SFOP0009866: 2023 Rapid Landscape and Gap Analysis on Human Trafficking - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and Responses 

1. Q: Page 3 states, “The maximum amount of funding allocated for rapid assessments in this solicitation is $400,000 for a one-year program. The TIP Office expects to fund 6-8 assessments under the funding provided. The expectation is that an analysis is completed within 3-4 months or less.” Can you clarify:

1. Is the $400,000 maximum for each of the 6-8 assessments or is it $400,000 total for one year of services?
2. Is it expected that all 6-8 assessments are completed within one year of the award?

Aa: Applicants should anticipate budgeting for one rapid assessment that considers what is stated above – regarding the total funding for the award, the $400,000 is expected to fund 6-8 assessments.

Ab: Yes, the expectation is that 6-8 landscape and gap analyses are completed within one year.

2. Q: Page 2 states, “Applicants will be called upon by the TIP Office quarterly or biannually to conduct rapid landscape and gap analyses that provide a robust understanding of a specific TIP problem in a particular country in the region the applicant demonstrated experience (i.e., sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, East Asia and Pacific, Middle East/North Africa, South and Central Asia, and the Western Hemisphere).”

1. Can you confirm that these are the 6 regions for which offerors can apply?
2. If an offeror intends to apply for multiple regions, will a separate application be required for each region?
3. Does “Western Hemisphere” include the U.S. and/or Canada?
4. Does JTIP anticipate selecting more than one grantee for a given region and, if so, will selected grantees compete for a given assessment/tasking?

Aa: Yes, the six listed regions are where applicants may demonstrate their expertise conducting similar landscape and gap analyses in their application.  This is done so that applicants can apply to regions where they have experience and could feasibly conduct assessments.

Ab: No, only one application should be submitted by an organization.  If multiple regions of expertise will be conveyed in the application, the project narrative template provides regional boxes where the applicant may indicate which regions where they will demonstrate their expertise in the application.

Ac: U.S. foreign assistance cannot be obligated in the United States.  The TIP Office does not anticipate any future funding with INCLE funding in Canada. 

Ad: The TIP Office will review all eligible applicants and may consider one or more for funding, depending on their expertise in the region.  

3. Q: Would it be possible to provide more detail on what is expected in terms of an indicative budget for this bid? I.e.:

1. Should bidders assume a 12-month period of performance and budget for 6 possible assessments with indicative staff? 
2. If we are to bid on multiple regions in a single proposal, should we provide multiple budgets or average costs across budgets?

Aa: Yes, applications should budget for a 12-month period of performance and anticipate up to 6-8 assessments being conducted during that period, including relevant staff who would conduct the analyses.  

Ab: One budget must be submitted per application, even if an applicant is demonstrating expertise in multiple regions.  If applicants anticipate different budgets based upon unique regional costs or expenses, please note in the budget that a certain amount may vary depending on the region.

4. Q: If an organization is selected to conduct a rapid landscape and gap analysis under this award, will that organization still be eligible to apply for any future TIP Office funding opportunities that may result from (or be informed by) the findings of the landscape and gap analysis?

1.  Yes; participating in this award does not restrict the eligibility of future TIP Office funding opportunities.

5. Q: For a region in which we have deep experience and where we could do any one of several individual country Gap Assessments, or where we could do a regional Gap Assessment, should those be submitted as one proposal?  For example, for just WHA, we could do separate assessments in any one of four countries where we have already done multiple assessments, or we could do a broader WHA assessment drawing on even more resources and relationships.  Can that be one proposal?  

1. Organizations should only submit one proposal, regardless of how many regions and or countries they have previously conducted assessments in.

6. Q: ICMEC has two specific types of assessments that we have undertaken in recent years, but we are ready and able to study other elements of human trafficking with the same tools and partners.  We must discuss only topics that ICMEC has done to date, and not propose new topics, correct?

1. Correct – ICMEC must not propose new topics in this application.

7. Q: Will there be a webinar specifically for this NOFO?  If so, will it be recorded?  

1. J/TIP is not planning to host a webinar for this NOFO at this time.

8. Q: The Guidelines for applicants outline that an applicant should submit a project proposal in a particular region/country. Does it mean that an applicant needs to:

(a) submit separate applications (narratives and budgets) for separate regions or countries? Or

(b) submit one general project proposal for one (or more) region(s)  

Moreover, should an applicant have an in-depth track record of research in different countries within the same region, should an applicant submit separate applications (narrative and budget) for each countries in this region (knowing that it would put such applicant at an unfair disadvantage if it had to describe its experience in multiple countries in a single application, while other applicants submitting proposals for one single country in the said region would have more space to describe their research experience and current problems and trends in this particular country).

1. Applicants should only submit one proposal, regardless of how many regions and or countries they have previously conducted assessments in.

9. Q: “Local” is not defined under Section 3 of narrative requirements. Should a submission per region be privileged over country submissions, how should the term “local” and more precisely “local partnerships” be interpreted. Should all applicants require country by country partnerships with researchers and research institutions they have. 

The same question is valid in relation to the reference made to local/country researchers under Section 3 of the narrative as well as in relation to Annex E. If an application is made and is regional in its scope, should letters of agreement or intent to cooperate under Annex J be signed and attached to the application for each country that is in a specific region (e.g. Europe region would then include partnership letters signed by 30+ countries?)

1. Applicants should explain how they have engaged with organizations based in the country/region where they are demonstrating past expertise (“local partners”) in previous research. Applicants must demonstrate existing relationships with human trafficking stakeholders in the selected country and/or region. Coordination with a local research institution or human trafficking expert is required, so applicants should highlight past or current partnerships.  

10. Q: The NOFO and guidelines mentioned in the object state that coordination with a local research institution or human trafficking expert is required, and that letters of agreement or intent to cooperate must be provided as Annex E. In the case of a human trafficking expert, can a letter be provided/signed by an individual/consultant? Does the person’s CV need to be provided as part of Annex D: resumes?

1. A letter of agreement/intent may be provided by an individual consultant. Only CVs of Key Personnel are required under Annex D.

11. Q: In addition, we would like to confirm that the funding floor for this call is US$ 100,000.00 and the funding ceiling is US$400,000.00 per proposal.

1. Applicants should anticipate budgeting for one rapid assessment that considers the maximum amount of funding allocated for rapid assessments in this solicitation is $400,000 for a one-year program and expected to fund 6-8 assessments.

12. Q: We have the following question/request for clarification from reading the NOFO and guidance: Should the proposal describe our experience only in specific countries within the same region and target only the countries for the gap analysis where we meet all the criteria OR could we target a whole region through setting concrete examples of specific countries and say where we can actually replicate this within additional countries in the same region (through letters of intent of cooperation and endorsement).

1. As stated on page 2 of the notice of funding opportunity, “this solicitation seeks applicants that demonstrate previous experience conducting landscape and gap analyses on human trafficking or closely related issues in one or more regions.  Applicants may apply for more than one region but must clearly demonstrate regional expertise via different analyses.”   

13. Q: (in response to question #11) You state “Applicants should anticipate budgeting for one rapid assessment that considers the maximum amount of funding allocated for rapid assessments in this solicitation is $400,000 for a one-year program and expected to fund 6-8 assessments.” The budget per project submitted should hence be $400,000 as far as I understand, and the TIP office will overall fund 6 to 8 such projects from different organizations, is that correct?

1. The maximum amount available for total funding under this solicitation is $400,000. Applicants should budget for a 12-month period of performance and anticipate up to 6- 8 assessments being conducted during that period. The TIP Office will review all eligible applicants and may consider one or more for funding, depending on their expertise in the region or country.

14. Q: Can partner organizations be proposed on more than one application and/or by more than one prime/lead applicant?

1. Under this funding opportunity, applicants may be included as a sub-grantee on multiple applications.  Organizations can only submit one application as the lead applicant but can be included as the sub-grantee on multiple proposals.  If an organization chooses to submit as a lead applicant, they are still able to be listed as the sub-grantee for others. All applications must clearly identify what organization is serving as the lead applicant.

15. Q. If an applicant submits a proposal for a region instead of multiple countries within Europe, for example Europe (European Union composed of 27 countries), does that mean that the applicant, if its proposal is successful, will be eligible to carry out rapid landscape and gap analyses in all the 27 countries of the European Union or will only be considered for Rapid Landscape and Gap Analyses that are regional in scope in the future?

1. An applicant should demonstrate their experience conducting Landscape and Gap Analyses in certain countries and/or regions. Based on proposals received, the TIP Office will select which countries to conduct the analyses. If noting regional experience, applicants should clearly state which countries from the region were involved. Then, if selected, applicants should be prepared for the TIP Office to select one or more countries from this noted experience to conduct an analysis. 

16. Q. If an applicant submits a proposal for a region instead of multiple countries within Europe, for example Europe (European Union composed of 27 countries), does that mean that the applicant needs to submit 27 different line-item budgets for each of the 27 countries belonging to the European Union or only 1 line-item budget estimate that would apply to all 27 countries if the applicant is selected?

1. No line-item budgets are required for the Funding Opportunity SFOP0009866. Applicants must submit a Budget Summary by Project Year, and if selected, the applicant would then supply the TIP Office with additional program materials (i.e., line-item budget, timeline, among others). 

17. Q. If an applicant submits a proposal for a region instead of multiple countries within Europe, for example Europe (European Union composed of 27 countries), does that mean that the applicant needs to submit 27 different Letters of Intent for local research institutions or local researchers based in each of the 27 countries belonging to the European Union in order to answer to the “local” criterion?

1. Applicants must document existing relationships they hold with local research institutions or universities and highlight past analyses they have conducted that assess human trafficking issues specific to a region. Coordination with a local expert in human trafficking from a university or research institution is required. Therefore, an applicant should demonstrate this requirement in each country in which they propose to program. If their experience is regional, applicants must clearly note which countries within the region they have experience and include the required documentation accordingly. 

18. Q: If one is unable to edit which font is used in the grey boxes of the Project Narrative template (it defaults to Times New Roman), then how should they go about filling it out given that Calibri font is required?

1. If applicants are unable to type in the Calibri font due to technical issues of the template, then Times New Roman will also be accepted.