Opportunity Information: Apply for NOI ILAB 15 09
Apply for NOI ILAB 15 09
- The Bureau of International Labor Affairs in the other (see text field entitled explanation of other category of funding activity for clarification) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Project to Mobilize Community Action and Youth Employment (MOCA Youth Project) in Ghana s Cocoa Growing Communities" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 17.401 International Labor Programs.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 21, 2015 and posted on May 21, 2015.
- Applicants must submit their applications by This is a Notice of Intent (NOI) and not a request for funding applications.. (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 $4,000,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
- This is a Notice of Intent (NOI) and not a request for funding applications. Any commercial, international, educational, or non profit organization(s), including any faith based, community based, or public international organization(s) capable of successfully reducing children s participation in exploitative child labor and assisting youth under age 18 to gain age appropriate, decent work. Lack of past experience with USDOL cooperative agreements, grants, or contracts does not bar eligibility.
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Opportunity Summary:
The Project to Mobilize Community Action and Youth Employment (MOCA Youth Project) is a planned U.S. Department of Labor initiative focused on Ghana s cocoa growing communities, with the central goal of reducing exploitative child labor. The notice provided is a Notice of Intent (NOI), meaning it is not an open call for applications yet. Instead, it signals that the Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) expects to release a formal Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) later, and that any eventual awards would depend on available funds. ILAB anticipates making one or more awards through a competitive, merit based selection process, using cooperative agreements as the funding instrument. Cooperative agreements typically imply an active partnership approach between the funder and the recipient during implementation, rather than a hands off grant structure.
Programmatically, the MOCA Youth Project is designed around community led prevention and household level support in cocoa producing areas where child labor risks are often tied to poverty, labor shortages, limited access to schooling, and weak local protection systems. A major component is helping cocoa growing communities create and carry out Community Action Plans (CAPs). These CAPs are meant to be locally developed roadmaps that identify the specific drivers of exploitative child labor in each community and lay out practical actions the community will take to address them. In parallel, the project would provide livelihood services to households, reflecting an underlying strategy that reducing reliance on harmful child labor often requires improving household income stability and resilience, so families are less pressured to send children into dangerous or exploitative work.
Another key element is youth support, specifically targeting vulnerable youth under the age of 18. The project intends to help these youth stay in or return to education and to build marketable, job relevant skills so they can transition toward age appropriate, decent work as they get older. This includes the idea of employability and training pathways that are safe and legal for minors, rather than pushing young people into hazardous labor. In practice, this can involve educational support, training aligned with local labor market opportunities, and structured pathways that keep youth protected while they develop skills.
From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity sits under CFDA 17.401 (International Labor Programs) and is categorized as discretionary funding. The NOI lists an award ceiling of up to USD 4,000,000. There is no cost sharing or matching requirement indicated. While the NOI does not provide an application deadline (because applications are not being accepted at this stage), it notes that the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) Office of Grants Management expected to publish the FOA before the end of September 2015, though the timeline could change. The official method for accessing the FOA, once released, is through grants.gov, and the notice emphasizes that no email or paper copies would be distributed.
Eligibility, as described, is broad and includes commercial, international, educational, and non profit organizations, including faith based, community based, and public international organizations, as long as they can credibly implement work that reduces childrens participation in exploitative child labor and supports vulnerable youth under 18 toward education and age appropriate decent work. The notice also clarifies that organizations are not disqualified simply because they have not previously managed USDOL cooperative agreements, grants, or contracts. For general preparation, ILAB points interested parties to its grants website and standard guidelines pages, which include examples of past cooperative agreement applications, but the NOI itself does not include detailed requirements, attachments, or application instructions because those would only come with the later FOA.
In short, this NOI is an early heads up about an ILAB funded project in Ghana aiming to reduce exploitative child labor in cocoa growing areas by combining community driven action planning, household livelihood support, and education plus skills development for vulnerable youth under 18, with the expectation that full details and application procedures would be provided in a forthcoming FOA posted to grants.gov.
MOCA Youth Project (NOI) - Frequently Asked Questions
1) What is the MOCA Youth Project?
The Project to Mobilize Community Action and Youth Employment (MOCA Youth Project) is a planned U.S. Department of Labor initiative focused on Ghana's cocoa-growing communities. Its central goal is to reduce exploitative child labor by combining community-led prevention, household livelihood support, and education and skills pathways for vulnerable youth under age 18.
2) Is this an open funding opportunity right now?
No. The information provided is a Notice of Intent (NOI). An NOI is not an open call for applications and does not accept applications. It signals that the Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) expects to release a formal Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) later.
3) What does "Notice of Intent (NOI)" mean for applicants?
An NOI is an advance notice that a funding opportunity may be announced in the future. At the NOI stage, there is typically no application package, no submission instructions, and no deadline to apply because applications are not being accepted yet. Any eventual awards would also depend on the availability of funds.
4) Who is the funder and which office is involved?
The initiative is under the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB). The NOI also references the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) Office of Grants Management as the office expected to publish the FOA.
5) What is the main purpose of the project?
The main purpose is to reduce children's participation in exploitative child labor in Ghana's cocoa-producing areas. The project design described focuses on prevention at the community level and support at the household and youth levels to address underlying drivers such as poverty, labor shortages, limited access to schooling, and weak local protection systems.
6) What types of activities does the project expect to support?
Based on the NOI, the planned project design includes: (a) helping cocoa-growing communities develop and implement Community Action Plans (CAPs) to address local drivers of exploitative child labor, (b) providing livelihood services to households to improve income stability and resilience, and (c) supporting vulnerable youth under 18 to stay in or return to education and to build job-relevant skills for age-appropriate, decent work pathways.
7) What are Community Action Plans (CAPs) in this context?
CAPs are intended to be locally developed roadmaps created by cocoa-growing communities. They identify the specific local drivers of exploitative child labor in each community and lay out practical actions the community will take to address those drivers.
8) Why does the project include household livelihood services?
The NOI reflects the strategy that reducing reliance on harmful child labor often requires improving household income stability and resilience. Livelihood services are included to reduce economic pressure on families that can contribute to children entering dangerous or exploitative work.
9) Who is the project intended to serve?
The project is focused on cocoa-growing communities in Ghana and is intended to benefit households in those communities and vulnerable youth under the age of 18, particularly youth at risk of exploitative child labor or needing support to remain in or return to education.
10) What does the youth component aim to do?
The youth component targets vulnerable youth under 18 with the intention of helping them stay in school or return to education and gain marketable, job-relevant skills. The emphasis is on safe and legal pathways for minors that support their transition toward age-appropriate, decent work as they get older, rather than hazardous labor.
11) Will this be a grant or a cooperative agreement?
ILAB anticipates using cooperative agreements as the funding instrument. Cooperative agreements typically imply more active engagement and partnership between the funder and the recipient during implementation than a more hands-off grant structure.
12) How many awards does ILAB expect to make?
The NOI states ILAB anticipates making one or more awards through a competitive, merit-based selection process.
13) What is the maximum award amount listed?
The NOI lists an award ceiling of up to USD 4,000,000.
14) Is cost sharing or matching required?
No cost sharing or matching requirement is indicated in the NOI.
15) What is the CFDA number and program category?
The opportunity is under CFDA 17.401 (International Labor Programs) and is categorized as discretionary funding.
16) When will the FOA be released?
The NOI notes that the ETA Office of Grants Management expected to publish the FOA before the end of September 2015, though the timeline could change.
17) Is there an application deadline listed?
No. Because this is an NOI and not an open solicitation, the notice does not provide an application deadline. Deadlines would be provided in the FOA once it is released.
18) Where will the official FOA be posted?
The official method for accessing the FOA, once released, is through grants.gov. The NOI emphasizes that no email or paper copies would be distributed.
19) Who is eligible to apply (based on the NOI)?
Eligibility is described broadly and includes commercial, international, educational, and nonprofit organizations, including faith-based, community-based, and public international organizations. The key condition noted is that applicants should be able to credibly implement work that reduces children's participation in exploitative child labor and supports vulnerable youth under 18 toward education and age-appropriate, decent work.
20) Are organizations required to have prior USDOL cooperative agreement experience?
No. The NOI clarifies that organizations are not disqualified simply because they have not previously managed U.S. Department of Labor cooperative agreements, grants, or contracts.
21) Does the NOI include the full application requirements and attachments?
No. The NOI does not include detailed requirements, attachments, or application instructions. Those details are expected to be provided only in the later FOA.
22) Where can interested parties look for general preparation materials?
The NOI points interested parties to ILAB's grants website and standard guidelines pages, including examples of past cooperative agreement applications. However, the specific requirements for this opportunity would be contained in the future FOA.
23) What is the geographic focus of the project?
The project is focused on Ghana, specifically cocoa-growing communities.
24) What is the core approach described in the NOI?
The approach described combines (1) community-driven planning and prevention through Community Action Plans, (2) household-level livelihood support to reduce economic drivers of exploitative child labor, and (3) education and skills development support for vulnerable youth under 18 to promote safe, age-appropriate pathways.
25) Are awards guaranteed once the FOA is released?
No. The NOI states that any eventual awards would depend on the availability of funds and would be made through a competitive, merit-based process.
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