The Department of State requests proposals from non-profit organizations interested in a cooperative agreement award from the U.S. Department of State Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs (EAP) to manage the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Seeds for the Future grants competition. Approximately $750,000.00 will be awarded for the program.
The YSEALI Seeds for the Future program will provide small grants of up to $10,000 to Southeast Asian youth throughout the ten member countries of the Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN): Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Laos, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. The competition will run twice per year and grantees will have up to one year to complete their projects. Projects will have to involve, and be implemented in, at least two ASEAN countries and include at least four team members. Winners will be selected by a Department of State grants panel.
YSEALI is an initiative first announced by President Obama in December 2013 and formally launched in May 2014. It aims to create a cadre of young Southeast Asian leaders who work across ASEAN borders to solve common issues. The Seeds for the Future program will allow YSEALI youth to implement public service projects in multiple ASEAN countries that address the YSEALI themes of economic development, education, environmental protection and civic engagement in ASEAN.
Local NGOs are invited to submit a proposal that describes how each of the following criteria will be administered:
- Manage up to $750,000 in grants funding for YSEALI’s first and second small grants competition. The first will run in July/August 2014 and the second in January/February 2015. Winners for the first competition will be announced in September.
- Distribute funds for up to thirty winning teams (up to $10,000 each) in multiple countries by September 30 for the first competition. Each winning grant may need to have money disbursed in more than one country. 60% of funds to be distributed at start of project and 40% after mid-term report.
- For proposals approved with conditions, or that require follow-up, serve as liaison with project teams to communicate conditions for funding. Review revised proposals to ensure they answer questions posed by the Department of State grants panel. Follow up with project teams if they do not. Submit revised proposals to Washington when ready. Collect grant reports, including receipts, from the grantees.
- Notify winning teams of approved proposals.
- Work with winning teams (about 25-30 per competition) to provide guidance/mentorship and monitor progress, e.g., through virtual meet-ups, inviting resource speakers for Skype or Google Hangouts, collecting mid-term and final reports, gathering photos/videos and project stories for YSEALI website and social media, etc.
Proposal should include:
- Application for Federal Assistance Cover Sheet (SF-424):https://eca.state.gov/files/bureau/sf424_0.pdf
- a description of the work to be performed with respect to each of the criteria
- information about the team of people who would execute the work, with descriptions of the experiences and skills of each and his/her role in the bidder’s organization and in the team
- a management plan for the work
- a schedule for the work
- a detailed budget
- administrative costs as low and reasonable as possible
- description of prior experience managing small grants
- description of experience in and/or ties with organizations in other Southeast Asian countries.
Length of cooperative agreement will be for two years.
Proposals will be measured as follows:
- EAP performs an initial review to make sure it meets eligibility requirements and analyzes the proposal against each of the criteria noted above.
- If the proposal passes that review, it is distributed to other bureaus, embassies, and relevant elements within the department for comment.
- Once the comments are collected, a panel of Department of State employees reviews the proposals and selects a winner.
Please note that because of the time constraints placed on this program, pre-award costs will be awarded to offset operational costs. Please submit completed applications by July 3 to Marcia Anglarill (AnglarillMS@state.gov) and Diedra Avendasora. AvendasoraDD2@state.gov).
