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This project is co-funded by the European Union

Contracting Authority: World Vision Albania

Supporting human rights defending organizations through sub-granting scheme –

Cycle 1

Project: Youth Standing Up for Human Rights in Albania

Guidelines

for Sub-Granting applicants

Reference of EU co-funded project: EuropeAid/155956/DD/ACT/AL

Deadline for submission of concept note: 15.11.2018 at 17:00 hrs.

Deadline for submission of full application: upon the invitation by the Contracting Authority

This Guideline for applicants has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of World Vision Albania and South East European Youth Network and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union

NOTICE

This is a restricted call for proposals. In the first instance, only concept notes (Annex I – Part A of the sub-grant application form) must be submitted for evaluation. Thereafter, the applicants who have been pre-selected will be invited to submit a full application. After the evaluation of the full applications, an eligibility check will be performed for those which have been provisionally selected. Eligibility will be checked on the basis of the supporting documents requested by the contracting authority and the signed ‘declaration by the applicant’ sent together with the full application.

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Table of ContentsPROJECT: YOUTH STANDING UP FOR HUMAN RIGHTS IN ALBANIA 1

1. SUPPORT HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDING ORGANZATIONS THROUGH SUB-GRANTING SCHEME 4

1.1. Background...........................................................................................................................................41.2. Objectives of the programme and priority issues.............................................................................41.3. Financial allocation provided by the contracting authority.............................................................5

2. RULES FOR THIS CALL FOR PROPOSALS 6

2.1. Eligibility criteria.................................................................................................................................62.1.1. Eligibility of applicants......................................................................................................................62.1.2. Eligible actions: actions for which an application may be made.......................................................82.1.3. Eligibility of costs: costs that can be included.................................................................................10

2.2. HOW TO APPLY AND THE PROCEDURES TO FOLLOW 13

2.2.1. Concept note content........................................................................................................................132.2.2. Where and how to send concept notes.............................................................................................142.2.3. Deadline for submission of concept notes........................................................................................142.2.4. Further information about concept notes..........................................................................................152.2.5. Full applications...............................................................................................................................152.2.6. Where and how to send full applications.........................................................................................152.2.7. Deadline for submission of full applications....................................................................................16

2.3. Evaluation and selection of applications..........................................................................................17STEP 1: OPENING & ADMINISTRATIVE CHECKS AND CONCEPT NOTE EVALUATION.............18STEP 2: EVALUATION OF THE FULL APPLICATION...................................................................................19STEP 3: VERIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY OF THE APPLICANTS.......................................................22

2.4. Submission of supporting documents for provisionally selected applications.............................232.5. Notification of the Contracting Authority’s decision......................................................................23

2.5.1. Content of the decision.....................................................................................................................232.5.2. Indicative timetable..........................................................................................................................23

3. LIST OF ANNEXES 25

3.1. Documents to be completed...............................................................................................................25Annex I: Sub-Grant Application Form (Word format) Part A – Concept Note & Part B- Full Application

Form.................................................................................................................................................25Annex B: Budget (Excel format)......................................................................................................................25Annex D: Legal Entity Sheet............................................................................................................................25Annex E: Financial identification form............................................................................................................25

3.2. DOCUMENTS FOR INFORMATION...........................................................................................25Partnership Sub-Grant Agreement..........................................................................................................................25Standard Sub-Grant Contract..................................................................................................................................25- Annex II: General conditions.......................................................................................................................25- Annex IV: Procurement rules for the beneficiaries.....................................................................................25- Annex V: Standard request for payment......................................................................................................25- Annex VI: Model Interim narrative report..................................................................................................25- Annex VII: Model Financial financial report..............................................................................................25- Annex VIII: Model Monthly Progress Report.............................................................................................25- Annex H: Daily allowance rates (Per diem),...............................................................................................25

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1. SUPPORT HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDING ORGANZATIONS THROUGH SUB-GRANTING SCHEME

1.1. BACKGROUND

World Vision Albania (hereinafter WVA) and South East European Youth Network (hereinafter SEEYN) with

financial assistance from the European Commission – European Instrument for Democracy and Human

Rights are beneficiaries of the European Union co-funded Project titled ‘Youth Standing Up for Human

Rights in Albania’.

1.2. OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME AND PRIORITY ISSUES The overall objective of the Project

Youth are active drivers in civil society’s role in promoting human rights, democratic values, and the rule of

the law in Albania.

And the Specific Objectives of the Project

1. Human Rights-defending organizations take youth-driven, impactful actions in Albania, with

emphasis on outlying regions.

o Main Activities: launch of a call for proposals for sub-grant projects, selection of project

ideas, mentored monitoring, and project close out.

2. To increase capacities of human rights-defending organizations for delivering of effective actions

and services to the groups in need for human rights protection in multiple regions in Albania.

o Main Activities: technical assistance to sub-grant recipients, action-oriented research, and

dissemination of learning and best practices to a wide community of practice.

WVA has constructed the call for proposal as a two-stage process beginning with concept notes and then

inviting only a selected few organizations to submit a full proposal in the restricted call phase (according to

the selection criteria).

The human rights defenders sub-grants will fall into one of following lots:

Youth (boys and girls) Employability; (Lot 1)

Child Protection (including exploitation, trafficking, violence and abuse); (Lot 2)

People (both men and women) with disabilities; (Lot 3)

Other marginalized groups of the society (youth from remote and rural areas, ethnic minorities,

those exposed to gender based violence, etc., excluding categories covered by lot 1 and 2 of the Call

for Proposal). (Lot 4)

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1.3. FINANCIAL ALLOCATION PROVIDED BY THE CONTRACTING AUTHORITY

The overall indicative amount made available under this first call for proposals is EUR 180.000. The Contracting Authority reserves the right not to award all available funds.

If the allocation indicated for a specific lot cannot be used due to insufficient quality or number of proposals received, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to reallocate the remaining funds to (an)other lot(s).

Amount and duration of the sub-grants

The sub-granting scheme will award 100% of eligible cost of the approved budget.

The amount of any sub-grant under this call for proposal must have the following minimum and maximum amount:

Minimum Amount EUR 15.000;

Maximum amount: EUR 20.000.

It is foreseen that during Cycle 1 of the sub-grants, there will be supported sub-grants in the following areas,

respectively:

Sub-grants for Awareness-raising on human rights;

Sub-grants for Advocacy and policy analysis on human rights;

Sub-grants on Creation of community service models on human rights;

Duration of the sub-grant:

The planned duration of an action may not be lower than 6 months nor exceed 9 months.

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2. RULES FOR THIS CALL FOR PROPOSALS

This guideline sets out the rules for the submission, selection and implementation of the actions financed under this call, in conformity with the Sub-Granting Manual, which is applicable to the present call (available on the Internet at this addresses: http://www.worldvision.al/; https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/albania_en.

2.1. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

There are three sets of eligibility criteria, relating to:

(1) the actors:

The applicant', i.e. the entity submitting the application form (2.1.1),

(2) the actions:

Actions for which a sub-grant may be awarded (2.1.2);

(3) the costs:

Types of costs that may be taken into account in setting the amount of the sub-grant (2.1.3).

2.1.1. Eligibility of applicants

The applicant

(1) In order to be eligible for a sub-grant, the applicant must:

be a legal person;

be non-profit-making;

be legally established in Albania;

be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action;

be a specific type of organization such as: registered and organized CSOs with a mandate to defend human rights, human rights-focused CSOs, youth CSOs focused on human rights or CSO who will include the participation of youth1 through project design and implementation with a mandate to defend human rights.

(2) Potential applicants may not participate in calls for proposals or be awarded sub-grants if they are in any of the situations listed in section 2.3.3 of the Practical Guide;

Applicants will be excluded from participation in the call or from the allocation of sub-grants if, at the time of submission of project proposals, they are in one of the below situations:

- they are bankrupt or being wound up, are having their affairs administered by the courts, have entered into an arrangement with creditors, have suspended business activities, are the subject of proceedings concerning those matters, or are in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for in national legislation or regulations;

- they have been convicted of an offence concerning their professional conduct by a judgment which has the force of res judicata;

- they have been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the Contracting Authority can justify;

1 Youth activists and volunteers will be between the ages of 13 and 25 years old for the purposes of this action. of 24

https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/albania_en

http://www.worldvision.al/

- they have not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the economy in which they are established or with those of the economy of the Contracting Authority or those of the economy where the contract is to be performed;

- they have been the subject of a judgment which has the force of res judicata for fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organization or any other illegal activity;

- they are subject to a conflict of interest;

- they are guilty of providing false information to an authorized contractual party, which are required as a precondition for participation in the call for submission of project proposals or if they fail to submit the required information;

- they tried to obtain confidential information, exert influence over the Evaluation Committee or authorized contractual party during project proposals evaluation process.

Potential co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies), are not considered eligible actors to the present call.

If awarded the sub-grant contract, the applicant will become the beneficiary.

IN ORDER TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR A GRANT, THE APPLICANT MUST:

Be registered as non-for-profit (local) organisation as per the NGOs law. Branch offices of international organisations in Albania will be ineligible;

Submit a proposal which demonstrates that the project was designed with significant input from youth themselves;

Not implement exclusively religious and/or political party activities;

Have mission/vision/experience relevant to the objectives of this Call, particularly working with youth both as individuals or as groups;

Not have any history of legal proceedings related to fraud or corruption;

Be one time beneficiary. Applicants will be awarded only one sub-grant. An applicant who has been already awarded a Sub-grant through first Call for Proposal, may not participate to the Second Call for Proposal.

LIST OF DOCUMENTS REQUIRED

The project proposals (concept notes) sent by CSOs must be sent with the below mentioned list of documents:

1. Court registration of the applicant's. (please submit the first decision and any potential changes); Court extract (with the Court seal issued within the last three months);

2. Registration Certificate at the Tax Office – NIPT and A document issued by the Department of Taxes certifying that the organization has no pending financial obligations, such as social, health or tax obligations – issued within the Call period

3. The proof of involvement of youth on the design and on the implementation of the project proposal;

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2.1.2. Eligible actions: actions for which an application may be made

Definition: An action is composed of a set of activities.

Duration

The planned duration of an action may not be lower than 6 months nor exceed 9 months.

Sectors or themes are:

Civil society sector (with a mandate to defend human rights, human rights-focused CSOs - mission/vision/experience relevant to the objectives of this Call, particularly working with youth both as individuals or as groups);

And the themes should fall in the following LOTS:

Youth (boys and girls) Employability; (LOT 1)

Child Protection (including exploitation, trafficking, violence and abuse); (LOT 2)

People (both men and women) with disabilities; (LOT 3)

Other marginalized groups of the society (youth from remote and rural areas, ethnic minorities, those exposed to gender based violence, etc., excluding categories covered by lot 1 and 2 of the CfP.) (LOT 4)

Location

This action will give priority to the following areas: Tirana; Shkoder; Dibra; Lezha; Rreshen; Kukes; Durres; Kurbin; Kamez; Perrenjas; Gramsh; Puke; Fier; Berat; Lushnje; Vlore; Elbasan; Librazhd; Korce; and Maliq.

Language of the Project Proposals

The preferred language of the Project proposals is English Language.

Project proposals may be submitted in Albanian Language. (Concept Note and the Full Application Form)

Types of action

Actions in Albania, with emphasis on outlying regions undertaken by human Rights-defending organizations.

Actions and services to the groups in need for human rights protection in multiple regions in Albania so that to increase capacities of human rights-defending organizations.

Also, keeping in mind the above mentioned actions, this first call for proposals will consider if and when the proposal foresees:

- Actions targeting sub-urban, rural and remote areas;

- Actions involving women, youth, young professionals, citizen's initiatives, activists etc;

- Actions promoting creation of wide networks and participative approach, including the involvement of local actors and authorities, the business community and political actors;

- Actions strongly focusing on reinforcing local grass-root organisations, notably through the use of Sub-granting scheme.

The following types of action are ineligible:

actions concerned only or mainly with individual sponsorships for participation in workshops, seminars, conferences and congresses;

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actions concerned only or mainly with individual scholarships for studies or training courses;

actions aiming to implement exclusively religious and/or political party actions;

profit making activities;

actions with provisions for financing the usual (routine) activities of the organisations from the region, especially covering their running costs;

actions started before the signature of a contract;

Types of activity

Sub-grant projects will address the priority of human rights issues and will fall into the following three main themes accompanied with the respective illustrative activities:

1. Awareness-raising on human rights: illustrative examples of activities include:

o Marches;

o Festivals;

o Fairs in local communities;

o Printed media campaigns in local communities,

o Street theatre;

o Sport events.

2. Advocacy and Policy Analysis on human rights: illustrative examples of activities include:

o Workshops where youth analyse policy and develop recommendations;

o Workshops where youth jointly agree on advocacy targets;

o Documentary film production and screenings;

o Creation of road maps and guidelines for youth engagement on human rights issues;

o Various types of advocacy campaigns;

o Youth monitoring and reporting on human rights issues in their communities.

3. Provision of targeting services (to serve as models for scaled up service provision) on human rights: illustrative examples of activities include:

o Establishing a community food-bank for marginalized groups;

o Providing accessible ramps or other light infrastructure in the community for disabled persons;

o Conducting summer camps;

o Mentoring of younger children by youth;

o Social and charitable activities.

Financial support to third parties 2

2 These third parties are neither affiliated entity(ies) nor associates nor contractors. of 24

Applicants may not propose financial support to third parties.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Monitoring and evaluation of the approved projects will be implemented by WVA.

Visibility

The applicants must take all necessary steps to publicise the fact that the European Union has financed or co-financed the action. As far as possible, actions that are wholly or partially funded by the European Union must incorporate information and communication activities designed to raise the awareness of specific or general audiences of the reasons for the action and the EU support for the action in the country or region concerned, as well as the results and the impact of this support.

Applicants must comply with the objectives and priorities and guarantee the visibility of the EU financing (see the Communication and Visibility Manual for EU external actions specified and published by the European Commission at http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/communication-and-visibility-manual-eu-external-actions_en).

Number of applications and sub-grants per applicants

The applicant may not submit more than one (1) application under this call for proposals.

The applicant may not be awarded more than one (1) sub-grant.

2.1.3. Eligibility of costs: costs that can be included

Only ‘eligible costs’ can be covered by a sub-grant. The categories of costs that are eligible and non-eligible are indicated below. The budget is both a cost estimate and an overall ceiling for ‘eligible costs’.

The reimbursement of eligible costs may be based on any or a combination of the following forms:

actual costs incurred by the beneficiary

one or more simplified cost options.

Applicants proposing this form of reimbursement, must clearly indicate in worksheet no.1 of Annex B, each heading/item of eligible costs concerned by this type of financing, i.e. add the reference in capital letters to "UNIT COST" (per month/flight etc),

Additionally in Annex B, in the second column of worksheet no.2, "Justification of the estimated costs" per each of the corresponding budget item or heading applicants must:

describe the information and methods used to establish the amounts of unit costs, to which costs they refer, etc.

clearly explain the formulas for calculation of the final eligible amount3

Recommendations to award a sub-grant are always subject to the condition that the checks preceding the signing of the sub-grant contract do not reveal problems requiring changes to the budget (such as arithmetical errors, inaccuracies, unrealistic costs and 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. It is not possible to increase the sub-grant or the percentage of financing of WVA because of these corrections.

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

3 Examples:- for staff costs: number of hours or days of work * hourly or daily rate pre-set according to the category of personnel concerned;- for travel expenses: distance in km * pre-set cost of transport per km; number of days * daily allowance pre-set according to the country;- for specific costs arising from the organization of an event: number of participants at the event * pre-set total cost per participant etc.

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http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/communication-and-visibility-manual-eu-external-actions_en

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/communication-and-visibility-manual-eu-external-actions_en

Eligible direct costs

Eligible costs are actual costs incurred by the Beneficiary, which meet all the following criteria: a) they are incurred during the implementation of the Action;

b) they are indicated in the estimated overall budget for the Action;

c) they are necessary for the implementation of the Action;

d) they are identifiable and verifiable, in particular being recorded in the accounting records of the Beneficiary and determined according to the accounting standards and the usual cost accounting practices applicable to the Beneficiary;

e) they comply with the requirements of applicable tax and social legislation;

f) they are reasonable, justified and comply with the requirements of sound financial management, in particular regarding economy and efficiency.

Subject to the respect of the above eligibility criteria, the following direct costs shall be eligible: Administrative costs, as follows:

- The cost of staff assigned to the Action, corresponding to actual gross salaries including social security charges and other remuneration-related costs; salaries and costs shall not exceed those normally borne by Beneficiary unless it is justified by showing that it is essential to carry out the Action;

- Travel and subsistence costs for staff and other persons taking part in the Action, provided they do not exceed those normally borne by the Beneficiary according to its rules and regulations;

- Costs of consumables;

- Costs directly related to the activities of the project:

- Costs deriving directly from the requirements of the contract (dissemination of information, evaluation specific to the Action, audits, translation, reproduction, insurance, etc.) including financial service costs (in particular the cost of transfers and financial guarantees where required according to the contract);

- Costs arising directly from requirements linked to the implementation of the project, including small procurement of goods, works or services as described in the action.

- Salary costs of the personnel of national administrations may be eligible to the extent that they relate to the cost of activities which the relevant public authority would not carry out if the action were not undertaken.

The VAT paid by sub-grantees under the sub-grant will be considered by the EUD as eligible cost, provided the related expenditure (VAT excluded) is regarded as eligible.

The applicants agree that the expenditure verification(s) referred to in Article 15.7 of the General Conditions to the standard grant contract (see Annex G of the guidelines) will be carried out by the Contracting Authority or any external body authorised by the European Commission/Contracting Authority < Grant Thornton SHPK, Rr:Sami Frasheri, Kompleksi T.I.D, Shk2, Floor 1 – 10 000, Tirane, , telephone: 0355 422 74832>

Eligible indirect costs

The indirect costs incurred in carrying out the action may be eligible for flat rate funding, but the total must not exceed 5 % of the estimated total eligible direct costs. Indirect costs are eligible provided that they do not include costs assigned to another budget heading in the standard sub-grant contract. The applicant may be asked to justify the percentage requested before the sub-grant contract is signed. However, once the flat rate

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has been fixed in the Special Conditions of the sub-grant contract, no supporting documents need to be provided.

If any of the applicants is in receipt of an operating sub-grant financed by the EU, it may not claim indirect costs on its incurred costs within the proposed budget for the action.

Contributions in kind

Contributions in kind mean the provision of goods or services to beneficiaries free of charge by a third party. As contributions in kind do not involve any expenditure for beneficiaries, they are not eligible costs.

Ineligible costs

The following costs are not eligible:

- debts and debt service charges;

- provisions for losses or potential future liabilities;

- credit to third parties;

- Allowed administrative costs (including staff salaries) must not exceed 20% of the total proposed budget concept;

- taxes, except for value added taxes if the following conditions are fulfilled:

i. they are not recoverable by any means;

ii. it is established that they are borne by the final beneficiary; and

iii. Note: Personal Income Tax for employees is considered eligible cost under this call for proposal);

- customs and import duties, or any other charges;

- purchase, rent or leasing of land and existing buildings, unless the offices have to be rented explicitly to allow for the implementation of the operation (to be demonstrated by the applicant);

- fines, financial penalties and expenses of litigation;

- second-hand equipment;

- bank charges (other than bank account maintenance cost), costs of guarantees and similar charges;

- conversion costs, charges and exchange losses associated with any of the component specific euro accounts, as well as other purely financial expenses;

- contribution in kind;

- any leasing costs;

- depreciation costs;

- interest owed;

- costs declared by the beneficiary and covered by another action or work programme;

2.2. HOW TO APPLY AND THE PROCEDURES TO FOLLOW

Documentation for call for proposals can be obtained from the WVA website: http://www.worldvision.al/.

This is a restricted Call for Proposals. Only Concept Notes must be submitted for the evaluation, whereas applicants who’s Concept Notes have been pre-selected will be invited to submit a Full Application.

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2.2.1. Concept note content

Applications must be submitted in accordance with the concept note instructions in the sub-grant application form annexed to these guidelines (Annex I – Part A).

Applicants may apply either in English or in Albanian language.

Please note that:

1. In the concept note, the applicants must only provide an estimate amount of the requested contribution from WVA. A detailed budget is to be submitted only by the applicants invited to submit a full application in the second stage.

2. The elements outlined in the concept note may not be modified in the full application. The WVA contribution may not vary from the initial estimate by more than 20 % (in any case cannot exceed the max allowed by this CfP). The applicant may adjust the duration of the action if unforeseen circumstances outside the scope of the applicants have taken place following the submission of the concept note and require such adaptation (risk of action not being carried out). In such cases, the duration must remain within the limits imposed by the guidelines for applicants. An explanation/justification of the relevant replacement/adjustment shall be included in an enclosed letter or email.

3. At the first stage, 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.

Any error or major discrepancy related to the concept note instructions may lead to the rejection of the concept note.

Clarifications will only be requested when information provided is not sufficient to conduct an objective assessment.

Hand-written concept notes will not be accepted.

2.2.2. Where and how to send concept notes

The concept note together with its relating checklist4 and declaration by the applicant (to be found in Annex I - Part A of the sub-grant application form) must be submitted in one (1) original and one (1) copy (in view of environmental considerations, request as few copies as possible) in A4 size, each bound.

An electronic version of the concept note must also be submitted. A CD-ROM or USB sticks5 with the concept note in electronic format will be included, along with the paper version, in a sealed envelope as described below. The electronic file must contain exactly the same application as the paper version enclosed.

The envelope must bear the reference number and the title of the call for proposals, together with the lot number and title, the full name and address of the applicant, and the words ‘Not to be opened before the opening session’ and <‘të mos hapet përpara fillimit të sesionit’>.

Concept notes must be submitted in a sealed envelope by registered mail, private courier service or by hand-delivery (a signed and dated certificate of receipt will be given to the deliverer) to the address below:

Postal address

4 Please note that the concept note / full application should not be rejected only because the applicant did not submit the checklist or the information in the checklist is not correct.

5 If you want to allow for other devices (e.g. USB sticks) make sure that appropriate IT security measures are in place.

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World Vision Albania

Rruga Skenderbej,

Ndertesa Gurten, Kati 2

1001

Tirana, Albania

Address for hand delivery or by private courier service


Rruga Skenderbej,


1001

Tirana, Albania

Concept notes sent by any other means (e.g. by fax or by e-mail) or delivered to other addresses will be rejected. The applicants must verify that their concept note is complete using the checklist for concept note (Annex I – Part A of the sub-grant application form). Incomplete concept notes may be rejected.

2.2.3. Deadline for submission of concept notes

The deadline for the submission of concept notes is 15th November 2018 as evidenced by the date of dispatch, the postmark or the date of the deposit slip. In the case of hand-deliveries, the deadline for receipt is at 17:00 hour’s local time as evidenced by the signed and dated receipt. Any concept note submitted after the deadline will be rejected.

However, for reasons of administrative efficiency, the Contracting Authority may reject any concept note sent in due time but received after the effective date of approval of the concept note evaluation (see indicative calendar under section 2.5.2)

2.2.4. Further information about concept notes

Information sessions on this first call for proposals will be held on:

Shkodra 15.10.2018 at 10:00 o’clock and place TBC;

Tirana 16.10.2018 at 10:00 o’clock and place TBC;

Vlora 17.10.2018 at 10:00 o’clock and place TBC.

2.2.5. Full applications

The applicants invited to submit a full application following pre-selection of their concept note must do so using Annex I – Part B of the sub-grant application form annexed to these guidelines (Annex I – Part B). The applicants should then keep strictly to the format of the sub-grant application form and fill in the paragraphs and pages in order.

The elements outlined in the concept note cannot be modified by the applicant in the full application. The WVA contribution may not vary from the initial estimate by more than 20 %. The applicant may adjust the duration of the action if unforeseen circumstances outside the scope of the applicants have taken place following the submission of the concept note and require such adaptation (risk of action not being carried

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out). In such cases, the duration must remain within the limits imposed by the guidelines for applicants. An explanation/justification of the relevant replacement/adjustment shall be included in an accompanying letter or email.

The applicants must submit their full applications in the same language as their concept notes.

Please complete the full application form carefully and as clearly as possible so that it can be assessed properly.

Any error related to the points listed in the checklist of the Annex I – Part B, or any major inconsistency in the full application (e.g. if the amounts in the budget worksheets are inconsistent) may lead to the rejection of the application.

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

Hand-written applications will not be accepted or will be rejected.

Please note that only the full application form and the published annexes, which have to be filled in, will be transmitted to the evaluators (and assessors, if used). It is therefore of utmost importance that these documents contain ALL the relevant information concerning the action.

2.2.6. Where and how to send full applications

Full applications (i.e. the full application form, the budget, and the declaration by the applicant) must be submitted in a sealed envelope by registered mail, private courier service or by hand-delivery (a signed and dated certificate of receipt will be given to the deliverer) to the address below:

Postal address


Rruga Skenderbej,


1001

Tirana, Albania

Address for hand delivery or by private courier service


Rruga Skenderbej,


1001

Tirana, Albania

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

Applications must be submitted in one (1) original and 1 (in view of environmental considerations, as few copies as possible should be requested) one (1) copy in A4 size, each bound. The full application form and the budget must also be supplied in electronic format (CD-ROM or USB stick6) in a separate and single file

6 If you want to allow for other devices (e.g. USB sticks) make sure that appropriate IT security measures are in place.

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(i.e. the full application must not be split into several different files). The electronic file must contain exactly the same application as the paper version.

The checklist of the sub-grant application form and the declaration by the applicant must be stapled separately and enclosed in the envelope.

The envelope must bear the reference number and the title of the call for proposals, together with the number and title of the lot, the full name and address of the applicant, and the words ‘Not to be opened before the opening session’ and <‘të mos hapet përpara fillimit të sesionit’>.

Applicants must verify that their application is complete using the checklist of the sub-grant application form. Incomplete applications may be rejected.

2.2.7. Deadline for submission of full applications

The deadline for the submission of full applications will be indicated in the letter sent to the applicants whose application has been pre-selected.

However, for reasons of administrative efficiency, the Contracting Authority may reject any full application sent in due time but received after the effective date of approval of the full application evaluation (see indicative calendar under section 2.5.2).

2.2.8. Further information about applications

The information about the call for proposal will be published on the following websites: http://www.worldvision.al/; and https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/albania_en. including the dates and times of information session(s).

The potential applicants are advised to consult the abovementioned websites regularly in order to be timely informed.

Questions related to the call may be sent by e-mail no later than eleven (11) working days prior to the deadline for the submission of concept note to the below email address, indicating clearly the reference of the call for proposals:

E-mail address: [email protected]

Selection Committee has no obligation to provide clarifications to questions received after this date.

2.3. EVALUATION AND SELECTION OF APPLICATIONS

Applications will be examined and evaluated by the Contracting Authority with the possible (if necessary) assistance of external assessors. All applications will be assessed according to the following steps and criteria.

If the examination of the application reveals that the proposed action does not meet the eligibility criteria stated in section 2.1, the application will be rejected on this sole basis.

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mailto:[email protected]

https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/albania_en


STEP 1: OPENING & ADMINISTRATIVE CHECKS AND CONCEPT NOTE EVALUATION

During the opening and administrative check the following will be assessed:

If the deadline has been met. Otherwise, the application will be automatically rejected. If the concept note satisfies all the criteria specified in the checklist in section 2 of Annex I – Part A

of the sub-grant application form. This includes also an assessment of the eligibility of the action. If any of the requested information is missing or is incorrect, the application may be rejected on that sole basis and the application will not be evaluated further.

The concept notes that passes this check will be evaluated on the relevance and design of the proposed action.The concept notes will receive an overall score out of 50 using the breakdown in the evaluation grid below. The evaluation will also check on compliance with the instructions on how to complete the concept note, which can be found in Annex I – Part A of the sub-grant application form.

The evaluation criteria are divided into headings and subheadings. Each subheading will be given a score between 1 and 5 as follows: 1 = very poor; 2 = poor; 3 = adequate; 4 = good; 5 = very good.

1. Relevance of the action Sub-score 30

1.1 How relevant is the proposal to the objectives and priorities of the call for proposals?* 5x2**

1.2 How relevant to the particular needs and constraints of the target country(ies) or region(s) is the proposal (including synergy with other EU initiatives and avoidance of duplication)?

5x2**

1.3 How clearly defined and strategically chosen are those involved (final beneficiaries, target groups)? Have their needs been clearly defined and does the proposal address them appropriately?

5

1.4 Does the proposal contain specific added-value elements, such as promotion of gender equality and equal opportunities, needs of disabled people, rights of minorities and rights of indigenous peoples, or innovation and best practices (and the other additional elements indicated under 1.2. of the guidelines for applicants)?

5

2. Design of the action Sub-score 20

2.1 How coherent is the overall design of the action?

In particular, does it reflect the analysis of the problems involved, take into account external factors and relevant stakeholders?

5x2**

2.2 Is the action feasible and consistent in relation to the objectives and expected results? 5x2**

TOTAL SCORE 50* Note: A score of 5 (very good) will only be allocated if the proposal specifically addresses more than the required minimum number of priorities as indicated in Section 1.2 (objectives of the programme) of these guidelines.**these scores are multiplied by 2 because of their importanceOnce all concept notes have been assessed, a list will be drawn up with the proposed actions ranked according to their total score. Only the concept notes with a score of at least 30 will be considered for pre-selection. After the evaluation of concept notes, the Contracting Authority will send letters to all the applicants, indicating whether their application was submitted by the deadline, informing them of the reference number they have been allocated, whether the concept note was evaluated and the results of that evaluation. The pre-selected applicants will subsequently be invited to submit full applications.

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STEP 2: EVALUATION OF THE FULL APPLICATION In this restricted call for proposals, Firstly, the following will be assessed:

If the submission deadline has been met. Otherwise, the application will automatically be rejected.

If the full application satisfies all the criteria specified in the checklist of the Annex I – Part B of the sub-grant application form. This includes also an assessment of the eligibility of the action. If any of the requested information is missing or is incorrect, the application may be rejected on that sole basis and the application will not be evaluated further.

Selection criteria for this first call for proposals will consider if the proposal foresees:

- Actions targeting sub-urban, rural and remote areas;

- Actions involving women, youth, young professionals, citizen's initiatives, activists etc;

- Actions promoting creation of wide networks and participative approach, including the involvement of local actors and authorities, the business community and political actors;

- Actions strongly focusing on reinforcing local grass-root organisations, notably through the use of Sub-granting scheme

The full applications that passes this check will be further evaluated on their quality, including the proposed budget and capacity of the applicants. They will be evaluated using the evaluation criteria in the evaluation grid below. There are two types of evaluation criteria: selection and award criteria.

The selection criteria helps to evaluate the applicant(s)'s operational capacity and are used to verify that they:

have the management capacity, professional competencies and qualifications required to successfully complete the proposed action.

The award criteria help to evaluate the quality of the applications in relation to the objectives and priorities set forth in the guidelines, and to award sub-grants to projects which maximise the overall effectiveness of the call for proposals. They help to select applications, which the Contracting Authority can be confident that will comply with its objectives and priorities. They cover 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 grid is divided into sections and subsections. Each subsection will be given a score between 1 and 5 as follows: 1 = very poor; 2 = poor; 3 = adequate; 4 = good; 5 = very good.

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Evaluation Grid

Section Maximum Score

1. Operational capacity 20

1.1 Does the applicant has sufficient experience of project management? 5

1.2 Does the applicant has sufficient technical expertise? (especially knowledge of the issues to be addressed) 5

1.3 Do the applicants has sufficient management capacity? (Including staff, equipment and ability to handle the budget for the action)?

10

2. Relevance of the action 30

Score transferred from the Concept Note evaluation

3. Effectiveness and feasibility of the action 20

3.1 Are the activities proposed appropriate, practical, and consistent with the objectives and expected results? 10

3.2 Is the action plan clear and feasible? 10

4. Sustainability of the action 15

4.1 Is the action likely to have a tangible impact on its target groups? 5

4.2 Is the proposal likely to have multiplier effects? (Including scope for replication, extension and information sharing.)

5

4.3 Are the expected results of the proposed action sustainable?:

- financially (how will the activities be financed after the funding ends?)

- institutionally (will structures allowing the activities to continue be in place at the end of the action? Will there be local ‘ownership’ of the results of the action?)

- at policy level (where applicable) (what will be the structural impact of the action — e.g. will it lead to improved legislation, codes of conduct, methods, etc?)

- environmentally (if applicable) (will the action have a negative/positive environmental impact?)

5

5. Budget and cost-effectiveness of the action 15

5.1 Are the activities appropriately reflected in the budget? / 5

5.2 Is the ratio between the estimated costs and the expected results satisfactory? / 10

Maximum total score 100

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If the total score for section 1 (operational capacity) is less than 12 points, the application will be rejected. If the score for at least one of the subsections under section 1 is 1, the application will also be rejected.

Provisional selection

After the evaluation, a table will be drawn up listing the applications ranked according to their score. The highest scoring applications will be provisionally selected until the available budget for this call for proposals is reached. In addition, a reserve list will be drawn up following the same criteria. This list will be used if more funds become available during the validity period of the reserve list.

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STEP 3: VERIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY OF THE APPLICANTS The eligibility verification will be performed on the basis of the supporting documents requested by the Contracting Authority (see section 2.4. of this Guideline). It will only be performed for the applications that have been provisionally selected according to their score and within the available budget for this call for proposals.

The declaration by the applicant Annex I of the sub-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 application on that sole basis.

Also, the eligibility of applicants will be verified according to the criteria set out in section 2.1.1.

Any rejected application will be replaced by the next best placed application on the reserve list that falls within the available budget for this call for proposals.

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2.4. SUBMISSION OF SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS FOR PROVISIONALLY SELECTED APPLICATIONS

The Contracting Authority will inform an applicant whose application has been provisionally selected or placed on the reserve list in writing. The applicant it will be requested to supply the following documents in order to allow the Contracting Authority to verify the eligibility of the applicant:

1. Legal entity sheet (see Annex D of these guidelines) duly completed and signed by each of the applicants (i.e. by the applicant.

2. A financial identification form of the applicant, certified by the bank to which the payments will be made. This bank should be located in the country where the applicant is established.

3. A copy of the applicant’s latest accounts (the profit and loss account and the balance sheet for the last financial year for which the accounts have been closed)7.

4. The statutes of the applicant organisation have been submitted.

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.

If the abovementioned supporting 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.

After verifying the supporting documents, the evaluation committee will make a final recommendation to the Contracting Authority, which will decide on the award of sub-grants.

2.5. NOTIFICATION OF THE CONTRACTING AUTHORITY’S DECISION

2.5.1. Content of the decision

The applicants will be informed in writing of the Contracting Authority’s decision concerning their application and, if rejected, the reasons for the negative decision.

An applicant believing that it has been harmed by an error or irregularity during the award process may lodge a complaint. See further section 2.4.15 of the Practical Guide.

2.5.2. Indicative timetable

DATE TIME

1. Information meeting Shkodra 15.10.2018

Tirana 16.10.2018

at 10:00 o’clock and place TBC;

at 10:00 o’clock and place TBC;

7 This obligation does not apply to natural persons who have received a scholarship or that are in most need in receipt of direct support, nor to public bodies and to international organisations. It does not apply either when the accounts are in practice the same documents as the external audit report already provided pursuant to section 2.4.2.

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Vlora 17.10.2018 at 10:00 o’clock and place TBC;

2. Deadline for requesting any clarifications from the Contracting Authority

Date 21 days before the submission deadline

17:00 hrs.

3. Last date on which clarifications are issued by the Contracting Authority

Date 11 days before the submission deadline

-

4. Deadline for submission of concept notes (for restricted procedure)

15th November 2018 17:00 hrs.

5. Information to applicants on opening, administrative checks and on the beginning of concept note evaluation (Step 1)

19th November 2018 -

6. Invitations to submit full applications (for restricted procedure)

15th December 2018 -

7. Deadline for submission of full applications (for restricted procedure)

1st February 2019 17:00 hrs.

8. Information to applicants on opening, administrative checks and on the beginning of the full applications evaluations (Step 2)

4th February 2019 -

9. Notification of award (after the eligibility check) (Step 3)

1st March 2019 -

10.Contract signature 4th March – 29th March 2019 -

All times are in the time zone of the country of the Contracting Authority.

This indicative timetable refers to provisional dates (except for dates 2, 3, and 4) and may be updated by the Contracting Authority during the procedure. In such cases, the updated timetable will be published on the WVA web site http://www.worldvision.al/

Conditions for implementation after the Contracting Authority’s decision to award a sub-grant.

Following the decision to award a sub-grant, the beneficiary will be offered a contract based on the standard sub-grant contract. By signing the application form (Annex I of these guidelines), the applicants agree, if awarded a sub-grant, to accept the contractual conditions of the standard sub-grant contract.

Implementation contracts

Where implementation of the action requires the beneficiary to award procurement contracts, those contracts must be awarded in accordance with Annex IV to the standard sub-grant contract.

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3. LIST OF ANNEXES

3.1. DOCUMENTS TO BE COMPLETED

Annex I: Sub-Grant Application Form (Word format) Part A – Concept Note & Part B- Full Application Form

Annex B: Budget (Excel format)Annex D: Legal Entity SheetAnnex E: Financial identification form

3.2. DOCUMENTS FOR INFORMATION8

Partnership Sub-Grant Agreement Standard Sub-Grant Contract- Annex II: General conditions- Annex IV: Procurement rules for the beneficiaries- Annex V: Standard request for payment- Annex VI: Model Monthly Narrative Progress Report Format- Annex VII: Model Monthly Financial Progress Report Format- Annex VIII: Model of Final Report Format (in English and Albanian languages).- Annex H: Daily allowance rates (Per diem),

available at the following address: http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/about-procurement-contracts/procedures-and-practical-guide-prag/diems_en (as all necessary information is available via the link the publication of the annex is optional)

Useful links:

Project Cycle Management Guidelines http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/aid-delivery-methods-project-cycle-management-guidelines-vol-1_en

The implementation of grant contracts

A Users' Guidehttp://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/companion/document.do?nodeNumber=19&locale=en

Financial Toolkithttp://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/procedures-beneficiary-countries-and-partners/financial-management-toolkit_en

Please note: The toolkit is not part of the grant contract and has no legal value. It merely provides general guidance and may in some details differ from the signed grant contract. In order to ensure compliance with their contractual obligations beneficiaries should not exclusively rely on the toolkit but always consult their individual contract documents.

* * *

8 These documents should also be published by the Contracting Authority. of 24

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/procedures-beneficiary-countries-and-partners/financial-management-toolkit_en

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/procedures-beneficiary-countries-and-partners/financial-management-toolkit_en

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/companion/document.do?nodeNumber=19&locale=en

https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/aid-delivery-methods-project-cycle-management-guidelines-vol-1_en

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/about-procurement-contracts/procedures-and-practical-guide-prag/diems_en

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/funding/about-procurement-contracts/procedures-and-practical-guide-prag/diems_en