CALL FOR PROPOSALS Support to transnational thematic tourism products as means of enhancing competitiveness and sustainability of European tourism 43/G/ENT/CIP/12/B/N02S022
GRANT PROGRAMME 2012 The present call for proposals is composed of a set of Grant Submission Documents, which form an integral part of this call: The call for proposals, The Guide for Applicant EPSS Submission forms
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The terms set out in the call for proposals document shall take precedence over those in the other parts of the Grant Submission Documents.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.
CONTEXT..............................................................................................................3 1.1. European policy framework ........................................................................3 1.2. Specific policy framework for this call........................................................4
2.
OBJECTIVE OF THE CALL.................................................................................7
3.
TIMETABLE...........................................................................................................9
4.
EU FINANCING................................................................................................... 10 4.1. CO-FINANCING AND JOINT AND SEVERAL RESPONSIBILITY ...... 10 4.2. SUBCONTRACTING ................................................................................ 10 4.3. PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS ................................................................ 10
5.
ELIGIBILITY ........................................................................................................ 11 5.1. GEOGRAPHICAL ELIGIBILITY ............................................................... 11 5.2. LEGAL STATUS ELIGIBILITY ................................................................. 11 5.3. EXCLUSION CRITERIA ........................................................................... 13 5.4. ELIGIBLE PROPOSALS........................................................................... 14
6.
SELECTION ........................................................................................................ 15 6.1. APPLICANTS’ FINANCIAL CAPACITY TO COMPLETE THE PROPOSED ACTION ............................................................................... 15 6.2. EXTERNAL AUDIT REPORTS ................................................................ 15 6.3. APPLICANTS’ OPERATIONAL CAPACITY TO COMPLETE THE PROPOSED ACTION ............................................................................... 15
7.
AWARD................................................................................................................ 16
8.
SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS....................................................................... 17
9.
CONTACTS......................................................................................................... 18
10. ANNEXES............................................................................................................ 18
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11. EVALUATION CRITERIA................................................................................... 19
INTERESTED PARTIES ARE INVITED TO READ CAREFULLY THE BELOW INSTRUCTIONS, AND TO USE THE QUESTIONNAIRE PROVIDED IN CHAPTER II OF THE GUIDE FOR SUBMISSION IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT APPLICATIONS ARE COMPLETE WHEN SUBMITTED.
1. 1.1.
CONTEXT European policy framework
The Lisbon Treaty provides a new framework which allows the Commission to undertake necessary measures in order to complement the action of the Member States in the tourism sector, in particular by promoting the competitiveness of Union undertakings in that sector (Title XXII Tourism, Art. 195 TFEU). The specific measures in the tourism sector will be especially aimed at: (a)
encouraging the creation of a favourable environment for the development of undertakings in this sector;
(b)
promoting cooperation between the Member States, particularly by the exchange of good practice.
Moreover the Article 6(d) mentions tourism as one of the areas in which “the Union shall have competence to carry out actions to support, coordinate or supplement the actions of the Member States”.
The Commission has identified sustainability as a fundamental aspect for the quality and competitiveness of European Tourism (COM(2003)7161, COM(2006)1342). In 2007, the Commission presented a Communication on an “Agenda for a sustainable and competitive European Tourism” (COM(2007)6213), where it acknowledged that several stakeholders have already recognised the importance of the sustainability challenge and are working to improve their performance. In order to achieve more significant results, the Commission invited tourism stakeholders to unite their efforts and act together, in a more visible and synergic way. In the latest Communication (COM(2010)352)4 “Europe, the world’s No 1 tourist destination – a new political framework for tourism in Europe”, the Commission focuses on two key concepts mutually influencing each other: the need for a sustainable approach and the need to boost the competitiveness of the European tourism sector. There cannot be competitiveness without sustainability and sustainability makes no sense if it doesn't bring to more competitiveness. The sector's competitiveness is closely linked to its sustainability, as the quality of tourist destinations is strongly influenced by their natural and cultural environment and their integration into a local community. Sustainability principles refer to the environmental, economic and socio-cultural aspects of tourism development, and a suitable balance must be established between these three dimensions to guarantee long-term sustainability. The sustainability of tourism covers thus a number of aspects: the responsible use of natural resources, taking account of the environmental impact of activities (production of waste, pressure on water, land and biodiversity, etc.), the use of 'clean' energy, protection of the heritage and preservation of the natural and cultural integrity of destinations, the quality and sustainability of jobs created, local economic fallout or customer care. These principles are largely reflected in tourism strategies introduced at national and regional level, although they still find insufficient expression in specific actions. In the framework of its tourism policy, one of the main aims of the European Commission remains the promotion of the development of a competitive, sustainable, responsible and high-quality tourism offer. In order to stimulate competitiveness in the European tourism sector, the Commission encourages, among others, to promote diversification of the supply of tourist services and products. Europe has an impressing wealth of common heritage, whose added-value lies in its great diversity of aspects from natural, cultural and historical throughout eno-gastronomic tastes. However, this great potential is still far from being sufficiently
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http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:52003DC0716:EN:NOT http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:52006DC0134:EN:NOT 3 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/COMDay.do?year=2007&month=10&day=19 4 http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/tourism/files/communications/communication2010_en.pdf Page 3 of 20
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valorised in tourist strategies at European level. Most of the initiatives existing at present focus either on the local/regional or national level without capitalising on transnational and pan-European aspects. However, an important number of transnational thematic tourism products and services (e.g. cultural routes crossing several regions or countries on different topics, cycling paths, eco-tourism products, sports tourism, eno-gastronomic tourism, health and wellbeing tourism, protected natural sites based tourism, nature tourism, historical, religious-pilgrim tourism, agro-tourism, rural tourism, or tourism capitalising on the maritime and sub-aquatic cultural heritage, industrial heritage or the economic fabric of a region etc.) have got great potential for growth. The European common natural and cultural heritage and core values can be further promoted and their tourism potential could be further exploited at EU level.
Therefore, the Commission is already active by supporting initiatives at transnational and pan-European level, namely: -
Ensuring visibility and promotion of different thematic tourism services and products, also through conferences and other events organised at EU level To this end, the European Tourism Day (ETD) focused in 2010 on "trans-European cultural routes" and in 2011 on "Industrial heritage: differentiating the European tourism offer"
-
Identifying and incentivising transnational synergies related to cultural itineraries (i.e. with the Council of Europe (CoE), the UNWTO, the UNESCO, etc); To this end, the Commission is actively cooperating with the Council of Europe in the field of cultural tourism in order to better assess its impacts on local economies and give it a higher profile (http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/cultureheritage/culture/Routes/default_en.asp http://www.culture-routes.lu/php/fo_index.php?lng=en).
-
Raising awareness on the importance of and promoting environmentally friendly tourism also contributing to the preservation of “natural� heritage and landscape; Cross border and transnational initiatives such as European cycle routes (http://www.eurovelo.org/) have also been set up in the recent years. The Commission has already supported with grants projects in relation to the EuroVelo Central Coordination of the European cycle routes network and projects in relation to some cycle routes as the Iron Curtain Trail (EV.13) and St. James Route (EV.3).
The European Union thus intends to contribute to the diversification of supply by capitalising on the development of thematic tourism products on a transnational and European scale. Transnational synergies can ensure better promotion and a higher profile for tourism. The Commission considers that a number of these initiatives would benefit from recognition and from a European seal of legitimacy which would guarantee their transnational character. Such recognition of their European vocation could create similar dynamic to the one created by the success of the European Capitals of Culture, which act as a catalyst for local development and tourism by implementing an ambitious and attractive annual cultural programme on a European scale.
1.2.
Specific policy framework for this call
This call for proposals capitalises on the achievements and ensures the follow up of the preparatory action5 6 "Sustainable Tourism", which DG Enterprise and Industry has been implementing in 2009-2011.
5
within the meaning of Article 49(6) of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1525/2007 (OJ L 343, 27.12.2007, p. 9). 6
In 2010 the implementation of the preparatory action "Sustainable tourism" was done by means of the call for proposals "Promotion of cycling tourism in the European Union as means of sustainable tourism development". The call aimed at supporting and promoting cross-border and trans-national cycling routes and cycle networks with a view to contribute, directly or indirectly, to reduce CO2 emissions in the tourism industry. Six projects have been awarded with grants under the call. Page 4 of 20
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In 2009, the main objective of the preparatory action was to raise awareness on cycling tourism in Europe and its contribution to sustainable tourism. A specific focus was put on highlighting the regional economic impact of cycling tourism and the importance of developing the Iron Curtain Trail as EuroVelo route no. 13. In this regard, an awareness rising and promotion campaign (including production of the video-clip "Discover Europe by bike" and organisation of three regional workshops in Member States) on cycling tourism as a sustainable form of tourism was implemented.
Even though conclusions of the workshops organised in the framework of the Preparatory Action Sustainable Tourism in 2009, 2010 were addressing specifically the Iron Curtain Trail and long-distance cycling routes, they could also be useful for other transnational tourism products of similar kind as e.g.: trails/routes/itineraries: • To become successful a transnational route/trail needs: §
A unit (authority, organisation) that takes the responsibility for the overall project planning, its implementation, operation and quality assurance at European level.
§
National focal points - responsible persons or better institutions – for the coordination of the national and cross-border, bilateral implementation.
§
Concrete action plans for its implementation - optimally both on European and cross-border/transnational levels - and a communication strategy in order to raise awareness and give visibility.
In order to contribute to the development of sustainable regional tourism and to create regional economic benefit, the developing of a route/trail should be a starting point, not the final aim. Networking with and development of suitable regional cross-border projects is needed for: §
Connection with existing regional trails/networks and synergies with national tourism strategies.
§
Development of concrete tourist packages (for groups and individuals) that use the local resources.
§
Involvement of tourism marketing and communication organisations and other relevant stakeholders from the very beginning.
Information about all projects co-funded within the preparatory action "Sustainable Tourism" can be found on Europa website:http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/tourism/iron-curtain-trail/index_en.htm
The present call for proposals "Support to transnational thematic tourism products as means of enhancing competitiveness and sustainability of European tourism" 43/G/ENT/CIP/12/B/N02S022, is published in the framework of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (EIP), one of the three operational programs of the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP)7, which specifically supports activities aiming at fostering entrepreneurship culture and creating better framework conditions for Small and Medium size Enterprises (SMEs) operating in EU. It also aims to comply with the overall strategy of DG Enterprise and Industry (i.e. strengthening Europe’s industry, promoting innovation as means to generate jobs and meet societal needs, encouraging the creation and growth of small businesses and promoting an entrepreneurial culture), as well as with the main objectives of the Commission, as set out in the “Europe 2020” strategy. The present call for proposals also contributes to the implementation of the 2010 Commission Communication on Tourism and in particular its actions aiming at promoting diversification of the supply of tourism products and services: Action 1: to develop a coherent strategy for diversifying the promotion of tourist services and capitalise on Europe's common heritage In 2011 the scope of the preparatory action "Sustainable Tourism" was enlarged to cultural tourism and focused on the following objectives among others: raising awareness of the contribution of different cultures to a common European identity, through the understanding of Europe's history and integration process and common values on the basis of its tangible, intangible and natural heritage; promoting the role of cultural tourism as a factor for sustainable economic development, European citizenship and intercultural dialogue; promoting sustainable and responsible tourism within the EU and neighbouring countries. In this line, in 2011, the call for proposals "Promotion of trans-national thematic tourism products in the European Union as means of sustainable tourism development " was launched focusing on the enhancement and promotion of different thematic transnational tourism products such as routes/itineraries/trails (either physical or virtual) contributing to the development and promotion of sustainable and responsible tourism in Europe.
http://ec.europa.eu/cip/eip/index_en.htm Page 5 of 20
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Action 2: to encourage the integration into tourism strategies of 'natural' heritage.8
MAIN DEFINITIONS FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS CALL TOURISM PRODUCT A “tourism product” represents a combination of different aspects (characteristics of the places visited, modes of transport, types of accommodation, specific activities at destination, etc.) around a specific centre of interest, such as nature tours, life on farms, visits to historical and cultural sites, visits to a particular city, the practice of specific sports, the beach, etc. This notion of “tourism product” is not related to the concept of “product” used in economic statistics, but rather to the one used by professionals in the tourism business to market specific packages or destinations. It is then possible to speak of specific types of “tourism products”, such as culinary tourism, ecotourism, city tourism, sun-and-sand tourism, agro-tourism, health tourism, winter tourism, etc.9 TRANSNATIONAL
A product made up of a set of tourism services and activities offered in the territory of several countries around a common theme. The transnational tourism product can take the form of e.g.: a route/itinerary/trail, either physical (based on a physical infrastructure) or virtual (linking places/destinations/attractions which have a conceptual link) or a thematic tourism offer.
THEMATIC
8
The transnational tourism product must be conceived, structured and developed around a common theme.
Some useful information on how to make the best use of natural and cultural heritage to develop sustainable tourism as well as on creating a viable tourism product can be found in the study “Using natural and cultural heritage for the development of sustainable tourism in non-traditional tourism destinations (2002)” . http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/tourism/documents/studies/index_en.htm#h2-17
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2.
OBJECTIVE OF THE CALL
The overall objective of the present call for proposals is to enhance competitiveness and sustainability of European tourism and to contribute to the creation of an environment favourable to transnational cooperation among tourism-related stakeholders with a particular emphasis on the SMEs, with a view to: 1) Stimulating the diversification of transnational thematic tourism products with a high potential for sustainable development of the tourism sector and therefore for contributing to competitiveness in the sector; 2) Encouraging a higher involvement of small and micro enterprises and local authorities in the development and promotion of these products; 3) Strengthening transnational public-private cooperation aimed at developing and promoting competitive and sustainable transnational tourism products.
In this line, the present call will co-finance actions to support transnational thematic tourism products having a high potential for sustainable development of the tourism sector, by improving their visibility and market uptake. The proposals have to demonstrate and explain how the proposed actions contribute to sustainable tourism development. Therefore, proposals should include activities falling in all of these three areas: 1) strengthening transnational thematic tourism products with a high potential for sustainable development of the tourism sector, including the development of concrete tourist offers/packages to facilitate their market uptake; 2) promoting and enhancing the visibility of transnational thematic tourism products through joint transnational promotion-communication activities and by, among others, providing comprehensive and practical information to potential tourists and other tourism stakeholders. 3) facilitating public-private partnerships and the integration of tourism-related enterprises, in particular small and micro size enterprises, in the supply chain of transnational thematic tourism products as well as into regional development and tourism promotional strategies
-
better market visibility of attractive and sustainable European transnational thematic tourism offer
-
development of comprehensive and practical information for potential tourists
-
creation of favourable environment for development of concrete tourist offers/packages in order to increase tourism flows
-
facilitating and stimulating public-private partnerships and the integration of enterprises of the tourism sector, in particular micro and small, in the supply chain of transnational thematic tourism products as well as into regional development and tourism promotional strategies
-
diversification and contribution to the development of sustainable tourism offer in Europe
-
contribution to growth and employment in the tourism sector
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Applicants are free to propose any kind of activities in line with the objectives of the call and which target the following expected general results:
In line with the objectives of the call, the project proposal must fulfil the following characteristics: •
be thematic: it shall focus on the strengthening and promotion of a "theme-based" sustainable and competitive tourism offer.
•
be technically and financially sustainable. The project should identify the management structure and explain how it will enable the project to meet its goals, identify the staff to be involved with distribution of tasks between partners and staff members. The project will aim at the creation of a medium-to long-term strengthening and communication/promotion strategy for a transnational thematic product which continues after the end of the project period. Therefore, the description of the proposal should also refer to how the action could be further developed after the end of the project period, both technically and financially.
•
promote sustainable and competitive tourism in Europe. The project should propose exemplary and innovative ideas for sustainable development of tourism via transnational cooperation. Sustainable tourism is meant to be respectful of the economic, socio-cultural and environmental principles. A suitable balance must be established between these three dimensions to guarantee long-term sustainability.
o
create real, measurable effects on tourism development and on economy in general. The expected specific results of the project (as e.g.: greater visibility of a transnational product for potential tourists/general public, increase in tourist flows, improved management capacities and networking activities between partners involved in the project and other stakeholders, contribution to development of tourism SMEs etc.) should be clearly outlined and it should be indicated how the results will be measured, what indicators will be used. The proposal should contain explanation on how the project will specifically identify and reach the target audience, the estimated impact and how that impact will be measured.
•
be trans-national. The proposed project must be carried out through a partnership/consortium between a minimum of five partners (i.e. 5 different legal entities mentioned separately in the grant agreement) covering at least 5 countries (either cross-border or transnational) as listed under point 5.1 and the project (thematic tourism product itself) has to cover at least 5 countries. Coverage of more than 5 countries will be considered as an added value for the proposal.
•
give visibility to the European Union's involvement in the project.
REPORTING to the Commission: 2 interim technical implementation reports and financial statements, including a consolidated statement and a breakdown between each beneficiary, respectively 6 months and 12 months following the start date of the action; 1 final technical implementation report (including all deliverables) and financial statement including a consolidated statement and a breakdown between each beneficiary: within 3 months following the closing date of the action.
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Reports must be submitted by the coordinator in English.
3.
TIMETABLE
(1)
Scheduled start-up date for the action: January 2013
(2)
Maximum duration of actions is: 18 months
No applications will be accepted for projects scheduled to run for a longer period than that specified in this call for proposals. The intention is to inform applicants of the outcome of the award procedure no later than the month of November 2012.
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The period of eligibility of costs will start on the first day of the first month following the date when the last party signs the agreement. If a beneficiary can demonstrate the need to start the action before the agreement is signed, expenditure may be authorised before the agreement is signed. Under no circumstances can the eligibility period start before the date of submission of the grant application.
4.
EU FINANCING
The maximum budget allocated from the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP) financing decision C(2011) 9230 of 15/12/2011 for this call for proposals is : 1.250.000,00 €. Indicative number of projects: up to 6 projects will be co-financed. • Maximum EU co-financing rate of eligible costs: 75 % • Maximum European Union co-financing ceiling per project: 210,000.00 € Proposals asking for an EU co-financing beyond any of the above two maxima will be ineligible. Please refer to section 5 below. • Please note that one action may give rise to the award of only one grant from the European Union budget to any one beneficiary. • EU financing can never cover 100 % of the costs of an action. • The Commission reserves the right to award a grant of less than the amount requested by the applicant. In such a case, beneficiaries proposed for award will be proposed either to increase their co-financing, propose other co-financing means or to decrease the total costs without altering the substance of the proposal. Grants will not be awarded for more than the amount requested. • The publication (on the Internet site and/or in the Official Journal) does not guarantee the availability of funds for the above action. • The Commission grant may not have the purpose or effect of producing a profit for the beneficiary. Profit is defined as a surplus of receipts over costs. The amount of the grant will be reduced by the amount of any surplus.
4.1.
CO-FINANCING AND JOINT AND SEVERAL RESPONSIBILITY
The beneficiary shall supply evidence of the co-financing provided. It can be provided either by way of own resources, or in the form of financial transfers from third parties. For this call for proposals, the Commission does not accept co-financing in kind. Please refer to the Guide for Submission, chapter IV for further details. In case where a multi-beneficiary agreement is possible or required, all partners shall agree upon appropriate arrangements between themselves for the proper performance of the action. In particular, they shall accept the joint and several responsibility for any amount due to the Commission by anyone of them as stipulated in article II.18 of the grant agreement.
The final grant agreement shall be signed by the co-ordinator and each participating co-beneficiary will sign a mandate (ANNEX IV of the grant agreement) conferring powers of attorney to the coordinator. 4.2.
SUBCONTRACTING
Only a limited part of the project may be subcontracted, up to 50 % of the eligible costs. Subcontracting does not limit the responsibilities of beneficiaries. Please note that the beneficiary(ies) has(have) to have the necessary capacity to perform the project. Only tasks that are not core business can be sub-contracted to consultants. Please refer to the guide for applicants for further details on subcontracting. 4.3.
PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS
The draft grant agreement annexed to this call for proposals specifies the payment arrangements in article I.5 for multiple beneficiary agreements. The agreement is attached for information only, and should not be submitted with the proposal.
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Your attention is in particular drawn to part B of the General Conditions, article II.14, where the eligibility of costs is described. These costs are also further explained in chapter VII of the Guide for Applicants.
5.
ELIGIBILITY
APPLICATIONS MUST COMPLY WITH ALL OF THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA SET OUT IN THIS SECTION.
5.1.
GEOGRAPHICAL ELIGIBILITY
Applications from legal entities established in one of the following countries are eligible for co-financing: (1)
EU 27 Member States.
(2)
European Free Trade Association countries (EFTA) which are members of the European Economic Area (EEA) in accordance with the conditions laid down in the EEA Agreement: Norway, Iceland, Lichtenstein
(3)
Other countries participating in the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme of the CIP: Croatia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania and Israel
Participation of partners from other countries is allowed – if relevant for the project - but it will not be considered as concurring to the eligible costs, nor as concurring to satisfy the minimum consortium requirements stated in points 5.2. (This means that these additional countries will not be considered for verifying the eligibility criteria 5.2 (1) – consortium gathering a minimum of 5 partners from 5 different countries. Countries which will be considered for verifying these criteria will only be the ones covered by point 5.1 (1,2,3)).
The transnational nature of the project must be demonstrated by filling in Form A/2 of the on-line submission Forms for each partner organisations in order to confirm their participation.
5.2.
LEGAL STATUS ELIGIBILITY
In what follows “partners” are to be understood as any potential co-signatory of the future grant agreement subject to this call, and as proposed by the applicant co-ordinator. 1. Applicants should act in consortium with partner organisations. The consortium must gather a minimum of five partners (i.e. 5 different legal entities mentioned separately in the grant agreement, having duly filled in A2 form and having tasks clearly defined in the technical proposal and budgetary annex) covering at least five countries as listed under point 5.1 (1,2,3) "Geographical eligibility". Please also refer to the draft grant agreement document. 2. Moreover: a) at least one of the partners in the consortium must be an SME – Small and Medium Size 10 enterprise - acting in the tourism sector.
10
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/policies/sme/facts-figures-analysis/sme-definition/index_en.htm
11
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:31996H0280:en:HTML
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Enterprises qualify as micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) if they fulfill the criteria laid down in the Commission Recommendation of 3 April 1996 concerning the definition of small and medium-sized 11 enterprises (Text with EEA relevance) (96/280/EC) which are summarized in the table below. In addition to the staff headcount ceiling, an enterprise qualifies as an SME if it meets either the turnover ceiling or the balance sheet ceiling, but not necessarily both.
Enterprise category
Headcount
Turnover
or
Balance sheet total
medium-sized
< 250
• € 50 million
• € 43 million
small
< 50
• € 10 million
• € 10 million
micro
< 10
• € 2 million
• € 2 million
For the purpose of the present call, it is considered that an SME being the partner in the consortium has to provide a proof that is established and operating on the market since 2 years time and has to act in one of the following fields: tourist accommodation catering travel agencies and tour operators attractions leisure (recreational, cultural and sporting activities) tourism related transport other tourism related fields if their relevance for the project proposal is duly justified by the applicant Other kinds of SMEs (e.g. in the fields of promotion, media, ICT development and others) may be involved in the project only as subcontractors (see point 4.2), not as partners in the consortium.
b) at least one of the partners of the consortium must be a public governmental authority, which complies with the following two criteria: -being a national (Ministry), regional (as Region), local (as Municipality) level, or any other level in between, public governmental authority, -being in charge of tourism and/or regional development (or any other area which is in relation to the theme of the transnational tourism product). The following entities can also be accepted to fulfil the criteria stated in point b) - network or association of above mentioned public governmental authorities -public or semi-public body acting on behalf of12 the above mentioned public governmental authorities. The delegation of powers must be proved by the relevant public governmental authority in writing.
Chambers of Commerce cannot be considered – for the purposes of this call – as falling within this category. ATTENTION: The onus will be on the applicants to demonstrate that the partners fully respect the requirements set in the call. Please provide any useful supporting document and proof of the fulfilment of the abovementioned compulsory requirements and clearly indicate partners fulfilling them, in order to allow the evaluation committee to accomplish its assessment.
It is not mandatory, but it will be seen as an additional asset and added value positively affecting the assessment of the proposed project (see also Annex 3) if: a) the SME involved in the project consortium is a micro or small sized enterprise; b) the proposal includes a letter of intent expressing the formal support to the general project idea from one EU Member State national governmental authority - namely a Ministry in charge of tourism/regional development, or other field which could be strictly related to the object of the proposal. 3. Partners of the lead organisation must satisfy the same eligibility criteria as those for applicants; the applicant will be the coordinator. "Acting on behalf of" has to be intended in a strict sense, as having delegated powers and/or being empowered by a public governmental authority to perform activities on their behalf in the fields of tourism, regional development or any other field that is strictly related to the object of the proposal. Being publicly funded or dependent from or in a special administrative relation/subordination with a public governmental authority does not represent a proof of "acting on behalf of" that authority. Page 12 of 20
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4. Applications must be submitted by a legal person; natural persons (i.e. individuals) are not eligible. 5. Applicants must correspond to the definition of the following target organisations active in the field of tourism or any other field that is strictly related to the object of the proposal such as : •
Public governmental authorities and their networks or associations at European, international, national, regional and local level or other organisations acting on behalf of a public governmental authority
•
Academic training or education establishments
•
Destination management organisations and their networks/associations
•
Travel Agents and Tour Operators and their umbrella associations
•
Chambers of commerce and industry, chambers of handicrafts or similar bodies and their umbrella Associations.
•
Not-for profit/Non-governmental organisations, civil society organizations, foundations, think-tanks, umbrella associations, networks or federations of public or private bodies, whose core activity falls under the following fields: tourism, regional development or any other field that is strictly related to the theme of the proposal;
•
International, European and national associations active in the field of tourism and related fields
•
Federations and associations operating in partnership across the borders of a number of countries with a proven cross-border outreach.
•
Small and Medium Size enterprises (SMEs) acting in the tourism sector namely in one of the following fields:
Ø tourist accommodation Ø catering Ø travel agencies and tour operators Ø attractions Ø leisure (recreational, cultural and sporting activities) Ø tourism related transport Ø other tourism related fields if their relevance to the project proposal is duly justified by the applicant •
National, regional, local tourism organisations, public and private agencies related to tourism promotion
•
Public and private bodies whose core activity falls under the following fields: tourism, regional development or any other field that is strictly related to the object of the proposal.
6. Corporate bodies must be properly constituted and registered under the law. If a body or organisation is not constituted under the law, a physical person must be designated to provide the legal responsibility.
IMPORTANT Please note that bodies that do not fall within one of the above listed categories may not apply for the present call. Subcontracing will however be permisable for them, in compliance with the rules and within the limits set at point 4.2 of this call.
5.3.
EXCLUSION CRITERIA
By using the “Exclusion Criteria Form” (form B4) applicants shall declare on their honour that they are not in one of the situations referred to in Articles 93 and 94 of the Financial Regulation.
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Please note that, according to articles 96 and 114 of the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities and according to article 134b of the Commission Regulation (EC,
Euratom) n° 2342/2002 of 23 December 200213 laying down detailed rules for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) n° 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities14, administrative and financial penalties may be imposed by the Commission on applicants who are excluded in relation to points a) to h) of the form in question.
5.4.
ELIGIBLE PROPOSALS
Applications must comply with the following conditions in order to be eligible for a grant: 1. Applications must be submitted electronically through EPSS ; 2. Applications must be submitted timely, in conformity with the specifications for the submission of proposals (see point 8 below) ; 3. Only projects that are strictly non-profit-making and/or whose immediate objective is non-commercial shall be eligible. 4. Applications must respect the maximum EC contribution as laid out in section 4. 5. Applications must respect the maximum duration of projects (see section 4). 6. Applications must be in line with the scheduled start dates (see section 3). 7. Applications may not include contributions in kind as part of their co-financing.
13
As amended by Commission Regulation 1261/2005 of 20 July 2005, Commission Regulation 1248/2006 of 7 August 2006 and Commission Regulation 478/2007 of 23 April 2007
14
As amended by Council Regulation 1995/2006 of 13 December 2006 Page 14 of 20
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In this context, will be rejected any project directly or indirectly contrary to EU policy or against public health, human rights, citizen’s security or freedom of expression.
6.
SELECTION
The following sets out the basis for the evaluation of applicants' capacities in relation to the action. Please refer also to chapter IV of the Guide for Applicants for further details.
6.1.
APPLICANTS’ FINANCIAL CAPACITY TO COMPLETE THE PROPOSED ACTION
Applicants must show they have financial capacity to complete the proposed operation, stable and sufficient sources of finance to ensure the continuity of the organisation throughout the project and, if necessary, to play a part in financing it. 6.2.
EXTERNAL AUDIT REPORTS
Not applicable. 6.3.
APPLICANTS’ OPERATIONAL CAPACITY TO COMPLETE THE PROPOSED ACTION
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Applicants must show they have the operational (technical and management) capacity to complete the operation to be supported and must demonstrate their capacity to manage scale activity corresponding to the size of the project for which the grant is requested. In particular, the human resources must be adequate to the scale of the project and team responsible for the project/operation must have adequate professional qualifications and experience.
7.
AWARD
An evaluation of the quality of proposals, including the proposed budget, will be carried out in accordance with the evaluation criteria set out in Section 11 of this call for proposals.
The complete selection and evaluation procedure is described in chapter VIII of the Guide for Applicants.
In case of equal total scores, the proposals showing major effort in meeting the following criteria will be prioritized : 端 project proposal covers more than 5 countries 端 SME(s) involved in the project is/are micro or small sized enterprise(s)
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端 The proposal includes a letter of intent expressing the formal support from at least one EU Member State national governmental authority
8.
SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS
Please note that ONLY electronic submissions are allowed for this call. The proposals shall be submitted via the Electronic Proposal Submission Service (EPSS). The link to EPSS is provided on the Call website. Part A of the proposal consists of forms to be filled in directly on-line, Part B has to be uploaded in EPSS/the call's web page as .pdf or .xls files. Please consult the Guide for Applicants for the modalities of preparing and submitting the proposal. The instructions and templates on how to prepare the description of the project can be found in the Annexes (Forms B1 to B6) and in the Guide for Applicants. The final version of the project description has to be uploaded in EPSS as a pdf file. The deadline for submission of proposals is:
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25/07/2012
9.
CONTACTS
Contacts between the contracting authority and potential applicants can only take place in certain circumstances and under the following conditions only: • Before the final date for submission of proposals, at the request of the applicant, the Commission may provide additional information solely for the purpose of clarifying the nature of the call. Any requests for additional information must be made in writing only to the coordinates stated below. The Commission may, on its own initiative, inform interested parties of any error, inaccuracy, omission or other clerical error in the text of the call for proposals. Any additional information including that referred to above will be published on the internet in concordance with the various call for proposals documents. • After the deadline for submission of proposals: • If clarification is requested or if obvious clerical errors in the proposal need to be corrected, the Commission may contact the applicant provided the terms of the proposal are not modified as a result. • If the authorising officer finds that those proposals, which have been listed for award needs limited adaptations to their proposal. In such case, these applicants will receive a formal letter setting out the requested modifications. Any such modifications must stay within the limits of the request. This phase will not lead to a re-evaluation of the proposals, but a proposal might be rejected if refusing to ensure a positive follow-up to the request.
Contact coordinates for the call: European Commission Enterprise and Industry Directorate-General Call for proposals No: 43/G/ENT/CIP/12/B/N02S022 E-mail address: ENTR-CFP-1243-THEMATIC-TOU@ec.europa.eu Office address: B100 04/30 - B-1049 Brussels, Belgium
10. ANNEXES
ü
Model Grant Agreement
ü
Guide for Applicants (Including information on EPSS)
ü
Form B1- B2 Budgetary Forms
ü
Form B3 - Co-financing statement form
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Form B4 - Exclusion form
ü
Form B5 - Financial Statement Form
ü
Form B6 - Description of the project and expected results
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This document is including the following annexes, which can be downloaded from the Call page:
11. EVALUATION CRITERIA When assessing the project proposals, the evaluation committee generally pays attention to the elements indicated below each evaluation criterion. Please note that these elements, which are indicative and nonexhaustive, are given on the basis of transparency and in order to help applicants to improve their applications.
EVALUATION CRITERIA AND KEY ELEMENTS LIKELY TO BE ASSESSED BY THE EVALUATION COMMITTEE 1. Relevance
MAX. SCORE 30
How relevant is the proposal to the objectives of the published call for proposal? Has the project a real transnational dimension? To what extent do the proposed activities demonstrate a clear European added value? To what extent does the project proposal contribute to enhance and promote sustainable tourism development in Europe? How clearly defined and strategically chosen are the project partners? (different types of partners, relevance of the partners to the project, degree of involvement of the partners) Are the partners able to guarantee successful continuation of the project in the future? Has an effort been made to strengthen the partnership proposed and/or the European dimension by ensuring that:
– project proposal covers more than 5 countries – SME(s) involved in the project is/are micro or small sized enterprise(s) –
the proposal includes a letter of intent expressing the formal support from at least one EU Member State national governmental authority
2. Quality
30
How coherent is the overall project design (Including preparedness for evaluation and presentation of the proposal)? How coherent, appropriate and practical are the activities proposed (including the internal plan of action/work packages)? To what extent has the project been well thought out or prepared (including the outline of the communication/promotion strategy)?
3. Impact and Visibility
30
To what extent is the project likely to have a tangible impact on competitive and sustainable tourism in Europe and a tangible impact on the target groups? To what extent do the project contribute to create real measurable effects on tourism development and on economy in general (e.g increasing tourists flows, development of tourism SMEs )? To what extent does the proposal contain objectively verifiable indicators for evaluating the project outcomes? To what extent does the proposal contain specific elements of a follow-up with regard to further development of the thematic tourism product? To what extent does the project show synergies with and benefits for the natural and cultural environment, local economy, local communities etc.? To what extent the European Union involvement in the project or activity will be published? 10
To what extent is the budget clear and detailed as well as effective to implement the action? Does the breakdown of the budget, category by category, offer a way of Page 19 of 20
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4. Budget and cost-effectiveness
ensuring that the amount of the grant awarded is reasonable in relation to the expected results? Do the probable results stand in a reasonable relationship to the amount of the grant? To what extent is the proposed expenditure necessary for the implementation of the project?
Maximum total score
100
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If a total score lower than 70 points or a score lower than 50% for any of the above five criteria is obtained, the proposal will not be evaluated further.