FY 2023 Notice of Funding Opportunity for NGO programs benefiting refugees, asylum seekers, and vulnerable migrants in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, and Panama | SFOP0009623

Opportunity Information: Apply for SFOP0009623

The FY 2023 Notice of Funding Opportunity (SFOP0009623) comes from the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM), and invites eligible nongovernmental organizations to propose programs that benefit refugees, asylum seekers, and other vulnerable migrants in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, or Panama. This is a discretionary opportunity funded through a cooperative agreement, meaning PRM anticipates a more hands-on partnership style during implementation than in a standard grant, with closer coordination on plans, reporting, and results. The CFDA number listed for the opportunity is 19.518. The announcement was created on April 3, 2023, and the original closing date was May 3, 2023. The award ceiling is $1,500,000 per award.

A central requirement is that proposals must be fully aligned with PRM expectations, and applicants are explicitly instructed to use both PRM's General NGO Guidelines and the specific NOFO language to ensure compliance. Applications that do not reflect those requirements are not considered. Program activities must be primarily focused on the eligible target populations in one of the specified countries, and PRM will only accept single-country proposals under this opportunity. In practical terms, this means an applicant should select one country (Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, or Panama) and build a complete, country-specific project design, rather than attempting a regional or multi-country response.

PRM also makes its participant targeting threshold very clear: to be eligible for PRM funding under this announcement, the program's target participant base must be at least 50 percent refugees, asylum seekers, and vulnerable migrants. PRM is using a protection-needs based definition rather than a strictly legal/registration-based definition. A person does not need to be formally registered or have already received refugee status from the host government to count as a refugee or asylum seeker for the purposes of this program; instead, they should be outside their country of origin (or prior long-term residence) and have a clear need for international protection. The NOFO additionally notes there is no requirement for any particular nationality to be a majority of the participant base, which gives organizations flexibility to serve mixed populations so long as the minimum threshold and protection-need framing are met.

In terms of program priorities and approach, PRM indicates it will prioritize proposals that place women and girls at the center of program design and implementation while still addressing the needs of all genders within the relevant sectors. The emphasis is not just on including women and girls as a subpopulation, but on designing the program around their protection risks, access barriers, and service needs, and then ensuring the full response remains inclusive and appropriate for everyone affected. This is presented as a key differentiator for funding priority under the NOFO.

Geographically, PRM will consider proposals for activities in any location within the four eligible countries, but it signals a preference for areas where humanitarian actors do not already have a robust presence. Applicants are expected to think strategically about coverage gaps and avoid duplicating well-served areas unless they can clearly explain why additional support is still necessary. If proposing work in a location where other humanitarian organizations are already active, the proposal should spell out what needs remain unmet, why existing services are insufficient, and how the proposed project will fill a specific gap rather than replicate ongoing assistance. This also implies the application should demonstrate strong contextual awareness, including mapping of actors and services, and a clear justification for site selection based on both population needs and service availability.

Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education), nonprofit organizations without 501(c)(3) status (also excluding institutions of higher education), and international organizations. However, the announcement draws a bright line for international multilateral organizations such as UN agencies: they should not submit through Grants.gov in response to this NOFO. Multilateral organizations that believe they have a relevant program are instructed to contact the PRM Program Officer listed in the announcement on or before the closing date, which effectively routes those entities through a different engagement process than standard NGO applicants.

Overall, this funding opportunity is designed to support PRM's mandate to provide protection, assistance, and sustainable solutions for people who need international protection in Central America and Mexico, with strict expectations around compliance with PRM's General NGO Guidelines, a minimum proportion of refugee/asylum seeker/vulnerable migrant participants, a single-country program design, and a strong emphasis on gender-responsive programming that centers women and girls. The award size can be significant (up to $1.5 million), but the NOFO makes clear that competitiveness depends on demonstrating a clear protection-driven target population, a well-justified operational location (especially where coverage is thin), and a proposal that matches PRM standards and priorities closely enough to be considered.

• The Bureau of Population Refugees and Migration in the other sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY 2023 Notice of Funding Opportunity for NGO programs benefiting refugees, asylum seekers, and vulnerable migrants in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, and Panama" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.518.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-04-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-05-03. (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 $1,500,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for SFOP0009623

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