U.S. Embassy in Nepal

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
BUREAU OF EDUCATIONAL & CULTURAL AFFAIRS
CULTURAL HERITAGE CENTER

U.S. AMBASSADORS FUND FOR CULTURAL PRESERVATION
LARGE GRANTS PROGRAM
Fiscal Year 2020 

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS
 (Submission Deadline: Friday, December 6, 2019)

 The U.S. Embassy in Kathmandu is accepting project abstracts for the Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) 2020 Large Grants Program.  The deadline for submitting abstracts to the U.S. Embassy is Friday, December 6, 2019.  If abstracts advance to Round 2, the concerned institutions (grantees) will be contacted to submit a full proposal at a later date.  Any submission received after the abstract deadline will not be considered.  Full implementation of the program depends on availability of funds.  Interested institutions (grantees) are urged to consult with the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy as soon as possible for details and guidance on the AFCP 2020 Large Grants Program by emailing culturektm@state.gov.

Competition format: This opportunity consists of two application rounds: Round 1 (Project Abstract) and Round 2 (Full Proposal).  During Round 1, project abstracts are submitted after prior U. S. Embassy consultation.  Following a technical review, rating, and ranking of abstracts, approved institutions will be invited to submit a full project proposal (Round 2).

Funding Areas:  The AFCP Large Grants Program supports the preservation of major ancient archaeological sites, historic buildings and monuments, and major museum collections accessible to the public and protected by law in the host country.  Appropriate project activities may include:

• Preventive conservation (addressing conditions that damage or threaten the site)
• Stabilization (reducing the physical disturbance [e.g., settling, collapse] of a site)
• Conservation (addressing damage or deterioration to a collection or sites)
• Consolidation (connecting or reconnecting elements of a site)
• Anastylosis (reassembling a site from its original parts)
• Restoration (replacing missing elements to recreate the original appearance of a site, usually appropriate only with fine arts, decorative arts, and historic buildings)

Funding Priorities: Applications for projects that directly supports one or more of the following will receive additional consideration in FY 2020;

• Disaster risk reduction for cultural heritage in disaster-prone areas
• Post-disaster cultural heritage recovery
• Preservation of inscribed World Heritage Sites
• Partner, connect with or feed into other ECA programs

ELIGIBLE PROJECT APPLICANTS: The Cultural Heritage 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, including U.S.-based organizations subject to Section 501(c) (3) of the tax code, registered and active in SAM.gov and able to demonstrate requisite experience and capacity to manage projects to preserve cultural heritage.

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

INELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES AND UNALLOWABLE COSTS: AFCP will NOT support the following activities or costs, and applications involving any of the activities or costs below will 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 application;
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 exhibits, objects, or collections for new or existing museums;
10. Construction of new buildings, building additions, 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 conjectural reconstructions 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 or documentation 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 fundraising campaigns;
20. Contingency, unforeseen, or miscellaneous costs or fees;
21. Costs of work performed prior to announcement of the award unless allowable per 2 CFR 200.458 and approved by the grants officer;
22. International travel, except in cases where travel is justifiable and integral to the success of the proposed project;
23. Travel or study outside the host country for professional development;
24. Individual projects costing less than $200,000;
25. Independent U.S. projects overseas.

AWARD INFORMATION:

1. Funding Instrument Type:  Grant
2. CFDA Number: 19.025
3. Floor on Amount of Individual Awards:  U.S. $200,000 per project
4. Ceiling on Amount of Individual Awards: U.S. $800,000 per project

In FY 2019, awards made through this program ranged from U.S. $245,000 to U.S. $500,000.

APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Important: The application process for the AFCP Large Grants Program takes place in two rounds: Project Abstract (Round 1) and Full Proposal (Round 2).  Interested institutions must submit abstracts electronically via email [cultureKTM@state.gov] to the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in Kathmandu no later than Friday, December 6, 2019.

ROUND 1- PROJECT ABSTRACT REQUIREMENTS: The project abstract must include the following items;

1. Full and complete Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424), including Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424A), Assurances for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424B), and, if applicable, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (SF-LLL).
2. Project basics, including title, project dates, location, and site.
3. Project budget
4. Project applicant information, including any contact information, DUNS Number, and SAM registration status.
5. Special designations (national monument, World Heritage Site, etc.).
6. Law/s Protecting the Site or Collection (citations only).
7. Project Purpose that summarizes the project objectives and desired results.
8. Statement of Importance highlighting the historic, architectural, artistic, or cultural (non-religious) values of the site or collection.

ROUND 2 FULL PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS:  The U.S. Embassy will contact institutions that advance to Round 2.  The Embassy will provide detailed guidelines to develop a full project proposal.

COST SHARING AND OTHER FORMS OF COST PARTICIPATION: There is no minimum or maximum percentage of cost participation required for this competition.  When cost sharing is offered, it is understood and agreed that the applicant must provide the amount of cost sharing as stipulated in its proposal and later included in an approved agreement.  The applicant will be responsible for tracking and reporting on any cost share or outside funding, which is subject to audit per 2 CFR 200.  Cost sharing may be in the form of allowable direct or indirect costs.

DUNS NUMBER AND SAM.gov REGISTRATION:  Applicants must have a Dun & Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number, a NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) code, and be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) prior to submitting full applications.  It is mandatory for applicants to have a DUNS and SAM.gov registration unless they meet one of the exemptions specified in the Federal Assistance Directive (https://usdos.sharepoint.com/sites/A OPE/FA/SitePages/Policy.aspx).  The DUNS/NCAGE/SAM.gov process can take weeks/months, especially for non-U.S. applicants.  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.  Non-U.S. based applicants may request a NCAGE code at https://eportal.nspa.nato.int/AC135Public/scage/CageList.aspx.  SAM is the official, free on-line registration database for the U.S. government.  SAM.gov replaced the Central Contractor Registration (CCR), the Online Representations and Certifications Application (ORCA), and the Excluded Parties List System (EPLS) in July 2012.  SAM.gov collects, validates, stores, and disseminates data in support of federal agency acquisition and grant award missions.  Registration in SAM is free: http://sam.gov.

PROJECT ABSTRACTS REVIEW AND SELECTION (ROUND 1):  The U.S. Embassy will screen abstracts and then forward the selected ones that meet mission strategic priorities to the Cultural Heritage Center in Washington for a final rating and ranking.  The U.S. Embassy, following the approval from the center, will invite qualifying institutions to submit a full proposal for Round 2 of the competition in January of 2020.

CONTACT INFORMATION:  For initial inquiries and selection process questions, please reach out to Cultural Affairs Specialist Dhurba Shah via email at shahdb1@state.gov or on phone at +977-1-423 4472.  Please submit complete project abstracts by December 6, 2019 addressing the Cultural Affairs Officer Karl Rogers at cultureKTM@state.gov.

Learn more about AFCP on the web at  http://exchanges.state.gov/heritage/afcp.html

We look forward to receiving your project abstracts. Thank you.

Attachments 

SF424_2_1-V2.1 (PDF 265KB)

SF424A-V1.0 (004) (PDF 195KB)

SF424B-V1.1 (PDF 195KB)

SFLLL_1_2-V1.2 (1) (PDF 195KB)

AFCP2020-Budget (XLS 23KB )