Questions and Answers

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 1 Brussels, 04.02.2014

Questions and Answers

(for questions received in one of the languages in which the call was published, answers are given in the language in which the question was received

except for PT for which answers are given in EN) Restricted Call for Proposals EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi

"Empowerment for better livelihoods, including skills development and vocational education and training, for marginalised and vulnerable persons

and people dependent on the informal economy "

REMINDER – RAPPEL – RECORDATORIO - AVISO EN

To ensure equal treatment of applicants, the Contracting Authority cannot give a prior opinion on the eligibility of applicants, or affiliated entity(ies), an action or specific activities.

FR

Afin de garantir l'égalité de traitement des demandeurs, l'administration contractante ne peut pas donner d’avis préalable sur l’éligibilité des demandeurs ou d'une/d'entité(s) affiliée(s), d’une action ou d'activités spécifiques.

ES

En aras de la igualdad de trato de los solicitantes, el Órgano de Contratación no podrá dar una opinión previa sobre la elegibilidad de los solicitantes, entidades afiliadas, una acción, o actividades específicas.

PT

No interesse de um tratamento equitativo de todos os requerentes, a Administração Contratante não pode dar um parecer prévio sobre a elegibilidade de um requerente, entidade(s) afiliada(s), ação ou atividades específicas.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 2 EN

Since heavy Internet traffic or possible disruption in the Internet connection (including electricity failure, etc….) may lead to difficulties in submission, applicants are strongly advised not to wait until the last day to submit their concept note. The applicant is solely responsible to ensure that the transmission was effectively successful and was not impeded by insufficient capacity of the applicant's server. The EC cannot be held responsible for any delay due to such afore-mentioned difficulties.

FR

Etant donné qu'un trafic important sur Internet ou un problème éventuel de connexion Internet (y compris une coupure d'électricité, etc…) pourrait conduire à certaines difficultés lors de la soumission, il est fortement conseillé aux demandeurs de ne pas attendre le dernier jour pour envoyer leur note succincte de présentation. Le demandeur est seul responsable pour s'assurer que la transmission effective de sa proposition a été réalisée et n'a pas été bloquée au départ de son serveur en raison d'une capacité insuffisante. La Commission européenne ne pourra pas être tenue responsable des retards dus aux difficultés mentionnées ci-dessus.

ES

Dado que un tráfico intenso de Internet o un eventual fallo en la conexión de Internet (incluyendo un fallo eléctrico, etc.) podría conducir a dificultades en el envío del documento de síntesis, se recomienda encarecidamente a los solicitantes que no esperen hasta el último día para el envío del documento de síntesis. El solicitante es responsable de que la transmisión de su documento se haya realizado correctamente y que no haya fallado por una insuficiente capacidad de su servidor. La Comisión Europea no puede ser considerada responsable en caso de retraso debido a las dificultades mencionadas anteriormente.

PT

Aconselham-se vivamente os requerentes a não deixarem para a última hora a apresentação dos documentos de síntese, pois uma sobrecarga excecional das linhas ou um eventual problema de ligação à Internet (corte de eletricidade, etc.) poderá dificultar o seu envio. A Administração Contratante não pode ser considerada responsável por atrasos devidos às dificuldades supramencionadas.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 3

INTRODUCTION INTRODUCCION INTRODUCAO

Please note that a corrigendum has been published Veuillez noter qu'un corrigendum a été publié

Les comunicamos que se ha publicado un corrigendum Comunicamos que foi publicado um corrigendum.

CONSIDERING THE LARGE NUMBER OF QUESTIONS RECEIVED ON ELIGIBILITY OF APPLICANTS AND ACTION LOCATION, PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING CLARIFICATIONS TO THE GUIDELINES FOR APPLICANTS :

Who can apply?

All entities satisfying the criteria set in Section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines can apply.

This means that all entities established (being determined as indicated in footnote nr 22) in a Member State of the European Economic Area (EEA) or in a partner country as per the list of aid recipients of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD/DAC) (Annex I), can be applicants, co-applicants or affiliated entities in a proposal.

This obligation does not apply to international organisations

Where can the action take place?

The actions must take place in one or more countries as defined in the OECD DAC list (Annex I).

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VU LE GRAND NOMBRE DE QUESTIONS REÇUES SUR L'ADMISSIBILITÉ DES DEMANDEURS ET LA SITUATION DE L'ACTION, VEUILLEZ PRENDRE EN COMPTE LES CLARIFICATIONS SUIVANTES DES LIGNES DIRECTRICES A L'INTENTION DES DEMANDEURS :

Qui peut soumettre une proposition?

Toutes les entités répondant aux critères énoncés dans la section 2.1.1 des Lignes directrices peuvent soumettre une proposition.

Cela signifie que toutes les entités ayant la nationalité (étant déterminé comme il est indiqué à la note de bas de page n ° 22) d'un Etat membre de l'Espace économique européen (EEE) ou d'un pays partenaire figurant dans la liste des pays bénéficiaires d’aide établie par le Comité d’aide au développement (CAD) de

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 4 l’Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques (OCDE) (Annexe I) peuvent être

demandeur, codemandeur ou entité affiliée dans une proposition.

Cette obligation ne s’applique pas aux organisations internationales.

Où les actions peuvent-elles avoir lieu?

Les actions doivent être mises en œuvre dans un ou plusieurs pays tels que définis dans la liste du CAD de l’OCDE (Annexe I).

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CONSIDERANDO EL GRAN NÚMERO DE PREGUNTAS RECIBIDAS SOBRE LA ELEGIBILIDAD DE LOS SOLICITANTES Y UBICACIÓN DE ACCIÓN LES ROGAMOS TOMEN EN CUENTA LAS SIGUIENTES ACLARACIONES SOBRE LA GUIA PARA LOS SOLICITANTES :

¿Quién puede solicitar?

Todas las entidades que cumplan los criterios establecidos en la sección 2.1.1 de la Guía pueden postular.

Esto significa que todas las entidades que tengan la nacionalidad (que se determina como se indica en la nota n º 22), de un Estado miembro del Espacio Económico Europeo (EEE), o de un país socio de los que figuran en lista de beneficiarios de ayudas del CAD de la OCDE (Anexo I) pueden ser solicitantes, co- solicitantes o entidades afiliadas en una propuesta.

Esta obligación no se aplica a las organizaciones internacionales.

¿Dónde podrá llevarse a cabo la acción?

Las acciones se ejecutarán en uno o más de los países contemplados en la lista del CAD de la OCDE (Annexo I)

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TENDO EM CONTA O NÚMERO ELEVADO DE QUESTÕES RECEBIDAS RELATIVAMENTE À ELEGIBILIDADE DOS REQUERENTES E À LOCALIZAÇÃO DA AÇÃO, Solicitamos que tenham em consideração os seguintes esclarecimentos sobre as Orientações para os requerentes

Quem pode candidatar-se?

Todas as entidades que satisfaçam os critérios estabelecidos na Secção 2.1.1 das Orientações podem candidatar-se.

Isto significa que todas as entidades estabelecidas (tal como indicado na nota de rodapé n° 22) num Estado Membro do Espaço Económico Europeu (EEE), ou num país parceiro constante da lista de beneficiários da ajuda do Comité de Ajuda ao Desenvolvimento da Organização de Cooperação e de Desenvolvimento Económico (OCDE/CAD) (Anexo I) podem ser requerente, correquerentes ou entidades afiliadas num pedido.

Esta obrigação não se aplica às organizações internacionais.

Onde pode a ação ter lugar?

As ações devem ter lugar em um ou mais países, tal como definidos na lista do CAD da OCDE (Anexo I).

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 5

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 6 I. ELIGIBILITY

APPLICANTS AND CO-APPLICANTS

1° We have a doubt as to the possible involvement of IPA countries (either as organisations in the consortium or as action locations)

Section 2.1.1 “Eligibility of Applicants” states that applicants must be legally established either in the EU28 or in a partner country included in the OECD DAC list of ODA recipients, which is published as Annex I of the Call. It then goes on to state that “in addition” organisations from the EU official candidate countries Turkey, FYROM, Montenegro & Serbia are also eligible. We are unable to understand this as all IPA countries (except Iceland) are already part of the DAC list of ODA recipients.

Section 2.1.4 “Eligible Actions” states with regard to the Location: „The actions must take place in one or more countries as defined in the OECD DAC list and be eligible for funding under the DCI thematic programmes.“

The 2006 DCI regulation referred to by footnotes defines the following groups of countries as eligible for DCI thematic programmes (Article 1 – Overall scope & purpose):

“2. The Community shall finance thematic programmes in countries, territories and regions eligible for assistance under a geographic programme of this Regulation, set out in Articles 5 to 10, for assistance under Regulation (EC) No 1638/2006 or for geographic cooperation under the European Development Fund (EDF).” (With 1638/2006 referring to ENPI countries)

Could you please confirm that this is the correct definition referred to by Section 2.1.4?

Could you also confirm that consequently, the projects activities are not supposed to take place in any IPA country?

Please refer to the introduction of the present document about eligibility and to the corrigendum.

2° We have thoroughly read the guidelines, however we have one inquiry on eligibility of applicants (section 2.1.1). Please kindly clarify if you consider NGOs registered locally. In the guideline, there is no mention of locally registered organisations (while you normally clarify this point in other call guidelines), and we would like to double check if you consider them as an eligible applicant.

We further understand that those applicable to organisations stated below are also eligible: be established in a Member State of the European Union or in a partner country as per the list of aid recipients of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD/DAC). This obligation does not apply to international organisations.

Does this mean if the country we want to apply from is listed under OECD/DAC’s list, we will be eligible to apply whether or not we are registered locally?

Please refer to footnote 22 which states: “To be determined on the basis of the organisation’s statutes, which should demonstrate that it has been established by an instrument governed by the national law of the country concerned and that its head office is located in an eligible country.

In this respect, any legal entity whose statutes have been established in another country cannot

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 7 be considered an eligible local organisation, even if the statutes are registered locally or a

‘Memorandum of Understanding’ has been concluded.

3° Please, kindly let us know if Russia is eligible to participate in the above mentioned call of proposals? We didn't find the country in the OECD/DAC recipients list, however the info on this call of proposals is on the website of the Delegation of EC in Russia, so, please, kindly clarify this.

And the similar question re Belarus. Belarus is in the OECD/DAC list, but it's not included in the list at Annex I COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE UNDER ARTICLE 1(1) for the REGULATION (EC) No 1905/2006 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 18 December 2006 establishing a financing instrument for development cooperation. The section 2.1.4 of the current call of proposals says: "The actions must take place in one or more countries as defined in the OECD DAC list31 and be eligible for funding under the DCI thematic programmes32". So, the first condition is OK for Belarus, but the second one is not if we understand it correctly? Please, kindly let us know if Belarus can apply for this call (both applicant from Belarus and the action to take part within Belarus)?

Please refer to the corrigendum published at : https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-

services/index.cfm?do=publi.welcome&nbPubliList=25&orderby=upd&orderbyad=Desc&searchty pe=RS&aofr=135181

4° Could you please clarify if organisations in other Southern Africa countries that are NOT South Africa (eg. Zimbabwe, Malawi, DRC, Botswana) are eligible to apply for funding for projects to be carried out in these same countries?

Issues:

Page 12 states that applicants for EU Member States or organisations from OECD/DAC list are eligible to apply.

Page 15 says that actions may only take place in countries from the OECD DAC list and eligible for funding and DCI thematic programmes. The 960/2009 regulation (http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2009:270:0008:0011:EN:PDF) only lists South Africa as African countries eligible under Article 1.

5° Under 2.1.1 of the Call for Proposals (Reference: EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi), paragraph 1 for the eligible applicants, which is cited here:

“be established in a Member State of the European Union or in a partner country as per the list of aid recipients of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organization for Economic

Cooperation and Development (OECD/DAC). This obligation does not apply to international Organisations”

I would like to have your confirmation if Kosovo is also eligible to participate in this call.

From the latest documents published at the OECD website, Kosovo is stated as one of the countries eligible for DAC support.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 8 Please refer to the corrigendum published at:

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-

6° A.The term “Public sector operator” seems to be newly included in the CfP terminology (eligibility of applicants). What is exactly meant and how a PSO would be defined? Can a national Ministry (ex. Ministry of Development) be considered as Public sector operator, and therefore eligible in this call?

B.Otherwise, can local offices of a Ministry ( ex. local branches of the Ministry of Development) be eligible as Local Authorities Partners?

A. Public sector operator refers to public administrations or agencies which provides governmental services.

B. Please refer to the reply above as well as to footnote 20: The term ‘local authority’ (LA) refers to public institutions with legal personality, component of the State structure, below the level of central government and accountable to citizens. Local authorities are usually composed of a deliberative or policy-making body (council or assembly) and an executive body (the Mayor or other executive officer), directly or indirectly elected or selected at local level. The term encompasses different tiers of government, e.g. villages, municipalities, districts, counties, provinces, regions, etc. [Reference: COM(2013) 280 final,15.05.2013].

7° Can you please provide a definition of the term “public sector operators”? Would this include a national Government Ministry (given the inclusion under Types of Activity of “Cooperative initiatives involving civil society organisations, social partners or government institutions in the design, piloting, implementation and evaluation of actions addressing the enhancement of livelihoods of people dependent on the informal economy and social inclusion of vulnerable groups”?

See reply to question 6.

8° According to the section 2.1.1 (Eligibility of applicants) of the restricted call for proposals (EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi), “public sector operators” are eligible applicants. We would like to know whether or not our organization can be considered as a “public sector operator”. The fund is a legal person of our country's public law accountable to the Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs of our country

As per section 2.2.4 of the Guidelines for Applicants, to ensure equal treatment of applicants, the Contracting Authority cannot give a prior opinion on the eligibility of applicants, or affiliated entity(ies), an action or specific activities.

See also reply to question 6.

9° What is the definition of public sectors operators (p. 12, in 2.1.1, Eligibility of applicants)? Can ministries or central governments agencies apply?

Please refer to Q.6.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 9 10 ° I couldn't understand the difference between applicants and co-applicants.

Please refer to section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines for Applicants for the definition of both categories.

11 ° Nous voudrions savoir si toutes les activités doivent être mises en œuvre par des associations locales, ou si une partie peut être mises en œuvre par l'ONG européenne, et une autre partie par une association locale ?

Veuillez vous référer à la section 2.1.1 des Lignes directrices pour ce qui concerne les responsabilités du demandeur et des codemandeurs, et en particulier aux phrases suivantes :

"Le demandeur doit (…) être directement chargé de la préparation et de la gestion de l’action avec le(s) codemandeur(s) et l’entité/les entités affiliée(s) et non agir en tant qu’intermédiaire"

Le(s) codemandeur(s) participe(nt) à la définition et à la mise en œuvre de l’action, et les coûts qu’il(s)encour(en)t sont éligibles au même titre que ceux encourus par le demandeur.

12° The call states that the applicant (co-applicant and affiliated entity) must have at least three years' experience in implementing actions in the specific field of the proposed action and the deadline for the concept note is given as 19th February 2014. Our organisation (based in Bonn) will be three years old on 1st of March 2014. Will we be eligible to apply as an applicant on this call?

The experience will be assessed only at the full application phase as per section 2.1.1 stating that

“(..) the applicant must have at least three years' experience in implementing actions in the specific field of the proposed action (assessed in section 1.2 of the full application evaluation grid) (…)”

13° I have one question related to the concept note. According to the concept note applicant, co- applicant and affiliated entity have to have at least three years of experience in the field which is relevant to this project. Our Institute has two years of experience and two successful projects.

One of them is worth 300.000 euros funded by the European social fund and a Ministry and the second one is funded by European Commission.

Are two years of experience and two successful projects sufficient to apply for the project Investing in people?

See reply to question 12.

14° We are a Canadian NGO interested in submitting a project as part of the call for proposals EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi in Nicaragua.

We would like to clarify whether we are eligible to submit a proposal for Nicaragua or if we are limited to the list of least developed countries.

Please refer to section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines for Applicants which stipulates that “Furthermore, for actions proposed and taking place exclusively in the least developed countries, applicants from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland and United States may also apply” and the classification of Nicaragua in the list of aid recipients of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD/DAC) –Annex I.

15° I write to inquire about my organization's eligibility to apply for the Europe Aid 'Education, Knowledge and Skills, Employment and Social Cohesion' call for proposal 2014.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 10 I seek clarification regarding this portion of the eligibility criteria:

Applicant must be established in a member state of the EU or from Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway, Turkey, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia.

Applicants can be from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland and United States if the proposed action is exclusively targeted in the least developed country.

I am a Canadian citizen, residing in Canada; I co-founded a non-profit organization in Nigeria. We have just launched a program that we would like to be funded by this grant opportunity. Before we submit a concept note, kindly advice if we are eligible.

Please check the classification of Nigeria in the list of aid recipients of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD/DAC) –Annex I.

16° En los requisitos de la convocatoria se indica que pueden participar "empresas privadas, especialmente si pueden ofrecer acceso y medios especiales, a condición de que no haya beneficios derivados de su participación en la acción".

La pregunta es: si el publico objetivo de la propuesta, una vez formado, se insertará laboralmente en una obra publica administrado por una empresa privada .

¿esta empresa podrá participar como co-solicitante o entidad afiliada de nuestra institución o se considera que hay un beneficio derivado de la Acción?

¿Si no pudiera participar como co-solicitante o entidad afiliada, podría ser Asociado de la Acción?

Como estipulado en la sección 2.1.1 de la Guía, la condición de participación de las empresas privadas es que no perciban beneficios derivados de dicha acción. Si esto no se respetara, la condición no se cumpliría y la empresa no sería elegible como co-solicitante o entidad afiliada.

De querer participar en esas condiciones, lo podría hacer como asociado.

17° Uno de nuestros potenciales co-solicitantes en Perú, es según sus estatutos, una empresa de economía mixta, organizada como sociedad anónima que cuenta con autonomía administrativa, económica y financiera.

El accionariado se reparte de la siguiente manera:

El 69% pertenecen al Estado Peruano. Son inembargables y no pueden ser objeto de garantía mobiliaria ni usufructo.

El 1% pertenecen a entidades y empresas diferentes al Estado Peruano.

El 30% pertenecen al Estado Peruano.

El objeto de la sociedad es contribuir al desarrollo integral del país, mediante la captación de fondos e intermediación financiera para la promoción y financiamiento de inversiones productivas y de infraestructura pública y privada a nivel nacional.

Califica como co-solicitante?

En aras de la igualdad de trato de los solicitantes, el Órgano de Contratación no podrá dar una opinión previa sobre la elegibilidad de los solicitantes, co-solicitantes, entidades afiliadas, una acción, o actividades específicas.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 11 Por favor consulte la sección 2.1.1 de la Guía sobre la elegibilidad de los co-solicitantes. Por favor

tenga en cuenta que una empresa privada podrá participar especialmente si puede ofrecer acceso y medios especiales y si no hay beneficios derivados de su participación en la acción.

El solicitante tiene la responsabilidad de demostrar que la asociación propuesta cumple con los requisitos y es conforme con los objetivos de la convocatoria.

18 ° Notre organisation a une représentation géographique dans certains pays ; peut-on participer avec autant de propositions ?

Veuillez vous référer à la section 2.1.1 des Lignes Directrices - Eligibilité des demandeurs - ainsi qu'à la note de bas de page n° 22.

Veuillez également vous référer au corrigendum en FR publié à l'adresse suivante : https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-

En tout état de cause, si votre organisation constitue, avec ses antennes locales, une seule et même entité légale, alors les bureaux/succursales dans les pays respectifs de votre organisation ne peuvent en aucun cas être considérés comme des demandeurs séparés.

Veuillez vous référer au point 2.1.4. des Lignes directrices à l'attention des demandeurs, titre :

"Nombre de demandes et de subventions par demandeur".

19° Je voudrais bien savoir si les Agences du système des Nations Unies sont éligibles Voir réponse à la question 18.

20° I am writing to request clarification regarding the number of applications and grants for this call for proposal ( guidelines page 19).

"The applicant must submit only one application under this Call. If an applicant submits more than one application, all applications will be rejected.

My organisation would like to send several applications for different countries in the world. In fact my organisation Offices represent several entities for us, hence several applicants in EU terms. Can you please clarify whether we are eligible to send several applications from for example, my organisation country A, my organisation country B etc?

Please see footnote 22 of the Guidelines for Applicants which stipulates : “To be determined on the basis of the organisation’s statutes, which should demonstrate that it has been established by an instrument governed by the national law of the country concerned and that its head office is located in an eligible country. In this respect, any legal entity whose statutes have been established in another country cannot be considered an eligible local organisation, even if the statutes are registered locally or a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ has been concluded.

In other words, if your organisation, with its country offices, is one single legal entity, then individual country offices/branches of your organisation could not be considered as independent entities.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 12 21° If we go as co-applicant on this call, can we have 2 NGO X co-applicants on the same

application (multi-country, for example NGO X in one country and NGO X in another country?

Please refer to section 2.1.1. of the Guidelines for Applicants which stipulates that : "Applicants must therefore act with at least one local co-applicant. This obligation does not apply if the

applicant has the nationality of the country or at least one of the countries where the action will take place.

In addition, for actions taking place in more than one country, the applicant must act with at least one co-applicant/affiliated entity/associate having the nationality of each of the countries where the action will take place.

Please also see footnote 22 of the Guidelines for Applicants and to the corrigendum which indicates: “To be determined on the basis of the organisation’s statutes, which should demonstrate that it has been established by an instrument governed by the national law of the country concerned and that its head office is located in an eligible country. In this respect, any legal entity whose statutes have been established in another country cannot be considered an eligible local organisation, even if the statutes are registered locally or a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ has been concluded.

In other words, if your organisation, with its country offices, is one single legal entity, then individual country offices/branches of your organisation could not be considered as independent entities.

22° One of the academics from my organisation is thinking of applying to the Investing in People call EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi. Please could you assist me with some questions below:

Could cash funds be conditional ? (e.g. 'if the project comes up with a product/brand for investment, then company X will invest £250k in [for example] product development for future royalty share'?)

- Could cash funds be for 'association' with the project? Could we look to trusts and foundations with an interest in Africa?

Please note that to ensure equal treatment of applicants, the Contracting Authority cannot give a prior opinion on the eligibility of applicants, co-applicants or affiliated entity(ies), an action or specific activities.

Please note that, according to section 2.1.1 « Eligibility of applicants », the applicant must be non- profit making. Private companies may be eligible if they can offer particular access and means, on condition that no-profit is derived from their involvement in the action.

LOCATION

23 ° We would like to know which one of the two list mentioned in the Guidelines should we consider in order to identify the countries of intervention for this action:

- Annex I contains: Least Developed Countries / Other Low Income Countries /Lower Middle Income Countries/Upper Middle Income Countries

But at page 16, par. 2.1.4, note 32, refers to footnote N°1. Note N°1, linked to REGULATION (EC) No 1905/2006 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 18 December 2006 - establishing a financing instrument for development cooperation.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 13 At the end of this document there is a list of Eligible Countries (Annex I) which does not include

countries listed in Annex II or III.

My question are:

- Which is the list we have to follow in order to choose countries in which the activities will be implemented?

- are countries listed in Annex II eligible as countries in which implementing actions under this call for proposal?

- is there any priority given to Least Developed countries, rather than Upper Middle or Lower Middle Income Countries?

- does a multi-country proposal targeting 2 Upper middle Income countries + 1 Lower Middle income gives less chance to win, compared to a multi-country proposal targeting Least Developing countries?

Please refer to corrigendum published at : https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-

and the concept note evaluation grid.

24° Concernant la liste des pays bénéficiaires de l'APD établie par le CAD, la République Centrafricaine fait-elle aussi partie des pays à faible revenu ? Car la liste ne le précise pas alors que nous voulons travailler sur la République Centrafricaine.

Veuillez à cet effet vous référer au corrigendum qui a été publié à l'adresse suivante : https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-

25° Please can you confirm whether projects proposed for the Central African Republic are eligible under this call? Although ranked as a 'least developed country', I was under the impression that EC funding in the CAR was currently only available through ECHO.

26° The Calls states “Location: The actions must take place in one or more countries as defined in the OECD DAC list and be eligible for funding under the DCI thematic programmes.” ENPI south countries are defined in the OECD DAC list, nevertheless they do not appear in Annex I COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE UNDER ARTICLE 1(1) of the DCI Regulation. Does it mean that those countries are not eligible?

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 14 Then in DEVCO website, http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/how/finance/thematic_en.htm, it is stated

that for DCI-Investing in people “All countries, except EU and industrialised countries”

geographical zone is covered. According to this, would they be eligible?

27° Y a-t-il une restriction par rapport aux pays de réalisation de l’action. En d’autres termes, est ce que l’action n’est retenue que si elle est prévue dans un pays à faible revenu ? Quid des pays à revenu intermédiaire, tranche inférieure ?

Veuillez à cet effet vous référer au corrigendum de la version française des lignes directrices qui a été publié à l'adresse suivante :

28° I have a question on eligibility of West Bank / Gaza for this call for proposals.

In the guidelines on p.15 it references two documents OECD DAC list and REGULATION (EC) No 1905/2006 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 18 December 2006

(The actions must take place in one or more countries as defined in the OECD DAC list and be eligible for funding under the DCI thematic programmes). I am finding WBG on one of the documents, but not in the other. Can you confirm if we are eligible to apply for this call, please?

29° I would like to ask you a confirmation as for the LOCATION of the actions to take place:

are the countries listed in the OECD DAC list (DAC List of ODA Recipients- Effective for reporting on 2012 and 2013 flows) OR the counties listed in the Annex I (Countries eligible under Article 1) of the Regulation (EC) No. 960/2009?

30 ° I need to know that this proposal is relevant for the Haredi (ultra-orthodox) community in Israel and that the EU can support projects under this proposal in Israel.

Please refer to the corrigendum published at :

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 15 https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-

ACTIONS

31° Est-ce que le projet peut joindre la formation et le financement et/ou l ‘acquisition des équipements qui vont servir la population ( outils)

Comme il est stipulé à la Section 2.2.4 des Lignes Directrices à l'intention des demandeurs de subvention et afin de garantir un traitement équitable entre les demandeurs, l'administration contractante ne peut pas émettre un avis préalable sur l'éligibilité d'un demandeur, d'un partenaire, d'une action ou d'activités spécifiques.

Il est de la responsabilité du demandeur de reprendre les différentes activités proposées et de démontrer dans quelle mesure ces activités contribuent à la réalisation des objectifs de l'action en conformité avec les priorités et les objectifs de l'appel.

Pour consulter une liste d'activités indicatives et non exhaustive, veuillez vous référer à la section 2.1.4 des Lignes Directrices.

32° What is the project duration 48 or 60 months?

Please refer to section 2.1.4 of the Guidelines where it is stipulated that the initial planned duration of an action may not be lower than 36 months nor exceed 48.

33° Regarding the financial support to third parties:

How many third parties can be financed in a project? Or, how much money can globally be invested in support to third parties (apart the 60.000€ limit per third party)

Can a third party be identified before the submission of the proposal, or such a financial support can occur only through a selection process that will take place during the project?

Can such a support be in the form of capital to be made available for microfinance activities? And, in that case, should we consider expected repayments as revenues in the budget or these can be left to the benefit of the third party?

Can these third parties be individuals?

Please refer to sections 2.1.3 "Associates and contractors" and 2.1.4 “Eligible actions” of the Guidelines for Applicants for both (particularly the paragraph on financial support to third parties) and 2.1.5 “Eligibility of costs” (particularly the list of ineligible costs). You may also consult the Practical Guide to contract procedures for EU external actions (PRAG), section 6.9. Award of contracts & financial support to third parties by grant beneficiaries, as mentioned at footnote 30 and at chapter 2 "Rules for this call for proposals" of the Guidelines for Applicants.

34° Our organisation is a skill promotion agency working at the national level in our country. We have successfully implemented two EU supported projects.

In both the projects Vocational Education and Training (VET) was one of the prominent activities for which substantial amount was budgeted. Skills training programmes were implemented by

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 16 grass-root non-profit organisations that were addressed as “Service Providers”. They received

financial support for implementing skill training programme only.

We wish to be part of the new project titled “Inventing in people: Education, knowledge and skills, Employment and social cohesion – Empowerment for better livelihoods, including skills development and vocational education and training, for marginalised and vulnerable persons and people dependent on the informal economy” – Ref: EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi.

Through this new EU supported project, we plan to conduct various activities to achieve the project goal. One of the major activities will be VET. We will provide skill training to 30,000 youth in 6 most backward States of India during 4 years’ time. For this purpose we will identify 100 non- profit organisations who will implement the skill training activity. Their role will be to perform as skills training providers for the targeted youth. The important factors to be noted are:

• The skills training programmes and other activities will be carried out in 6 States where many different local languages are in use.

• The areas of operation (tribal area with specific way of socialising and working) are remote.

• The nature of activities will be unique (many locally adapted trainings).

In this background we wish to ask you the following questions:

1) Will the non-profit organisations come under the category of “Third Party”?

2) If not, by what name we should address the non-profit organisations?

As stated in section 2.1.4 of the Guidelines, subsection : Financial support to third parties,

"Applicants may propose financial support to third parties in order to help achieving the objectives of the action.

The maximum amount of financial support per third party is € 60 000.

Under this Call, financial support to third parties may not be the main purpose of the action.

The third entity financially supported must have the nationality or be registered in the country or countries where the action is implemented.

Financial support to third parties in partner countries constitutes an additional "added value" element (cf. section 1.4 of the concept note evaluation grid) in order to

- support local grass root organisations

- strengthening their capacity to build sustainability - implement actions aiming at the objectives of this Call

This aspect must be evidenced and detailed both in the concept note and in the full application.

In compliance with the present guidelines and notably of any conditions or restrictions set above, applicants

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

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 17 (v) the criteria for determining the exact amount of financial support for each third entity,

and

(vi) the maximum amount which may be given".

35° Nuestra organización trabaja en desarrollo territorial y en los mismos existen productores de yerba mate y artesanos indígenas que trabajan de manera artesanal y sin formalidad en el procesamiento y ventas de sus productos (yerba mate artesanal orgánica y artesanía de pueblos originarios). Este tipo de producción y grupo de beneficiarios pueden entrar como elegibles dentro de personas vulnerables, marginadas y personas que dependen de la economía informal?

En aras de la igualdad de trato de los solicitantes, el Órgano de Contratación no podrá dar una opinión previa sobre la elegibilidad de los solicitantes, co-solicitantes, entidades afiliadas, una acción, o actividades específicas.

Por favor consulte la sección 2.1.4.

El solicitante tiene la responsabilidad de demostrar en qué medida las distintas actividades propuestas contribuirán a realizar los objetivos de la acción en acuerdo con las prioridades y los objetivos de la convocatoria.

COSTS

36° Además, consultamos si el monto mínimo es de 1.500.000 euros?; menos de esto no es elegible?.

Por favor consulte la sección 1.3 de la Guía en la que se establece que "Las subvenciones solicitadas dentro de la presente Convocatoria de Propuestas deberán estar comprendidas entre los siguientes importes mínimo y máximo:

• Importe mínimo: 1 500 000 EUR

• Importe máximo: 5 000 000 EUR

Cualquier propuesta en que la contribución solicitada a la UE no se sitúe entre estos importes mínimo y máximo será rechazada."

NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS

37° My organization, is planning to submit a concept note and we would like to know if we can submit in different countries (one concept note per country). My questions is therefore regarding the point “Number of applications and grants per applicant(s)”, concretely on whether the limit of one application per applicant indicated in the guidelines refers to the organization as a whole or the organization in the country.

Please see footnote 22 of section 2.1.1. "Eligibility of applicants" of the Guidelines for Applicants, If your organisation, with its country offices, is one single legal entity, then individual country offices/branches of your organisation could not be considered as independent entities.

However, as per section 2.2.4., to ensure equal treatment of applicants, the Contracting Authority cannot give a prior opinion on the eligibility of applicants, or affiliated entity(ies), an action or specific activities.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 18 38° Please could you clarify if there is a limit to the number of applications that an organisation

can make as a co-applicant to this call. For example, if an organisation applies as a lead applicant for one proposal, would it be restricted to making only one further bid as a co-applicant? (“The applicant may be a co-applicant or an affiliated entity in another application at the same time” ie does another mean only one other?).

According o section 2.1.4., subsection "Number of applications and grants per applicant(s)", there is no limit to the number of proposals an organisation can be co-applicant for. However, co- applicants can only be awarded up to a maximum of three grants under this Call for proposals.

39° Furthermore, we assume that as a co-applicant may be awarded up to a maximum of three grants under this Call for Proposals there is no limit to the number of proposals that an organisation can join as a co-applicant if it is not leading any proposals as an applicant. Please can you confirm this.

See reply to question 38

40° I have a question on the number of applications in which a main applicant may be a co- applicant.

On page 19 of the guidelines it is stated that: "The applicant may be a co-applicant or an affiliated entity in another application at the same time". This could imply that the applicant may be a co- applicant in one other application only. However, it is also stated that: "A co-applicant may be awarded up to a maximum of three grants under this Call for Proposals."

Please could you clarify whether an applicant may indeed only be a co-applicant in one other application or whether there is in fact no limit on the number of applications in which an applicant may be a co-applicant.

See reply to question 38

41° Comment doit-on comprendre l’extrait suivant des lignes directrices (page 20 de la version française):

« Nombre de demandes et de subventions par demandeurs

Le demandeur ne peut soumettre qu’une seule demande au titre du présent appel à propositions.

Dans le cas où le demandeur soumet plusieurs demandes soumises, celles-ci seront rejetées.

Le demandeur peut être en même temps un codemandeur ou une entité affiliée dans une autre demande.

Un codemandeur peut être en même temps un codemandeur ou une entité affiliée dans une autre demande.

Un codemandeur peut se voir octroyer maximum trois subventions au titre du présent appel à propositions.

L’/les entité(s) affiliée(s) peu(ven)t participer à plus d’une demande. »

Une même organisation a-t-elle la possibilité d’être co-demandeur dans autant de propositions qu’elle le souhaite ou doit elle se limiter à deux propositions seulement en tant que co- demandeur ?

(Nous avons bien noté par ailleurs qu’une même organisation ne peut introduire qu’une seule proposition en tant que demandeur).

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 19 Il n'y a pas de limite au nombre de propositions auquel une organisation peut participer en tant

que co-demandeur. Cependant, un codemandeur peut se voir octroyer maximum trois subventions au titre du présent appel à propositions.

42° Respecto al número de solicitudes y subvenciones por solicitante (pág. 21 de 41), en concreto:

Un solicitante puede presentar únicamente una solicitud, PERO, este mismo solicitante si presenta 1 solicitud, ¿en cuántas propuestas además puede ir como co-solicitante? No me queda claro si serían 2 propuestas más ó 3.

Es decir:

1 propuesta como solicitante + 3 propuestas como co-solicitante

= Total de 4 propuestas, ¿es correcto?

El número de propuestas en las que una organización puede ser co-solicitante, no está limitado.

Sin embargo, podrá concederse un máximo de tres subvenciones a cada co-solicitante.

43° Is there a limit of the number of applicants or co-applicants?

Please refer to question n° 38

44° Estaríamos interesados en presentar N.1 propuesta como Solicitantes y N.2 propuestas como co-solicitantes, lo que sumaría 3 posibles subvenciones.

Eso es factible?

Véase la sección 2.1.4 (párrafo “Numero de solicitudes y subvenciones por participante), así como la respuesta a la pregunta 42.

45° Si on est demandeur d’une proposition, dans combien de propositions on peut être codemandeur ? Est-ce qu’il i y a un limite ?

Veuillez vous référer à la question n°41.

PARTNERSHIP REQUIREMENTS

46° Nous avons remarqué des différences entre la version française et la version anglaise dans les lignes directrices de l’appel à propositions EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi au paragraphe concernant l’éligibilité des demandeurs et des co-demandeurs (paragraphe 2.1.1.).

Dans la version anglaise, qui semble prévaloir, il est écrit : “ Partnership arrangements between actors and which build local ownership and capacity are strongly encouraged in this call. Applicants must therefore act with at least one local co-applicant. This obligation does not apply if the applicant has the nationality of the country or at least one of the countries where the action will take place. In addition, for actions taking place in more than one country, the applicant must act with at least one co-applicant/affiliated entity/associate having the nationality of each of the countries where the action will take place.”

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 20 En revanche, dans la version française il écrit : “ Les acteurs sont fortement encouragés, dans le

cadre du présent appel, à conclure des accords de partenariats capables de renforcer l’appropriation et la capacité locales. Les demandeurs doivent par conséquent agir avec au moins un codemandeur.

Cette obligation n'est pas nécessaire si le demandeur possède la nationalité du pays où d'au moins un pays où l'action est mise en œuvre. De plus, en cas d'actions menées dans plusieurs pays, le demandeur doit agir avec au moins une/un entité(s) affilié(es)/associé(es) possédant la nationalité de chacun des pays où l'action est mise en œuvre. ”

Nous voudrions donc confirmer que les demandeurs doivent bien agir avec au moins un codemandeur local et que dans le cas d’actions menées dans plusieurs pays, le demandeur doit agir avec au moins un co-demandeur/un(es) entité(s) affilié(es)/associé(es) dans chacun des pays où sera mise en œuvre l’action.

En effet, les demandeurs doivent agir avec au moins un codemandeur local. Veuillez à cet effet vous référer au corrigendum de la version française des lignes directrices qui a été publié à l'adresse suivante :

47 ° Vous demandez p14 que "en cas d'actions menées dans plusieurs pays, le demandeur doit agir avec au moins un/une entité(s) affilié(es)/associé(es) possédant la nationalité de chacun des pays où l'action est mise en oeuvre". Est-ce nécessaire pour les pays dont un co-demandeur a la nationalité ?

Par ex : trois pays A, B et C demandeur : ONG européenne,

co-demandeurs : association nationale A + association nationale B + association nationale C Voir réponse 47.

48° If we do not include an affiliate or co-applicant at concept note submission level because we cannot find one at short notice and wish to bring them in during full application preparation if selected, is it acceptable?

Please note that the absence of partnership would inevitably entail a penalty in the scored obtained since the (existence and) quality of the partnership will be assessed in section 1.3 of the Concept note evaluation grid as indicated in section 2.1.1. of these guidelines.

In exceptional cases where it is impossible to involve national organisations 37 from the target country because of the particular situation in that country, the applicant must provide explanations, which will be examined when applying this criterion.

No modification of the partnership between the Concept Note and the Full Application will be allowed save in exceptional cases, justified by force majeure and accepted by the Evaluation Committee. Force majeure shall mean any unforeseeable exceptional situation or event beyond the parties’ control which prevents either of them from fulfilling any of their obligations, is not attributable to error or negligence on their part and proves insurmountable in spite of all due diligence. In such cases, the applicant must clearly indicate the requested change and justify the request in Part B section 7 of the Full Application form. The validity of the justification provided will be examined during the evaluation of the Full Application. Should the justification not be deemed valid, the proposal may be rejected on that sole basis.

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 21 49° Na sequência do convite a apresentação de propostas a subvenção referencia

EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi, gostaríamos de colocar as seguintes questões ou pedidos de esclarecimentos:

• Gostaríamos de saber se qualquer proposta deve ser apresentada envolvendo organizações com sede em 2 ou mais países diferentes;

There is no obligation to submit proposals involving organisations established in two or more different countries, however, as stated at section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines for Applicants which indicates that “In addition, for actions taking place in more than one country, the applicant must act with at least one co-applicant/affiliated entity/associate having the nationality of each of the countries where the action will take place".

50° I was wondering if it is possible to apply for this fund as a partnership of two international NGOs? I understand that we must have a local partner as well.

Please note that, as mentioned in section 2.2.4. of the Guidelines for Applicants, to ensure equal treatment of applicants, the Contracting Authority cannot give a prior opinion on the eligibility of applicants, or affiliated entity(ies), an action or specific activities.

It is up to the applicant to demonstrate that the proposed partnership complies with the requirements of and is in line with the objectives of the Call.

This being said, for the partnership requirements, please refer to section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines for applicants and to the corrigendum where it is clearly stated that Applicants must act with at least one local co-applicant. This obligation does not apply if the applicant has the nationality where the action will take place.

II THEMES

51° Our question relates to the definition of informal economy and informal workers: Can you please provide clarity and/or clear definitions on all agriculture related informal activities and person working in agricultural related sectors, whether they can be part as target group or beneficiaries in the upcoming call for proposals.

According to ILO definition(*) at the 2002 ILC Resolution concerning decent work and the informal economy, the term “informal economy” refers to all economic activities by workers and economic units that are – in law or in practice – not covered or insufficiently covered by formal arrangements. Their activities are not included in the law, which means that they are operating outside the formal reach of the law; or they are not covered in practice, which means that – although they are operating within the formal reach of the law, the law is not applied or not enforced; or the law discourages compliance because it is inappropriate, burdensome, or imposes excessive costs. (*) 2002 ILC Resolution concerning decent work and the informal economy

"For the purposes of this Call for Proposal, Informal Economy includes both agriculture and non- agricultural activities."

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 22 52° Is there a clear and agreed definition of informal economy this call for proposal is based on?

Where can I find it, apart the supporting documents mentioned in the footnotes?

Please see reply to question 51

53° Regarding the definition of the informal sector, please allow me to ask a question.

Is the agriculture sector included in the informal economy, as defined by EuropeAid for this call?

Please see reply to question 51

ACCESS TO DOCUMENTS OF THE CALL

54° This is to inform you that some of the documents related to this call (English version), namely Annexes B to K, cannot be downloaded.

Thank you for this notification.

The problem is solved.

In the meantime, if necessary, we may advise you to use the standard annexes at the following link : http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/prag/annexes.do?group=E

55° The annexes B through K in English for Call EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi as published on the website

are not available, probably due to a mistake in the link/document number.

Can you clarify and correct this mistake and can you adapt the deadline accordingly as this link is broken for all annexes for 2 weeks since the publication deadline ?

Thank you for your message, we have noticed that some annexes could not be accessed at a time (the problem is solved now) but since these annexes were standard annexes, they could be accessed at the following link :

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/prag/document.do?locale=en

which is referred to in Section 3. (ANNEXES) of the Guidelines of Applicants, which did not prevent the applicants to prepare adequately their concept notes since all the annexes were available there. In addition, most of the annexes (budget, logical framework) are not necessary for the preparation and submission of the concept note but rather at the Full Application stage.

Therefore, no extension of the deadline of submission is foreseen.

56° We have interest to participate on the Call For Proposals Reference:

EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi << Empowerment for better livelihoods, including skills

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 23 development and vocational education and training, for marginalized and vulnerable persons and

people dependent on the informal economy >>.

We are having problems to download the attachments in Portuguese listed on the link below : We found problems on the following “Anexos”:

- Anexo A - Anexo B - Anexo C - Anexo E - Anexo F - Anexo G - Anexo I - Anexo J

Thank you for your message, we have noticed that some annexes could not be accessed. The problem is solved now. However as these annexes are standard documents, they could be accessed at the following link :

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/prag/document.do?locale=en

Regarding Annex I, the link is given in the Guidelines for Applicants, footnote n°31.

57° Me dirijo a Uds. a los efectos de solicitar, tengan a bien remitirme los formularios para el concurso de proyectos ante la extrema pobreza para llenar y remitirlos lo antes posible. Tengo varios proyectos que me gustaría hacerlos conocer y en caso de que fuera posible alcanzar el apoyo de la Unión Europea para trabajar por erradicar la pobreza extrema en mi país. Mi planteamiento para erradicar la pobreza consiste justamente en la educación formativa y de productividad a los adolescentes y jóvenes de mi país, no vasta plantear una producción o trabajo sin antes desarrollar una formación integral formativa, que permita a los jóvenes estar mejor preparados para enfrentar los desafíos. Por eso me interesa participar de este concurso.

Desde ya mi gratitud y espero me envíen los formularios correspondientes.

Los documentos relativos a la convocatoria están en el enlace:

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-

services/index.cfm?do=publi.welcome&nbPubliList=25&orderby=upd&orderbyad=Desc&searchtype=

RS&aofr=135181 BUDGET

58° The question refers to 1.3 in Guidelines for Applicants about the eventual option that grant may cover the entire costs of the action. In this case the applicant needs to justify full financing.

Can you provide any additional instructions in which cases the applicant can request full financing? Does the applicant have to provide such justification in the Concept Note and where?

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 24 According to section 1.3 of the Guidelines for Applicants which state that "The grant may cover

the entire eligible costs of the action if this is deemed essential to carry it out. If that is the case, the applicant must justify full financing in Section 2 of Part B of the grant application form and the validity of the justification provided will be examined during the evaluation procedure".

Therefore, the justification is not requested at the Concept note stage.

Should the Evaluation Committee consider the reasons stated to be not justified; the maximum percentage of 80% will then be applied.

59° Just one question about the main applicant. The eligibility criteria don't mention anything about the main applicant's financial means.

I am under the impression that to be eligible to apply, the main applicant should have ample financial resources of its own. In any case more than what is being requested from EuropeAID. Is this perception correct? Does it matter if the majority of the main applicant's financial resources comes from other EU-grants?

As indicated in section 2.3 of the Guidelines for grant applicants, section 1 of the evaluation grid for full application is a ‘Yes/No’ assessment, and even if, in general, there is no minimum requirement, a particular attention must be given to this part of the evaluation as only one ‘no’

lead to the rejection of the application ! If it is the case, the evaluators/assessors must be very clear in the justification given in their evaluation grid.

Financial capacity should be attested by any documents deemed relevant by the applicant and requested under section 2.4 of the guidelines. In this regard, PADOR and Section 3.3 of the application form are the main sources of information for this section. The financial resources for the project, Annex B2-Budget (particularly worksheet 3 - expected sources of funding) will also be taken into consideration. Although not mandatory, a declaration/evidence to prove a secured co- financing is an asset for the positive evaluation of this section.

You may also refer to section 4.1 of Annex E4b (Guidelines to assessors) of the Practical guide to contract procedures for EU external actions, which states : “The applicant must also have stable and sufficient sources of funding to keep operating throughout the action period and to participate, where appropriate, in its funding. The assessments are made considering the action proposed, the applicable payment schedule of the contract and on the basis of the relevant supporting documents defined in the guidelines to applicants. These may include an external audit report of the applicant, the profit and loss account and the balance sheet for the last financial year for which the accounts have been closed”

The following sub-criteria could also be taken into consideration:

• Regular and punctual types of income, including income generation. Share of regular financing sources (e.g. Government subsidy), income generation and external funding to total financing;

• In case of income generation, description of activities generating income;

• Existence of a financial plan.

It is therefore important that the scale of the proposed action and its related budget is coherent with the size, past experience and available resources of the organisations involved in the partnership.

Financial capacity will be decided upon on a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration both the action and the applicant's financial soundness.

GENERAL

60° Is there a limit of budget of each applicants or co-applicants?

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 25 Please refer to section 1.3 of the Guidelines for Applicants which stipulate that any requested

contribution under this Call for Proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts: • minimum amount: € 1 500 000 • maximum amount: € 5 000 000

Any proposal for which the EU requested contribution will not fall between these minimum and maximum amount will be rejected.

As stipulated in section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines for grant applicants, if awarded the Grant contract, the applicant will become the Beneficiary identified as the Coordinator in Annex G (Special conditions of the grant contract). The Coordinator is the main interlocutor for the Contracting Authority. If awarded the Grant contract, the co-applicant(s)(if any) will become beneficiaries in the Action (together with the Coordinator).

It is up to the applicant to decide how the funds advanced by the EU are allocated and distributed to and between the co-applicant(s) in line with the objectives of the action.

61° El beneficiario debe contar con entidades afiliadas o co-solicitantes, como documentamos esto, a través de un convenio? Uno de los documentos que solicita es la ficha de identificación financiera, el mismo ya debe ser enviado con la solicitud? El beneficiario debe realizar algún aporte?

En el formulario de solicitud de subvención (Anexo A), en la parte relativa al documento de síntesis, el solicitante debe indicar algunas informaciones relativas a él mismo, a los co-solicitantes y a las entidades afiliadas. Más adelante, en la parte relativa al formulario de solicitud completo, más particularmente en los puntos 3, 4, 5 y 6, se encuentran todos los requisitos que se aplican a los solicitantes, co-solicitantes, a las entidades afiliadas y a las entidades colaboradoras. Dicha parte, solo debe ser rellenada por los solicitantes cuyo documento de síntesis haya sido seleccionado en la primera fase de la convocatoria y a los que se invita a presentar el formulario completo de solicitud.

62° Applicants are expected to sign the application form but submission is by electronics soft copy. If one just writes his name in the space for signature, will it be enough? Or, would you accept a signed and scanned declaration page to be attached?

A scanned copy of the original signed documents with applicant's name and signature must be submitted.

63° I want to find out if it is compulsory to upload an external audited report on submission of the concept note or it is only compulsory during submission of the Full application (Parts-2) when an application has been pre-selected? I am asking this because Chartered accountant’s services are scarce here and not readily available needing more time. Our organization had already been registered (2008) in PADOR and would only have to update its profile.

Section 2.4 of the guidelines clearly stipulates that “Applicants who have been provisionally selected or listed under the reserve list will be informed in writing by the Contracting Authority.

They will be requested to supply the following documents in order to allow the Contracting Authority to verify the eligibility of the applicant, their co-applicants and affiliated entities (if any) […]”. Therefore, such supporting documents (including audit report) will be requested in any case to pre-selected organisations at the end of the procedure. For information related to the mandatory documents at the time of Concept Note submission, refer to Sections 2.2.1 and 2.2.2.

However, please be aware that the financial and operational capacity, to be evaluated in section 1 of the Full application evaluation grid, should be attested by any documents deemed relevant by

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Questions and Answers EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi – Concept Note stage Page 26 the applicant and requested under section 2.4 of the guidelines. In this regard, PADOR and

Section 3.3 of the application form are the main sources of information for this section.

We can, therefore, accept that applicants, co-applicants and affiliated entities upload all their supporting documents in PADOR before the submission of the Full Application.

64° The standard contract template for this call for proposal specifies that "when one of the beneficiaries is an international organisation whose pillars have been positively assessed", then annex e3h11, derogations for international organisations, must be included in the special conditions.

Does "one of the beneficiaries" apply also if the IO is co-applicant to a public entity or an NGO?

What about if the IO is an affiliated entity or a contractor ?

Please refer to section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines for Applicants stating that : "If awarded the Grant contract, the co-applicant(s)(if any) will become beneficiaries in the Action (together with the Coordinator).

Please also refer to sections 2.1.2 and 2.1.3. of the Guidelines for Applicants which states :

"Affiliated entities

Where applicants are awarded a contract, their affiliated entity(ies) will not become beneficiary(ies) of the action and signatory(ies) of the contract

Contractors

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

In other words, only Applicants (co-ordinator and co-applicants) may be considered as beneficiaries.

65 ° Please could you clarify what you mean by “Restricted Application?” Our understanding of it is that it is open to all eligible organisations to put in their Concept Note; but is it only those who move on from that stage that will be invited to put in Full Application.

We just wanted to be sure that it is not open at the Concept Note stage to only restricted organisations.

Please refer to the notice of the Guidelines for Applicants which explains what is meant by

"restricted Call for Proposals" i.e. that in the first instance, applicants must only submit a concept note for evaluation and that only applicants whose concept notes have been pre-selected will further be invited to submit a Full Application.

66° Escribo en relación con la Convocatoria EuropeAid/135181/C/ACT/Multi "Invertir en las Personas", donde en la parte B se habla de "Un informe de auditoría externa realizado por un auditor autorizado, en el que se certifiquen las cuentas del solicitante del último ejercicio disponible si la subvención solicitada excede 750.000 EUR"

Quisiéramos saber qué se entiende por autorizado.