Opportunity Information: Apply for 72011119RFA00001
The Living Independently and Be Included in the Community (LIBC) opportunity is a USAID Armenia grant competition designed to help shift disability services away from institutional models and toward community-based living, where people with disabilities can make their own choices and participate fully in society. The program focuses on practical reforms and services that make independent living possible in real terms, not just on paper. It emphasizes inclusion in the community, self-determination, and the removal of systemic barriers that keep people with disabilities segregated or dependent on institutional care.
A central theme of LIBC is deinstitutionalization, meaning the development and effective rollout of strategies and plans to reduce reliance on institutional care settings and support transitions into community life. Projects under this heading could include planning and coordination across government and service systems, building pathways for safe transition, and strengthening the local capacity needed to prevent people from being placed into institutions in the first place. The intent is to create workable, sustainable alternatives so that institutionalization is no longer treated as the default solution.
Another major area is expanding accessible, affordable, and sustainable community-based supports and services. In practice, this points to supports that enable day-to-day independent living, such as community assistance, accessible services, and other supports that help people live where they choose and remain connected to family, work, education, and community life. The framing highlights affordability and sustainability, signaling that USAID is looking for approaches that can be maintained beyond the life of the award and that are realistically scalable within the local context.
LIBC also targets legal and policy reforms that strengthen legal capacity and personal autonomy. The opportunity explicitly references enabling people with disabilities to exercise freedom of choice and control over decisions affecting their lives, with the maximum possible self-determination and interdependence. An example provided is the move toward supported decision-making rather than substituted decision-making, which aligns with rights-based approaches where individuals receive support to make their own decisions rather than having decisions made for them. This can involve strengthening laws, updating policies, changing institutional practices, and building professional and public understanding so that these rights are implemented in everyday systems like social services, health care, and administrative procedures.
A further illustrative activity area is the establishment or strengthening of consumer-controlled disability resource centers, often called independent living centers in the United States. The emphasis on consumer-controlled suggests leadership by people with disabilities themselves, not just service delivery on their behalf. These centers can serve as hubs for peer support, information and referral, advocacy, and rights-based assistance, and they can also play a role in promoting full participation in society by challenging discrimination and improving access to community resources.
The opportunity encourages the adoption or effective implementation of monitoring mechanisms related to independent living and community inclusion, with a clear requirement that Disabled Persons Organizations (DPOs) are prioritized in participation. This points to building accountability systems that track whether reforms and services are actually improving real-world outcomes, and to ensuring that people with disabilities and their representative organizations are meaningfully involved in oversight, feedback loops, and evaluation. Monitoring is framed as more than data collection; it is part of making systems responsive and rights-respecting.
LIBC is open to projects that address targeted needs within the disability community, and it explicitly encourages proposals that elevate groups that are often marginalized even within disability programming. The notice calls out women and girls with disabilities, people who are deaf or deaf-blind, individuals with developmental or psychosocial disabilities, and members of the LGBTI community. This signals that USAID expects applicants to consider intersectional barriers, tailor approaches where necessary, and avoid one-size-fits-all programming.
A non-negotiable expectation across all programs is the significant involvement of persons with disabilities, especially women with disabilities, throughout the full project cycle: design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. In other words, the opportunity is not simply about serving people with disabilities; it is about shared leadership and decision-making power. Proposals would need to show credible mechanisms for participation and influence, not token consultation.
The funding instrument is a Cooperative Agreement, which typically implies substantial involvement by the funder during implementation compared with a standard grant. The award ceiling is USD 1,000,000, and USAID anticipated making two awards. The opportunity is administered by the U.S. Agency for International Development mission in Armenia (USAID-Yerevan), under CFDA 98.001, and it was posted May 30, 2019. Concept papers were subject to two submission deadlines to speed review: an initial deadline of June 20, 2019 at 1400 Yerevan time, and a final deadline of June 30, 2019 at 1400 Yerevan time, with no submissions considered after the final cutoff.
Finally, the notice strongly encourages activities that support and develop Public Private Partnerships. This indicates a preference for collaborations that bring together government, civil society, and private sector actors to mobilize resources, improve service delivery, and increase the likelihood that reforms and community supports will continue after USAID funding ends. Overall, LIBC is structured to fund rights-based, community-centered disability initiatives that combine practical services with systemic change, and that place people with disabilities at the center of planning and accountability.Apply for 72011119RFA00001
- The Agency for International Development, Armenia USAID-Yerevan in the other (see text field entitled explanation of other category of funding activity for clarification) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Living Independently and Be Included in the Community (LIBC)" 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 May 30, 2019.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 30, 2019 To accelerate the evaluation of concept papers, USAID establishes two deadlines for submission of concepts initial deadline is June 20, 2019, 1400PM Yerevan Time final deadline is June 30, 2019, 1400PM Yerevan Time. No concepts will be considered after the final deadline, June 30, 2019, 1400PM Yerevan Time.. (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 $1,000,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - Living Independently and Be Included in the Community (LIBC) - USAID Armenia
What is the LIBC grant opportunity?
The Living Independently and Be Included in the Community (LIBC) opportunity is a USAID Armenia grant competition focused on shifting disability services away from institutional models and toward community-based living. The aim is to support practical reforms and services that make independent living possible in real terms, emphasizing community inclusion, self-determination, and removing systemic barriers that keep people with disabilities segregated or dependent on institutional care.
What is the main goal of the LIBC program?
LIBC is designed to help people with disabilities live in the community with real choice and control over their lives, rather than being placed in or dependent on institutional settings. It prioritizes rights-based approaches, meaningful participation of persons with disabilities, and sustainable, scalable solutions that can continue beyond the award period.
What does deinstitutionalization mean in the context of LIBC?
In LIBC, deinstitutionalization refers to developing and effectively rolling out strategies and plans that reduce reliance on institutional care and support transitions into community life. This can include planning and coordination across government and service systems, building pathways for safe transition, and strengthening local capacity to prevent institutional placement from being treated as the default option.
What kinds of activities could support deinstitutionalization under LIBC?
Illustrative activities may include developing strategies and plans, improving coordination across government and service systems, establishing pathways for safe transition from institutions into community living, and building local capacity to create sustainable alternatives that prevent unnecessary institutionalization.
What does LIBC mean by community-based supports and services?
Community-based supports and services are practical supports that help people with disabilities live day-to-day in the community, where they choose, while staying connected to family, work, education, and community life. LIBC emphasizes that these supports should be accessible, affordable, sustainable, and realistically scalable in the local context.
Why does the opportunity emphasize affordability and sustainability?
The LIBC framing highlights affordability and sustainability to signal that USAID is looking for approaches that can be maintained beyond the life of the award and that are feasible to scale. The intent is to strengthen systems and services that can endure after USAID funding ends.
What legal and policy reforms does LIBC prioritize?
LIBC targets reforms that strengthen legal capacity and personal autonomy so people with disabilities can exercise freedom of choice and control over decisions affecting their lives, with maximum possible self-determination and interdependence. The opportunity references moving toward supported decision-making rather than substituted decision-making, aligning with rights-based approaches.
What is the difference between supported decision-making and substituted decision-making in LIBC?
Supported decision-making is described as an approach where individuals receive support to make their own decisions, rather than having decisions made for them (substituted decision-making). LIBC highlights supported decision-making as an example of reforms that promote autonomy and rights in everyday systems such as social services, health care, and administrative procedures.
What are consumer-controlled disability resource centers (independent living centers)?
These centers are described as consumer-controlled hubs (often called independent living centers in the United States) that emphasize leadership by people with disabilities themselves, not just service delivery on their behalf. They can provide peer support, information and referral, advocacy, and rights-based assistance, while promoting full participation and addressing discrimination and access barriers.
Does LIBC require monitoring and accountability mechanisms?
Yes. The opportunity encourages adoption or effective implementation of monitoring mechanisms related to independent living and community inclusion. Monitoring is framed as more than data collection; it is part of creating accountability systems that track real-world outcomes and help ensure systems are responsive and rights-respecting.
How are Disabled Persons Organizations (DPOs) involved in monitoring?
The notice indicates that DPOs must be prioritized in participation related to monitoring mechanisms. This points to meaningful involvement of people with disabilities and their representative organizations in oversight, feedback loops, and evaluation.
Which groups within the disability community are specifically encouraged to be elevated in proposals?
The opportunity explicitly encourages proposals that elevate groups often marginalized even within disability programming, including women and girls with disabilities, people who are deaf or deaf-blind, individuals with developmental or psychosocial disabilities, and members of the LGBTI community.
What does LIBC mean by intersectional barriers?
While the notice does not define the term formally, it signals that applicants are expected to consider overlapping barriers faced by people who may be marginalized in more than one way (for example, gender and disability, or disability and sexual orientation), tailor approaches where necessary, and avoid one-size-fits-all programming.
What level of involvement of persons with disabilities is expected across the project cycle?
A non-negotiable expectation is significant involvement of persons with disabilities, especially women with disabilities, throughout design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. The opportunity emphasizes shared leadership and decision-making power, requiring credible mechanisms for participation and influence rather than token consultation.
Is this opportunity about providing services "for" people with disabilities or working "with" them?
The LIBC description emphasizes that it is not simply about serving people with disabilities. It requires meaningful participation, shared leadership, and decision-making power for persons with disabilities across the full project cycle.
What type of funding instrument is used for LIBC?
The funding instrument is a Cooperative Agreement, which typically implies substantial involvement by the funder during implementation compared with a standard grant.
What is the maximum award amount (award ceiling) for LIBC?
The award ceiling is USD 1,000,000.
How many awards did USAID anticipate making under LIBC?
USAID anticipated making two awards.
Which USAID office administers the LIBC opportunity?
The opportunity is administered by the U.S. Agency for International Development mission in Armenia (USAID-Yerevan).
What is the CFDA number for this opportunity?
The opportunity is listed under CFDA 98.001.
When was the LIBC opportunity posted?
The notice was posted on May 30, 2019.
What were the concept paper deadlines for LIBC?
Concept papers had two submission deadlines to speed review: an initial deadline of June 20, 2019 at 1400 Yerevan time, and a final deadline of June 30, 2019 at 1400 Yerevan time.
Were late submissions accepted?
No. The notice states that no submissions would be considered after the final cutoff (June 30, 2019 at 1400 Yerevan time).
What is meant by community inclusion in LIBC?
Community inclusion is described as full participation in society, where people with disabilities can make their own choices, remain connected to family, work, and education, and are not segregated or dependent on institutional care.
Does LIBC support Public Private Partnerships (PPPs)?
Yes. The notice strongly encourages activities that support and develop Public Private Partnerships, indicating a preference for collaborations that bring together government, civil society, and private sector actors to mobilize resources, improve service delivery, and increase the likelihood that reforms and community supports will continue after USAID funding ends.
What is the overall approach USAID is looking for through LIBC?
LIBC is structured to fund rights-based, community-centered disability initiatives that combine practical services with systemic change, prioritize participation and leadership by people with disabilities (especially women with disabilities), and strengthen accountability and sustainability so progress continues beyond the award.
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