Biotechnology Technical Assistance for Africa

Background
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service, Agricultural Economic Development, announces this funding opportunity to support the Technical Agricultural Assistance Program by issuing new awards. This opportunity is available to State cooperative institutions or other colleges and universities in the United States, as defined at 7 USC 3103 and is intended to help achieve the objectives of Biotechnology capacity-building for Kenya, Mozambique, Senegal, and Zambia.

Grant Details
To boost agricultural productivity and yield to meet the increasing demand for food in Africa, more efficient approaches to produce food are required. The full potential of new breeding tools such as genome editing needs to be explored and utilized in addition to conventional technologies in countries and regions of Africa where knowledge on the benefits of genome editing and genetic engineering (GE) technologies is still lacking.

The USDA Foreign Agricultural Service intends to support workshops and trainings in collaboration with African universities or research institutions, to improve understanding of these approaches by agricultural officials and scientists on the African continent. The purpose of this USDA/FAS pilot Biotechnology and Biosafety Forum is to enhance awareness and knowledge in Kenya, Mozambique, Senegal, and Zambia among agricultural officials and other government officials, host-country farmers, farmer association officials, and scientists, on what are biotechnological tools and how their adoption can enhance food security.

Eligibility Requirements
Eligible Applicants: State cooperative institutions or other colleges and universities in the United States, as defined at 7 USC 3103. All applicants must have an active registration in the U.S. Government System for Award Management (www.sam.gov) before the application submission deadline of the announcement; applicants with inactive, expired, pending, or excluded listings will be deemed ineligible.

Period of Performance
Projected Period of Performance Start: September 29, 2023
Projected Period of Performance End: September 27, 2024
Extensions to this program are permitted, subject to approval.

Grant Value
Total Available Federal Funding: $240,000.00
Anticipated Number of Awards: 1
Cost Share/Match Requirement: None/Not Required

Place of Performance
The recipient of this award will collaborate with USDA/FAS in the design and implementation of in-person workshops/collaborative training events in Africa.