OpportunityTitle: University Partnership
CategoryExplanation: Partnership in Diplomacy and World Affairs with the Tunisian &#147;Diplomatic Institute for Training and Studies-IDFE&#148;
AdditionalInformationOnEligibility: The United States Embassy/Tunis is planning to support the Tunisian Diplomatic Institute in the development of a special curriculum to support on-going reforms in matter of capacity building to the benefit of Tunisian diplomats, in light of new trends and practices in diplomacy and skills required by the diplomatic profession, in fields such as Public Diplomacy, PR &amp; Media Relations, Economic Diplomacy, Analysis and Prospective of Current International Affairs, Crisis Management, and interpersonal development.     This partnership would also include the setting up of a Studies &amp; Research Unit to investigate topics such as international relations, international law, the global economy, international conflict, terrorism and post-conflict nation building.    The Tunisian Diplomatic institute reports to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and offers two study tracks: The first is one-year long and designed for young university graduates. Student attend classes on basic diplomacy techniques, international law, international economy and relations, etc.. At completion of the first year of study, students follow internships in various departments at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before their actual assignment. The second track is aimed for in-service and mid-career professionals and offers short term training programs on various diplomacy matters. For more information about the institute, please send email to idfe.takwin@gmail.com  or call the Director for Training +216 71 784 510
Description: This RFA is designed to support U.S. academic institutions that seek to engage with the Tunisian Diplomatic institute. (Eligible Applicants: regionally accredited, degree-granting, U.S. higher education institutions). Applicant institutions with previous project or exchange experience in Tunisia and/or in North Africa are preferred. Selected awardee will be responsible for ensuring achievement of program objectives that enhance mutual, fully collaborative relationships between Tunisian and U.S. education/diplomatic institutions and their public and private sector partners in both countries. It is USG policy not to award profit under assistance instruments. However, all reasonable, allocable, and allowable expenses, both direct and indirect, which are related to the program and are in accordance with applicable cost standards (22 CFR 226, OMB Circular A-21 for universities, and the Federal Acquisition Regulation Part 31 for for-profit organizations), may be paid under the award.Subject to the availability of funds, US Embassy Tunis plans to provide up to $350,000 in Economic Support Funds (ESF) for the partnership stated above not to exceed two years, but with the possibility of no-cost limited extensions. The US Embassy reserves the right to fund any or none of the applications submitted. For the purposes of this program, this RFA is being issued and consists of this cover letter and the Full Application including following: 1. Section A - Application Format; 2. Section B - Selection Criteria; 3. Section C - Program Description; 4. Section D - Certifications, Assurances, and Other Statements of Applicant/Recipient 5. Section E - Attachments to Program Description (attachments 1, 2, and 3)To be eligible for an award, the applicant must provide all required information in its application, including the requirements found in any attachments. Applicants must submit the full application package in compliance with the method indicated in this cover letter and in Section A of this RFA.For the purposes of this RFA, the term &quot;Grant&quot; is synonymous with &quot;Cooperative Agreement&quot;; &quot;Grantee&quot; is synonymous with &quot;Recipient&quot;; and &quot;Grant Officer&quot; is synonymous with &quot;Agreement Officer&quot;.Any questions concerning this RFA should be submitted in writing via email to Kaouthar Ben Mohamed benmohamedk@state.gov . Applications must be received by the closing date and time indicated at the top of this cover letter. Faxed proposals will not be accepted. Applicants should submit their applications by e-mail attachment formatted in Microsoft Word (up to 2MB limit per email. PDF files are acceptable). Applicants will be informed that their electronic submissions (via email) were successfully received by the required due date. Awards will be made to that responsible applicant(s) whose application(s) best meets the requirements of this RFA and the selection criteria contained herein.Issuance of this RFA does not constitute an award commitment on the part of US Embassy Tunis, nor does it commit the Embassy to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of an application. Further, US Embassy Tunis reserves the right to reject any or all applications received. In addition, final award of any resultant cooperative agreement(s) cannot be made until funds have been fully appropriated, allocated, and committed through internal procedures. While it is anticipated that these procedures will be successfully completed, potential applicants are hereby notified of these requirements and conditions for award. All preparation and submission costs are at the applicant&apos;s expense. Applicants should retain for their records one copy of all enclosures which accompany their application.
GrantorContactEmailDescription: benmohamedk@state.gov
GrantorContactText: Kaouthar Ben Mohamed &lt;br/&gt;Grants Management Assistant &lt;br/&gt;Phone 0021671107266
CloseDateExplanation: Closing Date:  Thursday, September 20, 2012 at midnight Eastern (U.S.) time.