Closed · DOS-MWI-ASSHF-FY20 · CFDA 19.700 · Discretionary

U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Fund, U.S. Embassy Lilongwe

Federal grant opportunity posted by U.S. Mission to Malawi, cataloged on Grants.gov.

$3K-$8K
Award range
Closed
Status
May 31, 2021
Close date
250
Expected awards

The verdict

U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Fund, U.S. Embassy Lilongwe is a closed discretionary listing from U.S. Mission to Malawi that offered $3,000 -- $8,000 across 250 expected awards. Future funding cycles may be published under the same CFDA number. PlainGrants indexes 23 other opportunities from U.S. Mission to Malawi.

$3K-$8K
award range
Closed
application status
250
expected awards
19.700
CFDA program

Archived opportunity record

U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Fund is closed (last close May 31, 2021). Check the agency catalog for replacement NOFOs. U.S. Mission to Malawi still indexes 23 other opportunities here.

According to Grants.gov (extract vintage 2026-08-10), this record reflects the officially published listing. See methodology.

Deadline tracker

Application window closed

Closed May 31, 2021

Posted Apr 7 Closes May 31

Est. Total Funding

$60,000

Expected Awards

250

Instrument

Grant

Description

The U.S. Embassy Lilongwe at the U.S. Department of State (DOS) announces this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help (SSH) Fund. The SSH fund was established in Malawi in 1966 to help improve the basic economic and social conditions of Malawians at the local community and village level. Grants for up to $8,000 U.S. Dollars (USD) each of Financial Year (FY) 2020 Economic Support Funds (ESF) will be awarded to projects that increase fundamental education and marketable skills in the Malawian people or that expand entrepreneurial knowledge and opportunity, pending availability of funds. Projects that address needs within disadvantaged or marginalized populations are encouraged. The period of performance is twelve (12) months. Funding authority rests in the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended. The goal of U.S. assistance is to help create a peaceful, prosperous, and secure future for the people of Malawi. Economic growth is essential to that goal and Malawi can reach its potential through entrepreneurship and the creation of opportunities for investment and trade. This program seeks to fund small but important projects that will expand education opportunity for education and marketable job skills. It will also support the creation or expansion of community business endeavors. The program is structured to encourage communities to be self-reliant and undertake similar activities on their own in the future. All projects are community-based, initiated locally, administered at the local level, and include significant community contributions in cash, labor, or materials. Over the past 50 years, the SSH fund has disbursed over $6 million to 1,463 projects covering all 28 Districts in Malawi. Projects funded have included classroom blocks, under-five clinics, pregnant mothers waiting shelters, school libraries, girls’ hostels, installation of biogas digesters, eco-stove production, and provision of clean and safe drinking water through boreholes and shallow wells.

Catch-all / unrestricted eligibility mark · DOS-MWI-ASSHF-FY20

Grants.gov marks U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Fund with a catch-all / unrestricted eligibility code (Unrestricted / see official listing). Read the official announcement text for the real applicant filter — the code alone is not a door list. The extract does not mark applicant cost-sharing as required. Instrument: Grant. Funding-activity code maps to Community Development (CD). 3 other U.S. Mission to Malawi listings share this eligibility-code string (13% of 24).

Code 99
Unrestricted / see official listing

Codes are Grants.gov eligibility category values from the extract vintage 2026-08-10. Confirm the full eligibility statement on the official listing or the Grants.gov eligibility reference.

Official Listing on Grants.gov

View full details, application forms, and submission instructions.

View on Grants.gov

Agency Contact

Kisa L Ngoma Small Grants Assistant Phone 265887010655

What to do next

U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Fund is closed; use the parent program and agency catalog for the next funding cycle.

  • Browse open federal opportunities in the same category when this listing is closed. Open opportunities
  • Look up CFDA 19.700 across all indexed listings before you commit to this opportunity alone. Eligibility finder
  • Compare award ranges across federal categories before you pick a single CFDA. All categories

Opportunity deadlines and eligibility change on Grants.gov; PlainGrants mirrors the extract and is not the submission system.

Disclaimer: This information is sourced from Grants.gov and SAM.gov and is for informational purposes only. Opportunity details, deadlines, and eligibility requirements change frequently. Always verify current information directly on Grants.gov before applying. PlainGrants is not affiliated with any federal agency.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Data sourced from the SAM.gov Assistance Listings and Grants.gov. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainGrants