Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency Erasmus+: Sport, Youth and EU Aid Volunteers Instructions for completing the Application Package Call for proposals EACEA 14/2018 EU Aid Volunteers initiative: Technical Assistance for sending organisations Capacity Building for humanitarian aid of hosting organisations Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency Avenue du Bourget 1 1049 Brussels - Belgium http://eacea.ec.europa.eu
TABLE OF CONTENT 1. Introduction 3 2. Steps in the application procedure 4 2.1. Registration of all organisations in the Participant Portal 4 2.2. Application Package 4 2.2.1 Application Form (eform) 5 Part A. and Part B. Information regarding applicant, partners and their roles 5 Part C. Description of the Project 6 Part D. Relevance of the Project 6 Part E. Quality of the Project Design and Implementation 8 Part F. Impact and Dissemination 10 Part G. Quality and Relevance of the Parnership and Cooperation Arrangements 10 2.2.2 Attachments - Supporting documents 11 - Detailed Budget/ Indicative Breakdown/ Operational Capacity/ Financial Capacity 11 - Work Plan 16 - Declaration of Honour 16 - Mandate 16 3. Deadlines and Submission of the Application Package 17 2
1. Introduction This guide is intended to help applicants for the Call for Technical Assistance for sending organisations and/or for Capacity Building for humanitarian aid of hosting organisations, as part of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative, to find the information they need, to complete their applications and to prepare their projects. The Legal Basis: Regulation (EU) No 375/2014 has established the European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps ('the EU Aid Volunteers initiative') as a framework for joint contributions from European volunteers to support and complement humanitarian aid in third countries. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/txt/?qid=1420127481637&uri=celex:32014r0375 In the framework of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative, the European Union shall support actions aimed at strengthening the capacity of hosting organisations for humanitarian aid. The aim of the capacity building shall be to enhance local preparedness and response to humanitarian crises and furthermore, to ensure effective and sustainable impact of the EU Aid Volunteers work on the ground, as provided for in Article 15 of Regulations (EU) No 375/2014. All capacity building activities shall be based on a prior needs assessment. The European Union has also provided the opportunity for sending organisations to receive technical assistance. Based on a needs assessment, sending organisations to be certified may apply for technical assistance. The purpose of the technical assistance is to strengthen the capacity of sending organisations to participate in the EU Aid Volunteers initiative and to ensure compliance with the required standards and procedures. This is provided for in Article 10 of Regulations (EU) No 375/2014. The Call for Proposals: The Call for Proposals on Technical Assistance to sending organisations and Capacity Building for humanitarian aid of hosting organisations provides further detailed information on the objectives of the Call, eligibility criteria, budgetary details and deadlines. http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/eu-aid-volunteers/funding_en The eform User Guide: Further instructions are provided on how to fill in the online application form from a technical perspective in the eform User Guide. Please note that the online application form is constructed to ensure that all mandatory fields are completed, otherwise submission of the application will not be possible. https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/documents/eforms_en Nota Bene: Before proceeding to complete the application package, please read carefully the Guidelines Call for proposals and the eform User Guide. 3
2. Steps in the application procedure This section provides an overview of the steps involved in the application procedure, the rules that must be respected and the deadlines that must be met. Applicants who do not follow the instructions and guidance therein, risk submitting an incomplete or incorrect application, and therefore significantly reduce the chances of their application being successful. 2.1 Registration of all organisations in the Participant Portal A project proposal for Technical Assistance and Capacity Building can only be submitted using the specially designed electronic application form ("the eform"). In order for an organisation to be included in the eform, it must have been registered in the Participant Portal and been allocated a unique Participant Identification Code (PIC), a 9 digit code number that helps the European Commission and Agencies to identify a participant and used in grant-related interactions between participants and the European Commission. Please note that even third country offices need to have an individual PIC number, different from that of the headquarter organisation. If not having their own legal entity, third country offices are supposed to upload the supporting legal documents of their headquarters. To register your organisation in the Participant Portal, click on the following link: http://ec.europa.eu/education/participants/portal/desktop/en/home.html You will need an EU Login account (European Commission Authentication Service) in order to register your organisation in the Participants Portal. On the home page of the Participants Portal, you will find a link to the EU Login registration website (click on the link 'Are you a new user?'). Please note: Existing ECHO framework partners already have an EU Login account. 2.2 Application Package The application package to be submitted under this Call can be downloaded from the website of the Education, Audiovisual and Cultural Executive Agency (EACEA): https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/eu-aid-volunteers/funding_en The application package consists of the following parts: 1. Application form (eform) 2. Detailed Budget/ Indicative Breakdown/ Operational Capacity/ Financial Capacity 3. Work Plan 4. Declaration on Honour 5. Mandate Each of these must be completed and submitted as instructed. 4
Please note that all five documents must be submitted in order to apply for the Call for proposals for Technical Assistance and Capacity Building of EU Aid Volunteers. Failing to do so will result in an ineligible application. 2.2.1 Application form (eform) Once all the participating organisations have received a PIC number, the applicant organisation will generate the eform. The eform can be downloaded from: https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/documents/eforms_en To open the application form (eform), please ensure that the Adobe version 9 or higher is installed on your computer. The eform can be downloaded onto your local computer. It can then be saved and completed offline at a later stage. Once the eform is fully completed and the attachments are linked to the application, it must be submitted electronically. The eform is constructed to ensure that applicants have the greatest chance of submitting an eligible application. Therefore you will find that submission will be impossible unless all mandatory fields are completed. Full details on the IT aspects of completing in the eform are available in the eform User Guide available at: http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/eu-aid-volunteers/funding_en It is strongly recommended to read this document before you start completing the eform. A lot of processes are explained in detail, and without this knowledge you may have problems completing the form. Please note: The language used to complete the application must be an official EU language and it must be a language that is understood by all members of your consortium. This is also in line with the Declaration on Honour, which states that all the partners should have agreed to the content of the application and should have confirmed their intention to carry out the tasks described. If you encounter technical issues that are not addressed in this guide you may contact the EACEA Helpdesk to request assistance: eacea-helpdesk@ec.europa.eu Part A. and Part B. Information regarding applicant, partners and their roles in the project Part A and Part B must be completed for each participating organisation in the consortium. The lead applicant organisation (coordinator) may complete this section on behalf of the other participating organisations. The consortium is built of applicants (coordinator and partners), all acting as sending and hosting organisations and may include affiliated entities having a legal or capital link with certified sending organisations and acting as hosting organisations (e.g. third country offices) and associates (e.g. private for profit companies, universities etc.) that can contribute with their specific expertise 5
(organisations specialised in areas relevant to the objectives or actions of the project (Article 8(2) and (3) Delegated Regulation No. 1398/20142 1 ). Part C. Description of the project The purpose of this section is to provide the main elements of identification of the action. C.1. Dates and Duration This section establishes the starting date and the ending date of the project. The starting date of the project for both actions must be December 15 th 2018. They must have a minimum duration of 6 months and a maximum duration of 24 months. Once the dates are inserted, the project duration is automatically calculated. The start date is the actual date from which project costs start to be incurred. C.2. Summary of the project The summary should give a snapshot of the project. Ideally, a good summary will explain the main purpose of the project; a concise description of the outputs and results; the impact foreseen. It will also include a narrative summary outlining the activities, duration and the countries involved. Please note that due to database limitations, the indicated limit of 2000 characters (including spaces) cannot be exceeded. The provided text will be cut when exceeding the limit. For successful applications, this section will be reproduced in the form of an abstract. For dissemination purposes, this section must be provided only in English. C.3. Budget This table provides information on expenditure and income of the project. Please note that the amounts in the Excel table (Detailed budget annex) and in the budget summary (in the eform) must be identical. All budgetary information must be provided in Euro. You are also requested to provide the budget breakdown between all applicants of the consortium (excluding the associated partners). The budget foreseen for each affiliated entity should be allocated to the relevant applicant (coordinator or partner organisation) to which this entity is affiliated. Part D. Relevance of the project The purpose of this section is to give the applicant the opportunity to demonstrate the need for the action and to explain how the project will contribute to an improvement of the situation in the domain. 1 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/txt/pdf/?uri=celex:32014r1398&from=en 6
D.1. Rationale, general and specific objectives It is important to describe the reasons for undertaking the project, the aims, general and specific objectives that will be addressed by the project. Please highlight how the project will address the objectives and expected results outlined in the call. The applicant should explain how the project ensures synergies with other relevant actions of ECHO (EU Department for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection) and/or the project partners (limit 3000 characters). Please note that each specific objective will need to be explained and outlined further in the Part E.1. (Logic of Intervention). D.2. Needs assessment A good needs assessment is vital for the success of the action. ECHO is a needs based donor and funding allocations are based on the evaluation of needs. This section will allow for better understanding of the needs on the ground and how the action will address these needs. D.2.1. Methodology The action should be based on a thorough needs assessment. The elements to be included in a needs assessment are outline in the Commission Delegated Regulation 1398/2014 2. In this section, please describe the needs assessment methodology used to prepare your project proposal (e.g. capitalising on previous experiences, based on achieved outcomes in former projects, following previous cooperation amongst the consortium members, etc.) and how each partner contributed (limit 2000 characters). D.2.2. Identified problems and solutions It should include the analysis and summary of the findings of the needs assessment made by stakeholder (limit 2000 characters). D.3. Gender, age and resilience markers D.3.1. Gender and Age The Gender-Age Marker is a tool to assess to what extent each funded humanitarian action integrates gender and age considerations. The purpose of the tool is to make the humanitarian assistance provided by ECHO more sensitive to the differentiated needs and capacities of women, girls, boys and men. In addition, the tool also allows ECHO to monitor its own performance on integrating gender and age. Applicants are requested to assess their action by answering the 4 quality criteria and selecting the relevant answer: Yes, not sufficiently or N/A. In addition, applicants are requested to estimate their gender/age initial mark, based on the answers and using the following scale: 2 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/txt/pdf/?uri=celex:32014r1398&from=en 7
The action does not deal directly with affected populations N/A The action meets none or only one criteria 0 The action meets two or three criteria 1 The action meets all four criteria 2 For more information, please consult the ECHO Gender-Age Marker Toolkit (page 54-62): http://ec.europa.eu/echo/files/policies/sectoral/gender_age_marker_toolkit.pdf D.3.2. Resilience Resilience is the ability of an individual, a household, a community, a country or a region to resist, adapt, and quickly recover from a disaster or crisis such as drought, violence, conflict or natural disaster. The resilience marker is a tool to assess to what extent each funded humanitarian actions integrates resilience considerations in project proposals, implementation and assessment. Applicants are requested to assess their action by answering the 4 quality criteria and selecting the relevant answer: Yes or not sufficiently. Applicant will also be asked how the action contributes to building resilience or reducing future risk. Please provide additional information relating to resilience, including for example: explanations on the aspects of the markers which are not applicable to the action, possible constraints or challenges in integrating resilience consideration in the action (limit 2000 characters). For more information, please consult the ECHO Resilience Marker Guidance: http://ec.europa.eu/echo/files/policies/resilience/resilience_marker_guidance_en.pdf PART E. Quality of the project design and implementation The purpose of this section is to assess the quality of the logic of intervention, in particular the links between the previously identified needs, the principal and specific objectives and the activities and expected results. E.1. Logic of intervention - Specific objective(s) of the proposed project (up to 5 specific objectives can be added) The specific objective is what the consortium intends to achieve by implementing the action. It should address the core problems, or some of them, as identified in the findings of the needs assessment. It should be defined in terms of direct benefits for the target groups. - Explanation of the specific objective The applicant will describe in more detail the specific objective, including information identified in the needs assessment (limit 1000 characters). 8
- Related expected result(s) of the objective The applicant will describe the expected results of the objective including the areas in which the project will strengthen the capacities of sending and hosting organisations. (limit 1000 characters). - Activities proposed to achieve each specific objective You may add up to a maximum of 10 activities to achieve each specific objective. Detailed information explaining the activity will be requested, such as: participating and implementing organisations - members of the consortium involved in the specific activity; venue location where the specific activity is supposed to be implemented; activity dates start and end date of the specific activity, not the project dates; explanation of the activity (limit 1000 characters); type of activity - choose the type of activity - this is a drop down menu. Please select the option that best describes your activity; main themes of activity. - Expected results of the activity; details on implementation. (max. 1000 characters) The applicant will provide a brief description of expected results. The applicant can provide the information in the form of a list. It will describe what other alternatives would be proposed for the achievement of the envisaged results. - Budget allocated: budget amount for the implementation of the activity outlined above. E.2. Volunteers (Not applicable for this Call) E.3. Project's Indicators Indicators are used to measure the performance in delivering the activities/results/objectives of the action. Information is requested on the number of organisations benefiting from the proposed intervention and the number of people benefiting from the proposed intervention by gender and age. Please fill in the table provided. These are the target values. - number of EU and third countries based organisations benefiting from the project; that can include also the organisations not being part of the consortium; - direct beneficiaries: please provide the percentage and numbers of employed staff of consortium's members, volunteers from EU and third countries (except EU Aid Volunteers) and number of people reached by the project activities; Other indicators proposed (optional): Indicators provide measurable evidence for the changes on the different levels of the intervention logic. Applicants are encouraged to introduce additional indicators (up to 2 indicators may be provided) relating to the project, specific objective or activity. 9 Indicators should be objectively verifiable and SMART (specific, measurable, viable, relevant and time bound).
E.4. Work plan The work plan is an important tool and will be used to assess the feasibility of the action. You are also required to provide more specific details of your work plan and attach to your application as an annex entitled 'Work plan'. A common way to present a work plan is through a Gantt chart. Other possibilities exist and can be used as long as they are clearly presented and commented upon (limit 3000 characters). E.5. Assumptions, risks and quality control Please explain what mechanisms have been put in place for ensuring quality control, i.e. that the project implementation is of high quality and will be completed in time and on budget. Please also describe your risk assessment for this project and what contingency measures have been put in place to mitigate potential risks (limit 3000 characters). E.6. Cost effectiveness Please describe the strategy adopted to ensure that the proposed results and objectives will be achieved in the most economical way. Explain the principles of budget allocation amongst partners. Indicate the arrangements adopted for financial management (limit 2000 characters). Part F. Impact and dissemination F.1. Expected impact and sustainability of the project This section seeks to understand the impact of the project and the change it will bring to the direct and indirect target groups. The longer-term impact and sustainability of the project must also be outlined, as well as methods used to measure these (limit 4000 characters). F.2. Dissemination and Visibility Strategy Please describe what dissemination actions will be undertaken in order to ensure that positive results will be made available to groups directly involved and groups not directly involved in the project. Activities should align with the key messages and communication tools outlined in the EU Aid Volunteers Communication Plan: https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/sites/eaceasite/files/euav_communication_plan_2016.pdf (limit 3000 characters). F.3. Information, communication and awareness raising actions Please complete the table with the communication activities to be implemented during the life-cycle of the project. F.4. European Added Value Please describe the benefits of and need for European cooperation as well as European dimension of the project and expected added value. Please describe also why the results cannot be achieved through national, regional or local funding (limit 2000 characters). Part G. Quality and Relevance of the Partnership and Cooperation Arrangements This section seeks to understand the extent to which the project involves an appropriate mix of complementary participating organisations to successfully deliver all aspects of the project. 10
Furthermore, it seeks to understand the existence of effective mechanism for coordination and communication between members of the consortium (limit 4000 characters). Information about the partnership Please complete the table with Certification reference number, if relevant and answer the other question. Is it a new partnership? Please answer if there are any new partnerships created between consortium members as a result of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative. Applicants may submit projects for both Technical Assistance and Capacity Building. In this case, applicants shall indicate in their application that they apply for both actions. List of affiliated entities Please complete the table by linking the affiliated entities participating in your consortium with the relevant applicant (coordinator or partner organisation) to which this entity is affiliated. 2.2.2 Attachments - Supporting documents The following supporting documents are annexed to the eform and submitted electronically. All annexes, except the Work plan, can be downloaded from https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/eu-aidvolunteers/funding_en - Detailed Budget/ Indicative Breakdown/ Operational Capacity/ Financial Capacity - Work Plan - Declaration on Honour - Mandate Detailed Budget/ Indicative Breakdown/ Operational Capacity/ Financial Capacity Applicant is requested to fill 4 tabs of the Excel sheet: 'Detailed budget' (2 nd tab), 'Indicative breakdown' (3 rd tab), 'Operational capacity' (4 th tab) and 'Financial capacity' (5 th tab). The 'Summary' tab (1 st tab) is locked and will be automatically filled in, based on the information provided in the 'Detailed budget' (2 nd tab). Detailed budget (2 nd tab) 1. Preliminary remarks Please take sufficient time to fill in your budget. Make sure that it is coherent with the information you provide in the eform and any other documents attached to it. 11
All amounts must be given in EUR. The budget was made using Excel 2010. It is recommended to use the same version to complete the budget form. Keep in mind that there are formulas in the workbook which ensure its proper functioning. If you need extra rows in a specific budget chapter, you need to request it at: EACEA- EUAIDVOLUNTEERS@ec.europa.eu. The completed document (in Excel format) must be attached directly to the eform. Please, keep in mind that ONLY the excel budget attached to the eform will be considered for the evaluation. 2. How to fill in the budget form Please use the official excel template to provide a detailed estimated budget of the proposed project, indicating the total estimated costs and incomes related to the action. Please start by filling in your organisation's name in the yellow fields. You are requested to fill the white cells only. Coloured cells are locked and any calculation will be made automatically. In case of non-respect of basic financial provisions a warning message in the excel table will appear. The system will request the applicant to modify some of the amounts stated in the concerned chapter. Note that the maximum grant that may be awarded for technical assistance/capacity building is EUR 700 000 and the minimum grant that may be awarded is EUR 100 000. The maximum rate of EU-contribution cannot be greater than 85% of the total eligible costs. Keep in mind that the amount of the total EU grant will be automatically calculated on the basis of the information provided in the 'Detailed budget' tab. Applicants have to provide information on the estimated direct and indirect costs in the "Expenditure" part as well as other sources of financial contributions in the "Income" part of the budget template. Detailed budget Expenditure Per cost incurred, you can be requested to provide: - name of organisation (applicant, partner organisation) responsible for the cost; - description of the cost (nature of the cost, purpose and detailed calculations for the relevant costs); - reference to the specific objective and activity number (as mentioned in the eform (part E.1 logic of intervention) to which the cost is related; - the estimated unit cost and eventually the number of units; Once all expenditures are encoded, you will need to fill out the 'Detailed budget Income'. 12
Detailed budget Income Part of the total estimated eligible expenses must be financed from sources other than the EU grant. In this framework, you must indicate 'other resources' amounts of any other funding received or applied for in the same financial year for the implementation of the action concerned. The amount of the 'own resources' indicated in the revenue part of the estimated budget is regarded as secured, and this amount, as a minimum, must be entered in the revenue section of the final report. The allocated amount may not exceed the amount requested. Keep in mind that your budget must be balanced (i.e. Total estimated costs = Total estimated income), otherwise an error message will appear and you will be requested to revise the amounts mentioned in the 'Income' part in order to balance the budget. Once the 'Detailed budget' tab is dully filled in, you will be in measure of filling in the part C.3 Budget of the eform and the Declaration on Honour (Total EU grant requested). The applicant is advised to check carefully that these amounts are coherent. 3. Estimated Expenditure When preparing the project budget, applicants should pay attention to allocate the estimated costs in the correct budget heading and to make sure that these estimated costs are justified in relation to the planned activities. 3.1. Direct Costs Any costs that can be directly linked to the implementation of the project activities should be filled in the part "Direct Costs". 3.1.1. Human Resources costs - have to be in line with the applicant's usual policy on remuneration; - the costs of personnel (permanent or temporary staff) working under an employment contract with the applicant organisation or partner organisation and assigned to the action; - comprise actual salaries plus social security contributions and other statutory costs included in the remuneration and assigned to the action. 3.1.2. Activity costs 3.1.2.1. Travel costs - Costs may be claimed only for journeys directly connected to specific and clearly identifiable project-related activities. - Costs of travel provided that these costs are in line with the applicant's usual practices on travel; - Costs may be based either on the actual costs of economy or second class tariffs. 13
- Reimbursement must be based on real costs, irrespective of the means of travel chosen (rail, bus, taxi, plane, car hire); - The economically most advantageous means of transport should be chosen; for example taxis are not the economically most advantageous means of transport. Unless specific circumstances, they must be used with parsimony. 3.1.2.2. Subsistence costs: - Costs of subsistence allowances, provided that these costs are in line with the applicant's usual practices; - Reimbursement must be based on the existing internal rules which may be calculated on an actual cost (reimbursement of receipts) or on a daily allowance basis; - Subsistence rates cover accommodation, meals and all local travel costs. 3.1.2.3. Visa and Vaccination related costs Costs related to obtaining the visa, including necessary travel costs; vaccination costs incurred due to travel. 3.1.2.4. Equipment costs The depreciation costs of equipment or other assets (new or second-hand) as recorded in the accounting statement of the applicant. Equipment or other assets have to be written off in accordance with the international accounting standards and the usual accounting practices of the applicant. The costs of rental or lease of equipment or other assets are eligible, provided that these costs do not exceed the depreciation costs of similar equipment or assets and are exclusive of any finance fees. Only the portion of the equipment's depreciation, rental or lease costs corresponding to the eligibility period of the project and the rate of actual use for the purposes of the action may be taken into account. The depreciation rule applies to any purchase above 500 EUR. 3.1.2.5. Rental Costs (except Equipment) Cost of renting facilities required to undertake the project. 3.1.3. Communication and dissemination costs 3.1.3.1 Visibility action costs Costs of producing all visibility material related to the project, with the purpose of raising awareness regarding the EU Aid Volunteers initiative and ensuring the EU Aid Volunteers visual identity is incorporated into all material. 3.1.3.2 Publication including web-based services costs Cost of producing material related to the project, ensuring EU Aid Volunteers visual identity is included. 14
3.1.3.3. Interpretation and translation costs Costs of offering interpretation and translation are covered, provided they are linked to the activities of the project and a justification is offered. 3.1.4. Subcontracting costs Costs entailed by procurement contracts for the purposes of carrying out specific and limited parts of the action, provided that they meet the conditions for sub-contracting and award of procurement contracts. A description and justification needs to be provided in the project description. 3.1.5. Other costs Costs falling under this category may be considered eligible if they are related to the implementation of the project and are not covered by the other categories. 3.2. Indirect Costs "Indirect Costs" of the action are those costs which are not specific costs directly linked to the implementation of the action and can therefore not be attributed directly to it. If needed, a flat-rate amount of maximum 7 % of the total eligible direct costs of the project may be added as "Indirect Costs" representing the applicant's general administrative costs which can be regarded as chargeable to the project. Flat-rate funding in respect of indirect costs does not need to be supported by accounting documents. Examples of indirect costs are: - all costs for equipment related to the administration of the project (e.g. PCs, portables, etc.); - communication costs (postage, fax, telephone, internet access, mailing etc.); - infrastructure costs (rent, electricity, etc.) of the premises where the project is being carried out. 4. Estimated income As the EU grant is limited to 85% of the total eligible direct and indirect costs of the action, the applicant must indicate the remaining sources of financial contributions, other than the EU grant. This is recorded in the income part of the detailed project budget. The sources of co-financing may take the form of the applicant's own resources or financial contributions from third parties, amongst others. Please note that the budget has to be balanced in order to be valid i.e. the total project expenditure must be equal to the total project income. Indicative breakdown (3 rd tab) All project proposals must indicate in the 'indicative breakdown' how the requested EU grant will be split among the project partners. Operational capacity (4 th tab) 15
The purpose of this section is to highlight the level of humanitarian aid experience of all participating organisations. Financial capacity (5 th tab) Only applicant (lead partner) must complete this tab. Work plan The applicant has to attach a Work plan to the proposal. The Work plan is an important tool to assess the feasibility of the action. A common way to present a work plan is through a Gantt chart. Other possibilities exist and can be used as long as they are clearly presented and commented upon. The following formats are allowed: Excel / ODS / Word / ODT / PDF. Declaration on honour by the legal representative of the applicant organisation The declaration on honour is an annex of the application form (eform) and must be uploaded and submitted together with the application form electronically. A Declaration on Honour is to be completed by the person legally authorized to sign on behalf of the applicant organisation. The Declaration on Honour certifies that all organisations in the consortium are fully eligible for funding in accordance with the criteria set out in the call for proposals, to the best knowledge of the person identified as legal representative of the applicant organisation, who is familiar with the contents of the application form and attachments. The Declaration confirms that the members of the consortium have the financial and operational capacity to complete the proposed project. The legal representative of the applicant organisation takes note that, under the provisions of the Financial Regulations applicable to the general budget of the European Union, grants may not be awarded to applicants who are in any of the situations defined in the "exclusion criteria". Please note that the total grant amount indicated in the Declaration must correspond to the one indicated in the application form (Part C.3) and the detailed budget table (Excel table). Mandate The mandate is an annex of application form (eform) and must be uploaded and submitted together with the application form electronically. Partner organisations must submit mandates signed between the "coordinator" applicant and the other applicants (each partner organisation except the associates), confirming that they grant power of attorney to the coordinator applicant to act in their name and for their account in signing the eventual agreement and its possible subsequent riders with the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency. 16
In the application for grant, it is sufficient to attach a scanned version of the signed document. Should the application be selected for funding, the original version of the signed 'mandate' will be requested. Technical Note: all mandates must be scanned into one single PDF document per application. 3. Deadlines and submission of the application package Applications must be received by 12.00 p.m. (mid-day Brussels time) on the final date for applications. After this time the on-line application system will be closed. Stages 17 Date and time or indicative period a) Publication of the call March 2018 b) Deadline for submitting applications June 1 st 2018 12pm (midday) Brussels Time c) Evaluation period June September 2018 d) Information to applicants October 2018 e) Signature of grant agreement November 2018 f) Starting date of the action December 15 th 2018 The application must be completed electronically and submitted online. Applications sent by fax or email will not be accepted. Applicants cannot make any changes to their grant application after the electronic submission. Once the eform and annexes have been received, a reference number is automatically generated on the eform. In addition, a notification message will be sent by email to the e-mail address indicated in the eform (contact person of the applicant organisation). Please ensure that the presentation of the package conforms to the instructions provided in the Guidelines - Call for proposals. Applicants are STRONGLY advised to submit their application well in advance of the deadline and to keep proof of the safe arrival of the application in the submission system. Applications which are not received in due time, or are submitted in any other way than through the eform will be automatically rejected. No exceptions will be made! Make sure that you have officially submitted your eform, that you have received a submission number and that you have received an e-mail acknowledging receipt of your application. For more information please read the eform User Guide. In case of a technical problem (e.g. you are not able to create the eform, the eform crashes or freezes, you encounter problems during submission, etc.), contact the EACEA Helpdesk (eacea-helpdesk@ec.europa.eu or +32 229 90705). Please ensure that you request assistance before the deadline is reached. If the problem cannot be solved immediately
before the deadline, the EACEA Helpdesk can in exceptional cases and only when the problem has been notified before the deadline and is linked to technical problems related to the eform itself submit the eform on your behalf. If the EACEA Helpdesk is contacted after 12:00 midday Brussels time on the day of the deadline, your application will under no circumstances be accepted due to the principle of equal treatment of all applicants. When contacting the EACEA Helpdesk by e-mail, clearly describe the technical problem. It is advisable to attach a document with print screens to illustrate the problem and to join your eform. Should you encounter problems of a non-technical nature (e.g. problems with filling in the budget form, questions concerning the content of the eform or the rules applicable to the scheme, etc.), please contact us: EACEA-EUAID-VOLUNTEERS@ec.europa.eu Should the project contact details change at any moment during the selection procedure, you have to communicate these changes immediately by sending an e-mail to: EACEA-EUAID- VOLUNTEERS@ec.europa.eu clearly mentioning your submission number in the header of the message. 18