Grants / Department of Labor / Bureau of International Labor Affairs

FOA-ILAB-25-15: Securing Fair and Reliable Critical Mineral Supply Chains

Closed Closed September 26, 2025 Opportunity FOA-ILAB-25-15 ☆ Save

This grant is closed. Who won this program's grants before is below, and similar open grants are at the end of the page. It is in our archive of Bureau of International Labor Affairs notices from 2025.

• Award ceiling$5.0 million
• Award floor$4.0 million
• Total funding$9.0 million
• Expected awards2
• Cost sharingNot required
• Funding typeCooperative Agreement

Key dates

Who can apply

This opportunity was open to the applicants described in the notice.

• Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)

Eligible applicants include any commercial, international, educational, or non-profit organizations, including any faith-based organizations, community-based organizations, or public international organizations (PIOs).Faith-based organizations are encouraged to apply, as are all organizations. Those that meet the eligibility requirements may receive awards under this funding opportunity. DOL will not, in the selection of recipients and administration of the grant, discriminate on the basis of an organization’s religious character, affiliation, exercise, or lack thereof, or on the basis of conduct that would not be considered grounds to favor or disfavor a similarly situated secular organization.

Is this a realistic fit?

• Past International Labor Programs awards averaged $3.9 million; this notice allows up to $5.0 million per award.
• Most of the program's money (64% over five years) went to nonprofits.
• No cost sharing or match is required.

What the grant funds

The Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB), U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL, or the Department), announces the availability of approximately $9 million total costs (subject to the availability of Federal funds) for 2 cooperative agreements aimed at securing fair and reliable critical mineral supply chains free of child labor (CL) and forced labor (FL). ILAB intends to fund one cooperative agreement of up to $5 million in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and one cooperative agreement of up to $4 million in Indonesia. The duration of each project will be 54 months from the award date. Applicants may propose a shorter period of performance in line with their proposed strategy. Applicants may choose to apply for one or both cooperative agreements. Applicants that wish to apply for both Cooperative Agreements must submit two distinct applications. The cooperative agreements will be focused on the supply chains of critical minerals identified in the List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor, published by the Department of Labor as required under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 and subsequent reauthorizations (TVPRA List). Applications must propose a strategy to address CL and/or FL in the supply chains of at least one (1) of the following minerals in one (1) of the following countries: • DRC: Cobalt, copper, tantalum, tin, and/or tungsten. • Indonesia: Nickel, with the option to also include tin. Applicants must propose to work with key stakeholders to identify and address child labor and/or forced labor, and related labor abuses in their proposed country of implementation. Applicants must propose a strategy to conduct activities under each of the following two focus areas: Focus Area 1: Policy and Legal Frameworks. Applicants will propose a strategy to assist partner governments and supply chain actors to bring their mining, labor, procurement, trade rules, and other relevant policy frameworks into full alignment with international standards, particularly U.S. forced-labor import requirements, International Labor Organization conventions, and other due diligence guidelines and best practices.0F1 Focus Area 2: Capacity Building for Monitoring, Identification, Enforcement, and Remediation. Applicants will propose a strategy to improve national and local systems for monitoring and identifying child labor and/or forced labor in critical mineral supply chains.

Category: Other.

Applying now

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