Opportunity Information: Apply for 7200AA20APS00009
The Higher Education for Leadership, Innovation, and Exchange (HELIX) opportunity is a USAID Annual Program Statement (APS) run by the USAID DDI Bureau Center for Education, working alongside USAID Missions and other Agency Bureaus and Independent Offices. Its overall purpose is to strengthen higher education capacity in partner countries by investing in people, institutions, and the broader higher education system in ways that help drive sustained, locally led development. HELIX is framed under USAID's New Partnerships Initiative (NPI), which signals an emphasis on building and widening partnerships and encouraging solutions that contribute to a country moving forward on its Journey to Self-Reliance.
Programmatically, HELIX is designed to support higher-education-connected approaches that build capacity and manage change. The opportunity explicitly includes a wide menu of eligible activity types, such as higher education partnerships, scholarships, exchanges, fellowships, internships, apprenticeships, work-based learning, applied research, communities of practice, and other related models of professional and institutional development. The common thread is that proposed solutions should create "meaningful change" at one or more levels: the individual level (skills, leadership, professional readiness), the institutional level (university or training institution performance, governance, programs, research capacity), and/or the system level (how higher education connects to workforce needs, innovation ecosystems, and national development priorities). In practical terms, HELIX is meant to fund initiatives where higher education is not just a setting, but a lever for broader development outcomes and local capacity to solve problems over time.
A key detail is that HELIX is not a standard Request for Applications (RFA) where applicants submit full proposals at any time. Instead, it operates as an umbrella APS that is activated through specific addenda. USAID posts addenda under the HELIX umbrella, and organizations respond to those addenda with Concept Notes. USAID then reviews those Concept Notes and decides whether to invite selected applicants to submit a Full Application. Importantly, concept notes or full applications that are not tied to an active addendum are not accepted. In other words, interested organizations cannot simply apply to "HELIX" in the abstract; they must track and respond to the specific, currently open HELIX addenda posted on grants.gov (or other specified USAID platforms).
From a funding and award standpoint, USAID anticipates making multiple awards under HELIX, typically in the form of grants and/or cooperative agreements, and it does not set a predefined minimum or maximum number of awards. The source data lists an award ceiling of $60,000,000, suggesting that individual addenda or a portfolio of awards under the APS could collectively reach up to that amount, depending on USAID's priorities and available funds. The opportunity is listed under Assistance Listing (CFDA) 98.001, and eligibility is described as "Unrestricted," indicating that a broad range of applicants may be able to compete, subject to the requirements and eligibility criteria stated in each specific addendum.
Administratively, the HELIX APS is identified on grants.gov as Funding Opportunity Number 7200AA20APS00009, created on April 3, 2020, with an original closing date shown as April 2, 2025. That closing date functions as the lifecycle end-date for the umbrella APS, but the real action occurs through time-bound addenda with their own deadlines and requirements. The description also points to an example addendum that was open at the time of the notice: the Higher Education Partnership for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (HEP-DRI), opportunity number 72038623RFA00006, which had a closing date of October 20, 2023. The takeaway is that prospective applicants need to monitor HELIX addenda regularly, because each addendum may target a different thematic area, geography, or development objective, and each will provide the specific instructions on what USAID wants to fund, what partners are needed, what outcomes are expected, and how selections will be made.Apply for 7200AA20APS00009
- The Agency for International Development in the education sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Higher Education for Leadership, Innovation, and Exchange (HELIX), A New Partnerships Initiative (NPI)" 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 2020-04-03.
- Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-04-02. (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 $60,000,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.
[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal:
Browse more opportunities from the same agency: Agency for International Development
Browse more opportunities from the same category: Education
Next opportunity: Assay development and screening for discovery of chemical probes, drugs or immunomodulators (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
Previous opportunity: Energy Sector Self-Reliance BAA
Applicant Portal:
Are you interested in learning about about how to apply for this government funding opportunity? You can create a free applicant account and receive instant access to our applicant portal that many business owners like you have benefited from.
Apply for 7200AA20APS00009
Applicants also applied for:
Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (7200AA20APS00009) also looked into and applied for these:
| Funding Opportunity |
|---|
| HELIX APS: Supporting Holistic and Actionable Research in Education (SHARE) Addendum Apply for 7200AA20APS00010 Funding Number: 7200AA20APS00010 Agency: Agency for International Development Category: Education Funding Amount: $40,000,000 |
| Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE): Education and Innovation Research (EIR): Mid-Phase Grants CFDA Number 84.411B Apply for ED GRANTS 041020 001 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 041020 001 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: $8,000,000 |
| Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund – IHEs 84.425E Apply for ED GRANTS 041020 003 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 041020 003 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund-IHE/Institution 84.425F Apply for ED GRANTS 042120 004 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 042120 004 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| COVID-19 Small Grants Program Apply for ND NOFO 20 111 Funding Number: ND NOFO 20 111 Agency: U.S. Mission to India Category: Education Funding Amount: $100,000 |
| Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund-FIPSE CFDA Number 84.425N Apply for ED GRANTS 043020 005 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 043020 005 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund-Historically Black Colleges and Universities CFDA Number 84.425J Apply for ED GRANTS 043020 001 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 043020 001 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund-Minority Serving Institutions CFDA Number 84.425L Apply for ED GRANTS 043020 003 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 043020 003 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund-Strengthening Institutions Program CFDA Number 84.425M Apply for ED GRANTS 043020 004 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 043020 004 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Office of Postsecondary Education: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund-Tribally Control Colleges and Universities CFDA Number 84.425K Apply for ED GRANTS 043020 002 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 043020 002 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Foundational Literacy for Improved Educational Resilience (FLIER) Apply for 72066020APS00002 Funding Number: 72066020APS00002 Agency: Democratic Republic of the Congo USAID-Kinshasa Category: Education Funding Amount: $38,000,000 |
| University Research Program for Georgian PhD Professors Apply for DOS GEO 20 CA 008 051920 Funding Number: DOS GEO 20 CA 008 051920 Agency: U.S. Mission to Georgia Category: Education Funding Amount: $250,000 |
| U.S. Embassy New Delhi North India Office PAS Annual Program Statemen Apply for ND NOFO 20 115 Funding Number: ND NOFO 20 115 Agency: U.S. Mission to India Category: Education Funding Amount: $25,000 |
| Sustainable U.S. and Palestinian Higher Education Partnerships Apply for PAUPDFY20006 Funding Number: PAUPDFY20006 Agency: U.S. Mission to Jerusalem Category: Education Funding Amount: $200,000 |
| AMERICAN ENGLISH AND CULTURE CONVERSATION COURSE FOR ADULTS Apply for PAUPDFY20009 Funding Number: PAUPDFY20009 Agency: U.S. Mission to Jerusalem Category: Education Funding Amount: $80,000 |
| Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS): Office of Special Programs (OSEP): Training and Information for Parents of Children with Disabilities: Parent Training and Information Centers CFDA Number 84.328M Apply for ED GRANTS 071420 001 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 071420 001 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE): Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Program: Early-Phase Grants CFDA Number 84.411C Apply for ED GRANTS 072920 002 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 072920 002 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: $12,000,000 |
| Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS): Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP): State Personnel Development Grants (SPDG) Program CFDA Number 84.323A Apply for ED GRANTS 072920 001 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 072920 001 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE): Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Program: Early-Phase Grants CFDA Number 84.411C Apply for ED GRANTS 072920 003 Funding Number: ED GRANTS 072920 003 Agency: Department of Education Category: Education Funding Amount: $12,000,000 |
| USAID/Indonesia Teman LPDP Apply for 72049720RFI00002 Funding Number: 72049720RFI00002 Agency: Indonesia USAID-Jakarta Category: Education Funding Amount: $5,000,000 |
Grant application guides and resources
It is always free to apply for government grants. However the process may be very complex depending on the funding opportunity you are applying for. Let us help you!
Apply for Grants
Inside Our Applicants Portal
Access Applicants Portal
- Grants Repository - Access current and historic funding opportunities with ease. Thousands of funding opportunities are published every week. We can help you sort through the database and find the eligible ones to apply for.
- Applicant Video Guides - The grant application process can be challenging to follow. We can help you with intuitive video guides to speed up the process and eliminate errors in submissions.
- Grant Proposal Wizard - We have developed a network of private funding organizations and investors across the United States. We can reach out and submit your proposal to these contacts to maximize your chances of getting the funding you need.
Premium leads for funding administrators, grant writers, and loan issuers
Thousands of people visit our website for their funding needs every day. When a user creates a grant proposal and files for submission, we pass the information on to funding administrators, grant writers, and government loan issuers.
If you manage government grant programs, provide grant writing services, or issue personal or government loans, we can help you reach your audience.
Learn More
Request more information:
Would you like to learn more about this funding opportunity, similar opportunities to "7200AA20APS00009", eligibility, application service, and/or application tips? Submit an inquiry below:
Don't forget to subscribe to our grant alerts mailing list to receive weekly alerts on new and updated grant funding opportunities like this one in your email.