Call for Proposals for Re-granting to Members 2021

Deadline: 12-Sep-21

The Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum (EaP CSF) Secretariat is launching a call for proposals under its new, re-worked Re-granting to Members programme.

Objectives

The overall objective of this Call for Proposals is to support the work of the EaP CSF members to develop and deliver on the strategic policy, advocacy and capacity building priorities of the Forum within the regional dimension.

The specific objectives are:

To contribute to monitoring and advancing reforms in the EaP countries in line with the Eastern Partnership policy framework and the Joint Staff Working Document Recovery, resilience and reform: post 2020 EaP priorities (2021-2025 EaP roadmap);
To contribute to the effective participation of civil society in policy-making and to the EaP governments’ accountability via enhanced mechanisms of dialogue between the EU and civil society, between the national governments and EaP civil society, and between the EU, national governments and EaP civil society;
To strengthen regional dimension and cooperation (namely by project activities with regional added value) by developing joint monitoring on advocacy, facilitating exchanges of experiences and best practices, and coalition and confidence building while acknowledging the different paths and contractual relations of the individual partner countries with the EaP initiative;
To strengthen the role of civil society and, the EaP CSF in particular, within EaP policy formulation, implementation, and monitoring and oversight by developing quality evidence-based policy and advocacy products supporting the EaP CSF’s objectives;
To contribute to closing the feedback loop between citizens and governments in the EaP countries.

Lots

Monitoring EaP targets, deliverables and related reforms: The Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum contributed to the Joint Communication Eastern Partnership policy beyond 2020 Reinforcing Resilience – an Eastern Partnership that delivers for all, adopted on March 18, 2020. The Communication is setting the policy framework for the implementation of the Eastern Partnership policy beyond 2020.
Addressing EAP CSF’s strategic and advocacy priorities: The objective of Lot 2 is to ensure that the development and implementation of the Forum’s strategic and advocacy priorities is driven by its members, in alliance with the EaP CSF Steering Committee and the EaP CSF Secretariat. The actions aim to increase awareness and the prominence of the EaP region in specific EU Member States via the EU members of the EaP CSF and new EU-based partners can be considered under this lot. The thematic priorities are:
- Resilient civil society – projects aimed at developing best practices and policy advice on improving the civil society environment, civil society funding and sustainability, mitigation of the Covid-19 pandemic mid- and long-term impacts on the civil society sector in the EaP countries, monitoring of the implementation of national-level civil society strategies, monitoring of national legislations and its impact on civil society operations in EaP countries.
- Cohesion and differentiation – projects aimed at developing best practices and policy advice on the possible ways of implementation of the enhanced cooperation with and within the trio of the AA/DCFTA countries (Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine) in the EaP multilateral format from the civil society perspective, and the spill-over effect to the rest of the EaP partner countries. The projects should reflect the framework for policy implementation as per the Joint Staff Working Document (JSWD) Recovery, resilience and reform: post 2020 EaP priorities.
- Reconciliation and confidence-building – projects aimed at developing best practices and policy advice for reconciliation and confidence-building among countries, communities and civil societies divided by conflicts in the EaP region.
- EaP going green – projects aimed at developing best practices and policy advice on the implementation of the European Green Deal in the EaP countries, namely with a focus on environmental and climate resilience and the EaP CSF’s long standing advocacy priorities – stronger institutional capacity and environmental governance and more aware citizenry and green education.

Funding Information

Monitoring EaP targets, deliverables and related reforms: A single multi-annual grant to a consortium of CSOs – EaP CSF members and non-members (as partners), for an implementation period of 27 months (October 2021-December 2023).
- maximum size of the grant allocated (2021-2023): EUR 180.000
- maximum size of the grant annually: EUR 60.000
- minimum 5% co-financing is requested
Addressing EaP CSF’s strategic and advocacy priorities: Grants to consortiums of CSOs – EaP CSF members and non-members (as partners), for an implementation period of 6-16 months (October 2021-January 2023)
- maximum amount allocated per call: EUR 120.000
- minimum size of the grant: EUR 20.000
- maximum size of the grant: EUR 60.000
- minimum 5% co-financing is requested

Eligibility Criteria

Any project funded through this Call for Proposals – LOT 1 must cover all six EaP countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine). The project consortium has to be composed of at least three CSOs from three different EaP countries acting as lead applicant and/or partners and prove the expert coverage of the EaP countries non-represented by a CSO in the consortium in the project description and monitoring methodology. The CSOs registered in EU member states can act as lead applicant (only EaP CSF members) and/or partner given they apply together with three CSOs from three different EaP countries.
Any project funded through this Call for Proposals – LOT 2 must cover at least three EaP countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine). The project consortium has to be composed of at least three CSOs from three different EaP countries acting as lead applicant and/or partners. The CSOs registered in EU member states can act as lead applicant (only EaP CSF members) and/or partner given they apply together with three CSOs from three different EaP countries.
In order to be eligible, the lead applicant and its partners must:
- Monitoring EaP targets, deliverables and related reforms
- Be a legal person
- Be non-profit-making
- Be a civil society organisation (CSO)
- Be established in an EaP or EU country
- Be EaP CSF member
- Be able to receive the grant (funds) on its bank account, provide account statements and have a financial management system in place to ensure clear and adequate reporting procedures.
Addressing EAP CSF’s strategic and advocacy priorities
- Be a legal person
- Be non-profit-making
- Be a civil society organisation (CSO)
- Be established in an EaP or EU country
- Be EaP CSF member
- Be able to receive the grant (funds) on its bank account, provide account statements and have a financial management system in place to ensure clear and adequate reporting procedures.
A CSO can submit only one proposal as the lead applicant. A lead applicant may act as a project partner in other proposal(s) within this call.
An organisation can only be a lead applicant under the EaP CSF Re-granting to Members 2021-2023 once throughout the three-year duration of the program, all LOTs included.
Individual experts in the capacity of natural person can be involved as a third party; their participation is welcome but does not establish/substitute compliance with the regional dimension criterion.