Higher Education for Youth Prosperity in Agriculture Project | 72061224RFA00001

Opportunity Information: Apply for 72061224RFA00001

USAID/Malawi is seeking to fund a single cooperative agreement under the grant opportunity titled "Higher Education for Youth Prosperity in Agriculture Project" (Funding Opportunity Number 72061224RFA00001). The overall aim is to expand and strengthen higher-education efforts connected to agriculture and youth prosperity in Malawi by building new institutional partnerships, especially with Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs). The opportunity is designed to amplify USAID/Malawi's higher-education work while helping develop durable, locally led capacity that supports Malawi's longer-term progress toward self-reliance, resilience, and sustainable results.

A defining feature of this opportunity is that it is limited to MSIs as eligible lead applicants. USAID expects the MSI to take the lead in developing the initial Concept Paper, but not in isolation. The MSI is expected to form a collaborative partnership structure that includes relevant Malawian universities and other tertiary institutions (including non-university providers), private-sector actors, and other organizations capable of delivering the technical training needed for the target student cadre described in the RFA (referenced as Section A). In practical terms, USAID is signaling that competitive submissions will be those that demonstrate a well-structured consortium with clear roles, credible training and workforce linkages, and strong in-country institutional engagement rather than an externally driven design.

The award structure also reflects USAID's New Partnerships Initiatives (NPI) approach, emphasizing capacity strengthening and a pathway to local leadership. The MSI will serve as the prime recipient during the first two years, with an intentional focus on building the administrative, financial management, and reporting compliance capacity of a designated local sub-partner. USAID indicates that this local partner is expected to "graduate" into the prime role beginning in Year 3 of implementation. This is both a programmatic and compliance-oriented transition plan, meaning applicants should anticipate the need for robust systems strengthening, mentoring, subaward management, and a clear transition strategy that makes the local entity capable of meeting USAID prime recipient requirements.

The application process is staged and competitive. Applicants begin by submitting a Concept Paper that must follow the directions in the solicitation. USAID/Malawi will review Concept Papers against minimum criteria and then invite selected applicants to participate in a co-creation workshop. Co-creation is typically used to refine the program design jointly with USAID and other stakeholders, clarify expected results, and align approaches before final proposals are developed. After the workshop, selected finalists will be invited to submit full applications. USAID stresses that both Concept Papers and full applications must be fully responsive to the instructions in the funding opportunity, except where the RFA explicitly allows otherwise, so compliance with format, content, and submission requirements is a key competitiveness factor.

From a funding and administrative standpoint, this is categorized as an "Other" opportunity using a Cooperative Agreement instrument, under the Education activity category (CFDA 98.001). USAID anticipates making one award, with an award ceiling of up to $22,000,000. The issuing agency is USAID/Malawi in Lilongwe, and the original closing date listed for submissions is August 12, 2024. Overall, the opportunity supports higher education tied to agriculture and youth outcomes, but it is equally about building long-term institutional capacity and shifting leadership to a Malawian prime partner partway through the project, consistent with USAID's localization and sustainability objectives.

• The Malawi USAID-Lilongwe in the education sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Higher Education for Youth Prosperity in Agriculture Project" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 98.001.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-07-12.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-08-12. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $22,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

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