OpportunityTitle: New U.S.-North Africa Public-Private Partnership
Description: The Office of the Middle East Partnership Initiative (NEA/PI) announces an open competition for projects that support a new public-private partnership developed by the State Department&#146;s Bureau of Economic, Energy and Business Affairs (EEB) in cooperation with the Bureau of Oceans, Environment, and Science to foster economic opportunity in North Africa. The Administration has underscored the need to engage youth, support economic opportunities, and develop new partnerships. As President Obama stated in Cairo on June 4, 2009, &#147;all of us must recognize that education and innovation will be the currency of the 21st century.&#148; President Obama made clear that we must broaden our engagement with Muslim-majority countries, countries with significant Muslim populations, and their people. On September 22, 2009, the President underscored the need for &#147;&#133;partnerships between businesses [and] entrepreneurs to advance prosperity and opportunity for people everywhere.&#148; On April 26-27, 2010 President Obama hosted the Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship that he first announced in his Cairo speech. Consistent with this vision, NEA/PI seeks applications to support the launching of a new public-private partnership between the United States and North Africa. This new public-private partnership aims to inspire youth and aspiring entrepreneurs of all ages to play a role in job creation in the Maghreb region by becoming the next generation of entrepreneurs and regional business leaders, as well as encourage partners from business, foundations, civil society, business associations, and private entities in the Maghreb and in the United States to work more closely together to promote greater economic opportunity, a greater spirit of partnership and closer links between private sector organizations in the United States and North Africa.Countries Covered by this Funding Opportunity: These funds are available only for activities in Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, and Libya. (NOTE: Funding for activities in or involving Mauritania can be covered under the matching funds portion of the budget or by other funding sources.)The North Africa public private partnership will be responsible for the following duties and initiatives during the launch period (two years): Staffing: Hiring adequate staff in the region to ensure the launch, implementation and long-term maintenance of the partnership. It will be responsible for identifying, with the help of local consultants and other human resources, at least one program manager per country to assist with local implementation. In-kind contributions of office space for program managers should be identified through local partners (e.g. a chamber of commerce or business association). The local program manager function may be occupied by local consultants during the initial launch period of six months &#150; one year. Staffing will not take place through U.S. embassies.Consulting: Identifying and allocating necessary financial resources for consultants with extensive local experience in the region to assist with the initial launch of the partnership and its initiatives in the region. Consultants will be responsible for assisting with scoping and business models for each of the initiatives, helping to identify and conclude memoranda of understanding and/or other partnership agreements for initiative &#147;lead partners&#148; and secondary partners; as well as for partnership &#147;affiliated partners&#148; in the region. Consultants may also play a role in identifying appropriate local candidates for the International Board of Advisors and Local Advisory Boards. Consultants will assist in identifying and hiring local program staff, help raise local corporate sponsorships, liaise with U.S. and European embassies in the region, and help to launch initial communications and public relations in the region.Website: Creating, launching, and maintaining an independent website for the Partnership. This website will make available to the public partnership initiatives and activities, as well as members of the partnership leadership bodies (i.e., International Board of Advisors, Local Advisory Board Members, Steering Committees). It will also make available the names of all &#147;affiliated partners&#148; and local program staff.Governance: Identifying and structuring an appropriate International Board of Advisors and Local Advisory Boards in each country. Members of the Boards of the partnership should maintain high ethical standards and be respected figures in the private sector that share a regional vision and/or lend credibility, leadership and financial resources to the partnership. The International Board of Advisors should include representatives of U.S. companies doing business in the region, North African companies doing business with the United States, companies that would like to expand to North Africa or the United States, business leaders, entrepreneurs, celebrities or other respected private figures with a regional vision, members of the North African Diaspora, experts/academics, retired public figures, among others. Local Advisory Boards should consist of local business leaders, experts/academics, members of the cultural and sports communities, retired public figures, and other private sector stakeholders with a regional and transatlantic vision. Fundraising: Raising funds from corporate and other private and public sources to ensure that the partnership and its initiatives remain viable over the long-term. The U.S. Government intends to incubate the partnership for a period of up to two years. Funding beyond this two-year period is not envisioned. Therefore, continuation of the partnership beyond two years is contingent upon successful fundraising from other sources. This partnership is designed to better link the U.S. private sector and the private sectors in the Maghreb, and designed therefore to be financially viable in the private sector. Other U.S. Government and other public programs may be included as partners in partnership initiatives. Initiatives: The implementer will be responsible for the oversight, coordination and viability of cross-border business initiatives such as: &#149; North Africa Young Business Leaders and Associations Network: This initiative would facilitate increased cross-border links among young and emerging entrepreneurs and business leaders by developing a comprehensive social networking platform. &#149; North Africa Leadership and Training Academy: This initiative requires partners to collaborate to develop and implement an integrated menu of regional leadership, training, and education-to-employment programs and activities. &#149; North Africa Innovation and Technology Incubator: This initiative is designed to promote new cross-border business ventures from young and aspiring Maghreb entrepreneurs in innovative and new technology sectors. &#149; North Africa Creative Industries Incubator: This initiative is meant to support young artists who are entrepreneurial and have the potential to contribute to job creation and local economic development but lack the knowledge and resources to move beyond the conceptual stage of a business idea. &#149; North Africa Center of Excellence for Entrepreneurship: The goal of this initiative is to stimulate and encourage regional research and data collection by teams of regional experts and academics from Maghreb countries and the Maghreb Diaspora. Partners will also create a regional business school network that connects with business school partners in the United States.
GrantorContactEmailDescription: Announcement Contact Email
GrantorContactText: Jessica Baker &lt;br/&gt;Quality Support, Inc .Contractor &lt;br/&gt;Phone 202-776-8524