GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 1 st Call for Proposals 02 November 18 December 2015 INTERREG SOUTH BALTIC PROGRAMME 2014-2020 Please note, that this document is a draft version and some changes may occur in the final version which will be published on 2 nd of November 2015.
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 2 CONTENT 1. General information... 3 1.1. Introduction...3 1.2. Application pack...4 2. Technical information on the Application Form... 5 3. Filling in the Application Form... 7 3.1. Part Confirmation page...7 3.2. Part Project summary...9 3.3. Part Work Packages...20 3.4. Part Project indicators...27 3.5. Part Activities timetable...28 3.6. Part Budget...29 3.7. Parts Lead Partner (LP), Project Partner2 (PP2) Project Partner 15 (PP15)...30 3.8. Associated Partners...37 4. Annexes to the Application Form... 38 4.1. Annex 1 - Project Partner Declaration...38 4.2. Annex 2 - Letters of Commitment...40 4.3. Annex 3 - Letter of Dedication and Support from the EUSBSR Policy Area Coordinator/ Horizontal Action Coordinator...41 4.4. Other documents/ Attachments...43 5. Finalising the Application Form... 43 6. Submission of the Application... 43
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 3 1. General information 1.1. Introduction The following guidelines have been developed to support applicants in filling in and submitting the Application Form for the 1 st Call for Proposals of the Interreg South Baltic Programme 2014-2020. The document presents advice and hints on filling in the Application Form, as well as gives some technical advice on how to cope with it. Comprehensive background information on formal and quality features for projects applying for the South Baltic Programme is not the subject of this document. However, the document provides some cross-references to other relevant Programme documents that contain in-depth information. It is, therefore, recommended that project applicants familiarise themselves with the following documents before completion and submission of the applications: The Announcement of the 1st Call for Proposals of the Interreg South Baltic Programme 2014-2020, containing information on i.e. available funding in the individual thematic specific objective and specific features of the Call; The Programme Manual of the Interreg South Baltic Programme 2014-2020, providing in-depth information on project s preparation, eligibility, assessment, selection and implementation procedures; The Operational Programme of the Interreg South Baltic Programme with background information i.e. on the socio-economic situation and resulting opportunities and challenges in the Programme area; The Subsidy Contract Template of the South Baltic Programme, giving a concrete picture of the obligations of the Lead Partner after the approval of the project. These documents are available on the South Baltic Programme website www.southbaltic.eu. Please note that the Guidelines refer only to the procedures and documents for the 1 st Call for Proposals of the South Baltic Programme 2014-2020. The instructions might not be applicable for the next calls, as the requirements and documents can be amended. In case of any further questions or problems concerning the process of filling in the Application Form and general issues related to your Application, please do not hesitate to contact the project team of the South Baltic Programme Joint Secretariat (JS): Dominika Butkiewicz: +48 58 746 38 50, Dominika.Butkiewicz@southbaltic.eu Jakub Fedorowicz: Igor Kaniecki: Iuliia Kauk: +48 58 746 38 54, Jakub.Fedorowicz@southbaltic.eu +48 58 746 38 58, Igor.Kaniecki@southbaltic.eu +48 58 746 38 57, Iuliia.Kauk@southbaltic.eu Robert Mazurkiewicz: +48 58 746 38 56, Robert.Mazurkiewicz@southbaltic.eu Małgorzata Skolmowska: + 48 58 746 38 54, Małgorzata.Skolmowska@southbaltic.eu Edmunds Snikeris: +48 58 746 38 52, Edmunds.Snikeris@southbaltic.eu
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 4 Joint Secretariat Interreg South Baltic Programme 2014-2020 Al. Grunwaldzka 186 (GARNIZON) 80-266 Gdańsk Poland Phone/fax: +48 58 761 00 30 General e-mail: southbaltic@southbaltic.eu Website: www.southbaltic.eu 1.2. Application pack A complete Application pack for co-financing within the Interreg South Baltic Programme 2014-2020 includes the following documents: 1. Electronic versions of: Application Form (excel file), consisting of the following parts: Confirmation page, Project summary,, Work Packages, Project indicators, Timetable, Budget, information on project partnership (LP/ PPs worksheets), Annex 1 Project Partner Declaration, Annex 2 Letter of Commitment, Annex 3 Letter of Dedication and Support from EUSBSR Policy Area or Horizontal Action Coordinator ; readable scan of Lead Partner confirmation page (signed and stamped); readable scans of Project Partner Declarations for all project partners (signed and stamped); readable scans of Letters of Commitments for all Associated Partners (signed and stamped); readable scans of Letters of Dedication and Support from EUSBSR Policy Area or Horizontal Action Coordinator (if applicable); scans of other attachments (if applicable); 2. A paper version of Lead Partner confirmation page (part of the excel version of the Application Form) dully signed and stamped. Please notice paper version of the confirmation page can be sent and delivered after the deadline for the call for proposals. Please note that scans of the Project Partner Declarations and Letters of Commitment are accepted at the application stage. In the case of approval, the originals will have to be submitted to the JS later i.e. during the contracting process. It is, therefore, recommended that the LP collects all original documents already during the preparation of the application. Further documents may be provided only upon request of the JS after submitting the application, if the specific character of the project requires additional information before approval (i.e. charter of Partner organisations clarifying their legal status; building permits, feasibility studies, environmental impact assessments in case of investments etc., see South Baltic Programme Manual Chapter 4, section 3 Budget lines, subsection 6 Infrastructure and works for further information).
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 5 It is crucial that applicants complete the Application From accurately and provide all required documents in the defined format. Furthermore, it is highly recommended that applicants familiarize themselves with the assessment criteria in order to meet requirements (see Chapter 5, section 4 Assessment of applications (administrative and eligibility criteria as well as quality assessment criteria) of the Programme Manual for further information). 2. Technical information on the Application Form The Application Form (AF) was designed for Microsoft Office version 2007 (or later) and operational system Windows, therefore it is strongly recommended to use this type of software when filling in the AF file in order to ensure its smooth functioning. Filling in AF by the Lead Partner (LP) only If the AF is distributed by the LP to different partners as information on each Partner has to be filled in, it can happen that different versions of Windows and Microsoft Office can be used by different partners. As a result, the Excel file can be destroyed, and that is why it is strongly recommended for the LP to collect data on Partners not via original AF, but in the other form. It is recommended that the AF is filled in only by the LP and only on one computer, using one version of Windows and Microsoft Office throughout the process. Opening the file It is advised to close down the Excel programme and all Excel files before opening the AF file. Filling in the form The document contains four types of fields: 1. Marked in light blue ( ) protected fields that define questions to be filled in by the LP. Those fields are protected and thus cannot be modified (usually include titles or further descriptions of questions); 2. Marked in green ( ) automatically filled in fields. Those fields are protected and thus cannot be modified (usually include information from other fields, calculations, JS comments, etc.); 3. White fields only input fields have to be filled in by the LP. Please note that all input fields have to be filled in. If a given table or input field is not relevant to the project idea, the note not relevant / n/a should be inserted; 4. Grey fields intermediate fields, should not be modified. Please note that there is only a limited amount of space available in each field. The maximum number of characters that can be inserted in a given input field is indicated in the respective field of the AF. i.e. Important! The document does not contain macros, thus there is no need to enable/disable any.
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 6 Scrolling For better comfort when filling in the fields with high character limits, it is advisable to scroll the page by using buttons of the MS Excel scrollbar ( and ) on the right side of the screen instead of using a mouse wheel. Text formatting The formatting of text is not sustained after inserting more than 1024 characters, therefore in input fields with higher character limits it is not possible to have a formatted text (i.e. to have a list with each new list element starting in a new row). This is acknowledged and accepted by JS. Copy-pasting from other documents It is not recommended to copy-paste data from other documents. If you have to copy-paste, please paste the data always to the formula bar as is shown on the picture below. paste here Comments Comments to some of the tables or input fields are provided on their right side. They provide short guidance to the applicant on the input fields or automatic calculations. Page Breaks In order to ensure the visibility of all parts of the AF in the print out, it is recommended to enable the option Page break Preview under the menu item View before printing (if needed) with Final Save. This allows to check and (if necessary) to adjust the page breaks. Saving of the AF The AF is not designed in a way that it automatically saved when closing the file. When closing the file, the applicant is asked if he/she wants to close the workbook and save all the changes. The applicant should select yes. In case option no is selected, no changes will be saved. Therefore, if the AF is to be used for showing to other persons after it has been finalised, it is strongly recommended that the properties of the file are changed to read-only. To do this: close the AF excel file; right-click on the file icon in Windows and select Properties from the context menu; on the tab General select read-only.
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 7 If the file with read-only property is open, when closing the AF the user will be informed that changes will not be saved to the current file. If you choose cancel you will return to editing the file and can save a copy of the AF under a different name. 3. Filling in the Application Form The following chapter provides section-by-section and step-by-step advice on how to fill in the Application Form (AF). Each part of the AF is described separately. 3.1. Part Confirmation page Project Title Project Acronym Project total budget 0,00 ERDF amount requested 0,00 LP name in English LP name in national language Number of Project Partners Number of Associated Partners Priority Axis Specific Objective Date of registration of the application (filled in by JS) Application number (filled in by JS) Application version (date DD.MM.YYYY.) Priority theme code Codes by dimension (filled in by JS) Economic activity code Information in this table, which represents the confirmation page of the AF, is transferred from other parts of the AF or/ and is completed by the JS: Project Title and Project Acronym will be filled automatically from Project summary part, tables 1.1/ 1.2 respectively;
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 8 Project total budget will be filled automatically from Budget part of the AF; ERDF amount requested will be filled automatically from Budget part of the AF; LP name in English and LP name in national language will be filled automatically from LP s worksheet of the AF; Number of Project Partners and Number of Associated Partners fields are filled in automatically from Project summary ; Priority Axis and Specific Objective fields will be filled automatically from the part Project summary, Tables 1.3 and 1.4 respectively; remaining fields will be filled in by the JS staff after receiving the application. Declaration of the Lead Partner 1. DECLARATIONS OF THE LEAD PARTNER 1.1. Declaration of sustaining project results I hereby declare that the project results specified in the application will be sustained at least five years from the date of the final payment for the project. 1.2. Declaration of the authenticity of the information provided in the application I hereby declare that the information provided in this application and in the attached documents is true and correct to the best of my knowledge. 1.3. Declaration of the authorisation of personal data processing I have been informed that the Minister responsible for Regional Development, with its registered office at 2/4 Wspólna str., 00-926 Warsaw, Poland, is the personal data administrator. My personal data are to be processed with respect to the implementation of the Interreg V-A Poland-Denmark-Germany-Lithuania-Sweden (South Baltic) Programme. I am entitled to gain the access to the entrusted personal data and to amend it. Entrusting of personal data is voluntary, however is a prerequisite for applying within the Programme. By signing the AF, the LP confirms to their best knowledge the validity of the sentences provided in declarations 1.1 1.3. The LP also confirms that the project partnership is ready to implement the project, and that the project is compliant with the relevant national and EU legislation. 2. SIGNATURE OF THE LEAD PARTNER First name/ last name Position held Date (yyyy-mm-dd) and place of signing the document The signature of authorised person (s) of Lead Partner and official stamp of Lead Partner (if available) [paper version to be signed here] Please provide the name of person(s) signing the AF, and his/ her position in the organisation. The person(s) should be authorised to sign documents on behalf of the LP.
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 9 The scanned version of the Confirmation page of the AF (signed and stamped with the LP institution s seal, if exists) has to be sent to the JS with the AF. The paper version of the Confirmation page can be sent and delivered to the JS after the deadline for the call for proposals. Please pay special attention to the required format of the date (yyyy-mm-dd). 3.2. Part Project summary 1. BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROJECT 1.1. Project title (max. 100 characters) text 1.2. Abbreviated project name (acronym) text The title of the project should be short (recommended length is not more than 100 characters with spaces), easy to understand and it should clearly describe the nature of the project. The acronym of the project title should be also entered. The acronym ought to consist of letters or a few words and should be easily spelled and remembered. The acronym should be used instead of full project title in the following fields of the AF. Furthermore, it should be applicable for information and promotion purposes. 1.3. Priority Axis 1.4. Specific Objective The applicant has to indicate Specific Objective of the South Baltic Programme only to which the applicant assigns the project. Priority Axis field will appear automatically then. Please note: the application can be assigned to one Priority Axis and one Specific Objective only. To select the relevant Priority Axis, please use the drop down list where all five Priority Axes are indicated. After selection of the Priority Axis is done, the relevant Specific Objectives will be shortlisted and displayed automatically in the drop down list. A list of Priority Axes and Specific Objectives and their detailed description can be found in Chapter 2 Detailed description of Priority Axes of the Programme Manual. 1.5. Short project summary - background, rationale, aims, content and results (max. 2000 characters) In this table, basic information of the project should be provided. The applicant should shortly outline the background (origin of the project), project idea (rationale), aims, content, project s main results and their crossborder relevance. Please make sure that the description is comprehensive and gives the right picture of the project.
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 10 These tables will be filled automatically from the respective Project Partners / Associated Partners worksheets of the AF. 1.8. Project timetable (project implementation) Planned date of project start Planned date of project completion YYYY-MM-DD YYYY-MM-DD Project duration (in months) 0 The indicative dates of start and completion of the activities within the project should be specified as a month and year in these fields using drop down lists. The first month of the project is the month in which project will start its activities and incur costs. The last month of the project is the month when the last thematic activity of the project and the last project cost is planned to take place. Thus, the planned dates of project start and project completion constitute project implementation phase, which leads to the delivery of all main outputs and achievement of the project s specific objectives. Expected total duration of project activities in months will be displayed automatically. The South Baltic Programme recommends that the regular projects last between 24 and 36 months (the envisaged duration of small scale projects is up to 24 months, for more information see Chapter 3 Specific features of the South Baltic Programme projects of the Programme Manual). The planned date of the project start cannot be earlier than the next day after the day of registration of the AF in the JS. The latest possible starting date is three months after the Monitoring Committee meeting at which the project was approved. In case of approval of the project by the South Baltic Programme Monitoring Committee, the LP will be asked to specify the exact dates of project start and completion during the clarification process before signing the Subsidy Contract. 1.9. Project budget Total budget by partner ERDF co-financing Own contribution Total budget per partner EUR % Lead Partner 0,00 0,00 0,00 0 Project Partner 2 0,00 0,00 0,00 0 Project Partner 3 0,00 0,00 0,00 0 Project Partner 4 0,00 0,00 0,00 0 Project Partner 5 0,00 0,00 0,00 0 This table will be filled in automatically from Budget part of the AF. 1.10. Location of activities outside eligible area Outside eligible area What activities will take text place outside Programme eligible area and where will they be located? Please justify their relevance to project no
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 11 objectives (max. 1000 characters) In the table 1.10 Location of activities outside eligible area, you are first asked to select if it is relevant for this application using the drop down menu ( yes / no ). If the answer is negative, please insert in the white field not applicable / n/a. Should the answer be positive ( yes ), you are then asked to describe in qualitative terms what activities and where they are planned to be implemented outside the Programme s eligible area. Also please justify their relevance to project objectives (why these activities are needed?). For more information see also Chapter 3, section 2.4 Geographic location of the project activities of the Programme Manual. 1.11. Project eligible budget spent outside the eligible area Total eligible budget 0,00 out of which to be spent outside the Programme eligible area 0,00 In Table 1.11, parts of the eligible budget to be spent outside the Programme eligible area should be indicated. The first row Project eligible budget is filled automatically from the Budget part of the AF. In the next row amount of the part of the total eligible budget to be spent outside the Programme eligible area has to be filled in by the LP. 1.12. Previously submitted applications for co-financing from the South Baltic Programme Has this application been previously submitted for the South Baltic Programme and not approved? If yes, please provide the name(s) of the project(s), specify the number of the call for proposals within which the application(s) was/were submitted and briefly describe relevant changes since the last submission (max. 500 characters). not applicable for 1st Call! In Table 1.12, information has to be given whether the project has been submitted in previous Calls for Proposals within the South Baltic Programme 2014-2020. If this is the case for this application, the name(s) (acronym is sufficient) of the project(s) and the number(s) of the Call(s) for Proposals within which the application(s) was/were submitted should be given. Please describe also the changes / improvements in the application since the last submission. Please note that this information is not required within the 1 st Call for proposals. 1.13 Seed money Has this application received seed money from the South Baltic Programme or another seed money instrument? If yes, please provide the name(s) of the text project(s), and Programme if other than South Baltic (max. 500 characters). no
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 12 In Table 1.13, please indicate if a project has received seed money from the South Baltic Programme or another seed money instrument. Since a seed money scheme is designed in order for a project concept to be further developed into an application to the South Baltic Programme 2014-2020, no preparation costs (Work Package 0) can be granted for projects received seed money at earlier stages. For more information please see Chapter 5 Project preparation, application and selection, section 6 Costs incurred during the project preparation, application and selection of the Programme Manual. 1.14. Experience of the Lead Partner and other partners Have the project partners during last 10 years benefited from any of the European Union assistance funds? (If yes, please fill in the fields below with the three examples of the EU co-financed projects, preferably the Lead Partner's experience in running projects in ETC programmes or other EU funded programmes). Partner Partner's responsibility Project name Programme name yes Project start date MM.YYYY Project end date MM.YYYY Project overall costs Table 1.14 requires information about the project partners previous experience with the EU assistance funds (applicable if option yes is chosen). Three examples of the EU co-financed projects implemented within the last ten years and the most relevant to the Programme and the project subject shall be provided here. In case more than three project partners have experience from any of the EU assistance funds, priority in the table 1.14 should be given to the LP s experience. The information provided here should depict that the partnership, and preferably the LP, has experience in implementing EU-funded projects, preferably from ERDF within cross-border or transnational Programmes. Each example shall indicate the previous programme and project names, its duration and value. It shall also specify the individual partner, who implemented the project, and its tasks within the previous project that are mostly relevant to the application (i.e. LP, partner responsible for dissemination, leader of a certain component/ Work Package, partner responsible for coordinating other partner s activities in the region, etc.). Only finalised projects should be described here. Ongoing projects that are relevant or complementary for the project proposal should be described in section 4 Additional Information of the AF instead. 0,00 2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT 2.1. Description of initial situation / challenge or opportunity - why is the project necessary? (max. 2000 characters) The purpose of this table is to provide convincing information on the need for implementing the project. Existing challenge(s), problem(s) or areas for improvement and development (opportunity) that the project addresses should be described here. It is important to underline the relevance of the subject addressed to the South Baltic area. It can be done, for example, by describing how the present circumstances negatively affect the situation in the participating
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 13 regions, or by outlining future negative effects if the project is not implemented. Description of the initial situation should be supported by verifiable data (statistics, reference to previous projects addressing the subject), and how your project follows up, etc. 2.2. Project objective, main outputs and results Programme specific objective text Project specific objective and its contribution to the Programme specific objective (max. 1000 characters) Project results (max. 1000 characters) In table 2.2 objectives and expected results of the project should be indicated. Field Programme specific objective is automatically filled in from the Table 1.1 (General information of the project). Project specific objective describes a desirable future situation to be achieved after the implementation of the project. Please bear in mind that project specific objective should contribute to the relevant specific objective of the Programme, thus its contribution to the Programme specific objective has to be described here. In the field Project results please explain what the immediate effects after the implementation of this particular project are. The description of results should concentrate on the information why such results are necessary and why they are the best means to achieve project objectives. 2.3. Short description of the methodology - how will the project objectives be achieved? (max. 3000 characters) In Table 2.3 basic information on the project methodology should be provided. You should outline how the proposed activities contribute to achieving the project results and objectives, how the overall work plan is structured (e.g. describe connection between work packages). You should demonstrate why the chosen activities are the most effective and efficient ones to support the achievement of results and objectives. You should also describe how the results indicated in Table 2.2 are contributing to changing the initial situation described in Table 2.1, which means how they relate to the set objectives. Please also briefly explain the partner setup (composition of the partnership) in order to justify the relevance of the project partnership for solving the described problems. 2.4. Added value of the cross-border approach (max. 2000 characters) The description of cross-border approach shall explain how the outputs and results of the project implementation will influence the socio-economic development and integration of the whole South Baltic area. The cross-border approach may also be described by explaining how the inhabitants of all regions involved in the project may benefit from its results. Most important is to justify why the cross-border approach is inevitable to achieve the project results, what is the added value of cross-border cooperation and why the problems/challenges of the project (described in Table 2.1) cannot be solved/addressed without cross-border cooperation. You should also indicate whether the project will create a possibility of further development of the cross-border cooperation (cross-border networks).
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 14 For further information and examples of added value of a cross-border approach, please check Chapter 3, section 6 Cooperation in South Baltic: Cross-border approach, innovativeness and additional character of projects of the Programme Manual. 2.5. Durability of project results and transferability of outputs (max. 2000 characters) Please describe how the durability of the project results and transferability of project outputs will be secured. You are expected to explain how you will ensure that the project results will stay in public domain for at least five years after the project closure. The following questions shall be answered: Who will own the produced outputs and results? How will the project outputs and results be maintained after the project is finalised? Who will be responsible for the maintenance, continuation or development of the activities initiated by the project implementation? What financial mechanism is foreseen to maintain project results? Also the question of how the project impact will be sustained after the finalisation of the project shall be answered. Thus, concrete measures (including institutional structures, financial resources for mainstreaming activities etc.) taken during and after project implementation to ensure and/ or strengthen durability of the project results and transferability of the project outputs should be described here (i.e. who will implement the strategies prepared, maintain the established cooperation tools or be responsible for carrying out investments intended? How will this be ensured organisationally and financed? In what way outputs can be transferred and used by other parties not involved in the project (multiplication effect) - for further information, please see Chapter 3, section 4 Durability and impact of the Programme Manual). If relevant, responsibilities and/or ownership of results and outputs should be addressed. 2.6. Cross-border criteria for the project Joint development - in what way an initial project idea was shaped into a project proposal (max. 500 characters) text Joint implementation - in what way active collaboration between the different participating institutions is ensured (max. 500 characters) text Joint staffing - in what way responsibilities are divided among project partners (max. 500 characters) text Joint financing - in what way partners are expected to contribute financially to the project budget (max. 500 characters) text Taking into account the cross-border nature of the Programme, the cross-border aspects have to be reflected in every project funded by the Programme. Therefore, the projects have to ensure all four following ways of cross-border cooperation between project partners: joint development; joint implementation; joint staffing; joint financing.
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 15 For further information on what the criteria include, please see Chapter 3, section 6 Cooperation in South Baltic: Cross-border approach, innovativeness and additional character of projects of the Programme Manual. 3. COMPLIANCE WITH THE EUROPEAN UNION POLICIES 3.1. Strategic documents 3.1.1. National/regional/other strategies (max. 2000 characters) Relevant national/ regional development strategies or plans as well as any other important strategic documents of the European Union, Baltic Sea, national, regional, or local level, (including sector policies) should be indicated in this field. The compliance of the project s objectives with them should be justified by referring to relevant parts of these documents. It is possible to relate the planned activities to a development strategy by various aspects and at various levels, i.e. the social and economic meaning of the project or the impact of the project on regional development (increase of regional competitiveness, improvement of investment attractiveness of the region, impact on human resources, contribution to cultural heritage, etc.). Connections to the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region should not be indicated here, but in the separate section 3.1.2, which is dedicated to this issue (see below). 3.1.2. Is the project connected with the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) and its Action Plan? no 3.1.2.1. To which Policy Area/ Horizontal Action of the EUSBSR is the project connected? Please indicate in this section if your project can be connected to the EUSBSR by choosing yes/no from the drop down list. Such links might refer to Policy Areas, Horizontal Actions, Strategic Actions, Cooperative Actions and/or Flagship contained in the EUSBSR Action Plan. Please note that projects are encouraged to create connections to the EUSBSR and its Action Plan where appropriate. A connection to the EUSBSR can be especially beneficial for projects that have a local or regional origin but also a strategic potential in a cross-border perspective. The link to the EUSBSR can create new opportunities, for example with regard to dissemination, political lobbying and follow up activities. The EUSBSR and its Action Plan can be found as downloads under on the Programme website www.southbaltic.eu under section Programme, EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region. Further background information on the EUSBSR as well as links between the South Baltic Programme and its projects to the strategy can be found in the Programme Manual: General information about the relation between the South Baltic Programme and the EUSBSR is provided under Chapter 1, section 3 Relationship of the South Baltic Programme to the EUSBSR of the Programme Manual. More specific information about possible concrete connections of projects implemented within the South Baltic Programme to the EUSBSR as well as possible benefits for projects from a connection to its implementation can be found in the Chapter 3 Specific features of the South Baltic Programme projects,
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 16 section 7.1 Relations of the South Baltic projects to the EUSBSR and its Action Plan of the Programme Manual. Section EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region of the Programme website www.southbaltic.eu provides further, regularly updated background information on the EUSBSR process. For example, a list of National Contact Points, Policy Area Coordinators and Flagship Leaders is available there. You are welcome to contact the JS in case you have any further questions regarding possible connections of your project to the EUSBSR. Please choose the Policy Area of the EUSBSR that is most relevant for your project from the drop down list. In case your project is a Flagship of the EUSBSR or a part of such (see below) the Policy Area of the Flagship should be indicated here. 3.1.2.2. Does the project contribute to a flagship(s)? no Please indicate in this section if your project is a Flagship or part of a Flagship of the EUSBSR by choosing yes/no from the drop down list. Please note that in case you indicated yes, you are obliged to present a Letter of Dedication and Support from the EUSBSR Policy Area Coordinator together with the AF. It should confirm the status of your proposal as Flagship or part of a Flagship of the EUSBSR. A list of the Flagships is a part of the EUSBSR Action Plan, which is available as download on the Programme website www.southbaltic.eu, section EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region. 3.1.2.3. How the project's objectives, activities and outputs contribute to the EUSBSR in the specific Policy Area / Horisontal Action (max. 1000 characters) In this field concrete activities and related outputs should be described through which the project wants to foster the connection to the EUSBSR process (i.e. regular working meeting with the EUSBSR Policy Area coordinator, joint dissemination events with the Policy Area Coordinator etc.). It should be kept in mind that the South Baltic Programme encourages a pro-active connection to the EUSBSR process for projects with a strategic potential, which can give concrete benefits for both the implementation of the EUSBSR and the realisation of the project. Please note also that the information given here should include the support that the Policy Area Coordinator has indicated in the Letter of Dedication and Support from the EUSBSR Priority, if such has been obtained. 3.1.3. Further information on connections to the EUSBSR (max. 2000 characters) In this field, it should be explained in more detail in which way the project contributes to the EUSBSR and its Action Plan. The information given here may refer to the Policy Areas, Strategic Actions, Cooperative Actions and/or Flagship(s) contained in the EUSBSR Action Plan. Please note also that the information given here should comply with the justification of support by the Policy Area Coordinator given in the Letter of Dedication and Support from the EUSBSR Priority, if such has been obtained.
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 17 3.2. Sustainable development The project has an impact on sustainable development Description (max. 500 characters) text When filling in Table 3.2, please mark, by using a drop down list, the option that describes your project s relation to the issues of sustainable development (environmental protection requirements, resource efficiency, climate change mitigation and adaptation, biodiversity, disaster resilience, and risk prevention) the best. Choose either positive or neutral impact, and provide a justification to the chosen option in the description field. Please note that projects with negative impact on the natural environment are not allowed in the South Baltic Programme. If according to the national requirements it is necessary to provide an Environmental impact assessment of the project, the main conclusions of the mentioned document should be provided in the description field. In this case, the above mentioned document may be requested by the JS in course of project assessment. However, at the application stage it is not required. Investments financed with the EU funds should comply with the regulations or laws of the EU and the member state in the area of environmental protection. They should also comply with the Council Directive 90/313/EEC as of 7 June 1990 on the freedom of access to information on the environment. 3.3. Equal opportunities and non-discrimination The project has an impact on equal opportunities and non-discrimination 3.4. Equality between men and women The project has an impact on equality between men and women Description (max. 500 characters) Description (max. 500 characters) text text When filling in Tables 3.3 and 3.4 please mark, by using a drop down list, the option that describes your project s relation to the issues of equal opportunities the best. Choose either positive, neutral or negative impact, and provide a justification to the chosen option in the description field. The project s impact on equal opportunities policy, non-discrimination and equality between men and women is mostly related to the target groups and project participants. In accordance to the EU Regulations, the equal opportunities policy mostly refers to men and women equal access to the labour market and equal treatment at work. However, in the wider definition the policy attempts to ensure equal access to the labour market and use of the public infrastructure for disabled people. 3.5. State aid Depending on their nature some of the project activities may fall under the state aid rules. Activity is regarded as state aid relevant if all the below criteria are met. Please consider individual project activities and confirm if any of them meet the following criteria:
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 18 1. Does any of the project activities result in a product/ service being offered to the market? no If yes, please list the activity(ies) and the Work Package(s) they belong to: 2. Does any of the project activities results in an economic advantage to the partner/project (a benefit) which would not have been obtained without support from the Programme? no If yes, please list the activity(ies) and the Work Package(s) they belong to: 3. Does any of the project activities result in distortion effect on competition and trade within the EU? no If yes, please list the activity(ies) and the Work Package(s) they belong to: In the Table 3.5 please assess if any of the project activities can be regarded as State Aid relevant by answering the three questions below (please select yes / no from the drop down list). Should the answer be yes, please list the activities and Work Packages they belong to): Does any of the project activities result in a product/service being offered to the market? Does any of the project activities result in an economic advantage to the partner/project (a benefit) which would not have been obtained without support from the Programme? Does any of the project activities result in distortion effect on competition and trade within the EU? Please remember that the activity is regarded as a State Aid relevant only if all three criteria (questions) are met. Please note also that State Aid refers to activities and not a project partner as a whole and the State Aid assessment refers to particular activities. A project can consist of activities, part of which can fall under state aid and those, to which state aid would not apply. In case State Aid is detected different level of ERDF funding may apply. In general state aid will be granted under De minimis scheme. In particular cases other schemes can be used such as the block exemption regulation or other exemptions. For more information on what state aid is, procedure that is used to determine if state aid is present in the project, assessment of the State Aid by the Programme, please see Chapter 4 General rules on eligibility of costs and budget structure, section 8 State aid of the Programme Manual. Project activities will be checked against state aid during the assessment process. Projects where state aid relevant activities are detected will be required to provide additional information on activities in question during the clarification process. INTERACT broadly defines economic activity as offering goods or services on a given market. Having in mind rather broad definition of economic activities, the main assessment question applicants have to answer is whether the project partner concerned carries out activities in the project that can reasonably be assumed to be of economic nature. For example, research organisations and infrastructures (including public universities and private research institutes) can carry out both economic and non-economic activities in the context of an ETC project. As long as the costs and revenues of non-economic activities are separated from those of economic activities, the non-economic activities fall outside the scope of State aid. Non-economic activities of research organisations include their primary activities such as public education and independent research and
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 19 development (R&D) (see below). Economic activities of research organisations include, for example, contract research or renting out laboratory facilities for a fee. If the project partner carries out non-economic activities in the ETC project, there is no State aid issue for this partner. INTERACT s working paper on State Aid provides as an example not exhaustive list of non-economic activities, namely: activities related to State prerogatives and public safety such as police, armed forces, air and maritime traffic control, anti-pollution surveillance as well as most welfare services such as education and longterm care; public funding of general infrastructure such as public roads, bridges or canals which are made available for public use without any charge and not for commercial exploitation. This would include leisure facilities such as cycle paths, nature trails and associated signage, equipment and information, promenades, piers and picnic places to be used without charge; primary activities of research organisations and research infrastructures, in particular: independent R&D for more knowledge and better understanding, including collaborative R&D and wide dissemination of research results on a non-exclusive and non-discriminatory basis (e.g. through publications or open access databases); education for more and better skilled human resources, public education organised within the national educational system, predominantly or entirely funded by the State and supervised by the State; other performance of public duty: development of strategies, plans and tools by public authorities to help them in their normal tasks or raise their pool of knowledge. This includes also cooperation between public bodies to achieve these goals. 4. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION (max. 3000 characters) Any other information which is considered as important for the project and its implementation shall be added in this field. Please use it for providing additional information important for understanding your application that you cannot give in other fields. Please explain it here, if for example you have unbalanced budget between the partners or miss some partners important for successful achievement of project objectives. 4.1. Relation to other international and/or national/regional projects (ongoing or completed) dealing with the topic in the South Baltic Region (max. 1000 characters) In case there are any ongoing/ completed projects, which you came along and which are relevant for your project proposal, please describe the linkages/ complementarities to these operations and provide a source of further information about them (e.g. webpage). Number of pages of other attachments / documents Title of the 1st document Title of the 2nd document Title of the 3rd document Title of the 4th document Title of the 5th document
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 20 You have the possibility to attach other documents/ attachments that can help to describe your project proposals in a better way (i.e. maps indicating the location of partners and pilot actions, charts of the management structure etc.). If you do so, number of pages of such attachments should be defined using a drop down list. Please note that the maximum number of pages of all additional attachments is 5. If you do not attach any additional documents, please indicate n/a. In case you have indicated additional documents, please provide titles of the documents. Thus, the assessors can get a better picture on the kind of additional information that can be found in your additional attachments. 3.3. Part Work Packages Activities to be carried out within a project must be logically organised into Work Packages (WPs), and hence build a project structure. Work Packages are tools for structuring the project s content. They allow grouping of activities that are similar in character and purpose, and that aim to achieve a specific set of goals. Please note that it is not the location, the type of expenditure or the chronology of the activities within the project that determine their belonging to a certain Work Package. As a general rule, the project usually consists of: Work Package 0 PREPARATION ; Work Package 1 MANAGEMENT AND COORDINATION ; Work Package 2 COMMUNICATION AND DISSEMINATION ; at least one, but a maximum of four content-related Work Packages. The scope and titles of the WP 3 to 6 is defined by the project with reference to its specific subject and composition. Detailed description of Work Packages is provided below. Work Package 0 Preparation Work Package 0 is mainly used to develop and improve the project idea, to establish partnership, for partners to discuss structure of the potential project application. Programme offers lump sums for the project preparation costs (no proof in form of financial documents is needed), on condition that the project is approved. The proof of the delivery of the activities covered by the lump sum is a submitted and approved project application. The lump sum is the only way to cover preparation costs; real costs cannot be presented and claimed for the reimbursement in the Work Package 0. The Total eligible costs of Work Package 0 is filled automatically and depends on the project type (total budget) and possible use of the seed money grant before the submission. There are three possible values: total eligible costs of 15 000 EUR for a regular project; total eligible costs of 10 000 EUR for a small scale project (the total budget shall not exceed EUR 300 000); total eligible costs of 0 EUR for projects granted with seed money at an earlier stage. For more information on regular and small-scale projects in the South Baltic Programme please see Chapter 3, section 1 Project phases and project types of the Programme Manual.
GUIDELINES on Filling in and Submitting the Application Form 21 WORK PACKAGE 0 Name of the Work Package PREPARATION Total eligible costs [EUR] 0,00 Summary description of activities carried out and contribution of each partner (max. 2000 characters) In the field Summary description of activities carried out and contribution of each partner, please describe the activities related to preparation of the project. They might include i.e. meetings with the project partners, participation in the information activities organized by the JS and Contact Points, or the preparation of the AF by an external expert or the staff. Please indicate the division of the lump sum between the PPs. The Lead Partner will receive the lump sum during the first reporting period should the project be approved; the LP is responsible to pay the project partners in line with the cost distribution agreed in the AF. For more information on preparation costs please see Chapter 5, section Costs incurred during the project preparation, application and selection of the Programme Manual. Name of the Work Package WORK PACKAGE 1 MANAGEMENT AND COORDINATION The following part of the Work Package description remains the same for Work Packages 1-6, namely: Total eligible costs [EUR] 0,00 Coordinating partner Total eligible costs (EUR) will be filled automatically from the Budget part of the AF; Coordinating partner please select from a drop down list. yes yes no Partners involvement Partner short name, abbreviation, automatically from Partnership Partner short name, abbreviation, automatically from Partnership Partner short name, abbreviation, automatically from Partnership Please select PPs involved in each Work Packages by using drop down list (options yes / no ). Describe how the management on the strategic and operational level will be carried out in the project, specifically: - structure, responsibilities and procedures for the day-to-day management and co-ordination; - communication within the partnership; - reporting and evaluation procedures; - risk and quality management (max. 3000 characters). In the text field please provide information requested in the description of an item (please note: maximum amount of characters is 3000). Activity 1.1 Please describe activities within the Work Package Activity name (max. 50 characters):