Ensuring Reliable and Equitable Access to PMTCT Services for Key Populations in the Republic of Mali under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) | CDC RFA GH15 160502CONT16

Opportunity Information: Apply for CDC RFA GH15 160502CONT16

This funding opportunity, titled "Ensuring Reliable and Equitable Access to PMTCT Services for Key Populations in the Republic of Mali under the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)," is a continuation cooperative agreement issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under CFDA 93.067. The focus is on strengthening and maintaining services that prevent mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV in Mali, with particular attention to reaching key populations who may face barriers to accessing care. The overall intent is public health impact: preventing or controlling disease and improving health outcomes by improving the performance, reach, and reliability of PMTCT programs and related services.

A central feature of this announcement is that it is continuation funding only. That means it is not an open competition for new applicants. The funds are specifically intended for the grantee or grantees that were previously awarded under the earlier FOA, CDC-RFA-GH15-1605, which carried the same program title and purpose. In practical terms, the continuation mechanism is designed to keep an existing CDC-supported program operating and progressing without interruption, rather than launching a new project with a new implementing partner. The opportunity is categorized as "Continuation," and the award instrument is a cooperative agreement, which typically implies substantial programmatic involvement by CDC in planning, implementation support, and performance monitoring compared with a standard grant.

Programmatically, the purpose aligns with PEPFAR priorities in HIV prevention and treatment, especially for pregnant women, mothers, and infants. PMTCT activities usually include ensuring pregnant women have timely access to HIV testing and counseling, rapid linkage to antiretroviral therapy for those who test positive, retention in care during pregnancy and breastfeeding, infant prophylaxis and early infant diagnosis, and follow-up services that support maternal viral suppression and reduce infant infections. The wording of the opportunity emphasizes reliable and equitable access, signaling that the continuation award is expected to address operational and access gaps, such as service availability, continuity of antiretroviral supply and clinical services, referral systems, quality improvement, and strategies that help underserved or stigmatized groups actually reach and remain in care.

The announcement is also clear about what the funds can and cannot support. The CDC frames the overarching purpose as supporting activities that prevent or control disease or improve health, or that strengthen public health programs or services. Recipients are explicitly prohibited from using the funds for research. At the same time, the FOA notes that some activities may still involve people and therefore might trigger institutional human subjects review requirements, even though they are generally considered non-research public health practice. Examples provided include formative assessments, surveys, disease surveillance, routine program monitoring and evaluation, and field evaluation of diagnostic tests. In other words, the award can support data collection and evaluation work that helps improve service delivery and measure program performance, as long as the intent and structure remain within public health program implementation rather than hypothesis-driven research.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity lists an original closing date of 2015-11-30 and a creation date of 2015-09-25, reflecting that this is tied to an earlier funding cycle and is being extended through a continuation action. The eligible applicant category is listed as "Others," but given the continuation-only restriction, eligibility is effectively limited to the prior awardee(s) under CDC-RFA-GH15-1605, rather than any organization broadly meeting an eligibility definition. The award ceiling is shown as 0, which in many grant listings indicates that a specific maximum was not publicly stated in the summary record for this continuation notice, not necessarily that no funds are available.

In summary, this CDC/PEPFAR continuation cooperative agreement is meant to sustain and strengthen an existing PMTCT-focused public health program in Mali, with an emphasis on equitable access for key populations. It supports implementation, service delivery improvements, and routine program evaluation and surveillance activities, while clearly excluding research as an allowable use of funds.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Ensuring Reliable and Equitable Access to PMTCT Services for Key Populations in the Republic of Mali under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.067.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2015-09-25.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2015-11-30. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for CDC RFA GH15 160502CONT16

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