[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 145 (Thursday, July 28, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45223-45225]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-19135]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Foreign Agricultural Service


Notice of Funding Availability: Inviting Applications for 
McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition 
Program

    Announcement Type: New.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 10.608.

SUMMARY: The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) announces it is 
inviting applications for the McGovern-Dole International Food for 
Education and Child Nutrition program (McGovern-Dole). Total resources 
are expected to be about $190 million, but are contingent on final FY 
2012 appropriations action. Eligible applicants may submit applications 
through October 26, 2011. The McGovern-Dole program is administered by 
FAS.

DATES: All applications must be received by 5 p.m. Eastern Standard 
Time, October 26, 2011. Applications received after this date will not 
be considered.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Food Assistance Division, Office of 
Capacity Building and Development, Foreign Agricultural Service, 1250 
Maryland Avenue, Suite 400, SW., Washington, DC 20024; by phone: (202) 
720-4221; by fax: (202) 690-0251; or by e-mail at: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    A. Authority: The McGovern-Dole program is authorized by the Farm 
Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, as amended.
    B. Purpose: The McGovern-Dole program promotes education, child 
development, and food security for poor

[[Page 45224]]

children in low-income countries through the donation of U.S. 
agricultural commodities as well as the provision of financial and 
technical assistance. The commodities are made available for donation 
through agreements with Private Voluntary Organizations (PVOs), 
cooperatives, intergovernmental organizations, and foreign governments. 
Financial assistance is also provided for administrative and activity 
costs associated with achieving the objectives of the program.
    C. Objectives: For this notice, FAS is concentrating McGovern-Dole 
program resources toward achieving two objectives: (1) Improve the 
literacy of school age children and (2) sustaining the benefits made 
during project implementation to literacy, attendance, and enrollment 
by graduating the project to the host country. For more information on 
the objectives, please see Section V of this notice.
    D. Priorities: FAS will give priority consideration to otherwise 
acceptable applications that support results for priority countries and 
regions listed at: http://www.fas.usda.gov/excredits/FoodAid/FFE/FFEPriorities.asp. FAS will also give priority to requests to continue 
existing McGovern-Dole projects for non-priority countries and non-
priority regions. Applications to continue existing projects must meet 
all of the criteria described in this notice including incorporation of 
program objectives.

II. Award Information

    A. Award Size: Grants provided under the McGovern-Dole program 
normally range from $3-$10 million per year.
    B. Type of Award: All awards will be made in the form of 
competitive grants.

III. Eligibility Information

    For eligibility requirements, see the McGovern-Dole program 
regulations (7 CFR 1599.3).

IV. Application and Submission Information

    A. Application Content: An applicant for funding under the 
McGovern-Dole program shall submit an application that contains the 
information specified in 7 CFR 1599.4, which includes a completed form 
SF-424, an Introductory Statement, a Plan of Operation, and a proposed 
budget. Guidance on preparing the Introductory Statement, a Plan of 
Operation, and a budget can be found in the proposal entry module of 
the Food Aid Information System (FAIS) at the following address at: 
http://www.fas.usda.gov/fais/public. Additionally, the application 
shall include a plan to monitor the implementation of all program 
activities, a Performance Monitoring Plan, and a plan to evaluate all 
activities and report to FAS on the impact, in accordance with the 
policy found at: http://www.fas.usda.gov/excredits/FoodAid/FFE/EvaluationPolicy.asp.
    B. Method of Submission: The entire application package must be 
submitted electronically to FAS's online proposal entry system, the 
FAIS, located at: http://www.fas.usda.gov/fais/public.
    C. Deadline for Submission: All applications must be received by 5 
p.m. Eastern Standard Time, October 26, 2011. Applications received 
after this date will not be considered.

V. Selecting Project Objectives and Results

    A. Results Frameworks: In an effort to use scarce resources more 
strategically, FAS has developed results frameworks for the McGovern-
Dole program. This framework corresponds to the highest-level objective 
that the McGovern-Dole program strives to achieve: improve the literacy 
of school age children. Applications that do not contribute to this 
highest-level result will not be funded. However, FAS considers 
sustaining the benefits made to literacy, attendance, and enrollment of 
equal importance. Therefore all applications must include a plan to 
graduate project activities to the host country that consists of 
specific activities linked to specific results in the framework and 
timelines for achieving them. A matrix of possible activities that 
support sustainability as well as the results framework are available 
on the FAS Web site at: http://www.fas.usda.gov/excredits/FoodAid/FFE/ResultsFrameworks.pdf.
    B. Incorporating Results Into Proposals: Applicants must submit an 
illustration of a framework that shows the intended results for the 
proposed project. The project framework submitted by the applicant must 
be consistent with the program-level framework that FAS has developed. 
However, applicants can add results to or subtract results from the 
framework as appropriate but cannot modify any of the remaining 
results. Within the Introductory Statement, applicants must also 
provide an assessment of how the proposed project will contribute to 
the high-level objective of the McGovern-Dole program framework as well 
as how graduation will be achieved. The assessment should focus on the 
country specific context for the project including key problems or 
barriers that limit an applicant's ability in achieving the high-level 
objective. The assessment should provide to USDA an understanding of 
why the application will include results for specific portions of the 
frameworks and exclude results from others. The assessment will allow 
USDA to follow the contributions of the application in the framework 
and to make sure the application addresses key problems, barriers, or 
weaknesses in the country. Applicants should also list strengths in the 
countries or investments by other donors that explain the rationale for 
excluding results.
    C. Additional Information: For specific guidance on how to 
incorporate the frameworks into an application as well as a list of 
performance management indicators, both required and optional, please 
see our application guidance at: http://www.fas.usda.gov/excredits/FoodAid/FFE/FrameworkGuidance.asp.

VI. Application Review Criteria

    A. Review Process: FAS will review all responsive applications that 
are submitted by the deadline. FAS will invite comments from other U.S. 
governmental agencies on its award recommendations, but FAS will make 
the final determination about which applications to fund.
    B. Criteria: FAS will review and evaluate each application using 
the following criteria:
    1. Program Design and Alignment with the Solicitation (15 percent) 
including:
    (a) Clearly defined objective and activities that are logically 
tied to the results to be achieved;
    (b) Alignment with the McGovern-Dole results framework;
    (c) The quality of the project's performance measures, and the 
degree to which they relate to the objective, deliverables, and 
proposed approach and activities;
    (d) Detailed understanding of the need for the project;
    (e) Clearly described project design and explanation of how the 
applicant will implement the project;
    2. In-country coordination (10 percent) including:
    (a) An established relationship with the recipient government;
    (b) Description of how the applicant will work with the recipient 
government to implement the project;
    (c) Description of what other stakeholders, including other USG 
agencies (USAID, State, etc.), are doing to address poverty, hunger and 
deficient primary education in the recipient country, what needs 
remain, and how the proposed program complements and does not duplicate 
those activities;

[[Page 45225]]

    (d) A demonstration that the proposed activities fit into the host 
government's national food security plans and any education and 
nutrition plans; and
    (e) Demonstrated cooperation with other USG agencies doing 
development work.
    3. Commodity and Funds Appropriateness and Management (5 percent) 
including:
    (a) Commodity type and tonnages are clearly described;
    (b) Storage and handling procedures for the commodity are 
described;
    (c) Specific country concerns such as customs exemptions, tariffs, 
or other barriers are addressed; and
    (d) A clear description of how the funds provided by FAS will be 
used and how they will complement the commodities requested.
    4. Organizational Capability and Experience (10 percent) including:
    (a) A description of the organization's past experience working on 
school feeding, education, and other development projects;
    (b) Description of the organization's financial management 
capability;
    (c) Description of the organization's project management 
capability;
    (d) Description of past programs with USDA, USAID, or other USG 
agency;
    (e) Experience working in the country of the proposed project; and
    (f) Registration in country or a plan to become registered.
    5. Sustainability and Graduation (20 percent) including:
    (a) A detailed plan for graduating the project including methods 
and timelines that are realistic and incorporated into the McGovern-
Dole project framework;
    (b) A description of the recipient government's financial or in-
kind support of the proposed activities will help continue the project 
beyond the years of the proposal; and
    (c) A description of the local community's support for the project 
and willingness to sustain it.
    6. Literacy (20 percent) including:
    (a) A description of the activities to be undertaken and how they 
support the results cited;
    (b) Realistic and achievable outputs for the activities described;
    (c) Realistic, achievable, and meaningful outcomes relevant to the 
outputs of all activities;
    (d) A description of how the required indicators will be 
incorporated; and
    (e) A full description of all beneficiaries.
    7. Program Monitoring and Evaluation (10 percent) including:
    (a) Well developed, recent, and clear baselines and target goals;
    (b) Clearly described monitoring and evaluation plan sufficient to 
provide FAS with a full accounting of all activities and indicators; 
and
    (c) Qualified monitoring team.
    8. Application Quality (5 percent) including:
    (a) Application is complete with all necessary sections;
    (b) Application is consistent; and
    (c) Application is clear.
    9. The following factors will reduce FAS's evaluation of the 
application because they negatively reflect on an organization's 
ability to successfully implement and complete a grant agreement with 
USDA.
    (a) FAS has terminated an agreement with the organization for 
violations within the last three years.
    (b) The organization owes USDA a debt that is not covered by a 
payment plan or other method of resolution.
    (c) The organization has submitted late or has not submitted at all 
two or more required reports in the last three years.
    (d) The organization has not responded to FAS`s deadlines for 
documents required to closeout an agreement on two or more occasions 
within the last three years.

VII. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices: FAS will notify each applicant in writing of the 
final disposition of its application. FAS will send a letter to each 
approved applicant that will specify the amount of funding. Once the 
approved applicant receives this letter, FAS will begin negotiations 
with the applicant to develop a grant agreement. The agreement will 
incorporate the details of the project as approved by FAS and in 
accordance with the McGovern-Dole program regulations, 7 CFR part 1599.
    2. Reporting: An organization receiving funding under the McGovern-
Dole program will be required to provide quarterly financial reports, 
semi-annual logistics and monitoring reports, project status reports, a 
baseline study, a mid-term evaluation, and a final evaluation report, 
as provided in the grant agreement. All reports must be submitted using 
the FAIS. All organizations receiving funding will be required to 
report against the indicators in the agreement at each reporting cycle. 
Changes in the original project timelines and adjustments within 
project budgets must be approved by FAS prior to their implementation.
    3. Monitoring and Evaluation: A program participant shall submit to 
FAS, in the manner specified in the agreement, an annual financial 
audit in accordance with 7 CFR 1599.13(d). If FAS requires an annual 
financial audit with respect to a particular agreement, and FAS 
provides funds for this purpose, the participant shall arrange for such 
audit and submit it to FAS, in the manner specified in the agreement. 
The participant shall provide to FAS additional information or reports 
relating to the agreement if requested by FAS.

    Signed at Washington, DC, on July 20, 2011.
Suzanne E. Heinen,
Acting Administrator, Foreign Agricultural Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-19135 Filed 7-27-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-10-P