Cafta-Dr

The summary for the Cafta-Dr grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the Bureau of Democracy Human Rights and Labor, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Cafta-Dr: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Request for Proposals: Promoting a Culture of Compliance in Central America and the Dominican Republic through (A) Support to Worker and Employer Organizations and (B) Increasing Competitiveness Based on Labor Law CompliancePLEASE NOTE: DRL strongly urges applicants to access immediately www.grants.gov in order to obtain a username and password. It may take up to a week to register with grants.gov. Please see the section entitled, "DEADLINE AND SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS" below for specific instructions. Proposals must be sent to grants.gov. No exceptions will be made for organizations that do not submit proposals via grants.gov. SUMMARY:In the free trade agreement signed by the United States and the countries of Central America and the Dominican Republic (CAFTA-DR) in June 2004, each party committed itself to effectively enforcing its own labor laws and to developing cooperative activities in priority labor areas. A key priority identified by the CAFTA-DR Vice-Ministers responsible for trade and labor in the April 2005 report entitled The Labor Dimension in Central America and the Dominican Republic was the need to promote a culture of compliance among worker and employer organizations to increase respect for labor standards in law and practice. In the Department of States budget for fiscal year 2006, Congress made funding available to support cooperative activities to build labor-related capacity in the CAFTA-DR countries. This request for proposals will utilize these funds to address the priorities established by the Vice Ministers in the region and to expand and reinforce a culture of compliance in the labor sector, as well as encourage a more active role by civil society institutions in promoting good labor practices. (A) Promoting a Culture of Compliance among Worker and Employer and Organizations: This solicitation seeks proposals from qualified organizations to undertake activities that will promote and strengthen a culture of compliance in the CAFTA-DR countries by reinforcing democratic values and practices in key civil society institutions. Specifically, DRL seeks proposals that will raise awareness among worker and employer organizations regarding labor rights, build organizational capacity in worker and employer organizations, and train labor law experts and professional staff to support these organizations. ($3 million is available for activities in this area.) Project components will include: . Activities to support worker rights education and strategic approaches to claiming labor rights.. Capacity building activities for worker and employer organizations, including training in organizational development and outreach activities.. Training programs to develop professional labor law advocates and other staff in worker organizations. The worker rights education component will prepare workers to exercise their rights by providing accurate information on national law and international labor standards through peer-to-peer approaches. This component should increase awareness on national labor rights and the range of tools available to promote respect for these rights. Particular emphasis should be given to activities involving marginalized populations, including women, youth, indigenous workers, the informal sector, and workers hired through sub-contracting and third-party contracting arrangements. The capacity building component should focus on direct support and guidance to worker and employer organizations through emphasis on organization building and responsible administration, broad participation and internal democracy, effective monitoring of workplace conditions, training programs in conflict management, and effective collective bargaining skills to reach sustainable agreements. It will also involve training in outreach efforts to key partners in government, national tripartite bodies, and civil society.The developing professional labor law advocates component should seek to build sustainable capacity in worker and employer organizations to represent members and to advocate on behalf of broader labor rights concerns. This track proposes direct support to train labor rights specialists and promote effective advocacy.Successful proposals will incorporate as many of the above activities as possible. DRL will consider proposals that envision direct support to worker and/or employer organizations. The industry sectors and organizations to be included in the project should be identified by the applicant in the proposal. DRL will consult with U.S. embassies in the region to evaluate the relevance of identified sectors and organizations in regards to overall program goals. Applicants are strongly encouraged to avoid duplication with the activities of related projects in the region, and ongoing consultation with DRL will be expected during project implementation to ensure proper program coordination. Up to USD 3,000,000 is available to support programms in this area. The Bureau anticipates making one to four awards between USD 500,000 and USD 3,000,000 to support program and administrative costs required to implement this initiative in Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and/or Nicaragua. Preference will be given to proposals with activities in all six countries. (B) Promoting a Culture of Compliance through Increasing Competitiveness Based on Labor Law Compliance: The purpose of this project is to develop a culture of compliance by strengthening firm-level interest and capacity to follow national labor law and international labor standards and, in the process, to improve national competitiveness by integrating corporate social responsibility (CSR) more successfully into the policies and practices of key industries. CSR covers a wide range of business activities and centers on voluntary efforts to improve the social and environmental performance of companies, while at the same time improving competitive advantage. The project would develop activities in each country to raise awareness of the links between good labor practices, cooperative labor relations, and increased economic competitiveness. The project will aim to increase the number of national firms incorporating CSR policies into their operations and to support the development of national CSR strategies based on lessons learned and needs identified during project implementation. It will also lead to increased dialogue among compliance officers, workers, and national authorities on a set of best practices regarding CSR implementation in the region. ($2 million is available for activities in this area.) Project components will ideally include: . Consensus building among government, employers, workers and national tripartite bodies on CSR, good labor practices, cooperative labor relations, and their links to increased productivity and competitiveness;. Research surveys and needs assessments; . Design and application of tools for enhancing the ability of firms to integrate CSR into their core business practices;. Design and application of training programs to address relevant topics;. Definition and implementation of industry pilot projects; and . Ongoing project monitoring to determine best practices for credible verification of workplace improvements. Selection of the industrial sectors to be covered by the project will be carried out by the applicant and should be identified in the proposal. Up to USD 2,000,000 is available for this area. The Bureau anticipates making one to four awards between USD 500,000 and USD 2,000,000 to support program and administrative costs required to implement this initiative. Proposals must include activities involving entities in Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and/or Nicaragua. Preference will be given to proposals with activities in all six countries. TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTSProposals should not exceed 15 single-spaced pages in length using 12-point Times New Roman font in Microsoft Word with at least one-inch margins. Budgets should be provided separately in Excel or compatible spreadsheets. A narrative budget that provides detail on budget line items must accompany the Excel spreadsheet. Please refer to the Proposal Submission Instructions (PSI) for more detail. Organizations may submit only one proposal per target area. (An organization may submit one proposal for (A) and one for (B), but cannot submit two proposals for (A) or two proposals for (B)). Proposals that do not meet the above requirements may not be considered. Additional InformationThe Bureau supports cutting edge, innovative projects that uphold democratic principles, support and strengthen democratic institutions, promote human rights and internationally recognized worker rights, and build civil society in countries and regions of the world that are geo-strategically important to the U.S. The Bureau funds projects that have the potential to have an immediate impact leading to long-term sustainable reforms. Projects should have the potential for continued funding beyond Bureau resources. Projects must not duplicate or simply add to efforts by other entities.The Bureau anticipates awarding grants in late spring/summer 2007. The bulk of project activities should take place during a 1-3 year project timeframe. Projects that leverage resources from either funds internal to the organization or partnerships such as public-private partnerships will be highly considered. Projects that have a strong academic or research focus will not be highly considered. APPLICANT/ORGANIZATION CRITERIA Organizations submitting proposals must meet the following criteria: * Be a U.S. non-profit organization meeting the provisions described in Internal Revenue Code section 26 USC 501(c) (3), or an international organization. Universities are allowable. * Have demonstrated experience administering successful projects, preferably in Central America. DRL reserves the right to request additional background information on organizations that do not have previous experience administering federal grant awards. These applicants may be subject to limited funding on a pilot basis. * Be a registered user of grants.gov. DRL urges applicants to access immediately grants.gov to obtain a username and password.* Have existing, or the capacity to develop, active partnerships with in-country entities and relevant stakeholders including industry and non-government organizations. * Organizations may form consortia and submit a joint proposal. However, one organization should be designated as the lead applicant and the other organizations should be included as subgrantees.* Applicants may include subcontracts to institutions in order to provide technical expertise as a component of their proposal. * An OMB policy directive published in the Federal Register on Friday, June 27, 2003, requires that all organizations applying for Federal grants or cooperative agreements must provide a Dun and Bradstreet (D&B) Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number when applying for all Federal grants or cooperative agreements on or after October 1, 2003. Please reference http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/fedreg/062703_grant_identifier.pdf for the complete OMB policy directive. REVIEW PROCESS The Bureau will review all proposals for eligibility. Proposals will be deemed ineligible if they do not fully adhere to the guidelines stated herein and in the Proposal Submission Instructions (PSI). Eligible proposals will be subject to compliance with Federal and Bureau regulations and guidelines and forwarded to Bureau grant panels for advisory review. Proposals may also be reviewed by the Office of the Legal Adviser or by other Department elements. Final technical authority for assistance awards resides with the Office of Acquisition Managements Grants Officer. The information contained in this solicitation is binding and may not be modified by any Bureau representative. Explanatory information provided by the Bureau that contradicts this language will not be binding. Issuance of the solicitation does not constitute an award commitment on the part of the Government. The Bureau reserves the right to reduce, revise, or increase proposal budgets in accordance with the needs of the program evaluation requirements. Final technical authority for assistance awards resides with the Office of Acquisition of Managements Grants Officer. Proposals will be funded based on a subjective evaluation of how the project meets the criteria outlined, U.S. foreign policy objectives, and the priority needs of DRL. Review Criteria: 1. Quality of Program Idea: proposals should be responsive to the solicitation and exhibit originality, substance, precision, and relevance to the Bureaus mission. 2. Program planning/Ability to Achieve Objectives: An agenda and work plan should demonstrate substantive activities and the organizations capacity and planning to undertake them. Objectives should be ambitious yet measurable and achievable. 3. Impact/Multiplier Effect: proposed program should address long-term institution building with an emphasis on moving towards sustainability, and define and reach numerous audiences. 4. Program Evaluation Plan: proposals should demonstrate the capacity for engaging in impact assessments and providing measurable outputs, outcomes, and short and long-term goals. Inclusion of an independent evaluator to assess program progress is encouraged. 5. Institutions Record and Capacity: proposals should demonstrate an institutional record of successful program management. The Bureau will consider past performance of prior recipients and the demonstrated potential of new applicants. 6. Cost-effectiveness: the overhead and administrative components of the proposal, including salaries and honoraria, should be kept as low as possible. All other items should be appropriate. Cost-sharing is strongly encouraged. DEADLINE AND SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS Applicants must submit proposals using www.grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on April 6, 2007. DRL will not accept proposals submitted via email, the U.S. postal system, FedEx, UPS and similar delivery companies, or courier. Faxed documents will not be accepted at any time. Please note: In order to safeguard the security of applicants electronic information, www.grants.gov utilizes a credential provider. It is the process of determining, with certainty, that someone really is who they claim to be. The credential provider for www.grants.gov is Operational Research Consultants (ORC). Applicants MUST register with ORC to receive a username and password which you will need to register with www.grants.gov as an authorized organization representative (AOR). Once your organization's E-Business point of contact has assigned these rights, you will be authorized to submit grant applications through Grants.gov on behalf of your organization. Each organization will need to be registered with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR) and you will need to have your organization's DUNS number available to complete this process. After your organization registers with the CCR, you must wait 3 business days before you can obtain a username and password. PLEASE be advised that completing all the necessary steps for obtaining a username and password from www.grants.gov can take up to 2 full weeks. DRL strongly urges applicants to begin this process on www.grants.gov well in advance of the submission deadline. No exceptions will be made for organizations that have not completed the necessary steps to post applications on www.grants.gov. Please access www.grants.gov for the all necessary information. TECHNICAL ELIGIBILITY Technically eligible submissions are those which: 1) arrive electronically via www.grants.gov by the designated due date before 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) and 2) have heeded all instructions contained in the solicitation document and Proposal Submission Instructions (PSI), including length and completeness of submission. If there is a discrepancy between the PSI and this announcement, please note that this document takes precedence. Organizations must also complete and submit SF-424 and SF-424B forms as directed on www.grants.gov. Please fill out the highlighted yellow fields and use the following specific information for the below fields:1. Type of Submission: Application2. Type of Application: New5b. Federal Award Identifier: Please enter zeros or leave blank.17. Please enter approximate start/end dates for the project.18. Please enter the estimated amount from the SOI under "Federal" and any-cost share under "Applicant." Otherwise, use zeros.19. Please enter "c"DEADLINE FOR PROPOSALS All proposals must be received at the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on April 6, 2007. Please refer to the PSI for specific delivery instructions. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACTThe Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL). Please specify Gabriella Rigg, 202-647-2311, James Viray, 202-647-3663, and/or Megan Oates, 202-663-2678 on all inquiries and correspondence. Please read the complete announcement and PSI before sending inquiries or submitting proposals. Once the RFP deadline has passed, State Department officials - both in the Bureau and at embassies overseas- may not discuss this competition with applicants until the entire proposal review process is completed.