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	21 02 03
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	Co-financing of operations to raise public awareness of development issues undertaken by European NGOs

BACKGROUND

Budget line 21 02 03 – Co-financing with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) – was created by the European Parliament in 1976.

In 1979, a component for raising the awareness of the European public was included; known as Development Education (ED). This remains the EC’s principal instrument for supporting NGO operations to raise European public awareness of development issues. The ED part of budget line 21 02 03 was created to improve relations between the North and the South in order to mobilise public support in the EU for development strategies and operations benefiting the poorest people in developing countries.

The total allocation for budget line 21 02 03 reached EUR 200 million in 2003. Of this, usually 10% are allocated to co-finance operations to educate and raise the awareness of the European public regarding development issues. For 2004, the indicative budget amount is EUR 20 million to be allocated to ED.

General information on this budget line can be obtained from the Commission’s website at: http://europa.eu.int/comm/europeaid/projects/ong_cd/index_en.htm

TYPES OF GRANT

The grants are for co-financing operations undertaken by European NGOs. Operations must be aimed at raising public awareness of development issues and relations between the South and the North, and designed to mobilise public support in the EU for development and for strategies and operations benefiting the poorest people in developing countries.

The principal activities must take place within the EU. However, operations can also be implemented within the developing countries concerned by the issues, provided that the activities in developing countries also contribute directly to raising awareness in the EU.

Three types of operation can be co-financed under this part of the 21 02 03 budget line:

• Projects: a specific activity or set of activities with short- or medium-term objectives attainable within the time-span of the proposed contract;
• Work programmes: programmes with clearly-defined objectives and strategies. They may be more process-oriented and have longer-term objectives than a
• Capacity-Building Packages (CBPs): packages of activities to reinforce the capacities of small NGOs and/ or other “grass root” organisations within the EU to carry out awareness-raising activities.

NB: Networking activities may be presented as specific projects or as work programmes or may be included as activities within projects, work programmes or capacity-building packages.

GRANT SIZE

The indicative overall amount in 2004 for operations to raise awareness of development issues is EUR 20 million. This breaks down as:

Projects and work programmes (indicative amount Euro 17.5 million)
There are in principle no restrictions on the total cost of the action. However, the action should be of a scale which the NGO and its partners are able to manage. Moreover, the Community grant applied for must fall within the following minimum and maximum amounts:

• The minimum EC contribution to a project or work programme is EUR 50,000.
• The maximum EC contribution cannot exceed the amounts set out below:
  • In the case of an operation presented by an individual NGO, or by a European NGO network (that does not comply with the additional criteria for network contracts in point 2.1.1 of the guidelines), EUR 120,000, multiplied by the number of years’ duration foreseen, up to a maximum of EUR 360,000
  • In the case of an operation presented by a consortium of NGOs from at least two NGOs from a single Member State or by a consortium of NGOs from two different Member States, EUR 240,000, multiplied by the number of years’ foreseen, up to a maximum of EUR 720,000. This also applies in the case of an action presented by a national NGO network which complies with the additional eligibility criteria for network contracts as outlined in point 2.11 of the guidelines.
  • In the case of an operation presented by a consortium of NGOs from at least three Member States, or by a European NGO network that complies with the additional criteria for network contracts in point 2.1.1 (see guidelines), EUR 360,000, multiplied by the number of years’ duration foreseen, up to a maximum of EUR 1.08 million.

Capacity-Building Packages (indicative amount Euro 2.5 million)
There are no restrictions on the total cost. However, the minimum and maximum EC contribution applies.

• The minimum EC contribution to the capacity-building package as a whole is Euro 50,000.
• The maximum amounts set out above for projects and work programmes also apply to the capacity-building package as a whole.

There is no minimum or maximum amount for individual projects within the capacity-building package.

OWN CONTRIBUTION

No grant may normally exceed 75% of the total eligible costs of the action. In all cases, the balance between the total cost of the action must be financed from sources other than the European Community budget. Moreover, an NGO applying for co-financing must provide a significant financial contribution from private sources in the EU or other European countries equivalent to at least 10% of the total financial cost of the action. In-kind contributions cannot be included in the overall budget of the action and are ineligible. The NGO’s administrative costs may not exceed 7% of the total direct eligible financial costs of the project.

FUNDING PRIORITIES

The overall objective being pursued in ED activities is to raise the EU’s public‘s awareness of development problems in developing countries and in relations between the developing and industrialised regions. Such actions, proposed by European NGOs, are designed to mobilise public support in the Union for development, for strategies and policies for poverty reduction as well as for actions benefiting the poorer sections of populations in developing countries.

In 2004, priority is given to actions that meet one or more of the following criteria:

• they aim to highlight the interdependence between the EU and developing countries;
• they seek to mobilise support for more equitable North-South relations;
• they encourage co-operation between NGOs;
• they enable partners in the developing countries to play an active part;
• they ensure an enlarged-EU dimension by involving NGOs from the new Member States, including actions that facilitate exchanges of experiences and networking between NGOs from the 15 Member States and the new Member States.

Operations in all Member States are eligible and, in accordance with the priorities defined above, operations in the new Member States will be encouraged.

GRANTMAKING CRITERIA

This line is reserved for activities by autonomous, non-profit making European development NGOs whose head office is in one of the EU’s Member States, and to groups of European NGOs in the form of consortia and networks. They must provide evidence of having regularly carried out development or development awareness-raising activities for at least three years at the time the application is made to the EC and provide evidence that development is a priority sector of the NGO’s activities. NGOs must have the capacity to mobilise, for development-related actions, private financial resources and possibly other support within Europe, as well as in the developing countries where appropriate and have adequate experience in the field of raising European public awareness of development issues. The majority of the NGO’s funding must originate in the EU and the NGO must be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action. The Commission takes into account the priority the NGO accords to development issues, and its capacity to mobilise solidarity and private financial resources and/or other support within Europe for its work in this field.

When applying in a consortium, these conditions must be satisfied by all the members of the consortium. A national or European NGO network may apply on behalf of its members for a grant. The line is not open directly to Southern NGOs; they should team up with European partners.

To be eligible for co-financing, awareness-raising actions must:

• aim to raise public awareness of the problems that developing countries are facing and of relations between the South and the North; and/or
• be designed to mobilise public support in Europe for development and for strategies and operations benefiting people in the developing countries.

In addition, they must:

• be targeted at clearly-defined groups and deal with clearly-defined issues; and
• be based on a sound analysis of the issues and on a good knowledge of the target groups; and
• include a European dimension, which is clear, concrete and relevant to the action’s goals, and which must consist of one or more of the following options: involve collaboration between organisations from at least two Member States; http://europa.eu.int/comm/europeaid/projects/ong_cd/index_en.htm reach target groups in at least two EU Member States; deal with issues concerning relations between the EU and developing countries and/or the impact of EU policies on those countries.

Further phases of actions may be considered if there is a clear added value and when they are clearly supported by the results of adequate monitoring and/or by an external evaluation.

PROJECT DURATION

The duration of public awareness raising actions may not exceed three years.

DEADLINE

The deadline for submitting applications is specified in the Call for Proposals. The last deadline was set for 16 November 2004.

GUIDELINES AND APPLICATION FORMS

The proposal format must be in strict accordance with the application forms annexed to the Call for Proposals.

The “Guidelines for the Implementation of Operations to Raise Public Awareness of Development Issues to be funded under the NGO Co-financing Programme B7-6000 in 2004-2005” can be found at: http://europa.eu.int/comm/europeaid/projects/ong_cd/fichiers/ed_op_2004_2005_en.pdf

The “General Conditions applicable to co-financing of operations to raise public awareness of development issues undertaken by European NGOs” were officially adopted by the European Commission on 7 January 2000. To download this document, please go to: http://europa.eu.int/comm/europeaid/projects/ong_cd/fichiers/pvd_cond_gen_en.pdf

The financial regulation applicable to the Community budget and its operating rules entered into force in January 2003. This text has important consequences for grants, such as reducing the amounts NGOs can claim for administrative costs. The grant Standard Contract applicable to all NGO projects in the external aid field has just been adapted to incorporate the new rules established by the new Financial Regulation.

These documents are available at: http://europa.eu.int/comm/europeaid/tender/index_en.htm

APPLICATION AND PROCEDURES

Calls for Proposals can usually be found in the Official Journal of the European Commission: http://publications.eu.int/general/oj_en.html or on the EuropeAid website at the following address: http://europa.eu.int/comm/europeaid/cgi/frame12.pl

Although there is no specific date set yet for the publication of the 2005 Call for Proposals, it is advisable to check EuropeAid’s website regularly starting in January 2005.

LANGUAGES

Applications must be made using the English or French-language forms set out in the annexes of Guidelines of the Call for Proposals. However, the application form may be filled in either English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, German or Italian.

TIPS

In the current Call for Proposals, actions involving activities in new EU Member States are particularly encouraged.

It is better to submit a well-written proposal in your own language (if it is among the accepted languages) than a proposal written in a poor English or French.

Make use of the possibility to clarify any doubts you may have by contacting the EuropeAid Office at EuropeAid-ED@cec.eu.int or by Fax: +32 2 299 81 57. You can make use of this opportunity no later than 21 days before the deadline for the receipt of proposals, indicating clearly the reference for the Call for Proposals. Questions that may be relevant to other applicants, together with the answers, will be published on the Internet at: http://europa.eu.int/comm/europeaid/general/faq_en.htm (see “FAQ” relating to this Call for Proposals).

Be aware that actions funded under this budget line must include a European dimension, which is clear, concrete and relevant to the action’s goals. In the past, many proposals have been rejected on the grounds that this “European dimension” was weak or missing. Do not make the mistake to include non-EU countries in this “European dimension”.

latest update of this datasheet: 01.02.2005

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