U.S. Embassy Managua Public Affairs Section: Small Grants for U.S.-Nicaragua Collaborative Projects

The Public Affairs Section (PAS) at U.S. Embassy Managua is pleased to announce the opening of the 2021-2022 Annual Program Statement (APS) – PAS Small Grants Program. This program is open only to Nicaraguan and American citizen(s), non-profit, or non-governmental organizations, and institutions of higher education.

This funding opportunity does not receive applications through Workspace in Grants.gov. Applicants should submit their applications according to the instructions in this notice of funding. 

The Public Affairs Section encourages applications from U.S. and Nicaragua only: 

·        Registered not-for-profit organizations, including civil society/non-governmental organizations with programming experience

·        Nicaraguan and U.S. Individuals

·        Institutions of Higher Education

Incomplete proposals or proposals with missing documentation will not be considered for funding.

The Small Grants Program cannot fund: 

·  Projects supporting primarily partisan political or religious activity

·  Lobbying for specific legislation or programs

·  International air travel (unless essential to the goal of the project)

·  Charitable activities

·  For-profit, commercial, or trade activities

·  Fundraising campaigns

·  Scientific research 

·  Institutional development per se or support of an organization 

·  Activities that duplicate existing projects

·  Construction and infrastructure

·  Purchase of vehicles

·  Salaries as the main purpose of the grant

·  Refreshments as the main element of the grant

The PAS Small Grants Program will evaluate and score proposals according to the following criteria:

 1.     Quality of the Program Plan: The program idea should clearly show originality and program objectives must be well articulated and include the expected results of the program. The goals and objectives of the proposal should clearly align with the goals and objectives listed in this APS. In addition, a U.S. component or exchange between Nicaraguan and American individuals should be clearly stated in the proposal.

2.     Ability to Achieve Program Objectives: Applications should clearly demonstrate how the applicant would meet the objectives. Activities should be reasonable and feasible, and the application should clearly detail how activities would be carried out. Objectives should be clear, measurable, and have a well-articulated timeline.

3.     Project Evaluation: Proposals should include a plan to evaluate the activity’s success, both as the activities unfold and at the end of the program. Recommended evaluation documents include a draft survey questionnaire or specific details on another evaluation technique, and a description of the methodology that will be used to link outcomes to original project objectives. Sustainability: proposals should indicate how the program activities would continue to have a positive impact after the end of the program.

4.     Budget and Narrative Justification: The budget and narrative justification are complete and reasonable in relation to the proposed activities and anticipated results. The plan for services and related cost estimates are realistic.

A review committee will evaluate submitted proposals. It will take the committee up to two months to complete its review process. Some applicants might be contacted with questions during this review process. Funding decision will be issued in May 2022.

The maximum amount considered under the PAS Small Grants Program is US$60,000.00 per award. It is essential to provide a clear budget with a thorough and reasonable cost breakdown for the project, including specific categories for which the funds would be used. All awards are subject to the availability of funds.

Recipient cost-share is encouraged but is not required. The projects can be short-term or can implemented up to a period of twenty-four (24) months. The U.S. Embassy advises all applicants to budget expenses related to advertising and the promotion of your programs to future prospective participants. 

To apply, please complete all the required forms and submit them via email to PASManagua@state.gov with your proposal and all required information.. Applicants may find required forms and guidelines for this funding opportunity in the “Related Documents” tab. Incomplete proposals will not be considered for funding.

Please submit documents in: PDF, Word, Excel, or JPG format. The Embassy CANNOT receive emails with “zipped” attachments that contain WinZip or WinRAR extensions.

Applicants (organizations only) to U.S. Federal awards will require online registrations to DUNS and UEI, NCAGE/CAGE, and SAM.gov.

All above-mentioned registrations must be done online before submitting your APS application documents. There are no fees related to registration.

The order for online registration is as follow: 

1. NCAGE/CAGE registration for organizations only:

https://eportal.nspa.nato.int/AC135Public/CageTool/home

2. DUNS number for organizations only: 

http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform 

3. SAM.GOV registration for organizations only:   

Go to: www.sam.gov 

For new applicants (organizations without a SAM registration) check the tutorial video on how to register at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jvMm7mErmc.

NOTE: if your organization requires any kind of help regarding your registrations in SAM.gov, please go to: https://www.fsd.gov/fsd-gov/home.do

IMPORTANT: the General Service Administration (GSA) has been working in a new initiative that will replace the DUNS number with the new Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). The U.S. Embassy in Managua encourages all organization applicants to provide their DUNS and UEI numbers within their application packages. For new SAM.gov registrants, please check the following video on how to get your new UEI: https://vimeo.com/648667847

Please email the complete application documents in one message to:  

E-mail Address:          PASManagua@state.gov;

E-mail Subject:          PAS Small Grants Application

Applications for the PAS Small Grants Programs will be accepted from December 2021 through March 31, 2022. No applications will be accepted after this deadline. The Public Affairs Section will inform applicants in writing whether their proposals were selected for funding or not. 

Note: We do not provide any guidance or consultations for application-related questions through this Annual Program Statement. Once an application has been submitted, Embassy officials and staff may not discuss this competition with applicants until the entire proposal review process is completed.

The complete grant evaluation process takes approximately four to five months. However, it is important to note that this timeline may vary, depending on availability of funds. 

The Embassy of the United States of America in Managua advises all grantees (individuals and organizations) to read the Foreign Agents Law issued by the Nicaraguan Government in October 2020. https://www.lagaceta.gob.ni/2020/10/192/