International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program, Northern Triangle | USDA FAS 10619 0762 10 22 0001

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA FAS 10619 0762 10 22 0001

The International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program (IAEFP), Northern Triangle is a USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) cooperative agreement funding opportunity designed to place qualified U.S. agricultural professionals in developing countries to help build and strengthen school-based agricultural education and youth extension systems. The program is authorized under the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 and is meant to transfer practical, hands-on agricultural skills to secondary school youth while also helping countries develop the kind of experiential learning models commonly associated with U.S. agricultural education, including linkages to 4-H and FFA style youth development. In addition to supporting host countries, the fellowship is framed as a way for U.S. agriculturalists to gain international experience, develop a global mindset, and contribute to longer-term economic and agricultural connections that can strengthen agricultural trade relationships between the United States and partner countries.

The core goal of the solicitation is to fund an implementing organization that can recruit, prepare, and support a small cohort of U.S. Fellows who will spend roughly an academic year (about 8 to 9 months) working in the host country. Fellows must be U.S. citizens with at least a bachelors degree in an agriculture-related field and should ideally bring real-world agricultural experience, especially in teaching agricultural skills and developing curriculum or programs. Once an award is made, the recipient organization is expected to run a formal recruitment and selection process for Fellows, and it must consult with the National FFA Organization and the National 4-H Council on Fellow selections. The recipient also needs to identify subject matter expert panel representatives connected to 4-H and FFA shortly after negotiations, and final Fellow selections ultimately require USDA concurrence.

Program design expectations are specific and practical. Proposals are expected to focus on agricultural skill transfer in secondary schools while also building broader support systems around those schools, such as community-based extension activities, teacher training, and the creation or strengthening of 4-H clubs to improve sustainability after the Fellows depart. USDA expects proposals to include a mix of classroom instruction, field demonstrations, entrepreneurship projects, and leadership development, rather than relying on one single approach. Applicants are also expected to show they understand the host country context, including how receptive the country is to this type of program and what national or local policies, procedures, or approvals may be needed to operate smoothly and leave behind lasting improvements.

The solicitation emphasizes tailoring and alignment. The implementing organization is expected to provide Fellows with a suggested curriculum customized to the needs of the selected country, and Fellow training topics should align both with USDA priorities and with the host country agricultural policy, development strategies, and extension goals. Proposals should incorporate climate-smart agricultural practices and should be designed, where appropriate, to promote bilateral agricultural trade links between the host country and the United States. USDA also signals that applicants should build on what has already been learned from earlier IAEFP implementation (notably in Ghana and Uganda during 2021-2022) and may incorporate proven practices from similar programs to strengthen results.

Monitoring, evaluation, and learning requirements are not an afterthought in this opportunity. Applicants must submit a draft evaluation plan that lays out a comprehensive approach to tracking performance and impact. That plan should include clear performance goals, an activity-level results framework, defined performance indicators with targets for each major activity, and a plan for baseline and ongoing data collection. In other words, USDA is looking for a proposal that not only describes what will be done, but also explains how the project will measure whether it worked and what changed in schools, teachers, youth skills, or community engagement because of it.

Because Fellows will be deployed overseas, safety and logistics are treated as central program responsibilities. Every proposal must show that security risks have been assessed and must describe concrete measures to protect Fellows. The recipient is expected to secure adequate and safe living arrangements (examples mentioned include dorms with security guards, vetted host families, and private transportation), and to coordinate security planning in line with U.S. Embassy Regional Security Officer guidance. Proposals should also include safety and security orientation components, including self-defense training. Once operating, the recipient will work closely with the USDA/FAS IAEFP team and, as needed, FAS overseas offices and U.S. Embassy personnel on placements, partnerships, and security decisions. USDA also encourages an active social media presence to document program activities and expects regular implementation updates to USDA/FAS staff in Washington, D.C. and overseas.

Geographically, this specific solicitation prioritizes the Northern Triangle region of Central America, with particular attention to Guatemala and El Salvador. Applicants may submit multiple country-specific applications within the Northern Triangle, and those will be considered. Applications for countries outside the Northern Triangle may be submitted, but Northern Triangle proposals are prioritized, and all applications must address the security situation both nationally and in the specific regions where Fellows would be placed. Proposals also need to explain how the IAEFP work will connect or coordinate with other U.S. government or USDA international efforts where relevant, such as the Borlaug Fellowship Program, Cochran Fellowship Program, Food for Progress, McGovern-Dole Food for Education, Local and Regional Procurement programs, Peace Corps, USAID, or other U.S. government programming. A consistent theme is sustainability: applicants should show how they will collaborate with host governments to build or enhance agricultural education curriculum and systems that can continue functioning after the fellowship ends.

From a funding and award structure standpoint, USDA anticipated making a single award under this opportunity, with an award ceiling of $500,000. The award was expected to support up to nine Fellows serving as a cohort (even if each Fellow is assigned to a specific site). The funding instrument is a cooperative agreement, which typically means USDA expects to be actively involved in program oversight and key decisions rather than providing a hands-off grant. Finally, the notice makes clear that posting the opportunity is not a promise of funding, USDA can decide not to fund particular countries based on changing security conditions, and the selecting official may make selection decisions based on broader strategic considerations (including geographic distribution or inclusion of minority-serving institutions), with those determinations considered final.

• The Department of Agriculture, International Agricultural Educ Fellowship 10.619 in the agriculture sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program, Northern Triangle" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.619.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 08, 2022.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 16, 2022. (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 $500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for USDA FAS 10619 0762 10 22 0001

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