ForecastedOpportunity 2026-FREETOWN-AEIF-01

Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF): Sierra Leone

U.S. Mission to Sierra Leone · Department of State

At a glance

Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF): Sierra Leone is a forecasted federal grant opportunity from U.S. Mission to Sierra Leone (Department of State). The agency's forecast estimates an application due date of May 1, 2026; forecast dates can change. Individual awards are listed as from $5K, with about 50 awards expected and $40K in total estimated funding. Applicant types listed as eligible include others (see notice). Cost sharing is not required. It is funded under Assistance Listing 19.022 (Educational and Cultural Exchange Programs Appropriation Overseas Grants).

Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.

Key facts

Mar 24, 2026Forecast posted
Mar 24, 2026 (est.)Full notice expected
May 1, 2026 (est.)Application deadline

Posted: Mar 24, 2026
Est. close date: May 1, 2026
Award floor: $5,000
Award ceiling: Not specified
Est. total funding: $40,000
Expected awards: 50
Cost sharing: Not required
Funding instrument: Grant
Opportunity category: Discretionary
Fiscal year: FY2026

Who can apply

Others (see notice)

Additional information on eligibility (from the notice)

The project proposal must include the involvement of at least two exchange alumni or involvement of an alumni association. U.S. exchange alumni include ECA funded exchanges, BridgeUSA participants, and other U.S. government funded or sponsored programs that have met the criteria for exchange programs. U.S. citizen alumni may be included on alumni teams; however, the team must have at least two non-U.S. citizen exchange program alumni leading the project. The following organizations are eligible to receive a grant:• Not-for-profit organizations, including think-tanks and civil society/non-governmental organizations• Public and private educational institutions• Individuals• Public Governmental institutionsFor-profit entities, even those that may fall into the categories listed above, are not eligible to apply for this NOFO. Organizations may sub-contract with other entities, but only one, non-profit, non-governmental entity can be the prime recipient of the award. When sub-contracting with other entities, the responsibilities of each entity must be clearly defined in the proposal. For more information on the difference between sub-contract and sub-recipient, please refer to 2 CFR 200.331.

Also named in the notice's eligibility text

501(c)(3) nonprofits
Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status

Matched from the wording above by GrantsJunction — confirm in the full announcement.

Can your organization apply?

A quick check against the listed applicant types — other requirements in the notice still apply.

Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.

What it funds

Official synopsis as published by the agency, formatted for readability.

The U.S. Department of State’s Embassy Freetown announces an open competition to implement the Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF) project. The purpose of the Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF) is to increase the impact of the U.S. government’s investment in exchange programs by helping alumni develop and implement projects to support U.S. policy objectives and promote shared interests. All AEIF 2026 projects must also celebrate and promote the 250th anniversary of the United States (#Freedom250) highlighting examples of American excellence past, present, or future. Projects should have the potential for long-term, self-sustainable impact in local communities. Awards may range from a minimum of $5,000 to a maximum of $35,000 (approximately) for individual projects, and up to $40,000 for single country alumni summits dependent on the availability of funds. Successful proposals will demonstrate strong engagement with and among exchange alumni, target audiences strategic to U.S. policy goals, and outline a plan for continuing engagement with alumni.

Full announcement & documents

The full announcement has the complete rules — page limits, required attachments, evaluation criteria and any letter-of-intent dates. Files download directly from Grants.gov.

How to apply

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Read the full announcement (NOFO)Eligibility, evaluation criteria, page limits and required attachments are in the full notice on Grants.gov. Open ↗
Confirm eligibility and fitCheck your organization type above; no cost sharing is required.
Register (or renew) in SAM.gov and get a UEIFree. New registrations can take several weeks; registrations must be renewed every year. Open ↗
Set up Grants.gov accessCreate a Grants.gov account and make sure someone has the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) role. Open ↗
Watch for the full noticeThe agency estimates posting it around March 24, 2026. Save this grant to track changes.
Prepare narrative, budget and attachmentsFollow the notice's format exactly — page limits and required forms are common reasons applications are rejected.
Ask the agency contact any questions earlyPASGrants Freetown Grantor · PASGrantsFreetown@state.gov Open ↗
Submit before May 1, 2026Submit a few days early and keep your Grants.gov confirmation and validation emails.

Assistance Listing

What is an ALN?

19.022Educational and Cultural Exchange Programs Appropriation Overseas GrantsProgram →

Reported obligations under ALN 19.022

Historical data · not a prediction

FY24

$9.94M

FY25

$9.94M

FY26

$9.94M est.

Source: SAM.gov Assistance Listing 19.022. Program-wide totals, not awards from this specific opportunity.

Who was funded under ALN 19.022

Historical data · not a prediction

Since October 1, 2023, 1,807 grant awards had funding actions under Educational and Cultural Exchange Programs Appropriation Overseas Grants. These are program-wide awards, not awards from this specific notice.

INDIVIDUAL RECIPIENT$6.31M
MISCELLANEOUS FOREIGN AWARDEES$4.7M
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY$3.89M
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY$1.57M
AMERICAN COUNCILS FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION: ACTR/ACCELS, INC.$1.28M

Recipients, states, recent awards and sub-awards →Source: USAspending.gov.

Agency contact (as published)

PASGrants Freetown Grantor
PASGrantsFreetown@state.gov
0023299905081

Quick answers

Is “Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF): Sierra Leone” open for applications yet?

Not yet. It is a forecast — an agency's advance notice of an expected opportunity. The agency estimates posting the full notice around March 24, 2026. Forecast details and dates can change.

Who is eligible to apply for “Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF): Sierra Leone”?

The official notice names these applicant types as eligible: Others (see notice). Additional restrictions may apply; review the full notice.

How much funding is available through “Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF): Sierra Leone”?

Per the notice, individual awards are listed as from $5k, total estimated program funding is $40,000 and the agency expects to make about 50 awards.

How do I apply for “Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF): Sierra Leone”?

Applications are submitted through the official source, not through GrantsJunction. Open the official notice on Grants.gov (opportunity 2026-FREETOWN-AEIF-01), and review the full announcement and application package. Organizations applying through Grants.gov generally need an active SAM.gov registration and a Grants.gov account, which can take several weeks to set up.

Matched on shared Assistance Listings, agency, categories and eligible applicant types.

ForecastedALN 19.022