PROJECT OPPORTUNITIES FOR CONSUMER PROTECTION

ORGANISATIONSCharlotte Roffianen

Aleš Zupan

PRESENTATION OF THE TRAINER

ALEŠ ZUPAN:- 2000-2003: EU DELEGATION IN SLOVENIA- 2004-2008: SETTING-UP CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION

PROGRAMME IN SERBIA - 2009-2012: REGIONAL SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

PROGRAMME – GRANT MANAGEMENT- PREPARATION OF MORE THAN 50 PROJECT PROPOSALS- PARTICIPATION IN PROJECT, PROGRAMME

IMPLEMENTATION- EU PROCUREMENT PROCEDURES

FUNDING PRINCIPLES AND OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN NATIONAL PROGRAMMES

FUNDING PRINCIPLES – 1 • DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OPERATIONAL AND PROJECT

SUPPORT- OPERATIONAL: SUPPORTING AN ORGANISATION THROUGH

A PERIOD OF TIME AIMED AT IMPLEMENTING THEIR REGULAR ACTIVITIES

- PROJECT: SUPPORTING AN ORGANISATION IN IMPLEMENTING SPECIFIC PROJECT TASK OR ASSIGNMENT

!! THE GREAT MAJORITY OF SCHEMES SUPPORTS ‘’PROJECT’’ FUNDING

• WHAT IS PROJECT: A SET OF ACTIVITIES AND RESULTS WITH CLEAR OBJECTIVES AND FIXED TIME FRAME

FUNDING PRINCIPLES – 2 • HOW TO OBTAIN ‘’PROJECT’’ FINANCING- HAVING A VALID ‘’PROJECT’’: A SPECIFIC TARGETED

PROJECT, OR BY PACKING YOUR REGULAR ACTIVITIES INTO A ‘’PROJECT FRAME’’

- FINDING APPROPRIATE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: THE MAIN QUESTIONS BEING:

- IS THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY COVERING MY TYPE OF ORGANISATIONS? (ELIGIBILITY OF APPLICANT/PARTNER)

- IS THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY COVERING THE TYPE OF ACTIVITIES I AM IMPLEMENTING OR PLANNING? (ELIGIBILITY OF ACTIONS/ACTIVITIES)

FUNDING PRINCIPLES – 3 • WHAT ARE ‘’GRANT SCHEMES’’, ‘’GRANT FINANCING’’- AN AMOUNT OF FUNDS ALLOCATED FOR FINANCING OF

SPECIFIC PROJECT- ‘’GRANT’’ MEANS THAT THE FUNDS ARE A SUBSIDY, THEY

DON’T HAVE TO BE RETURNED, RE-PAID BACK- THE APPLICANT USUALLY PROVIDES A SMALL

PERCENTAGE OF CO-FINANCING (FOR INSTANCE 10%)

!! FUNDING INITIATIVES ARE USING DIFFERENT RULES BUT THE BASIC PRINCIPLE IS ALWAYS THE SAME – PREPARATION OF PROJECT IS A BASIS

NATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES – 1• EU CIVIL SOCIETY FACILITY- PUBLISHED EACH YEAR (ASSUMED IN 2014 ALSO)- ELIGIBILITY OF APPLICANT: CIVIL SOCIETY

ORGANISATION ESTABLISHED IN SERBIA (EXAMP. 2013)

- ELIGIBILITY OF ACTIONS: DEVELOPMENT OF CSOS ON LOCAL LEVEL (PROMOTE CIVIC INITIATIVES, NETWORKING OF CSOS, BUILDING CAPACITIES OF CSOS TO PROVIDE SERVICES AT LOCAL LEVEL) (EXAMPLE 2013)

NATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES – 2• CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION PROGRAMME

- PROGRAMMES IMPLEMENTED IN CROSS-BORDER REGIONS – ALL NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES, WITH EXCEPTION OF MACEDONIA

- ELIGIBILITY OF APPLICANTS: SECTORAL ASSOCIATIONS, NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS (EXAMPLE SRB-BIH 2011)

- ELIGIBILITY OF ACTIONS: CROSS-BORDER INTIATIVES TARGETING EXCHANGE OF PEOPLE AND IDEAS TO EHANCE THE PROFESSIONAL AND CIVIC COOPERATION (CAPACITY BUILDING, NETWORKING, JOINT EDUCATION) (EXAPLE SRB-BIH 2011)

NATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES – 3• BILATERAL SUPPORT

- PROGRAMMES FINANCED BY FOREING EMBASSIES OR SUPPORT ORGANISATIONS (EXAMPLE OF EMBASSY FUND, NORWEGIAN EMBASSY, GERMAN GIZ)

• NATIONAL PROGRAMMES

- FINANCING OF THE ACTIVITIES OF CONSUMER PROTECTION ORGANISATIONS BY THE NATIONAL FUNDING – MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL TRADE AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS

INFORMATION RESOURCES • FOR EU SUPPORTED PROGRAMMES:

- WEB-SITE OF THE EUD IN SERBIA, LINK ‘’KAKO DO FONDOVA’’

- EUROPE-AID WEB-SITE

• FOR BILATERAL FUNDING:

- WEB-SITES OF FOREIGN EMBASSIES

• FOR NATIONAL FUNDING:

- WEB-SITE OF THE MINISTRY OF TRADE

!! NETWORKING, EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION WITHIN THE SECTOR

COMMON MISTAKES AND CHALLENGES IN

PREPARATION OF PROJECTS

CHALLENGES IN PREPARATION - 1• NEED VS CHALLANGES: THE FOCUS OF THE

PROJECT IS TOO OFTEN ON THE NARROW NEED OR INTEREST OF THE ORGANISATION, RATHER THAN ON CHALLENGES OF ENVIRONMENT AND TARGET GROUPS

• MARGINAL RELEVANCE: THE ACTIVITIES ARE SOMETIMES ONLY MARGINALLY CONNECTED TO CALLS FOR PROPOSALS OR THE ACTIVITIES PROPOSED IN PROJECT DON’T COVER SUFFICIENTLY ACTIVITIES REQUIRED BY CALL FOR PROPOSALS

CHALLENGES IN PREPARATION - 2• PLAN OF ACTIVITIES: DELAYS OFTEN OCCUR IN

IMPLEMENTATION OF ACTIVITIES. THE ACTIVITIES ARE SOMETIMES NOT PROPERLY REFLECTED IN BUDGET. THE SEPARATION OF TASKS WITHIN THE PROJECT TEAM IS NOT CLEAR.

• RESULTS AND INDICATORS: ABSENCE OF QUANTIFIED INDICATORS. RESULTS ARE POORLY PRESENTED OR ARE NON-REALISTIC.

• BUDGET: UNREALISTIC COSTS (UNIT COSTS TOO HIGH). BUDGET DOES NOT CORRESPOND TO THE ACTIVITIES. UNCLARITIES AS REGARDS CO-FINANCING CONTRIBUTIONS.

CHALLENGES IN PREPARATION - 3• SUSTAINABILITY: POOR OR UNREALISTIC

DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT SUSTAINABILITY.• PROJECT TEAM: POORLY PRESENTED SEPARATION

OF TASKS AND DUTIES WITHIN THE PROJECT TEAM. PRESENCE OF EXPERTS WHICH DON’T HAVE CLEAR OBLIGATIONS.

• MONITORING: LACK OF CLARITY AS REGARDS INTERNAL MONITORING OF ACTIVITIES/RESULTS AND EVENTUAL EVALUATION.

• INTERNAL PROJECT LOGIC: ALL THE ELEMENTS HAVE TO HAVE CLEAR LOGICAL PLACE IN THE PROJECT

PRACTICAL EXERCISE IN PROJECT DEVELOPMENT

– OUTLINE AND METHODOLOGY

PROJECT STRUCTURE

Challenges of environment and target groups, Objectives

Activities and results

Budget

Sustainability

Project team

Partnership

PROJECT ELEMENTS• ALL ELEMENTS ARE NECESSARY, PROJECT

STRUCTURE IS NOT COMPLETE WITHOUT HAVING ALL ELEMENTS COVERED

• THE ELEMENTS ARE CLOSELY CONNECTED, WITHOUT CLEAR CONNECTION AND LOGIC THE PROJECT DOES NOT MAKE SENSE

Chal

leng

esCh

alle

nges

Specific objective 1

Specific objective 1

Specific objective 2

Specific objective 2

Result 1Result 1

Result 2Result 2

Result 3Result 3

Result 4Result 4

Activity 1Activity 1

Activity 2Activity 2

Activity 3Activity 3

Activity 4Activity 4

Partnership, sustainability, project team etc.Partnership, sustainability, project team etc.

Project budgetProject budget

METHODOLOGY• DESCRIPTION OF THEORETICAL BASIS FOR EACH

ELEMENT. THE ELEMENTS DESCRIBED BEFOREHAND ALL HAVE SPECIFICS AND KEY ISSUES

• EXAMPLES OF CALLS FOR PROPOSALS. DEVELOPMENT OF PROJECT IDEAS AND PROJECTS ON THE BASIS OF CONCRETE CALLS FOR PROPOSALS

• STEP-BY-STEP APPROACH, EACH ELEMENT BUILDING ON THE PREVIOUS ONE. AS MENTIONED EARLIER THE LOGIC IS THE KEY ELEMENT IN THE PROJECT. THE EXERCISE WILL DEMONSTRATE LOGICAL BUILDING OF THE PROJECT

PRACTICAL EXERCISE• EXAMPLES OF CONCRETE CALLS FOR PROPOSALS• IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL PROJECTS IN THE AREA

OF CONSUMER PROTECTION• EXAMPLE 1: NATIONAL PROGRAMME: EU CIVIL

SOCIETY FACILITY SERBIA• EXAMPLE 2: EUROPEAN PROGRAMME: EUROPE

FOR CITIZENS • ELEMENTS: (1) CHALLENGES AND OBJECTIVES, (2)

ACTIVITIES, RESULTS AND INDICATORS, (3) PARTNERSHIP, SUSTAINABILITY, PROJECT TEAM, (4) PROJECT BUDGET

CHALLENGES, OBJECTIVES TARGET GROUPS

CHALLENGES – 1• CHALLENGES ARE DEFICIENCY WITHIN THE TARGET

GROUPS OR GEOGRAPHICAL TERRITORY, ASKING FOR PREPARATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF PROJECT

• CHALLENGE VS NEED. THE PROJECT DOES NOT START FROM THE FORMULATION ‘’WHAT IS NEEDED’’, BUT FROM FORMULATION ‘’WHAT IS NOT WORKING, WHAT CAN BE IMPROVED (BY OUR PROJECT)’’

• REALISM. THE CHALLENGE NEEDS TO BE SUFFICIENTLY WELL DEFINED AND FRAMED. FOR INSTANCE WE HAVE TO ESTIMATE WHAT LEVEL OF CHALLENGES CAN WE RESOLVE (WE CANNOT SAVE THE WORLD, BUT WE CAN IMPROVE INFORMING OF OUR CITIZENS)

CHALLENGES – 2• COHERENCE WITH THE OBJECTIVES OF

PROGRAMME. IN CASE WHEN WE APPLY FOR A FUNDING PROGRAMME, OUR CHALLENGE NEEDS TO BE CLOSELY COHERENT WITH THE OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME.

• RESOLVABLE. THE CHALLENGE NEEDS TO BE REALISTICALLY RESOLVABLE WITHIN THE EXPERIENCES, KNOWLEDGE AND RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE TO OUR DISPOSAL.

• JUSTIFICATION. CHALLENGES NEED TO BE JUSTIFIED, IDEALLY WITH STATISTICAL DATA, LINKS WITH STRATEG. ETC.

• EXAMPLES: POOR SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS OF OUR CITIZENS, ECOLOGICAL ISSUES ARE EVIDENT, POOR HEALTH OF CITIZENS, POOR INFORMING ETC.

OBJECTIVES – 1• OBJECTIVE IS DESCRIPTION/DEFINITION OF THE STATUS/

SITUATION WE AIM TO ACHIEVE WITH OUR PROJECT• ANSWERING THE CHALLENGES. THE OBJECTIVES ARE

DIRECTLY LINKED TO CHALLENGES. THEY ARE IN A WAY AN OPPOSITE STATE OF THE CHALLENGE. IF THE CHALLENGE DESCRIBES LACK OR ABSENCE OF SOMETHING, THE OBJECTIVE DESCRIBES THE DESIRED STATE.

• TRANSPARENT. THE OBJECTIVES NEED TO BE CLEARLY DEFINED, INDICATING EXACTLY WHAT WILL BE ACHIEVED WITHIN THE PROJECT

• REALISTIC. THE OBJECTIVES NEED TO BE REALISTICALLY PRESENTED, IN LINE WITH OUR EXPERIENCES, RESOURCES, FUNDS AVAILABLE

OBJECTIVES – 2• OVERALL VS. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES.

- THE OVERALL OBJECTIVES ARE DESCRIBING BROADER OBJECTIVE (FOR INSTANCE IMPROVEMENT OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC SITUATION, RAISING HEALTH LEVELS OF CITIZENS). OUR PROJECT ONLY PARTIALLY CONTRIBUTES TO THE OVERALL OBJECTIVE.

- SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES DESCRIBE THE LIMITED STATE, WHICH WILL BE ACHIEVED DIRECTLY BY OUR PROJECT (PROVIDING REGISTRY OF HEALTHY PRODUCTS OR ORGANISING TRAINING FOR UNEMPLOYED). THE PROJECT FULLY REALISES THE SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE(S).

TARGET GROUPS – 1• TARGET GROUPS ARE THE INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANISATIONS

WHICH ARE BEING TARGETED BY PROJECT ACTIVITIES.

• CLEAR DEFINITION. THE TARGET GROUPS NEED TO BE CLEARLY DEFINED. THE PROJECT NEEDS TO SHOW EXACTLY WHICH GROUPS OR INDIVIDUALS ARE CONCERNED. WHENEVER POSSIBLE THE TARGET GROUPS NEED TO BE QUANTIFIED.

• LOGICAL LINKING WITH CHALLENGES. THE APPLICANT NEEDS TO PRESENT CLEARLY THE LINKAGE BETWEEN THE CHALLENGES AND TARGET GROUPS. THE NEEDS OF TARGET GROUPS HAVE TO BE REASONABLY AND LOGICALLY JUSTIFIED.

• EXAMPLES: CHILDREN WITH SPECIFIC NEEDS, OLDER CONSUMERS, CONSUMER PROTECTION ORGANISATIONS ETC.

RESULTS, ACTIVITIES AND INDICATORS

RESULTS – 1• ACTIVITIES ARE DEFINED AS ‘’DEFINITE’’ ELEMENT,

DESCRIBING WHAT WILL BE DELIVERED WITHIN THE PROJECT (DELIVERIES OF A PROCESS)

• LOGIC. THE RESULTS NEED TO PROVIDE DIRECT RESPONSE TO SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES. DELIVERY OF RESULTS SHOULD ENSURE FULFILMENT OF THESE OBJECTIVES.

• CLARITY. THE RESULTS NEED TO BE DEFINED CLEARLY, INDICATING EXACTLY WHAT (OUTPUTS) WILL BE DELIVERED WITHIN A PROJECT.

RESULTS – 2• REALISTIC. THE RESULTS NEED TO BE PLANNED

IN REALISTIC MANOR. THE AVAILABLE RESOURCES, FINANCES AND TIMING NEEDS TO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.

• MILESTONES. MILESTONES DEFINE AT WHICH TIME POINT OF THE PROJECT THE RESULTS WILL BE DELIVERED

• EXAMPLES: TRAININGS DELIVERED, A NUMBER OF CONSUMERS ADVISED, INFORMATION SESSIONS IMPLEMENTED, WEB-PORTAL ESTABLISHED

INDICATORS – 1• QUANTIFIED DESCRIPTION OF RESULTS, ALLOWING

MONITORING AND EVALUATION OF PROJECTS’ SUCCESS.

• WHAT CAN BE MEASURES. THE INDICATORS NEED TO BE DESCRIBED IN A WAY THAT THEY CAN BE MEASURED AND QUANTIFIED

• LOGIC. THE INDICATORS NEED TO BE LOGICALLY LINKED TO THE RESULTS, IN A WAY THEY ARE DEFINING RESULTS

• REALISTIC. THE INDICATORS NEED TO BE PRESENTED REALISTICALLY, WITHIN AVAILABLE TIME, RESOURCES AND FINANCES

BUDGET- BALANCED BUDGET. THE SIZE OF BUDGET

NEEDS TO CORRESPOND TO THE AMOUNT AND TYPE OF ACTIVITIES AND RESULTS. COST-BENEFIT PRINCIPLE NEEDS TO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.

- ASPECTS OF IMPLEMENTATION. IMPLEMENTATION PHASE NEEDS TO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT – ALL COSTS NEED TO BE REGISTERED AND DOCUMENTED!!

BUDGET PRACTICAL – 1 • BUDGET IS ESTIMATED ON THE BASIS OF REQUIRED

RESOURCES, NOT ON THE BASIS OF GENERAL FINANCIAL NEEDS OR EXPECTATIONS

• CALCULATION:

NUMBER OF UNITS X VALUE OF UNITS = TOTAL COST

• TYPICAL COSTS:

- HUMAN RESOURCES: SALARIES, LONG OR SHOR TERM

- TRAVEL COSTS: NATIONAL OR INTERNATIONAL

- PURCHASE OF EQUIPMENT: COMPUTER EQUIPMENT ETC.

- ENAGAGGEMENT OF EXTERNAL SERVICES: PRINTING, PROMOTION, CONSULTANCY SERVICES, STUDIES ETC.

BUDGET PRACTICAL – 2 • STEPS IN PREPARATION:- STEP 1: ESTIMATION OF RESOURCES NEEDED.

Resource Activity 1 Activity 2 Activity 3 TOTAL

Team leader 1 month 2 months 1 month 4 months

Fin. Manager 2 months 1 month 3 months

Computers 2 pieces 2 pieces

Brochures 5000 pieces 5000 pieces

BUDGET PRACTICAL – 3 • STEPS IN PREPARATION:- STEP 2: ESTIMATION OF UNIT COST:- SALARIES: MONTHLY SALARY, DAILY FEE- TRAVEL COSTS: MONTHLY LUMP-SUM OR COST

OF ONE FLIGHT- EQUIPMENT: COST OF ONE PIECE OF EQUIPMENT- BROCHURES: COST OF ONE COPY- STUDIES, PROMOTION ACTIVITIES: COST PER

CONTRACT

BUDGET PRACTICAL – 4 • STEPS IN PREPARATION:- STEP 3: CALCULATION:- SALARIES: NUMBER OF MONTHS X MONTHLY FEE- TRAVEL COSTS: NUMBER OF FLIGHTS X COST OF

ONE FLIGHT- EQUIPMENT: NUMBER OF COMPUTERS X COST

OF ONE PIECE- BROCHURES: NUMBER OF COPIES X COST OF

ONE COPY

BUDGET PRACTICAL – 5 • EXAMPLE OF BUDGET TABLE:

CostsUnit 13 # of units Unit value

(in EUR)Total Cost(in EUR)3

1. Human Resources        1.1 Salaries (gross salaries including social security charges and other related costs, local staff)4         1.1.1 Technical Per month      Subtotal Human Resources        2. Travel6        2.1. International travel Per flight      Subtotal Travel        3. Equipment and supplies7        3.2 Furniture, computer equipment  Per piece      Subtotal Equipment and supplies        5. Other costs, services8        5.1 Publications9        5.2 Studies, research9        Subtotal Other costs, services        7. Subtotal direct eligible costs of the Action (1-6)        8. Provision for contingency reserve (maximum 5% of 7, subtotal of direct eligible costs of the Action)        9. Total direct eligible costs of the Action (7+ 8)        10. Indirect costs (maximum 7% of 9, total direct eligible costs of the Action)        11. Total eligible costs (9+10)        

CONCLUSIONS• ONCE THE PROJECT IS DEVELOPED WE SHOULD OPT FOR

INDEPENDENT REVIEW AND CHECK BY SOMEONE NOT DIRECTLY INVOLVED IN THE PREPARATION OF THE PROJECT

• PARTICULAR ATTENTION NEEDS TO BE DEDICATED TO CHECKING THE FEASIBILITY IN IMPLEMENTATION – ARE THE ACTIVITIES AND RESULTS REALISTIC IN GIVEN TIME AND RESOURCES FRAME

• CHECKING THE PROJECT AGAINST EVALUATION CRITERIA• GOING BACK TO CALL FOR PROPOSALS AND CHECKING

ALL THE ADMINISTRATIVE AND PROCEDURAL CONDITIONS• USING LESSONS AND EXPERIENCES TO UP-GRADE

PERFORMANCE WITH FUTURE PROPOSALS/ACTIVITIES