USAID SCHEP seeking Applications in Response to COVID-19 (Jordan)

Deadline: 4-Feb-21

USAID SCHEP is pleased to publish a call for applications to support new projects in response to the COVID-19 global pandemic and the urgent need to support cultural and natural heritage in Jordan, in addition to scholars, local institutions, and universities during this challenging period.

Implemented by ACOR, USAID’s Sustainable Cultural Heritage through Engagement of Local Communities Project (SCHEP) works to enable communities to preserve their cultural heritage resources and market them to both domestic and international visitors. Established in 2014, SCHEP has played a significant role in engaging communities in the preservation, management, and promotion of heritage sites in ways that ensure their viability as long-term resources.

SCHEP enhances the self-reliance of Jordan’s cultural heritage sector by implementing a capacity building program that equips cultural heritage workers and institutions with key skills. It brings together governmental, non-governmental, academic, and private-sector stakeholders in order to develop strategies and policies that will guide the management of Jordan’s cultural heritage resources as part of institutional development.

Objectives

Providing small-scale grants to specific projects that will bolster the development of a strong Jordanian heritage community of practice by increasing best practices in site preservation, conservation, management, and tourism promotion;
Creating relationships between relevant governmental departments, institutions, and professional associations as part of institutional devolvement; and
Involving community members in site development through training, awareness, and job creation related to cultural heritage.

Thematic Concepts

Based on SCHEP’s mission and vision, a set of thematic concepts has been proposed:

Site Development and Cultural Resource Management;
Museums;
Research and Publication;
Communication and PR;
Archives and inventories;
Tourism Development;
Natural Heritage;
Intangible Heritage Studies;
Capacity Building;
Risk Management.

Criteria

Applications and concept submission forms must be submitted in English or Arabic.
The following entities are ineligible to receive a grant:
- Individuals (except in the Research and Publication category);
- Political parties;
- Government institutions (this includes entities of which the Government of Jordan owns a 50% or more share or that receive at least 50% of their financial support from the Government of Jordan);
- Faith-based organizations whose objectives are discriminatory or serve religious purposes and/or whose grant has a main objective that is of a religious nature.
The applying entity must be legally registered for at least one year prior to the submission date and must submit a copy of their registration.
They reserve the right to reject any concept proposal or application submitted.
Acceptance of a concept proposal or application does not imply commitment to a grant.
Proposals and subsequent applications will be reviewed according to specific criteria.
The grant will be awarded for an initial period not to exceed 6 months.

Evaluation Criteria

Grants will be evaluated primarily on the project’s intended outputs and outcomes, which are defined as follows:

- Outputs are the quantifiable results, products, goods, or services of program activities, such as number of people trained, training programs held, films or manuals produced, trails created, signs installed, etc.
- Outcomes are qualitative changes that can be clearly linked to a program. They normally relate to changes in institutional performance or in behavior among individuals or groups. Descriptions of outcomes may include terms such as “results” and “impacts.”
At least 90% of the budget must be expended in Jordan, and at least 75% in the host community. Funding to be spent outside Jordan or on non-Jordanian salaries must be rationalized clearly. Non-Jordanian salaries must be tied directly to successful achievement of outputs.
USAID cannot pay government employees, including faculty at government universities
Any goods to be purchased by the grantee must meet the rules governing local cost financing and geographical code and may not include ineligible or restricted goods. No single item having a useful life of over one year and/or an acquisition cost of JD3, 500 ($5,000) or more may be purchased.
Projects are expected to demonstrate how they will contribute to job creation and employment in the host community, if applicable.
Other financial sources, such as in-kind contributions, if any, must be stated.
Shortlisted projects will be invited to present their project concept to the SCHEP team in order to explain how it aligns with USAID SCHEP objectives and to review details of the proposal and its viability.
The grantee must adhere to the USAID SCHEP Grant Manual in the implementation stage.