OpportunityTitle: Middle East Regional Cooperation (MERC)
CategoryExplanation: Following the Camp David accords, a Congressional initiative brought about the Middle East Regional Cooperation (MERC) Program to be implemented by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The program began in FY 1979, was included in the Foreign Aid Bill for FY 1981 and continues to be the subject of a Congressional directive in the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Program Appropriations Act (SFOAA) to support cooperative projects of a scientific and technological nature between the United States, Israel, and Middle East countries. Since 1999, MERC has been managed and implemented through an Inter-Agency Agreement between USAID and the U.S. Department of State (DOS).
AdditionalInformationOnEligibility: Subject to change based on U.S. federal law and country-specific restrictions on funding, in addition toIsrael the following countries/territories are eligible to apply as MENA partners: Algeria, Bahrain, Kuwait,Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates,and the West Bank and Gaza. Partners may come from academic, private sector, non-governmental, orgovernmental institutions eligible to receive U.S. foreign assistance. Please contact merc@usaid.gov with questions about eligibility.
Description: The MERC Program is funded as assistance to promote scientific cooperation, technology-led development, and capacity building between partners in Israel and eligible countries/territories in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Subject to change based on U.S. federal law and country-specific restrictions on funding, those countries include: Algeria, Bahrain, Kuwait, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and the West Bank and Gaza. Emphasis is given to research and technology subjects of regional importance and relevance to the development in the MENA. Moreover, benefits should target developing, USAID-presence countries in the MENA and resource-limited populations. Strong, direct cooperation between Israel and the eligible MENA partners is required for proposals receiving funding under the MERC Program. Participation of partners from outside the MENA, including the United States, is not a key feature of the MERC Program, but they may be considered for modest roles in exceptional cases to meet an essential technical need that is not otherwise available among the partners. Applicants must be prepared to provide a well justified case for the involvement of partners from outside the MENA and accept that MERC may not support their participation.The MERC program funds peer-reviewed, collaborative, applied scientific research and technical exchanges between Israeli partners and the eligible MENA partners. As part of this Notice of Funding Opportunity, MERC is seeking to fund proposals in the following categories:Applied research grants: Multi-year, cooperative research projectsContinuation grants: Extension of existing or recently ended applied research grantsTravel and workshop grants: Support for workshops, meetings, and researcher exchange
GrantorContactEmailDescription: MERC Committee
GrantorContactText: If you have difficulty accessing the full announcement electronically, please contact merc@usaid.gov.