The following items are required in accordance with 7 CFR Section 1599.4. This information will be used to evaluate the strength of the proposal.

1. Organization’s Capabilities to Implement the Program: The organization shall provide concise information about its past food aid activities with particular emphasis on school feeding, maternal child health or other relevant development activities, its experience within the country where the program is proposed, and any other relevant information to demonstrate its capability to implement the program in the country. Particular emphasis should address the organizations ability to:

(A) Identify and assess the needs of beneficiaries, especially malnourished or undernourished mothers and their children who are 5 years of age or younger, and school-age children who are malnourished, undernourished, or do not regularly attend school;

(B) In the case of preschool and school-age children, target low-income areas where children’s enrollment and attendance in school is low or girls’ enrollment and participation in preschool or school is low;

(C) Incorporate developmental objectives for improving literacy and primary education, particularly with respect to girls; and,

(D) In the case of programs to benefit mothers and children who are 5 years of age or younger, coordinate supplementary feeding and nutrition programs with existing or newly established maternal, infant, and children health programs that provide health interventions, including maternal, prenatal, and postnatal and newborn care.

2. Reasons for the Need for the Program: The description of need shall include the following:

(A) The need for the food aid and in particular a school feeding program in the country.

(B) The organization should include statistics on poverty, food deficits, and related items such as a) literacy rates for the target population; b) percentage of school age children attending schools, especially females; c) malnutrition rates; d) public expenditures on primary education; e) country’s current school feeding operations, if they exists, along with current funding resources; f) any information regarding teacher training, community infrastructure (PTAs), health, nutrition, and water and sanitation information; and lastly, g) other potential donors.

4. Graduation: Confirm steps to graduate the program from food aid and address sustainability, or sustainable program components, which will continue after the end of food aid donations. In addressing graduation or sustainability, please

(A) address how the program will sustain the benefits of the education, enrollment, and attendance of children in schools in the targeted communities when the provision of commodities and assistance to a recipient country under FFE terminates; and

(B) estimate the time required until the recipient country or eligible organizations will be able to provide sufficient assistance without additional assistance under FFE; or in the absence of sustainability (C) explain how the program will provide other long term benefits to targeted populations of the recipient country.

5. Local Capacity Building: Verify involvement of indigenous institutions as well as local communities and governments in the development and implementation of the programs and activities to foster local capacity building and leadership.

6. Enhanced Activity Effectiveness: Provide an explanation of how each requested expenditure identified would enhance the effectiveness of the activities implemented under this proposal.

7. Monetization/Barter Activities: If your proposal includes monetization or barter, demonstrate that monetization or bartering of commodities offers more benefits than a direct cash outlay.

USDA requests that organizations include their funding requests for both USDA/FAS dollar amounts and monetization proceeds in the table below.