Raising public awareness of development issues and promoting development education in European Union (DEAR) - EuropeAid/160048/DH/ACT/Multi

Deadline: Sep 25, 2018  
CALL EXPIRED

Background

The Development Education and Awareness Raising (DEAR) Action aims to anchor awareness and understanding of global sustainable development in our societies, highlighting the responsibilities and roles of all individuals, civil society organisations, local authorities, governments and other development actors around the world, to contribute to development.

More than half of all Official Development Aid is provided by the EU and its Member States. The latest Eurobarometer 455 indicates on the one hand that nearly nine in ten respondents (89%, highest level recorded) think that it is important to help people in developing countries and more than half of respondents believe that they can play a role in development (54%). On the other hand however, 49% are not involved in helping developing countries, only 27% give money to organisations involved in development, 22% make ethical choices when shopping and 8% do voluntary work.

European CSOs are well placed to inform about development challenges as well as the impact of policies and behaviours in Europe on development elsewhere. CSOs play a key role in fostering the European public’s understanding and recognition of the significance of development decisions and actions for people globally. Many also work directly on development issues in partner countries. These actors have historically been at the origin of DEAR activities in EU Member States, and remain key contributors to the evolution of DEAR policy and practice in Europe.

Local Authorities (LAs) are also essential actors in DEAR. As the closest public institution to citizens, LAs can promote citizens' mobilisation and engagement in public life at local level. Moreover, according to the constitutional framework operating in Member States, LAs have specific competences in policy-making, service delivery often related to education and environmental protection. Educational, learning or promotional activities carried out in a local context, by LAs and in cooperation with other local actors, may enable citizens to reconnect with their communities and to connect their communities with communities abroad, with whom they share the same development concerns and challenges. LAs’ working for DEAR may result in policy changes at the local level and in a change in the attitude of citizens, which could in turn influence national policies.

DEAR is an integral element of development, aligned with the 2030 Agenda and the new European Consensus on Development (the 'Consensus'). DEAR strives to critically engage citizens, including through civil society organisations and local authorities, in global debates linked to the new 2030 Agenda and the Consensus.

Actions selected from this Call for Proposal will aim to deliver more focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development Policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens and promote fundamental values such as human rights, democracy, solidarity, peace and tolerance.

 

Actions will have to take place in a number of different European countries and will reflect two key themes of the Consensus, namely People and Planet. Within these themes the focus areas Migration and Climate change, including its environmental dimension, have been put forward.  Migration and climate change are two important global transformational challenges, which concern EU citizens and, more broadly, people in general.

 

According to the spring 2018 Standard Eurobarometer of 14 June 2018, immigration features as the top challenge that the Union is currently facing (38%), followed by security. The hierarchy of these top concerns has remained unchanged since autumn 2017. The EU’s influence in the world (11%, +2) shares sixth place with climate change (11%, -1), which has a double-digit score for the second consecutive time.

Informing, educating and engaging EU citizens in an evidence based manner about the drivers behind these global challenges and about the EU contribution to address them is thus crucial to contributing to active citizenship, and, ultimately, to the promotion of EU fundamental values and to sustainable development.

Innovative outreach and communication to young people will be considered key in this new DEAR call. They are agents of development and change and, as such, are essential contributors to the 2030 Agenda, including through their ability to innovate.  This DEAR call will focus on concrete actions to empower young people and to bring Europe and its achievements closer to them.

1.2 Objectives of the programme and priority issues

1.2.1 Global Objective

The global objective of this Call for Proposals is to ensure the commitment of EU citizens to development and contribute to sustainable lifestyle patterns of EU citizens.

1.2.2 Specific objectives

The specific objectives of this call for proposals are:

• to develop European citizens’ awareness and critical understanding of the interdependent world, of roles and responsibilities in relation to the development issues of the “People” and “Planet” pillars of the Consensus, and

• to encourage their active engagement with global attempts to address these issues whilst simultaneously promoting fundamental values.

The objectives will be reached through a combination of campaigns, awareness raising, communication and outreach activities and global learning. Global learning activities either within or outside the formal education system cannot be the main part of the actions proposed. In case formal education actions are proposed, they should be developed in complementarity with Member States’ efforts in development education.  

 

 

1.2.3 Priority issues (4)

a) Focus areas to be addressed: Migration and/or Climate Change

Actions will have to take place in a number of different European countries and will reflect two key themes of the Consensus, namely People and Planet. Within these themes the focus areas Migration and Climate change, including its relation with environment, have been put forward. Migration and climate change are two important challenges in the globalised world. Informing, educating and engaging EU citizens on these issues and on how they are currently addressed by the EU through its development cooperation is therefore crucial.

 

Proposals will be requested to address one of these two focus areas or can also opt to combine both focus areas. Proposals must clearly indicate and explain how they address the priorities. This will be assessed under point 1.1 of the Concept Note evaluation grid

Migration

Migration is a complex, global, long-lasting phenomenon requiring a carefully-designed, balanced, evidence-based and sustainable policy response. The EU is substantially contributing to tackling the root causes of irregular migration and forced displacement under its development policy and cooperation. Root causes are multifaceted and complex, and range from poverty to exclusion and discrimination, from conflicts to climate change, environmental degradation, natural disasters, and often a mix of them all.

The actions selected through this Call for Proposals shall inform EU citizens, in an evidence-based manner, about drivers for mobility and root causes of irregular migration and forced displacement, their consequences for the people concerned and for EU citizens more globally as well as about the economic, social, environmental, cultural and demographic factors surrounding migration and mobility. The actions will also contribute to raise awareness about EU objectives and approaches in contributing to tackling these root causes in a globalised world.

Climate Change

The EU contributes to fighting climate change and environmental degradation at a global level through both domestic action and international cooperation. The EU was also one of the driving forces behind the 2015 UN climate conference (COP21), where countries adopted the first-ever universal, legally binding global climate deal – the Paris Agreement. Achieving the objectives of the Agreement represents a fundamental transformational challenge for our societies.

Actions selected through this Call for Proposals shall contribute to addressing this challenge by informing citizens about: (a) the expected consequences on citizens’ lives should the climate change goals not be achieved, (b) the societal changes needed to help achieve them (opportunities & costs) and (c) the actions individuals can take to reach the climate change targets.

Achieving the objectives of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change requires broad based action combining the promotion of sustainable energy and the transition to a low-emission resource efficient circular economy, action to address deforestation and land use change, the degradation of marine and terrestrial ecosystems, water scarcity, all of which are also necessary to provide decent jobs and sustainable growth for people.

All communication activities under this call must be evidence-based and be conveyed in a neutral and unbiased fashion.

 

b) Youth as target group and work directly with citizens

Innovative outreach and communication to young people will be considered key in this new call. Young people are agents of development and change and, as such, are essential contributors to the 2030 Agenda, including through their ability to innovate.  As aforementioned, this call will focus on concrete actions to empower young people and to bring Europe and its achievements closer to them.

An expansive interpretation of youth is to be used, including every person between the ages of 15 and 35 years. The fact that the main target group will have to be youth, does not exclude that target groups can also include other groups such as for example parents, elders, educators, teachers.

The actions proposed should aim at bringing EU Development Policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens. Hence, proposals will prioritize working directly with citizens.

 

c) Communication and outreach strategy

As mentioned under the specific objectives, the main part of the proposed actions and activities will be linked to campaigns, awareness raising, communication and outreach activities, the proposals will have to include a robust and innovative communication and outreach strategy in order to realise this outreach.

Applicants are therefore encouraged to involve also communication experts. They could be involved as a co-applicant, an associate or as a contractor. In this context, we would like to draw your attention to the special requirements included for the applicant to demonstrate:

1) Social media capabilities  to successfully implement innovative communication activities (Annex XI) and capability to produce a powerful video,

2) Capability to successfully organise “street actions”,

This requested communication and outreach strategy, as well as the above mentioned capabilities will have to be demonstrated and included in dedicated annexes (Annexes XI, XII and XIII) at the Full Application Stage (see 2.2.5 point 2+4).

These communication capabilities should be demonstrated by the lead-applicant for itself and the communication and outreach strategy is to be provided by the lead-applicant for the consortium. These points will be assessed under point 1.2 and 3.2. of the Full Application evaluation grid.

The projects may seek inspiration and ideas on how to engage and mobilise their target audiences on their chosen theme, by analysing the look, design and messaging of recent EU-wide communication campaigns for citizens, in particular the EU&ME campaign. This campaign communicates through different digital platforms and innovative communications tools with EU citizens.  Actions used to communicate include amongst others competitions across Europe, short films showing stories of young people who have personally experienced the impact of the EU, live presence at public events to reach out to young people such as concerts, roadshows or workshops.  

d) Cross cutting themes

Proposals will have to implement a right based approach. Issues related to gender equality and women empowerment will also have to be addressed.

Proposals, not having Climate Change as a focus area, shall also address broader environmental issues and the close inter-relations between climate change and environmental sustainability.

Proposals will contribute to promoting the fundamental values, as defined by Art. 2 of the Lisbon Treaty “The Union is founded on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities. These values are common to the Member States in a society in which pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity and equality between women and men prevail and promote fundamental values such as human rights, democracy, solidarity, peace and tolerance.”

Projects should be innovative as well as based on solid evidence; hence, academia and research may play an important role in the proposed actions.

 

Expected results of this call for proposals are amongst others :

(i) Rolling out of focused and strategic pan-European campaigns on the targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens with a high visibility and impact;

(ii) Re-connection with fundamental values and European achievements in general;

(iii) Increased public awareness of the Agenda 2030 and the European Consensus on Development (the ‘Consensus’);

(iv) Better informed and empowered youth, more in particular in relation to Migration and Mobility and Climate change;

(v) Increased awareness of a) the reasons surrounding development work in partner countries b) the benefits of development work in the South for citizens/ countries of the North and c) the results obtained through development work in the South;

(vi) Increased commitment and engagement of European youth and citizens more in general, in attempts to eradicate global poverty, promote justice, human rights, gender equality, climate and environment action, green economy and sustainable ways of living;

(vii) Enhanced competencies of educators, youth and adults to critically examine global interdependencies between the EU and developing nations, of the role of EU development cooperation in an increasingly interdependent world and this through participatory, innovative and learner empowerment approaches;

(viii) Better integration of development issues into formal and non-formal education systems in Member States;

(ix) Higher engagement to promote policy coherence for development;

(x) Citizens’ increased awareness, knowledge and engagement in relation to sustainable lifestyle patterns and sustainable patterns of consumption and production.

(x) Increased engagement of LAs and associations of LAs in development education and awareness raising.

(x) Contribute to a common communication effort of all projects selected from this Call for Proposals

1.3 Financial allocation provided by the contracting authority

The overall indicative amount made available under this call for proposals is EUR 77.000.000 and is specified in the Multi-Annual Action Programme (MAAP) 2018-2020.

The total allocation for CSOs is EUR 57.750.000. The total allocation for LAs is EUR 19.250.000.

Please note that the overall indicative amount made available under this Call for Proposals, and as indicated in point 1.3 of these Guidelines, is a combination of EU general budget for the Thematic Programme “Civil Society and Local Authorities".  

The allocations for the funding of 2018, 2019 and 2020 are subject to the availability of these funds in the concerned budget.

There will be three different lots; the indicative allocations per lot are as follows:

Lot 1: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) or an association of CSOs, from all EU member states.

Total available EUR 43.000.000

Lot 2: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a CSO or an association of CSOs from EU 13 member states.

Total available EUR 14.750.000

Lot 3: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a Local Authority or Association of LAs, from all EU member states.

Total available EUR 19.250.000

For Lots 1 and 2 : in case the indicative amounts cannot be used due to insufficient quality or number of proposals received, the Contracting Authority could reallocate the remaining funds between these lots.

 

Since funds from Lot 3 come from a different budget line, no reallocation is possible neither from lot 1 or 2 to lot 3, nor from lot 3 to other lots.

The Contracting Authority reserves the right not to award all available funds. Likewise, this amount could be increased should more funds become available.

Geographical balance could be taken into account by the European Commission at any stage of the technical evaluation.  

Size of grants

The EU contribution must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts:

Lot 1: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) or an association of CSOs, from all EU member states

o minimum amount: EUR  7.000.000

o maximum amount: EUR 12.000.000

Lot 2: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a CSO or an association of CSOs from EU 13 member states

o minimum amount: EUR    2.000.000

o maximum amount: EUR   7.000.000

 

Lot 3: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a Local Authority or Association of LAs, from all EU member states

o minimum amount: EUR 3.000.000

o maximum amount: EUR 7.000.000

 

Any grant requested under this Call for Proposals may not exceed the following maximum percentages of total eligible costs of the Action:

•

Maximum percentage: 90% of the total eligible costs of the Action for all lots (see also section 2.1.5).

As per section 6.3.10. of the Practical Guide, the grant must not give rise to profits for neither the beneficiaries (coordinator/lead applicant and co-beneficiaries/co-applicants) nor any affiliated entity (in the context of this call, profit is defined as a surplus of the receipts over the eligible costs approved by the Contracting Authority when the request for payment of the balance is made). Expected revenue of the action may be accepted as co-financing. However, action revenues in excess of the total costs will be considered as profit. As such, it will need to be deducted when calculating the final amount of the EU grant.

The balance (i.e. the difference between the total cost of the Action and the amount requested from the Contracting Authority) must be financed from sources other than the European Union Budget or the European Development Fund.

 

RULES FOR THIS CALL FOR PROPOSALS

These guidelines set out the rules for the submission, selection and implementation of the actions financed under this call, in conformity with the Practical Guide, which is applicable to the present call (available at http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/prag/document.do?locale=en).

1.4 Eligibility criteria

There are three sets of eligibility criteria, relating to:

(1) the actors:

• The lead applicant, i.e. the entity submitting the application form (2.1.1),

• if any, its co-applicant(s) (where it is not specified otherwise the lead applicant and its co-applicant(s) are hereinafter jointly referred as "applicant(s)") (2.1.1),

• and, if any, affiliated entity(ies) to the lead applicant and/or to a co-applicant(s). (2.1.2);

• The third parties (2.1.3)

(2) the actions:

• Actions for which a grant may be awarded (2.1.4);

(3) the costs:

• types of cost that may be taken into account in setting the amount of the grant (2.1.5).

1.1.1 Eligibility of applicants (i.e. lead applicant and co-applicant(s))

Lead applicant

(1) Under Lot 1 and 2, in order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:

• be a legal person and

 

• be non-profit-making and

 

• be a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) or an association of CSOs and

 

• be established in a Member State of the European Union (for lot 1) or be established in an EU 13 Member state (for lot 2) and

 

• be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the Action with the co-applicants and affiliated entity(ies), not acting as an intermediary and

 

• be able to demonstrate to have carried out activities in the field of development awareness raising, campaigning, communication and/or global learning for at least three years.

 

Under lot 3, in order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:

• be a legal person and

• be a Local Authority (LA) from a Member State of the European Union, constituted in accordance with the legislation in force in the country or Associations of Local Authorities (ALA) registered in a Member State of the European Union and

 

• be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the Action with the co-applicants and affiliated entity(ies), not acting as an intermediary and

 

• be able to demonstrate to have carried out activities in the field of development awareness raising, campaigning, communication and/or global learning for at least three years.

 

NB: For all lots, associations which membership include both CSOs and LAs will be considered as either associations of CSOs or as associations of LAs, depending on their legal status and on whether the majority of their membership is CSO or LA.

(2) Potential applicants may not participate in calls for proposals or be awarded grants if they are in any of the situations listed in section 2.3.3 of the Practical Guide; 

In Annex A.2, section 5 (‘declaration by the lead applicant’), the lead applicant must declare that the lead applicant himself, the co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies) are not in any of these situations.

 

The lead applicant must act with co-applicant(s) as specified hereafter.

If awarded the grant contract, the lead applicant will become the beneficiary identified as the Coordinator in Annex E3h1 (Special Conditions). The Coordinator is the main interlocutor of the Contracting Authority. It represents and acts on behalf of any other co-beneficiary (if any) and coordinates the design and implementation of the Action.

Co-applicant(s)

For all lots, co-applicants participate in designing and implementing the Action, and the costs they incur are eligible in the same way as those incurred by the lead applicant.

Co-applicants must sign the Mandate in Annex A.2., section 4 of the grant application form.

If awarded the Grant contract, the co-applicants will become beneficiaries in the Action (together with the Coordinator).

Under all lots, the lead applicant must act together with a minimum of two co-applicants. The three of them must be established in three different EU Member States.

All co-applicants must satisfy the following three eligibility criteria:

• be legal persons and

• be established in a Member State of the European Union or of an eligible partner country or territory as defined in the OECD DAC list constituted in accordance with the legislation in force in the country

• be non-profit-making and be a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) or an association of CSOs; or be a Local Authority (LA) or an association of LAs; or be a private sector operator with communication/campaigning/marketing expertise  

 

Please note that all information encoded in PROSPECT must be exhaustive and in line with the content of the concept note. The administrative check will be performed taking into consideration only the information available in PROSPECT in sections 1 - contact, 2 - project and 3 – co-applicants. Please make sure that there are no inconsistencies between the information in PROSPECT and those in the concept note text.

 

1.1.2 Affiliated entities

The lead applicant and its co-applicant(s) may act with affiliated entity(ies)

Only the following entities may be considered as affiliated entities to the lead applicant and/or to co-applicant(s):

Only entities having a structural link with the applicants (i.e. the lead applicant or a co-applicant), in particular a legal or capital link.

This structural link encompasses mainly two notions:

(i) Control, as defined in Directive 2013/34/EU on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings:

Entities affiliated to applicant may hence be:

- Entities directly or indirectly controlled by an applicant (daughter companies or first-tier subsidiaries). They may also be entities controlled by an entity controlled by an applicant (granddaughter companies or second-tier subsidiaries) and the same applies to further tiers of control;

- Entities directly or indirectly controlling the applicant (parent companies). Likewise, they may be entities controlling an entity controlling the applicant;

- Entities under the same direct or indirect control as the applicant (sister companies).

(ii) Membership, i.e. the applicant is legally defined as a e.g. network, federation, association in which the proposed affiliated entities also participate or the applicant participates in the same entity (e.g. network, federation, association) as the proposed affiliated entities.

The structural link shall as a general rule be neither limited to the action nor established for the sole purpose of its implementation. This means that the link would exist independently of the award of the grant; it should exist before the call for proposals and remain valid after the end of the action.

By way of exception, an entity may be considered as affiliated to an applicant even if it has a structural link specifically established for the sole purpose of the implementation of the action in the case of so-called “sole applicants” or “sole beneficiaries”.  A sole applicant or a sole beneficiary is a legal entity formed by several entities (a group of entities) which together comply with the criteria for being awarded the grant. For example, an association is formed by its members.

What is not an affiliated entity?

The following are not considered entities affiliated to an applicant:

- Entities that have entered into a (procurement) contract or subcontract with an applicant, act as concessionaires or delegatees for public services for an applicant,

- Entities that receive financial support from an applicant,

- Entities that cooperate on a regular basis with an applicant on the basis of a memorandum of understanding or share some assets,

- Entities that have signed a consortium agreement under the grant contract (unless this consortium agreement leads to the creation of a "sole applicant" as described above).

 

How to verify the existence of the required link with an applicant?

The affiliation resulting from control may in particular be proved on the basis of the consolidated accounts of the group of entities the applicant and its proposed affiliates belong to.

The affiliation resulting from membership may in particular be proved on the basis of the statutes or equivalent act establishing the entity (network, federation, association) which the applicant constitutes or in which the applicant participates.

If the applicants are awarded a grant contract, their affiliated entity(ies) will not become beneficiary(ies) of the action and signatory(ies) of the grant contract. However, they will participate in the design and  in the implementation of the action and the costs they incur (including those incurred for implementation contracts and financial support to third parties) may be accepted as eligible costs, provided they comply with all the relevant rules already applicable to the beneficiary(ies) under the grant contract.

Affiliated entity(ies) must satisfy the eligibility criteria of a co-applicant. They must sign the affiliated entity(ies) statement in Annex A.2., section 5.

Note that the fact of having a structural link with the lead applicant does not prevent an organisation from being co-applicant in the partnership. It is the lead applicant's decision to define the role of the actors composing its partnership and implementing the action: co-applicants or affiliated entities.

1.1.3 Associates and Contractors

The following entities are not applicants nor affiliated entities and do not have to sign the "mandate for co-applicant(s)" or "affiliated entities' statement":

• Associates

Other organisations or individuals may be involved in the action. Such associates play a real role in the action but may not receive funding from the grant, with the exception of per diem or travel costs. Associates do not have to meet the eligibility criteria referred to in section 2.1.1. Associates must be mentioned in Annex A.2., section 6 — ‘Associates participating in the action’.

• Contractors

The beneficiaries and their affiliated entities are permitted to award contracts. Associates or affiliated entity(ies) cannot be also contractors in the project. Contractors are subject to the procurement rules set out in Annex IV to the standard grant contract.

As mentioned under the specific objectives, the main part of the proposed actions and activities will be linked to campaigns, awareness raising, communication and outreach activities, the proposals will have to include a robust and innovative communication and outreach strategy in order to realise this outreach. Applicants are therefore encouraged to involve also communication experts. They could be involved as a co-applicant, an associate or as a contractor

• Third Parties

Strengthening the capacity of small and middle sized CSOs and LAs shall be a priority. This aspect shall be duly reflected in the selection and evaluation process of the third parties.

Third parties eligible for financial support must:

• o be a legal person and
• o be non-profit-making and
• o be a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) or an association of CSOs, or be Local Authorities or Associations of Local Authorities constituted in accordance with the legislation in force in the country,  and
• o be established in a Member State of the European Union, and
• o not be a beneficiary of a grant (neither lead, nor co-applicant, or affiliated entity) in the frame of this call for proposals

A legal entity may only be eligible to receive one financial support to third party within the framework of this call for proposals.

 

1.1.4 Eligible actions: actions for which an application may be made

 

Definition

An Action is composed of a set of activities.

 

Duration

The initial planned duration of an Action may not be lower than 24 months nor exceed 48 months.

 

Sectors or themes

Actions will have to address the priority issues identified in chapter 1.2.3.

 

Location

Depending on the lot, actions will have to take place in certain number of EU Member States:

o Lot 1: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) or an association of CSOs, from all EU member states.

• Actions must take place in a minimum of 8 EU Member States.

o Lot 2: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a CSO or an association of CSOs from EU 13 member states.

• Actions must take place in a minimum of 5 EU Member States.

o Lot 3: Focussed and strategic pan-European campaigns on targeted priorities bringing EU Development policy and EU answers to global challenges closer to citizens led by a Local Authority or Association of LAs, from all EU member states.

• Actions must take place in a minimum of 5 EU Member States.

 

For all lots:

Specific project activities (e.g. transfer of good practices, international exchange, networking) may take place in an eligible partner country or territory as defined in the OECD DAC list on the condition that they constitute a minor part of the Action and directly contribute to the objectives of the present Call for Proposals.

Types of Action:

To be eligible for co-financing, Actions under this call must comply with the objectives and the priority issues of the Call for Proposals described in point 1.2 of these Guidelines. These Actions shall also aim at reaching one or more of the expected results mentioned under the same point.

Although final beneficiaries of the Action could be the general population, Actions must clearly identify and define specific target groups. Actions that target citizens directly should be prioritised.

The objectives will be reached through a combination of campaigns, awareness raising, communication and outreach activities and global learning. Global learning activities either within or outside the formal education system can however not be the main part of the actions proposed. In case formal education actions are proposed, they should be developed in complementarity with Member States’ efforts in development education.  

 

• Campaigns/Awareness Raising/Communication actions aim at concrete changes in behaviour at individual and collective levels. They use results-oriented strategies. They facilitate and support informed public engagement and advocacy for more just and sustainable policies, political/economic structures, and individual behaviours and practices. Campaigning projects should have a clear pan-European dimension. They should seek to produce results at European level, and should involve coordinated Action and a coherent approach in various Member States.

• Global Learning will focus on development education in the formal education system (such as curriculum development, teacher training, development education programmes in school, work with parent-teachers associations, etc.) and on Actions outside of the formal education system (such as youth groups, non-formal education, seminar type conferences, etc.) This part of the project aims at enhancing the competences of the target groups in addressing issues of global development. Learner-centred, participatory, dialogue-oriented and experiential methodologies are used to develop such competences.

 

In order to ensure the applications have a robust and innovative communication and outreach strategy they have to use an adequate mixture of tools and activities to achieve the objectives of this call. Examples of these tools and activities are mentioned below:

1. Apps

2. TV/radio programmes

3. Regular features in online/paper media

4. Online myth busting campaigns, crack down social media campaigns.

5. Street comm actions

6. Docu-fictions

7. Documentaries

8. Youtube channels

9. Mini-series for the web

10. Teaching Video material

11. Develop ways to innovatively use technology to involve citizens in “development” (as was for example the case in the project “Making all voices count” http://www.makingallvoicescount.org/,

12. Young Ambassadors

13. Use of national/local celebrities

14. Public events (such as concerts and roadshows)

15. Competitions

16. Conferences, workshops, on-line platforms and/or training programmes;

17. Tutorials for schools and other educational material.

During the full proposal stage, applicants will be requested to include their proposed communication and outreach strategy (Annex XIII) as well as to demonstrate their capabilities related to social media and the organisation of “street action” (Annexes XI and XII). The Communication and outreach strategy will have to detail and include which tools and activities will be used, these need to be innovative.

These communication capabilities should be demonstrated by the lead-applicant for itself and the communication and outreach strategy is to be provided by the lead-applicant for the consortium.

The following types of Actions are ineligible for all lots:

• Actions concerned only or mainly with individual sponsorships for participation in workshops, seminars, conferences and congresses;

• one-off conferences: conferences can only be funded if they form part of a wider range of activities to be implemented in the life-time of the Action. For these purposes, preparatory activities for a conference and the publication of the proceedings of the conference do not, in themselves, constitute such "wider activities";

• Actions concerned only or mainly with individual scholarships for studies or training courses;

• Actions intended to raise funds or promote the visibility of the applicant or its partner(s);

• Actions consisting mainly of research or of study;

• Actions which consist exclusively or primarily in capital expenditure, such as infrastructure, land,  equipment;

• Actions which discriminate against individuals or groups of people on grounds of their gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs or lack of them, or their ethnic origin;

• Actions supporting directly political parties;

• Actions which include proselytising activities.

 

Types of activity

Applicants are invited to present all the activities they consider necessary in order to achieve the objectives of this Call for Proposals in relation to existing national and/or local demands, and to obtain tangible results in the context where the selected projects will be implemented.

In preparing the plan of activities and related budget, it is compulsory to foresee the participation of one lead applicant project staff, and two co-applicant project staff, in the seminars which the European Commission may organise in Brussels or elsewhere, at least once a year for the whole duration of the project. Participation in seminars such as the inception and capitalisation seminars, for the purpose of training, exchange of good practices and networking is compulsory for the Actions presented under all lots of this Call for Proposals. This activity must be clearly spelled out in the description and the budget of the Action (travel, accommodation, per diem for Brussels as a calculation basis, for a maximum of nine man days).

In preparing the plan of activities and related budget, applicants must include the costs of external expenditure verifications. Requests for payment submitted by Beneficiaries must be accompanied by an expenditure verification report.

An external final evaluation of the proposed Action also has to be included in the proposal and the related budget.

Financial support to third parties

Applicants may propose financial support to third parties in order to help them achieving the objectives of this call. This support may be the main purpose of the action, but is not mandatory.

The inclusion of financial support to third parties is encouraged to make funds of this call available to smaller/grass roots organisations, which have often a very strong rooting in their constituency and very good and innovative ideas, but they lack the organisational capacity to participate in this action as a co-applicant.

The maximum amount of financial support per third party is EUR  60 000, except where financial support to third parties is the main purpose of the action in which case maximum amount of financial support per third party is EUR  250 000.

For projects under this call with the main purpose of financial support to third parties, applicants should refer to Annex X for more detailed information.

 

In compliance with the present guidelines and notably of any conditions or restrictions in this section, the lead applicant should define mandatorily in section 2.1.1 of the grant application form:

(i) the objectives and results to be obtained with the financial support

(ii) the different types of activities eligible for financial support, on the basis of a fixed list

(iii) the types of persons or categories of persons which may receive financial support  

(iv) the criteria for selecting these entities and giving the financial support  

(v) the criteria for determining the exact amount of financial support for each third entity, and

(vi) the maximum amount which may be given;

(vii) the system of control set up to verify the eligibility of costs 

In all events, the mandatory conditions set above for giving financial support (points (i) to (vii)) have to be strictly defined in the grant contract as to avoid any exercise of discretion.

Visibility

The applicants must take all necessary steps to publicise the fact that the European Union has financed or co-financed the action. As far as possible, actions that are wholly or partially funded by the European Union must incorporate information and communication activities designed to raise the awareness of specific or general audiences of the reasons for the action and the EU support for the action in the country or region concerned, as well as the results and the impact of this support.

Applicants must comply with the objectives and priorities and guarantee the visibility of the EU financing (see the Communication and Visibility Manual for EU external actions specified and published by the European Commission at https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/communication-and-visibility-manual-euexternal-actions_en).

Number of applications and grants per applicants/affiliated entities

• An entity may not submit more than one application as a lead applicant/coordinator under this call for proposals.

• An entity that has applied as a lead applicant/coordinator in one application may be a co-applicant or an affiliated entity in other applications at the same time.  

Should an entity submit more than 1 application as a lead applicant/coordinator under this call for proposals, the Evaluation Committee will only consider the first proposal arrived on the basis of submission date and hour. Any other proposal submitted by the entity will be rejected.

 

1.1.5 Eligibility of costs: costs that can be included

Only ‘eligible costs’ can be covered by a grant. The categories of costs that are eligible and non-eligible are indicated below. The budget is both a cost estimate and an overall ceiling for ‘eligible costs’.

The reimbursement of eligible costs may be based on any or a combination of the following forms:

 actual costs incurred by the beneficiary(ies) and affiliated entity(ies)

 one or more simplified cost options.

Simplified cost options may take the form of:

 unit costs: covering all or certain specific categories of eligible costs which are clearly identified in advance by reference to an amount per unit.

 lump sums: covering in global terms all or certain specific categories of eligible costs which are clearly identified in advance.

 flat-rate financing: covering specific categories of eligible costs which are clearly identified in advance by applying a percentage fixed ex ante.

The amounts or rates have to be based on estimates using objective data such as statistical data or any other objective means or with reference to certified or auditable historical data of the applicants or the affiliated entity(ies). The methods used to determine the amounts or rates of unit costs, lump sums or flat-rates must comply with the criteria established in Annex K, and especially ensure that the costs correspond fairly to the actual costs incurred by the beneficiary(ies) and affiliated entity(ies), are in line with their accounting practices, no profit is made and the costs are not already covered by other sources of funding (no double funding). Refer to Annex K for directions and a checklist of controls to assess the minimum necessary conditions that provide reasonable assurance for the acceptance of the proposed amounts.

Applicants proposing this form of reimbursement, must clearly indicate in worksheet no.1 of Annex B, each heading/item  of eligible costs concerned by this type of financing, i.e. add the reference in capital letters to "UNIT COST" (per month/flight etc), "LUMPSUM" or "FLAT RATE" in the Unit column. (see example in Annex K)

Additionally in Annex B, in the second column of worksheet no.2, "Justification of the estimated costs" per each of the corresponding budget item or heading applicants must:

 describe the information and methods used to establish the amounts of unit costs, lump sums and/or flat-rates, to which costs they refer, etc.

 clearly explain the formulas for calculation of the final eligible amount

 identify the beneficiary who will use the simplified cost option (in case of affiliated entity, specify first the beneficiary), in order to verify the maximum amount per each beneficiary (which includes if applicable simplified cost options of its affiliated entity(ies))

At contracting phase, the Contracting Authority decides whether to accept the proposed amounts or rates on the basis of the provisional budget submitted by the applicants, by analysing factual data of grants carried out by the applicants or of similar actions and by performing checks established by Annex K.

The total amount of financing on the basis of simplified cost options that can be authorised by the Contracting Authority for any of the applicants individually (including simplified cost options proposed by their own affiliated entities) cannot exceed EUR 60 000 (the indirect costs are not taken into account).

Recommendations to award a grant are always subject to the condition that the checks preceding the signing of the grant contract do not reveal problems requiring changes to the budget (such as arithmetical errors, inaccuracies, unrealistic costs and ineligible costs). The checks may give rise to requests for clarification and may lead the Contracting Authority to impose modifications or reductions to address such mistakes or inaccuracies. It is not possible to increase the grant or the percentage of EU co-financing as a result of these corrections.

It is therefore in the applicants' interest to provide a realistic and cost-effective budget

The simplified cost option may also take the form of an apportionment of Field Office's costs.

Field Office means a local infrastructure set up in one of the countries where the action is implemented or a nearby country. (Where the action is implemented in several third countries there can be more than one Field Office). That may consist of costs for local office as well as human resources.

A Field Office may be exclusively dedicated to the action financed (or co-financed) by the EU or may be used for other projects implemented in the partner country. When the Field Office is used for other projects, only the portion of capitalised and operating costs which corresponds to the duration of the action and the rate of actual use of the field office for the purpose of the action may be declared as eligible direct costs.

The portion of costs attributable to the action can be declared as actual costs or determined by the beneficiary(ies) on the basis of a simplified allocation method (apportionment).

The method of allocation has to be:

1. Compliant with the beneficiary's usual accounting and management practices and applied in a consistent manner regardless of the source of funding and

2. Based on an objective, fair and reliable allocation keys. (Please refer to Annex K to have examples of acceptable allocation keys).

A description prepared by the entity of the allocation method used to determine Field Office's costs in accordance with the entity's usual cost accounting and management practices and explaining how the method satisfy condition 1 and 2 indicated above, has to be presented in a separate sheet and annexed to the Budget.

The method will be assessed and accepted by the evaluation committee and the Contracting Authority at contracting phase. The applicant is invited to submit (where relevant) the list of contracts to which the methodology proposed had been already applied and for which proper application was confirmed by an expenditure verification.

At the time of carrying out the expenditure verifications, the auditors will check if the costs reported are compliant with the method described by the beneficiary(ies) and accepted by the Contracting Authority.

Adequate record and documentation must be kept by the beneficiary(ies) to prove the compliance of the simplified allocation method used with the conditions set out above. Upon request of the beneficiary(ies), this compliance can be assessed and approved ex-ante by an independent external auditor. In such a case, the simplified allocation method will be automatically accepted by the evaluation committee and it will not be challenged ex post.

When costs are declared on the basis of such allocation method the amount charged to the action is to be indicated in the column "TOTAL COSTS" and the mention "APPORTIONMENT" is to be indicated in the column "units" (under budget heading 1 (Human resources) and 4 (Local Office) of the Budget).

It has to be noted that the EUR 60.000 limit, otherwise applicable to costs declared on the basis of simplified cost options, is not relevant for costs declared following apportionment of Field Offices.

 

Eligible direct costs

To be eligible under this call for proposals, costs must comply with the provisions of Article 14 of the General Conditions to the standard grant contract (see Annex G of the guidelines).

In order to make sure that the majority of funds flows to actions and activities that target citizens directly, costs include under the Human Resources heading (Heading 1 in the budget) should be reasonable. It is therefore requested that the “Subtotal Human Resources” (the total of all expenses under budget heading “1. Human Resources”) represents a maximum of 40% of the total eligible costs (as mentioned in line 11 of the budget). Applications that exceed this limit will be excluded.

 

Contingency reserve

The budget may include a contingency reserve not exceeding 5 % of the estimated direct eligible costs. It can only be used with the prior written authorisation of the Contracting Authority.

Eligible indirect costs

The indirect costs incurred in carrying out the action may be eligible for flat-rate funding, but the total must not exceed 7 % of the estimated total eligible direct costs. Indirect costs are eligible provided that they do not include costs assigned to another budget heading in the standard grant contract. The lead applicant may be asked to justify the percentage requested before the grant contract is signed. However, once the flat rate has been fixed in the Special Conditions of the grant contract, no supporting documents need to be provided.

If any of the applicants or affiliated entity(ies) is in receipt of an operating grant financed by the EU, it may not claim indirect costs on its incurred costs within the proposed budget for the action.

 

Contributions in kind

Contributions in kind mean the provision of goods or services to a beneficiaries or affiliated entities free of charge by a third party. As contributions in kind do not involve any expenditure for beneficiaries or affiliated entities, they are not eligible costs.

Contributions in kind may not be treated as co-financing.

However, if the description of the action as proposed includes contributions in kind, the contributions have to be made.

Ineligible costs

The following costs are not eligible:

 debts and debt service charges (interest);

 provisions for losses or potential future liabilities;

 costs declared by the beneficiary(ies) and financed by another action or work programme receiving a European Union (including through EDF) grant;

 purchases of land or buildings, except where necessary for the direct implementation of the action, in which case ownership must be transferred, in accordance with Article 7.5 of the General Conditions of the standard grant contract, at the latest at the end of the action;

 purchases of vehicles, unless the applicant can demonstrate that the purchase is necessary for the purpose of the action implementation;

 currency exchange losses;

 office rent, unless the applicant can demonstrate that additional and specific office rental is necessary for the purpose of the action implementation;

 taxes, including VAT, unless the beneficiary or co-beneficiaries can demonstrate they cannot reclaim them;

 credit to third parties;

 Salary costs of the personnel of national administrations at the national level (e.g. national ministries)

1.5 How to apply and the procedures to follow

To apply for this call for proposals the lead applicants need to:

Provide information about the organisations involved in the action. Please note that the registration of this data in PADOR is obligatory for this call for proposals:

Concept note step: Registration in PADOR is obligatory only for lead applicants and public national or local authorities whatever their role is (co-applicant or associate). Entities registered in PADOR get a unique ID (EuropeAid ID) which they must mention in PROSPECT (lead applicant/co-applicant) or in the letter (associate). Please note that the absence of PADOR registration may lead to the rejection of the application.

Full application step: Registration is obligatory for co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies). Lead applicants must make sure that their PADOR profile is up to date.

Provide information about the action in the documents listed under sections 2.2.2 (concept note) and 2.2.5 (full application). Please note that online submission via PROSPECT is obligatory for this call,

PADOR is an on-line database in which organisations register and update information concerning their entity. Organisations registered in PADOR get a unique ID (EuropeAid ID) which they must mention in their application. PADOR is accessible via the website: http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/pador_en

It is strongly recommended to register in PADOR well in advance and not to wait until the last minute before the deadline to submit your application in PROSPECT.

If it is impossible to register online in PADOR for technical reasons, the applicants and/or affiliated entity(ies) must complete the ‘PADOR off-line form attached to these guidelines. This form must be sent together with the application, by the submission deadline (see sections 2.2.2 and 2.2.5).

Before starting using PADOR and PROSPECT, please read the user guides available on the website. All technical questions related the use of these systems should be addressed to the IT helpdesk at EuropeAid-IT-support@ec.europa.eu via the online support form in PROSPECT.

 

1.1.6 Concept note content

Applications must be submitted in accordance with the concept note instructions in the grant application form annexed to these guidelines (Annex A.1). Applicants must apply in English.

Please note that:

1. In the concept note lead applicants must provide only an estimate of the requested EU contribution, as well as an indicative percentage of this contribution in relation to the total eligible costs of the action. A detailed budget is to be submitted only by lead applicants invited to submit a full application in the second phase

2. The elements outlined in the concept note may not be modified in the full application form. The EU contribution may not vary from the initial estimate by more than 20 %. Lead applicants are free to adapt the requested EU contribution as a percentage of the total eligible costs within the minimum and maximum amounts and percentages provided in section 1.3. The lead applicant may add, replace or remove a co-applicant or an affiliated entity only in duly justified cases (e.g. bankruptcy of initial co-applicant or affiliated entity). In this case the new co-applicant/affiliated entity must be of a similar nature as the initial one. The lead applicant may adjust the duration of the action if unforeseen circumstances outside the scope of the applicants have taken place following the submission of the concept note and require such adaptation (risk of action not being carried out). In such cases the duration must remain within the limits imposed by the guidelines for applicants. An explanation/justification of the relevant replacement/adjustment shall be included in section 2.1.1 of the grant application form. Should the explanation/justification not be accepted by the Evaluation Committee, the proposal shall be rejected.

Own contributions by the applicants can be replaced by other donors' contributions at any time.

3. Only the concept note form will be evaluated. It is therefore of utmost importance that this document contains all relevant information concerning the action. No additional annexes should be sent.

Any error or major discrepancy related to the concept note instructions may lead to the rejection of the concept note.

Clarifications will only be requested when information provided is not sufficient to conduct an objective assessment.

1.1.7 Where and how to send concept notes

(1) The concept note together with the declaration by the lead applicant (Annex A.1 section 2) must be submitted online via PROSPECT https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/prospect following the instructions given in the PROSPECT user manual.

Upon submission of a concept note online, the lead applicant will receive an automatic confirmation of receipt in its PROSPECT profile.

 

(2) If it is impossible for lead applicants to submit their concept note online via PROSPECT for technical reasons, they must send their proposal in a sealed envelope together with the declaration by the lead applicant (Annex A.1  section 2). In particular, the lead applicant must send, in a sealed envelope as described below the following items:

 

a. One original of the concept note. The signed declaration by the lead applicant (Annex A.1 section 2) must be printed and stapled separately and enclosed in the envelope;

 

b. An electronic version (CD-Rom or USB stick) of the items under point (a). The electronic file must contain exactly the same application as the paper version enclosed.  

 

Please note that "technical reasons" should be understood ONLY in a situation when PROSPECT is not responding. Paper submission when PROSPECT is working may lead to the rejection of the application.

 

The validity of the submission off-line will be examined by the Evaluation Committee.  

 

The outer envelope must bear the reference number and the title of the call for proposals, together with the full name and address of the lead applicant, and the words ‘Not to be opened before the opening session.

 

To reduce expense and waste, we strongly recommend that you do not use plastic folders or dividers. Please also use double-sided printing if possible.

 

Concept notes must be submitted in a sealed envelope by registered mail, private courier service or by hand-delivery (a signed and dated certificate of receipt will be given to the deliverer) to the address below.  

Postal address

European Commission

Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development

Unit DEVCO B6 Finance and Contracts

Attn. Head of Unit

L-41 03/110 

Avenue du Bourget, 1

B-1140 Brussels BELGIUM

 

Address for hand delivery or by private courier service

European Commission

Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development

Unit DEVCO B6 Finance and Contracts

Attn. Head of Unit L-41 03/110  

 

Avenue du Bourget, 1

B-1140 Brussels

BELGIUM

Tel : +32 2 2997916

 

Concept notes sent by any other means (e.g. by fax or by e-mail) or delivered to other addresses will be rejected. Hand-written concept notes will not be accepted.  

 

Please note that incomplete concept notes may be rejected. Lead applicants are advised to verify that their concept note is complete by using the checklist for concept note (Annex A.1, Instructions).

All IT technical questions related to PROSPECT should be addressed to the PROSPECT helpdesk at: EuropeAid-IT-support@ec.europa.eu.

 

1.1.8 Deadline for submission of concept notes

The deadline for the submission of concept notes is 25 September 2018 at 16:00 (Brussels date and time).  In order to convert this deadline to local time you can use any online time converter tool that takes into account timezones and winter/summer time changes (example available here) The lead applicant is strongly advised not to wait until the last day to submit its concept note, since heavy Internet traffic or a fault with the Internet connection (including electricity failure, etc.) could lead to difficulties in submission. The Contacting Authority cannot be held responsible for any delay due to such afore-mentioned difficulties.

In the exceptional case of submission by post or by hand delivery (see section 2.2.2), the date of submission is evidenced by the date of dispatch, the postmark or the date of the deposit slip. In the case of hand-deliveries, the deadline for receipt is at 16:00 local time as evidenced by the signed and dated receipt.

Any concept note submitted after the deadline will be rejected.

However, for reasons of administrative efficiency, the Contracting Authority may also reject any concept note sent in due time but received after the effective date of approval of the concept note evaluation (see indicative calendar under section 2.5.2)

 

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