Opportunity Information: Apply for SFOP0009810
The Strengthening Sustainable Communities in Panama and Costa Rica opportunity (SFOP0009810) is a U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs (WHA) discretionary funding program offered through a cooperative agreement. It is designed to strengthen community-level economic resilience in Panama and Costa Rica, including rural areas where feasible, by expanding and improving small and medium-sized business activity with direct support from Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs). The basic idea is to use SBDCs as the backbone for local enterprise growth, while deliberately targeting benefits toward migrants and other marginalized or vulnerable groups and toward the host communities receiving them.
The program is organized around a two-track approach. Track One centers on sustainable tourism as a pathway to economic development, meaning tourism that is planned and managed in ways that can generate durable local income while protecting community well-being and local resources. This track is meant to help communities build or strengthen tourism-related enterprises and local value chains so that economic gains stay in the community rather than leaking out to outside firms. Track Two focuses on workforce development tied to tourism and tourism-adjacent industries, with examples explicitly including textiles, agriculture, restaurants, hotels, and tourism services. Under this track, projects are expected to train and prepare people for employment and entrepreneurship in these sectors, with a clear emphasis on including migrants as well as marginalized and vulnerable populations and on supporting small businesses in host communities. WHA also signals flexibility by inviting applicants to propose additional industry sectors, as long as they logically fit the overall project design and contribute to sustainable, inclusive local development.
A major capacity-building component is aimed at the SBDCs themselves. Beyond serving businesses, the project seeks to improve the institutional strength of SBDCs in Panama and Costa Rica and to enhance the training and skills of business counselors, particularly in ways that make their services more effective for migrants and underserved groups. In practice, this points to efforts like upgrading counseling methods, strengthening business advising tools, improving outreach strategies to populations that may not typically access formal support, and tailoring technical assistance so that small enterprises can start, stabilize, and grow in tourism-linked local economies.
The opportunity also emphasizes collaborative management and coordination across Central America that promotes inclusive and equitable policies and practices. This includes encouraging approaches that align multiple partners and stakeholders, especially in communities that host migrants, and that connect local implementation to broader regional objectives. Projects are expected to be carried out in coordination with and informed by WHA, along with key national counterparts: in Panama, the Autoridad de la Micro, Pequena y Mediana Empresa (AMPYME), and in Costa Rica, the Instituto Nacional de Aprendizaje (INA) and the Ministerio de Economia, Industria y Comercio (MEIC). This coordination requirement suggests the awardee would need to build strong working relationships with these institutions, incorporate their feedback during implementation, and ensure activities complement existing national workforce and small business support systems.
In terms of eligibility and funding parameters, the opportunity is limited to U.S.-based nonprofits with IRS 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education). The funding activity category is Employment, Labor and Training (CFDA 19.750). The posted award ceiling is $4,740,000. The opportunity was created on May 18, 2023, with an original closing date of July 5, 2023. Overall, the grant is framed as an economic development and social inclusion initiative: it uses tourism-driven enterprise growth and targeted workforce development, delivered through strengthened SBDC services, to help communities in Panama and Costa Rica become more sustainable and better able to integrate and support migrants and other vulnerable populations while expanding local livelihoods.Apply for SFOP0009810
- The Department of State, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs in the employment, labor and training sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Strengthening Sustainable Communities in Panama and Costa Rica" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.750.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 18, 2023.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 05, 2023. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $4,740,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.
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