1st call for strategic projects ipa gr-al

7/27/2019 1st Call for Strategic Projects IPA GR-AL

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Ministry for Development and Competitiveness

Managing Authority of EuropeanTerritorial Cooperation Programmes

Joint Technical SecretariatAddress: 65, Georgikis Scholis Avenue,

Pilea 570 01, Thessaloniki, Greece

Date …/…../2013Ref. No: …………/MA…… ΑΔΑ: … Code: A4

1 ST CALL FOR STRATEGIC PROJECT PROPOSALS

“GREECE – ALBANIA” IPA CROSS-BORDER PROGRAMME

2007-2013

1. Context

The “Greece – Albania IPA Cross- border Programme” 2007 -2013 is a cross border co-operation Programme co-financed by the European Union under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA).Territorial cooperation for the eligible regions constitutes both a challenge and anopportunity for the programming period 2007-2013. Polycentric spatial development witha new relationship between urban and rural areas, parity of access to infrastructure andknowledge, along with wise management of the natural and cultural heritage, representalready major objectives for balanced and sustainable growth. Within this framework, thepriorities which constitute the policy outline for the convergence in the area of intervention of the specific Programme are:

Priority 1: Enhancement of cross-border economic development

Priority 2: Promotion and development of the environment and natural and culturalresources

The global objective of the programme is to increase the standard of living of thepopulation by promoting sustainable local development in the cross-border area.The Programme budget allocated for the period 2007- 2013 is 27.825.759,00€.This amount consists of 22.143.015,00€ EU contribution and 5.682.744,00€nationalcontributions. The national co-financing rates for Greece and for Albania are respectively25% and 15%. For the 1 st Call for Strategic Projects proposals, for the project partnersfrom Albania, the 15% of the national co-financing will be covered by the beneficiariesown contribution.

Suspension ClauseFor project partners in Albania, the conclusion of contracts with the Albanian LeadPartner is subject to the entering into effect of the Financing Agreements between theEuropean Commission and the Republic of Albania concerning the IPA Cross-borderProgramme Albania - Greece under the IPA Component II for the years 2012 and 2013.



1 st Call for strategic project proposals “Greece – Albania” IPA cross border programme 2007 -2013

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2. Documents of reference

Before submitting any project proposal, applicants are invited to consult the OperationalProgramme approved by the European Commission (Decision E(2008) 4708 of 5-9-2008amended by the Commission Decision No. Ε(2010)3778 on 3 0/6/2010 and by theCommission Decision C(2012)6670 on 27-9-2012), Council Regulation (EC) 1085/2006

establishing an Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA), Commission Regulation(EC) 718/2007 (implementing Regulation (EC) 1085/2006) and Commission Regulation(EU) 80/2010 of 28 January 2010 (amending Regulation (EC) No 718/2007). Applicantsare also invited to study carefully the Programme Manual.These documents are available on the Managing Authority’s website athttp://www.interreg.gr , on the Programme website at http://www.greece-albania.eu onthe website of the Ministry of European Integration of Albania www.mie.gov.al and on thewebsite of the EU Delegation to Albania, athttp://ec.europa.eu/delegations/albania/index_en.htm .

3. Priorities, Measures and Strategic Themes

The present call for proposals is open to both Programme Priorities and to the two of the

six related Measures, namely:

Table 1: Programme Priority and Measures under this callPriority Measures Strategic Themes

1. Enhancement of cross-bordereconomicdevelopment

1.4 Facilitate border accessibilitythrough small -scaleinfrastructure

Infrastructure for Cross-border accessibility

2. . Promotion andsustainabledevelopment of the environment

and of naturaland culturalresources

2 .1 Promote and protect theenvironmental resources of the area

Fostering of tourism,preferably with thesynergy of energyefficiency

The priorities of the present call or the “Strategic Themes” are:

Theme 1: Infrastructure for Cross-border accessibility, as part of Measure 1.4:Facilitation of Border Accessibility Through Small-Scale Infrastructure

Theme 2: Fostering tourism, preferably with the synergy of energy efficiency, aspart of Measure 2.1: Promote and protect the environmental resources of the area.

Aims of the strategic themes are:a. Theme 1: Infrastructure for Cross-border accessibility : The aim is to supportinterventions which contribute to fast and efficient border crossing procedures withmaximum effect on the cooperation area. Indicative actions will include Improvement of the infrastructure at the cross border stations, facilitation of improvement for safety procedures linked to mobility of persons,

capital and goods, ICT interventions to facilitate and accelerate border checks.

b. Theme 2: Fostering tourism, preferably with the synergy of energyefficiency: The aim is to support common cross-border activities supportingtourism and utilising the existing natural and cultural heritage. Energy efficiency is asubstantial element of sustainability and the focus of this theme is in this dimension

of sustainability. Projects proposals can capitalize on the architectural heritageEligible actions may include:

http://www.interreg.gr/


http://www.greece-albania.eu/



http://www.mie.gov.al/



http://ec.europa.eu/delegations/albania/index_en.htm









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5. Budget available

The total budget available for the present call is 7.8 92.788 € (including EUContribution and National Co-Financing) and is allocated by Country and indicatively perPriority Axis/Strategic Theme, as follows:

Table 4: Budget Available for Beneficiaries from GreecePRIORITY AXIS:

P.A.

NoSTRATEGIC THEMES

INDICATIVE BUDGET ALLOCATION (€) EUROPEAN UNION

CONTRIBUTION TOTAL BUDGET

1Infrastructure for

Cross-borderaccessibility

1.050.000,00 1.400.000,00

2

Fostering of tourism,preferably with thesynergy of energy

efficiency

2.100.000,00 2.800.000,00

TOTAL BUDGET 3.150.000,00 4.200.000,00

The EU Co-Financing rate is 75%

Table 5: Budget Available for Beneficiaries from AlbaniaPRIORITY AXIS:

P.A.

NoSTRATEGIC THEMES

INDICATIVE BUDGET ALLOCATION (€) EUROPEAN UNION

CONTRIBUTION TOTAL BUDGET

1Infrastructure for

Cross-borderaccessibility

1.569.435,00 1.846.394,00

2

Fostering of tourism,preferably with thesynergy of energy

efficiency

1.569.435,00 1.846.394,00

TOTAL BUDGET 3.138.870,00 3.692.788,00

The EU Co-Financing rate is 85%

The Contracting Authority of the “Greece – Albania IPA Cross- border Programme” 2007 -2013 in Albania - the Delegation of the European Union to Albania - for the fundsallocated in Albania- reserve the right not to award all the available programme funds inthis Call for Proposals. In case where the indicative amount foreseen for the specific Priority Axis cannot be useddue to the insufficient quality or the low number of proposals received, the MonitoringCommittee reserves the right to reallocate the remaining funds to another Priority Axis,upon a justified proposal of the Joint Steering Committee and with the conditions of Programme amendment (if applicable), and subject to endorsement by the appropriateServices of the European Commission concerning the use of funds in Albania (if applicable).For project partners in Albania, the conclusion of contracts with the Albanian LeadPartner is subject to the entering into effect of the Financing Agreements between theEuropean Commission and the Republic of Albania concerning the IPA Cross-borderProgramme Albania - Greece under the IPA Component II for the years 2012 and 2013.After the evaluation, a list of applications, ranked according to their score and within thelimits of the funds available, will be drown up. In addition, a reserve list of projects may




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also be drawn up following the same criteria to be used if more funds should becomeavailable. The selection of a project from the reserve list will be made on the basis of itsranking and the marking it received. The Monitoring Committee may decide not tofinance projects on the reserve list.

6. Eligible Partnerships

Project proposals must include at least one partner from the Programme area (eligible oradjacent) of each country participating in the Programme. For Albania, an organizationfrom central government may be considered as partner from the programme areaaccording to its competences.All projects shall be developed and managed according to the Lead Partner Principle.Partner’s frο m each country shall appoint a Lead Partner among them that shall assumeresponsibilities according to the Lead Partner principle, for the part of the project takingplace in the respective country. One of these two Lead Partners participating in theproject will be also nominated as the Overall Lead Partner, in order to represent theentire partnership towards the Managing Authority and to ensure the soundimplementation of the entire project.

The Lead Partners for Greece and Albania should be Ministries, Central LevelBodies governed by public law (only for partners from Albania), or the RegionalAuthorities.

Each applicant can participate as Overall Lead Partner in no more than one projectproposal per strategic theme. If an applicant does not conform to the previous rule asexplicitly stated above, all of its project applications will be rejected.

Partners shall cooperate in at least two of the following ways: joint development, jointimplementation, joint staffing and joint financing.The total number of partners must not exceed eight (8) including the Lead Partners.This call for proposals is only addressed to:a. national, regional or local public authorities ;b. bodies governed by public law 2 , having legal personality, other than legal entities

defined under paragraph a, established for the specific purpose of meeting needs inthe general interest (needs not having an industrial or commercial character), andwhich fulfil at least one of the following conditions:

I. be financed, for the most part, by the national, regional or local authorities, orother bodies governed by public law or

II. be subject to management supervision by those bodies orIII. have an administrative, managerial or supervisory board, more than half of

whose members are appointed by the national, regional or local authorities, orby other bodies governed by public law;

c. private organizations: non profit organizations founded according to applicable

legal framework/law in the respective country can be eligible under the followingconditions:

I. they do not have a commercial or industrial character or activitiesII. they are non-profit 3 and have a legal personality.

2 Bodies governed by public law as defined in Article 1(9) of Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public workscontracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts ( http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2004:134:0114:0240:EN:PDF ) and in compliance with thenational legislation of each participating country.

3 Profit is the making of gain in business activities for the benefit of the owners of the business (paying out dividends).

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2004:134:0114:0240:EN:PDF









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Bodies governed by public law (under category b. above) and privateorganisations (under category c. above) must be operational for at least 24months before the launching of the call for proposals. If a body governed bypublic law or a private organization is participating through a branch located atthe Programme area, the branch must be operational for at least 24 monthsbefore the launching of the call for proposals. The documentation required forthe eligibility of a branch is described in paragraph 7.

It should be noted that private entities not falling under the above categories b. and c.are not eligible.Further information about the eligibility of partnerships and the Lead Partner Principle isprovided in the Programme Manual (Part A. Applicant’s Manual).

7. How to apply – deadline

In order to submit a project proposal, Applicant s must refer to the Applicant’s Packageand to all relevant documents for this call for proposals. Project Proposals should besubmitted according to the guidelines given below:

A Project Proposal consists of:1. the ‘Application Form’ (standard excel form provided), stamped and signed by

the Overall Lead Partner, in original version, (not copy or digital)2. the ‘Partnership Declaration’ (standard form provided), stamped and signed by

all the participating partners,

3. Co-Financing Statement-Non double financing (standard form provided),completed, stamped and signed by each partner separately,

4. ‘The Declaration of not generating revenues’ (standard form provided)completed , stamped and signed by the Overall Lead Partner. In case of revenue generating projects, a cost - benefit analysis should be attached (usingthe “Guide to cost -benefit analysis of investment projects Published by DGRegional Policy in 2008” available athttp://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/docoffic/working/sf2000_en.htm )

5. The ‘Specification of Budget Costs’ (standard form provided), completed ,stamped and signed by each Lead Partner separately and for the part of theproject which will falls under its responsibility.

6. Maturity Sheet per Partner (standard form provided), completed, stamped andsigned by each partner separately.

7. Forbodies governed by public law (of article 6.b above) official documents providingevidence that the requirements of article 6.b of this call are met. In case thatthe nature of a public body is not clearly delivered from the submitteddocuments, the JTS or MA may request additional documentation forclarification.

private organisations (of article 6.c above) :Statutes including all modifications.Official document indicating the composition of the administrative/managerialor supervisory board.Official document indicating the supervision by national, regional or localauthorities, or other bodies governed by public law (if applicable)Official document indicating the sources of the body’s revenues, during thelast three years preceding the presentation of the project proposal.Official Document providing proof for the non distribution of profits or

declaration for the non distribution of profits if the first is not applicable.

http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/docoffic/working/sf2000_en.htm

http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/docoffic/working/sf2000_en.htm




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Any official document certified by a public administration authority, providingthat the organisation operates for at least two years before the launch of thespecific call for proposals.

bodies governed by public law (of article 6.b above) and for privateorganisations (of article 6.c above) the existence of a branch within the

Programme area or the participating countries is documented with at least oneof the following documents:Official document for the establishment/registration of a branch issued by thecompetent Public Authority (e.g. Tax Service of the respective country)Copy of the rental contract, submitted to and validated by the respectivePublic Authority (e.g. Tax Service of the respective country)Payroll sheet, validated by the competent Public Authority (e.g. Ministry of Labour)Operational costs bills (e.g. electricity, telephone etc.)

For bodies governed by public law (of article 6.b above) that have beenestablished by a Law or Presidential Decree, the submission of a copy of therespective Official Government Gazette where the establishment of the branch isbeing mentioned is sufficient.In any case, the documents above must provide evidence that the branch wasestablished and in operation for the period required by the call under each type of partner/category of beneficiary.

8. Infrastructure Projects (were infrastructure activities are foreseen in to the AF)must include the relevant accompanying documents (licenses, approval of feasibility study, building permits, preliminary designs, priced bill of quantities,technical specifications, environmental impact assessment etc., where applicable)proving the maturity of the proposed project.

9. The Lead Partner in Albania must additionally submit, stamped and signed :

a. The ‘Declaration by the Lead Partner in Albania (standard form provided)

b. The Activity Break-Up Table, completed, signed and stamped by the AlbanianLead partner (standard form provided)

c. The ‘Legal Entity Form’ (s tandard form provided)

d. The ‘Financial Identification Form’ (standard form provided)

Partners from Albania may refer to the Practical Guide to Contract Procedures forEC External Actions (PRAG) for further guidance on filling in the documents underpoint 9a, c, d above.

Particularly partners from Albania should take into account the following:

The Legal Entity Sheet must be duly completed and signed by the LeadPartner in Albania, accompanied by the justifying documents which arerequested therein. If the Lead Partner in Albania has already signed a contractwith the Contracting Authority (the EU Delegation), instead of the legal entitysheet and its supporting documents, the legal entity number may be provided,unless a change in its legal status occurred in the meantime.

A Financial Identification Form conforming to the model included in theapplication package, certified by the bank to which the payments will bemade. This bank must be located in Albania. If the Lead partner in Albania hasalready signed a contract with the European Commission or where theEuropean Commission has been in charge of the payments of a contract, acopy of the previous financial identification form may be provided instead,unless a change in its bank account occurred in the meantime.

The templates of the respective forms are also available onhttp://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/procedures/implementation/grants/index _en.htm

http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/procedures/implementation/grants/index_en.htm








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Proposals submitted after the above date will not be considered as eligible.

Attention: If the signed Project Proposal is submitted by registered mail or privatecourier service, only the stamp indicating the postal date proves that the Project Proposal has been submitted within the above deadline. In this case, the MA/JTS will

accept only those project proposals, submitted within the deadline, which will bereceived up to ten (10) days after the deadline, which is …../….. /2013.

If the signed Project Proposal is submitted in person, only the ManagingAuthority’s register n umber is proof of timely submission.

Supplementary documents can be accepted only if they submitted within thedeadline as described above in a single envelope / package and must bear thefollowing indications :

1 st Call for Strategic Projects Proposals of the “Greece -Albania IPA Cross-BorderProgramme” 2007 -2013

SUPPLEMENTARY DOCUMENTSMeasure:………… Project Acronym: ……………. Overall Lead Partner: ….(Name)………..

….(Address)……… NOT TO BE OPENED BEFORE THE OPENING SESSION

8. Project size

Projects must have a minimum budget of 2.000.000 €. The minimum budget per projectPartner cannot be lower than 100.000,00 €. It should be noted that, the total amount of funding for the Greek Project Partners, or the total amount of funding the AlbanianProject Partners, participating in each project should not overcome 60% of the project’stotal budget.

9. Eligibility of expenditure

The starting date for the eligibility of expenditure of Partners from Greece is 1/1/2007,while for partners from Albania, the starting date for the eligibility of expenditure is thedate of signature of the Contract between the Delegation of the European Union toAlbania (following the project’s approval by the competent Committee) and the LeadPartner in Albania.The final date of eligibility of expenditure under no circumstances may exceed31/12/2016.Concerning Partners from Albania the costs must be incurred during the implementationperiod of the action as specified in Article 2 of the Special Conditions to the Grantcontract with the exception of costs relating to final reports, expenditure verification andevaluation of the action, whatever the time of actual disbursement by the Lead Partnerand/or its partners. The duration of the contract might be different than that of the LeadPartner in Greece. The implementation period can anyhow not be longer than 30/9/2016.Eligibility rules on activities and related expenditure are described at the ProgrammeManual.

10. Duration

Projects should be concluded within a maximum period of twenty four (24) months afterthe signing of the Contract between the Managing Authority and the Overall LeadPartner. Projects that have started their implementation before the signing of the

contract, and in any case after 1/1/2007, should not have been concluded before theofficial launch of the respective call for proposals.




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11. Additional information

To obtain additional information on the project application procedure, please contact:

Ministry for Development and CompetitivenessΜanaging Αuthority of European Territorial Cooperation ProgrammesAddress: 65, Georgikis Sholis Avenue, Pilea570 01, Thessaloniki, GreeceMs Rosanna RemerdjianTel: +30 2310 469600 Fax: +30 2310 469602Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.interreg.gr

Ministry of European IntegrationAlbanian National AuthorityAddress: Rr: “PAPA GJON PALI II” No.3 Ms Greta RakajTel: +355 672052234Email: [email protected]

Website: www.mie.gov.al

Joint Technical Secretariat“Greece – Albania 2007- 2013” IPA Cross Border Programme Address: 65, Georgikis Sholis Avenue, Pilea570 01, Thessaloniki, GreeceMr. George PapadopoulosTel: +30 2310 469600 Fax: +30 2310 469602Email: [email protected] Website: www.greece-albania.eu

Delegation of the European Union to Albania

Address: ABA bus.centre, Pr.papa Gjon Pali ii, TiranaTel: +355 4222 8320Website: http://ec.europa.eu/delegations/albania/index_en.htm

Information Sessions regarding this call shall take place in both countries. The date andtime of these events will be concurrently announced on the Managing Authority’s websiteat http://www.interreg.gr , on the Programme’s website at http://www.greece-albania.eu and on the site of the Ministry European Integration of Albania www.mie.gov.al .

Potential applicants may pose questions in written to the Managing Authority, no laterthan eleven (11) days before the deadline for the submission of proposals. The answersshall be agreed by both the contracting authorities and shall be published at the abovesites. Answers shall be published no later than six (6) days before the deadline for thesubmission of proposals.Potential applicants are invited to regularly consult the above sites.

THE MINISTER FOR DEVELOPMENT AND COMPETITIVENESS

KONSTANTINOS HATZIDAKISAnnexes:1. Applicant’s Package (all standard forms provided) 2. Programme Manual for the 1st call for strategic project proposals

mailto:[email protected]






































