Protecting Marine Biodiversity and Building Climate Resilience in the Caribbean (USAID)

Protecting Marine Biodiversity and Building Climate Resilience in the Caribbean (USAID) is sponsored by United States Agency for International Development (USAID). This program aims to reduce threats to coastal-marine biodiversity and build the resilience of coastal communities in the Caribbean to climate change impacts.

Issue Date: June 22 , 2020 Deadline for Question: Ju ly 2 , 2020 Closing Date: August 6, 2020 Closing Time: 1:00 P. M. Local Time Subject: Request for Application (RFA) : 72052120RFA00008 Program Title: Coastal and Marine Habitat Cons ervation Activity Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 98.

001 The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is seeking applications for a Fixed Amount Award (FAA) from qualified entities to implement t he Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity . Eligibility for this award is restricted to non -profit, non -governmental organizations and private institutions of higher education based in Haiti.

USAID intends to make an award to the applicant(s) who best meets the objectives of this funding opportunity based on the merit review criteria describ ed in this Request for Application (RFA) subject to a risk assessment. Eligible parties interested in submitting an application are encouraged to read this RFA thoroughly to understand the type of program sought, application submission requirements and se lection process.

To be eligible for award, the applicant must provide all information as required in this RFA and meet eligibility standards in Section C o f this RFA . This funding opportunity is posted on www. grants.

gov , and may be amended. It is the responsibility of the applicant to regularly check the website to ensure they have the latest information pertaining t o this notice of funding opportunity and to ensure th at the RFA has been received from the internet in its entirety. USAID bears no responsibility for data errors resulting from the transmission or conversion process.

If you have difficulty registering on www. grants. gov or accessing the RFA , please contact the Grants.

gov Helpdesk at 1 -800 -518 -4726 or via email at support@grants. gov for technical assistance. USAID may not award to an applicant unless the applica nt has complied with all applicable unique entity ide ntifier and System for Award Management (SAM) requirements detailed in Section D.

6. f. The registration process may take many weeks to complete.

Therefore, applicants are encouraged to begin registratio n early in the process. Please send any questions to the point(s) of contact identified in Section D. The deadline for questions is shown above.

Responses to questions received prior to the deadline will be furnished to all potential applicants through an amendment to this notice posted to www. grants.

gov. Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity Issuance of this request for application does not constitute an award commitment on the part of the Government nor does it commit the Government to pay for any costs incurred in preparation or submissi on of comments/suggestions or an application. Applic ations are submitted at the risk of the applicant.

All preparation and submission costs are at the applicant’s expense. Thank you for your interest in USAID programs.

Supe rvisory Agreement Officer Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity SECTION A: PROGRAM DESCRIPTION 4 SECTION B: FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION 10 SECTION C: ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION 11 SECTION D: APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION 12 SECTION E: APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION 26 SECTION F: FEDERAL AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION 28 SECTION G: FEDERAL A WARDING AGENCY CONTACT(S) 31 SECTION H: OTHER INFORMATION 32 ANNEX 1 – CERTIFICATION S AND ASSURANCES 33 ANNEX 2 – SUMMARY BUDGET TEMPLATE 43 ANNEX 3 – STANDARD PROVISIONS 45 ANNEX 4 - ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS 46Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity SECTION A: PROGRAM DESCRIPTION Pursuant to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended (FAA), the United States Government (USG), as represented by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Haiti Mission , is seeking to support or stimulate the activities described below, and requests ap plications from any non -profit, non -governmental organizations and private inst itutions of higher education based in Haiti (see Section C.

1 of this RFA for eligibility) to manage and implement the Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity .

Administ ration of Award(s) Resulting from this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Th e prime award resulting from this RFA will be administered in accordance with the following: • 2 CFR 200 Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requiremen ts for Federal Awards ; • 2 CFR 700 (USAID’s implementation of 2 CFR 200); • Chapter 303 of USAID’s Automated Directives System (ADS -303); and • USAID Mandatory and Required -as -Applicable Standard Provisions for Fixed Amount Awards to Nongovernmental Organization s.

Poor management of Haiti’s coastal and marine res ources is exacerbated by poverty and the need for productive livelihoods. Overfishing and pollution along with mangrove, coral reef, and other coastal habitat destruction have increase d dramatically over the last 50 years as coastal development and populat ion densities have grown.

This unsustainable natural resource management has led to plummeting fish catches, coastal zone erosion, and reduced opportunities for economic development ba sed on tourism. The purpose of this activity is to i mprove human wellbeing and reduce the threats to biodiversity by improving agriculture and fishing practices in coastal and marine environments of Haiti.

The Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation activity has four main objectives to achieve the activity purpose.

Specifically, the objectives are to: - To reduce the underlying threats to coastal and marine resources by identifying and supporting agriculture, pisciculture and fishing opportunities of lo cal stakeholders that have positive effects on coastal and marine ecosystems; Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity - To enhance the resilience of coastal communities to mitigate, adapt to and recover from shocks and stresses in a manner that reduces chronic vulnerability ; - To conserve flora and fauna in select marine protected areas by strengthening governance structures that have the ability to adaptively manage protected areas and ensure long -term - To ensure long -term co nservation impact by improving stakeholder knowledge of an d capacity to implement sustainable natural resource management strategies.

Results -based Outcome Indicators At a minimum, applicants are required to develop robust indicators that respond to the fo llowing US Government standard indicators 1: 1. Number of peo ple trained in sustainable natural resource management and/or biodiversity conservation as a result of USG assistance. (EG 10.

2 -4) 2. Number of people with improved economic benefits derived from sustai nable natural resource management and/or biodiversity con servation as a result of USG assistance. (EG 3.

Number of hectares of biologically significant areas under improved management as a result of USG assistance. (Economic Growth 10. 3 -2) These outc ome indicators and any custom indicators must be further defined and assigned targets in the applicant’s Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Plan.

In addition, specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time -bound output indicators will be set a nd defined within the MEL Plan and linked with milestones upon which payments under the grant agreement will be Applicants must also demonstrate the logic of the proposed intervention through a draft “results chain .

” A results chain is a best practi ce for developing and describing the logical connections between activity interventions, desired immediate results, and long -term outcomes in sustainable natural resource management and human wellbeing. The following is an example of one such > 1Definitions can be found on Economic Growth Standard Indicator Reference Sheets are available at > https://www. state.

gov /f/indicators/ Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity Many human settlements along the Haitian coast as well as inland populations rely on marine species for a significant portion of their nutritional needs and export earnings.

In coastal urban centers which often lack basic services such as sanitation, solid waste management or storm surge barriers, ecosystem -based services such as wastewater purification and coastal protection are especially important to maintain. Moreover, conserved marine and coastal environments allow many opportunities f or recreation, pr eservation of cultural heritage, education, and research.

Lastly, the potential for high -value coastal tourism development depends on well -preserved and relatively clean environments to regularly attract customers. Sustainably managed co astal and marine resources are essential to human sustenance and socio - economic development.

As such, USAID considers it vital to work with the Government of Haiti (GoH ), civil society, the private sector, academia, and community -based organizations to pro mote the fair, ef ficient, and effective management of coastal and marine zones, both inside and near legally designated protected areas.

A growing human population density and a long history of under -investment in conservation -based agriculture and fisher ies have led to u nsustainable use of natural resources along the coasts and in the marine zones around Haiti. The living coral cover on its coral reefs is 15 percent, much lower than the mean for the Caribbean (25 percent).

The cover of macroalgae on reefs in Haiti - a sig n of reduced populations of herbivorous fish species - has been assessed at 30 percent, more than double the Caribbean mean (13 percent) 2. Moreover, a comprehensive four () -year coastal reef survey conducted in Haiti by the organization Re ef Check showed very low numbers and sizes of “indicator fish” such as grouper, parrotfish, and snapper.

Whereas a healthy reef can produce 15 tonnes of fish per year, when fish do not have a chance to reach reproductive maturity and so do not reproduce be fore they are ca ught, a vicious circle of overfishing leads to reduced reproduction. Mangrove forests, which are important breeding habitats for fish and other marine life, are being cut for charcoal or destroyed for agriculture, mussel -culture, or saltp ans at alarming rates.

The loss of mangroves also reduces the resilience of coastal communities to storm surges and erosion. Haiti’s first Marine Protected Area, the Three Bays National Park in the Nord Es t Department, was designated in 2013. With the cont inued advocacy o f local and international civil society groups, 12 additional marine protected areas have been declared by the Ministry of Environment.

According to the Agence Nationale des Aires Prot égées, 7. 4 percent of the marine territory of Haiti has been identified (i.e., legally designated as a Protected Area) for conservation, a significant progress towards the Aichi Biodiversity Target 3 of 10 percent of coastal and marine territory. > 3The Convention on Biologi cal Diversity was signed in 1992.

At the 10th Conference of the Parties, held > in October 2010, in Aichi Prefecture of Japan, the Biodiversity Targets for 2011 -2020 period were > adopted.

Twenty targets across five strategic goals i nclude addressing the under lying causes of Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity These encouraging developments must be tempered by the realization that the newly designated areas often lack management structures, law enforcement, or even signage to inform fishers and other users of the area’s protected status.

Local actors supported by international efforts have led to the development of management plans for the Three Bays National Park and sub -sections of the Port Salut -Aquin Marine Protected Area (Les Cayes, Sud Departement). The USAID Caribbean Marine Biodiversity Program (2014 to 2019) was instrumental supporting the former; UN Environment and o ther groups con tinue to work assiduously in the South.

The USAID Self -Reliance Roadmap 4 uses a suite of metrics to measure commitment and capacity of a country to reach self -reliance, including the ability to manage and preserve the natural environment. T he ‘commitment ’ of a government and society is defined as “the degree to which a country's laws, policies, actions, and informal governance mechanisms - such as cultures and norms - support progress towards self -reliance.

” The Roadmap metric most closely r elated to the Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity is “Biodiversity & Habitat Protections,” which measures the extent of marine protected areas, terrestrial biome protection (weighted for both national and global scarcity), representativeness o f protected ar eas, and whether protected areas cover the ranges and habitats of critical species.

Haiti ranks lowest among the least globally advanced (“0. 01” on a scale to 1. 0) among the low and middle -income countries where USAID The source of information for the Self -Reliance Roadmap metric is the Environmental Performance Index for Haiti from the Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy.

In that index, Haiti ranks 174th out of 180 countries globally and a distant last place in the L atin Amer ican & > biodiversity loss and reducing direct pressures on biodiversity and promoting sustainable use. > https://www. cbd.

int/sp/targets/default. shtml > 4More in formation can be found at https://www. usaid.

gov/selfreliance > 5See https://epi. envirocenter. yale.

edu/ for calculation methodology. Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity The Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation activity will employ a multidisciplinary approach to address complex natural resource challenges as identified by USAID/Haiti and partners.

It will provide short - and medium -term assistance to stakeholders that have vested interests in long -term planning and sustainable exploitation of natural resources in and around a marine protected area of Haiti. Balanced consideration will be given to the nutritional, cultural, ec osystem services, and recreational values of the marine and coastal resources available in a given protected area.

Conservation -based programs around the world have approached the challenge of unsustainable coastal and marine resource management with a va riety of solutions including: 1. Providing education and training to help farmers, fishers and other natural resource - dependent groups improve yields/incomes through less environmentally -destructive methods and/or find alternative livelihood opportunities. 2.

Supporting the implementation of Marine Area Plans in communes in or near a Protected Area in consultation with and involvement of stakeholders and communities. 3. Funding the implementation of existing and new high -priority marine protected areas with staff s killed in stakeholder engagement and management, equipment, training, housing, visitors center, signage, etc. 4.

Building the capacity of government and private sector agriculture extension agents to provide sound advice and equipment to improve farmer and fi sher yields through 5. Assisting in building the capacity of Ministries of Environment and local government staff to better understand, engage with stakeholders, monitor, regulate, or manage marine areas. 6.

Drafting and gaining approval f or rules/laws to allow the management of protected areas. 7. Developing co -management agreements between local community -based/ non - government organizations and government entities.

8. Training and educating the public, especially youth, to understand the value of marine conservation and resource management that can result in more fish and more jobs. 9.

Partnering with other civil society organizations with skills in these areas and considering co -management opportunities throughout the life of the marine protected areas. 10. Creating sustainable ecotourism opportunities by supporting broad -based community management of concessions.

11. Developing innovative long -term solutions to reduce land -based pollution threats to environmental health including solid waste and sanitatio n. 12.

Reducing destructive pressures on mangroves and other important plant species and creating positive incentives for community replanting and management. The geographic target of this activity must be within one or several of the f ollowing Departments of Haiti: Sud, Nippes, Grand Anse, Sud -Est, and Nord -Ouest. No application for work outside of these departments will be considered for funding.

The focus area(s) for interventions under this activity will be inside or within 20 kilome ters of a marine protected area as recognized by the Haitian Agence Nationale des Aires Prot égées.

The proposed interventions must have a direct or Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity indirect link to the health of the natural habitat and biodiversity of species within the Protected Area. P articular attention should be given to coral reefs and mangroves. THE REMAINDER OF THIS PAGE LEFT BLANK INTENTIONALLY.

Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity SECTION B: FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION 1. Estimate of Funds Available and Number of Awards Contemplated USAID intends to award one (1) Fixed Amount Award (FAA) pursuant to this Request for Application . Subject to funding availability and at the discretion of the Agency, USAID intends to provide $500,000.

00 in total USAID funding over a three -year period. 2. Start Date and Period of P erformance for Federal Awards The anticipated period of performance is three (3) years .

The estimated start date will be on or about the signature of the award. 3. Substantial Involvement Substantial involvement is not anticipated under this Fixed Amount Award.

4. Authorized Geographic Code The geographic code for the procurement of commodities and services under this program is 937 . Code 937 includes the United States, the recipient c ountry, and developing countries other than advanced developing co untries, but excluding any country that is a prohibited sourc e.

See ADS 5. Nature of the Relationsh ip between USAID and the Recipient The principal purpose of the r elationship with the Recipient and under the subject program is to transfer funds to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation of the Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation whic h is authorized by Federal statute.

The successful Recipient will be responsible for ensuring the achievement of the program objectives and the efficient and effective administration of the award through the application of sound management practices. The Recipient will assume responsibility for administering Federal fun ds in a manner consistent with underlying agreements, program objectives, and the terms and conditions of the Federal award.

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Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity SECTION C: ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION Eligibility fo r this RFA is restricted to non -profit, non -governmental organizations and private institutions of higher education based in Haiti that meet the criteria of a local entity in ADS 303 and that have no t received more than $5 million in the last five (5) yea rs from USAID , as a prime or subcontractor/recipient.

USAID defines a “local entity” as an individual, a corporation, a nonprofit organization, or another (1) Is legally organized under the laws of; and (2) Has as its principal place of b usiness or operations in; and (3) Is majority owned by individuals who are citizens or lawful permanent residents of; and (4) Is managed by a governing body the majority of who are citizens or lawful perma nent residents of the country receiving assistance.

For purposes of this section, ‘majority owned’ and ‘managed by’ include, without limitation, beneficiary interests and the power, either directly or indirectly, whether exercised or exercisable, to cont rol the election, appointment, or tenure of the organization's managers or a majority of the organization's governing body by any means. These eligibility requirements apply t o both the principal applicant and to any sub -awardee .

USAID welcomes applicat ions from organizations that have not previously received financial 2. Cost Sharing or Matching Cost Sharing or Matching is not required, nor may it be proposed. THE REMAINDER OF THIS PAGE LEFT BLANK INTENTIONALLY.

Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity SECT ION D: APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION 1. Agency Point of Contact Questions regarding this RFA should be submitted to aleon@u said. gov ; ssilva@usaid.

gov and usaidhaitioaa@usaid. gov no later than the date indicated on the cover letter . When submitting questions and requests for clarification, p lease make reference to the specific RFA in the subject line of the email as follows: “Questions RFA Number 72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity .

” Any information given to a prospective applicant concerning this RFA will be f urnished promptly to all other prospective applicants as an amendment to t his RFA , if that information is necessary in submitting applications or if the lack of it would be prejudicial to any other prospective 3. General Content and Form of Applic ation A- Technical Application: The application will consist of a technical and budget application.

The application must be specific, comprehensive and concise and must be formatted as follows: • Paper size: Letter size (8.

5 x 11 inches) • Length: No more than 10 single-sided pages • Type: Times New Roman, 12 point, single-spaced • Margins: At least one inch on the top, bottom and sides • Consecutive page numbers Technical Application : must demonstrate the Applicant’s capabilities and expe rtise to achieve project results through an integrated set of activities.

The application must include the following: a) Cover Page (not included in the 10-page limit) d) Key Personnel/Management Plan e) Institutional Capacity/Past Performance f) Annexes (not included in the 10-page limit) i. Summary staffing plan and organizational chart ii. Resumes/CVs of Key Personnel (maximum 2 pages per person) iii.

Recommendation Letters iv. Letters of Commitment Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity The Technical Approach, Key Personnel/Management Plan, Institutional Capacity/Past Performance sections together must not exceed ten (10) pages.

Cover Page: (not included in the 10 -page limit) : The cover page of the application should include: a) Activity title; b) RFA number; c) Name of organization applying for the fund ing; d) Name of partnering any organization (s) or government agency(ies); and e) Name, telephone number, street address and email address of person (s) who prepared the application, and the corresponding signatures.

Program Descript ion: this section of the application must be consistent with the stated objectives in the Program Description , but provide greater detail: - Geography: description of and rationale for choosing the target geographic area and population of intervention includ ing the social context (especially related to access to natural resources by different genders), economic, and natural resource management dynamics specifically related to agricultur e, fisheries and other coastal resources; - Strategy: proposed strategy to achieve the activity objectives stated in the Program Description and the rationale for the selection of this strategy based on the geography and socio -economic context describe abov e; - Activity Description: description of proposed activities and resources (e.g., human, logistical, material, etc.) required to complete the activities; - Timeline: month -to -month timeline of activity implementation; and - Results and Objectives: a narrativ e and/or graphic framework articulating the logic by which the proposed st rategy, activities, and results will achieve the project objectives and Milestone List: this section must describe a list of milestones – defined as significant achievements, outputs, outcomes, or completed activities – that can be independently ver ified by USAID over the course of the project implementation.

Key Personnel and Management Plan: Key personnel are those individuals whose performance is critical to the success of the Activity as proposed in the Program Description. USAID/Haiti recommend s that the Applicant describe three (3) positions that the Applicant believes to be key to the success of the Activity.

The Applicant must propose individuals that they deem appropriate for the duties and responsibilit ies of each position, with requisite s kill, knowledge, and experience. Applicants must submit Curriculum Vitae for ea ch proposed staff member within the key personnel that demonstrate how each individual is best fit for the proposed position.

These CVs must not exceed two (2) pages each and must be included as an annex to the application which will not count towards the 10 -page count . USAID/Haiti expects these key personnel to be results - oriented and to have the appropriate qualifications and experience to work as a team to manage technically complex project interventions. The following are examples profiles of key perso nnel.

The Applicant may choose different key personnel based on the needs of the proposed Program Description: Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity - Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Manage r - Agriculture and Fisheries Specialist Institutional Capacity / History of Performance The Applicant must demonstrate experience and success implementing activities comparable to the activity described in the request for applications.

History of performan ce and institutional capacity information must be provided and should relate the specific technical nature of the activity and the operational context in Haiti. The Applicant must describe lessons learned during these past experiences and how these lessons -learn informed their proposed technical approach.

Annexes (not included in the 10 -page limit): In annexes the Applicant is requested to include: - Staffing plan and organizational chart including all proposed positions, lines of reporting - CVs/Resumes of Key Personnel - Recommendation Letters from persons or organ izations familiar with the past or current - Letter of Commitment from organizations intending to partner with the Applicant in a financial or nonfinancial cap acity.

B- Business (Cost) Application The recipient must provide a budget, budget narrative, adequate cost, and historical or unit pricing data to establish a reasonable cost and the assurance that the recipient will realize no increment above actual cost. Once the award amount is set and is a llocated among the milestones, the milestone payments become the fixed amount for each milestone.

Therefore, what the recipient actually spends to complete the milestone is irrelevant.

As such, it is critical that the award total is thoroughly reviewed and determined reasonable before allocating the specific amounts to While there is no page limit for this section, the Applicant is encouraged to be as concise as possible, but still provide the necessary detail to address the following: The cost proposal of the application must include a detailed budget in Excel with an accompanying budget narrative which provides the total budget estimates for implementation of the program The b udget narrative must provide sufficient information to adequately support and explain all proposed costs, i.e., the actual cost basis for the line items in the detailed budget.

Provide clear and complete budget narratives with strong justification and spe cific reasoning for all propo sed • Detailed Budget, including a breakdown by year, sufficient to allow the Agency to determine that the costs represent a realistic and efficient use of funding to implement the Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity applicant’s program and are allowable in accordance with the cost pri nciples found in 2 • Detailed Budgets for each sub -recipient, for all federal funding and cost share, broken out by budget category and by year, for the entire implementation period of the project.

Categories s hould include, but are not li mited to salaries and allowances, fringe benefits (if applicable, travel and transportation, equipment and supplies, subawards, other direct costs, indirect costs, etc. • Milestone Budget: Because Fixed Amount Awards must be bas ed upon milestones, which out line a verifiable product, task, deliverable, or goal, a milestone budget must also be provided.

This should be presented in a new worksheet as part of the overall Excel budget. See more details further in this document .

The Mi lestone Budget - Milestones g enerally include four components: (1) a description of the product, task, deliverable, or goal to be accomplished; (2) a description of how the recipient will provide objectively verifiable evidence/documentation of completion of the product, task, deliver able, or goal (e.g., survey submission, submitting training materials, toolkits or reports); and (3) the costs associated with achieving the milestone (4) target date for achievement of each milestone.

A milestone budget will o rganize all costs included in the detailed, line -item budget according to milestones and deliverables identified in the project.

For a basic outline, please see > Description Required Deliverable/ Output Estimated > Compl etion Date Amount in US$ > of a detailed work plan > [Example: AOR approved work > plan and M&E plan, showing > concurrence by Ministry of > [Example: Completion of a > socioeconomic survey of the > [Example: AOR -accepted > socioeconomic survey report, > showing evidence of inputs from > target community members.]

> [Example: AOR approved Final > Report, as described] $ Additional documentation: The applicant must sign and submit the cost application using the SF -424 series. Standard Forms can be accessed electronically at www. grants.

gov or using the following lin ks: Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity http://www. grants. gov/web/grants/form -instructions/sf -424 - https://www.

grants. gov/web/grants/forms/sf -424 -family. html http://www.

grants. gov/web/grants/form -instructions/sf -424a - (SF -424A) https://www. grants.

gov/web/grants/forms/sf -424 -family. html http://www. grants.

gov/web/grants/form -instructions/sf -424b - Assurances (SF -424B) https://www. grants. gov/web/grants/forms/sf -424 -family.

html Failure to accurately complete these forms could result in the rejection of the application. Required Certifications and Assurances: The applicant must comple te the following documents and submit a signed copy with their 1) “Certifications, Assurances, Representations, and Other Statements of the Recipient” document found at http://www. usaid.

gov/sites/default/files/documents/1868/303mav.

pdf 2) Assurances for Non -Construction Programs (SF -424B) 3) Certificate of Compliance: Please submit a copy of your Certific ate of Compliance if your organization’s systems have been certifie d by USAID/Washington’s Office of Acquisition The Detailed Budget must contain the following budget categories and information, at a minimum: 1) Salaries and Allowances – Must be proposed consistent with 2 CFR 200.

430 Compensation - Personal Services. The applicant’s budget must include position title, salary rate, level of effort, and salary escalation factors for each position. Allowances, when proposed, mus t be broken down by specific type and by position.

Applicants must explain all assumptions in the Budget Narrative. The Budget Narrative must demonstrate that the proposed compensation is reasonable for the services rendered and consistent with what is pai d for similar work in other activities of the applicant. Applicants must p rovide their established written policies on personnel compensation.

If the applicant’s written policies do not address a specific element of compensation that is being proposed, th e Budget Narrative must describe the rationale used and supporting market research. 2) Fringe Benefits – (if applicable) If the applicant has a fringe benefit rate approved by an agency of the U.S. Government, the applicant must use such rate and provide evi dence of its approval.

If an applicant does not have a fringe benefit rate approved, the applicant must propose a rate and explain how the applicant determined the rate. In this case, the Budget Narrative must Request for Application (RF A) #72052120RFA00008 Coastal and Marine Habitat Conservation Activity include a detailed breakdown comprised of all items of fringe