Higher Education Partnership Initiative (HEPI) | 72049721APS00002

Opportunity Information: Apply for 72049721APS00002

The Higher Education Partnership Initiative (HEPI) is a USAID/Indonesia funding opportunity designed to broaden and strengthen USAID's development impact by working more directly with higher education institutions and related local partners in Indonesia. The central idea is to bring in locally based, new, and underutilized organizations that may not traditionally receive USAID funding, and to use universities and other higher-education actors as platforms to expand, deepen, and sustain development results. HEPI is presented as part of USAID's broader New Partnerships Initiative (NPI), which focuses on improving how the Agency partners by making collaboration more accessible, more locally led, and more effective in producing long-term outcomes.

At a strategic level, the opportunity is tied to USAID's "Journey to Self-Reliance" framework. In practical terms, that means USAID/Indonesia is looking for approaches that help Indonesia strengthen its own capacity to plan, implement, and sustain solutions over time, rather than relying indefinitely on external support. The emphasis on sustainability and resilience signals that proposed activities should not just deliver short-term outputs, but should build lasting systems, skills, institutional capacity, networks, and local ownership. HEPI is also meant to "catalyze more effective partnering for impact," which implies that applicants are expected to demonstrate credible collaboration models, such as partnerships between universities and local governments, civil society, communities, or the private sector, with clear roles and benefits for each partner.

The opportunity is issued by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), specifically the USAID Mission in Indonesia (USAID-Jakarta). It is listed as an "Other" category funding opportunity and uses an "Other" instrument type, indicating this addendum is meant to guide how prospective applicants submit Concept Notes and engage with the solicitation process, rather than describing a single standard grant mechanism in the most typical format. The notice explicitly states that the addendum is intended to disseminate information to prospective applicants so they can develop and submit Concept Notes for consideration for USAID funding, and it points applicants to the full addendum in the related documents for detailed requirements, instructions, and evaluation criteria.

In terms of scale and competitiveness, HEPI lists an award ceiling of up to $6,000,000, with an expectation of one award. This structure suggests a single, relatively large partnership project rather than multiple smaller awards, meaning applicants would likely need to demonstrate strong institutional capacity, credible partnerships, and a compelling plan for achieving measurable education and development outcomes through higher education engagement. The Assistance Listing (CFDA) number associated with the opportunity is 98.001, which corresponds to USAID foreign assistance.

The timeline in the published notice shows a creation date of March 8, 2021, and an original closing date of May 24, 2021. While those dates indicate the window for submission under that specific posting, the key takeaway for summarizing the opportunity is that HEPI was a time-bound call for Concept Notes aimed at selecting a single major activity aligned with USAID/Indonesia's goal of expanding work through higher education and strengthening local partnership ecosystems. Eligibility is broadly described as "Others," with clarification to be provided in the solicitation's additional eligibility information, which commonly signals that a wider range of entities may be eligible than in more restrictive competitions, potentially including local universities, university consortia, foundations, nonprofits, and other locally based organizations, depending on the detailed criteria in the addendum.

Overall, HEPI is best understood as a targeted USAID/Indonesia initiative to mobilize higher education as a driver of locally led development, while also operationalizing USAID's NPI goals by bringing new or less frequently funded local partners into USAID's partner network. The solicitation framework highlights Concept Notes as the entry point, with the full addendum serving as the authoritative source for what USAID expects applicants to propose, how submissions should be structured, and how USAID will select the eventual award recipient.

• The Agency for International Development, Indonesia USAID-Jakarta in the education sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Higher Education Partnership Initiative (HEPI)" 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 Mar 08, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 24, 2021. (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 $6,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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