Tetra Tech ARD (Call for Applications): Promoting Market Systems Approaches in Community Forests

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USAID FORESTS AND BIODIVERSITY SUPPORT ACTIVITY

Call for Applications: Promoting Market Systems Approaches in Community Forests

Grant Opportunity No: FABS-RFA-001

Publish Date: September 14, 2021

Deadline for questions: October 05, 2021

Virtual workshop on the call for projects: October 13, 2021

Closing date and time for submissions: November 01, 2021, 5:00 p.m.

Kinshasa)

Dear Candidates,

Tetra Tech, the implementing partner for USAID's Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended, and pursuant to USAID Contract No. # 72060520C00001, is authorized to make grants under contract (GUC) to achieve the objectives of its Program.

The Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity invites full applications (the full application form is attached) from local and international organizations, civil society, the private sector or other qualified candidates to practice market systems strategies to support the implementation of community forests in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The proposed activities must not exceed an amount of US$250,000 and a period of 24 months. The Forests and Biodiversity Support Activity plans to award up to five (5) grants in response to this call for projects. Subject to the availability of funds, assistance will be awarded as an in-kind grant, standard grant, simplified grant, or fixed amount grant in accordance with Chapter 303 of USAID's Automated Directives System (ADS 303). . Applicants may submit up to two (2) applications in response to this opportunity.

Applicants who will be awarded grant agreements will carry out interventions that contribute to the achievement of the overall objective of the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity which is to assist the Regional Program for the Environment by Central Africa (CARPE) and other environmental actors in the Congo Basin to implement strategies and actions that address large-scale threats to biodiversity conservation and forest management.

Grants awarded to U.S. and non-U.S. organizations and institutions will be administered in accordance with the following applicable regulations:

ADS 303 and Standard Provisions for U.S. Organizations, Non-U.S. Nongovernmental Organizations, or Fixed Amount Scholarships, as applicable, at https://www.usaid.gov/ads/policy/300/303.

2 CFR 200 and 700 at http://www.ecfr.gov/cgibin/textidx?tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title02/2cfr200_main_...

Applicable OMB Circulars

USAID's Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity reserves the right to fund all or part of submitted applications. Additionally, all grants from this grant opportunity will be contingent upon the availability of funds and the receipt of a sufficient number of meritorious applications. The submission of an application does not in any way constitute a commitment to award.

Please read this call for projects in its entirety before submitting your application to ensure that you have completed the form correctly and submitted all the required documents. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered for a grant. This call for projects consists of this cover letter and the following sections:

Section I. Grant Opportunity

Section II. Grant Information and Eligibility

Section III. Application Format and Submission Information

Section IV. Screening and Evaluation Criteria

Section V. Information on Grant Administration

Section VI.Other Information

Section VII.Appendices

Annex A: Application Format (with guide)

Annex B: Budget Format (with explanatory notes on the budget)

Appendix C: Certifications

Appendix D: DUNS Registration Guide

Annex E: Implementation and Staffing Plan

We thank you in advance for your interest.

Sincerely

Bocar Thiam

Project Manager

Forests and Biodiversity Support Activity

Section I: Grant Opportunity

The objective of USAID's Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity is to assist USAID's Central Africa Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE) and other environmental actors in the Congo Basin to implement strategies and actions that address large-scale threats to biodiversity conservation and forest management, focusing on three interconnected intermediate results (IRs):

IR 1: Strengthened Leadership and Stakeholder Participation: In close collaboration with civil society organizations, academia, the private sector and policy makers, the Activity strengthens the technical and institutional capacities of stakeholders in Central Africa to implement analyzes and strategies based on evidence, awareness-raising actions and better communication to address the main threats to forests and biodiversity.

IR 2: Improved Policy, Regulatory and Enabling Environment: To enrich and inform provincial, national and regional policy discussions, the Activity identifies and addresses priority constraints in the policy and regulatory framework by providing analysis and policy options to government, strengthening policy and regulatory advocacy, and promoting the participation of the private sector as well as women and other marginalized groups in policy reforms and their implementation.

IR 3: Innovative and evidence-based approaches adopted and institutionalized: To improve regional understanding of effective and evidence-based strategies to improve forest management and reduce threats to biodiversity, the Activity produces, disseminates and institutionalizes evidence-based analysis that builds on best practices and learning. Through grants and partnerships, as well as collaboration across the CARPE portfolio, the activity introduces innovative approaches, promotes financial sustainability for long-term conservation, and strengthens communication about the impact of conservation investments. CARP.

To achieve these objectives, the Activity engages closely with a wide network of institutions, including civil society, the private sector, government and other conservation and development practitioners across the Basin Congo to build sustainable local institutions with the capacity to generate new analysis and evidence that can support policy reforms and implement innovative conservation approaches. The Activity focuses its capacity building, policy, and collaboration, learning and adaptation (CLA) efforts on improving forest, biodiversity and land management; strengthening law enforcement efforts to reduce forest and wildlife crime; and promoting more inclusive markets and sustainable financing for forest conservation and management.

Goal and Objectives

The 2002 Forest Code of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) provides the option for local communities to claim management rights for traditionally held land up to 50,000 hectares. The implementing texts describing the application process (Decree 014/2014) and the management conditions (Ministerial Decree 025/2016) completed the legal framework to enable communities to exercise this right. There are currently over 100 local community forest concessions that have been legally recognized or are in the process of obtaining legal status. Community forestry is an important emerging opportunity to empower local communities to sustainably manage and benefit from their forest.

The legal framework for community forests allows for multiple-use management for a wide range of purposes, including forest conservation, fuelwood production, extraction of non-timber forest products, artisanal logging and a range of other objectives. This flexibility represents a difference from other community forest models tested in the Central African region, and an opportunity to test how greater flexibility in legal frameworks for community forests can lead to better outcomes for communities and the forests on which they depend. However, the effective achievement of these goals requires the development of a community management vision for activities that can generate income and support ecological sustainability.

[Text Box: Box 1: Definition of market systems. A market includes systems, institutions, procedures and social relations through which parties participate in exchanges. A market system is a set of actors and assets that move products from producers to consumers, while setting standards and regulations and creating transmission chains between production and consumption. Market systems development programs aim to address endemic poverty and can provide important services, income and other social functions to vulnerable groups.] While the DRC has some pilot experience in developing community forests and that there has been significant investment in exploring market systems development for agricultural value chains, the application of market systems development principles to conservation and natural resource management strategies has been more limited compared to emerging community forest strategies (see Box 1).

While initial investments, largely from international and national civil society organizations through donor programs, have enabled the establishment of a significant number of community forest concessions in the DRC, a forthcoming A critical step is to ensure that these concessions can support resilient and sustainable management that promotes the economic well-being of communities. Understanding the mechanism by which ongoing community forestry initiatives can tap into local, national and regional markets is therefore essential to ensure that community forests produce economic benefits.

USAID's Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity intends to support community forest initiatives in the DRC to achieve greater economic benefits for communities in ways that support inclusive governance and sustainable management of natural resources. To achieve this goal, the Activity will support beneficiary organizations working on community forestry initiatives to understand and implement market systems approaches that take into account conservation and natural resource management objectives. These activities will contribute to the overall objective and intermediate results of the Activity as follows:

Strengthen the capacity and leadership of local organizations working in the field of natural resource conservation and management to carry out market analyses, integrate economic and commercial considerations into strategic planning and the design of programs, and coordinate with the private sector.

Use lessons learned to support the Activity's advocacy and policy engagement, including documenting lessons to guide the implementation of the DRC's National Community Forest Strategy, as well as possible revision of the community forest policy framework. Lessons learned will also contribute to regional dialogue on effective models of community forests and inclusive market systems.

Support community forestry initiatives to test market systems approaches that will guide the collaboration, learning and adaptation agenda.

Grant Activities

USAID's Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity plans to award grants to civil society organizations, nongovernmental organizations, the private sector, or other qualified partners, to improve the design and implementation of community forest strategies that generate benefits for communities through inclusive market systems approaches that promote effective governance of natural resources. The Activity aims to develop partnerships with organizations with a strong track record of working with local communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including a commitment to social equity and an understanding of the different roles, responsibilities and barriers for men, women, youth, indigenous peoples and other vulnerable groups with regard to the management of natural resources.

Illustrative and eligible grant activities:

Market analysis and sector selection to assess the feasibility of planned community forest management strategies incorporating economic criteria. The proposed activities must be consistent with Ministerial Decree 025 describing the types of activities that can be carried out within a community forest concession.

Capacity building and training of grantee organizations and communities on market analysis tools.

Strategies that address the constraints of the enabling environment, such as strengthening regulation, reducing barriers to market entry, or improving the coordination of market players.

Activities related to the production of goods and services such as improving harvesting techniques, post-harvest activities (storage and preservation), improving the supply of inputs, access to transport or improving product quality.

Activities that improve community access to finance or market.

Activities that promote partnership with the private sector to invest in community forestry and market development.

Interested organizations should demonstrate a good understanding of the following aspects in their grant application:

The use of collaborative approaches that build community capacity. A clear sustainability strategy. The mechanisms by which the interventions will achieve results beyond the duration of the grant. The experience or interest in working with community forestry initiatives and promoting public participation in forest management. Well-articulated theory of change on how proposed market development activities align with community forest management and CARPE biodiversity conservation and climate change objectives Knowledge of social dynamics within target communities and market systems, and a strategy for engaging different resource user groups to support proposed activities, including including understanding the distinct roles of men and women in resource management and trade, as well as indigenous peoples, migrant populations or other vulnerable groups, as appropriate.

Illustrative indicators of results

USAID's Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity uses performance indicators to track and measure progress toward its intermediate outcomes. Grant activities proposed by interested organizations should contribute to program performance indicators. An illustrative list of activity performance indicators is provided below:

Number of institutions with improved capacity to address sustainable landscape management issues as a result of USG assistance. Number of civil society-private sector partnerships. Number of sessions/meetings that result in learning. and adaptation Number of communication, outreach, and knowledge products produced Number of good practices and approaches identified, implemented, and/or adopted with USG assistance Number of people trained in management natural resources and/or biodiversity conservation through US government assistance.

Geographic Orientation

USAID's Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity will prioritize requests from initiatives in the following provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Equateur, Haut-Katanga, Kongo Central, North Kivu, South Kivu, Tshopo and Maniema, to align with other program priorities. Requests from other provinces will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Section II: Grant Information and Eligibility

The Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity plans to award up to five (5) grants in response to this call for projects. Eligible costs must comply with USAID policies and procedures and be reasonable, allocable, well-documented, and justified for the proposed grant activities and budget.

The following restrictions apply to grants issued under this call for projects

The grant will not allow reimbursement of pre-award costs. In other words, only eligible obligations incurred during the period defined in the grant agreement will be reimbursed. Business profits/profits Non-refundable VAT is not considered eligible under this call for applications "Construction" as as defined in ADS 303maw is not permitted: https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/303maw.pdf

The grant will not provide reimbursement for goods and/or services that use telecommunications and video surveillance products from the following companies: Huawei Technologies Company, ZTE Corporation, Hytera Communications Corporation, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Company, or Dahua Technology Company, or any subsidiary or affiliate of such companies, pursuant to 2 CFR 200.216.

The expected grant date is on or around December 1, 2021 and proposed activities must not exceed 24 months. The planned grants may vary between $25,000 and $250,000 US dollars, depending on their scope.

After reading the Call for Proposals in its entirety, applicants may submit questions of clarification to the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity Grants Manager by email at [email protected] before the date limit indicated on the cover page of this call. The Forests and Biodiversity Support Activity will share answers to questions with all potential applicants who have requested the application format and/or submitted questions in response to this call for applications.

Cost sharing is not required under this call for applications.

Organizations with or without previous USAID experience are encouraged to apply. The following organizations are eligible for Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity funding:

Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) Community-Based Organizations (CBOs); Faith-based organizations that comply with ADS 303.3.28 under Executive Order 13279, Equal Protection for the Laws of Faith-based Community Organizations; National, regional, and local organizations; Non-US NGOs; US NGOs; Public international organizations; Private foundations and universities; Private businesses or corporations (profit is not permitted under Activity grants);

The following organizations are NOT eligible for Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity grant funding:

Political parties, their subsidiaries or affiliates; Any governmental organization as defined in ADS 220[1]; Organizations that appear with active restrictions on the SAM, OFAC, or U.N. 1267 lists; Organizations that promote or engage in illegal or anti-democratic activities

Faith-based organizations that are not in compliance with ADS 303.3.28, under Executive Order 13279, Equal Protection for the Laws of Faith-based Community Organizations; and/or whose objectives are of a discriminatory or religious nature; Organizations that are debarred or suspended from eligibility to receive United States Government (USG) funds; Any organization not approved by USAID; Organizations that are not legally registered in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In addition, all interested organizations are required to:

Provide a valid Dun and Bradstreet Universal Number System (DUNS) Number;Submit signed copies of the certifications required under this RFP.

The Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity grants team can help organizations obtain a DUNS number. The Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity cannot award a grant until these conditions have been met.

All applications submitted to the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity before the application submission deadline will be reviewed for compliance with the submission criteria and format specified in Section IV of this Call for Proposals . Applications deemed compliant will then be scored according to the evaluation criteria described in Section IV of this call for projects by the Review and Evaluation Committee (REC) of the Activity within three weeks of the submission deadline. Applications that have obtained a score equal to or above the minimum score threshold necessary to move on to the next cycle will be subject to negotiations prior to the award in order of the highest score to the lowest score, subject to the limitation of the number of allocations available in response to this call for applications and the availability of grants from the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity.

After submission of a complete application, the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity Grants Manager will send the applicant an acknowledgment email.

Submissions received after the application submission deadline will not be considered or evaluated by the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity. Tetra Tech has the right to accept and consider requests after the deadline on a case-by-case basis.

USAID's Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity plans to award standard, simplified, in-kind, and fixed-amount grants from this call for proposals.

Section III. Submission of questions and workshop on the call for projects

Interested organizations can submit questions about the call for projects to [email protected].

Please insert in the subject line of electronic submissions by FABS-RFA-001, followed by the name of the organization (eg: FABS-RFA-001-Tetra Tech).

A virtual workshop on the Call for Projects will be organized on October 13, 2021 to give interested organizations the opportunity to ask questions about the call for projects. The minutes and/or presentations of the workshop will be added to the Call for Projects as an addendum for those who cannot participate.

Interested organizations can send an email to [email protected] to request access to the virtual meeting, which will share meeting login information.

Section IV. Application Format and Submission Information

The following instructions should be read carefully to understand the requirements for a complete application.

Applications should be submitted electronically to the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity Grants Manager at [email protected]. Full application emails will consist of a Microsoft Word or PDF file of the technical narrative application and appendices, and a Microsoft Excel file of the budget request. Please start the subject line for electronic submissions with FABS-RFA-001, followed by the name of the organization (eg: FABS-RFA-001-Tetra Tech).

The technical narrative request (which does not include the required Excel budget or documents to be submitted as "attachments") should be submitted using the following suggested format:

Language must be French or English;Maximum length 10 single-spaced pages;Font must be Times New Roman;Font size must be 11;Paper size must be A4 (8.27'' X 11.69''); Margins should be 1" on all 4 sides of the page.

The structure of the technical narrative request must follow the sequential order and page limits described in Annex B of this call for projects.

Attachments required for technical narration are described in Appendix C of this RFA.

Unsuccessful organizations will be notified in writing, within ten (10) working days of the completion of the Review and Evaluation Committee’s scoring process, that their application has been “declined.”

The technical progress and financial reporting requirements of the grant agreement will be defined during pre-award negotiations.

Environmental and Climate Risk Management Considerations: All grants awarded under the USAID Forests and Biodiversity Support Activity will be subject to USAID's environmental compliance requirements. environment, as required by 22 CFR 216, and in relation to climate risk management in ADS 201mal. An environmental and climate risk management assessment will be conducted by the USAID Activity with the participation of the recipient organization to determine whether the activities will have an adverse environmental impact or climate risk, and whether mitigation measures proposed mitigation and monitoring will sufficiently minimize the impact. When submitting the Full Application, applicants should address any potential impacts and the mitigation and monitoring measures that will be put in place.

Gender and Vulnerable Group Considerations: Grantee activities can illustratively demonstrate that:

Women's organizations are involved in activities to reduce barriers to market entry or improve coordination of market actors regarding natural resources and scaling up management sustainable. Women, youth and other vulnerable groups benefit as much as possible from activities related to the production of goods and services, such as improved harvesting techniques, post-harvest activities, service delivery, market availability, access to transport, or improving the quality of products and other economic and financial opportunities. The design of capacity building tools and training materials for market analysis is tailored to the groups including women, youth and other vulnerable populations.

Successful organizations that will be awarded a grant agreement will be required to comply with the terms and conditions of the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity Tagging Plan, which includes the requirement that grantees must co-brand all projects, activities, public communications and commodities with USAID. Co-branding involves placing the USAID identity next to the grant recipient's logo and giving it equal or greater size and prominence.

In addition, applicants are reminded of the following U.S. government requirements:

PREVENTING TERRORIST FINANCING (August 2013)

Recipient shall not engage in transactions, provide resources or support to individuals and organizations associated with terrorism including persons or entities on the Specially Designated Persons and Blocked Persons List maintained by the US Treasury (http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/SDN-List/Pages/default...) or in the list designated by the United Nations Security (http://www.un .org/sc/committees/1267/aqsanctionslist.shtml). This provision must be included in all subcontracts and contracts issued under this award.

USAID POLICY ON ASSISTANCE TO PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES (June 2012)

The recipient must not discriminate against persons with disabilities in the implementation of USAID-funded programs and must demonstrate a comprehensive and consistent approach that includes men, women, and children with disabilities.

HUMAN TRAFFICKING (July 2015)

1. The recipient, subrecipient, or contractor at any level, or their employees, labor recruiters, brokers, or other agents, shall not engage in:

Trafficking in persons (as defined in the Additional Protocol to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children) during the period of this grant award; Obtaining a commercial sex act during the period of this grant award; The use of forced labor during the performance of this grant award; Acts that directly support or advance human trafficking, including following acts:

i.Destroy, conceal, confiscate or otherwise deny an employee access to their identity or immigration documents;

ii.Failing to provide return transportation or pay for return transportation of an employee from a country other than the United States to the country from which the employee was recruited at the end of employment at the request of the employee, unless:

Exempted from the requirement to provide or pay for such return transportation by USAID under this award;Employee is a victim of human trafficking seeking victim assistance or redress services legal in the country where they work or witness law enforcement action in relation to human trafficking;

Solicit a person for employment, or offer employment, by means of materially false or fraudulent claims, representations or promises; Charge recruitment fees to employees; whereProviding or setting up housing that does not meet the housing and security standards of the host country.

2. In the event of a violation of section (a) of this provision, USAID is authorized to terminate this award, without penalty, and is also authorized to pursue any other corrective action authorized pursuant to Section 1704(c) of the law relating to national defense authorization for the 2013 financial year (publication L. 112-239, promulgated on January 2, 2013).

CONFLICT OF INTEREST DURING THE PRE-AWARD TERM (August 2018)

1. Personal conflict of interest

A real or apparent conflict of interest exists where the applicant organization or its employee has a relationship with an Agency official involved in the decision-making process regarding the award of a grant that may affect the impartiality of this manager. The term "conflict of interest" includes situations in which financial or personal considerations may compromise or appear to compromise the obligations and duties of an employee of the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity or of an employee of the Beneficiary. The Bidder must provide conflict of interest information when submitting an SF-424. If the Bidder discovers an undisclosed conflict of interest after submission of the Bid, it must disclose it to the Administrative Agent no later than ten (10) calendar days following the discovery.

2. Organizational Conflict of Interest

The tenderer must notify the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity of any actual or potential conflict of interest of which it is aware and which could confer an unfair competitive advantage on the tenderer in the competition for this grant. Examples of unfair competitive advantage include, but are not limited to, situations where an applicant or their employee had access to non-public information regarding a federal assistance funding opportunity, or a bidder or their employee was substantially involved in the preparation of a federal aid funding document. The Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity will promptly take appropriate action upon receipt of any type of notification from the applicant.

(END OF PROVISIONS)

Section V. Pre-selection and Evaluation Criteria

Preselection:

After the closing date and time, the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity Grants Manager will open all application emails and conduct an initial screening to determine which grants will be awarded. A "NO" to any of the screening questions below will result in disqualification.

Is the organization a legally registered entity? Is the organization eligible for funding under the requirements of this solicitation? 'OFAC and UN 1267 and was not found with negative results?Has the applicant submitted a technical proposal in the required format and attachments

Evaluation Criteria

Applications that pass the initial screening will be forwarded to the Review and Assessment Committee. The following criteria will be used by the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity to assess and score applications - the number to the right indicates relative importance. The Review and Evaluation Committee, composed of at least three people, will formally rate and rank all proposals independently and uniformly, in writing, using an application evaluation form. Applications selected for the round will enter pre-award negotiations in order of highest score to lowest score, subject to the limitation on the number of grants available to be awarded in response to this call. applications and the availability of funding for the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity.

The ranking will be based on the criteria and points, based on 100 as the maximum points allowed, as follows:

Strategy developed: 20 points

The contribution to the objectives and performance indicators of the Forest and Biodiversity Support Activity. The sustainability of the results, beyond the life of the grant or the Forest Support Activity and to Biodiversity. The Opportunity for learning and scaling up results.

Technical approach: 40 points

Clearly defined problem statementClearly defined objectivesStrong technical approach that demonstrates a clear theory of change and a demonstrated link between market systems and natural resource conservation/management objectives. Potential barriers identified and solutions provided Clear explanation of how proposed interventions will mainstream social equity, including gender and vulnerable populations, and strengthen outcomes for these groups. Clear articulation of a mechanism for monitoring progress or impacts.

Organizational skills: 20 points

Previous performance on similar projects of similar scope and scale Relevance of staff skills to the proposed program (including staff expertise in market systems, gender and youth integration , as required by the technical approach). Documented technical, managerial, financial and geographic experience. Overall institutional capacity to implement the proposed program.

Environmental compliance and climate risk management: 10 points

Identification of potential environmental impacts and climate risksProposal for mitigation and management of environmental impacts and climate risks.

Allowability, allocable and reasonableness of costs: 10 points

Section VI: Information on Grant Administration

If your request is selected to "proceed in cycle", the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity may request additional information and will schedule the following tasks:

Pre-Award Accountability Determination - to assess the organization's ability to properly implement award activities in accordance with USAID requirements. Cost Analysis and Negotiation - to determine eligibility, accountability and reasonable of all costs.

Technical negotiations - to finalize the project description to be submitted to USAID for approval.

Reporting requirements - depending on the type of grant, the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity will discuss reporting requirements with the organization to be funded in advance.

In addition, grant recipients must comply with the following USAID provisions:

Development Experience Clearinghouse (DEC): Grant recipients will be expected to comply with DEC submission requirements with guidance and assistance provided by the Forests and Biodiversity Support Activity. For more information, please refer to the applicable Mandatory Standard Provision titled Submission to the Development Standard Provision Clearinghouse and Data Rights.

Development Data Library (DDL): Grant recipients will be required to comply with DDL submission requirements with guidance and assistance provided by the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity. For more information, please refer to the applicable mandatory standard provision titled Submission to the Development Standard Provision Clearinghouse and Data Rights.

All grants will be administered in accordance with the following applicable regulations:

ADS 303 and Standard Provisions for U.S. Organizations, Non-U.S. Non-Governmental Organizations, or Fixed Amount Grants, as applicable. CFR 200 and 700 Applicable OMB Circulars

If your request is not accepted, the Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity will inform you in writing.

Section VII. Appendices

GRANT APPLICATION FORM

Call for projects n° FABS-RFA-001

“Promotion of market systems approaches for community forests”

Grant Application Form

Please send your request in the following format. There is a page limit of 10 typed, double-spaced pages, not including cover letter, budget, or attachments. Please use Times New Roman 11 pt. font with one inch margins. Failure to submit an application in the following format may result in disqualification of the application.

Cover Page

Date:

Applicant name:

DUNS Number:

Address:

Contact:

Phone:

Email:

Name of proposed project:

Estimated budget:

“We, the undersigned, hereby submit the grant application to USAID’s Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity for evaluation and consideration. We participated significantly in its preparation. To the best of our knowledge, all information provided is current, complete and accurate and based on the need to respond efficiently and effectively to the needs of the target population”.

Name of Representative:

Signature:Date:

Table of contents listing all page numbers and attachments; ;Proposed approach and strategy (problem analysis, root causes, proposed strategy);Technical approach (The technical approach should include a clear description of the overall approach and strategy (i.e. methodology and techniques ) proposed and explain how the approach is expected to achieve the proposed objectives. Applicants are encouraged to propose innovative programs designed to achieve the desired results. The roles and responsibilities of all partner organizations should be clearly identified.);Purpose, objectives and indicators (Use a format indicating the project objective, measurable objectives and indicators); Organizational capacity; Past performance on similar projects (Relevance of staff skills to the proposed program, experience in the geographic region, soundness of accounting practices , ability to follow USAID financial guidelines);Gender and Vulnerable Groups StrategyEnvironmental Effects Mitigation PlanCost sharing, if applicable (not required)Description of other donor funding

Attachments:

Resumes of Key PersonnelBudget (See instructions on next page and Appendix B for budget format)Certifications, Screening Requirements and Assurances (See Appendix D)

Budget section

Directions

Recipients must provide a detailed budget, by activity, using Excel format (See Annex B)

The budget section consists of the following elements:

Total budget showing a cost breakdown;Project costs should be broken down by how much the FABS Activity will fund and how much your organization will fund;Budget Notes - Use the “notes” column to provide explanatory narratives ; andUnder the USAID Forestry and Biodiversity Support Activity grant program, value-added tax (VAT) and profit are not permitted.

1.Description of budget line items

Staff/Job: List each position by title and employee name, if available. Show the annual salary rate and the percentage of time to devote to the project. Compensation paid for employees engaged in grantmaking activities should be consistent with that paid for similar work within the applicant organization. Overtime costs will not be approved.

Equipment: List equipment to purchase. Equipment is tangible property with a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit. (Note: Lower limits may be set according to the grant recipients own equipment policy). Consumable items should be included either in the “equipment and supplies” category or in the “other” category. Applicants should analyze the cost advantages of purchasing versus renting equipment, particularly high cost items and those subject to rapid technical advances. Leased equipment costs should be listed under the “contract” category. Explain how the equipment is necessary for the success of the project. Attach a narrative describing the purchase method to be used. Purchases must be made according to USAID regulations.

Materials and supplies: List items by type (office supplies, postage, training materials, copy paper, and items that may cost less than $5,000, such as books and portable tape recorders) and indicate the basis of the calculation. Generally, supplies include any material that is expendable or consumed during the project.

Transportation: List project staff travel costs by purpose (e.g. staff in training, field interviews, group advisory meeting, etc.). Show the basis of the calculation (e.g. six people on a 3-day training at X airfare X, X accommodation, $X subsistence). In training projects, travel and meals for trainees should be listed separately. Indicate the number of trainees and the unit costs involved. Identify travel location, subsistence rate policy, etc.

Communications: List telephone, internet and cell phone charges.

Department: Indicate whether the applicant's written purchasing policy or federal acquisition regulations are followed.

Consultant Fees: For each consultant, enter the name, if known, the service to be provided, hourly or daily charges (8 hours per day), and estimated time for the project.Consultant Expenses: List all expenses payable from the grant to individual consultants in addition to their fees (i.e. travel, meals, accommodation, etc.) Contracts: Provide a description of the product or service to be contracted and an estimate Cost. Applicants are encouraged to promote free and open competition in the awarding of contracts.

Indirect Costs: Indirect costs are permitted if the applicant 1) has a Federally Approved Indirect Cost Rate (ANTCI), 2) can charge direct costs and verify with supporting financial documentation, or 3) n has ever received from ANTCI and will apply the 10% de minimis to the modified total direct costs. A copy of the tariff approval (a fully negotiated and signed agreement) must be attached. Tetra Tech must approve all overhead rates which must comply with 2CFR 200.414(f)

CERTIFICATIONSCertification 2: REGARDING LOBBYING CERTIFICATION

Certification for Contracts, Grants, Loans, and Cooperative Agreements

The undersigned certifies, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief, that:

1. No Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid, by or on behalf of the undersigned, to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with the awarding of any Federal contract, the making of any Federal grant, the making of any Federal loan, the entering into of any cooperative agreement, and the extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of any Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.

2. If any funds other than Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with this Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement, the undersigned shall complete and submit Standard Form-LLL, “Disclosure Form to Report Lobbying,” in accordance with its instructions.

3. The undersigned shall require that the language of this certification be included in the award documents for all sub awards at all tiers (including subcontracts, subgrants, and contracts under grants, loans, and cooperative agreements) and that all sub recipients shall certify and disclose accordingly .

This certification is a material representation of fact upon which reliance was placed when this transaction was made or entered into. Submission of this certification is a prerequisite for making or entering into this transaction imposed by section 1352, title 31, US Code. Any person who fails to file the required certification shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000 and not more than $100,000 for each such failure.

For APPLICANT:

Name:

Title:

Organization:

Signature:

Date:

Certification 3: CERTIFICATION REGARDING TERRORIST FINANCING (ATC)

By signing and submitting this application, the prospective recipient provides the certification set out below:

1. The Recipient, to the best of its current knowledge, did not provide, within the previous 10 years, and will take all reasonable steps to ensure that it does not and will not knowingly provide, material support or resources to any individual or entity that commits , attempts to commit, advocates, facilitates, or participates in terrorist acts, or has committed, attempted to commit, facilitated, or participated in terrorist acts, as that term is defined in paragraph 3.

2. The following steps may enable the Recipient to comply with its obligations under paragraph 1:

a. Before providing any material support or resources to an individual or entity, the Recipient will verify that the individual or entity does not (i) appear on the master list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons, which list is maintained by the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and is available online at OFAC's website: http://www.treas.gov/offices/eotffc/ofac/sdn/t11sdn.pdf, or (ii) is not included in any supplementary information concerning prohibited individuals or entities that may be provided by USAID to the Recipient.

b. Before providing any material support or resources to an individual or entity, the Recipient will also verify that the individual or entity has not been designated by the United Nations Security (UNSC) sanctions committee established under UNSC Resolution 1267 (1999) (the “1267 Committee ”) [individuals and entities linked to the Taliban, Osama bin Laden, or the Al Qaeda Organization]. To determine whether there has been a published designation of an individual or entity by the 1267 Committee, the Recipient should refer to the consolidated list available online at the Committee's website: http://www.un.org/Docs/sc/committees/ 1267/1267ListEng.htm.

c. Before providing any material support or resources to an individual or entity, the Recipient will consider all information about that individual or entity of which it is aware and all public information that is reasonably available to it or of which it should be aware.

d. The Recipient also will implement reasonable monitoring and oversight procedures to safeguard against assistance being diverted to support terrorist activity.

3. For purposes of this Certification.

a. “Material support and resources” means currency or monetary instruments or financial securities, financial services, lodging, training, expert advice or assistance, safe houses, false documentation or identification, communications equipment, facilities, weapons, lethal substances, explosives, personnel, transportation , and other physical assets, except medicine or religious materials.”

b. “Terrorist act” means-(i) an act prohibited pursuant to one of the 12 United Nations Conventions and Protocols related to terrorism (see UN terrorism conventions Internet site: http://untreaty.un.org/English/Terrorism.asp) ; or (ii) an act of premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents; or (iii) any other act intended to cause death or serious bodily injury to a civilian, or to any other person not taking an active part in hostilities in a situation of armed conflict, when the purpose of such act, by its nature or context , is to intimidate a population, or to compel a government or an international organization to do or to abstain from doing any act.

c. “Entity” means a partnership, association, corporation, or other organization, group or subgroup.

d. References in this Certification to the provision of material support and resources shall not be deemed to include the furnishing of USAID funds or USAID-financed commodities to the ultimate beneficiaries of USAID assistance, such as recipients of food, medical care, micro-enterprise loans, shelter, etc., unless the Recipient has reason to believe that one or more of these beneficiaries commits, attempts to commit, advocates, facilitates, or participates in terrorist acts, or has committed, attempted to commit, facilitated or participated in terrorist acts.

e. The Recipient's obligations under paragraph 1 are not applicable to the procurement of goods and/or services by the Recipient that are acquired in the ordinary course of business through contract or purchase, e.g., utilities, rents, office supplies, gasoline, etc., unless the Recipient has reason to believe that a vendor or supplier of such goods and services commits, attempts to commit, advocates, facilitates, or participates in terrorist acts, or has committed, attempted to commit, facilitated or participated in terrorist acts.

This Certification is an express term and condition of any agreement issued as a result of this application, and any violation of it shall be grounds for unilateral termination of the agreement by USAID prior to the end of its term.

Signed: ____________________________________________________________

(Typed Name and Title)Date

(Name of Organization)

ATTACHMENT D: DATA UNIVERSAL NUMBERING SYSTEM

Created in 1962, the Data Universal Numbering System or D-U-N-S® Number is Dun & Bradstreet’s (D&B) copyrighted, proprietary means of identifying business entities on a location-specific basis. This number remains with the company location to which it has been assigned even if it closes or goes out-of-business. The DUNS Number "unlocks" a wealth of value-added data associated with that entity, including the business name, physical and mailing addresses, trade styles ("doing business as"), principal names, financials, payment experiences, industry classifications (SICs and NAICS), socio-economic status, government data and more. The DUNS Number also links members of corporate family trees worldwide.

The DUNS Number is widely used by both commercial and federal entities and was adopted as the standard business identifier for federal electronic commerce in October 1994. The DUNS Number was also incorporated into the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) in April 1998 as the Federal Government's contractor identification code for all procurement-related activities. Requesting a DUNS number from D&B is free.

PURPOSE

The project for which you have applied for grant funding will require that your organization submit proof of a DUNS number. The purpose of this guide is to provide step-by-step instruction on how grantees working with Tetra Tech ARD must register in the DUNS.

REGISTERING FOR A DUNS NUMBER

Step 1: Access website http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform/displayHomePage.do

Step 2: Select the link Click here to request your D-U-N-S Number via the web

Step 3: Select the country your organization is located from the pull down menu and then select Continue

Step 4: A box will appear below that you will need to fill out with your Business name, street, city and phone number. You will need to enter the verification code and then click Submit

Step 5: Follow and enter the additional screen information

Under normal circumstances the DUNS is issued within 2-3 business days when using the DUNS online process. D&B should confirm your nine digit DUNS number via email. For questions, please email [email protected]

[1]"An office, organization or body at any level of a system of public administration (ministry, department, agency, service, district or municipality) of a country receiving bilateral foreign aid that implements activities funded by or jointly programmed with funds provided by USAID directly to the partner government's public financial management system" (ADS 220).