The USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service Offers International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program Grant to Empower Youth and Strengthen Global Agriculture

Overview:

The International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program (IAEFP), in coordination with 4-H and Future Farmers of America (FFA), will provide opportunities to eligible U.S. citizens to assist developing countries in establishing school-based agricultural education and youth extension programs. The IAEFP’s purpose is to connect United States agriculturalists to the demand for experiential, school-based agricultural education in developing countries. The IAEFP was first implemented in Ghana during calendar year 2021-2022. The IAEFP allows United States agriculturalists the opportunity to develop a global mindset, help collaboratively meet the food and fiber needs of the domestic population of eligible countries, and help strengthen and enhance trade linkages between eligible countries and the United States agricultural industry.

The IAEFP emphasizes positive youth development and agricultural skill transfer to youth in beneficiary country secondary schools. It also encourages community-based agricultural extension and teacher training as well as development of 4-H clubs for strong sustainability of the program. Application submission should include, but is not limited to, program outlines that involve classroom instruction, field demonstrations, entrepreneurship projects, and leadership development. The application should address the identified country’s receptiveness of the IAEFP and what, if any, country policies and procedures will be necessary to incorporate into the project work plan for strong program implementation and sustainability. The country’s government, agriculture community, and local authorities should demonstrate support and commitment to collaborate on the implementation and execution of the IAEFP.

FAS will consider applications from all eligible organizations, including current recipients and new organizations.

Objectives:

For this opportunity, the IAEFP will focus on any low to middle income country as defined by The World Bank. The USDA anticipates issuing up to 2 awards in this program cycle. Each award is expected to support up to nine (9) Fellows. The Fellowship is expected to last 8-9 months in concurrence with the priority country’s secondary school academic year. Fellows participating in the IAEFP are required to hold a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in an agriculture-related field and be U.S. Citizens.

Although each Fellow should be assigned to a specific site within the proposed country, they are expected to participate as a cohesive cohort. All applications must demonstrate that security considerations have been assessed and address all measures that would be implemented to ensure the safety and security of participating U.S. Fellows.

Award recipients should coordinate with the USDA/FAS IAEFP Team, and relevant FAS overseas offices and/or appropriate U.S. Embassy personnel on programmatic issues, such as priority country partnerships, site selection and Fellow placement, and security measures. Additionally, a strong social media presence displaying the ongoing activities of the IAEFP is encouraged. Finally, regular updates on program implementation should also be provided to USDA/FAS Washington, D.C. and FAS overseas office representatives as requested.

Place of Performance:

Applicants may submit multiple applications for different countries; and all will be considered. All applications must address the safety and security situation in proposed country and the regions within the country where Fellows will be placed. All applications should address where the IAEFP can work in conjunction with the Norman E. Borlaug International Agricultural Science and Technology Fellowship Program, the Cochran Fellowship Program, the Food for Progress Program, the McGovern-Dole Food for Education Program, the Local and Regional Procurement Program, and with Peace Corps, USAID, and/or other USG programming.

All applications should recognize and demonstrate incorporation of any priority country government requirements to allow for smooth implementation of this program. Program implementation must be focused on program sustainability and collaboration with the host government to help build/enhance the country’s agricultural education curriculum. This may include formal registration with the government in the country. Applicants should determine if the proposed country requires registration to work there. If registration is required, applicants must clearly state their registration status in the proposed country or detail plans for the registration process should they be selected. The timeline for any registration processes will be considered in the proposed timeline of the IAEFP.

Issuance of this funding opportunity does not constitute an award or commitment on the part of the United States Government (USG) to make awards, nor does it commit the USG to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of a concept note or full application.

Each application must be country-specific and tailored to the context of that country. Depending on ever-changing security situations in eligible low to middle income countries, the USDA selecting official may elect not to award or fund applications for certain proposed locations. In addition, the USDA may elect to negotiate applications. The USDA selecting official may also select applications out of rank order in consideration of strategic program priorities, such as geographical distribution, incorporation of minority-serving institutions, congressional directive, or other documented considerations. These determinations are final and cannot be appealed.

Lastly, the implementing institution is expected to conduct a post-program visit for the Fellows to Washington, DC to be greeted at USDA’s Washington, DC headquarters, participate in meetings organized by the FAS Fellowship Programs team, and provide a debriefing of their Fellowship experiences to USDA/FAS leadership.