Contract Mechanisms: Access
to the Country Research Activity (CRA) and Global Research
Activity (GRA)
Field missions and other operating units in USAID may access
services provided through the Global Research Activity (GRA)
and the Country Research Activity (CRA) in three ways:
1. Field Support
2. Modified Acquisition and Assistance
Request Documents (MAARDS); and/or
3. Associate Award
Field support (and MAARDS) are tools by which a mission may transfer
funds to centrally managed activities without decreasing
its Operational Year Budget (OYB). A mission’s field support (or MAARDS) request
to the CRA or GRA, the Leader Awards, will be managed by
the Office of Health, Infectious Diseases and Nutrition (HIDN) in
the Bureau for Global Health. You can also contact your Mission
program office for further description of field support and
MAARDS and how to send funds to USAID/Washington using these tools.
Associate Awards require that the Mission develop and negotiate
a separate program description with the CRA or GRA and manage
the award from the Mission. The associate award is not a
sub-award, but rather a new agreement between USAID and the
recipient of the leader award, CRA or GRA. Additionally,
associate awards:
- Must fit within the scope of the program description
of the CRA or GRA leader awards;
- May be issued until
the leader award expires and may extend no more than
five years beyond the expiration of the
leader award, but for a maximum of 10 years;
- May not extend more than five years
into the future at any given time.
For more detailed information on
Leader with Associate Cooperative Agreements, please talk
to your Mission
program office and
also see CIB
99-10.
Please contact Neal
Brandes or
Heather Haberle,
if you are planning to utilize the CRA
or GRA Leader with Associate
Cooperative
Agreements. The CRA and GRA activities are also described
in the Users’ Guide
to USAID/Washington Population, HIV/AIDS, Health and Nutrition
Programs.
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