Strengthening the Africa Society for Blood Transfusion (AfSBT) to Develop Regional Standards and Provide Accreditation and Quality Management Services to National Blood Services in Africa under the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) | CDC RFA GH15 153402CONT16

Opportunity Information: Apply for CDC RFA GH15 153402CONT16

This funding opportunity is a CDC-led cooperative agreement under PEPFAR focused on strengthening the Africa Society for Blood Transfusion (AfSBT) so it can set and support regional standards for blood transfusion services across Africa. The central idea is to reinforce AfSBT as a continent-wide technical body that can help national blood services improve the safety and quality of blood collection, testing, processing, storage, and distribution. By investing in AfSBTs capacity to provide accreditation and quality management services, the program aims to promote more consistent, high-quality practices across countries, which is especially important in PEPFAR-supported settings where safe blood is a critical part of HIV prevention and clinical care.

The opportunity is explicitly a continuation award, meaning it is not open competition for new applicants. The description states that funding is intended only for recipients previously funded under the earlier CDC announcement CDC-RFA-GH15-1534. In practical terms, this type of notice is used when CDC wants to continue supporting an existing project and recipient organization rather than start a new competition. The opportunity category is listed as continuation, and the eligible applicants field indicates "Others," which typically reflects that the intended recipient pool is restricted in some way, consistent with a continuation action.

The mechanism is a cooperative agreement, not a standard grant. A cooperative agreement generally signals that CDC expects to have substantial involvement in the work, such as providing technical input, collaborating on planning and implementation, and monitoring progress. The activity area is health, and the CFDA number 93.067 corresponds to a CDC global HIV-related funding line commonly associated with PEPFAR programming. The emphasis on standards, accreditation, and quality management suggests a focus on systems strengthening rather than direct service delivery alone. It supports the infrastructure and governance needed for national blood programs to run reliably, document performance, and meet recognized benchmarks.

The substantive program focus is on regional standards development and the delivery of accreditation and quality management services to national blood services. In real-world terms, this can include creating or updating technical standards and guidelines aligned with international best practices, establishing assessment tools, training auditors and assessors, supporting countries to implement quality management systems, and running an accreditation process that recognizes facilities meeting defined requirements. Quality management in blood services typically covers areas like donor selection and counseling, laboratory testing quality, equipment calibration and maintenance, staff competency, documentation and traceability, hemovigilance, and continuous improvement processes. Strengthening these functions helps reduce transfusion-transmitted infections and improves the reliability of blood availability for patients, including people living with HIV who may need transfusions related to anemia, obstetric care, pediatric care, or other clinical conditions.

From the administrative details provided, the original closing date is listed as 2015-11-24 and the creation date as 2015-09-22, reflecting when the continuation notice was posted relative to the broader funding cycle. The award ceiling is shown as 0, which often indicates that a specific maximum amount is not being publicly stated in this record or is determined through internal continuation budgeting rather than a competed ceiling. The number of expected awards is not populated in the provided data, which is also common for continuation entries since the recipient(s) are already known based on prior awards.

Overall, the opportunity is best understood as CDC continuing to fund an existing AfSBT-centered effort under PEPFAR to improve blood safety and quality across multiple African countries by building regional standard-setting capacity and providing structured accreditation and quality management support to national blood services.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Strengthening the Africa Society for Blood Transfusion (AfSBT) to Develop Regional Standards and Provide Accreditation and Quality Management Services to National Blood Services in Africa 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 2015-09-22.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2015-11-24. (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 153402CONT16

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