Call for Partnership Concept Papers - Scaling Investment in Off-Grid Energy Solutions in Africa | APS OAA 16 000001 ADDENDUM SOGE

Opportunity Information: Apply for APS OAA 16 000001 ADDENDUM SOGE

The Call for Partnership Concept Papers - Scaling Investment in Off-Grid Energy Solutions in Africa is a USAID funding opportunity under the Scaling Off-Grid Energy Grand Challenge for Development (SOGE). Its central goal is to speed up growth in the off-grid energy market so that 20 million households across sub-Saharan Africa can gain access to modern, clean, and affordable electricity. The opportunity is built around a key market reality USAID highlights: despite strong demand and an expanding pipeline of solar and other off-grid providers, many enterprises cannot grow fast enough because they struggle to access capital on reasonable terms. High financing costs and limited investor readiness keep promising companies from scaling, which in turn slows the overall maturation of the household solar and off-grid energy sector.

This call specifically targets the financing bottleneck by using relatively small, strategic grants to help early-stage and growth-oriented off-grid energy enterprises become "investment ready" faster. USAID frames the approach as catalytic: grant funding is meant to bridge gaps that private investors typically will not fund early (such as strengthening business models, improving financial systems and reporting, validating unit economics, refining distribution strategies, or meeting due diligence expectations). The practical intent is to accelerate timelines to commercial investment, thereby increasing the likelihood that private capital will flow into these companies and the broader market.

Eligibility is focused tightly on the private sector. USAID invites concept papers from both U.S. and non-U.S. private businesses and social enterprises, as long as they are legally recognized entities under applicable law. Individuals are not eligible to apply. The notice also explicitly excludes many organization types that commonly apply for development funding, including business and trade associations, foundations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), faith-based organizations, international organizations, colleges and universities (U.S. and non-U.S.), civic groups, and regional organizations. In other words, this is not a typical NGO-driven development solicitation; it is designed to engage companies directly as the primary applicants.

The funding instrument is listed as "Other" within a discretionary assistance context, and the activity category is regional development (CFDA 98.001). The original closing date in the source data is April 30, 2017, and the award ceiling is $1,500,000. While the expected number of awards is not specified in the provided data, the ceiling indicates that USAID anticipated potentially sizable individual awards for concept papers that strongly address the capital access constraint and demonstrate a credible path to unlocking private investment.

A major compliance and budgeting point in the announcement concerns profit and fee restrictions for for-profit participants under USAID assistance rules. Citing 22 CFR 200.400 and 22 CFR 200.101, USAID emphasizes that under assistance instruments (as opposed to procurement contracts), the prime recipient cannot be paid fee or profit. The same restriction generally extends to sub-recipients when they meet the definition of a "recipient," meaning sub-awards under the assistance mechanism also cannot include profit/fee. The notice also clarifies that "forgone profit" cannot be counted as cost share or leverage. However, profit is allowed when a for-profit entity is engaged through a subcontract arrangement that is strictly a buyer-seller relationship for goods or services (procurement-type subcontracting), in which case the subcontractor is permitted to earn profit on that transaction.

Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a targeted USAID effort to use grant funding as a market-building tool: strengthening off-grid energy companies so they can attract commercial financing, scale operations, and ultimately expand household electricity access across sub-Saharan Africa. The structure, eligibility limitations, and explicit profit rules signal that USAID intended this call to function as a partnership-oriented, private-sector-facing pathway to unlock significantly larger pools of private capital beyond the grant itself.

• The Agency for International Development in the regional development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Call for Partnership Concept Papers - Scaling Investment in Off-Grid Energy Solutions in Africa" 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 2017-02-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-04-30. (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: For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for APS OAA 16 000001 ADDENDUM SOGE

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: