Length of Performance Period:     12 to 60 months

Award Amounts:                            Awards may range from a minimum of $10,000 to a maximum of $500,000

Deadline for Applications:             Friday January 03, 2025, for Round I Concept Notes

Email:                                                Rabatgrants@state.gov

This notice is subject to availability of funds and an approved Congressional spending plan.

The U.S. Embassy in Morocco and the Cultural Heritage Center in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) are pleased to announce the U.S. Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) 2025 Grants Program.

A.   Program Objectives:

This competitive global fund was established by the State Department to support cultural heritage preservation projects in other countries and to demonstrate U.S. respect for cultural heritage. In Morocco, selected projects will advance the U.S.-Morocco bilateral goal of promoting economic growth and preserving cultural heritage.

Funding Areas:

The AFCP Grants Program supports the preservation of archaeological sites, historic buildings and monuments, museum collections, and forms of traditional cultural expression, such as indigenous languages and crafts. 

Appropriate project activities may include:

·      Anastylosis (reassembling a site from its original parts)

·      Conservation (addressing damage or deterioration to an object or site)

·      Consolidation (connecting or reconnecting elements of an object or site)

·      Documentation (recording in analog or digital format the condition and salient features of an object, site, or tradition)

·      Inventory (listing of objects, sites, or traditions by location, feature, age, or other unifying characteristic or state)

·      Preventive Conservation (addressing conditions that threaten or damage a site, object, collection, or tradition)

·      Restoration (replacing missing elements to recreate the original appearance of an object or site, usually appropriate only with fine arts, decorative arts, and historic buildings)

·      Stabilization (reducing the physical disturbance of an object or site)

B.   Eligibility Information:

We define eligible project implementers as reputable and accountable non-commercial entities that can demonstrate they have the requisite capacity to manage projects to preserve cultural heritage.

All entities selected for Round II must have a valid and active registration on www.SAM.gov by April 29, 2025. 

Eligible Applicants:

·      Moroccan Non-Profit organizations/nongovernment organizations (NGO)

·      Moroccan Public Entity, where permitted

·      U.S. Non-Profit Organization (IRC section 501(c)(3))

·      U.S. Institution of Higher Education

Non-eligible Applicants:

The AFCP will not award grants to individuals, commercial entities, or past recipients that have not fulfilled the objectives or reporting requirements of previous AFCP awards.

C.   APPLICATION SUBMISSION AND REVIEW

This opportunity consists of two application rounds:

·      Round I: Project Ideas and Concept Notes Submission (Friday January 03, 2025)

·      Round II: Full Proposal Submissions

During Round I, applicants are due to submit completed Concept Notes in English with budget estimate electronically to RabatGrants@state.gov (Subject: AFCP 2025 Grants Competition) by January 3, 2025.

Your Round I submission should include:

·      Concept Note: including the following items (Applicants can use their own forms and formats):

-       Applicant’s information, including name, address, SAM registration status, contact phone number, and organization leadership

-       A brief description of the project and the applicant’s capacity to implement it.

-       Project location, timeframe, purpose, objectives, proposed activities, and desired results

-       How the project contributes to the local community, Morocco’s overall development, and cultural preservation

·      Visual or audiovisual documentation: five high-quality digital images that show the nature and condition of the site, collection, or tradition, and the need for the proposed project

·      Budget narrative: budget estimate in U.S. dollars (USD) Applicants must use the budget form attached to this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO).

U.S. Embassy Morocco’s review panel will evaluate and score eligible Concept Notes and nominate successful applicants to the Cultural Heritage Center at the U.S. State Department for consideration for advancement to Round II. Applicants invited to advance to Round II will be notified later and will then be asked to submit a full project proposal.

Please note that all proposals must comply with the regulations and guidelines in this notice. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.

D.   INELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES AND UNALLOWABLE COSTS

AFCP does not support the following activities or costs:

• Preservation or purchase of privately or commercially owned cultural objects, collections, or real property, including those whose transfer from private or commercial to public ownership is envisioned, planned, or in process but not complete at the time of application.
• Preservation of natural heritage (physical, biological, and geological formations, paleontological collections, habitats of threatened species of animals and plants, fossils, etc.) unless the natural heritage has a cultural heritage connection or dimension.
• Preservation of hominid or human remains.
• Preservation of news media (newspapers, newsreels, radio and TV programs, etc.).
• Preservation of published materials available elsewhere (books, periodicals, etc.).
• Development of curricula or educational materials for classroom use.
• Archaeological excavations or exploratory surveys for research purposes.
• Historical research, except in cases where the research is justifiable and integral to the success of the proposed project.
• Acquisition or creation of new objects, or collections for new or existing objects.
• Construction of new buildings, building additions, or permanent coverings (over archaeological sites, for example).
• Commissions of new works of art or architecture for commemorative or economic development purposes.
• Creation of new or modern adaptations of existing traditional dances, songs, chants, musical compositions, plays, or other performances.
• Creation of replicas or conjectural reconstructions of cultural objects or sites that no longer exist.
• Relocation of cultural sites from one physical location to another.
• Removal of cultural objects or elements of cultural sites from the country for any
• Digitization of cultural objects or collections, unless part of a larger, clearly defined conservation, documentation, or public diplomacy effort.
• Conservation plans or other studies, unless they are one component of a larger project to implement the results of those studies.
• Cash reserves, endowments, or revolving funds (funds must be expended within the award period [up to five years] and may not be used to create an endowment or revolving fund).
• Costs of fund-raising campaigns.

·      Contingency, unforeseen, or miscellaneous costs or fees.

·      Costs of work performed prior to announcement of the award unless allowable per 2 CFR 458 and approved by the Grants Officer.

·      International travel, except in cases where travel is justifiable and integral to the success of the proposed project or to provide project leaders with learning and exchange opportunities with cultural heritage experts.

·      Individual projects costing less than U.S. $10,000 or more than $500,000.

·      Independent U.S. projects overseas.

Sites and Objects Having a Religious Connection: The establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution permits the government to include religious objects and sites within an aid program under certain conditions. For example, an item with a religious connection (including a place of worship) may be the subject of a cultural preservation grant if the item derives its primary significance and is nominated solely based on architectural, artistic, historical, or other cultural and not religious criteria.

E.   FEDERAL AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

1.     Federal Award Notices

The grant award or cooperative agreement will be written, signed, awarded, and administered by the Grants Officer. The assistance award agreement is the authorizing document, and it will be provided to the recipient for review and signature by email. The recipient may only start incurring program expenses beginning on the start date shown on the grant award document signed by the Grants Officer.

If a proposal is selected for funding, the Department of State has no obligation to provide any additional future funding. Renewal of an award to increase funding or extend the period of performance is at the discretion of the Department of State.

Issuance of this NOFO does not constitute an award commitment on the part of the U.S. government, nor does it commit the U.S. government to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of proposals. Further, the U.S. government reserves the right to reject any or all proposals received.

In accordance with the Executive Order on Advancing Racial Equity and Underserved Communities, proposals should demonstrate how the program advances equity with respect to race, ethnicity, religion, income, geography, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability. The proposal should also demonstrate how the program will further engagement in underserved communities and with individuals from underserved communities. Proposals should demonstrate how addressing racial equity and underserved communities will enhance the program’s goals and objectives, as well as the experience of participants.

F.   Project Design Assistance:

The U.S. Embassy is available to answer questions and provide consultation on Concept Notes between November 27 to December 31.

Please email us at RabatGrants@state.gov and put AFCP 2025 in the subject line.