Strengthening Egypt’s Family Planning Program | RFI 263 17 00004

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFI 263 17 00004

The Strengthening Egypt's Family Planning Program (SEFPP) is a USAID Cairo grant opportunity focused on improving Egypt's national family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH) program through targeted technical assistance and training. Structured as a discretionary cooperative agreement under the health category (CFDA 98.001), the activity is designed to help Egyptian FP/RH stakeholders respond to what the notice describes as a recent "fertility reversal," meaning an increase in fertility after prior progress in reducing birth rates. The opportunity emphasizes practical, program-oriented support rather than direct service delivery, with USAID expecting to work closely with the implementer given the cooperative agreement format.

The core purpose of SEFPP is to diagnose and address the main factors contributing to the fertility reversal and weaker contraceptive uptake and continuation. A major driver highlighted in the notice is reduced exposure to FP/RH messages in the media, which can lower general awareness and normalize misconceptions. Alongside this, SEFPP notes limited availability of FP/RH information and counseling, suggesting gaps in how clients are reached, how options are explained, and how informed choice is supported. The activity is therefore positioned to strengthen both demand-side communication (such as messaging strategies and outreach) and the quality of interpersonal counseling and education that people receive when they interact with the health system.

Another set of problems SEFPP intends to tackle relates to contraceptive choice and continued use. The notice points to a limited contraceptive method mix and shifts in method choice, which can indicate supply constraints, provider bias, uneven access, or inadequate counseling about different options. It also explicitly mentions discontinuation due to mismanagement of side effects, a common reason people stop using contraception even when they still want to avoid pregnancy. That focus implies the activity may prioritize improving clinical guidance, follow-up, and counseling skills so providers can set realistic expectations, manage side effects appropriately, and help clients switch methods safely when needed rather than discontinuing altogether.

SEFPP also targets demographic and behavioral trends that influence fertility, including earlier marriage, having the first child sooner, and shorter birth intervals. These patterns can substantially increase lifetime births, especially when paired with low contraceptive use among newly married couples or young women. The notice specifically flags that fewer young women and couples are using contraception, signaling that youth-friendly and newlywed-focused programming could be central to the activity. In practical terms, that could mean strengthening approaches that reach young people and couples earlier, improving counseling at key life stages, and addressing social norms and misinformation that discourage contraception at the beginning of marriage or after the first child.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is listed as Funding Opportunity Number RFI 263 17 00004, issued by USAID Egypt (USAID Cairo), with an original closing date of March 21, 2017 and a creation date of March 1, 2017. The eligible applicant category is listed as "Others," indicating it is not limited strictly to government entities and may be open to a broader range of organizations depending on USAID's definitions and the final solicitation requirements. The award ceiling and the number of expected awards are not clearly specified in the provided data (the ceiling is shown as "1" and expected awards is blank), and the description notes that certain details "will be determined later," suggesting that funding size, scope specifics, or implementation parameters may have been pending at the time of posting.

Overall, SEFPP is a health-focused technical assistance activity aimed at strengthening Egypt's FP/RH program by improving communication and demand generation, enhancing counseling and service quality, expanding meaningful access to a broader method mix, reducing unnecessary contraceptive discontinuation through better side-effect management, and addressing early marriage and short birth spacing by increasing contraceptive use among young women and couples.

• The Egypt USAID-Cairo in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Strengthening Egypt’s Family Planning Program" 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 2017-03-01.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-03-21. (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 $1.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for RFI 263 17 00004

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