Program Development and Research to Establish and Evaluate Innovative and Emerging Best Practices in Clinical and Community Services through the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR): Amendment 2 | RFA GH 17 002

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA GH 17 002

This funding opportunity from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under PEPFAR is a discretionary cooperative agreement designed to strengthen the evidence behind HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB) programming by supporting practical evaluation and research that can quickly improve real-world service delivery. It is rooted in two major policy drivers: the PEPFAR Stewardship and Oversight Act of 2013, which emphasizes timely and relevant operational research to improve program quality, efficiency, cost effectiveness, and population-level impact; and the PEPFAR 3.0 strategy, which calls for strategically targeted, scientifically sound investments that can be scaled rapidly to maximize the impact of core HIV prevention, care, and treatment interventions. The overall intent is to move beyond simply implementing services and instead build a stronger, decision-ready evidence base that helps countries and implementers understand what works best, for whom, at what cost, and under what conditions.

The focus is on program development and applied research activities that establish, test, and evaluate innovative and emerging best practices in clinical and community settings. The opportunity explicitly prioritizes evaluation and research methods that can generate concrete, usable findings, including formative assessments (to shape and refine interventions early), economic evaluations (to understand costs and value for money), program process evaluations (to see how services are implemented and where bottlenecks occur), and outcome and impact evaluations (to measure changes in health and service indicators). It also highlights implementation science, signaling an interest in studying how evidence-based interventions can be delivered effectively at scale in diverse, resource-variable environments. A key theme is that the results should not sit on a shelf: the FOA stresses rapid dissemination of conclusions and an expectation that findings will translate into measurable improvements in programming.

Projects supported under this announcement are expected to produce the kinds of metrics, benchmarks, and replicable models that governments and national programs can use to define success and guide planning. In practical terms, strong proposals would be those that expand the evidence base in ways that directly inform national priorities and implementation plans, define strategies for priority interventions, and produce models that can be reproduced or adapted across settings. The emphasis on “innovative and emerging best practices” suggests the CDC is looking for approaches that either introduce new service delivery methods or rigorously test promising approaches already being used, with enough evaluation rigor to justify broader adoption or course correction.

Geographically, HIV/AIDS-related activities funded through this opportunity must be conducted in PEPFAR-supported countries, aligning with PEPFAR’s mandate and investment footprint. TB-related activities have more flexibility and may be conducted in both PEPFAR and non-PEPFAR supported countries, reflecting the global nature of TB control and the value of generating transferable lessons across contexts. The announcement also underscores the importance of involving host-country investigators in PEPFAR-supported countries, reinforcing local leadership, relevance, and capacity strengthening as part of the research and evaluation process.

Administratively, the opportunity is listed as RFA GH 17 002 with a cooperative agreement funding instrument, meaning awardees should expect substantial involvement from the funding agency compared to a standard grant. The CFDA number is 93.067. The projected scale is relatively targeted: an award ceiling of $1,000,000 and an expectation of 2 awards, indicating competitive selection and a preference for high-impact, well-scoped projects rather than a large number of smaller awards. Eligible applicants are broad and include various levels of government, public and private institutions of higher education, federally recognized tribal governments and certain tribal organizations, public housing authorities, nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status, for-profit organizations (including small businesses), and other entities, which opens the door to universities, implementers, research organizations, and public agencies with the right partnerships and field presence.

Key dates included an original closing date of March 24, 2017, and a creation date of January 23, 2017. While those dates indicate this specific announcement cycle is historical, the substance of the FOA captures a continuing PEPFAR priority: funding operationally relevant evaluation and implementation research that can improve HIV and TB services, demonstrate cost effectiveness, measure population impact, and support smarter, faster decisions in national programs.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - ERA in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Program Development and Research to Establish and Evaluate Innovative and Emerging Best Practices in Clinical and Community Services through the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR): Amendment 2" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.067.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-01-23.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-03-24. (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: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for RFA GH 17 002

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