AFCP 2013 Competition

The Embassy of the United States of America is accepting project proposals for the U.S. Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) 2013 competition. 

Established in 2001 to help developing countries preserve their cultural heritage, the AFCP emphasizes the preservation of the world’s cultural patrimony as an integral component of U.S. foreign relations.

All applications must be submitted to the Public Affairs Section of the US Embassy, 4^th Floor, Rogers House on or before November 26, 2012. Please mention “U.S. Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Heritage Preservation 2013 Competition” on the envelope. 

FUNDING AREAS: AFCP supports projects to preserve cultural heritage in the following three areas:

1. CULTURAL SITES—such as, but not limited to, historic buildings and archaeological sites;
2. CULTURAL OBJECTS AND COLLECTIONS from a museum, site, or similar institution—that include, but are not limited to, archaeological and ethnographic objects, paintings, sculpture, manuscripts, and general museum conservation needs; and,
3. FORMS OF TRADITIONAL CULTURAL EXPRESSION—such as traditional music, indigenous languages, and ancient crafts.

FUNDING PRIORITIES—GENERAL: AFCP gives top priority to project activities that adhere to these guidelines and to international standards for the preservation of cultural heritage. These activities may include:

1. CULTURAL SITES: restoration of an ancient or historic building, preservation of an archaeological site, or documentation of cultural sites in a region for preservation purposes.
2. CULTURAL OBJECTS AND COLLECTIONS: conservation treatment for an object or collection of objects; needs assessment of a collection with respect to its condition and strategies for improving its state of conservation; inventory of a collection for conservation and protection purposes; the creation of safe environments for storage or display of collections; or specialized training in the care and preservation of collections.
3. FORMS OF TRADITIONAL CULTURAL EXPRESSION: documentation and audiovisual recording of traditional music and dance forms for broad dissemination as the means of teaching and further preserving them, or support for training in the preservation of traditional applied arts or crafts in danger of extinction.

FUNDING PRIORITIES—SPECIFIC TO THE AFCP 2013 ANNUAL COMPETITION: Proposals for projects that meet one or more of the following criteria will receive special consideration in FY 2013:

1. Directly support U.S. treaty or bilateral agreement obligations, such as cultural property protection agreements;
2. Strengthen capacity in country to preserve and protect cultural heritage;
3. Support the preservation of inscribed World Heritage sites;
4. Advance long-term cultural preservation objectives, lay the groundwork for subsequent AFCP-supported activities, or encourage the continued or expanded application of proven methods at the project site or elsewhere;
5. Engage women, youth, or under-served communities.

Special Note Regarding Sites and Objects That Have a Religious Connection: The establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution permits the government to include religious objects and sites within an aid program under certain conditions. For example, an item with a religious connection (including a place of worship) may be the subject of a cultural preservation grant if the item derives its primary significance and is nominated solely on the basis of architectural, artistic, historical or other cultural (not religious) criteria.

ELIGIBLE PROJECT APPLICANTS: The Center defines eligible project applicants as reputable and accountable non-commercial entities, such as non-governmental organizations, museums, ministries of culture, or similar institutions and organizations that are able to demonstrate that they have the requisite experience and capacity to manage projects to preserve cultural heritage.

INELIGIBILE ACTIVITIES AND COSTS: AFCP does NOT support the following activities or costs, and applications involving any of the activities or costs below may be deemed ineligible:

1. Preservation or purchase of privately or commercially owned cultural objects, collections, or real property, including those whose transfer from private or commercial to public ownership is envisioned, planned, or in process but not complete at the time of proposal submission;
2. Preservation of natural heritage (physical, biological, and geological formations, paleontological collections, habitats of threatened species of animals and plants, fossils, etc.);
3. Preservation of hominid or human remains;
4. Preservation of news media (newspapers, newsreels, radio and TV programs, etc.);
5. Preservation of published materials available elsewhere (books, periodicals, etc.);
6. Development of curricula or educational materials for classroom use;
7. Archaeological excavations or exploratory surveys for research purposes;
8. Historical research, except in cases where the research is justifiable and integral to the success of the proposed project;
9. Acquisition or creation of new collections for new or existing museums;
10. Construction of new buildings or permanent coverings (over archaeological sites, for example);
11. Commissions of new works of art or architecture for commemorative or economic development purposes;
12. Creation of new or the modern adaptation of existing traditional dances, songs, chants, musical compositions, plays, or other performances;
13. Creation of replicas or re-creation of cultural objects or sites that no longer exist;
14. Relocation of cultural sites from one physical location to another;
15. Removal of cultural objects or elements of cultural sites from the country for any reason;
16. Digitization of cultural objects or collections, unless part of a larger, clearly defined conservation effort;
17. Conservation plans or other studies, unless they are one component of a larger project to implement the results of those studies;
18. Cash reserves, endowments or revolving funds (funds must be expended within the award period [up to five years] and may not be used to create an endowment or revolving fund);
19. Costs of fund-raising campaigns;
20. Operating expenses, i.e. expenses incurred during the day-to-day operational activities of an organization, such as office rent, utilities, license fees, and other costs for administrative time, services, or materials not directly related to performing project work;
21. Contingency, unforeseen, or miscellaneous fees;
22. Costs of work performed prior to announcement of the award;
23. International travel, except in cases where travel is justifiable and integral to the success of the proposed project;
24. Travel or study for professional development;
25. Individual projects costing less than $10,000;
26. Independent U.S. projects overseas.

INELIGIBLE PROJECT APPLICANTS: AFCP does not award grants to individuals, commercial entities, or to embassies or past award recipients which have not fulfilled the reporting requirements of previous AFCP awards.

AWARD INFORMATION: Funding Instrument Type: Grant (Program Authority Fulbright Hays Section 102(b)(5), as amended). Floor on Amount of Individual Awards: US $10,000 per project. In FY 2012, awards ranged from US $15,000 to US $194,000, with an average award amount of approximately US $66,000.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: All applications must be submitted to the Public Affairs Section of the US Embassy, 4^th Floor, Rogers House on or before November 19, 2012.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS: Project proposals must include or address the following:

1. Project purpose that explains the project objectives and desired results (including a strong rationale for the project);
2. Project activities description that explains how the applicant intends to achieve the project objectives and results, presents proposed tasks in a logical order, and describes how those tasks directly contribute towards achieving the project objectives and results;
3. Project participant information, including an estimated number of non-US and US participants,  as well as resumes or CVs of the proposed project director and key project participants demonstrating that the applying entity (ministry of culture, NGO, etc.) has assembled the requisite experience and the capacity to carry out projects to preserve cultural heritage;
4. Project timeframe or schedule that identifies the major project phases and milestones, with performance target dates for achieving them (NOTE: Applicants may propose project performance periods of up to 60 months [five years] with five budget periods of one year each; projects must begin before September 30, 2013, and conclude no later than September 30, 2017);
5. Statement of importance highlighting the historic, architectural, artistic, or cultural (non-religious) values of the cultural site, object, collection, or form of traditional expression;
6. Statement of urgency indicating the severity of the situation and explaining why the project must take place now;
7. Statement of sustainability, outlining the steps or measures that will be taken to maintain the site, object, or collection in good condition after the AFCP-supported project is complete; or, in the case of forms of traditional cultural expression, to preserve and disseminate the documentation, knowledge, or skills either resulting or gained from the project;
8. Detailed project budget, demarcated in one-year budget periods (2013, 2014, 2015, etc.), that lists all costs in separate categories (Personnel, Fringe Benefits, Travel [including Per Diem], Equipment, Supplies, Contractual, Other Direct Costs); indicates funds from other sources; and gives a justification for any anticipated international travel costs;
9. Applicant information, including contact information, DUNS Number, and SAM registration (see Section 18 below);
10. Proof of official permission to undertake the project and the endorsement and support of the appropriate national authority;
11. Attachments, including at least five high quality digital images (JPEGs) or audiovisual files that convey the nature and condition of the site, object, or form of expression and, in the case of a site or object, show the urgency or need for the proposed project (collapsing wall, water damage, worn fabric, broken handle, etc).

COST SHARING AND OTHER FORMS OF COST PARTICIPATION: There is no minimum or maximum percentage required for this competition. However, AFCP encourages cost sharing, contributions in kind, and other forms of cost participation. When cost sharing is offered, it is understood and agreed that the applicant (either the U.S. embassy or the qualified entity on whose behalf the U.S. embassy is applying for support) must provide the amount of cost sharing as stipulated in its proposal and later included in an approved agreement. Cost sharing may be in the form of allowable direct or indirect costs.

DUNS NUMBER AND SAM REGISTRATION: Applicants requesting $25,000 or more in federal assistance must have a Dun & Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number and be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) prior to submitting applications. Applicants may acquire DUNs numbers at no cost by calling the dedicated toll-free DUNs number request line at 1-866-705-5711 or by requesting a number online at http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform. SAM is the official, free on-line registration database for the U.S. Government. SAM.gov collects, validates, stores, and disseminates data in support of federal agency acquisition and grant award mission. Registration in SAM is free: https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/

APPLICATION SCREENING CRITERIA: The Center will first screen all proposals for technical eligibility based on the neutral criteria contained in this request for grant proposals. The Center will also screen proposals against the lists of AFCP program-specific ineligible activities, costs, and applicants (see relevant sections above).

APPLICATION RATING CRITERIA: Using a point-based system (below), the Center will rate all applications based on the program funding priorities; the quality, soundness, and comprehensiveness of the proposed project and budget; the urgency of the proposed project; the rationale; the quality and quantity of supporting materials, such as resumes of the key project participants, images of the resource, and notices of official permission from the responsible resource steward, such as a ministry of culture.

AFCP POINT-BASED RATING SYSTEM: Proposals will be rated as follows:

1. Purpose and Summary, Description, Timeframe, Importance of Site/Object/Form of Expression: 40 points max
2. Urgency: 15 points max
3. Rationale for U.S. Support: 15 points max
4. Budget: 20 points max
5. Supporting Materials: 10 points max

Once the Center has completed its screening and rating, it will forward the technically eligible and favorably rated proposals to the Public Diplomacy sections in the respective regional bureaus in the State Department for ranking. Once the proposals are ranked, the Center will convene a panel to recommend proposals for funding. The Center may deem proposals ineligible if they do not fully adhere to AFCP 2013 Competition objectives, requirements, and other criteria stated herein.

AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION: The Bureau will announce the awards via cable as soon as possible once the Department’s FY 2013 funding levels are known and a financial plan approved. It will send a second cable describing the process for executing AFCP awards soon afterwards.

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE OF AFCP 2013 GRANTS: The period of performance begins upon the completion and countersignature of a Notice of Award. A complete AFCP 2013 Notice of Award consists of:

1. DS-1909 Standard Award Coversheet form;
2. Department of State Award Specifics form;
3. AFCP 2013 Program Specifics form;
4. Post Specifics form (as applicable); and,
5. Department of State Standard Terms and Conditions for Federal Assistance Awards (Domestic or Overseas).

The five combined constitute the legal document issued to notify an award recipient that an award has been made and that funds are available for use during the specified award period. Failure to produce a complete AFCP 2013 Notice of Award may result in the nullification of the award.

ADMINISTRATIVE AND NATIONAL POLICY REQUIREMENTS: Terms and conditions for administering AFCP awards include the following:

1. 2 CFR Part 215 (22 CFR 145), “Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations”
2. 2 CFR Part 220, “Cost Principles for Educational Institutions”
3. 2 CFR Part 230, “Cost Principles for Non-Profit Organizations”
4. OMB Circular A-133, “Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations”

Other requirements and guidance are incorporated by reference in the Notice of Award.

PERFORMANCE AND DELIVERABLES: AFCP 2013 award recipients must submit biannual performance progress and financial status reports and final reports on time as specified in the Notice of Award.  The Center will compile this information in a report to Congress, as required, and in a published annual report of completed projects.

Information on previous awards is available from the Center and the AFCP Web site: http://exchanges.state.gov/heritage/afcp.html. The Center has expertise in the preservation of cultural heritage and is available for technical guidance.

DISCLAIMER: Explanatory information provided by the Center that contradicts published language is not binding. Issuance of this RFGP does not constitute an award commitment on the part of the U.S. Government. The Center reserves the right to waive program formalities and to reduce, revise, or increase proposal budgets in accordance with the needs of the program and the availability of funds. Awards made will be subject to periodic reporting and evaluation requirements as specified above and in the Notice of Award.