15586 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 61 / Friday, March 30, 2007 / Notices 

identify terms and conditions pursuant 

to which CCC will reimburse certain 

costs of each project. Agreements will 

also outline the responsibilities of the 

participant, including, but not limited 

to, procurement (or arranging for 

procurement) of the commodity sample 

at a fair market price, arranging for 

transportation of the commodity sample 

within the time limit specified in the 

agreement (organizations should 

endeavor to ship commodities within 6 

months of effective date of agreement), 

compliance with cargo preference 

requirements (shipment on United 

States flag vessels, as required), 

compliance with the Fly America Act 

requirements (shipment on United 

States air carriers, as required), timely 

and effective implementation of 

technical assistance, and submission of 

a written evaluation report within 90 

days of expiration of the agreement. 

QSP agreements are subject to review 

and verification by the FAS 

Compliance, Security and Emergency 

Planning Division. Upon request, a QSP 

participant shall provide to CCC the 

original documents which support the 

participant’s reimbursement claims. 

CCC may deny a claim for 

reimbursement if the claim is not 

supported by adequate documentation. 

If a participant receives a 

reimbursement which is later 

disallowed, the participant shall within 

30 days of such disallowance repay CCC 

the amount owed by submitting a check 

payable to CCC. 

3. Reporting. A written evaluation 

report must be submitted within 90 days 

of the expiration of each participant’s 

QSP agreement. Evaluation reports 

should address all performance 

measures that were presented in the 

proposal. 

VII. Agency Contact(s) 

For additional information and 

assistance, contact the Program Policy 

Staff, Foreign Agricultural Service, U.S. 

Department of Agriculture, Portals 

Office Building, Suite 400, Stop 1042, 

1250 Maryland Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20024, phone: (202) 

720–4327, fax: (202) 720–9361, e-mail: 

ppsadmin@fas.usda.gov. 

W. Kirk Miller, 

Administrator, Foreign Agricultural Service, 

and Vice President, Commodity Credit 

Corporation. 

[FR Doc. 07–1593 Filed 3–29–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–10–M 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Commodity Credit Corporation 

Notice of Funds Availability: Inviting 

Applications for the Emerging Markets 

Program 

Announcement Type: New. 

Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CFDA) Number: 10.603. 

SUMMARY: The Commodity Credit 

Corporation (CCC) announces the 

availability of approximately $8 million 

in funding for the Emerging Markets 

Program (EMP) for fiscal year (FY) 2007. 

The intended effect of this notice is to 

solicit applications from the private 

sector and from government agencies for 

FY 2007 and award funds in August 

2007. The EMP is administered by 

personnel of the Foreign Agricultural 

Service (FAS). 

DATES: All proposals must be received 

by 5 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, May 

14, 2007. Applications received after 

this time will not be considered. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Entities wishing to apply for funding 

assistance should contact the Program 

Policy Staff, Foreign Agricultural 

Service, Portals Office Building, Suite 

400, 1250 Maryland Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20024, phone: (202) 

720–4327, fax: (202) 720–9361, e-mail: 

ppsadmin@fas.usda.gov. Information is 

also available on the Foreign 

Agricultural Service Web site at http:// 

www.fas.usda.gov/mos/em-markets/emmarkets.asp. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Authority: The EMP is authorized by 

section 1542(d)(1)(D) of the Food, 

Agriculture, Conservation and Trade 

Act of 1990 (The Act), as amended. EMF 

regulations appear at 7 CFR part 1486. 

1. Purpose: The EMP provides 

funding for technical assistance to assist 

U.S. organizations, public and private, 

to improve market access through 

generic, rather than branded, activities 

that can develop and promote U.S. 

agricultural products and/or processes 

in low- to middle-income countries that 

offer promise of emerging market 

opportunities. 

Activities funded are those that 

primarily benefit U.S. industry as a 

whole. All agricultural products, except 

tobacco, are eligible for consideration. 

Proposals which include multiple 

commodities are also eligible. Only 

technical assistance activities are 

eligible for reimbursement. 

2. Appropriate Activities: Following 

are types of project activities that may 

be funded: 

—Projects designed specifically to 

improve market access in emerging 

foreign markets. Examples: Activities 

intended to mitigate the impact of 

sudden political events or economic 

and currency crises in order to 

maintain U.S. market share; responses 

to time-sensitive market 

opportunities; 

—Marketing and distribution of valueadded products, including new 

products or uses. Examples: Food 

service development; market research 

on potential for consumer ready foods 

or new uses of a product; 

—Studies of food distribution channels 

in emerging markets, including 

infrastructural impediments to U.S. 

exports; such studies should be 

specific in their focus and may 

include cross-commodity activities 

which address specific problems. 

Examples: Grain storage handling and 

inventory systems development; 

distribution infrastructure 

development; 

—Projects that specifically address 

various constraints to U.S. exports, 

including sanitary and phytosanitary 

issues and other non-tariff barriers. 

Examples: Seminars on U.S. food 

safety standards and regulations; 

assessing and addressing pest and 

disease problems that inhibit U.S. 

exports; 

—Assessments and follow up activities 

designed to improve country-wide 

food and business systems, to reduce 

trade barriers, to increase prospects 

for U.S. trade and investment in 

emerging markets, and to determine 

the potential use for general export 

credit guarantees for commodities and 

services. Examples: Product needs 

assessments and market analysis; 

assessments to address infrastructural 

impediments; 

—Projects that help foreign governments 

collect and use market information 

and develop free trade policies that 

benefit U.S. exporters as well as the 

target country or countries. Examples: 

Agricultural statistical analysis; 

development of market information 

systems; policy analysis; and, 

—Short-term training in broad aspects 

of agriculture and agribusiness trade 

that will benefit U.S. exporters, 

including seminars and training at 

trade shows designed to expand the 

potential for U.S. agricultural exports 

by focusing on the trading system. 

Examples: Retail training; marketing 

seminars; transportation seminars; 

training on opening new or expanding 

existing markets. The program funds 

technical assistance activities on a 

project-by-project basis. 


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EMP funds may not be used to 

support normal operating costs of 

individual organizations, nor as a source 

by which to recover pre-award costs or 

prior expenses from previous or ongoing 

projects. 

Proposals that counter national 

strategies or duplicate activities already 

planned or underway by national nonprofit commodity or trade associations 

(‘‘cooperator’’) organizations will not be 

considered. 

Ineligible activities include restaurant 

promotions; branded product 

promotions (including labeling and 

supplementing normal company sales 

activities intended to increase 

awareness and stimulate sales of 

branded products); advertising; 

administrative and operational expenses 

for trade shows; and the preparation and 

printing of brochures, flyers, posters, 

etc., except in connection with specific 

technical assistance activities such as 

training seminars. Other items excluded 

from funding are contained in the EMP 

Regulations. 

3. Eligible Markets: The Act defines 

an emerging market as any country that 

the Secretary of Agriculture determines: 

(a) Is taking steps toward a marketoriented economy through the food, 

agriculture, or rural business sectors of 

the economy of the country; and 

(b) Has the potential to provide a 

viable and significant market for United 

States agricultural commodities or 

products of United States agricultural 

commodities. 

Because funds are limited and the 

range of potential emerging market 

countries is worldwide, proposals for 

technical assistance activities will be 

considered which target those countries 

or regional groups with per capita 

income less than $10,725 (the current 

ceiling on upper middle income 

economies as determined by the World 

Bank [WorId Development Indicators; 

July 2006]) and populations of greater 

than 1 million. 

Income limits and their calculation 

can change from year to year, with the 

result that a given country may qualify 

under the legislative and administrative 

criteria one year but not the next. 

Therefore, CCC has not established a 

fixed list of ‘‘emerging market’’

countries. For FY 2007, however, the 

following guidance is provided 

regarding country eligibility for the 

EMP: 

—Eligible. All of the countries of 

Central and South America; most in 

the Caribbean; all of sub-Saharan 

Africa; some countries in the Middle 

East; and the developing economies of 

Asia. 

—Generally Ineligible. Canada; Japan; 

Taiwan; Hong Kong; South Korea; 

Australia; New Zealand; all countries 

of Western Europe; Slovenia; Israel; 

Aruba, and Antigua and Barbuda in 

the Caribbean; and Saudi Arabia, the 

United Arab Emirates, and Qatar in 

the Middle East. 

Some markets can be more difficult to 

develop and sustain over a period of 

time; proposed activities in such 

markets should be considered in terms 

of whether they provide ‘‘viable and 

significant markets’’ for U.S. agricultural 

exports. 

In the case of some oil-rich countries 

in the Middle East, however, e.g., Saudi 

Arabia, targeted activities may be 

considered on a case-by-case basis, for 

example, addressing technical barriers 

to exporting U.S. commodities. 

A few countries technically qualify as 

emerging markets, but because of 

political sensitivities may require a 

separate determination before funding 

can be considered. 

II. Award Information 

In general, all qualified proposals 

received before the application deadline 

will compete for EMP funding. Priority 

consideration will be given to proposals 

that identify and seek to address 

specific problems or constraints to 

agricultural exports in emerging markets 

through technical assistance activities 

that are intended to expand or maintain 

U.S. agricultural exports. Priority will 

also be given to those proposals that 

include the willingness of the applicant 

to commit its own funds, or those of the 

U.S. industry, to seek export 

opportunities in an emerging market. 

The percentage of private funding 

proposed for a project will, therefore, be 

a critical factor in determining which 

proposals are funded under the EMP. 

Proposals will also be judged on their 

ability to provide benefits to the 

organization receiving EMP funds and 

to the broader industry which that 

organization represents. 

The limited funds and the range of 

emerging markets worldwide in which 

the funds may be used preclude CCC 

from approving large budgets for 

individual projects. While there is no 

minimum or maximum amount set for 

EMP-funded projects, most are funded 

at a level of less than $250,000 and for 

a duration of approximately one year. 

Multi-year proposals, and those 

requesting higher levels of funding, may 

be considered in the context of a 

strategic detailed plan of 

implementation. Funding in such cases 

is normally provided one year at a time, 

with commitments beyond the first year 

subject to interim evaluations. 

Funding for successful proposals will 

be provided through specific 

agreements. The CCC, through FAS, will 

be kept informed of the implementation 

of approved projects through the 

requirement to provide quarterly 

progress reports and final performance 

reports. Changes in the original project 

time lines and adjustments within 

project budgets must be approved by 

FAS. 

III. Eligibility and Qualification 

Information 

1. Eligible Applicants. Any United 

States private or Government entity 

with a demonstrated role or interest in 

exports of U.S. agricultural commodities 

or products may apply to the program. 

Government organizations consist of 

Federal, State, and local agencies. 

Private organizations include non-profit 

trade associations, universities, 

agricultural cooperatives, state regional 

trade groups, and profit-making entities 

and consulting businesses. Proposals 

from research and consulting 

organizations will be considered if they 

provide evidence of substantial 

participation in and financial support 

by the U.S. industry. For-profit entities 

are also eligible, but may not use 

program funds to conduct private 

business, promote private self-interests, 

supplement the costs of normal sales 

activities, or promote their own 

products or services beyond specific 

uses approved by CCC in a given 

project. 

U.S. market development cooperators 

and state regional trade groups (SRTGs) 

may seek funding to address priority, 

market specific issues and to undertake 

activities not suitable for funding under 

other marketing programs, e.g., the 

Foreign Market Development 

Cooperator (Cooperator) Program and 

the Market Access Program (MAP). 

Foreign organizations, whether 

government or private, may participate 

as third parties in activities carried out 

by U.S. organizations, but are not 

eligible for funding assistance from the 

program. 

2. Cost Sharing. No private sector 

proposal will be considered without the 

element of cost-share from the 

participant and/or U.S. partners. The 

EMP is intended to complement, not 

supplant, the efforts of the U.S. private 

sector. There is no minimum or 

maximum amount of cost share, though 

the range in recent successful proposals 

has been between 35 and 75 percent. 

The degree of commitment to a 

proposed project, represented by the 

amount and type of private funding, is 

used in determining which proposals 

will be approved for funding. Cost-share 


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may be actual cash invested or 

professional time of staff assigned to the 

project. Proposals for which private 

industry is willing to commit cash, 

rather than in-kind contributions such 

as staff resources, will be given priority 

consideration. 

Cost-sharing is not required for 

proposals from U.S. Government 

agencies, but is mandatory for all other 

eligible entities, even when they may be 

party to a joint proposal with a U.S. 

Government agency. Contributions from 

USDA or other U.S. Government 

agencies or programs may not be 

counted toward the stated cost share 

requirement. Similarly, contributions 

from foreign (non-U.S.) organizations 

may not be counted toward the cost 

share requirement, but may be counted 

in the total cost of the project. 

3. Other. Proposals should include a 

justification for funding assistance from 

the program—an explanation as to what 

specifically could not be accomplished 

without federal funding assistance and 

why the participating organization(s) 

would be unlikely to carry out the 

project without such assistance. 

Applicants may submit more than one 

proposal. 

IV. Application and Submission 

Information 

1. Address to Request Application 

Package. EMP applicants have the 

opportunity to utilize the Unified 

Export Strategy (UES) application 

process, an online system which 

provides a means for interested 

applicants to submit a consolidated and 

strategically coordinated single proposal 

that incorporates funding requests for 

any or all of the market development 

programs administered by FAS. 

Applicants are not required to use the 

UES, but are strongly encouraged to do 

so because it reduces paperwork and 

expedites the FAS processing and 

review cycle. Applicants planning to 

use the on-line system must contact the 

Program Policy Staff at (202) 720–4327 

to obtain site access information 

including a user id and password. The 

Internet-based application, including 

step-by-step instructions for its use, is 

located at the following URL address: 

http://www.fas.usda.gov/ 

cooperators.html. A Help file is 

available to assist applicants with the 

process. Applicants using the online 

system should also provide, promptly 

after the deadline for submitting the online application, a printed or e-mailed 

version of each proposal (using Word or 

compatible format) to one of the 

following addresses: 

Hand Delivery (including FedEx, 

DHL, UPS, etc.): U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural 

Service, Program Policy Staff, Portals 

Office Building, Suite 400, 1250 

Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, 

DC 20024. 

U.S. Postal Delivery: U.S. Department 

of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural 

Service, Program Policy Staff, STOP 

1042, 1400 Independence Ave., SW., 

Washington, DC 20250–1042. 

Applicants electing not to use the online system must submit both (1) a 

printed copy of their application to the 

addresses above and (2) an electronic 

version to the e-mail address above. 

2. Content and Form of Application 

Submission. It is highly recommended 

that any organization considering 

applying to the program first obtain a 

copy of the EMP Regulations. The 

regulations contain information on 

requirements that a proposal must 

include in order to be considered for 

funding under the program, along with 

other important information. EMP 

regulations and additional information 

may be obtained from the Program 

Policy Staff at the address above. The 

regulations are also available at the 

following URL address: http:// 

www.fas.usda.gov/mos/em-markets/emmarkets.asp. 

In addition, in accordance with the 

Office of Management and Budget’s 

policy directive regarding the use of a 

universal identifier for all Federal grants 

or cooperative agreements, all 

applicants must submit a Dun and 

Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering 

System (DUNS) number prior to 

submitting applications. An applicant 

may request a DUNS number at no cost 

by calling the dedicated toll-free DUNS 

number request line on 1–866–705–

5711. 

Applications should be no longer than 

ten (10) pages and include the following 

information: 

(a) Date of proposal; 

(b) Name of organization submitting 

proposal; 

(c) Organization address, telephone 

and fax numbers; 

(d) Tax ID number; 

(e) DUNS number; 

(f) Primary contact person; 

(g) Full title of proposal; 

(h) Target market(s); 

(i) Current conditions in the target 

market(s) affecting the intended 

commodity or product; 

(j) Description of problem(s), i.e., 

constraint(s), to be addressed by the 

project, such as inadequate knowledge 

of the market, insufficient trade 

contacts, lack of awareness by foreign 

officials of U.S. products and business 

practices, impediments (inftastructure, 

financing, regulatory or other non-tariff 

barriers), etc.; 

(k) Project objectives; 

(1) Performance measures: 

benchmarks for quantifying progress in 

meeting the objectives; 

(m) Rationale: Explanation of the 

underlying reasons for the project 

proposal and its approach, the 

anticipated benefits, and any additional 

pertinent analysis; 

(n) Clear demonstration that 

successful implementation will benefit a 

particular industry as a whole, not just 

the applicant(s); 

(o) Explanation as to what specifically 

could not be accomplished without 

federal funding assistance and why the 

participating organization(s) would be 

unlikely to carry out the project without 

such assistance; 

(p) Specific description of activity/ 

activities to be undertaken; 

(q) Time line(s) for implementation of 

activity, including start and end dates 

(start date should be no earlier than 

September 2007); 

(r) Information on whether similar 

activities are or have previously been 

funded with USDA sources in target 

country/countries (e.g., under MAP and/ 

or FMD programs); and 

(s) Detailed line item activity budget. 

Cost items should be allocated 

separately to each participating 

organization. Expense items constituting 

a proposed activity’s overall budget 

(e.g., salaries, travel expenses, 

consultant fees, administrative costs, 

etc.), with a line item cost for each, 

should be listed, clearly indicating: 

(1) Which items are to be covered by 

EMP funding; 

(2) Which by the participating U.S. 

organization(s); and 

(3) Which by foreign third parties (if 

applicable). Cost items for individual 

consultant fees should show calculation 

of daily rate and number of days. Cost 

items for travel expenses should show 

number of trips, destinations, cost, and 

objective for each trip. Qualifications of 

applicant(s) should be included as an 

attachment. 

3. Submission Dates and Times. All 

proposals must be received by 5 p.m. 

Eastern Daylight Time on May 14, 2007, 

in the PPS office, either electronically, 

hand delivered, or by mail. Proposals 

received after this date and time will not 

be reviewed or considered for program 

funding. 

4. Funding Restrictions. Certain types 

of expenses are not eligible for 

reimbursement by the program, and 

there are limits on other categories of 

expenses such as indirect overhead 

charges, travel expenses and consulting 

fees. CCC will not reimburse 


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expenditures made prior to approval of 

a proposal or unreasonable 

expenditures. Full details are available 

in the EMP regulations. 

Application Review Information 

1. Criteria. Key criteria used in 

judging proposals include: 

—Appropriateness of the activities for 

the targeted market(s), and the extent 

to which the project identifies market 

barriers, e.g., a fundamental 

deficiency in the market, and/or a 

recent change in market conditions; 

—Potential of the project to expand U.S. 

market share, increase U.S. exports or 

sales, and/or improve awareness of 

U.S. agricultural commodities and 

products; 

—Quality of the project’s performance 

measures, and the degree to which 

they relate to the objectives, proposed 

approach and activities, and 

deliverables; 

—Justification for federal funding; 

—Budget: overall cost and the amount 

of funding provided by applicants, the 

U.S. private sector and partners, if 

any; and 

—Evidence that the organization has the 

knowledge, expertise, ability, and 

resources to successfully implement 

the project. 

2. Review and Selection Process. All 

applications undergo a multi-phase 

review within FAS, by appropriate FAS 

field offices, and by the private sector 

Advisory Committee on Emerging 

Markets to determine qualifications, 

quality and appropriateness of projects, 

and reasonableness of project budgets. 

3. Anticipated Announcement Date. 

Announcements of funding decisions 

for the EMP are anticipated in August 

2007. 

VI. Award Administration Information 

1. Award Notices. FAS will notify 

applicants in writing of the final 

disposition of each application. FAS 

will send an approval letter and project 

agreement to each approved applicant. 

The approval letter and agreement will 

specify the terms and conditions 

applicable to the project, including the 

levels of EMP funding and cost-share 

contribution requirements. 

2. Administrative and National Policy 

Requirements. Interested parties should 

review the EMP regulations which are 

available at the following URL address: 

http://www.fas.usda.gov/mos/emmarkets/em-markets.asp. Printed copies 

may be obtained by contacting PPS at 

(202) 720–4327. 

3. Reporting. Quarterly progress 

reports for all programs one year or 

longer in duration are required. Projects 

of less than one year generally require 

a mid-term progress report. Final 

performance reports are due 90 days 

after completion of each project. 

Content for both types of reports is 

contained in the Project Agreement. 

Final financial reports are also due 90 

days after completion of each project, as 

attachments to the final reports. 

VII. Agency Contact(s) 

For additional information and 

assistance, contact the Program Policy 

Staff, Foreign Agricultural Service, U.S. 

Department of Agriculture, Portals 

Office Building, Suite 400, Stop 1042, 

1250 Maryland Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20024, phone: (202) 

720–4327, fax: (202) 720–9361, e-mail: 

ppsadmin@fas.usda.gov. 

W. Kirk Miller, 

Administrator, Foreign Agricultural Service 

and Vice President, Commodity Credit 

Corporation. 

[FR Doc. 07–1594 Filed 3–29–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–10–M 


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