Deadline: 02-Jul-21
The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) of the U.S. Department of State announces an open competition for organizations to submit applications to carry out a project to build the capacity of Haiti’s justice sector to prosecute government officials and gang members responsible for violent atrocities such as the 2018 and 2019 attacks in La Saline and Bel-Air respectively.
The mission of INL is to keep Americans safe by countering crime, illegal drugs, and instability abroad.
With its goal for this project being to increase the capacity of Haiti’s judicial institutions and actors to investigate and prosecute violent atrocities.
Goals
INL prioritizes foreign assistance and diplomatic engagement, which identifies three strategic goals to guide INL’s efforts:
- Disrupt or deter significant illicit drug trafficking and other transnational criminal activity that threatens U.S. national security, public safety, or drives irregular migration to the United States.
- Reduce instability in strategically vital regions and strengthen the resilience of partners facing malign influence.
- Drive global action through international engagement that promotes interoperable criminal justice systems and common standards to combat shared criminal threats.
Objectives
- Objective 1: Increase the capacity of relevant criminal courts to expeditiously process atrocities cases;
- Objective 2: Increase the capacity of relevant criminal courts to convict those responsible for violent atrocities in compliance with Haitian law and where warranted by the evidence;
- Objective 3: Increase the capacity of the government justice sector and human rights actors to impartially handle allegations of gross human rights violations by government officials; and
- Objective 4: Strengthen victim and witness cooperation with legal teams that facilitate access to justice; and
- Objective 5: Increase the capacity of civil society and other stakeholders to effectively demand accountability for atrocities.
Funding Information
- INL projects shall not exceed five (5) total years of project implementation.
- Length of performance period: 24 months
- Number of awards anticipated: 1 award
- Award amounts: awards may range from a minimum of $500,000 to a maximum of $750,000
- Total available funding: $750,000
- Type of Funding: FY 2020 funds under International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement
- (INCLE) funds under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961
- Anticipated program start date: September 2021
Eligible Project Activities
Project activities may include:
- Providing training, technical assistance, and equipment to increase the capacity of criminal courts where atrocities such as the La Saline and Bel-Air attacks are prosecuted;
- Educating magistrates, investigators, prosecutors, court staff, and government human rights defenders, such as the ombudsman and the human rights minister delegate, to properly handle gross human rights violations carried out by government and government-affiliated actors; and
- Advising and educating Haitian citizens to strengthen their cooperation with legal teams that facilitate access to justice.
- Specific areas of capacity-building may include investigations, prosecutions, trial and evidence management, building public awareness, and an introduction to the newly adopted penal code and penal procedural code.
Priority Region/Countries
- Haiti
Eligibility Criteria
The following organizations are eligible to apply:
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- U.S.-based non-profit/non-governmental organizations (NGOs);
- U.S.-based educational institutions subject to section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. tax code;
- Foreign-based non-profits/non-governmental organizations (NGOs);
- Foreign-based educational institutions
For more information, visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=333284