The European Union (EU) has announced a Call for Proposals for "EU for Municipalities. Improving Local Government Services through Innovative Concepts".

Objectives

• The global objective of this call for proposals is to strengthen the capacity of local self-government in order to cope with the full range of local competencies.
• The specific objectives of this call for proposals are:
  • To support the implementation of innovative solutions for local problems;
  • To improve the involvement of citizens, Civil Society Organisations, and businesses in problem solving;
  • To copy and adapt best practice solutions from local authorities in EU Member States, or other North Macedonian pilot municipalities.

Priority Areas

• Innovative municipal services and/or innovative solutions improving existing services (in all sectors of local government competencies, for citizens and businesses)
• Social care and/or community social services (addressing vulnerable groups, elder people, children with special needs, disabled persons, minority groups, women, or any other groups of citizens according to local needs and priorities)
• Improvement of local crisis management capacity and preparedness (crisis prevention, civil protection, local health care, hygienic standards, local rapid reaction staff, and other lessons learned from the pandemic crisis)
• Economic recovery after the pandemic crisis, local jobs and skills in knowledge economy (and other sectors with perspective local employment and environment-friendly sustainable growth)
• “Green deal” priorities, such as climate change mitigation and adaptation, sustainable use of natural resources (energy and water, urban mobility and land use), transition to a circular economy, pollution prevention and control, protection and restoration of ecosystems.

Funding Information

• The overall indicative amount made available under this call for proposals is EUR5,000,000.
• Size of grants:
  • Any grant requested under this call for proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum amounts:
    • minimum amount: EUR 300,000
    • maximum amount: EUR 800,000
  • Any grant requested under this call for proposals must fall between the following minimum and maximum percentages of total eligible costs of the action:
    • Minimum percentage: 60 % of the total eligible costs of the action.
    • Maximum percentage: 85 % of the total eligible costs of the action.

Eligibility Criteria

• Lead applicant:
  • In order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:
    • be a legal person,
    • be established in the Republic of North Macedonia,
    • be a specific type of institution or organisation: Local government unit (municipality)
    • 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
  • Potential applicants may not participate in calls for proposals or be awarded grants if they are in any of the situations of the practical guide.
  • Lead applicant must declare that the lead applicant himself, the co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies)are not in any of these situations.
  • The lead applicant may act individually or with co-applicant(s).
  • If awarded the grant contract, the lead applicant will become the beneficiary identified as the coordinator.
• 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.
  • In addition to the categories (lead applicant), the following are however also eligible:
  • Civil Society Organisations legally established in the Republic of North Macedonia;
  • Business sector entities, legally established in the Republic of North Macedonia;
  • European Union Member State municipalities, including other EU MS public bodies or legal entities fulfilling tasks or having competencies that in North Macedonia are assigned to municipalities;
  • Public utilities, public communal enterprises and other public or private companies established in the Republic of North Macedonia or EU Member States providing public services at local level.
  • If awarded the grant contract, the co-applicant(s) (if any) will become beneficiary(ies) in the action (together with the coordinator).
  • Applicants included in the lists of EU restrictive measures at the moment of the award decision cannot be awarded the contract.
  • For UK applicants: Please be aware that following the entry into force of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement on 1 February 2020 and in particular Articles 127(6), 137 and 138, the references to natural or legal persons residing or established in a Member State of the European Union and to goods originating from an eligible country, as defined under Regulation (EU) No 236/2014 and Annex IV of the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement, are to be understood as including natural or legal persons residing or established in, and to goods originating from, the United Kingdom. Those persons and goods are therefore eligible under this call.
• Affiliated entity(ies):
  • The lead applicant and its co-applicant(s) may act with affiliated entity(ies).
  • Public utilities, public communal enterprises and other public or private companies established in the Republic of North Macedonia or EU Member States as defined in (co-applicants’ eligibility) may act as affiliated entities, as long as they are not acting as co-applicants and are fulfilling the requirements.
  • Only the following entities may be considered as affiliated entities to the lead applicant and/or to co-applicant(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, as defined in Directive 2013/34/EU on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings:
        • 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.