Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) Activity | RFA 388 16 000006

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA 388 16 000006

The Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) Activity is a USAID/Bangladesh funding opportunity designed to improve health outcomes by increasing public demand for, and use of, essential health services in Bangladesh. USAID planned to fund this work through a five-year cooperative agreement with an estimated maximum value of up to $15 million. The activity is rooted in the idea that improving service quality alone is not enough; people also need accurate information, motivation, and supportive social norms that make it more likely they will seek care and adopt healthier practices. In practice, this means using coordinated SBCC approaches to influence knowledge, attitudes, social norms, and behaviors related to priority health areas.

The technical focus spans several major public health priorities: maternal, neonatal, child, and adolescent health (MNCAH), family planning (FP), nutrition, and tuberculosis (TB). The award’s core purpose is to generate demand for high-quality services and to increase utilization of those services and related health products. This can include encouraging timely antenatal care, safe delivery and postnatal care, appropriate newborn and child health practices, adolescent health service use, uptake of modern contraception, improved nutrition behaviors (including infant and young child feeding), and better TB prevention, testing, treatment adherence, and stigma reduction.

The activity is organized around two main objectives. First, it seeks to increase exposure to and coverage of high-quality SBCC messages and interventions addressing key behaviors, services, and health products. While the effort is national in intent, it places a particular geographic emphasis on Chittagong and Sylhet Divisions, suggesting USAID wanted concentrated programming where needs, gaps, or strategic priorities were especially important. The focus on “exposure” and “coverage” indicates an expectation of wide reach and consistent message delivery across appropriate channels, which often includes mass media, community engagement, interpersonal communication, and other locally effective methods, all tailored to specific audiences.

Second, the opportunity emphasizes strengthening the Government of Bangladesh Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) so that SBCC capacity is improved and sustained beyond the life of the project. This objective targets the government’s ability to plan, develop, implement, and evaluate SBCC both centrally and within Chittagong and Sylhet Divisions. In practical terms, this can involve building systems and skills for strategy development, message design, campaign planning, coordination across health programs, monitoring and evaluation, and using data to refine communication approaches over time. The intent is not only to run effective campaigns, but also to leave behind stronger institutional capability within MoHFW to manage SBCC as a core function of the health sector.

Administratively, the opportunity was issued by USAID in Dhaka under Funding Opportunity Number RFA 388 16 000006, classified as a mandatory announcement using a cooperative agreement instrument (meaning USAID would expect substantial involvement during implementation). Eligibility was listed as unrestricted, with the opportunity categorized under the health funding activity area and tied to CFDA 98.001. The original closing date for submissions was July 31, 2016, and the anticipated award size was capped at $15 million over the five-year period.

• The Bangladesh USAID-Dhaka in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) Activity" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 98.001.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2016-06-19.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2016-07-31. (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 $15,000,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.

Apply for RFA 388 16 000006

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