Strengthening Government through Civil Society Engagement

The U.S. Embassy in Belmopan, Belize announces a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to strengthen democratic governance through capacity building for civil society organizations and civil servants through partnership in Belize.  The U.S. Embassy in Belmopan intends to issue awards in an amount not to exceed $750,000 USD in FY 2018 Economic Support Funds (ESF), pending availability of funding.  The anticipated start date for successful proposals is September 30, 2019.  U.S. Embassy Belmopan anticipates funding up to three awards between the amount of $200,000 and $400,000 USD each for this NOFO.

The Embassy seeks proposals that strengthen the partnership between government and civil society organizations – and the capacity of both entities – to combat corruption and/or illicit trafficking, with a specific focus on human trafficking, including related forms of victim identification and assistance.  Proposals should be oriented toward civil society organizations working with national and/or local government, particularly in vulnerable and/or marginalized communities.      

The overall goal of this NOFO is to support democracy and governance efforts in Belize.  Funding awarded under this NOFO cannot be used for law enforcement or to train members of law enforcement.  Applicants should address one or both of the following project objectives:

1)     To increase and enhance civil society and government partnership to improve service delivery and accountability.  Proposals should be oriented towards activities by civil society organizations working with national and/or local government, particularly in vulnerable and/or marginalized communities, to improve governance systems.  Capacity building for civil society organizations and/or government civil servants should be included.

And/or

To develop mechanisms that improve coordination and cooperation between key stakeholders to improve basic local, municipal, or central government services for vulnerable and/or marginalized populations especially women.  Proposals should be oriented towards enhancing the capacity of civilian front line agents and service providers to increase coordination, monitoring, reporting and response to issues such as, but not limited to, Gender Based Violence(GBV) and Trafficking in Persons (TIP).