Operation and Programmatic Support of American Spaces in Tajikistan | STI400 24 CA 0005

Opportunity Information: Apply for STI400 24 CA 0005

Operation and Programmatic Support of American Spaces in Tajikistan is a U.S. Mission to Tajikistan funding opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number STI400 24 CA 0005) issued as a cooperative agreement, meaning the recipient should expect substantial involvement from the U.S. Embassy Dushanbe Public Diplomacy Section in shaping and supporting activities. The overall purpose is to keep Tajikistan's American Spaces running well and to deliver high-quality public programs that strengthen mutual understanding, deepen trust, and expand people-to-people ties between Tajikistan and the United States. The implementation period is expected to run from October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2025, and the application deadline listed is July 20, 2024. The award ceiling is $540,000, and the announcement anticipates multiple awards (expected awards: 14), reflecting that support may be organized across different Spaces and/or different activity packages.

The American Spaces network in Tajikistan has operated for about two decades and serves as the Embassy's main public diplomacy platform outside traditional government-to-government engagement. There are eight Spaces located in Bokhtar, Dushanbe, Gharm, Isfara, Khorugh, Khujand, Kulob, and Panjakent. These Spaces function as community hubs that provide free programming and resources, particularly around English language learning, access to accurate information about U.S. society and education, educational advising, alumni engagement, practical skills-building, and cultural programming. The opportunity reinforces that each Space is expected to meet global American Spaces standards, including modern aesthetics and accessibility, up-to-date collections and digital access, and regular programming delivered at no cost to participants.

A key feature of this notice is that it effectively contains two related funding tracks, and the most competitive applicants are expected to show capacity across both. The announcement states that strong applicants will submit at least two proposals "as appropriate" to cover both (1) Public Diplomacy operational/programmatic support and (2) American Spaces Support Fund (ASSF) programmatic support. Applicants that can manage more than one Space are positioned as especially competitive, implying the Embassy is looking for organizations with real operational depth, strong staffing, and reliable systems for compliance, reporting, budgeting, procurement, and program delivery across multiple sites and cities.

Funding Opportunity 1 is focused on operational and programmatic management under the Public Diplomacy (PD) umbrella. This track emphasizes day-to-day operations and the management backbone needed for Spaces to function smoothly for a full 12-month period. Competitive proposals under this track are expected to include cost sharing, specifically for rent/space or staffing, and to maintain current locations unless a move is clearly justified. The objectives under this operational track include: administering operations within budget while solving technical and logistical challenges efficiently; maintaining professional standards among staff; keeping Spaces modern, accessible, and well maintained; and staffing the Spaces with capable, innovative personnel who can engage public audiences and use social media effectively. It also includes an outreach requirement to create and launch a unified social media strategy early in implementation (within the second month), signaling that consistent branding, coordinated content, and measurable audience growth are priorities. Another major component is capacity building for American Space Coordinators at six specific locations (Gharm, Isfara, Khorugh, Khujand, Kulob, and Panjakent) through in-person and virtual professional development. Suggested training topics are practical and compliance-oriented, covering project planning, reporting, tracking KPIs and metrics, budgeting, data collection and analysis, social media and content creation (including graphic design), customer service, and even first aid. This PD track also calls for delivering free skills-building workshops and U.S. culture and holiday themed educational activities at those same six Spaces, plus designing and executing a broader set of programs across the six core American Spaces programming areas with a focus on sustained participation and increased turnout.

Funding Opportunity 2 is the ASSF programmatic track and is more squarely centered on program delivery aligned with Mission goals across all eight American Spaces. While it uses the same six core programming areas, it frames outcomes in terms of promoting English language learning, creating supportive and tolerant communities as a way to counter violent extremism, improving regional connectivity, and expanding economic opportunities. The single overarching objective here is to design and execute diverse activities across the six core areas in ways that clearly align with Embassy priorities, again measured by sustained participation and growth in attendance. The six core areas repeated in this section are: English language teaching and learning (including teacher development and access to English speakers/resources), information about the United States (people-to-people engagement and updated collections and internet access), educational advising (in coordination with EducationUSA, including virtual sessions, exchange alumni talks, essay clubs, and TOEFL support), alumni engagement (leveraging exchange and cultural program alumni to benefit local communities), skills building (critical thinking, media literacy, employability skills, entrepreneurship, makerspace use, environmental protection, and gender equality in STEM), and strategic cultural programs (arts, film, literature, health, food culture, sports, science and technology, volunteerism, civil society, environment, and entrepreneurship). The notice also references that expected activities and budgets by Space are pre-approved by the State Department's Office of American Spaces and directs applicants to consult the detailed announcement documents for the specific activity and budget breakdowns.

Eligibility is limited to non-profit organizations, civil society/non-governmental organizations, and public or private educational institutions. For-profit entities are explicitly not eligible to apply as the prime recipient. The notice allows subcontracting, but it is clear that only one non-profit, non-governmental entity can serve as the primary award recipient, and any partner roles must be spelled out with clear responsibilities in the proposal. Overall, the grant is designed for organizations that can combine strong administrative control, staff development, coordinated outreach, and high-volume, high-quality public programming across multiple cities, while working closely with the U.S. Embassy Dushanbe to ensure activities meet public diplomacy goals and American Spaces standards.

• The U.S. Mission to Tajikistan in the other sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Operation and Programmatic Support of American Spaces in Tajikistan" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.040, 19.441.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-06-11.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-07-20. (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 $540,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 14 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

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