Broad Agency Announcement for Remote Monitoring of the Humanitarian Supply Chain | BAA BHA 21 000001

FAQs: USAID/BHA Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for Remote Monitoring of the Humanitarian Supply Chain

What is this funding opportunity about?

This opportunity from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), through its Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), seeks new ideas to remotely monitor humanitarian supplies as they move through the international supply chain. The goal is to improve visibility, accountability, and confidence that commodities arrive at the intended destination, in good condition, with fewer losses.

What type of solicitation is it?

It is issued as a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA). A BAA is intended to attract a wide range of technical approaches rather than prescribing a single, specific solution.

What is the main goal USAID/BHA is trying to achieve?

The central goal is to identify practical, scalable, and cost-effective technologies that can tag, track, locate, and monitor humanitarian commodities from shipment through delivery. This includes both food assistance and non-food items (NFIs).

What types of commodities are in scope?

The BAA is focused on monitoring both food assistance and non-food items (NFIs) as they move through the international supply chain.

What kinds of technologies or capabilities is USAID/BHA looking for?

USAID/BHA is looking for remote sensing and monitoring capabilities that can generate useful, quantifiable data about commodity condition and handling during transit and storage, and translate that information into timely operational insights.

What measurements or parameters does the BAA specifically mention?

The announcement explicitly mentions capturing baseline parameters and ongoing measurements such as temperature, humidity, moisture, tilt, and shock while goods are in transit.

Can proposals include monitoring for other risk factors besides the listed parameters?

Yes. The BAA signals interest in monitoring additional factors that could affect quality and safety. This leaves room for applicants to propose sensors or analytics tailored to real-world risks in humanitarian logistics, such as spoilage risk, exposure to water intrusion, or rough handling.

Is the goal just to collect data, or is decision support part of the expectation?

The intent goes beyond raw data collection. USAID/BHA is looking for solutions that turn monitoring data into timely insights that can support better decisions during transport and storage.

What does USAID/BHA mean by improving visibility and accountability?

It refers to making it easier to know the location, condition, and overall quality of humanitarian commodities as they travel globally. Better visibility is intended to reduce waste, loss, damage, operational risk, and inefficiencies that can occur when shipments are delayed, mishandled, diverted, or exposed to damaging conditions.

What kinds of outputs are encouraged (for example, reporting tools)?

The BAA highlights the value of actionable outputs such as analytics, dashboards, and reporting. Proposals are encouraged to consider the full pipeline from data capture to interpretation and user-friendly presentation, rather than treating monitoring as a standalone technical feature.

Who should be able to access the information generated by the solution?

The announcement emphasizes making information available not only within USAID or the U.S. Government, but also to receivers of commodities, private sector partners, and donor governments.

Does the opportunity suggest anything about transparency or access controls?

Yes. The stated goal of sharing information with multiple stakeholder types points toward solutions that support appropriate transparency and coordination, which may include standardized reporting, configurable access controls, and outputs understandable to both technical and non-technical users.

What implementation realities should applicants consider?

The announcement points to real-world constraints such as connectivity limitations, varied operating environments, and the need for systems that can function across many countries and logistics contexts.

What kinds of activities might be funded under this BAA?

The opportunity is geared toward maturing solutions into workable, demonstrable capabilities. Examples mentioned or implied include research and development (R&D), prototyping, piloting, field testing, evaluation, and scaling.

Is this funding meant for basic research, or for more applied work?

Awards are expected to fall under "Applied Research" or "Development" as defined in U.S. law (48 USC 35.001). The emphasis is on advancing and maturing solutions into practical capabilities rather than purely theoretical research.

How does the announcement describe "Applied Research" and "Development"?

Applied research is described as work that typically follows basic research and aims to determine and exploit the potential of scientific discoveries or technology improvements to advance the state of the art. Development is described as the systematic use of scientific and technical knowledge to design, develop, test, or evaluate a new or improved product or service to meet specific performance objectives, including engineering design, prototyping, and testing.

Is USAID/BHA looking to partner with applicants, or just fund them?

The effort is framed as collaborative. USAID/BHA states they are looking to co-create, co-design, co-invest, and partner with applicants across the lifecycle of innovation, from early development through deployment at scale.

What is the funding instrument type?

The opportunity is described as using an "Other" funding instrument type.

Is the funding opportunity discretionary?

Yes. The opportunity is listed as discretionary.

Who is eligible to apply?

The provided information states the opportunity has unrestricted eligibility, indicating that a broad range of organizations could potentially apply (subject to the detailed eligibility terms in the full announcement).

What is the official title and identifying information for this BAA?

The opportunity is identified as "Broad Agency Announcement for Remote Monitoring of the Humanitarian Supply Chain." The funding opportunity number is "BAA BHA 21 000001" and the CFDA number is 98.001.

When was it posted and what was the original closing date?

The opportunity was originally posted on 2020-12-14 and had an original closing date of 2021-02-01.

Is the award ceiling or the expected number of awards specified?

No. The provided information does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards. Applicants would typically need to consult the full solicitation for budget expectations, submission requirements, and selection criteria.

What is the overall purpose behind this BAA?

The underlying purpose is practical: protect commodity quality and safety, reduce losses and inefficiencies, and improve confidence among stakeholders that humanitarian assistance is being handled and delivered effectively.