European Union Start-ups and Business Support Programme – Kosovo

Deadline: 27-Mar-23

Proposals are now invited for European Union Start-ups and Business Support Programme in Kosovo.

Themes

• Support the growth of existing business incubators (Lot 1);
• Support creation of new start-ups and development / growth of existing start-ups, in particular innovative and those established by women and youth (Lot 1);
• Support the startup Ecosystem and creating linkages with the EU startup Ecosystem/Networks (Lot 1);
• Support overall competitiveness of selected micro of micro and small enterprises (Lot 2);
• Support internationalisation, creation of creative industries, network linkages and promotion of businesses to the EU markets (Lot 2);

Objectives

• The global objective of this call for proposals is to support innovative start-ups and businesses in Kosovo through the facilitation of access to finance and access to business advisory services for their viability/survival and faster development and growth.
• The specific objectives of this call for proposals are:
  • Objective 1: To strengthen the capacities of selected incubators and improve overall capacity support to startups;
  • Objective 2: To increase the number of innovative and growth-oriented start-ups, in particular women- and youth-led start-ups;
  • Objective 3: To increase and improve overall competitiveness of selected micro and small businesses in line with the EU standards.

Funding Information

• The overall indicative amount made available under this call for proposals is EUR 3,000,000.00. The call for proposal is divided into two lots:
  • LOT 1 “Support to startups via the selected incubators”, overall amount available under this lot is EUR 1,500,000.00
  • LOT 2 “Support to micro and small enterprises”, overall amount available under this lot is EUR 1,500,000.00
  • Any grant requested under this call for proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts:
    • Size of grants – LOT 1
      • minimum amount: EUR 250,000.00
      • maximum amount: EUR 500,000.00
    • Size of grants – LOT 2
      • minimum amount: EUR 50,000.00
      • maximum amount: EUR 200,000.00
• Duration: The initial planned duration of an action may not be lower than 12 months nor exceed 30 months.

Location: Action must take place in Kosovo. Whereas activities related to networking/promotion can be implemented in EU Member States.

Eligibility Criteria

• Lead applicant(s)
  • LOT 1 “Support to Start-ups via the selected incubators”,
    • In order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:
      • be an existing business incubator and/or accelerator (public or non-governmental entity/organisation);
      • be established and operational in Kosovo;
      • have experience at least 1 project in the field of provision of business incubation and business support services that includes delivery and monitoring of seed funding or grants to start-ups;
      • have available premises for incubation services for start-ups;
      • have sufficient financial capacity to carry out the proposed action or work programme; and
      • be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies), not acting as an intermediary.
  • LOT 2 “Support to micro and small enterprises”
    • In order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:
      • be a legal person (entities with no legal personality are not eligible);
      • be 100% privately owned micro and small sized enterprise (according to the Kosovo definition and law);
      • be established and operational in Kosovo;
      • operate in the following industries: wood, textile (design, manufacture and marketing of textile products), tourism and services;
      • has sufficient financial capacity (comparable to size of the grant requested, annual turnover for the three last years to be submitted) to carry out the proposed action or work programme;
      • be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies), not acting as an intermediary.
• Co-applicant(s)
  • Co-applicants participate in designing and implementing the action, and the costs they incur are eligible in the same way as those incurred by the lead applicant.
  • Co-applicants must satisfy the eligibility criteria as applicable to the lead applicant himself.
  • Co-applicants must sign the mandate form.
  • If awarded the grant contract, the co-applicant(s) (if any) will become beneficiary(ies) in the action (together with the coordinator)
• Affiliated entities
  • The lead applicant and its co-applicant(s) may act with affiliated entity(ies).
  • Only the following entities may be considered as affiliated entities to the lead applicant and/or to coapplicant(s):
    • Only entities having a structural link with the applicants (i.e. the lead applicant or a co-applicant), in particular a legal or capital link.
    • This structural link encompasses mainly two notions:
      • Control on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings:
        • Entities affiliated to an applicant may hence be:
          • Entities directly or indirectly controlled by the applicant (daughter companies or first-tier subsidiaries). They may also be entities controlled by an entity controlled by the applicant (granddaughter companies or second-tier subsidiaries) and the same applies to further tiers of control;
          • Entities directly or indirectly controlling the applicant (parent companies). Likewise, they may be entities controlling an entity controlling the applicant;
          • Entities under the same direct or indirect control as the applicant (sister companies).
      • Membership, i.e. the applicant is legally defined as a e.g. network, federation, association in which the proposed affiliated entities also participate or the applicant participates in the same entity (e.g. network, federation, association) as the proposed affiliated entities.

For more information, visit European Union.