Harare American Spaces Grant 2024 | AF HAR FY24 11

Opportunity Information: Apply for AF HAR FY24 11

The Harare American Spaces Grant 2024 is a funding opportunity from the Public Diplomacy (PD) Section at the U.S. Embassy in Harare (U.S. Department of State). It is meant to support interactive, engaging programs delivered through U.S.-supported American Spaces in Zimbabwe, with the overall goal of deepening local communities' understanding of the United States. These American Spaces function as free cultural and information hubs that encourage critical thinking, skills development, innovation, and open discussion of issues relevant to both the United States and Zimbabwe, while highlighting American values, culture, and perspectives.

Projects funded under this opportunity must run as sustained "serial programming" for at least eight months, rather than being a single event or short series. The Embassy is specifically looking for proposals that build enduring connections between the United States and emerging leaders by providing practical, hands-on programming. A key requirement is that proposals include a clear American element, either through U.S. cultural content, alignment with U.S. policy perspectives, or tangible collaboration with American experts, institutions, or organizations in relevant fields.

The priority themes the Embassy wants to see addressed are civil society sustainability, entrepreneurship and innovation, investigative journalism, photography and videography skills building, and climate resilience. While the notice also references media literacy as part of the broader objective, applicants should make sure their design strongly maps to the listed priority programming areas and shows a coherent schedule of activities over the full implementation period. The intended participants are emerging leaders and young professionals, generally ages 18 to 30, who would benefit from advanced skills training, mentorship, and exposure to U.S. ideas and approaches within these subject areas.

Geographically, activities must take place at the American Spaces located in Bulawayo and Gweru, Zimbabwe. Proposals should be planned with those venues in mind and structured around consistent programming that can be delivered in those locations over time. The performance period is expected to be between 8 and 12 months, and proposed programs should be completed within 12 months or less. Although projects may begin no earlier than October 2024, the notice also lists an anticipated program start date of September 15, 2024, so applicants should propose timelines that are realistic and clearly justified while staying within the guidance provided.

In terms of funding, the opportunity anticipates making one award, with a maximum (ceiling) of USD 17,800 and total available funding of USD 17,800. The funding instrument is a grant under CFDA 19.022 (Educational and Cultural Exchange Programs). The announcement notes that the award is subject to the availability of funding. Cost sharing is not required, but it is encouraged, which means applicants can strengthen an application by showing credible contributions of their own or leveraged partner resources where appropriate.

Eligibility is limited to organizations, not individuals. Eligible applicants include U.S. and Zimbabwean not-for-profit organizations (such as NGOs and civil society organizations), think tanks, and public or private educational institutions. For-profit or commercial entities are explicitly not eligible. The Embassy also signals a strong interest in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA), encouraging applications that demonstrate meaningful inclusion across factors such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, socioeconomic background, and geographic location, and that reflect these values in both program design and participant recruitment.

To apply, organizations must be properly registered in the U.S. government systems. A Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and an active registration in SAM.gov are mandatory for eligibility, and the notice emphasizes that SAM registration or renewal can take 4 to 8 weeks, so applicants should start early. Organizations outside the United States that do not pay U.S.-based employees do not need an IRS EIN, but they still must obtain a UEI and complete SAM registration. Organizations in the United States (or those paying employees within the U.S.) will need an EIN as part of the SAM registration process. If the applicant plans to issue subawards or subcontracts, subawardees will also ultimately need UEIs, though sub-grantee UEIs are not required at the time of application and are only required before an award can be processed.

Application materials can be requested by emailing PublicDiplomacyGrants-ZIM@state.gov, which will trigger an automatic reply with the application forms; forms are also available through Grants.gov. Submissions may be emailed to the same address, using the subject line "PD AMERICAN SPACES GRANT PROPOSAL." The opportunity opened for proposals on June 26, 2024, and the source text includes two timing references: it notes a NOFO deadline of Monday, July 15, 2024, while also stating applicants should submit prior to July 31, 2024 for consideration (and the listing shows an original closing date of 2024-07-31). Because these dates are inconsistent, a careful applicant would confirm the controlling deadline directly with the Embassy using the official contact email before relying on the later date.

For questions, the main point of contact for application and process issues is PublicDiplomacyGrants-ZIM@state.gov (with "PD American Spaces Program" in the subject line). Programmatic questions can be directed to Kenneth Mangemba at MangembaKT@state.gov.

• The U.S. Mission to Zimbabwe in the arts sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Harare American Spaces Grant 2024" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.022.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-06-26.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-07-31. (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 $17,800.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for AF HAR FY24 11

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