Combat human smuggling and Gender-Based Violence TIP and best practices in the Government of Guatemala for SVET | OFOP0001329

Opportunity Information: Apply for OFOP0001329

This grant opportunity, titled "Combat human smuggling and Gender-Based Violence TIP and best practices in the Government of Guatemala for SVET" (Funding Opportunity Number OFOP0001329), is a discretionary cooperative agreement funded by the U.S. Mission to Guatemala under CFDA 19.703 (Law, Justice and Legal Services). The program is designed to respond to a documented rise in gender-based violence (GBV) in Guatemala during the pandemic period, with a particular emphasis on protecting vulnerable groups, including minors, who are frequently targeted for sexual violence, exploitation, and trafficking in persons (TIP). The funding is intended to strengthen the Government of Guatemala's institutional capacity, especially through SVET, to prevent these crimes, improve coordination across agencies, and support more effective identification and disruption of criminal networks involved in trafficking and related financial crimes.

At the center of the opportunity is the Secretariat Against Sexual Violence, Exploitation, and Trafficking in Persons (SVET), the Guatemalan government entity mandated to coordinate prevention efforts, security and justice responses, victim welfare and attention services, and public awareness related to sexual violence, exploitation, and TIP. While the National Civil Police (PNC) has been tasked with much of the cultural awareness and crime prevention work, the opportunity highlights a key gap: multiple institutions that formally work with SVET are not consistently taking an active enough role in addressing these crimes. The grant therefore prioritizes strengthening not just SVET internally, but SVET's ability to convene, standardize, and lead an interinstitutional response across government.

A major stakeholder called out in the opportunity is the Ministry of Education (MINEDUC). The rationale is straightforward: schools and educational systems are among the most powerful platforms for shaping social norms, reinforcing protective behaviors, and addressing harmful stereotypes before they become entrenched. SVET already has interinstitutional agreements with both MINEDUC and the PNC, creating a formal basis for collaboration on topics linked to sexual violence, exploitation, and trafficking. The grant is meant to translate those agreements into stronger operational coordination, clearer shared practices, and practical tools that allow government actors to deliver prevention messaging and interventions consistently.

The program places strong emphasis on standardizing and strengthening SVET's technical knowledge and operational capacity in sexual crimes, exploitation, and TIP, paired with a robust train-the-trainer model. The intent is to build a multiplier effect: SVET gains deeper expertise and structured training materials, and then uses that platform to coordinate training and awareness activities across Government of Guatemala institutions. The awareness campaigns envisioned under this opportunity are not framed as generic public messaging; they are specifically described as efforts to combat sexual violence and GBV by rejecting stereotypes and cultural norms that enable these crimes. In practice, that implies prevention content focused on shifting attitudes, improving recognition of exploitation and trafficking indicators, encouraging reporting, and strengthening institutional responses in ways that are culturally informed and consistent nationwide.

Beyond prevention and training, the opportunity also includes an enforcement-support dimension tied to organized crime. The grant seeks to empower SVET to better identify trafficking-related criminal structures and to initiate, through the appropriate authorities, investigations against networks engaged in money laundering and human trafficking. This signals an interest in moving upstream from victim response alone toward helping institutions recognize patterns, coordinate referrals, and support investigative processes that can dismantle trafficking operations and their financial infrastructure. While SVET itself is a coordinating body rather than a traditional law enforcement agency, the grant language suggests improving SVET's capacity to generate actionable information, support interagency case coordination, and strengthen pathways for investigative follow-up by the competent authorities.

In terms of funding parameters and logistics, the opportunity lists an award ceiling of $800,000. The original closing date was May 17, 2024, and the funding instrument is a cooperative agreement, which typically indicates substantial involvement or collaboration from the funder during implementation (for example, coordination on work plans, deliverables, or monitoring). The listing shows "ExpectedAwards: 0," which can appear in public notices for administrative reasons and does not necessarily reflect the final number of awards; applicants would need to confirm award expectations in the full notice and related guidance.

Eligibility is broad and described as "Unrestricted," with specific eligible applicant types including U.S.-based non-profit/non-governmental organizations, U.S.-based educational institutions qualifying under 501(c)(3) or under 26 U.S.C. 115, as well as foreign-based NGOs and foreign-based educational institutions. This indicates the U.S. Mission to Guatemala is open to both domestic and international implementers, including universities and training institutions, as long as they can credibly deliver capacity-building, interinstitutional coordination support, and program activities aligned with the goals of strengthening SVET and improving government-wide prevention and response to GBV and TIP.

Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a government capacity-strengthening and coordination project that combines three connected priorities: (1) improving SVET's internal expertise and standard operating approaches related to sexual violence, exploitation, and trafficking; (2) building a scalable train-the-trainer system that enables SVET to mobilize other Guatemalan government institutions to run effective awareness and prevention campaigns, including work that challenges enabling social norms; and (3) enhancing SVET's ability to support the identification and initiation of investigations, through proper channels, against trafficking networks and associated money laundering activities. The underlying logic is that sustainable reductions in GBV and trafficking require consistent interagency coordination, prevention messaging that addresses cultural drivers, and stronger institutional pathways that connect awareness and victim protection with credible investigative follow-through.

• The U.S. Mission to Guatemala in the law, justice and legal services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Combat human smuggling and Gender-Based Violence TIP and best practices in the Government of Guatemala for SVET" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.703.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-03-19.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-05-17. (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 $800,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.

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