflict-related sensitivities in the Western Balkans through prior work in the Western Balkans or through thematic expertise. Applicants are encouraged to partner with relevant organizations with the ability to execute such programming throughout the Western Balkans.
How to Apply
Complete proposal packages must be submitted via given website.
For more information, please visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=318824