Data for Local Impact Innovation Challenge Project | MCC 16 RFA 0001

Opportunity Information: Apply for MCC 16 RFA 0001

The Data for Local Impact Innovation Challenge Project is a Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) funding opportunity that seeks an East Africa based organization, legally registered and operating with a functioning office in either Tanzania or Kenya, to provide technical assistance through a cooperative agreement. The award is framed as the first announcement under a broader initiative called the Data Collaboratives for Local Impact Umbrella Program, which is designed to strengthen how data is accessed, combined, and used to drive practical decisions and measurable results at national and especially local levels. While the umbrella program includes multiple related investments, this solicitation is specifically for the Innovation Challenge component only, meaning applicants are asked to apply to run and support the challenge mechanism rather than the other program elements.

At the center of this opportunity is the creation and operation of a flexible platform, both online and operational, that can repeatedly run competitive funding rounds during the year. MCC describes these rounds as two to three "challenge windows" annually, with awards structured as grants and/or success-contingent prizes. These competitions would vary by theme and are intentionally limited to local, in-country groups, collaborations, and organizations, with the goal of surfacing and supporting homegrown problem-solvers rather than externally led teams. The intent is to identify, engage, and connect local innovators, entrepreneurs, advocates, and South-to-South collaborators who can help unlock existing datasets, address critical data gaps, and strengthen the overall data ecosystem in ways that align with local, subnational, and national priorities. The challenge is also expected to respond to select requirements tied to MCCs broader data collaboration work and the DREAMS partnership referenced in the notice.

Although applicants are only competing to support the Innovation Challenge, the opportunity is explicitly positioned as part of an interconnected three-part investment package. The second component, described for context, is a Tanzania Data Collaborative (the "Co-Lab"), envisioned as a physical venue and enabling technology platform where stakeholders can share, combine, and use data from multiple sectors and sources. This Co-Lab is meant to anchor the overall umbrella program in Tanzania by connecting national and subnational objectives with Tanzanian national priorities and global commitments, while building practical capacity so that open data and analytics become more routine inputs into government and stakeholder decision-making. The third component, still under development at the time of the notice, is Subnational Data Collaboratives focused on improving the ability of district or county institutions to produce actionable local data and increase participation by citizens, civil society organizations, infomediaries, and small and medium enterprises in using data to improve services and outcomes. MCC highlights that subnational areas often face the largest data gaps and receive less investment, even though decentralization trends make local decision-making increasingly important for real-world impact.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is listed as discretionary funding with a cooperative agreement as the instrument type, categorized under community development (CFDA 85.002). The funding opportunity number is MCC 16 RFA 0001, originally posted on 2015-11-20, with an original closing date of 2016-01-25. The notice lists an award ceiling of up to USD 4,000,000. In practical terms, a successful applicant would be expected to play the role of an implementing technical partner that can design and manage repeated challenge cycles, administer prize or grant processes, and build the supporting systems needed to identify local solutions that expand data availability and use while reinforcing broader data collaboration efforts in the region.

• The Millennium Challenge Corporation in the community development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Data for Local Impact Innovation Challenge Project" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 85.002.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2015-11-20.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2016-01-25. (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 $4,000,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for MCC 16 RFA 0001

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