Support to projects of civil society organizations (CSO) - social service providers in SEE in scope of the project

“Improving the provision of Social Service Delivery in South Eastern Europe through the empowerment of national and regional CSO networks”

Reference: EuropeAid/132438/C/ACT/MultiDeadline for submission of applications: 31.10.2015

GUIDELINES FOR APPLICANTS

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1. INTRODUCTION

Project “Improving the provision of Social Service Delivery in South Eastern Europe through the empowerment of national and regional CSO networks” (Social services in SEE), implemented by Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund, e.V. Germany (ASB), in partnership with SOLIDAR Belgium, Local Initiative for Development Civil Society (LIR CD) from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Centre for Legal Aid and Regional Development (CLARD) from Kosovo, SOS Telephone for women and children victims of violence (SOS Podgorica) from Montenegro, Organisation for Civil Initiatives (OGI) from Croatia, Educational centre Leskovac (EDC) from Serbia, Association of students and youth with disabilities (ASYD) from FYR of Macedonia and Social Organization for the Support of Youth - ARISIS (Albania) in period from December 2014 to December 2016. Project is financed by European Union in framework of Partnership Programmes for Civil Society Organisations.

In previous phase of this project, main result was establishment of the regional IRIS network that is now covering 7 countries and so far has managed to position itself as the only SEE network gathering CSO providers of social services.

Countries of Western Balkans (WB) are characterized with the transitional situation affected by extreme levels of unemployment, social exclusion and poverty. The recent crisis has put social protection systems under the unprecedented challenge of addressing ever increasing levels of exclusion with reduced public resources. All of the countries on WB started the process of outsourcing the social services in order to reach higher numbers of beneficiaries and reduce the costs for social protection. Still, a significant proportion of low-income citizens have poor access to social safety nets and to services in question. This is due to the fact that both the public authorities ordering the services and organisations delivering it lack knowledge, capacities and joint dialog on basic standards of the social services. All of this is especially needed in the situation where quality social services are needed to be provided with reduced public budgets. Project is finding new participative ways to address social inclusion and socio-economic development policies considering the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion and synergies with other actions in order to achieve the Platform’s aims.

National Legislations in the target countries determined pluralisation and decentralisation in the SSD sector. That is visible in the respectable Laws on social protection in all of the IPA countries, even more in by-laws on minimal standards and public procurement for social services. Most of the local municipalities financing delivery of social services do have their local strategies on social inclusion. All of these strategies are transferring the responsibility for implementation of social policies to the local actors that have accountability as well as motivation, experiences, knowledge and skills. A certain number of CSOs in the target countries have built capacities that enable the efficient partnership with the relevant ministries and/or local authorities.

Overall project objective is to achieve a more dynamic civil society actively participating in public debate on democracy, human rights, social inclusion and the rule of law and with capacity to influence policy and decision making processes.

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The specific objectives are: a) to achieve greater commitment and capacity of CSO networks to give citizens a voice and

influence public sector reform processes through analysis, monitoring and advocacy, andb) to strengthen the CSO Networks dealing with SSD in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,

FYROM, Kosovo*1, Montenegro and Serbia in order to improve overall Service delivery to the citizenry.

Considering the current status of the target countries in their EU accession process, this project and Small Grant Facility will contribute to a range of activities combating social exclusion and promoting social justice and solidarity.

2. ELIGIBILITRY CRITERIA

Small Grant Facility is open only to IRIS national networks member organisations from 6 countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia, and Kosovo, members of IRIS network, especially those who show initiative in active approach in implementing quality standards in their work.

Priority will also be given to joint initiatives between two or more Network member organisations. One organisation may be part of more than one submission if it involves joint working. Each of the organization can take part in maximum two projects:

- as a partner in two project proposals or

- applicant in one and co-applicant in second project proposal.

IRIS Member organisations fulfilling the following criteria are eligible to apply: Be a publicly recognised, legal non-profit making entity under the relevant laws, where such

laws exist; Registered minimum 1 year before this SGF Call is announced; Located and operating within the target countries; Have a clearly defined focus for improvement of delivery of the services they are providing; Have clear decision-making mechanism independent from government; Have headquarter in one of 6 countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro,

Macedonia, Serbia, and Kosovo; Are directly responsible for the preparation and management of the project, with a co-

applicant (if planned by the project), and not to act as a mediator.

Note: Individuals, political parties, international and foreign organizations, public institutions, religious communities do not have the right to participate in this contest.

1 This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/99 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

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3. OBJECTIVES OF THE CALL

3.1. Overall objective: to achieve a more dynamic civil society actively participating in public debate on democracy, human rights, social inclusion and the rule of law and with capacity to influence policy and decision-making processes.

3.2. Specific objectives: a) to achieve greater commitment and capacity of CSO networks to give citizens a voice and influence public sector reform processes through analysis, monitoring and advocacy and b) to strengthen the Networks dealing with SSD in target countries in order to improve overall service delivery.

4. SECTORS AND THEMES OF THE CALL

Main output of this Call is implementation of at least 12 small advocacy initiatives.

1) The grants will be focused primarily in involving the public and citizens in a greater level in the discussion on creation of local policies on provision of social services and on state-civil society dialogue in these fields;

2) Only local and grass root advocacy initiatives will be supported;3) Partnerships will be obligatory condition for the SGF, and non-traditional partnerships which

are promoting innovative services will be given priority (Business-CSOs partnership, Public-Private partnerships, inter-municipal cooperation);

4) Analysis, advocacy and monitoring of social sector reforms at regional and local levels will be a precondition for participation at the SGF.

Projects not having advocacy component will not be funded.

Definitions:“Advocacy consists of actions designed to draw a community’s attention to an issue and to direct policy-makers to a solution. It consists of legal and political activities that influence the shape and practice of laws.”2 “Advocacy can be defined as action aimed at changing the policies, position and programmes of governments, institutions or organisations involving an organised, systematic influencing process on matters of public interest. In addition, advocacy can be a social change process affecting attitudes, social relationships and power relations, which strengthens civil society and opens up democratic spaces.”3

“The term advocacy encompasses a whole range of methods and approaches used to change those policies and practices, attitudes and behaviours that function as obstacles to development and poverty eradication. While technical support and the provision of services focus primarily on the manifestations of poverty, advocacy focuses on the causes of poverty and seeks change at this level. At its best, the process of advocacy should involve those people who

2 Human Rights Manual, Marge Schuler3 Working for Change in Education - A handbook for planning advocacy, Save the Children Fund, UK

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are affected by the problems identified; increase cooperation between NGOs and other civil groups; and expand the space for open discussion between citizens, governments and institutions.”4

Proposed advocacy initiatives must focus on:1) Improving policies and their practices in the area of social inclusion and provision of social

services on local level. 2) Improving policy framework for CSOs providing social services on local level. 3) Introducing of innovative models in provision of social services. 4) Improving policy framework and practice for bigger involvement in decision making of

vulnerable groups and/or beneficiaries of social services.

Note: It is very important to have, from the beginning, a clear understanding of the problem or the issue, as well as an idea of what you want to achieve through advocacy!

General topics of the projects are (list is not definite): Improving framework for improvement of quality of the existing services; Advocacy for creation of improvement of local strategies and action plans that are

covering area of social services for vulnerable groups; Increase of citizens capacities for active participation in advocacy initiatives, especially in

monitoring and quality evaluation of social services that are financed from the local authorities budgets;

Improving capacities of CSOs and citizens for implementing advocacy initiatives; Needs analyses, empirical surveys that will serve as a baseline for the implementation of

advocacy initiatives for local policy change; Analysis of the level of the implementation and quality of existing services, strategies

and action plans on the local level. Networking with entrepreneurs and private sector with the aim of promoting innovative

partnerships against social exclusion and improvement of existing social services; Advocacy campaigns (please note that this is not the same as public awareness

campaign).

5. FINANCIAL ASPECTS OF THE CALL

Total budget of the call is 60 000 EUR.

Funding will be provided for minimum 12 projects lasting up to 6 months maximum. It is anticipated that a maximum of € 5,000 per project will be available. Consideration will be given to applications requesting either sole funding or co-financing from the SGF.

Funding will be distributed in based on the principle of equality between 6 participating countries, depending on quality of the applications.

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Requested sums in framework of this call can be between minimum 50% and maximum 95% of eligible costs. Difference of 5% of the eligible costs will be considered as applicant co-financing that must be other than EU funds and/or European Development Fund. In- kind contribution is not considered as eligible contribution.

In case of partnerships, one organization – applicant will be directly responsible for managing finances of others co-applicants in the project.

5.1. Eligible and non-eligible costs

5.1.1. Eligible direct costs

a) The cost of staff assigned to the Action correspo0nding to the actual gross salaries including social security charges and other remuneration-related costs;b) Travel costs and subsistence costs for staff and other persons taking part in the Action, provided they do not exceed those normally borne by Beneficiary or its partners, as the case may be or the scales published by the E.C. at the time of contract signature c) Costs of consumables; d) Costs deriving directly from the requirements of the Contract (dissemination of the information, Evaluation specific to the Action, audits, translation, insurance etc.) including financial service costs (in particular the cost of transfers and financial guarantees ).

5.1.2. Simplified cost options

a) Lump sums

Methods that will be applied for the lump sums should be clearly defined and described in project proposal budget and must ensure non profit rule and avoid dual expenses financing. Information may be used based on previous and / or the actual calculation or to external information where possible and appropriate. Costs declared under the simplified cost options should meet the criteria, but may not be supported by accounting or supporting documents.

These costs do not include ineligible costs or the other costs stipulated under other item in the budget.

The amounts and rates of lump sum costs cannot be subsequently amended or may not be disputed in previous and subsequent verification.

c) Non-eligible costs

Following costs shall not be considered as eligible:a) Debts and debt service charges;b) Provision for losses and potential future liabilities;c) Costs declared by Beneficiary and covered by another action or work program;d) Purchase of land or buildings; e) Currency exchange losses;

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f) Credits to third parties, unless otherwise specified in the special conditions;g) Equipment or supply costs; h) Taxes, including VAT, unless otherwise specified in Special conditions;

Note: VAT costs are to be covered by Beneficiary

6. RULES FOR THIS CALL FOR PROPOSALS

6.1. Partnerships/Co-applicants

Partnerships are not obliged by the call, but they are allowed an eligible. Each Applicant may act individually or with the co-applicant organizations. Co-applicants of the Applicants participate in designing and implementing the action, and costs they incur are eligible in the same way as those incurred by the Applicant themselves. They must therefore satisfy the following criteria:

Non-profit public institution in charge for planning and social policy implementation; Registered minimum 1 year before this SGF Call is announced; With official address in the same municipality as project Applicant; Be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the

partners, not acting as intermediary; Individuals, political parties, international and foreign organizations do not have the right to

participate in this call; Maximum of the staff costs and consumables of the co-applicant cannot exceed 10% of

total staff costs and consumables of the action. Information on co-applicants should be clearly presented in part of the Application form under the title “Co-applicants”.

6.2. Location

Location of the project realization must be one of the countries covered by IRIS CSF IPA project: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia, and Kosovo.

Projects must be targeting activities in specific local communities.

6.3. Project duration

Implementation of all projects awarded by this call for proposal should last no longer than 6 months, and must be finished until 31st May 2016.

6.4. How to apply and procedure to follow?

Project proposals should be written in English language. Applicant must submit filled application package consisted of:

1. Application form;

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2. Budget proposal;

All documents should be submitted in electronic format, with scanned pages where signature and stamp is needed.

With application documents, Applicants must send following additional documentation (scanned): Scanned copy of Registration of organization; Scanned copy of Statute of organization; Scanned copy of Balance Sheet and Income Statement for the previous year (2014.)

In case of partnership, same additional documentation should be enclosed, as well as “Partnership agreement” that is part of the Application form, signed and stamped by the legally authorized representative of the relevant institution or organisation.

Applications should be sent to email address masa.mitrovic@asb-see.org no later than 31.10.2015 midnight, with email subject stating “Call for proposal for the CSO support”.

Incomplete applications, applications submitted by any other means and/or forms than provided in this document will not be taken in consideration.

6.5. Deadline for submission of applications

Deadline for submission of applications is 31.10.2015 midnight. Any applications sent after the deadline will automatically be rejected. Evidence of project proposal submission will be time of e-mail reception.

6.6. Further information for the application

In case of additional information required, questions may be sent by email masa.mitrovic@asb-see.org no later than 19.10.2015 with email subject “Questions on the Call for proposal for the CSO support”.

Questions that may be relevant to other applicants, together with the answers, will be published on web site of the Network w w w . i r i s - s e e . e u .

7. EVALUATION AND SELECTION OF THE APPLICATIONS

The assessment criteria will include: organisational performance; comprehensiveness of information including relevance of the proposal to objectives of the fund, objectives of the project and addressing identified need; capacity of identified activities to achieve defined objectives; the relationship between the proposed actions and the financial plan; the intended impact of the project and future sustainability.

Evaluation of the project proposal will be conducted in two phases.

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In first phase, administrative check of the documentation will be conducted. Only project proposals that are consisted of necessary documentation in line with the Guidelines will be evaluated in second phase by the Evaluation Committee. These projects will be evaluated in accordance to the criteria stipulated in Guidelines. List of supported projects will be published on web site www.iris-see.org.

Evaluation table:

Section Maximum scores1. Relevance of the action 131.1. D o e s p r o j ec t p r o p o s a l fi t s t o t h e o b je c ti v es an d themes stipulated in Guidelines?

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1.2 How clearly defined are target groups and final beneficiaries?

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2. Objectives and results 52.1. Are the objectives and results of the project clearly defined and in consistency with the objectives of the CFP?

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3. Effectiveness and Feasibility of the action 163.1. Are the proposed activities appropriate, practical and in consistency with the expected project results?

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3.2. Is Action plan comprehensible and feasible? 53.3. Is the level of involvement and participation of the partners in the action satisfactory?

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3.4. Are the verifiable success indicators in the project proposal measurable?

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4. Sustainability of the action 54.1. Is the project financially, institutionally and politically sustainable?

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5. Budget 115.1. Is the proposed expenditure necessary for the implementation of the action?

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5.2. Is the ratio between estimated costs and the expected results satisfactory?

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Maximum total score 50

8. INDICATIVE TIME TABLE

Date* TimeDeadline for requests for any clarifications 19.10.2015. -

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Deadline for submission of the application forms 31.10.2015. 00.00

Information to applicants on administration check

10.11.2015.-

Publishing the list of projects selected for the financing

15.11.2015. -

Contract signature and beginning of the implementation

01.11.2015. -

*Note: this schedule may be changed during the call for proposals procedure. In case of that, updated version will be posted on the IRIS Network website www.iris-see.org.

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