Strengthening Botswana's national health data systems for a sustainable and government-led HIV/TB and related public health threat response through enhanced surveillance, digital health, and data analytics under PEPFAR | CDC RFA JG 25 0081

Opportunity Information: Apply for CDC RFA JG 25 0081

The grant opportunity titled "Strengthening Botswana's national health data systems for a sustainable and government-led HIV/TB and related public health threat response through enhanced surveillance, digital health, and data analytics under PEPFAR" is a CDC-funded cooperative agreement focused on improving how the Government of Botswana (GOB) collects, manages, secures, connects, and uses health data to drive a stronger HIV/TB response and broader public health threat preparedness. The overall emphasis is on practical, tailored technical assistance that helps national systems work better at every level of the health system, from individual health facilities to district structures and national programs, with the long-term goal of a government-led and sustainable data ecosystem rather than a partner-dependent one.

Funding for the first year is expected to total approximately USD 4,000,000, depending on availability of funds, with CDC anticipating up to two awards. Although the notice lists an award ceiling for Year 1 as "0 (none)," the opportunity description still indicates CDC's intent to fund the program at the approximate level stated, which is common in some federal notices when a formal per-award cap is not specified. The application deadline is listed as February 24, 2025, and the funding instrument is a cooperative agreement, meaning recipients should expect substantial involvement from CDC in shaping, coordinating, and monitoring implementation as the work proceeds.

At its core, the program is designed to strengthen Botswana's national health data systems in ways that directly support HIV and TB programming under PEPFAR while also improving readiness for other public health threats. Applicants are expected to help GOB improve data governance and policies, strengthen workforce capacity for data management, and upgrade system performance across functionality, interoperability, availability, data quality, and real-world data use. In practice, this means helping establish and enforce clear rules for data stewardship and protection, standardizing processes for data collection and reporting, improving the reliability and completeness of routine service data, and ensuring that decision-makers at facilities, districts, and national offices can actually access timely information and use it for planning and performance improvement.

The NOFO lays out three major implementation pillars. The first is strengthening monitoring and evaluation capacity within GOB, including improvements in data availability and reporting, routine data quality, analytics, interpretation, and the use of findings for program decisions across all administrative levels. This points to work such as improving indicator definitions and reporting tools, building stronger data review and feedback loops, strengthening supportive supervision focused on data quality, and improving analytic skills so teams can translate data into actions like targeted outreach, better retention strategies, or improved case finding and treatment monitoring for HIV and TB.

The second pillar is enhancing health informatics and the digital health environment. The intent is to improve system functionality, data security, infrastructure, and health information exchange across systems so that patient care improves and health policies and programs can be guided by stronger evidence. This generally involves work like making systems more interoperable so different databases can exchange information safely and consistently, strengthening unique identifiers or matching approaches where appropriate, improving server and network reliability, and implementing stronger safeguards for confidentiality and cybersecurity. It also signals a push toward making digital tools more usable for frontline staff and more valuable for patient outcomes, rather than simply collecting data for reporting purposes.

The third pillar is strengthening GOB's capacity to conduct surveillance activities, including clinical surveillance, population-level surveillance, and surveillance focused on key populations. The goal is to improve prevention, early detection, and response for HIV/TB and related public health threats in alignment with the International Health Regulations (IHR) 2005 framework, and to do so across all levels of the health system. This suggests support for designing or strengthening surveillance strategies, improving data flows from the point of care to national surveillance units, building analytic capacity for outbreak detection and monitoring, and strengthening the ability to use surveillance findings to guide rapid response and longer-term prevention planning. By explicitly referencing IHR (2005), the opportunity frames HIV/TB data strengthening as part of a broader national health security agenda, linking routine program data with the capacities needed to detect and respond to emerging health threats.

Eligibility for the opportunity is broad and includes various levels of government, public and private universities, nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status, for-profit organizations (including small businesses), tribal governments and organizations, and other unrestricted applicants, reflecting CDC's openness to a range of implementers that can deliver specialized technical assistance and systems strengthening. The activity category is health, the CFDA number is 93.067, and the administering office is listed as Centers for Disease Control-GHC. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a capacity-building and systems integration effort that aims to leave Botswana with stronger governance, better-trained personnel, more secure and interoperable digital health systems, higher-quality data, and a stronger surveillance backbone capable of supporting a sustained, government-led HIV/TB response and broader public health threat management.

• The Centers for Disease Control-GHC in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Strengthening Botswana's national health data systems for a sustainable and government-led HIV/TB and related public health threat response through enhanced surveillance, digital health, and data analytics under PEPFAR" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.067.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-12-06.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-02-24. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Unrestricted.

Apply for CDC RFA JG 25 0081

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: