Opportunity Information: Apply for SFOP0005987
The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations (CSO) released a discretionary funding opportunity titled "Political Instability Risks in the Western Balkans" (Funding Opportunity Number SFOP0005987) to support projects focused on anticipating and mitigating threats to political stability and Euro-Atlantic integration across the Western Balkans. The core purpose is to strengthen how the U.S. government and regional stakeholders plan and coordinate by producing better regional-level analysis, especially analysis that can move beyond descriptive reporting and toward practical forecasting. Rather than funding traditional programming or country-by-country assessments, the opportunity emphasizes work that treats instability as a cross-border, interconnected problem and generates products that are directly usable for interagency and regional planning.
The solicitation specifically calls for projects that build new analytic platforms and predictive tools. In practice, that means proposals were expected to go beyond standard research reports and instead create systems, methodologies, or toolkits that help decision-makers spot early warning signals, identify emerging risks, and compare scenarios over time. The intent is to improve anticipation of stability threats by integrating different sources of information and presenting them in ways that support planning, prioritization, and coordination. The framing suggests an interest in innovations such as structured analytic techniques, risk indicators and dashboards, scenario-generation approaches, or other forecasting and monitoring models that can be updated as conditions change.
Applicants were instructed to align their proposals with one of two thematic areas, but with a clear limitation: proposals should not focus on election interference or on destabilizing economic influence from China in the Western Balkans. In other words, CSO was open to a range of other political instability drivers and pathways, but it wanted applicants to look outside those two commonly discussed categories. The opportunity's language also underlines that the work should address threats from a regional perspective, implying attention to how political dynamics in one place can spill over into neighboring countries, affect regional cohesion, and complicate Euro-Atlantic integration trajectories.
From an administrative standpoint, this was offered as a cooperative agreement, which typically indicates a closer working relationship with the funding agency than a standard grant, often involving more frequent coordination, shared planning, or iterative development of deliverables. The award ceiling was $1,323,250. The opportunity was published on June 27, 2019, with an original closing date of August 16, 2019. The CFDA number listed is 19.121. While the notice lists "ExpectedAwards: 0" in the provided data, the solicitation still functioned as a call for proposals under the stated ceiling and structure, and applicants would have been expected to propose a coherent scope of work within that maximum funding level.
Eligibility was limited to nonprofits that do not have 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education. The agency of record is the Department of State, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, and the activity category is listed as "Other," with additional clarification referenced in the full solicitation materials. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a targeted investment in region-wide early warning and forecasting capacity for the Western Balkans, designed to produce actionable analytic infrastructure that helps policymakers and planners reduce political instability risks and support Euro-Atlantic integration goals, while intentionally steering applicants away from election-interference and China-economic-influence frames.Apply for SFOP0005987
- The Department of State, Bureau of Conflict Stabilization Operations in the other (see text field entitled explanation of other category of funding activity for clarification) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Political Instability Risks in the Western Balkans" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.121.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jun 27, 2019.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 16, 2019. (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 $1,323,250.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - Political Instability Risks in the Western Balkans (SFOP0005987)
What is this funding opportunity?
This is a discretionary funding opportunity from the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations (CSO) titled "Political Instability Risks in the Western Balkans" (Funding Opportunity Number SFOP0005987). It supports projects designed to anticipate and mitigate threats to political stability and Euro-Atlantic integration across the Western Balkans, with a strong emphasis on regional (cross-border) analysis and practical forecasting.
Who is the funding agency?
The funding agency is the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations (CSO).
What is the main purpose of the opportunity?
The core purpose is to strengthen how the U.S. government and regional stakeholders plan and coordinate by producing improved regional-level analysis that goes beyond descriptive reporting and moves toward practical forecasting. The solicitation emphasizes work that produces outputs directly usable for interagency and regional planning.
What kind of work is CSO looking to fund?
CSO is looking for projects that build new analytic platforms and predictive tools for early warning and forecasting of political instability risks in the Western Balkans. Rather than standard research products alone, the opportunity emphasizes systems, methodologies, or toolkits that can help decision-makers identify early warning signals, track risk over time, and compare scenarios in ways that support planning and coordination.
Does this opportunity fund traditional programming or country-by-country assessments?
No. The opportunity explicitly de-emphasizes traditional programming and country-by-country assessments. It prioritizes approaches that treat instability as a cross-border, interconnected regional problem and that generate regional-level analytic products meant to inform planning across stakeholders.
What does "regional-level" focus mean in this solicitation?
It means proposals should examine political instability dynamics across the Western Balkans as an interconnected system, including how developments in one location can spill over into neighboring countries, affect regional cohesion, and influence broader Euro-Atlantic integration trajectories.
What types of deliverables are implied by the solicitation?
The solicitation points toward deliverables like analytic platforms, predictive or forecasting tools, structured analytic techniques, risk indicators and dashboards, scenario-generation approaches, and monitoring models that can be updated as conditions change. The key theme is that outputs should be practical and usable for planning, prioritization, and coordination.
Is the goal to produce better reporting or better forecasting?
The solicitation emphasizes moving beyond descriptive reporting toward practical forecasting. The intended products should help decision-makers anticipate emerging risks and identify early warning signals rather than only describe current conditions.
What information sources or methods does the opportunity emphasize?
The opportunity emphasizes integrating different sources of information and presenting them in ways that support decision-making. While it does not prescribe specific datasets, it signals interest in methodologies and systems that synthesize multiple inputs into indicators, scenarios, or monitoring tools that can be updated over time.
Are there topic restrictions or areas that proposals should avoid?
Yes. Applicants were instructed to align their proposals with one of two thematic areas, but with a clear limitation: proposals should not focus on election interference or on destabilizing economic influence from China in the Western Balkans. CSO signaled openness to other instability drivers and pathways, but intentionally steered applicants away from those two frames.
If election interference and China-related economic influence are excluded, what kinds of drivers can still be addressed?
Based on the solicitation summary provided, CSO was open to a range of other political instability drivers and pathways as long as the approach remains regional and produces actionable analytic infrastructure and forecasting capacity. The notice does not enumerate specific alternative drivers, but it clearly indicates that applicants should look outside the two excluded categories.
What award instrument will be used?
The opportunity is offered as a cooperative agreement. This typically implies a closer working relationship with the funding agency than a standard grant, often involving more frequent coordination, shared planning, and iterative development of deliverables.
What is the maximum funding amount?
The award ceiling is $1,323,250. Applicants would have been expected to propose a coherent scope of work that fits within this maximum funding level.
How many awards are expected?
The provided data lists "ExpectedAwards: 0." However, the solicitation still functioned as a call for proposals under the stated ceiling and cooperative agreement structure, indicating that applicants were expected to submit proposals consistent with the opportunity requirements.
When was the opportunity posted and when did it close?
The opportunity was published on June 27, 2019. The original closing date was August 16, 2019.
What is the CFDA number for this opportunity?
The CFDA number listed is 19.121.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility was limited to nonprofits that do not have 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education. In other words, eligible applicants include certain nonprofit organizations without 501(c)(3) status, and institutions of higher education are an exception noted in the eligibility statement.
What geographic region does the opportunity focus on?
The focus is the Western Balkans, with a strong emphasis on cross-border dynamics and region-wide early warning and forecasting capacity rather than country-specific programming.
What is the intended end use of the analysis and tools produced?
The intended end use is to support interagency and regional planning, prioritization, and coordination by the U.S. government and regional stakeholders. The solicitation stresses that products should be directly usable for decision-making and planning workflows.
How is this opportunity best described in plain terms?
It is a targeted investment in region-wide early warning and forecasting capacity for political instability risks in the Western Balkans. The emphasis is on building actionable analytic infrastructure (platforms, tools, methodologies) that help policymakers anticipate risks and support Euro-Atlantic integration goals, while avoiding a focus on election interference and China-related economic influence.
What activity category is associated with this opportunity?
The activity category is listed as "Other," with additional clarification referenced in the full solicitation materials.
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