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III Notices

Commission

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CONSUMER POLICY

Call for proposals 2004

(2004/C 113/01)

1.   Introduction

This document is a call for proposals for specific projects in connection with the implementation of Article 7(4) (Action 18) of Decision No 20/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 December 2003 establishing a general framework for financing Community actions in support of consumer policy for the years 2004 to 2007 (1). The call for proposals is open to projects from any of the 25 Member States of the European Union, the EFTA/EEA countries and Bulgaria and Romania, provided, in the case of the latter two, that all the conditions laid down in the bilateral agreements with Bulgaria and Romania have been met.

Any legal person or association of legal persons that acts independently of industry or commerce and wishes to submit proposals for specific projects in the subject areas described under point 4 of this call is invited to read carefully this document, the application form and the explanatory vade mecum, all of which are available at the following internet address:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/consumers/tenders/information/grants/application_en.htm

2.   Objectives

The consumer policy strategy for the period 2002 to 2006 contains three fundamental objectives:

These three objectives seek to integrate consumer problems into all the other Community policies, to make sure consumers derive maximum advantage from the single market and to prepare the European Union for enlargement.

This call for proposals sets out the general objectives of the consumer policy strategy, inviting proposals for specific projects in the subject areas specified at point 4 and offering 75 % co-financing for projects that involve consumer organissations from the new Member States, subject to the conditions specified at point 3.

3.   Arrangements for Community funding

4.   Subject areas

The European Commission invites proposals for projects addressing the subject areas described below.

The projects proposed for each subject area must be compatible with the objectives and priorities set by the consumer policy strategy for the period 2002 to 2006 (2). The project results must be disseminated as widely as possible.

Competition

Objective: to integrate consumer interests into all the other Community policies.

If consumers are to be the ultimate beneficiaries of the competition policy, there is a need to examine the extent to which more account could be taken of their legitimate interests. To this end, the various Commission services concerned are in the process of setting up the necessary instruments in order to help ensure consumer interests are taken into account in the decisions to be taken. The Commission has also begun working on this subject in close cooperation with the relevant public authorities in the Member States.

If the objective is to be fully attained, consumer organisations also need to be tangibly involved in the implementation of the Community competition rules and need to develop lasting capacities allowing them to be genuine representatives of consumer interests.

Themes:

Community financing:

Duration of projects: up to 36 months

Protection of consumers' economic interests

Objective: to appraise the effective application of consumer protection rules and identify points that could be improved with a view to the revision of the existing EU legislation.

The consumer policy strategy for the period 2002 to 2006 provides for an examination of the existing Community legislation regarding the protection of consumers' economic interests. Alongside the analysis of the legal aspects, which will be performed by the relevant Commission services, the consumer organisations can help provide a clearer picture of the effective application of the acquis communautaire by analysing consumers' personal experiences.

The directives which the revision of the acquis will concern are the following:

Theme:

A project may address only one Directive at a time.

In the case of each of the first seven Directives listed above, the project must collect, analyse and compare the following data:

In the case of the Directive on injunctions, the project must collect, analyse and compare cases where injunctions have been applied and identify any difficulties that have been encountered in applying them.

Community financing:

Duration of projects: up to 24 months

General product safety

objective: to help speed up the effective application of the acquis communautaire in the new Member States, and more particularly of Directive No 2001/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 December 2001 on general product safety.

Theme:

Identification at national level of shortcomings in the application of legislation, chiefly by identifying very specifically the practical problems faced by consumers. Following this, launching of campaigns to raise awareness among the various stakeholders (the relevant professionals, the authorities in charge of monitoring application of the legislation) and informing consumers in order to improve their vigilance.

Community financing:

75 %, under the conditions specified in Chapter 3.2(a).

Duration of projects: up to 24 months

Safety of services

Objective: to contribute towards the adoption of a high level of protection for consumers.

There is no general Community-wide legal framework covering the safety of services offered to consumers. The Council and the European Parliament have asked the Commission to identify the needs, possibilities and priorities for Community action in the field of safety of services and, if applicable, to submit proposals.

On the ground, the various organisations concerned, especially the consumer organisations, have an essential role to play in detecting the level of safety offered to consumers, informing consumers of any risks and introducing practical risk assessment tools.

Themes:

Community financing:

Duration of projects: up to 36 months

Services of general interest

Objective: to integrate consumer interests into other Community policies.

The policy of liberalisation of services of general interest is intended to improve the functioning of these services, for the benefit of consumers and of all the economic operators.

In order to ensure that the market in services of general interest functions smoothly, the liberalisation directives have generally provided for the setting up of national regulatory authorities (NRAs) for markets. This has been the case for telecommunications, postal services, air transport, electricity and gas.

The Green Paper of May 2003 on services of general interest underlines the importance of the NRAs for consumers: ‘Particularly important from a consumer or user perspective is the role regulators often play in developing and implementing binding standards of security and quality of service. These are important in terms of meeting expectations with regard, inter alia, to access choice, transparency (including on price), affordability, quality, safety, security and reliability. Adequate redress mechanisms for consumers and users are essential where operators fail to meet standards in this respect.’

The NRAs also have an important role to play in ensuring the viability of the principle of universal service, which embraces aspects such as access, quality and affordability.

In the area of services of general interest, the consumer policy strategy for the period 2002 to 2006 aims to involve consumer organisations in monitoring and assessing the results of the policy on services of general interest. It is therefore essential that the NRAs take full account of the consumer associations in their activities.

Theme:

Taking into account of consumer interests by the NRAs

In one or more of the following sectors: gas, electricity, postal services, telecommunications, air transport, the contractor should:

Community financing:

Duration of projects: up to 24 months

5.   Evaluation criteria

To be deemed admissible, project proposals must meet all the criteria set out below (eligibility, selection and award criteria).

In defining the selection and award criteria the Commission shall be assisted by an advisory committee composed of representatives of the Member States (see Article 15 of Decision No 20/2004/EC).

Eligibility criteria

Article 7(4) of Decision No 20/2004/EC stipulates that the financial contributions for action 18 may be awarded to any legal person or association of legal persons, including appropriate independent public bodies and regional consumer organisations, that acts independently of industry and commerce and is actually responsible for the implementation of the projects.

Point 3 of this call for proposals specifies, for each subject area, the types of organisations which will be given priority.

To be eligible, the applicant organisation must not be in any of the situations of exclusion listed in Articles 93 and 94 of the Financial Regulation.

As proof of eligibility, the applicant must furnish, in support of his application, a copy of his organisation's articles of association, a copy of the organisation's statutory registration certificate and an attestation of non-exclusion.

Selection criteria

The selection criteria are used to (a) evaluate the applicant organisation's financial and operational capacity to complete the proposed action and (b) verify that the applicant has stable financial resources that will be adequate to guarantee the pursuance of the activities throughout the duration of the project.

The applicant must furnish information on the organisation's qualifications and professional experience, notably in the form of its most recent activity report, the curriculum vitae of the project manager and, if applicable, references to the organisation's participation in actions financed by the European Commission, agreements or contracts concluded with other international organisations or Member States.

As evidence of his financial capacity, the applicant must provide the following:

Award criteria

After applying the selection criteria, the Commission will make its selection on the basis of two types of criteria which will enable it to verify the quality of the proposed activity and the quality of the application.

To be eligible for selection, projects must comply with the two criteria relating to the quality of the activity and must achieve a total score of at least 70 % in the assessment of the quality of the application.

Quality of the proposed activity

The aim here is to assess the value of the project.

The project must:

Quality of the application

The aim here is to assess the structure of the project.

Each criterion must be met and the minimum score is at least 50 % of the points in each case.

The project must:

For projects from consumer organisations in the new Member States aimed at speeding up the effective application of the acquis communautaire in the area of product safety in the new Member States, only the following award criteria need be met:

6.   Submission of applications

The application dossier must include:

The budget proposed must include, if applicable, the costs of producing English or French translations of the reports required to be submitted to the Commission, i.e. the interim report during the course of the project and the final report upon completion.

Only fully complete application dossiers will be considered.

The complete application dossier may be drafted in any one of the 20 official languages of the European Union, with the exception of the summary, which must be in either English or French.

Applicants intending to submit more than one project proposal must complete and submit a separate application dossier for each.

The complete application dossier must be sent by post in triplicate to the following address:

Applications must be postmarked on or before 13 July 2004. Proposals sent by express courier service or delivered by hand must arrive by 17.00 Brussels time on 13 July 2004 at the latest.

The completed application form and the summary must also be submitted in Word format, either by e-mail to the following address: sanco.unit.b1@cec.eu.int, or on floppy disk or CD-ROM to the postal address specified above, the same deadlines applying.

7.   Selection and approval

After receiving the specific project proposals the Commission will have three months in which to select the projects which are to receive financial support based on the assessment criteria and conditions specified in this notice. The Commission decision will lead to the conclusion of a contract with the beneficiary responsible for implementing the project, covering the rights and obligations of the contracting parties. The project may begin as soon as the contract has been signed.

Applicants will be informed individually in writing of the decision(s) pertaining to their application(s).

The Commission will publish in the Official Journal of the European Union a list of the beneficiaries and projects funded under this call for proposals, together with an indication of the amount of funding awarded.

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(1)OJ L 5, 9.1.2004, p. 1.

(2)OJ C 102, 2.4.2002.

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CALL FOR PROPOSALS (EAC/10/04)

Networking of pilot projects promoting youth participation

(2004/C 113/02)

1.   Background

The Commission White Paper ‘A new impetus for European Youth’ (1) identifies as a political priority the development of active citizenship of young people. Participation in the decision-making process is the basis of active citizenship and contributes to participative democracy.

According to the White Paper, citizenship and participation of young people have to be developed primarily at local level.

A budget line was created for 2003 and 2004 to fund pilot-projects on youth participation and to network them.

Simultaneously, and in order to complement the implementation of common objectives adopted by the Member States, the outcomes of the present action also aim to strengthen the exchange of experiences and good practices and the development of proposals for action in favour of young people in the framework of the new programme.

2.   Objectives

In the framework of a new cooperation policy in the area of youth, and based on the proposals contained in the White Paper on Youth, the aim of this action is to fund innovative and networkable projects at European level for active youth participation.

These projects must associate young people (aged 13 to 30 years) including marginalised young people, in local participation projects and in their networking.

The specific added value of this action is twofold: as a successor of the action carried out in 2003, it brings a transnational dimension to the participation projects, thus promoting political cooperation and the exchange of good practice at European level. It will also facilitate the improvement of measures to promote active citizenship on the part of young people in the framework of the new programme.

3.   Timetable

Applications must be submitted by 18 June 2004 at the latest as per postmark.

The activities must start between 1 December 2004 and 1 March 2005. The maximum duration of the projects is 24 months. Projects with a longer duration than the one specified in the present call will not be accepted.

As an indication, the Commission has envisaged the following timetable:

4.   Budget

The budget available for this call for proposals is EUR 2,1 million. On the basis of this amount, the Directorate-General for Education and Culture envisages supporting a limited number of pilot-projects, normally at a level of funding between EUR 80 000 and EUR 120 000.

The request for Community co-funding cannot exceed 65 % of the project's total budget.

5.   Eligibility criteria

Only the proposals corresponding to the following criteria will be the subject of an in-depth evaluation.

5.1.   Who may submit an application?

All non-profit making institutions or organisations with a legal identity.

5.2.   Eligible countries

Applications are eligible if submitted by organisations with a legal identity and established in one of the following countries:

5.3.   Eligible activities

Projects submitted must promote networkable participation projects.

To be considered, applications must consist of:

The actions must target the creation and development of sustainable similar projects promoting the exchange of good practice, the identification and/or resolution of common problems, the elaboration of common methodologies and the dissemination of results.

The diversity of partnerships is also an important element: each project must associate several types of partners (municipalities, NGOs, associations, schools, etc.) and must be implemented, both at local and at networking level, with the participation of young people.

Networking must have an important European dimension. Applications must include:

There must be a single application per proposal.

Participation in local projects must be certified by a statement bearing the original signature of the responsible person for each of the 5 (or more) local projects.

Only proposals submitted on the original and official application form, completed in full, duly signed, accompanied by all requested annexes and received by the specific closing date (see point 12.3) will be considered. Besides the original, two full copies of the proposal must also be provided.

6.   Exclusion criteria

Applicants must produce proof that they are not in one of the situations specified in Articles 93 and 94 of the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002) and described hereafter. Applicants will be excluded if:

According to Articles 93 to 96 of the Financial Regulation, administrative and financial penalties may be imposed on applicants who are guilty of misrepresentation in supplying information or are declared to be in serious breach of previous contractual obligations.

7.   Selection criteria

The organisation submitting the application must have stable and sufficient financial resources to carry out its activities throughout the implementation period of the action. It must dispose of the professional competencies and qualifications required to implement effectively the action or work programme proposed.

The technical and financial capacity of the candidates will be evaluated on the basis of documents provided with the application.

An eligible application must be accompanied by the following documents:

8.   Award criteria

The Commission will award the grants after having taken into consideration the following criteria.

8.1.   Evaluation of the contents and quality of the proposals

The quality of the partnerships will be evaluated at two levels:

8.2.   Organisational and budgetary aspects of the proposals

The following elements will be assessed:

9.   Financial conditions

Community grants are an incentive to carry out an action that would not be able to be carried out without the financial support of the Commission, and are based on the principle of co-financing. They complement the applicant's its partners' own financial contributions, and national, regional or local support that has been obtained elsewhere.

The subsidised project may not benefit from any other Community funding for the same activities.

The grant awarded by the Commission may not have the purpose or effect of producing a profit for the beneficiary. Profit is defined as a surplus of revenue over the costs of the action in question. Any surplus will lead to a proportional reduction of the amount of the grant.

The Commission may require the organisation, which was awarded a grant to lodge a guarantee in advance in order to limit the financial risks connected with the payment of pre-financing.

9.1.   Financial contribution of the Community

Up to 65 % of the eligible costs (see below). Only costs incurred after the signature of the agreement will be taken into consideration

The grant application must include a detailed, provisional budget with all costs drawn up in Euro. The budget for the project (a model of which is contained in the application form) must have expenditure and revenue in balance and show clearly the costs, which are eligible for financing from the Community budget.

9.2.   Eligible and ineligible costs

In the context of the present call, costs will be deemed as eligible, in so far as:

Eligible costs:

Ineligible costs (they are excluded from the co-financing budget request):

9.3.   Examination and follow-up of applications

The selected proposals will be subject to detailed financial examination, at which stage the Commission may request complementary information from the persons responsible for the proposed actions.

In the event of final approval by the Commission, a financial agreement, drawn up in Euro and detailing the conditions and level of funding, will be concluded between the Commission and the beneficiary. The Commission may require the beneficiary to lodge a bank guarantee. This agreement (original) must be signed and returned to the Commission immediately. The beneficiary will receive a pre-financing payment of 40 % within 45 days of the date when the two parties have signed the agreement.

9.4.   Presentation of the final report and financial breakdown

According to the terms of the financial agreement, a second pre-financing payment of 40 % may be made when at least 70 % of the previous pre-financing payment has been used up. In that case, persons responsible for proposals approved and financed by the Commission must submit a detailed statement of the eligible costs actually incurred when requesting the second pre-financing instalment. On completion of the project a final report must be submitted. These reports, which should provide a succinct but complete description of the results of the activities outlined in the proposal, should also be accompanied by any publications produced (brochures, teaching material, videos, multimedia, press clippings, etc.).

The final financial statement, annexed to the final report, should show real costs and receipts. The beneficiary must set up an accounting system for the co-financed action and keep all original supporting documents for possible auditing for a period of five years as from the date of completion of the agreement. After approval of the final report, the beneficiary will receive the final payment. An external audit of accounts carried out by an approved auditor may be requested by the responsible authorising officer in support of any payment, based on his/her own risk analysis.

10.   Subcontracting and award of procurement contracts

Where implementation of the assisted action requires the award of procurement contracts of an estimated amount of more than EUR 5 000, beneficiaries of grants shall request at least three offers from different tenders and shall award the contract to the tender offering the best value for money, that is to say, to the tender offering the best price-quality ratio, in compliance with the principles of transparency and equal treatment for potential contractors, care being taken to avoid any conflict of interests.

11.   Publicity

Applicants will be informed of the receipt of their proposals within ten working days.

Only applications that fulfil the eligibility criteria will be considered for a possible grant. Ineligible applications will be responded to, indicating the reasons for their ineligibility.

After the evaluation is completed, all unsuccessful applicants will be informed in writing.

All grants awarded in the course of a financial year shall be published on the Internet site of the Community institutions during the first half of the year following the closure of the budget year in respect of which they were awarded. The Commission shall publish the name and address of the beneficiaries, the subject of the grant and the amount of the grant and the rate of co-financing. This information will be published with the agreement of the beneficiaries, unless publication of this information may threaten the safety of the beneficiaries or harm their commercial interests. In the event that the beneficiaries do not agree with this, they should attach a detailed justification, which the Commission will consider during the selection procedure.

In all publications or during activities for which the grant is used, beneficiaries must indicate clearly the European Union's contribution.

12.   Submission, examination and follow-up procedure of applications

12.1.   Publication

The call for proposals will be published on the Internet site of the Directorate-General Education and Culture, at the following address:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/youth/call/index_en.html

and possibly in any other medium deemed appropriate, notably the Offical Journal of the European Union.

12.2.   Application forms

Proposals must be submitted on the official application form in one of the 11 official EU languages. Please note that only typewritten applications will be accepted.

The application forms (available in the 11 official EU languages) can be downloaded from the following address on the Internet:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/youth/call/index_en.html

These documents can also be requested by fax ((32-2) 299 40 38) or by mail from the address indicated hereafter. They will be sent by normal mail. This is why only the requests for application forms received in due time will be considered.

12.3.   Presentation of the grant application

Only proposals (three copies of which one is the original) submitted on the official application form, completed in full (including the annexes) in one of the 11 Community languages, dated, signed, and showing a balanced budget (revenue/expenditure) and sent in conformity with the procedures and conditions indicated hereafter will be considered (see also points 7 and 8 of the present call).

The applications will not be considered if they do not include all documents required or are not written in the languages concerned or have not been submitted by the deadline.

Applications must be sent to the address below at the latest by18 June 2004 (as per postmark):

The applications bearing a postmark after 18 June 2004 will not be considered under any circumstance. Consequently, it is strongly recommended to persons submitting their application in the last days before the deadline to use a courier or registered post with proof of reception. Candidates will be informed of receipt of their proposals within ten working days at the email address provided in the application.

13.   Rules applicable

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(1)  COM(2001) 681 final of 21.11.2001

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CALL FOR PROPOSALS

A European Forecasting Network

(2004/C 113/03)

The European Commission is launching a call for proposals with the purpose of ensuring a long term co-operation with a European Forecasting Network. This co-operation shall take the form of a partnership framework agreement between the Commission and the network over a period of three years. The network's tasks will be to complement the analysis of the Commission concerning economic developments and economic policies in the euro area. The network should consist of independent research institutes and should produce bi-annual reports containing a macro-economic forecast of the euro area together with an analysis of topical policy issues. This work should focus exclusively on the euro area as a whole and aim at providing additional analytical support to economic policy discussions of the Commission and the Eurogroup.

I.   CONTEXT AND PURPOSE

I.1.   Background

The introduction of the euro and the creation of an economic and monetary union have changed to a substantial degree the framework for economic forecasting and economic policy analysis. Moreover, the accession of new Member States and their real and nominal convergence process adds a further dimension to economic integration in the EU and, eventually, in the euro area. While in the past the focus of the research community was largely on national analyses, the new framework makes it increasingly necessary to take into account the wider context, i.e. developments at the euro-area level as a whole. Despite the required reorientation, discussions on economic policy matters at euro-area level do not yet benefit from research institutes' analyses to the same degree as does the policy debate at national level.

In response to the lack of a sufficiently influential role of research institutes in the euro-area policy debate, the European Commission set up a European Forecasting Network (EFN) in 2001. The total period foreseen for this co-operation was three years, i.e. will be completed by the end of 2004. During this period, the EFN consisted of eight national institutes from six different countries in the European Union. The EFN has provided useful supplementary research on various important topics, as well as regular forecasts for the economy of the euro area. The overall experience with the network's accomplishments has been positive, and their research achievements have contributed to the euro-area debate.

The European Commission wants to continue to support and promote high-quality independent macro-economic analysis on the euro area from the research community. This will be accomplished by the renewed constitution of an EFN and its complementary contribution to euro-area policy-makers in their economic assessment of the euro area.

I.2.   Objective

The aim of the EFN will be, as in the past, to improve the understanding of the economic conditions and outlook for the euro area and, in turn, to allow the Commission to improve the basis for policy discussions and decisions of the Eurogroup. To this end, a network that links leading EU research institutes in forecasting and applied macroeconomics should be created. Combining its resources and expertise, the network's objective is to produce consistent macro-economic forecasts of the euro area and to develop independent and consensual analyses of the economic situation and outlook, which will take the form of joint reports. As a major part of the objective the network will also provide an in-depth analysis of pertinent economic policy issues for the euro area.

I.3.   Mandate

The network will prepare two reports per year. These reports will focus on the euro area as a whole and will consist of two parts, namely:

The reports do not need to draw from a single analytical framework, but would preferably build on the strengths of each participating institute. Whilst attempting to present robust conclusions and a consensus view on policy-relevant issues, the reports should also reflect and comment upon potentially different approaches.

The network will choose the economic policy topics contained in the reports in agreement with the Commission services. The network will discuss a draft of the report with the Commission services in advance of its publication. While remaining solely responsible for the content of the report, the network should, whenever possible, take due account of the comments received from the Commission services.

I.4.   Functioning of the network

One of the participating institutes will take the role of the network co-ordinator. The network co-ordinator shall:

In addition, the network co-ordinator will submit a draft outline for the first semester report within 4 weeks of signature of the contract, and thereafter, a draft outline for the following report upon submission of each semester report. Final outlines will be agreed with the Commission services, which will assist in identifying the key policy priorities, notably with regard to the choice of economic policy topics.

I.5.   Timing and submission of reports

The reports will be submitted in March/April and in September/October to the Commission, which will transmit them to the Eurogroup. The reports will also be presented to the European Parliament.

II.   FINANCING

The Commission's share in the joint financing may not exceed 50 % of the expenditure incurred by the network.

The maximum annual budget available for the programme is in the region of EUR 300 000.

III.   ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

The Commission wishes to establish a long term co-operation with the successful applicant. For this purpose it is proposed to conclude a three year multi beneficiaries framework partnership agreement between the parties. Under this multi beneficiaries framework agreement, which will specify the common objectives the nature of the actions planned, three specific annual grant agreements may be concluded between the parties.

IV.   ELIGIBILITY

IV.1.   Legal Status of applicants

The call for proposals is open to bodies and institutes (legal entities) with legal status in one of the current and new EU Member States.

IV.2.   Financing applications

The proposal shall show that the applicant has the financial capacity to complete the proposed work programme. To this effect, an external audit report by an approved auditor must be submitted. The report shall certify the accounts for the last two financial years available and give an assessment of the financial viability of the applicant to maintain his activity throughout the period of the agreement. This obligation may be waived for

IV.3.   Exclusion

Applications will not be considered for a grant if the applicants are in any of the following situations: (1)

V.   SELECTION CRITERIA

Among the proposals found eligible the following criteria will be used to assess the applicant's ability to complete the proposed work programme:

VI.   AWARD CRITERIA

The following criteria will be used to award the agreement to only one network:

VII.   SELECTION COMMITTEE

A selection committee is to be set up under the authority of the Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs to evaluate all proposals and select the awarded one. It will be made up of at least five members representing different specialised units and will have its own secretariat responsible for handling communication with the successful network following the selection procedure. Unsuccessful candidates will also be notified individually.

VIII.   PRACTICAL PROCEDURES

VIII.1.   Drawing-up and submission of proposals

Instructions and rules for drawing up and submitting proposals, covering all the relevant information, formalities and documentation, are given below in points VIII.2, VIII.3 and VIII.4.

Proposals must be submitted on a standard proposal form.

A copy of the proposal form, the standard grant agreement; a budget statement form for providing an overall estimate of the cost of the network and the required Community contribution, and other relevant standard forms can be obtained from the Commission by either:

Proposals must be submitted in triplicate in English.

Whether delivered by hand or posted, proposals must be in a sealed cover contained in another sealed envelope. The outside envelope should bear the address given in point VIII.3 below and should be marked ‘Call for proposals– ECFIN/2004/Dir A’. The sealed inner envelope containing the proposal must be marked ‘Call for proposals – ECFIN/2004/Dir A - not to be opened by the internal mail department’.

The Commission will notify candidates that their proposal has been received by returning the acknowledgement of receipt slip submitted with the proposal.

VIII.2.   Contents of proposals

The proposal must include:

and the following in triplicate:

All other information and documents that the candidates may judge necessary for the appraisal of proposals on the basis of the selection and award criteria set out in points V and VI.

VIII.3.   Address for submitting proposals

VIII.4.   Application deadline

The deadline for proposals delivered by hand is 16.00 h on 25 June 2004.

Proposals sent by post should be postmarked no later than 25 June 2004. If express delivery is used, the proposals must arrive by 16.00 on 25 June 2004.

IX.   IMPORTANT

This call for proposals does not constitute any sort of contractual obligation on the part of the Commission towards any network of institutes submitting a proposal on the basis of it. All communication regarding this call for proposals must be in writing to the address mentioned in point VIII.3.

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(1)  In compliance with Articles 93 and 94 of the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities.

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Call for proposals for indirect RTD actions under the specific programme for research, technological development and demonstration: ‘Structuring the European research area’

Science and society: Research on ethics

(Call identifier: FP6-2004-Science-and-society-9)

Science and society: Women and science

(Call identifier: FP6-2004-Science-and-society-10)

(2004/C 113/04)

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(1)OJ L 232, 29.8.2002, p. 1.

(2)OJ L 294, 29.10.2002, p. 44.

(3)  Commission Decision C(2002) 4791, as amended by Commission Decisions C(2003) 635, C(2003) 998, C(2003) 1951, C(2003) 2708, C(2003) 4571, and C(2004) 48, all unpublished.

(4)OJ L 355, 30.12.2002, p. 23.

(5)OJ L 248, 16.9.2002, p. 1.

(6)OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 1.

(7)  Users of courier services that ask for the recipient's telephone number should give the following number: Research on ethics:(32-2) 296 34 14 (Ms Isabel Sanz Calzada); Women and science: (32-2) 296 46 93 (Ms Tanya Leigh).

(8)  All proposals for indirect RTD actions must contain two parts: the forms (part A) and the content (part B).

(9)  Proposals for indirect RTD actions should be submitted in PDF (portable document format, version 3 or higher with embedded fonts) or RTF (rich text format).

(10)  See footnote 8.

(11)  See footnote 9.

(12)  See footnote 8.

(13)  This does not include proposals for indirect RTD actions that have been submitted online.

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ANNEX I

1.   Specific programme: Structuring the ERA

2.   Activity: Science and Society

3.   Call title: Research into ethics

4.   Call identifier: FP6-2004-Science-and-society-9

5.   Date of publication: 

6.   Closure date: 30 September 2004, 17.00 (Brussels local time).

7.   Total indicative budget: EUR 5,4 million.

8.   Area and instruments: proposals are invited in the following topics. The table gives short titles only. For a full description of the topics, applicants must refer to the work programme.

9.   Minimum number of participants (1): 

10.   Restriction to participation: none. Furthermore, any legal entity established in a third country not covered by article 6(2) of the Rules for Participation (entities in countries having concluded an S & T agreement with the Community may participate by right) may also participate in this call providing that such an involvement would be beneficial or essential to the proposed activity, and is over and above the specified minimum number of participants from Member State or associated countries. The Community may contribute towards the costs of such participation.

11.   Consortium agreement: Participants in RTD actions resulting from this call are not required to conclude a consortium agreement.

12.   Evaluation procedure: 

13.   Evaluation criteria: 

14.   Indicative evaluation and selection delays: 

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(1)  MS = Member States of the EU ; AS (including ACC)  = associated States ; ACC : associated candidate countries.

Any legal entity established in a Member State or Associated State and which is made up of the requested number of participant may be the sole participant in an indirect action.

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ANNEX 2

1.   Specific programme: Structuring the ERA

2.   Activity: Science and society

3.   Call title: Women and science

4.   Call identifier: FP6-2004-Science-and-society-10

5.   Date of publication: 

6.   Closure date: 30 September 2004, 17.00 (Brussels local time).

7.   Total indicative budget: EUR 6.4 million.

8.   Area and instruments: proposals are invited in the following topics. The table gives short titles only. For a full description of the topics, applicants must refer to the work programme.

9.   Minimum number of participants (1): 

10.   Restriction to participation: none. Furthermore, any legal entity established in a third country not covered by Article 6(2) of the Rules for Participation (entities in countries having concluded an S & T agreement with the Community may participate by right) may also participate in this call providing that such an involvement would be beneficial or essential to the proposed activity, and is over and above the specified minimum number of participants from Member State or associated countries. The Community may contribute towards the costs of such participation.

11.   Consortium agreement: participants in RTD actions resulting from this call are not required to conclude a consortium agreement.

12.   Evaluation procedure: 

13.   Evaluation criteria: 

14.   Indicative evaluation and selection delays: 

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(1)  MS = Member States of the EU ; AS (incl. ACC)  = Associated States ; ACC : Associated candidate countries.

Any legal entity established in a Member State or Associated State and which is made up of the requested number of participant may be the sole participant in an indirect action.

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Call for proposals (Directorate-General for Education and Culture) under the second phase of the Leonardo da Vinci Programme - (EAC/11/04)

(2004/C 113/05)

Part 1 –   Policy context, Priorities, Timetable

I.   Introduction

The Leonardo da Vinci programme contributes to the implementation of a vocational training policy for the Community, which supports and supplements the actions of the Member States (Article 150 of the Treaty establishing the European Community). The Council has adopted a second phase of the programme for the period 2000 to 2006 by Decision 1999/382/EC. Its aim is to promote new practical approaches in vocational training policies.

According to the provisions of the aforementioned Council Decision, this third and final call for proposals is valid for two years (2005 and 2006).

This call for proposals concerns the following Community measures: mobility; pilot projects (PP) including thematic actions (TH); language competences (LA); transnational networks (NT), and reference material (RF).

Statistical projects, as for the past two years, will be subject to specific calls for tender to be published in the course of the validity of the present call, after the updating of the rolling biennial statistical programme.

The measure on Joint Actions will be the subject of separate calls.

II.   The context

The Leonardo da Vinci programme aims to implement a European Community vocational training policy by contributing ‘... to the promotion of a Europe of knowledge by developing a European area of cooperation in the field of education and vocational training ...’ and by supporting ‘... Member States' policies on lifelong learning and the building up of the knowledge and skills and competences likely to foster active citizenship and employability.’ (Article 1(3) of the Council decision establishing the Leonardo da Vinci programme).

A number of significant policy developments relevant to the Leonardo da Vinci programme have taken place since its inception.

In March 2000 the heads of State and Government at the Lisbon European Council set the European Union the strategic goal of becoming the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world. Key elements of this strategy are the adaptation of education and training systems to lifelong learning; the promotion of employability and social inclusion through investment in knowledge and competences; the creation of an information society for all and fostering mobility. This strategy was confirmed by the Barcelona summit in March 2002, where it was stated that European education and training systems should become a world reference by 2010 and that closer cooperation should be promoted in the area of vocational education and training (VET).

The adoption of the ‘Copenhagen Declaration (1)’ by 31 Ministers of Education, the European social partners and the Commission in November 2002 is a direct and concrete follow up of the broad objectives agreed in Lisbon and Barcelona. The Copenhagen Declaration is a significant step forward as it identifies a set of specific issues and challenges where increased European cooperation in VET is required and welcomed.

The Copenhagen Declaration, as an integral part of the overall strategy defined in Lisbon and Barcelona, is closely linked to the follow up of ‘Common objectives for European education and training systems’ agreed by the Council in 2001. Its purpose is to improve the quality and attractiveness of VET (including the status of the vocational route through general education). This can be done by developing tools at European level aimed at improving the transparency and recognition of qualifications and competences, and by providing a framework for the reform of VET systems at national level, promoting their transformation and adaptation to the needs of the knowledge society, in order to become flexible, personalised and learner-centred systems.

All actions taken forward in the context of the Copenhagen process have to be based on a voluntary approach, have to be inclusive on the basis of consensus between the 31 countries and the European Social Partners and have to be based on the perspective of lifelong learning.

The main elements of the follow-up to the Copenhagen declaration are:

The majority of these priorities address specific themes and issues where European cooperation and common solutions are necessary. In most cases these relate to challenges which cannot be solved exclusively at national level. This is well illustrated by objectives focusing on 'valuing learning' (transparency, recognition, validation) but also by objectives focusing on guidance and quality.

Priority 6, together with the overall aim of strengthening the European dimension of VET, differs from the ’thematic objectives‘ by addressing the need to activate new levels of cooperation, particularly within sectors.

The European dimension of VET must be strengthened by developing new ways of working together, for example by promoting closer institutional cooperation and peer review.

In order to meet these objectives intensive work has taken place since the adoption of the declaration. In February 2003, a ‘Copenhagen Coordination Group’ was established and in the course of the year three technical working groups (on transparency, on quality in VET and on credit transfer in VET) as well as two Commission expert groups (on validation of non-formal learning and on lifelong guidance) were set up and have met several times.

In line with its ambition of being the primary instrument for the implementation of a European vocational training policy, the aim of the Leonardo da Vinci programme must be to support the new policy framework set by the Copenhagen declaration of November 2002. This means that the programme with its experimental and innovative character has to function as a laboratory supporting a rich diversity of approaches and solutions to contribute to the general objectives outlined by the Lisbon and Barcelona Councils and to the specific priorities set by Copenhagen.

This call for proposals valid for 2005 and 2006 is therefore focused on a limited number of priorities and thematic actions in support of the ongoing work within the follow-up to the Copenhagen Declaration. It remains in line with the objectives of the programme and with the efforts of simplification and clarification of procedures which began with the call 2003 to 2004, as well as with the result of the evaluation of the first phase of the programme and the first interim evaluation of the second phase.

Last but not least, this call integrates the importance of ‘valorisation’ (i.e. dissemination and exploitation of innovative project results). Promoters are required to address it in their proposals and throughout the life of their projects.

This is the background for the priorities and actions set out in the following sections.

III.   The sectoral approach

The sectoral approach emphasises the role of sectors as a ‘testing ground’ for the development of international qualifications and competences. The sectoral level is of particular importance as players at this level are close to problems and challenges associated with globalisation and the development of new technologies and, are in a good position to suggest and develop solutions. This is illustrated by the fact that important initiatives aiming at European and international training standards and modules have been adopted at this level in recent years.

A substantial proportion of projects supported by Leonardo da Vinci in the period 1995 to 2004, have operated at sector level. This dimension has not been systematically exploited and this call addresses this weakness. The sector level is important to the Leonardo da Vinci programme for the following reasons:

The objectives set by the Copenhagen declaration, aiming at transparency, recognition and quality, can not be realised without active and systematic involvement of players at this level. Sectors are therefore invited to present their education and training needs and challenges and indicate how the Leonardo da Vinci programme might be used to support experiment and development. The following requirements should be taken into account:

The cross-cutting element of qualifications and competence development must be taken into account when developing projects at sector level. This dimension must live side by side with a targeted sectoral focus and should be clearly addressed by the project promoters.

IV.   Strategic priorities

The essence of the Lisbon Strategy and of the follow-up to the Copenhagen Declaration revolves around two main priorities.

It is therefore in line with the EU strategic goals that during the last two years of its implementation the Leonardo da Vinci programme be focused on these two priorities, so as to contribute decisively to achieving these objectives.

These two strategic priorities can be made operational by identifying specific themes contributing to their goals and capable of triggering ideas for implementation in project proposals.

So the following themes have been identified:

V.   Mobility (Procedure A)

The mobility measure is at the core of the policy development since it provides a unique opportunity for the target groups to train and complete their vocational education and training in another country within the enlarged Europe. It contributes to the development of the European labour market, to the free movement of workers and citizens and to a better knowledge and transparency of competences across borders.

The mobility measure takes up more than 40 % of the Leonardo da Vinci programme annual budget. Experience has shown that there is a need to propose specific actions in order to improve the overall quality of the mobility activities financed under the programme.

For the purpose of this call for proposals preference will be given to projects specifying the following elements:

In addition, all individuals undergoing a period of mobility within the programme shall be awarded, on request and where applicable, a ‘MobiliPass’ (2). In the framework of the programme such a ‘MobiliPass’ will be issued by the relevant implementation bodies, following the principles and criteria set out in the single instrument proposal.

It should be noted that the mobility measure under the Leonardo da Vinci programme is a decentralised measure, managed by the national agencies responsible for the implementation of the programme at national level. Further to the deadlines set out in this call for proposals, it is possible for participating countries to launch additional national calls which may include other priorities of national interest.

Promoters are invited to contact the relevant national agency of their country for more information. Addresses of all national agencies can be found at the following Leonardo da Vinci web site:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/programmes/leonardo/new/leonardo2_en.html.

VI.   Specific priorities for all measures covered by Procedures B and C (3) (with the exception of Thematic actions)

Priority 1:   Promoting transparency of qualifications

Transparency is crucial to enable transfer of qualifications and competences among countries, regions and sectors. With the diversity of education and training provisions in Europe today it should be possible to present, compare and value skills according to their content, not according to preconceptions. This need is underlined by the increased involvement of sectors in developing education and training.

Pilot projects under this priority should focus particularly on:

Specific for reference material (RF) projects:

Specific for Transnational networks (NT) projects:

Priority 2:   Developing the Quality of VET systems and practices

‘Quality’ was, in the call 2003 to 2004, the subject of thematic actions. In view of the progress made in the related technical working group, the need arises to expand the scope of actions within the programme and open the theme to the contribution of a wider range of potential promoters.

Under this priority, particular emphasis should be given to quality assurance and development in VET, in order to help Member States to progressively increase the transparency, the effectiveness and the consistency of their actions in this field.

In this perspective, transnational cooperation, and thus project development under different measures, should focus on the implementation and fine-tuning of the common quality assurance framework agreed by the Technical Working Group on Quality in VET (Copenhagen Process).

The exchange of good practices and models, which is the basic principle underpinning transnational networking and cooperation in this field, should use the commonly agreed reference principles, criteria and indicators referred to in the Common Quality Assurance Framework, and focus on:

Pilot Projects under this priority should focus particularly on:

Specific for reference material (RF) projects:

Specific for transnational networks (NT) projects:

Priority 3:   Developing relevant and innovative e-learning content

Following the recent launch of the new ‘e-learning’ programme after the successful implementation of the e-learning action plan, it is more and more accepted that ICT represent an essential feature for the modernisation and adaptation of training systems to the requirements of the knowledge society and economy.

While the use of ICT is generally encouraged in the Council decision as an horizontal feature covering all the measures, the need to develop innovative e-learning material has to be encouraged and supported at all levels. It is therefore targeted by a specific priority setting out some concrete features that have to be addressed.

Projects under this priority should focus particularly on:

Priority 4:   Continuous training of teachers and trainers

New teaching and learning methods challenge the traditional roles and responsibilities of teachers, trainers and other learning facilitators. There is, therefore, a strong need to develop their training to ensure that they are ready and motivated to face the new challenges. The exchange of experience between schools, voluntary organisations, universities and companies should provide insight into learning needs in this area.

Pilot projects under this priority should focus particularly on:

Specific for reference material (RF) projects:

Specific for transnational networks (NT) projects:

VII.   Thematic actions (TH) - (procedure C only)

The Council decision makes provision for the financing of a limited number of projects on themes of particular interest at Community level. The advances made in the specific technical working groups on ‘credit transfer in VET’ and on ‘validation of non-formal and informal learning’ make these two themes particularly suitable to become thematic actions and allow a call for a small number of projects of specific interest.

TH-1:   Credit Transfer in VET

The development of a European credit transfer system for VET (ECVET) is aimed at promoting transparency, comparability, transferability and recognition of competences and/or qualifications, between different countries and at different levels.

The purpose of ECVET is to combine units and/or training modules acquired within different national and/or sectoral contexts.

The development of a credit transfer system in VET has to be based not only on mutual trust between partner countries but also, and mostly, on the definition of common frameworks for competences. In fact, the recognition of qualifications should not be based on the transfer of training credit units, but on competences well identified in common frameworks and forming the basis for certification.

The validation of non-formal and informal learning, as well as the relationships between modules, units, credits and certification/qualification, is a key issue in this respect.

ECVET will, in an initial experimental phase, assist students, adults and teachers or trainers to increase cooperation and exchanges in initial vocational education and adult training at ISCED (international standards for classification of education) levels 3 and 4, where a particular demand for mobility and/or credit transfer is identified.

The further development of credit transfer in VET at European level should however take into account the need for transfer of competences and qualifications at all levels, supporting the development of a European labour market and a European area of lifelong learning. ECVET should therefore be comparable with the European credit transfer system in higher education.

Projects under this TH should focus particularly on:

TH-2:   Validation of non-formal and informal learning

Learning takes place in a wide variety of settings and contexts, ranging from formal education and training to learning at work, in voluntary work and at home. Given the efforts to promote lifelong learning, developing approaches for the identification, assessment and recognition of non-formal and informal learning has become an important priority throughout Europe.

Projects under this TH should focus particularly on:

VIII.   Specific issues concerning ‘Language competences’ projects

The European Union is built around the free movement of its citizens, capital and services. The citizen with good intercultural and language skills is better placed to take advantage of the freedom to work in another Member State and to be more effective in the global market place.

The European Council meeting in Barcelona in March 2002 set a clear strategic goal: to improve the mastery of basic skills, in particular by teaching at least two foreign languages from a very early age. A European Parliament Resolution of 13 December 2001 called for measures to promote language learning and linguistic diversity. On 14 February 2002 the Education Council invited Member States to take concrete steps to promote linguistic diversity and language learning, and invited the European Commission to draw up proposals in these fields.

In response to this invitation the Commission adopted on 24 July 2003 the Action Plan 2004 to 2006 with a view to boosting language learning and linguistic diversity (5). The Action Plan undertakes to make better use of existing education and training programmes to underpin a range of key objectives. Three broad areas for action have been identified: extending the benefits of lifelong language learning to all citizens, improving language teaching and creating a more language-friendly environment.

Promoting linguistic diversity means actively encouraging the teaching and learning of the widest possible range of languages in our schools, training institutions and enterprises. The imminent enlargement of the European Union will bring with it a wealth of languages from several language families. It requires a special effort to ensure that the languages of the new Member States become more widely learned in other countries. Projects including the less-used European languages including regional and minority languages and migrant languages are strongly encouraged.

This chapter presents some specific issues that should be developed within the general priorities and themes presented above in the context of ‘Language competences’ projects.

(a)   Language training prior to mobility

Persons receiving a mobility grant for placements under the Leonardo da Vinci programme are entitled to receive funding for training in the language of the host country before they travel. Experience has shown that this possibility is not being fully exploited. Projects should focus on developing reliable methods to be applied in language and inter-cultural training prior to mobility, with a view to improving quality and take-up, particularly in cases where the beneficiary has no knowledge at all of the language of the host country.

(b)   Innovative approaches such as Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL)

Proposals should focus on the development and dissemination of new, specific methodologies and materials and on actions to raise awareness for training through foreign languages, including the lesser-used languages or on other innovative methods.

The CLIL approach, whereby students learn a subject through the medium of a foreign language, has a major contribution to make to the Union's language learning goals. By integrating the study of a subject with a language, CLIL leads learners to discover different vocabulary as well as aspects of the language in their area of specialisation. It can provide effective opportunities for learners to put their new language skills to immediate use, opening doors on languages for a broader range of learners, particularly those who have not responded well to formal language instruction in general education. It provides exposure to the language, which can be important in vocational settings. The CLIL approach is facilitated by a cross-departmental team of language trainers and specialist subject trainers.

(c)   Training for Teachers and trainers

There is a role for the Leonardo de Vinci programme to complement the actions of the Member States in the areas of initial and in-service training of teachers and trainers of a foreign language. Projects should focus on the development of a basic ‘toolkit’ of practical skills, personal resources and techniques (including e-learning and distance learning) required for the teaching of languages in the vocational training context. The establishment of networks of teachers and trainers is encouraged.

(d)   Transparency

A great diversity of language tests and certificates of language skills exists in Europe. These differences make it difficult to compare the language skills between individuals. It is not easy for employers or training institutions to know what practical language skills the holder of any language certificate really possesses. European networks of relevant professionals could help share good practice in this field. Projects should focus on the development of tools and methodologies for the assessment and recognition of language skills acquired in the workplace (in particular partial skills), taking into account the Common European Framework of reference and the European Language Portfolio.

(e)   Language-friendly companies

Proposals should focus on:

IX.   ‘Valorisation’ (for procedure B and C proposals)

(a)   ‘Transfer of innovation’ and ‘Transnational networks’ proposals involving pre-2005 projects

Promoters of former (pre-2005) successful Leonardo da Vinci projects that did not cover the valorisation aspects, should be aware of the fact that dissemination and exploitation of results activities may also be submitted either as ‘Transfer of innovation’ proposals both in 2005 and 2006 (6) or as ‘Transnational networks’ proposals.

The Transnational networks measure, according to the annexe to the Decision establishing the second phase of the programme, provides for analysing, disseminating, and exchanging of good practice and methods. The development of networks on a territorial, sectoral or thematic basis should be encouraged as they can serve as relays for the transversal exploitation of micro projects and work in depth on the development of vocational training systems.

(b)   Proposals 2005 to 2006

In order to be more relevant than ever, care has to be taken that the results of the new projects to be selected in 2005 and 2006 be properly disseminated and implemented during and after project's life. It is therefore requested that for a proposal to be accepted within all the priorities and actions proposed, a ‘valorisation’ plan (i.e. plan for the dissemination and exploitation of innovative project results) be made explicit with appropriate and adequate resources.

This plan should:

On completion of their projects promoters should make the results of their projects available to the public by setting up a web site as a show case for their work.

X.   Thematic Monitoring (for procedure B and C proposals)

Project promoters should expect, if selected, to participate in thematic monitoring activities, i.e. anticipate the cost of participating once a year in a working meeting with promoters of projects covering the same domain with a view to exchange experience on both the content of their projects and their valorisation activities.

In addition, once in the life time of their projects, they should also expect to participate in a ‘valorisation’ conference bringing together project promoters and potential end-users.

XI.   Complementarity

The Council Decision on the Leonardo da Vinci programme specifies that complementarity should be strengthened between Leonardo da Vinci and other relevant policies, instruments, and Community actions which contribute to the realisation of a Europe of knowledge; in particular in the fields of education, vocational training, youth, research and technological development, and innovation as well as with the European Social Fund.

Projects linked with the guidelines for employment must contribute to the development of the transnational dimension in their achievement (taking account of the national employment policy) and encourage awareness of good practice.

Double financing is not allowed. Promoters cannot receive financial support for the same proposal under the Leonardo da Vinci programme and under other Community programmes or initiatives, except under particular conditions established for the specific Community Joint Actions.

XII.   Duration of projects

As stated in the Council Decision establishing the programme, projects under the mobility measure may have a maximum duration of two years. Taking into account the approaching end of the current programme projects referring to the other measures: Pilot projects, including thematic actions, language competences, transnational networks and reference materials will also be limited to a maximum duration of two years.

XIII.   Timetable

Year 2005

Procedure A -   Concerning the mobility measure

Promoters shall send their proposals (original and two copies) under the mobility measure to the relevant national agency (NA) responsible for the implementation of the Leonardo da Vinci programme postmarked 11 February 2005 at the latest. The NA shall inform the promoters and the Commission of the results of the projects selection, and send contracts, by May 2005. Consequently the starting date of projects will be 1 June 2005.

Other deadlines may be indicated by the participating countries in the framework of their specific calls concerning mobility and according to national needs.

Procedure B -   Concerning the following measures: Pilot projects (except thematic actions), language competences and transnational networks

The selection of proposals under these measures shall be carried out in two stages:

The European Commission shall complete the selection of projects during May 2005.

The national agencies shall inform the promoters of the results of the selection process during June 2005 and send contracts during July/August 2005. Consequently the starting date of projects will be 1 October 2005.

Procedure C -   Concerning the reference materials measure, the thematic actions proposals and proposals submitted by European organisations under all measures (except mobility)

The selection of these proposals will be carried out in two stages:

The European Commission shall complete the selection of projects during May 2005 and shall inform the promoters of the result of the selection process by end of June 2005. Contracts will be sent to promoters during July/August 2005; consequently the starting date of projects will be 1 October 2005.

Year 2006

Procedure A -   Concerning the mobility measure

Promoters shall send their proposals (original and two copies) under the Mobility Measure to the relevant National Agency (NA) responsible for the implementation of the Leonardo da Vinci programme postmarked 10 February 2006 at the latest. The NA shall inform the promoters and the Commission of the results of the projects selection, and send contracts, by May 2006. Consequently the starting date of projects will be 1 June 2006.

Other deadlines may be indicated by the Participating countries in the framework of their specific calls concerning mobility and according to national needs.

Procedure B -   Concerning the following measures: Pilot Projects (except thematic actions), language competences and Transnational networks

The selection of proposals under these measures shall be carried out in two stages:

The European Commission shall complete the selection of projects during May 2006.

The national agencies shall inform the promoters of the results of the selection process during June 2006 and send contracts during July/August 2006. Consequently the starting date of projects will be 1 October 2006.

Procedure C -   Concerning the reference materials measure, the thematic actions proposals and proposals submitted by European organisations under all measures (except mobility)

The selection of these proposals will be carried out in two stages:

The European Commission shall complete the selection of projects during May 2006 and shall inform the promoters of the result of the selection process by end of June 2006. Contracts will be sent to promoters during July/August 2006; consequently the starting date of projects will be 1 October 2006.

XIV.   Contracting Services

Part 2 -   Administrative and Financial provisions

NOTE 1:The following chapters have to be read in conjunction with the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (further referred to as FR) and its Implementing rules further referred to as IR) (7), the General Guidelines for promoters, the Guides specific to each measure and the Administrative and Financial handbook (see last chapter for a summary of all references).

NOTE 2:In the following chapters the term ‘promoter’ refers to the organisation that submits the pre-proposal or proposal, the term ‘partners’ refers to the organisations that participate in the pre-proposal or proposal, the term ‘partnership’ refers to the combination of ‘promoter’ and ‘partners’.

All proposals evaluated and selected under this call for proposals, and any national calls for proposals in accordance with procedure A, are subject to the general provisions of the FR and its IR. In accordance with these provisions, proposals are evaluated and selected in compliance with the following principles:

I.   Eligibility criteria

I.1.   Participation in the programme

This programme is to be implemented in the Member States of the European Community (25 countries as from 1 May 2004). It is also open to the participation of the States of EFTA/EEA (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway), of the associated countries Bulgaria and Romania and of Turkey.

Organisations wishing to submit a proposal under the Leonardo da Vinci programme are invited to cooperate with organisations from these countries according to the eligibility rules specified in the General Guide for promoters.

The participation of organisations from Turkey is subject to the condition that the appropriate decisions allowing this country participation in the programme have been taken before the end of the project selection procedure.

In accordance with Article 4 of the Council Decision establishing the second phase of the Leonardo da Vinci programme (8),‘access to this programme shall be open to all public and/or private bodies and institutions involved in vocational training, and in particular:

These bodies and institutions must be established in one of the countries participating in the Leonardo da Vinci programme. Before awarding a grant to promoters whose proposals have been selected, the national agency or the Commission (10) will require confirmation of the promoter's legal status.

I.2.   Formal eligibility criteria

To be eligible, proposals must meet a number of formal conditions, which are described briefly below. Only proposals, which meet all the formal eligibility conditions, go forward for quality evaluation. The eligibility conditions are the following:

II.   Exclusion criteria

Promoters will be excluded from participating in this call for proposals if they are in one of the following situations:

Promoters will be excluded from receiving the grant if, at the time of the grant award procedure, they are in one of the following situations:

According to Articles 93 to 96 of the FR, administrative and financial penalties may be applied to promoters who have been guilty of making false declarations or have been found to have seriously failed to meet their contractual obligations in an earlier procurement or grant award procedure.

III.   Selection criteria

To be selected for further evaluation, proposals must meet a number of formal criteria, which are described briefly below. Only proposals, which meet all the formal selection criteria, go forward for further evaluation. The selection criteria are the following:

Application forms for mobility proposals and for full-proposals subject to procedures B and C, must be accompanied by the following documents:

IV.   Award criteria

The Commission will award the grants after having taken into consideration a number of quality criteria referring to the content and the organisational and budgetary aspects of the proposals. These award criteria are set out in detail in Article VI.3 of the General guide for promoters and in the specific guides devoted to the different measures covered by this call.

Promoters should also take into consideration the specific points mentioned in the preceding chapter of this call and referring specifically to the various priorities and measures.

NOTE 3:The rules and principles mentioned in the following chapters are, in general, specified in detail in the contract (grant agreement) concluded between the national agency (procedure A and B) or the Commission (procedure C) and the promoter (contractor). Additional details can be found as well in the Administrative and financial handbook, inter alia, with regard to the use of lump sums, co-financing in kind, conditions and ceilings on specific budget items with regard to Community contribution, subcontracting, etc. (see last chapter for a summary of all references to model contracts).

V.   Financial conditions

(a)   Payment arrangements

Payments will be made in principle according to the following schedule:

(b)   Financial guarantee

The national agency (procedure A and B) or the Commission (procedure C) may require the promoter (contractor) to lodge a guarantee in advance in order to limit the financial risks connected with the payment of pre-financing. The guarantee shall be valid for a period sufficiently long to allow it to be activated. The guarantee shall be provided by an approved bank or financial institution established in one of the Member States.

It shall have the effect of making the bank or financial institution stand as irrevocable collateral security, or first-call guarantor of the promoter's (contractor's) obligations.

The guarantee shall be released as the pre-financing is cleared against payment of the balance to the promoter (contractor) in accordance with the conditions laid down in the contract (grant agreement).

(c)   Eligible costs

Only the following costs will be deemed as eligible, in so far as they are properly calculated and valued according to market conditions and that they can be identified and verified. They are direct costs incurred in the implementation of the project:

(d)   Ineligible costs

The following costs/expenditures will be excluded from the co-financing budget request:

(d)   Funding

The grant may not have the purpose or effect of producing a profit for the promoter (contractor). Profit shall be defined as a surplus of revenue over the costs of the action in question when the request is made for payment of the balance of the grant.

The budget for the action, which is attached to the application, must have revenue and expenditure in balance and show clearly the costs which are eligible for financing from the Community budget.

The promoter shall indicate the sources and amounts of any other funding received or applied for in the same financial year for the same action. He shall also indicate other Community funding for any other action and for routine activities.

One action may give rise to the award of only one grant from the Community budget.

Members of a partnership may not apply more than once during a selection year for Leonardo da Vinci funding for a specific project, regardless of the procedure and the body (13) to which the proposal is submitted.

A specific project cannot be financed more than once by the Leonardo da Vinci programme.

A proposal that has been rejected once may be reintroduced (in principle after modification) in another selection year.

VI.   Subcontracting and award of procurements contracts

Where implementation of the project/action requires the award of procurement contracts, promoters (contractors) shall respect principles of transparency and equal treatment for potential contractors, care being taken to avoid any conflict of interests.

VII.   Expost publicity

All grants awarded in the course of a financial year, except scholarships paid to natural persons, shall be published on the Internet site of the Community institutions during the first half of the year following the closure of the budget year in respect of which they were awarded.

In cases where management is delegated to the National Agencies, reference shall be made at least to the address of the web site where this information can be found if it is not published directly on the Internet site of the Community institutions.

The information may also be published by any other appropriate medium, including the Official Journal of the European Union.

The following shall be published with the agreement of the promoter (contractor):

VIII.   Submission of proposals

NOTE 4:The rules concerning the submission of proposals may change in the (near) future following the availability of additional computer tools. Promoters are required to consult the Leonardo website on any update in this matter and to act accordingly.

Depending on the measures concerned, proposals (on paper or in electronic form) should be sent to the appropriate national agency and/or the European Commission, in accordance with the information presented in the following table:

Proposals should be sent to the following addresses:

For any questions on the electronic submission of proposals, please contact:

leonardo-helpdesk@cec.eu.int or leonardo-helpdesk@socleoyouth.be

NOTE 5:For all procedures, pre-proposals and/or full proposals which are sent to the wrong address will automatically be considered ineligible and will not be evaluated.

IX.   Further information

All the abovementioned documents can also be obtained from:

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(1)  More information concerning the Copenhagen process, including the full text of the Copenhagen Declaration can be found at the following web address: http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/copenhagen/index_en.html

(2)  The adaptation of the present ‘Europass training’ within the single instrument of transparency adopted by the Commission on 17 December 2003 (COM(2003) 796).

(3)  For procedure B: pilot projects, language competence and transnational networks. For Procedure C : reference material.

(4)  COM(2003) 796 of 17 December 2003.

(5)  COM (2003) 449 final of 24 July 2003.

(6)  These proposals will be submitted according to the procedure/measure of the original project.

(7)  Council Regulation (EC) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities and Commission Regulation (EC) No 2342/2002 of 23 December 2002 on the Implementation rules. They can be consulted at the following web address: http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex

(8)  Council Decision 1999/382/EC of 26 April 1999 establishing the second phase of the Community vocational training action programme ‘Leonardo da Vinci’, OJ L 146 of 11.6.1999, p. 33.

(9)  This means ‘all undertakings in the public or private sector whatever their size, legal status or the economic sector in which they operate, and all types of economic activities, including the social economy’ (see Annex III to Council Decision of 26 April 1999 establishing the second phase of the Community vocational training action programme ‘Leonardo da Vinci’).

(10)  For procedure C only.

(11)  As an example, a proposal submitted with a view to participation in selection year ‘n’ should be drafted using the ‘n’ version application form.

(12)  Only concerns procedures B and C.

(13)  Commission and/or national agencies.

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ANNEX

OVERVIEW OF PRIORITIES FOR PROCEDURES B AND C

PRIORITY 1:   PROMOTING TRANSPARENCY OF QUALIFICATIONS

Specific for reference material (RF) projects

Specific for transnational networks (NT) projects:

PRIORITY 2:   DEVELOPING THE QUALITY OF VET SYSTEMS AND PRACTICES

Specific for reference material (RF) projects

Specific for transnational networks (NT) projects

PRIORITY 3:   DEVELOPING RELEVANT AND INNOVATIVE E-LEARNING CONTENT

PRIORITY 4:   CONTINUOUS TRAINING OF TEACHERS AND TRAINERS

Specific for Reference material (RF) projects

Specific for Transnational networks (NT) projects

THEMATIC ACTIONS (TH) - (PROCEDURE C ONLY)

TH-1:   Credit Transfer in VET

TH-2:   Validation of non-formal and informal learning

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(1)  COM(2003) 796 of 17 December 2003

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CALL FOR PROPOSALS

eLearning Programme – EAC/26/04

(2004/C 113/06)

1.   Scope

This Call for Proposals aims to address three of the four areas of intervention of the eLearning Programme:

(a)   Promoting digital literacy

Actions in this area will address the contribution of ICT in school and more broadly in a lifelong learning context, in particular for those who, owing to their geographical location, social situation or special needs, do not have easy access to those technologies. The objective is to identify good examples and build synergies between the many national and European activities, which address these target groups.

(b)   European virtual campuses

Actions in this area will pursue a better integration of the virtual dimension in Higher Education. The objective is to encourage the development of new organisational models for providing higher education in Europe (virtual campuses) and for European exchange and sharing schemes (virtual mobility), building on existing European cooperation frameworks (Erasmus programme, Bologna process), and providing an ‘e-learning dimension’ to their operational tools (European credit transfer system (ECTS), European Masters, quality assurance, mobility).

(c)   Transversal actions

Actions in this area will address the promotion of e-learning in Europe, building on the monitoring of the eLearning Action Plan. The objectives are the dissemination, promotion and transfer of good and innovative practices and results from the projects and programmes and to reinforce cooperation between the various actors involved, in particular by fostering public-private partnerships.

The fourth area of intervention, e-twinning of schools in Europe and promotion of teachers' training, will be the subject of separate calls.

2.   Eligibility of applicants

The co-ordinating/promoting institution and the other organisations involved must possess a legal identity. Both the co-ordinating/promoting organisation and the partner organisations must be established in one of the following states: one of the 25 EU Member States, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway.

The conditions and detailed rules for the participation of EEA-EFTA States in the programme shall be established in accordance with the relevant provisions of the instruments governing the relations between the Community and these countries.

3.   Budget and proposal duration

Financial contribution of the Community

Proposal duration

The duration of each proposal will be between 12 and 24 months. Eligibility of costs for Commission's subvention will only start from the signature of the contract, which is expected by the end of 2004.

4.   Closing date for submission: 28 June 2004

5.   Submission of the application

For the complete documentation and further details on this call for proposals, please refer to the following Internet address:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/programmes/elearning/index_en.html

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