Support to Human Rights and Democracy actions on Torture and other forms of ill-treatment

 
 

Budget line 19 04 01

Reference: EuropeAid/126224/C/ACT/Multi

Deadline for submitting Concept Notes: 27/12/2007

 

NOTICE

This is a restricted Call for Proposals. In the first instance, only Concept Notes must be submitted for evaluation. Thereafter, applicants whose Concept Notes have been pre-selected will be invited to submit a Full Application Form. Further to the evaluation of the Full Applications, an eligibility check will be performed for those which are provisionally selected. This check will be undertaken on the basis of the supporting documents requested by the Contracting Authority, the signed "Declaration by the Applicant" sent together with the Concept Note and the second Declaration sent together with the Full Application.

All Internet links in the present document are valid at the time of publication of this Call for Proposals. Nevertheless, they may be subject to changes at a later stage.  

SUSPENSIVE CLAUSE 

The conclusion of grant contracts for actions selected under this Call for Proposals is subject to the adoption of the relevant financing decision, i.e. the adoption of the Annual Action Programme. 

The adoption of the afore-mentioned programme does not depend only on the European Commission. If the above-mentioned programme is substantially modified and/or does not provide adequate coverage for the proposed action or is not adopted, the present Call for Proposals or some of its allocations may be cancelled and/or replaced by other Calls for Proposals adapted to the finally approved Annual Action Programme.

 

Table of contents 1. the european instrument for democracy and human rights

1.1 Background

The European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR)¹ was adopted by the European Parliament and the Council in December 2006. This new instrument takes the place of the European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights, which was created at the initiative of the European Parliament in 1994. The entry into force of this specific instrument on 1 January 2007 makes it possible to give financial support for activities to strengthen democracy and the human rights in the world under the 2007-2013 financial perspectives.

1.2 Objectives of the programme and priority issues

The general objectives of the new instrument are to contribute to the development and consolidation of democracy and the rule of law and respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms within the framework of the Community’s policy on development cooperation and economic, financial and technical cooperation with third countries, consistent with the European Union’s foreign policy as a whole. 

This instrument is designed to help civil society to become an effective force for political reform and defence of human rights. In doing this, it will complement the new generation of geographical programmes, which will focus on public institution-building. The EIDHR will offer independence of action, which is a critical feature of cooperation with civil society organisations at national level, especially in the sensitive areas of democracy and human rights. Great flexibility and increased capacity to respond to changing circumstances or to support innovation, plus considerable independence of action since it does not need the consent of the governments of the countries concerned for the financing activities, are among the features of the new instrument. 

The new instrument is global in scope. It operates at national, regional and international levels and supports actions carried out in third countries throughout the world, and also in Member States if relevant to needs in third countries. 

To implement the new instrument the European Commission has adopted multiannual strategy papers which set out in detail the thematic and any geographical priorities.  

The 2007-2010 strategy paper sets out five specific EIDHR objectives: 

1. Enhancing respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in countries and regions where they are most at risk.

2. Strengthening the role of civil society in promoting human rights and democratic reform, supporting the peaceful conciliation of group interests and consolidating political participation and representation.

3. Supporting actions on human-rights and democracy issues in areas covered by EU guidelines, including dialogues on human rights, human-rights defenders, the death penalty, torture, and children and armed conflict.

4. Supporting and strengthening the international and regional frameworks for the protection of human rights, justice, the rule of law and the promotion of democracy.

5. Building confidence in and enhancing the reliability and transparency of democratic electoral processes, in particular through election observation. 
 

The current strategy paper for 2007-2010 can be consulted at:

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /where/worldwide/eidhr/index _en.htm    

This Call for Proposals is published with the aim of selecting actions concerning "Support to Human Rights and Democracy actions on Torture and other forms of ill-treatment". It is divided in two separate lots: 

Lot 1: Prevention of torture

Lot 2: Rehabilitation of victims of torture. 

The substance of each lot is explained in more detail in Section 2.1.3 of this document, under the heading "Sectors or themes".

1.3 Financial allocation provided by the Contracting Authority

The total indicative amount available under this Call for Proposals is EUR 22 million from the 2007 budget, subject to the adoption of the relevant financing decision (2007 Annual Action Programme). The Contracting Authority reserves the right not to award all available funds. 

Indicative allocation of funds by lot: 

Lot 1: Prevention of torture 30% 

Lot 2: Rehabilitation of victims of torture 70%. 

In the case where the minimum percentage foreseen for one of the two lots cannot be used due to insufficient quality or number of proposals received, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to reallocate the remaining funds to another lot within this Call or to another Call under the EIDHR instrument and preferably under the same strategic objective. 

Size of grants  

Any grant awarded under this Call for Proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts: 

• minimum amount: EUR 200 000
• maximum amount: EUR 1 500 000

 

A grant may not be for less than 50% of the total eligible costs of the action. 

In addition, no grant may exceed 80% of the total eligible costs of the action² (see also Section 2.1.4). The balance must be financed from the applicant's or partners' own resources, or from sources other than the European Community budget or the European Development Fund.

Exclusively in the case of Lot 2, and only for applicants not having the nationality³ of the one of the Member States of the European Economic Area⁴, a grant may cover all the eligible costs of the operation if this is essential to carry it out. An applicant must justify a financing request exceeding 80% of total eligible costs of the action in Section 1.3 of the Grant Application Form.

2.  Rules FOR thIS call for proposalS

These guidelines set out the rules for the submission, selection and implementation of actions financed under this call, in conformity with the provisions of the Practical Guide to contract procedures for EC external actions.

The definitions of the terms used in these guidelines are explained in the Glossary to the Practical Guide to contract procedures for EC external actions. 

The afore-mentioned Practical Guide and the Glossary can be consulted at the following Internet address: http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /work/procedures/implementation /practical_guide/index_en.htm  

In addition to the Glosary, the following definitions apply:  

Partnership the grouping of organisations i.e. the main applicant and its partners for the purpose of implementing the proposed action 

Applicant the organisation responsible for submitting the application

Partner member organisation of the partnership other than the applicant

Associate organisation that plays an active role in the action but which cannot benefit from funding under the grant  

Subcontractor organisation contracted by the beneficiary or its partner(s) in accordance with the appropriate procedures in order to execute specific tasks in implementing the action

Re-granting financial support that may be given to third parties by the beneficiary of the Community grant where the implementation of the action so requires, subject to the conditions laid down in Article 120 of the Financial Regulation and 184a of the Implementing Rules of the Financial Regulation⁵ 

2.1 Eligibility criteria 

There are three sets of eligibility criteria, relating to:  

• applicant(s) which may request a grant (2.1.1), and their partners (2.1.2);
• actions for which a grant may be awarded (2.1.3);
• types of cost which may be taken into account in setting the amount of the grant (2.1.4).

2.1.1 Eligibility of applicants: who may apply?

(1) In order to be eligible for a grant, applicants must:

• be a legal person and
• be non-profit making and
• belong to one of the following categories⁶:

(i)  civil society organisations, including non-governmental organisations⁷ and independent political foundations, community based organisations, and private sector agencies, institutions and organisations and networks thereof at local, national, regional and international level;

(ii)  public sector agencies, institutions and organisations and networks at local, national, regional and international level;

(iii)  international and regional inter-governmental organisations as defined by Article 43 of the Implementing Rules of the EC Financial Regulation⁸ and

• be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action, not acting as an intermediary.

(2) No nationality restriction applies to applicants⁹.

(3) Potential applicants may not participate in Calls for Proposals or be awarded grants if they are in any of the situations which are listed in Section 2.3.3 of the Practical Guide to contract procedures for EC external actions (available from the Internet address indicated at the beginning of the section 2).

In Part A, section III of the Grant Application Form (“Declaration by the applicant”), applicants must declare that they do not fall into any of the situations.

2.1.2  Partnerships and eligibility of partners

Applicants may act either individually or with partner organisations as specified hereafter.

Partners

Applicants’ partners participate in designing and implementing the action, and the costs they incur are eligible in the same way as those incurred by the grant beneficiary. They must therefore satisfy the same eligibility criteria as applicants¹⁰.  

The following are not partners and should not sign the “partnership statement”: 

Associates

Other organisations 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. The associates have to be mentioned in Part B, Section IV- “Associates of the applicant participating in the action” of the Grant Application Form. 

Subcontractors

The grant beneficiaries may award contracts to subcontractors. Subcontractors are neither partners nor associates, and are subject to the procurement rules set out in Annex IV to the Standard Grant Contract (see Annex F on the last page of the present guidelines). 

The applicant will act as the lead organisation and, if selected, as the contracting party (the "beneficiary").

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

Definition: An action (i.e. project) is composed of a set of activities. 

Duration 

The initial planned duration of an action may not be less than 12 months nor exceed 36 months. 

Sectors or themes

This Call for Proposals covers two separate sectors (or themes), each of them the subject of a specific Lot.

LOT 1:  Prevention of torture 

The priorities of this lot must concern support for and implementation of European Union policy guidelines towards third countries on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. In this context, particular attention will be paid to any proposal for activities aimed at the signing, ratification and effective implementation of all aspects of the UN Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and the Optional Protocol to the CAT, e.g. campaigns addressing the regulatory framework and enforcement provisions with a specific focus on the promotion and implementation of the Optional Protocol to the CAT, training, education, information and awareness-raising activities, and monitoring of the production and dissemination of instruments of torture, assistance to persons threatened with torture, including legal assistance. 

The EIDHR will support actions based on an integrated approach to the fight against torture and other forms of ill-treatment which contribute directly to preventing or reducing its prevalence. All actions should refer to the CAT and be placed in the broader context of the fight against impunity and support for the rule of law for all. They should also pay particular attention to the situation of women and children, persons belonging to minorities, and indigenous peoples. Proposals will need to show, whenever relevant, how these issues are taken into account in the design, implementation and monitoring of the activities¹¹.  

Where relevant, activities may be linked to a post-conflict agenda of justice and reconciliation or a campaign against violence in society, including rape, domestic violence and trafficking in human beings. These broader dimensions should reinforce the effectiveness of action against torture, building up a broader coalition of civil society actors. 

The proposed actions should be designed to produce specific, measurable results in response to identified problems. Proposals must be based on concrete, recent, and verifiable information that can clearly identify specific problems and the related constraints (social, economic and political). It is thus necessary to set clear objectives based on a specifically tailored strategy and intervention methodology that incorporate complementary, consistent activities suitable for tackling the identified problems directly. The means to be deployed should stem logically from this approach, and verifiable objective indicators should be set separately for each proposed activity. 

Actions will be selected, inter alia, on the basis of their expected results and potential effectiveness. Each proposal should have its own performance and success indicators, which must be objectively verifiable. The results should meet at least one of following priorities: 

• reduced prevalence of torture, increased reporting of torture, better conditions for proving incidence of torture;
• clearer guidelines for security forces, more intensive investigations, and trying and sentencing of perpetrators;
• more effective monitoring of torture, ratification and implementation of the CAT and the Optional Protocol to the CAT.

 

Applicants submitting proposals for this lot are encouraged to cover in their proposal aspects of (legal) rehabilitation, within a maximum limit of 20% of the total eligible costs of the action. 

LOT 2:  Rehabilitation of victims of torture  

For the purpose of this Call for Proposals, "torture" means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from that person or from a third person information or a confession, punishing that person for an act that either that person or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing that person or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted either by or at the instigation of, or with the consent or acquiescence of, a public official or other person acting in an official capacity. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from lawful sanctions, or inherent in or incidental to such sanctions.  

The victims of torture, who may be survivors of civil conflict, former detainees, refugees, asylum seekers or displaced persons etc, are spread around the globe, facing difficulties which may be medical and psychosocial, but also legal, social and economic. Therefore, no specific geographical focus or limitations on eligibility are laid down for this lot. Activities in all non-member countries and in the European Union Member States may be eligible. However, EIDHR funding for rehabilitation and support activities in the European Union must be used for third-country nationals and act as a catalyst to develop a greater financial commitment by Member States and candidate countries, in accordance with the provisions of the CAT and relevant EC legislation. Actors will be civil society organisations based in the European Union, the region or the country concerned.  

The EIDHR will support actions for the physical and mental rehabilitation of torture victims, plus rehabilitation activities which aim to restore the victim’s right to redress and take an integrated approach encompassing elements of medical and social rehabilitation as well as legal redress. Actions should also contribute to strengthening monitoring of the prevalence of torture, in particular through provision of data that can be used in prevention activities. 

The proposed actions should seek to strengthen local professional capacity and networking and enhance the sustainability of local services’ capacity. Although such assistance for rehabilitation of torture victims may take place in any third country and in the European Union, priority will be given to actions to help nationals of countries or regions where the situation is particularly serious. To this end, proposals must clearly identify each specific situation and provide all the essential elements (concrete and verifiable, e.g. reference to statistical reports or official data) to give technical evidence of the gravity of the situation. 

The proposed actions should also be designed to produce specific, measurable results in response to identified problems. Proposals must be based on concrete, recent, and verifiable information that can clearly identify specific problems and the related constraints (social, economic and political). It is thus necessary to set clear objectives based on a specifically tailored strategy and intervention methodology that incorporate complementary, consistent activities suitable for tackling the identified problems directly. The means to be deployed should stem logically from this approach, and verifiable objective indicators should be set separately for each proposed activity. 

Proposals will be selected, inter alia, on the basis of their expected results and potential effectiveness. Each proposal should have its own performance and success indicators, which must be objectively verifiable. The results should meet at least one of following priorities: 

• increased effective rehabilitation of torture victims;
• restoration of victims' right to legal redress;
• more sustainable financing of rehabilitation actions, in particular by Member States for actions in the European Union.

 

Particular attention will be paid to the mainstreaming of gender equality, the rights of the child, the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples, and to indirect or second-generation victims. Proposals will need to show, whenever relevant, how these issues are taken into account in the design, implementation and monitoring of the activities¹².

The proposed activities should be designed to strengthen local professional capacity, skills and networking, and enhance the viability/sustainability of local services and strengthen institutions. 

Applicants submitting proposals for this lot are encouraged to cover in their proposal aspects relating to prevention of torture, within a maximum limit of 20% of the total eligible costs of the action. 

Geographical scope

Actions must be carried out in one or more countries, without any geographical restriction.

Types of action 

The types of activities which can be included in the actions of each lot are set out below:  

LOT 1:  Prevention of torture 

• Raising awareness about the UN Convention Against Torture (CAT) and its Optional Protocol.

 

• Encouragement to sign, ratify and effectively implement UN Convention Against Torture (CAT) and its Optional Protocol.

 

• Training, awareness-raising and lobbying activities.

 

• Research and publications concerning torture.

 

• In particularly serious and exceptional cases, assistance and legal support for individuals threatened with torture, excluding financial compensation for victims.

 

• Study, collection, publication and dissemination of information concerning the production and supply of instruments and technology of torture.

 

• Rehabilitation activities outside the medical sphere within a maximum limit of 20% of the  total eligible costs of the action, as set out in Section 2.1.3.

 
 
 

LOT 2:  Rehabilitation of victims of torture  

• Psychotherapy and other psychiatric assistance.

 

• Physiotherapy and other medical care.

 

• Social rehabilitation, not only for the victims themselves but also for their families, such as advice on social assistance, employment, legal assistance.

 

• Claims for compensation.

 

• Prevention activities, within a maximum limit of 20% of the total eligible costs of the action, as set out in Section 2.1.3.

 

Monitoring and evaluation 

Applications (Full Application Form) should include planning, human resources and budget for the monitoring and evaluation systems of the proposed action.  

Re-granting

 
In order to support the achievement of the objectives of the action, and in particular where the implementation of the action proposed by the applicant requires financial support to be given to third parties, the applicant may propose awarding sub-grants.  

Any such re-granting must be duly justified. The applicant must indicate in the proposal (in the Full Application Form) the exact amount to be awarded in the form of re-granting as well as specifying the minimum and maximum amounts that may be allocated to third parties. In addition, the applicant must specify the criteria to be used to select the beneficiary third parties and to determine the exact amount to be awarded and include a fixed list of the different types of activity that may receive such financial support. The afore-mentioned elements will be included in the grant contract and, for each activity assigned in this manner, a specific narrative and financial report annexed to the grant contract activity reports will be required.

The maximum amount is limited to EUR 10,000 per third party of the sub-grant while the total amount which can be awarded as sub-grants to third parties is limited to EUR 100,000.

In no circumstances may re-granting be the principal activity of the proposed action.

The following types of action are ineligible:

• actions concerned only or mainly with individual sponsorships for participation in workshops, seminars, conferences, congresses;
• actions concerned only or mainly with individual scholarships for studies or training courses;
• one-off conferences: conferences may only be funded if they form part of a wider range of activities to be implemented over the life-time of the action. For this purpose, preparatory activities for a conference and the publication of the proceedings of the conference do not, in themselves, constitute such “wider activities”;
• actions supporting political parties;
• actions involving proselytism.

Number of proposals and grants per applicant

Applicants may not submit more than one proposal per lot. If an applicant submits more than one proposal per lot, all the proposals submitted by that applicant for that lot will be rejected.

2.1.4 Eligibility of costs: costs which may be taken into consideration for the grant

Only "eligible costs" can be taken into account for a grant, (the categories of costs considered as eligible and non-eligible are indicated below). The budget is therefore both a cost estimate and a ceiling for "eligible costs". The eligible costs must be based on real costs based on supporting documents (except for subsistence costs and indirect costs where flat-rate funding applies).  

Recommendations to award a grant are always subject to the condition that the checking process which precedes the signing of the contract does not reveal problems requiring changes to the budget (for instance, arithmetical errors, inaccuracies or unrealistic costs and other 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. The amount of the grant and the percentage of co-financing as a result of these corrections may not increase in any case.  

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

Eligible direct costs

To be eligible under the Call for Proposals, costs must comply with Article 14 of the General Conditions for the Standard Grant Contract (see Annex F on the last page of the present guidelines).

Contingency reserve

A contingency reserve not exceeding 5% of the direct eligible costs of the action may be included in the Budget of the action. It can only be used with the prior authorisation of the Contracting Authority. 

Eligible indirect costs (overheads)

A lump sum representing between 0 and 7% of the total amount of eligible costs of the action may be claimed as indirect costs to cover the administrative overheads incurred by the beneficiary for the action. This lump sum should correspond to an approximate estimate of these costs by the beneficiary.

Applicants who claim indirect costs must specify the type of administrative overheads that are generated by implementing the action and are not covered by the detailed budget, so as to demonstrate that these costs do not overlap with any of the budgeted items, nor do they cross-subsidise other actions concurrently undertaken by the beneficiary. The relevant information and justification shall be provided in Annex B, after the detailed budget presentation. 

Indirect costs are ineligible if the beneficiary receives in other respects an operating grant from the European Commission.

Contributions in kind

Contributions in kind do not represent actual expenditure and are not eligible costs. Contributions in kind may not be treated as co-financing by the beneficiary.

The cost of staff assigned to the action is not a contribution in kind and may be considered as co-financing in the Budget of the action when paid by the beneficiary or his partners.

Notwithstanding the above, if the description of the action as proposed by the beneficiary foresees the contributions in kind, such contributions have to be listed separately in the Annex B and must be provided.

Ineligible costs

The following costs are not eligible:

• debts and provisions for losses or debts;
• interest owed;
• items already financed in another framework;
• purchases of land or buildings, except where necessary for the direct implementation of the action, in which case ownership must be transferred to the final beneficiaries and/or local partners, at the latest by the end of the action;
• currency exchange losses;
• taxes, including VAT, unless the beneficiary (or the beneficiary’s partners) cannot reclaim them and the applicable regulations do not forbid coverage of taxes;
• credits to third parties.

 

2.2 How to apply and the procedures to follow

Prior registration in the PADOR system (Potential Applicant Data On-Line Registration)¹³ is not obligatory under this Call for Proposals. Nevertheless, all organisations that wish and have the possibility both to register and to upload all required supporting documents for this Call for Proposals (see section 2.4) are strongly invited to do so.  

All questions related to the registration in PADOR should be addressed to the PADOR help desk:

europeaid-on-line-registration [email protected] 

2.2.1 Concept Note content

Applications must be submitted in accordance with the guidance on the Concept Note included in the Grant Application Form annexed to these Guidelines (Annex A, Part A) taking care to use the correct application documents for this Call (to be downloaded from the EuropeAid website at

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /cgi/frame12.pl ).

Any Concept Note using the format relating to any other Call may be rejected. 

Applicants must apply in English, French or Spanish.

In the Concept Note, the applicants must only provide an estimate of the total eligible costs of the action together with the amount of contribution and percentage requested from the Contracting Authority. Only the applicants invited to submit a full proposal in the second phase will be required to present a detailed budget. This detailed budget may not vary from the initial estimate by more than 20%. The applicant is free to adapt the percentage of co-financing required as far as the minimum and maximum amount of co-financing, as laid down in the present Guidelines, is respected (see section 1.3).  

Any error or major discrepancy related to the points listed in the guidelines on the Concept Note may lead to the rejection of the Concept Note. 

Clarifications will only be requested when the information provided is unclear, thus preventing the Contracting Authority from conducting an objective assessment. 

Hand-written applications will be rejected. 

The Concept Note together with the Checklist for the Concept Note (Part A, section II of the Grant Application Form) and "the Declaration by the applicant for the Concept Note" (Part A, section III of the Grant Application Form) must be submitted in one paper original in A4 format. 

Concept Notes must be submitted as well in electronic format (CD-Rom). The electronic version must be identical to the submitted paper version. 

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.  
 
 
 

2.2.2 Where and how to send Concept Notes

Concept Notes must be submitted in a sealed envelope by registered mail with delivery confirmation, private courier service or by hand-delivery at the address below (a signed and dated acknowledgement of receipt will be given by the Contracting Authority). 

Postal address

European Commission

EuropeAid Cooperation Office

Unit F4 – Finances, Contracts and Audit for thematic budget lines

Call for Proposals Sector

Att. Jane Robinson

Office: L-41 03/150

B - 1049 Brussels, BELGIUM 

    Address for hand-delivery or private courier service

European Commission  
EuropeAid Cooperation Office

Unit F4 – Finances, Contracts and Audit for thematic budget lines

Call for Proposals Sector  
Att. Jane Robinson

Office L-41 03/150 
Central Mail Service   
Avenue du Bourget 1  
B-1140 Brussels (Evère), BELGIUM 

Concept Notes sent by any other means (e.g. by fax or by e-mail) or delivered to other addresses will be rejected.  

Where an applicant sends several different Concept Notes, each one must be sent separately. 

The outer envelope must bear the reference and the title of the Call for Proposals, together with the lot number and the title, the full name and address of the applicant, and the words "Not to be opened before the opening session".

Applicants must verify that their Concept Note is complete using the Checklist for Concept Note (Part A, section II of the Grant Application Form). Incomplete Concept Notes may be rejected.

2.2.3 Deadline for submission of the Concept Notes

The deadline for the submission of Concept Notes is 27/12/2007 (date at place of dispatch) as evidenced by the postmark or the date of the deposit slip. In the case of hand-deliveries, the deadline for receipt is 27/12/2007 at 16:00 hours (Brussels date time) as evidenced by the Contracting Authority's signed and dated acknowledgement of receipt given to the bearer. Any Concept Note sent after the deadline or, in the case of hand-deliveries, received after the stipulated time will be rejected. 

Any Concept Note received by the Contracting Authority on or after the effective date of completion of the evaluation of the Concept Notes (see indicative calendar under section 2.5.2) will be treated as having been submitted after the deadline and, therefore, rejected. 

The applicant is solely responsible for the choice of means of expedition amongst those indicated in Section 2.2.2 and for following-up the delivery in accordance with the stipulations of the present section. 

If the applicant does not receive the results of the Opening and Administrative Check within 15 days of the date set for completion of this step indicated in the indicative calendar under Section 2.5.2 below, a message to this effect should be sent to the Contracting Authority via the e-mail address indicated under the following Section 2.2.4. This message should include a legible copy of the signed and dated proof of sending as well as the Contracting Authority's acknowledgement of receipt.

2.2.4 Further information for Concept Note

Questions (except those related to registration in PADOR) may be sent by e-mail no later than 21 days before the deadline for the submission of Concept Notes to the below address, indicating clearly the reference of the Call for Proposals: 

E-mail address: [email protected] 

Replies will be given no later than 11 days before the deadline for the submission of Concept Notes.  

In the interests of equal treatment of applicants, the Contracting Authority cannot give a prior opinion on the eligibility of an applicant, a partner, an action or specific activities. 

Questions that may be relevant to other applicants, together with the answers, will be published on the Internet at the EuropeAid website: http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /cgi/frame12.pl  

      

All questions related to PADOR registration should be addressed to the PADOR helpdesk:

europeaid-on-line-registration [email protected]  

After the deadline for submission of Concept Notes, the above-mentioned e-mail address can only be used by applicants for the purpose specified in Section 2.2.3 or by the Contracting Authority to initiate correspondence regarding any requests for clarification that may be required. No individual replies to queries with regard to the status of the selection procedure can be given via this mailbox although an updated automatic reply providing the current status of the evaluation procedure will be generated on receipt of all messages sent to this mailbox.

2.2.5 Full Application Form

Applicants invited to submit a Full Application Form following the pre-selection of the Concept Note must do so using the application documents annexed to the present Guidelines (Annex A, Part B - Full Application Form, Annex B-Budget and Annex C-Logical Framework). These are to be downloaded from the EuropeAid website at the address indicated in Section 2.2.1. Applicants should keep strictly to the format of the application form and fill in the paragraphs and pages in order, taking care to use the correct application documents for this Call. Applications submitted on application documents relating to any other call may be rejected.

Budgetary information concerning the action should be provided using round figures and presented only in the Budget (Annex B); they should not appear in the Full Application Form (Annex A, Part B, Point 1.3).

The elements contained in the Concept Note cannot be modified in the Full Application Form.  

The detailed budget (provided with round figures) may not vary from the initial estimate indicated in the Concept Note by more than 20%. The applicant is free to adapt the percentage of co-financing required as far as the minimum and maximum amount of co-financing, as laid down in the present Guidelines (see section 1.3), is respected. 

Applicants must submit their applications in the same language as their Concept Note. 

The Full Application Form should be completed carefully and as clearly as possible to facilitate the evaluation. The reference number allocated to the Concept Note should appear on the cover page of the Full Application Form.  

Any error related to the points listed in the Checklist (Part B, section V of the Grant Application Form) or any major inconsistency in the Full Application Form may lead to the rejection of the application.  

Clarifications will only be requested when information provided is unclear, thus preventing the Contracting Authority from conducting an objective assessment. 

Hand-written applications will be rejected. 

The Full Application Form, the Budget and the Logical Framework must be submitted in one paper original in A4 size, as well as in electronic format (CD-Rom). The electronic version must be identical to the submitted paper version. Each component of the application (Full Application Form, Budget and Logical Framework) must be submitted in a single, separate electronic file (for example, the Full Application Form must not be split into several different electronic files) and should not contain coloured or high resolution graphs, images or diagrams. The electronic version of the applications will only be printed in black and white for evaluation purposes. 

Only the Full Application Form and the published annexes which must be filled in (Budget, Logical Framework) will be evaluated. It is therefore of utmost importance that these documents contain ALL relevant information concerning the action. No supplementary annexes should be sent.

2.2.6 Where and how to send the Full Application Form

Full Application Form must be submitted in a sealed envelope by registered mail with delivery confirmation, private courier service or by hand-delivery at the address below (a signed and dated acknowledgement of receipt will be given by the Contracting Authority).

Postal address

European Commission

EuropeAid Cooperation Office

Unit F4 – Finances, Contracts and Audit for thematic budget lines

Call for Proposals Sector

Att. Jane Robinson

Office: L-41 03/150

B - 1049 Brussels BELGIUM 

    Address for hand-delivery or private courier service

European Commission  
EuropeAid Cooperation Office

Unit F4 – Finances, Contracts and Audit for thematic budget lines

Call for Proposals Sector  
Att. Jane Robinson

Office L-41 03/150 
Central Mail Service   
Avenue du Bourget 1  
B-1140 Brussels (Evère), BELGIUM 

Full Application Forms sent by any other means (e.g. by fax or by e-mail) or delivered to other addresses will be rejected. 

The Checklist (Part B, Section V of the Grant Application Form) and the Declaration by the applicant (Part B, Section VI of the Grant Application Form) must be stapled separately and enclosed in the envelope. 

Where an applicant sends several different Full Application Forms each one must be sent separately. 

The outer envelope must bear the reference and title of the Call for Proposals, together with the lot number and title, the reference number allocated to the Concept Note, the full name and address of the applicant, and the words "Not to be opened before the opening session".  

Applicants must verify that their application is complete using the Checklist (Part B, Section V of the Grant Application Form). Incomplete applications may be rejected. 

2.2.7 Deadline for submission of the Full Application Form

The deadline for submission of Full Application Forms will be indicated in the letter sent to the pre-selected applicants. Submission within the deadline will be evidenced by the postmark or the date of the deposit slip. The deadline for reception of Full Application Forms in the case of hand-deliveries will also be indicated in the above-mentioned letter. In this case, reception within the deadline will be evidenced by the signed and dated acknowledgement of receipt given to the bearer by the Contracting Authority.  

Any Full Application Form sent after the deadline or, in the case of hand-deliveries, received after the stipulated time will be rejected. 

Any Full Application Form received by the Contracting Authority on or after the effective date of completion of the evaluation of the Full Application Forms (see indicative calendar under section 2.5.2) will be treated as having been submitted after the deadline and, therefore, rejected.  

The Applicant is solely responsible for the choice of means of expedition amongst those indicated in Section 2.2.6 and for following-up the delivery in accordance with the stipulations of the present section. 

If the Applicant does not receive the results of the Opening and Administrative Check of the Full Application Form within 15 days of the date set for completion of this step in the indicative calendar under Section 2.5.2 below, a message to this effect should be sent to the Contracting Authority via the e-mail address indicated under the following Section 2.2.8. This message should include a legible copy of the signed and dated proof of sending as well as the Contracting Authority's acknowledgement of receipt.

2.2.8 Further information for Applicants

Questions concerning the Full Application Forms (except those related to registration in PADOR) may be sent by e-mail no later than 21 days before the deadline for the submission of applications to the below address, indicating clearly the reference of the Call for Proposals: 

E-mail address: [email protected] 

Replies will be given no later than 11 days before the deadline for submission of Full Applications Forms.  

In the interests of equal treatment of applicants, the Contracting Authority cannot give a prior opinion on the eligibility of an applicant, a partner, an action or specific activities.  

Questions that may be relevant to other applicants, together with the answers, will be published on the Internet at the EuropeAid website: http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /cgi/frame12.pl   

All questions related to PADOR registration should be addressed to the PADOR helpdesk:

europeaid-on-line-registration [email protected]  

After the deadline for submission of Full Applications Forms, the above-mentioned e-mail address can only be used by applicants for the purpose specified in Section 2.2.7 or by the Contracting Authority to initiate correspondence regarding any requests for clarification that may be required. No individual replies to queries with regard to the status of the selection procedure can be given via this mailbox although an updated automatic reply providing the current status of the evaluation procedure on receipt of all messages sent to this mailbox.  

2.3 Evaluation and selection of applications

Applications will be examined and evaluated by the Contracting Authority according to the following steps and criteria. 

If at any stage in the evaluation process any component of the application (the applicant, a partner or the action) is identified as not fulfilling the eligibility criteria specified in the sections 2.1.1, 2.1.2 and 2.1.3 of the present guidelines, the application may be rejected on this sole basis.  

1. STEP 1: OPENING SESSION AND ADMINISTRATIVE CHECK OF THE CONCEPT NOTE

The following will be assessed:

• The deadline has been respected. If the deadline has not been respected the Concept Note will automatically be rejected.
• The Concept Note satisfies all the criteria mentioned in the Checklist (Part A, section II of the Grant Application Form). If any of the requested information is missing or is incorrect, the proposal may be rejected on that sole basis and the proposal will not be evaluated further.

Following the opening session and the administrative check of the Concept Notes, the Contracting Authority will send a letter to all applicants, indicating whether their Concept Note was submitted prior to the deadline, informing them of the reference number allocated to it, whether all the criteria mentioned in the Checklist have been met and whether their Concept Note has been recommended for evaluation.  

(2) STEP 2: EVALUATION OF THE CONCEPT NOTE  

The evaluation of Concept Notes that have passed the first administrative check will cover the relevance of the action, its merits and effectiveness, its viability and sustainability. The Contracting Authority reserves the right not to undertake the evaluation of the Concept Notes whenever considered justified (for example, when less than expected number of Concept Notes are received) and to directly invite the applicants to submit Full Application Forms.  

The scores awarded to the Concept Note are completely separate from those that may be given to the Full Application.  

The Concept Note will be given an overall score out of 50 points in accordance with the breakdown provided in the Evaluation Grid below. The evaluation shall also verify the compliance with the instructions provided in the guidance for Concept Note (Part A of the Grant Application Form). 

The evaluation criteria are divided into headings and subheadings. Each subheading will be given a score between 1 and 5 in accordance with the following assessment categories: 1 = very poor; 2 = poor; 3 = adequate; 4 = good; 5 = very good. 

* The scores are multiplied by 2 because of their importance  

Once all Concept Notes have been assessed, a list will be established with the proposed actions ranked according to their total score.  

Firstly, only the Concept Notes which have been given a score of a minimum of 12 points in the category "Relevance" as well as a minimum total score of 30 points will be considered for pre-selection.  

Secondly, the list of Concept Notes will be reduced in accordance to the ranking to those whose sum of requested contributions amounts to twice the available budget for this Call for Proposals. The pre-selected applicants will subsequently be invited to submit Full Application Forms.  

(3)  STEP 3: OPENING SESSION AND ADMINISTRATIVE CHECK OF THE FULL APPLICATION FORM

The following will be checked:

• The deadline has been respected. If the deadline has not been respected the proposal will be rejected.
• The Full Application Form satisfies all the criteria mentioned in the Checklist (Part B, Section V of the Grant Application Form). If any of the requested information is missing or is incorrect, the proposal may be rejected on that sole basis and the proposal will not be evaluated further.

Following the opening session and administrative check on the Full Application Forms, the Contracting Authority will send a letter to all applicants indicating whether their application was submitted prior to the deadline, whether their application has satisfied all the criteria mentioned in the Checklist and whether their application has been recommended for evaluation.

(4) STEP 4: EVALUATION OF THE FULL APPLICATION FORM

An evaluation of the quality of proposals, including the proposed budget and the capacity of the applicant and partners, will be carried out in accordance with the evaluation criteria set out in the Evaluation Grid included below. There are two types of evaluation criteria: selection and award criteria. 

The selection criteria are intended to help evaluate applicants' financial and operational capacity to ensure that they:

• have stable and sufficient sources of finance to maintain their activity throughout the period during which the action is being carried out and, where appropriate, to participate in its funding;
• have the management capacity, professional competencies and qualifications required to successfully complete the proposed action. This also applies to any partners of the applicant.

The award criteria allow to evaluate the quality of the submitted proposals in relation to the set objectives and priorities, and to award grants to actions which maximise the overall effectiveness of the Call for Proposals. They enable the selection of proposals which the Contracting Authority can be confident will comply with its objectives and priorities and guarantee the visibility of the Community financing. They cover such aspects as the relevance of the action, its consistency with the objectives of the Call for Proposals, quality, expected impact, sustainability and cost-effectiveness. 

Scoring: 

The evaluation criteria are divided into sections and subsections. Each subsection will be given a score between 1 and 5 in accordance with the following guidelines: 1 = very poor; 2 = poor; 3 = adequate; 4 = good; 5 = very good.  

Evaluation Grid 

 

Note on Section 1. Financial and operational capacity 

If the total average score is less than 12 points for section 1, the proposal will be rejected.  

Note on Section 2. Relevance 

If the total average score is less than 20 points for section 2, the proposal will be rejected.  

Provisional selection 

Following the evaluation, a table listing the proposals ranked according to their score and within the available financial envelope will be established as well as a reserve list following the same criteria. 

Note: The scores awarded in this phase are completely separate from those given to the Concept Note of the same application.

(5) STEP 5: VERIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY OF THE APPLICANT AND PARTNERS

The eligibility verification, based on the supporting documents requested by the Contracting Authority (see section 2.4) will only be performed for the proposals that have been provisionally selected according to their score and within the available financial envelope.  

• The Declaration by the applicant (Part B, Section VI of the Grant Application Form) will be cross-checked with the supporting documents provided by the applicant. Any missing supporting document or any incoherence between the Declaration by the applicant and the supporting documents may lead to the rejection of the proposal on that sole basis.

 

• The eligibility of the applicant, the partners, and the action will be verified according to the criteria set out in sections 2.1.1, 2.1.2 and 2.1.3.

 

Following the above analysis and if necessary, any rejected proposal will be replaced by the next best placed proposal in the reserve list that falls within the available financial envelope, which will then be examined for the eligibility of its applicant and the partners.

2.4 Submission of supporting documents for provisionally selected proposals

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 listed below in order to allow the Contracting Authority to verify the eligibility of the applicants and their partners.

Supporting documents must be supplied for the applicant as well as for each partner by using one or other of the following methods: 

a) either register (or already be registered) in the PADOR system and upload all required supporting documents for this Call for Proposals. The applicant organisation must communicate to the Contracting Authority its EuropeAid ID number (assigned upon registration), as well as that of any partner organisation. The deadline for this communication will be indicated in the request for supporting documents mentioned above; 

b) or not be registered in PADOR. In this case, the applicant must send all required supporting documents including those of any partners for this Call for Proposal choosing means of expedition amongst those indicated in section 2.2.2 within the deadline and to the address indicated in the request for supporting documents mentioned above. 

Required supporting documents: 

1. The statutes or articles of association of the applicant organisation and of each partner organisation¹⁶. Where the Contracting Authority has recognised the applicant’s eligibility for another Call for Proposals under the same budget line since 1 January 2007, the applicant may submit, instead of its statutes, copy of the document proving the eligibility of the applicant in a former Call (e.g.: copy of the special conditions of a grant contract received during the reference period), unless a change in its legal status has occurred in the meantime.

This obligation does not apply to international organisations which have signed a framework agreement with the European Commission. A list of the relevant framework agreements is available at the following address:

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /work/procedures/implementation /international_organisations /index_en.htm 

2. Where the grant requested exceeds EUR 500,000, an external audit report produced by an approved auditor, certifying the accounts for the last financial year available. 

This obligation does not apply to international organisations.

This obligation does not apply to public bodies.

This obligation does not apply to secondary and higher education establishments. 

3. Copy of the applicant’s latest accounts (the profit and loss account and the balance sheet for the previous financial year for which the accounts have been closed)¹⁷.

 
4. Legal entity sheet (see annex D on the last page of the present guidelines) duly completed and signed by the applicant, accompanied by the justifying documents which are requested therein. If the applicant has already signed a contract with the Contracting Authority, instead of the legal entity sheet and its supporting documents the legal entity number may be provided, unless a change in its legal status occurred in the meantime.  

The requested supporting documents must be supplied in the form of originals, photocopies or scanned versions (i.e. showing legible stamps, signatures and dates) of the said originals. However, the Legal entity sheet must always be submitted in original.

Where such documents are not in one of the official languages of the European Union, a translation into one of the languages of the Call for Proposals (see section 2.2.1) of the relevant parts of these documents, proving the applicant’s eligibility, must be attached and will prevail for the purpose of analysing the proposal. 

Where these documents are in an official language of the European Union other than one of the languages of the Call for Proposals, it is strongly recommended, in order to facilitate the evaluation, to provide a translation of the relevant parts of the documents, proving the applicant’s eligibility, into one of the languages of the Call for Proposals. 

If the above-mentioned documents are not provided before the deadline indicated in the request for supporting documents sent to the applicant by the Contracting Authority the application may be rejected.  

Based on the verification of the supporting documents, the Contracting Authority will prepare the final list of the grants to be awarded under this Call for Proposals.

2.5  Notification of the Contracting Authority’s decision

2.5.1 Content of the decision

Applicants will be informed in writing of the Contracting Authority’s decision concerning their application and, where applicable, the principal reason(s) for a negative decision.

Applicants who were unsuccessful at the Opening and Administrative Check stage of the procedure (Step 1 and Step 3) or at the Eligibility check stage (Step 5) wishing to obtain further information should send their request by letter, indicating the reference of the Call for Proposal and the reference allocated to the proposal, to:

European Commission

EuropeAid Cooperation Office,  
Unit F4 -Finance, Contracts and Audit for thematic budget lines

Attn. Head of the Calls for Proposals Sector

Office: L-41 03/154

B-1049 Brussels, Belgium 

Applicants who were unsuccessful at the technical evaluation stage of the procedure (Step 2 or Step 4) wishing to obtain further information should send their request, indicating the reference of the Call for Proposal and the reference allocated to the proposal, to:

European Commission

EuropeAid Cooperation Office,  
Unit F2 - Central Management of Thematic Budget Lines - PA RELEX

Attn. Head of Democracy and Human Rights Sector 

Office: L-41 02/81

B-1049 Brussels, Belgium 

The request for further information should be sent to the Contracting Authority no later than 90 days from the date of receipt of the letter informing the applicants about the negative decision concerning their application.

The Contracting Authority must reply within 90 days of receipt of the request for information.

Thereafter, applicants believing that there has been an error or irregularity during the award process may send a petition no later than 90 days from the date of receipt of the above-mentioned reply from the Contracting Authority, to the following address: 

European Commission  
EuropeAid Co-operation Office

Directorate F – Thematic Operations

Attn. The Director  
Office L-41 06/94  
B-1049 Brussels, Belgium 

The Contracting Authority must reply within 90 days of receipt of the said petition.

Lastly, the applicant may have recourse to procedures established under Community legislation. European citizens or residents, including legal entities with a registered office in the European Union, also have the right to complain to the European Ombudsman, who investigates complaints of maladministration by the European Community Institutions. 
 
 

2.5.2 Indicative time table

The dates and times indicated in the table below refer to the Brussels dates and times with the exception of the submission date for Concept Notes and Full Application Forms which may be the date of the place of dispatch (see section 2.2.3).

 
 

2.6 Conditions applicable to implementation of the action following the Contracting Authority's decision to award a grant

Following the decision to award a grant, the beneficiary will be offered a contract based on the Contracting Authority's Standard Contract (see Annex F on the last page of the present guidelines). By signing the Grant Application Form (Annex A), the applicant declares accepting, in case where it is awarded a grant, the Contractual conditions as laid down in the Standard Contract.   

If the successful applicant is an international organisation, the model Contribution Agreement with an international organisation or any other contract template agreed between the international organisation concerned and the Contracting Authority will be used instead of the standard grant contract provided that the international organisation in question offers the guarantees provided for in article 53d (1) of the Financial Regulation, as described in Chapter 7 of the Practical Guide to contract procedures for EC external actions.

Implementation contracts

Where implementation of the action requires the beneficiary to award procurement contracts, it must award the contract to the tenderer offering the best value for money, that is to say, the best price-quality ratio, in compliance with the principles of transparency and equal treatment for potential contractors, care being taken to avoid any conflict of interests. To this end, the beneficiary must follow the procedures set out in Annex IV to the contract.

3. LIST OF annexes

DOCUMENTS TO BE COMPLETED

Annex A: Grant Application Form (Word format)

Annex B: Budget (Excel format)

Annex C: Logical Framework (Excel format)

Annex D: Legal Entity Sheet (Excel format)

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /work/procedures/implementation /grants/annexes_standard _documents/index_en.htm 

DOCUMENTS FOR INFORMATION

Annex E: Financial identification form

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /work/procedures/implementation /grants/annexes_standard _documents/index_en.htm 

Annex F: Standard Contract (Word format)

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /work/procedures/implementation /grants/annexes_standard _documents/index_en.htm 

Annex G: Daily allowance rates (Per diem) http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /work/procedures/implementation /per_diems/index_en.htm 

Annex h: Standard Contribution agreement, applicable in case where the beneficiary is an International organisation

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid /work/procedures/implementation /international_organisations /index_en.htm