Education Resilience Activity (ERA) | 72039123RFA00001

Opportunity Information: Apply for 72039123RFA00001

The Education Resilience Activity (ERA) is a USAID/Pakistan grant opportunity designed to strengthen Pakistan's basic education system so that marginalized children can access and remain in quality schooling. The activity is framed as a five-year effort focused on districts affected by floods and conflict, where disruption and vulnerability tend to push children out of school and reduce learning outcomes. A central theme is inclusion, with specific attention to improving participation and learning for girls and children with disabilities, and ensuring that support for these students is not temporary or isolated but built into the way local education systems function.

ERA is structured around change at three connected levels because lasting improvement in education typically requires coordination across policy, communities, and schools. First, it emphasizes local policy implementation, working with provincial and district education departments to translate inclusive education commitments into practical steps that increase classroom participation for girls and children with disabilities. Second, it prioritizes community mobilization, recognizing that social norms, household pressures, safety concerns, and lack of local support can prevent children from attending regularly even when schools exist. In this layer, the activity intends to reinforce inclusive practices and build community buy-in so families and local stakeholders actively support girls' education and disability inclusion. Third, ERA focuses on improving the school environment itself by promoting safe, accessible, and supportive learning spaces that reflect the diversity of student needs, including through Universal Design for Learning (UDL), an approach that encourages flexible teaching methods, materials, and assessments so more learners can succeed without being singled out or excluded.

The opportunity is offered as a discretionary cooperative agreement, meaning USAID expects to be substantially involved during implementation, often through technical collaboration, monitoring, and joint problem-solving rather than simply issuing funds and stepping back. The funding opportunity number is 72039123RFA00001 under CFDA 98.001, issued by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Pakistan (USAID-Islamabad). The notice was created on August 29, 2023, with an original closing date of October 12, 2023. USAID anticipates making a single award, with an award ceiling of $20,000,000, indicating a fairly large, concentrated investment intended to operate at meaningful scale rather than being split among multiple grantees.

Programmatically, ERA is positioned to support USAID/Pakistan's 2023-2028 Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS), specifically Development Objective 3, "A healthier, more educated population." Within that, it aligns to Intermediate Result 3.1, which targets strengthening health and education systems to respond to key priorities, and Intermediate Result 3.2, which focuses on improving inclusive access to and quality of services. Beyond immediate service improvements, ERA is also meant to help inform how Pakistan and development partners adapt foundational learning and early childhood education efforts to be more inclusive, particularly by demonstrating practical classroom and system adjustments that can be replicated and sustained.

• The Agency for International Development, Pakistan USAID-Islamabad in the education sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Education Resilience Activity (ERA)" 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 Aug 29, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Oct 12, 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 $20,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for 72039123RFA00001

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