ProBiCo: Strengthening Paraguay’s Asset Forfeiture program | INL18GR0035 WHPPROBICOPARAGUAY 050118

Opportunity Information: Apply for INL18GR0035 WHPPROBICOPARAGUAY 050118

The grant opportunity titled "ProBiCo: Strengthening Paraguay's Asset Forfeiture program" is a discretionary funding announcement from the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). It focuses on helping Paraguay strengthen a newer government institution, the National Secretariat for the Administration of Seized and Forfeited Assets (SENABICO), which was created in December 2017 to professionally manage assets seized from criminal activity and to oversee their forfeiture and liquidation in a more transparent, accountable way. The funding is intended to support the early institutional development of SENABICO so it can quickly become effective and credible, and so Paraguay can more consistently deprive criminal organizations and offenders of the money, property, and other resources that allow them to operate and profit.

The core problem this program is designed to address is that, before SENABICO existed, Paraguayan authorities could seize assets but did not have a reliable mechanism to handle pre-conviction asset forfeiture or to liquidate seized property in a structured way. In practice, this meant seized assets could end up under the control of individual judicial officials with limited oversight, creating opportunities for mismanagement and corruption and reducing the strategic impact of seizures against organized crime. By placing responsibility for both pre- and post-conviction asset forfeiture under SENABICO, Paraguay aims to shift from ad hoc handling of seized property to a centralized system that can administer, preserve, and dispose of assets appropriately, while ensuring that the proceeds ultimately serve Paraguayan national interests.

The announcement emphasizes that effective asset forfeiture is not just an administrative improvement, but a key law enforcement strategy. Cutting off financial gain is presented as essential to disrupting and dismantling criminal organizations in Paraguay and the broader region. In other words, the grant supports efforts that help make seizures and forfeitures actually "stick" and translate into real losses for criminals, rather than being temporary or poorly controlled actions that do not meaningfully weaken illicit networks.

This INL support is also framed as a continuation of earlier international assistance, particularly the multi-year OAS-funded "Proyecto BIDAL," which helped Paraguay draft and pass the legislation that enabled SENABICO's creation. INL previously supported a regional exchange of asset forfeiture experts, which contributed to drafting the regulations needed to implement SENABICO's mandate; those regulations were completed and presented to the Executive in January 2018. The new funding is meant to build on that foundation and on lessons learned from other countries across the hemisphere that have implemented asset forfeiture regimes, with the goal of helping SENABICO grow into a strong, well-governed institution from the start.

In practical terms, the opportunity provides up to $400,000 in funding (the award ceiling) to advance this objective. It is issued as a grant under the law, justice, and legal services category (CFDA 19.705). The opportunity was created on May 1, 2018, with an original closing date of June 15, 2018, and it is identified by the funding opportunity number INL18GR0035 (WHPPROBICOPARAGUAY 050118). Eligible applicants include U.S.-based or overseas non-profit/non-governmental organizations, with U.S. applicants required to have 501(c)(3) status. The overall purpose is institution-building: strengthening SENABICO's capacity to manage and liquidate seized and forfeited assets effectively and transparently so that asset forfeiture becomes a reliable tool for undermining criminal enterprises and reinforcing rule of law in Paraguay.

• The Bureau of International Narcotics-Law Enforcement in the law, justice and legal services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "ProBiCo: Strengthening Paraguay’s Asset Forfeiture program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.705.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-05-01.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-06-15. (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 $400,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for INL18GR0035 WHPPROBICOPARAGUAY 050118

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