Turkey-Bulgaria
Cross-Border Cooperation:
Joint Small Projects Fund
Call for Proposals TR 0502.04 issued by the CFCU
on
29 December 2006 with deadline of 04 April 2007
FREQUENTLY
ASKED QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Question 1: How can I find a Bulgarian partner?
Answer 1: In your project proposals, you must have at least one partner from the Bulgarian side of the border, which partnership has to be backed by a partnership statement (See Part III. 2 of the Grant Application form) in order the project to be considered eligible.
The list of the
Bulgarian organisations interested in developing and implementing joint
projects from the eligible regions - Haskovo,
This list however is not exhaustive and if an eligible applicant could find a partner himself from the other side of the border that is in compliance with the eligibility criteria as stated in Part 2.1.1. of the Guidelines, they could develop a joint project proposal.
For further information, please consult to the following contact
persons at CBC Contact Bureau/Local Technical Secretariats in
Mrs. Füsun ÖZERDEM
CBC Contact Bureau/LTS -
Governor Office in
EDİRNE
Phone: 0 284 213 18 53
Fax: 0 284 213 18 53
E-mail: abem@edirne.gov.tr
Mr. Ruhi ERAY
CBC Contact Bureau/LTS - Kırklareli Branch
Governor Office in Kırklareli
KIRKLARELİ
Phone: 0 288 214 10 75 - 0 288 212 47 72
Fax: 0 288 214 30 73
E-mail: ozelkalem@kirklareli.gov.tr
Question 2: Can the costs incurred for the preparations of
the project proposals such as visits to Bulgarian counterparts be included in
the project budget?
Answer 2: The costs incurred for the preparation of
applications are not eligible costs, and therefore, will not be covered by the
grant and will not be included in the action budget. Only the costs that have
actually been incurred by the Beneficiaries or their partners during the
implementing period are eligible costs. Implementation of the project shall
begin on the day following that on which the last of the two Parties (Central
Finance and Contracts Unit and, the Beneficiary) sign the contract. Please see
2.1.4. of the Guidelines.
Question 3: Can the costs of the Bulgarian partners incurred during the implementation of the project be funded from the Turkish JSPF budget?
Answer 3: Yes provided that they are eligible costs as stipulated in the Section 2.1.4. of the Guidelines and duly substantiated in the Description of the Action.
Question 4: Is it possible to have equipment in the project more than 20% of total budget amount?
Answer 4: No. As stipulated in the Section 2.1.4 of the Guidelines, costs for equipment and supplies, which are specifically for the purposes of the Action and correspond to market rates, must not exceed 20% of total eligible costs.
Question 5: Can colleges or private schools apply to this Grant Scheme?
Answer 5: As long as, there is a provision in the Statute of colleges or private schools that prohibits distribution of the profit to shareholders, and thus proving that they are non-profit making organisations as stipulated in the Section 2.1.1 (1) of the Guidelines, they can apply.
Question
6: Can the
personnel salaries be covered from the Administrative Costs?
Answer 6. No. Project staff salaries can only be budgeted under the Budget Heading 1. “Human Resources”.
Question
7: Can the
project cover construction activities?
Answer 7. No. Small scale infrastructure/construction
activities are ineligible activities as stipulated in the Section 2.1.3. of the
Guidelines.
Question
8: May a civil
servant work and get a salary/fee and/or per diem from a project funded under
this Call for proposals?
Answer 8: Provided that the following requirements are met, civil servants can work in the projects;
- The related employment law-civil servant law no. 657 allows them to work in additional/secondary missions,
- There is a formal agreement between the employer and the civil servant including the working conditions, hours per day/week, etc.
- There is no duplication of the civil servant’s routine activities in the projects and thus no duplication of funding.
As stated in the Section 2.1.4 of the Guidelines, the salaries of public officials working in their official capacity are not eligible costs.
However, if they are clearly taken out from their
duties and the tasks assigned in the work plan are fully attached to the
project this might be considered as eligible costs.
Per diems of the civil servants can be covered from
the project as long as their functions in the project are well-justified and
the per diem rates do not exceed those normally borne by the Applicant or his
partners.
Question 9: Is it possible to publish some of the successful projects implemented in the previous programmes on the relevant websites of the present Call for Proposals?
Answer 9: The Contracting Authority will
publish the summaries of already funded projects in the programme region under
2003 JSPF in its web-site; www.cfcu.gov.tr.
Question 10: When must the contribution of the project owners (co-financing) be visible in the Applicants’ and/or partners’ accounts/accountancy? Must it be visible in the relevant bank accounts at the stage of application?
Answer
10: The sources of matching
contribution have to be stipulated at the application stage in the Expected
Sources of Funding (Annex B3). It is not obligatory to put the co-financing
amount into the project’s bank account at the stage of
application, but the Beneficiary and/or partner’s
co-financing must be visible in the accounts/accountancy of project partners
during the implementation of the project.
Question 11: Are “visa
costs” eligible expenses? If eligible, shall we put this expense under item “2.
Travel” or under item “5. Other costs, services” in the Budget?
Answer 11: Visa costs are eligible expenses and have to be included in budget
heading “6. Other” unless the person is being paid a per diem, in which case
they are included in the latter.
Question 12:
Are the
custom charges eligible costs?
Answer 12: No. Taxes,
customs and import duties and levies and/or taxes of equivalent effect are not
eligible costs. Please check the Framework Agreement signed between Turkey and
the EC in 2004, and adopted as law by Turkish Parliament (no: 5303) on 22
February 2005 and published in the Turkish Official Gazette on 26 March 2005,
no: 25739.
Question 13:
Is there any
restriction on the nationality of the project experts?
Answer 13:
No. The project experts may be of any
nationality as stated in the Section 2.3.1 of the Practical Guide (PRAG).
Question
14: Can a
cooperative submit a project related to the training of farmers?
Answer 14: Cooperatives
may apply to this Grant Scheme if there is a provision in the Statute which
prohibits distribution of the profit to the members. Or alternatively, a
declaration of the General Assembly indicating that profit will not be
distributed to members for the next 5 years can be submitted when the project
is provisionally selected.
As long as the eligibility criteria
stipulated in the Section 2.1.3 of the Guidelines are met, cooperatives can
submit projects to this Grant Scheme.
Question
15: Can “Research
and
Answer 15: No. As stipulated in the Section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines, only non-governmental organisations (any non-profit organizations which are independent from government and typically value-based organizations that depend in whole or in part on charitable donations and voluntary service) may apply to this grant scheme.
Question
16: We are a
Confederation that is a member of the Union of Confederations. If the
Answer 16: No. If the Confederation as a
separate legal entity applies to this Grant Scheme, the Confederation itself should
meet the eligibility criteria stated in the Section 2.1.1 of the Guidelines.
Question
17: Is the
establishment of a crisis center for the mitigation of the effects of natural
disasters an eligible project?
Answer 17: As long as the project
corresponds with the objectives of the programme, eligibility criteria
stipulated in the Section 2.1.3 of the Guidelines are met and the project has a
real cross-border impact, it might be considered as eligible.
Question 18: Is it obligatory to take consultancy from a
consultant firm for the preparation of the project proposals?
Answer 18: No, it is not obligatory to take a consultancy from a consultant firm under this Call for Proposals. The Guidelines and Application Form give very detailed instructions on costs, activities, preparation of a budget, etc. so that any potential Applicant can be in a position to apply without external assistance. It is your own decision to take consultancy or not. Nevertheless it is advisable that you write the project proposals by yourself, because one of the main objectives of this programme is to improve your capacity to design and implement joint projects with cross-border impact. Furthermore, the projects funded under this Call for Proposals are small-scale projects that do not require specialized assistance.
Question 19: We have completed a
project financed under 2003 JSPF grant scheme. Can we submit the same project
with different target group?
Answer 19: The same project could not be submitted since
it is part of the sustainability of the previous outcomes and results of the
project. However, a similar project targeting different target groups, and
hence applying different methodology (relevant to the specificity of target
groups) may be considered to be a different project. However, without knowing
the exact nature of the project it is difficult to make a judgement, so the
decision will rest with the evaluation committee.
Question 20: Can an Applicant be
partner to more than one project?
Answer 20: Yes. However, the Applicant should take into consideration its
administrative and technical management capacity while participating in more
than one project as a partner.