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INTRODUCTION
This call for proposals is designed to promote events
and actions which contribute towards bringing the peoples
of Europe closer together and to reinforcing European
awareness, such as:
A — Meetings of citizens of twinned towns and municipalities.
B — Conferences on European themes relating to twinning,
and training and information seminars for towntwinning
officers.
The twinning scheme, established in 1989 at the initiative
of the European Parliament, is governed by the principles
of subsidiarity, transparency and partnership. It is
aimed at fostering new and existing links and networks
between local authorities in Europe in view of the important
contribution that cooperation and exchanges between
local communities can make to European integration.
The twinning scheme aims at strengthening the dialogue
between the citizens of the European Union with a view
to encouraging the emergence of an active and participatory
European citizenship, in line with the Commission's
White Paper on Governance. It shall contribute to the
awareness of the cultural and linguistic diversity and
common cultural heritage in Europe and strengthen educational
aspects in twinning activities thereby contributing
to the development of life long learning in Europe and
stimulating the creation of the Europe of knowledge.
Part A of this call for proposals is addressed to towns
and municipalities in the Member States of the European
Union and in the applicant countries (Bulgaria, Cyprus,
the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania,
Malta, Poland, Romania, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia
and Turkey) (Towns and municipalities from south-eastern
European countries can also participate as invited partners.).
Part B is addressed to local and regional authorities
as well as to federations and associations of local
authorities in the Member States of the European Union
and in the applicant countries .
A — MEETINGS OF CITIZENS
Meetings of citizens must be aimed at raising awareness
about European integration and facilitating exchange
of experience. They must have an educational programme
relating to major topical European issues, for example
the future of the European Union, enlargement, European
citizenship, the European institutions, the European
social model, equal opportunities, fundamental rights,
the fight against racism and xenophobia, environmental
issues, cultural diversity, young people and education,
disabled people in society, the local economy, employment
and partnerships.
A.1. Eligibility criteria
A.1.1. All applications must:
(a) include a detailed programme for each day of the
event;
(b) be submitted by the administration or by the twinning
committee of the hosting municipality;
(c) be submitted in the context of existing or new twinning
arrangements and provide official documentation stating
the existence or the preparation of twinning arrangement;
(d) involve municipalities from at least two eligible
countries, at least one of which must be an EU Member
State;
(e) involve at least ten participants from each municipality;
for events involving more than five municipalities from
eligible countries, this figure is at least five participants
from each municipality.
A.1.2. The following are not eligible:
(f) meetings of delegations which mainly consist of
local government representatives or municipal officials;
(g) meetings with a mainly tourist, festive or ceremonial
programme or devoted to sports competitions without
educational content;
(h) meetings intended to make a profit.
A.1.3. Exclusion criteria
Applicants are excluded from participating in this call
for proposals if:
(a) 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;
(b) they have been convicted of an offence concerning
their professional conduct by a judgment which has the
force of res judicata;
(c) they have been guilty of grave professional misconduct
proven by any means which the contracting authority
can justify;
(d) 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 country in which they are established or with
those of the country of the contracting authority or
those of the country where the contract is to be performed;
(e) they have been the subject of a judgment which has
the force of res judicata for fraud, corruption, involvement
in a criminal organisation or any other illegal activity
detrimental to the Communities' financial interests;
(f) following another procurement procedure or grant
award procedure financed by the Community budget, they
have been declared to be in serious breach of contract
for failure to comply with their contractual obligations.
Administrative or financial penalties may be imposed
on applicants who are excluded on the basis of the above
criteria or who make false declarations in providing
the information required in connection with their participation
in this call for proposals.
A.2. Priority categories
Priority will be given to:
(a) meetings involving municipalities from the applicant
countries;
(b) meetings in connection with the preparation and
conclusion of new twinning arrangements;
(c) meetings between twinned towns and municipalities
that are disadvantaged for geographical reasons (large
distances between municipalities, municipalities in
peripheral, insular or less developed regions);
(d) meetings involving small municipalities (fewer than
5 000 inhabitants);
(e) multilateral meetings;
(f) meetings mainly involving young people;
(g) meetings mainly involving disadvantaged groups.
A.3. Procedure for selecting actions to be subsidised
The Commission will establish a Selection Committee,
which will examine, compare and rank the eligible applications
on the basis of the European content and the quality
of the projects. Grants will be allocated taking into
account the position of the projects in the ranking,
the priority categories and the available financial
resources. The Commission reserves the right to ensure
a balanced geographical distribution of selected projects.
A.4. Financial terms and conditions
The total annual amount earmarked for twinning actions
is set by the budgetary authority.
Grants will only be awarded for one-off measures taking
place in 2003. They confer no automatic right to funding
in subsequent years.
Subsidised projects may not benefit from any other Community
funding for the same activity.
Grants are awarded by applying fixed rates for organisational
costs and travel expenses:
— the grant for organisational costs is calculated according
to the number of participants from the invited municipalities
of the eligible countries and the number of days of
the meeting. The daily rate per participant (1) is that
of the country of the hosting municipality, (The weightings
applied to the daily rate for organisation costs are
calculated by Eurostat (the Statistical Office of the
European Union) and reflect the cost of living for each
country. The list of the rates for each country is attached
to the application form) .
— the grant for travel expenses of participants from
the invited municipalities of eligible countries is
calculated on the basis of a flat rate of EUR 0,025
per person per kilometre (distance travelled for return
journey).
The maximum grant is EUR 20 000 per project. If calculation
based on the flat rates indicates a grant over EUR 20
000, the Commission will apply this ceiling.
The minimum grant is EUR 2 000 per project. If calculation
based on the flat rates indicates an amount of less
than EUR 2 000, no grant will be awarded.
NB: Citizens from non-eligible countries may participate.
However, only the number of participants from eligible
countries can be taken into account when calculating
the grant for organisational costs and travel expenses.
A.5. Notification and grant payment procedures
Applicants will be informed in writing of the Commission's
decision concerning their grant application at the earliest
opportunity.
Should the Commission award a grant, a standard agreement
denominated in euro will be submitted to the applicant,
setting out the terms and conditions and the amount
of the grant.
Selection of a project does not commit the Commission
to paying a financial contribution equivalent to that
requested by the applicant.
Any change in the implementation of the project as presented
in the grant application must be notified and have prior
written authorisation from the Commission. Actions may
not be postponed for more than three months.
Beneficiaries must publicise the fact that they have
received assistance from the European Commission (in
programmes, letters, publications etc.).
Selected projects may be subject to ex-post audits and
evaluations. For the purposes of audits by the Commission
or the Court of Auditors, the beneficiary formally undertakes
to retain the originals of all supporting documents
relating to the funded project throughout the period
of the agreement and for five years after the end of
the agreement.
The grant will be paid after submission to, and acceptance
by the Commission of an activity report, a list of participants
signed daily by the participants and certified by the
beneficiary, and a final statement of actual income
and expenditure of the project expressed in euro and
signed by the beneficiary.
Should the actual duration of the twinning project be
less than the planned duration and/or the number of
participants from the guest municipalities be fewer
than the planned number, the grant will be reduced by
applying the rates to the actual duration of the twinning
project and/or the actual number of participants.
The beneficiary must indicate any other sources of funding
for the action. If the final statement shows that the
grant awarded by the Commission has produced a profit,
the grant will be reduced by the amount of this profit.
A.6. Deadlines for submission of applications
This call for proposals is broken down into five phases.
The deadlines for submission of grant applications are
as follows:
First phase: until 18 October 2002 for actions
beginning between 1 January and 31 March 2003;
second phase: until 30 December 2002 for actions
beginning between 1 April and 31 May 2003;
third phase: until 28 February 2003 for actions
beginning between 1 June and 31 July 2003;
fourth phase: until 30 April 2003 for actions
beginning between 1 August and 31 October 2003;
fifth phase: until 17 July 2003 for actions beginning
between 1 November and 31 December 2003; as evidenced
by the postmark.
The Commission will not consider applications submitted
after these deadlines.
The Commission cannot accept any amendments or additions
to the applications after the deadlines.
A.7. Presentation of applications
Grant applications must be submitted in one of the official
languages of the EU using the form provided for meetings
of citizens (Form A). This form can be obtained from
the town-twinning sector at the address below or downloaded
from the following Internet site: http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/towntwin/index_en.html
Applications must be composed of the following documents:
(a) the application form, duly completed and signed
by the head of project, including the financial identification
form signed by the applicant and certified by the bank;
(b) the detailed programme of the meeting for each day;
(c) an official document from the municipal administration
providing documentation stating the existence or preparation
of twinning arrangement.
Only applications submitted within the set deadlines,
duly completed and accompanied by the necessary supporting
documents will be taken into consideration.
Applications must be submitted in duplicate (one original
and one certified copy). The number of the call for
proposals and the phase must be indicated on the envelope
and on the application form.
Applications should be sent by post to the following
address (applications sent by fax or e-mail will not
be accepted):
European Commission
Directorate-General for Education and Culture
Town-twinning sector
VM-2 4/35
B-1049 Brussels.
A.8.
Contacts
The text of the call for proposals as well as the application
forms and a guide for applicants can be obtained from:
European Commission
Directorate-General for Education and Culture
Town-twinning sector
VM-2 4/35 B-1049 Brussels,
or downloaded from the following Internet site:http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/towntwin/index_en.html
Any queries can be sent to the town-twinning department
using the following e-mail addresses:
Jumelages@cec.eu.int,
Towntwinning@cec.eu.int,
by telephone on (32-2) 295 26 85, from 9.30 to 12.30,
by fax on (32-2) 296 23 89.
B
— THEMATIC CONFERENCES AND TRAINING SEMINARS
Thematic conferences must be aimed at raising awareness
about European integration and facilitating exchange
of experience between towns and municipalities. They
must have an educational programme relating to major
topical European issues, for example, the future of
the European Union, enlargement, European citizenship,
the European institutions, the European social model,
equal opportunities, fundamental rights, the fight against
racism and xenophobia, environmental issues, cultural
diversity, young people and education, disabled people
in society, the local economy, employment and partnerships.
Training seminars must be designed to enable twinning
officers to acquire the knowledge and skills which are
indispensable for promoting twinning projects with a
high-quality European content.
B.1. Eligibility criteria
B.1.1. All applications must:
(a) be submitted by a local or regional authority, or
by a federation or association of local authorities;
(b) include a detailed programme with an educational
content, indicating clearly the objectives, the audience,
the theme addressed, expected results and methods used;
(c) propose an event involving at least 20 participants.
The applications for thematic conferences must:
(d) propose an event involving participants from at
least two eligible countries, at least one of which
must be an EU Member State.
B.1.2. Exclusion criteria
Applicants are excluded from participating in this call
for proposals if:
(a) 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;
(b) they have been convicted of an offence concerning
their professional conduct by a judgment which has the
force of res judicata;
(c) they have been guilty of grave professional misconduct
proven by any means which the contracting authority
can justify;
(d) 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 country in which they are established or with
those of the country of the contracting authority or
those of the country where the contract is to be performed;
(e) they have been the subject of a judgment which has
the force of res judicata for fraud, corruption, involvement
in a criminal organisation or any other illegal activity
detrimental to the Communities' financial interests;
(f) following another procurement procedure or grant
award procedure financed by the Community budget, they
have been declared to be in serious breach of contract
for failure to comply with their contractual obligations.
Administrative or financial penalties may be imposed
on applicants who are excluded on the basis of the above
criteria or who make false declarations in providing
the information required in connection with their participation
in this call for proposals.
B.2. Priorities Priority will be given to:
(a) thematic conferences involving municipalities from
applicant countries;
(b) thematic conferences involving several twinned municipalities
and their respective partners;
(c) training seminars in the following areas:
— theory and practice of twinning,
— treatment of European themes in twinning projects,
— the impact of twinning on raising citizens' awareness
of Europe,
— comparison of twinning work in different countries,
— transnational cooperation between municipalities at
European level,
— administrative structures and tasks of the local authorities
in the European context.
B.3. Procedure for selecting actions to be subsidised
The Commission will establish a Selection Committee,
which will examine, compare and rank the eligible applications
on the basis of the European content and the quality
of the projects. Grants will be allocated taking into
account the position of the projects in the ranking,
the priorities and the available financial resources.
The Commission reserves the right to ensure a balanced
geographical distribution of selected projects.
B.4. Financial terms and conditions
The total annual amount earmarked for twinning actions
is set by the budgetary authority.
Grants will only be awarded for one-off measures taking
place in 2003. They confer no automatic right to funding
in subsequent years.
Subsidised actions may not benefit from any other Community
funding for the same activity.
The grant awarded may not exceed 50 % of the total amount
of the project's eligible costs in the detailed budget
for the meeting.
The maximum indicative amount of the grant may not exceed
EUR 50 000 per project. The minimum grant is EUR 2 000.
NB: Citizens from non-eligible countries may
participate. However, only the number of participants
from eligible countries can be taken into account when
calculating the grant for organisational costs and travel
expenses.
The following direct costs are eligible:
(a) organisational costs and fees for speakers;
(b) subsistence expenses;
(c) travel expenses for participants and speakers;
(d) room hire costs;
(e) technical equipment hire costs and means of assistance,
and of translation and interpreting;
(f) publications, documentation, Internet site (maximum
of 10 % of the budget for the action);
(g) local transport costs;
(h) administrative costs (up to 7 % of the budget, including
wages and operating costs of the organisation directly
involved in the project: photocopies, fax, telephone,
office supplies, postage costs, etc.).
Only costs generated in the two months preceding and
following the actual date of the action are eligible.
The following direct costs are not eligible:
(a) ongoing operating, depreciation and equipment costs
(computers, printers, projectors, marquees, video and
photography equipment, etc.);
(b) capital investment costs;
(c) general provisions (for losses, possible future
liabilities, etc.) and contingency reserves;
(d) debts owed, interest on debts owed, charges for
financial services, bad debts receivable, and exchange
losses, unless specifically provided for in exceptional
cases;
(e) contributions in kind;
(f) expenditure on luxuries;
(g) costs relating to the participation of people from
non-eligible countries.
B.5. Notification and grant payment procedures
Applicants will be informed in writing of the Commission's
decision concerning their grant application at the earliest
opportunity.
Should the Commission award a grant, a standard agreement
denominated in euro will be submitted to the applicant,
setting out the terms and conditions and the amount
of the grant.
Selection of a project does not commit the Commission
to paying a financial contribution equivalent to that
requested by the applicant. The amount allocated may
not exceed the amount requested.
The beneficiary undertakes to implement the project
as presented in the grant application. Any change in
the implementation of the project must have prior written
authorisation from the Commission. Projects may not
be postponed for more than three months.
Beneficiaries must publicise the fact that they have
received assistance from the European Commission (programmes,
publications, letters, minutes, etc.).
Selected projects may be subject to ex-post audits and
evaluations. For the purposes of audits by the Commission
or the Court of Auditors, the beneficiary formally undertakes
to retain the originals of all supporting documents
relating to the funded project throughout the period
of the agreement and for five years after the end of
the agreement.
For grants over EUR 20 000, an advance of 50 % of the
grant will be paid after the beneficiary has signed
the contract. The balance or, in the case of grants
of less than EUR 20 000, the total amount of the grant
will be paid after submission to and acceptance by the
Commission of an activity report, a list of participants
signed by the participants and certified by the beneficiary,
as well as a detailed final statement of income and
expenditure accompanied by supporting documents. The
statement must be balanced (income and expenditure),
dated, certified, expressed in euro, and signed by the
beneficiary.
Should the actual eligible costs on completion of the
project be less than the eligible costs indicated in
the grant application, the Commission will apply the
agreed percentage to the costs indicated in the application,
and the beneficiary will be required to refund amounts
already paid which exceed the resulting amount.
B.6.
Deadlines for submission of applications
This call for proposals is broken down into five phases.
The deadlines for submission of grant applications are
as follows:
First phase: until 18 October 2002 for actions
beginning between 1 January and 31 March 2003;
second phase: until 30 December 2002 for actions
beginning between 1 April and 31 May 2003;
third phase: until 28 February 2003 for actions
beginning between 1 June and 31 July 2003;
fourth phase: until 30 April 2003 for actions
beginning between 1 August and 31 October 2003;
fifth phase: until 17 July 2003 for actions beginning
between 1 November and 31 December 2003;
as evidenced by the postmark. Applications submitted
after these deadlines will not be considered.
The Commission cannot accept any amendments or additions
to the applications after the deadlines.
B.7.
Presentation of applications
Grant applications must be submitted in one of the official
language of the EU using the form provided for conferences
and seminars (Form B). This form can be obtained from
the Town-twinning sector at the address below or downloaded
from the following Internet site:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/towntwin/index_en.html
Applications must be composed of the following documents:
(a) the application form, duly completed and signed
by the head of project, including the information sheet
signed by the applicant and certified by the bank;
(b) the detailed schedule of the event for each day.
Only applications submitted within the set deadlines,
duly filled in and accompanied by the necessary supporting
documents will be taken into consideration.
Applications must be submitted in duplicate (one original
and one certified copy). The number of the call for
proposals and the phase must be indicated on the envelope
and on the application form.
Applications should be sent by post to the following
address (applications sent by fax or e-mail will not
be accepted):
European Commission
Directorate-General for Education and Culture
Town-twinning sector
VM-2 4/35
B-1049 Brussels.
B.8. Contacts
The text of the call for proposals as well as the application
forms and a guide for applicants can be obtained from:
European Commission
Directorate-General for Education and Culture
Town-twinning sector
VM-2 4/35 B-1049 Brussels,
or downloaded from the following Internet site:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/towntwin/index_en.html
Any queries can be sent to the Town-twinning department
using the following e-mail addresses:
Jumelages@cec.eu.int,
Towntwinning@cec.eu.int,
or by telephone on (32-2) 295 26 85, from 9.30 to 12.30,
or by fax on (32-2) 296 23 89.
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