The U.S. Department of State Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs (EB) announces an open competition for organizations to submit a statement of interest (SOI) to carry out a program under the International Technology Security and Innovation (ITSI) Fund, created by the CHIPS Act of 2022. Please carefully follow all instructions below. The submission of the SOI is the first step in a two-step process. Applicants must first submit a concise no more than three (3) page statement of interest designed to clearly communicate the program idea and objectives. This is not a full proposal. The purpose of the SOI process is to allow applicants to submit program ideas for evaluation prior to requiring the development of a full proposal application. Upon a merit review of eligible SOIs, selected applicants will be invited to expand on their program idea(s) by submitting a full proposal application. Full proposals will go through a second merit review before final funding decisions are made. EB administers a portion of the ITSI Fund, the “ITSI Promote” line of effort, to help expand international semiconductor assembly, testing, and packaging (“ATP” or “downstream”) capacity in key partner countries that will in turn diversify the global semiconductor supply chain. EB’s objectives under the ITSI Fund are to: 1) Expand and diversify the required workforce for semiconductor ATP facilities to ensure growth; and 2) Improve regulatory environments that will encourage private sector efforts that generate additional capabilities in ATP facilities. This solicitation is specific to Costa Rica and includes two (2) categories under which applicants may submit SOIs: 1) Workforce Development, and 2) Policy and Regulatory Reform. See "Related Documents" tab for attached RSOI background, illustrative activities, and submission instructions. If you have any questions about the SOI application process, please contact
[email protected] by August 2, 2024. Emails must reference the funding opportunity number DFOP0016763 in the subject line. FAQ will be posted on Grants.gov by August 10, 2024. SOIs may be submitted via email to
[email protected].