call for proposals - european commission · sustainable blue economy call emff work programme 2017...
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EUROPEAN COMMISSION Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME)
Department A - COSME, H2020 SME and EMFF
Unit A3 - EMFF
EUROPEAN COMMISSION Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) Department A - COSME, H2020 SME and EMFF Unit A3 - EMFF
Call for Proposals
For EU Grants
under the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund
Sustainable Blue Economy call
EMFF Work Programme 2017
Call for Proposals EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12
Ref. Ares(2017)5182670 - 24/10/2017
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
How to navigate in this document ....................................................................................... 5
1. INTRODUCTION – BACKGROUND .................................................................................. 6
1.1. Regulation (EU) No 508/2014 on the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund
(EMFF) .............................................................................................................. 6
1.2. General information concerning the call for proposals ..................................... 6
1.3. Overall background for the Sustainable Blue Economy call for proposals ...... 6
1.4. Policy background for strand 1 – DEMO projects ............................................ 7
1.5. Policy background for strand 2 – MARINE LITTER ....................................... 8
1.5.1. Marine litter - a major threat to our oceans ....................................................... 8
1.5.2. International commitments to fight marine litter .............................................. 9
1.5.3. EU commitments to fight marine litter ............................................................. 9
1.6. Policy background for strand 3 – BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MED .......... 11
1.7. Policy background for strand 4 – RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN
THE MED ....................................................................................................... 12
1.7.1. International and EU commitments to ensure the integrity of marine and coastal
ecosystems ....................................................................................................... 12
1.7.2. Creating the conditions for a sustainable blue economy: enhancing coastal and
marine natural capital ...................................................................................... 13
STRAND SPECIFIC INFORMATION ............................................................................ 16
S1- DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS MAKING BLUE TECHNOLOGIES MARKET-
AND INVESTOR-READY ...................................................................................... 17
2. OBJECTIVES – PRIORITIES – ACTIVITIES – OUTPUTS - IMPACTS .................................. 17
2.1 Objectives ........................................................................................................ 17
2.2 Activities ......................................................................................................... 18
2.3 Geographical scope of the activities ................................................................ 19
2.4 Expected outputs ............................................................................................. 19
2.5 Expected results/impacts ................................................................................. 20
3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA ................................................................................................ 20
3.1 Geographical eligibility ....................................................................................... 20
3.2 Eligible applicants ............................................................................................... 21
3.3 Eligibility conditions for consortia ...................................................................... 22
4. AWARD CRITERIA ....................................................................................................... 23
S2 - MARINE LITTER ..................................................................................................... 28
2. OBJECTIVES – PRIORITIES – ACTIVITIES – OUTPUTS - IMPACTS .................................. 28
2.1 Objectives ............................................................................................................ 28
3
2.2 Activities ............................................................................................................. 30
2.3 Geographical scope of activities ......................................................................... 30
2.4 Expected outputs ................................................................................................ 31
2.5 Expected results/impacts ..................................................................................... 31
3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA ................................................................................................ 32
3.1 Geographical eligibility ....................................................................................... 32
3.2 Eligible applicants ............................................................................................... 33
3.3 Eligibility conditions for consortia ...................................................................... 34
4. AWARD CRITERIA ....................................................................................................... 35
4.1 Strand specific award criteria .............................................................................. 35
S3 - BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN ................................................ 39
2. OBJECTIVES – PRIORITIES – ACTIVITIES – OUTPUTS - IMPACTS ................................ 39
2.1 Objectives ............................................................................................................ 39
2.2 Activities ............................................................................................................. 39
2.3 Geographical scope of activities ......................................................................... 42
2.4 Expected outputs ................................................................................................. 42
2.5 Expected results/impacts ..................................................................................... 43
3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA ............................................................................................... 44
3.1 Geographical eligibility ....................................................................................... 44
3.2 Eligible applicants ............................................................................................... 44
3.3 Eligibility conditions for consortia ...................................................................... 46
4. AWARD CRITERIA ....................................................................................................... 46
4.1 Strand specific award criteria .............................................................................. 46
S4 – RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE MED ......................................... 51
2. OBJECTIVES – PRIORITIES – ACTIVITIES – OUTPUTS/IMPACTS ................................... 51
2.1 Objectives and priorities...................................................................................... 51
2.2 Activities ............................................................................................................. 51
2.3 Geographical scope of activities ......................................................................... 53
2.4 Expected outputs ................................................................................................. 53
2.5 Expected results and impacts .............................................................................. 53
3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA ................................................................................................ 54
3.1 Geographical eligibility ....................................................................................... 54
3.2 Eligible applicants ............................................................................................... 55
3.3 Eligibility conditions for consortia ...................................................................... 56
4. AWARD CRITERIA ....................................................................................................... 56
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4.1 Strand specific award criteria .............................................................................. 56
COMMON PROVISIONS FOR ALL STRANDS ........................................................... 61
4.2 Evaluation procedure ................................................................................................. 61
5. TIMETABLE ................................................................................................................ 62
5.1 Indicative timetable ............................................................................................ 62
5.2 Implementation period ....................................................................................... 62
6. BUDGET AVAILABLE ................................................................................................... 63
7. ADMISSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................. 64
8. EXCLUSION CRITERIA ................................................................................................ 64
9. SELECTION CRITERIA .................................................................................................. 65
9.1.Financial capacity ................................................................................................ 65
9.2.Operational capacity ............................................................................................ 66
10. LEGAL COMMITMENTS ............................................................................................... 66
11. FINANCIAL PROVISIONS .............................................................................................. 67
11.1.General principles ............................................................................................. 67
11.2. Form of funding .............................................................................................. 68
11.3. Payment arrangements ............................................................................................ 72
11.3.1. Pre-financing payment ................................................................................ 72
11.3.2. Interim payment .......................................................................................... 72
11.3.3. Final payment .............................................................................................. 72
11.4.Pre-financing guarantee ............................................................................................ 73
11.5.Reporting requirement ....................................................................................... 73
12. PUBLICITY .................................................................................................................. 74
12.1.By the beneficiary ............................................................................................. 74
12.2.By the EASME .................................................................................................. 74
13. DATA PROTECTION ..................................................................................................... 75
14. PROCEDURE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW ................................................................ 75
14.1.Evaluation Review procedure ........................................................................... 75
14.2.Admissibility and Eligibility Review procedure ............................................... 76
15. PROCEDURE FOR THE SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS .................................... 76
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HOW TO NAVIGATE IN THIS DOCUMENT
The call for proposals "Sustainable Blue Economy" with a budget of EUR 14.500.000 is an
important step to accelerate the deployment of the blue economy across the EU and the
Mediterranean. It aims at delivering concrete actions to support key European Commission policy
initiatives in the fields of: innovation (de-risking investment in demonstration projects for the blue
economy), environment (e.g. fighting marine litter), cooperation for a sustainable blue economy
and better ocean governance in the Mediterranean sea basin.
The call for proposals is divided into 4 strands.
Strand 1: Demonstration projects making blue technologies market- and investor-ready
(indicative budget EUR 8.000.000)
Strand 2: Efficient strategies and technologies against marine litter (indicative budget EUR
2.000.000)
Strand 3: Blue networks in the Mediterranean context (indicative budget EUR 3.000.000)
Strand 4: Joint actions to enhance the sustainability of blue economy sectors in the
Mediterranean (indicative budget EUR 1.500.000).
The common provisions for all four strands of this call for proposals are presented in section 1 -
Introduction-Background and from section 4.2 – Evaluation procedure onwards.
Please follow the links below to consult the specific conditions for each strand. Please use the
following reference codes in the application form for the selected strand:
S1- DEMO PROJECTS
S2 - MARINE LITTER
S3 - BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN
S4 - RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE MED
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1. INTRODUCTION – BACKGROUND
The Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, hereafter referred to as
"EASME", acting under the powers delegated by the European Commission (also referred to as
"the Commission"), is launching a call for proposals titled "Sustainable Blue Economy" with a
view to accelerate the implementation of the Integrated Maritime Policy and the deployment of the
blue economy across Europe and in the Mediterranean as well as to contribute to the
implementation of the Joint Communication on international ocean governance. This general
objective is further divided into specific objectives as described under each of the 4 strands that
are part of this call for proposals.
1.1. Regulation (EU) No 508/2014 on the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF)
This call for proposals is launched in accordance with the 2017 Work Programme for the
Implementation of the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) (section 1.2.1.12 of the
annex)1, on the basis of the objectives set out in the Regulation (EU) No 508/2014 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, and
in particular Articles 81, 82, and 83 thereof.
1.2. General information concerning the call for proposals
This call for proposals forms part of the EMFF Work Programme, whose implementation is
partially delegated to the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. According
to the Act of Delegation2, grant agreements will be signed by EASME.
1.3. Overall background for the Sustainable Blue Economy call for proposals
The seas and coasts of Europe have great potential to "be a driver for Europe's welfare and
prosperity" as highlighted in the European Commission Communication "Blue Growth
opportunities for marine and maritime sustainable growth"3
. The Commission Staff Working
Document for Blue Growth4 taking stock of the progress of the Integrated Maritime Policy in the
last five years insists that the European Union should not miss this opportunity. The OECD
predicts that looking to 2030, many ocean-based industries have the potential to outperform the
global economy as a whole, both in terms of value added and employment. The output of the
global ocean economy is estimated at EUR 1.3 trillion today and this could more than double by
2030. In this context, this Sustainable Blue Economy call for proposals will create the conditions
to accelerate the deployment of the blue economy across Europe while consolidating efforts and
recent developments to support the sustainable development of blue economy sectors in the
Mediterranean sea basin, including by strengthening the resilience of the marine and coastal
ecosystem and taking action for their restoration.. It also represents one of the concrete
commitments made by the European Union at the Our Ocean 20175 global conference that took
place in Malta in October this year.
1 Commission Implementing Decision C(2016) 8422 final of 15 December 2016 concerning the adoption of the work programme
for 2017 and the financing decision for the implementation of the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (as amended by Decision
C(2017) 6382 final of 27 September 2017). 2 Act of Delegation: Commission Decision C(2013)9414 of 23 December 2013 delegating powers to the Executive Agency for
Small and Medium-sized Enterprises with a view to performance of tasks linked to the implementation of Union programmes in the
field of energy, environment, climate action, competitiveness and SMEs, research and innovation and ICT, comprising, in
particular, implementation of appropriations entered in the general budget of the Union as amended by Commission Decision
C(2014)4636 of 11 July 2014 with a view to the performance of tasks linked to the implementation of the EMFF. 3 COM/2012/0494 final: https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/policy/blue_growth_en 4 SWD(2017) 128 final 5 https://ourocean2017.org/
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1.4. Policy background for strand 1 – DEMO projects
The seas and coasts of Europe have great potential to foster regional development and
technological innovation. In the EU, it is estimated that about 5 million people work for the blue
economy. It includes well-established sectors (such as shipbuilding and ship repair, transport,
offshore oil and gas), as well as emerging sectors with a high potential for growth (such as blue
biotechnology, aquaculture, ocean renewable energy)6.
As stated in the 2014 Communication "Innovation in the Blue Economy: realising the potential of
our seas and oceans for jobs and growth"7, innovation is one of the drivers of the blue economy.
One of the fundamental challenges for a more competitive and innovative maritime economy in all
sea basins is that the transfer of research results into business ventures must become easier and
new technologies need to be brought faster to a commercial and industrial scale.
The 2017 Commission Staff Working document on Blue Growth 2013-20168 highlights the
continuing lack of public and private risk funding for innovative maritime technologies. This has
been more recently elaborated in detail for one of the subsectors of the blue economy in a 2017
EIB/InnovFin "Study on Access to Finance Conditions for Investments in Bio-based Industries and
the Blue Economy"9, which finds that "considerable funding gaps exist in projects scaling up from
pilot to demonstration projects and moving from demonstration to flagship/first-of-a-kind and
industrial-scale projects". It also states that projects often require a significant investment volume
while generating unstable revenues and cash flows, increasing the financial risk for investors.
The OECD highlighted in its 2016 report on "The Ocean Economy in 2030"10
that a group of
enabling technologies – such as imaging and physical sensors, satellite technologies, advanced
materials, ICT, big data analytics, autonomous systems, biotechnology, nanotechnology and
subsea engineering – promise breakthrough innovations as well as improvements in efficiency,
productivity and cost structures in many ocean activities.
The importance of such enabling technologies for driving innovation and competitiveness of EU
industry was also at the core of the work of the European Commission's High-Level Group on Key
Enabling Technologies (KET). In its 2015 final report11
, the High-Level Group highlighted the
importance to promote KETs' uptake in SMEs to drive product and process innovation as well as
support demonstration activities.
Acknowledging that a number of EU programmes are supporting research and innovation in the
blue economy, the "demonstration projects" strand, aims to build on the results of relevant of
research and innovation projects and support demonstration projects that help bring research
results to the market and harness new business and investment opportunities in the blue economy.
This strand also takes a more targeted approach than other programmes covering marine and
maritime topics, by focusing on the specificities and needs at sea basin level and in line with the
EU's sea-basin strategies and regional initiatives12
.
6 See: http://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/policy/blue_growth/infographics 7 Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee
and the Committee of the Regions "Innovation in the Blue Economy: realising the potential of our seas and oceans for jobs and
growth" /* COM/2014/0254 final/2 */ 8 Commission Staff Working document "Report on the Blue Growth Strategy Towards more sustainable growth and jobs in the
blue economy", SWD(2017) 128 final 9 http://www.eib.org/attachments/pj/access_to_finance_study_on_bioeconomy_en.pdf 10 http://geoblueplanet.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/OECD-ocean-economy.pdf 11 http://ec.europa.eu/growth/industry/key-enabling-technologies/european-strategy/high-level-group_en 12 EU Atlantic Strategy, EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian region, Black Sea Synergy, EU strategy for the Baltic Sea region,
Union for the Mediterranean, Strategic cooperation on Blue Growth in the North Sea, National or regional research and innovation
strategies for smart specialisation (RIS3) etc.
8
For the purpose of this strand, the following definitions apply:
Value chain: the entire range of activities that (one or more) actors engage in to
bring a product from its conception to its end use, ranging from design, production
and marketing to distribution and support to the final consumer13
.
Demonstration project: a pre-commercial or commercial pilot project that ensures a
full-scale demonstration of a new solution with a high potential to be marketed on an
international scale. The new solution can be a new technology, process, service or a
new application of an existing solution.
Technology Readiness Levels (TRL)14
: scale applied by many public and industry
stakeholders to assess the maturity of evolving technologies/applications in terms of
their feasibility and commercial potential. A TRL level 5 and higher refers to a
technology/application/service demonstrated in a relevant concrete environment.
Key enabling technologies: KETs comprise micro and nanoelectronics,
nanotechnology, industrial biotechnology, advanced materials, photonics, and
advanced manufacturing technologies15
. They provide the basis for innovation in a
wide range of industries such as automotive, food, chemicals, electronics, energy,
pharmaceuticals, construction, and telecommunications. They can be used in
emerging and traditional sectors.
First of a Kind or FOAK: First of a Kind also known by its acronym FOAK is used
in engineering economics where the first item or generation of items using a new
technology or design can cost significantly more than later items or generations.
Elaborated business plan: General business practices apply to the content of the
business plan. An elaborated business plan means that the business plan will include
all necessary details to address the way forward in terms of: additional work to be
done, resources to be committed and budget needed, pre-requisites and framework
conditions, outline of an underlying business model, dissemination, exploitation and
sustainability plans
1.5. Policy background for strand 2 – MARINE LITTER
1.5.1. Marine litter - a major threat to our oceans
Marine litter (also referred to as marine debris)16
has increasingly been recognised as a global
concern for directly affecting marine and coastal life, ecosystems, economies and human health.
Marine litter can be transported by ocean currents over long distances from its origin and is found
in all marine environments. Marine litter can impact organisms and habitats such as through
entanglement or ingestion of litter items (e.g. micro plastics), resulting in death and/or severe
13 http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/value-chains 14 http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/wp/2014_2015/annexes/h2020-wp1415-annex-g-trl_en.pdf 15
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee
and the Committee of the Regions - "Preparing for our future: Developing a common strategy for key enabling technologies in the
EU" {SEC(2009) 1257}/* COM/2009/0512 final */ 16 Please see definitions in section 1.5.3.
9
suffering or as a vector for transport and facilitating the invasion of alien species17. Marine litter
also carries a risk to human health and has significant implications to human welfare, making it a
complex multidisciplinary problem18
. Marine litter also impacts negatively vital economic sectors
such as tourism, fisheries, aquaculture or energy supply, bringing economic losses to individuals,
enterprises and communities.
The sources of marine litter are both land-based (e.g. land-fills, rivers and floodwaters, untreated
municipal sewerage, littering of beaches and coastal areas, etc.) and sea-based (e.g. garbage waste
from ships, intentionally abandoned, accidentally lost and otherwise discarded fishing gears
(ALDFG, called “lost gear” hereafter), offshore mining and extraction, illegal dumping of waste at
sea, etc.). Although some studies are available
19 or ongoing, for example in the context of the
preparation of the EU Strategy on Plastics, information on quantities is patchy. Marine litter poses
a key marine environmental challenge. This is intrinsically linked to various sectors, policy areas
and human behavioural patterns and potential solutions can be addressed from different angles,
starting from prevention and reduction to removal or recycling of already existing marine litter.
While it is a huge environmental, economic and social challenge, the fight against marine litter
also opens opportunities for the blue economy, such as for the fishing and aquaculture sectors,
energy supply and tourism.
1.5.2. International commitments to fight marine litter
International institutions have adopted a number of resolutions to reduce marine litter20
. In June
2015, the G7 adopted the G7 Action Plan to Combat Marine Litter21
, while the G2022
followed in
July 2017, encouraging also private sector engagement. The United Nations (UN) have identified
conservation and sustainable use of oceans as one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG
14)23
and UN engagement towards reducing the impacts of marine litter worldwide is prominent24
.
Regional Seas Conventions (RSCs)25
have either adopted action plans on marine litter
(Mediterranean, Northeast Atlantic and Baltic) or are developing them (Black Sea). They focus on
prevention and reduction of marine litter through actions at national or regional level, such as
improved waste and waste water management, provision of adequate port reception facilities,
fishing for litter, education, awareness raising and outreach activities.
1.5.3. EU commitments to fight marine litter
The European Union (EU) has repeatedly demonstrated its willingness to take on this problem by
a number of policy initiatives26
. Most notably, the EU´s Marine Strategy Framework Directive
17 Werner et al. 2016: Werner, S., Budziak, A., van Franeker, J., Galgani, F., Hanke, G., Maes, T., Matiddi, M., Nilsson, P.,
Oosterbaan, L., Priestland, E., Thompson, R., Veiga, J. and Vlachogianni, T.; 2016; Harm causedby Marine Litter. MSFD GES TG
Marine Litter - Thematic Report; JRC Technical report; EUR 28317 EN; doi:10.2788/690366. 18 The MSFD Task Group 10 (Galgani et al., 2010) has set the basis for the further work of the MSFD Task Group Marine Litter
and divided “harm” from marine litter into the three general categories. 19
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/marine/good-environmental-status/descriptor-
10/pdf/MSFD%20Measures%20to%20Combat%20Marine%20Litter.pdf 20 FAO Code of Conduct, Art. 8.4.6, http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/v9878e/v9878e00.HTM#2 21 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/marine/good-environmental-status/descriptor-10/pdf/g7_abschluss_annex_eng_en.pdf 22 https://www.g20.org/Content/DE/_Anlagen/G7_G20/2017-g20-marine-litter-en.html 23 http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/oceans/ 24 Including inter alia the Global Partnership on Marine Litter, the Honolulu Strategy – a global framework for prevention and
management of marine debris as well as two resolutions on plastic marine litter and micro plastics adopted by the UN Environment
Assembly (UNEA). 25 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/marine/international-cooperation/regional-sea-conventions/index_en.htm 26 Commission Staff Working Document SWD(2012) 365 final
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/marine/pdf/SWD_2012_365.pdf
10
(MSFD) adopted in June 200827
is the dedicated legal instrument to protect more effectively the
marine environment across Europe. Marine litter is a key focus area featuring under Descriptor
1028
of the MSFD.
Another important step towards a reduction of waste and more environmentally sustainable
business models has been the adoption of the European Commission's Circular Economy Package
on 2 December 201529
. It sets an aspirational target for reducing beach litter and lost fishing gear
by 30% until 2020. The Joint Communication on International Ocean Governance30
builds on this
and includes a dedicated action on marine litter, namely "Action 9: Fighting marine litter and the
‘sea of plastic’". A further major ongoing EU policy initiative addressing marine litter is the
upcoming EU Strategy on Plastics31
, with adoption of the Commission proposal planned for the
end of 2017. In the context of this strategy, the Commission is also considering measures to
address sea-based sources of marine litter, in particular on fishing gear such as the introduction of
extended producer responsibility schemes or other solutions to ensure a high level of collection
and recycling and disincentivising the dumping at sea as well as for reducing plastics leakages
from aquaculture. In addition, the EU is planning to revise its legislation on Port Reception
Facilities32
to ensure that more waste from ships is delivered on shore and illegal discharges at sea
are reduced. This will be achieved through a mix of incentives and enforcement measures, which
will also address the fishing and recreational sectors.
Besides the policy and legislative initiatives, the EU is dedicating substantial financial resources to
better understand and fight marine litter. A number of programmes and funding instruments such
as the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF, in particular the European Maritime and
Fisheries Fund, EMFF, and the European Regional Development Fund, ERDF), the Research
Programmes FP7 and H2020 and the environmental programme LIFE are supporting a wide range
of projects33
as well as targeted studies34
. Acknowledging that a wide variety of EU programmes
is already supporting research and innovation projects on marine litter, this strand aims to build on
the results of relevant projects whilst specifically focusing on tackling marine litter from sea-based
sources.
For the purpose of this strand, the following definitions apply:
27 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32008L0056 28 Descriptor 10: aiming to achieve a status where “properties and quantities of marine litter do not cause harm to the coastal and
marine environment”. 29 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/jobs-growth-and-investment/towards-circular-economy_en 30Joint communication to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee
of the Regions. "International ocean governance: an agenda for the future of our oceans", JOIN(2016) 49 final:
https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/sites/maritimeaffairs/files/join-2016-49_en.pdf 31 http://ec.europa.eu/smart-regulation/roadmaps/docs/plan_2016_39_plastic_strategy_en.pdf 32 PRF Directive 2000/59/EC : http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:32000L0059:EN:HTML 33 Some examples of projects include: MARELITT (http://www.marelitt.eu/ ), MARLISCO (http://www.marlisco.eu), Clean Sea
project (http://www.cleansea-project.eu/drupal/index.php ), SMILE (http://life-smile.eu/?lang=en ), AMMOS (http://www.life-
ammos.gr/en/ ), MERMAIDS (http://life-mermaids.eu/en/ ), GHOST (http://www.life-ghost.eu/index.php/en/) and LitterDrone
(http://litterdrone.eu/?lang=en). Under the EMFF, 14 Member States plan to implement a total of 108 operations until 2023
(FARNET support UNIT, 2017. Marine litter from the fishing sector “How is the fisheries sector using EU Funds to fight Marine
litter?") 34
Examples include Werner et al. 2016 report on marine litter
(http://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/bitstream/JRC104308/lbna28317enn.pdf), Sherrington et al. (2016) report on
combating marine litter sources (http://ec.europa.eu/environment/marine/good-environmental-status/descriptor-
10/pdf/MSFD%20Measures%20to%20Combat%20Marine%20Litter.pdf).
11
Marine litter (also referred to as “marine debris”): consists of any persistent,
manufactured or processed items that have been deliberately discarded, unintentionally
lost, abandoned or transported in the marine and coastal environment. It mainly consists of
plastics, wood, metals, glass, rubber, clothing and paper as well as containers and their
contents;
Sea-based sources of marine litter: sea-based origin relates to litter that is directly
(accidentally or purposely) released into the sea by maritime activities e.g. shipping,
fishing, aquaculture, tourism (e.g. recreational boating, recreational fishing, cruise
tourism), offshore mining and extraction, dumping of debris at sea. The term "source"
indicates the economic sector or human activity from which the litter originates;
Innovative: having a pilot or demonstrative dimension. A "pilot" project applies a
methodology or technology that has not been applied or tested before, and is considered
innovative. A “demonstrative” project is a project that applies a proven methodology or
technology in a new geographical, ecological or socio-economic context and is also
considered innovative.
1.6. Policy background for strand 3 – BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MED
The Mediterranean sea basin offers many opportunities for blue economy development and job
creation (i.e. shipping, passengers and cruising lines, tourism…). However, countries bordering
the Mediterranean have not yet taken full advantage of this potential. In the last three years,
studies funded by the European Commission have shown the great potential of marine and
maritime activities for economic growth but also demonstrated the need for better coordination
between existing policies and initiatives. The Union for the Mediterranean Ministerial Declaration
on the Blue Economy, adopted in November 2015,35
is a turning point. It provides the political
framework and backing for a joint development of the blue economy in the Mediterranean region.
In addition, several steps have been taken in the past years to address this challenge. The EU
Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR)36
and the Initiative for the sustainable
development of the blue economy in the western Mediterranean (WestMED)37
, adopted in 2014
and 2017, represent good examples to promote maritime coordination and cooperation at sub-
regional level in the Mediterranean context. The BLUEMED Strategic Research and Innovation
Agenda38
endorsed by the EUROMED Declaration on Research and Innovation on 04 May
201739
, in Valletta, is another example of progress in a specific area. However, the need to
increase capacity-building in other fields for the development of a sustainable blue economy in the
Mediterranean remains a priority as identified in the Joint Communication on International Ocean
Governance40
.
Against this background, concrete actions are needed to accelerate the development of the blue
economy in the Mediterranean and turn policy objectives into actions. Building on the policy
documents mentioned above and on the results of recent studies, the following specific objectives
have been identified under this strand to support the development of the blue economy in the
35 http://ufmsecretariat.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/2015-11-17-declaration-on-blue-economy_en.pdf 36 http://www.adriatic-ionian.eu/ 37 https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/sites/maritimeaffairs/files/com-2017-183_en.pdf 38 http://www.bluemed-project.eu/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Venice-Declaration-final.pdf 39 http://www.bluemed-project.eu/valetta-declaration/ 40 https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/sites/maritimeaffairs/files/join-2016-49_en.pdf
12
Mediterranean: networking between education and training, clustering/business support and
promoting the development of local communities (e.g. diversification of jobs).
Indeed, the study on a possible network of maritime training academies and institutes in the
Mediterranean41
showed how complex and fragmented the landscape is. One of the key messages
of this study is that industry should be more active in showing to youngsters the potential of the
different careers opportunities in the maritime economy in the region, especially through
collaboration with schools, in particular for vocational training.
The study on maritime clusters from 201542
found that between a third and a half of all maritime
economic activities in the Mediterranean and Black Sea can be found in formal and informal
clusters. This confirms that such platforms for cross-sectoral, multi-level cooperation can be a
powerful tool to stimulate innovation, growth and jobs in the region.
Finally, Community-Led Local Development (CLLD)43
and the involvement of Fisheries Local
Action Groups (FLAGs), are seen as the most appropriate mechanisms for job diversification and
support to coastal communities in the Western Mediterranean, as a method for civil society and
local economic actors to actively design and implement local integrated strategies to make a
transition to a more sustainable future for the region44
.
1.7. Policy background for strand 4 – RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE
MED
1.7.1. International and EU commitments to ensure the integrity of marine and
coastal ecosystems
A global consensus that oceans and coastal ecosystems need better care and management is
gradually emerging. The great potential that oceans offer for a sustainable economy and their key
role in regulating climate is widely acknowledged. The awareness about the negative effects of
multiple pressures, such as over-exploitation, climate change, acidification, pollution and
declining biodiversity, is rising. Better ocean governance can only be achieved through
consolidated international cooperation.
The Paris Agreement45
states in its climate change preamble that it is important to "ensur[e] the
integrity of […] oceans". The UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development46
, set as Sustainable
Development Goal 14 (SDG 14) "to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine
resources". Moreover, SDG14.2 urges to “sustainably manage and protect marine and coastal
ecosystems to avoid significant adverse impacts, including by strengthening their resilience, and
take action for their restoration in order to achieve healthy and productive oceans” by 2020.
The global community is showing clear international commitments and must now turn these
commitments into action.
41 https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/maritimeforum/sites/maritimeforum/files/Maritime%20Academies%20-
%20Final%20Report%20and%20annexes_template%20EC_0.PDF 42 The study on maritime clusters in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea found at:
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/maritimeforum/en/node/3648 43 https://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/cfp/emff/clld_en 44 Although cooperation in general under the EFF and EMFF is relatively recent, an initiative of cooperation among FLAGs across
MSs along the Mediterranean shore was launched in 2011, leading to a Mediterranean FLAG Cooperation Charter:
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/cms/farnet/files/documents/Mediterranean-FLAG-Cooperation-Charter.pdf 45 Paris Agreement: https://unfccc.int/files/essential_background/convention/application/pdf/english_paris_agreement.pdf. See
Article 7 on the global goal on adaptation that is recognised as a key response to climate change to protect people, livelihoods and
ecosystems. 46 "Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development", A/RES/70/1
http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/70/1&Lang=E
13
With the Joint Communication on international ocean governance47
, the EU is taking its
responsibility by setting out 50 actions to secure, safe, clean and sustainably managed oceans. In
cooperation with Member States, the High Representative and the European Commission are
committed to engage with international and regional organisations and third countries to take this
Agenda forward.
The Barcelona Convention48
has provided a regional legal and policy framework for the protection
of the sea and coastal area of the Mediterranean for more than 40 years, working on protection and
sustainable management of natural marine and coastal resources, on protection of the marine
environment and coastal zones through prevention and reduction of pollution, as well as on coastal
zone management. The Mediterranean Strategy for Sustainable Development 2016-2025, endorsed
by the Contracting Parties of the Barcelona Convention, highlights transition to Green and Blue
Economy as one of the priorities for the Mediterranean region.
Regional initiatives in the Mediterranean Sea that also deserve attention include the ‘Initiative for
the sustainable development of the blue economy in the western Mediterranean’ (EC
Communication49
and Framework for Action50
), building on the Union for the Mediterranean
process and its Ministerial Declaration on the blue economy adopted on 17 November 201551
. One
of the three main aims of this Initiative is to "preserve ecosystems and biodiversity in the western
Mediterranean region".
1.7.2. Creating the conditions for a sustainable blue economy: enhancing coastal and
marine natural capital
Blue economy sectors such as tourism, aquaculture and fisheries are currently sectors of great
importance for the Mediterranean sea basin.
These blue economy sectors rely heavily on coastal and marine natural capital (ecosystems) that
provide fundamental, life-supporting benefits and services. These assets depend on rich
biodiversity and healthy ecosystem services that can then provide a range of services, such as:
climate regulation and carbon sequestration, marine and coastal resilience to climate change;
natural fish stock restoration, seawater purification, aesthetic, cultural or leisure services attracting
visitors, and others. These services are inextricably linked to the sustainability and prosperity of
key industries within the blue economy. Therefore, the blue economy approach needs to deal
effectively with key issues affecting the sustainability of marine ecosystem services and benefits,
such as over-fishing, climate change, ocean acidification, loss of habitats and biodiversity,
invasive non-indigenous species52
, pollution and waste. Ultimately, changes in ecosystem services
provisions driven by resource overuse, pollution as well as direct and indirect climate change
effects will affect human welfare. Thus, projects that are reducing anthropogenic pressure on
ecosystems and improving their health and resilience will contribute to ensure the continuation
and improved provision of their services.
47 JOIN(2016) 49 final - Joint Communication to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social
Committee and the Committee of the Regions, "International ocean governance: an agenda for the future of our oceans":
https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/sites/maritimeaffairs/files/join-2016-49_en.pdf 48 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/marine/international-cooperation/regional-sea-conventions/barcelona-convention/index_en.htm 49 COM(2017) 183 final - Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic
and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Initiative for the Sustainable Development of the Blue Economy in the
Western Mediterranean, https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/sites/maritimeaffairs/files/com-2017-183_en.pdf 50 SWD(2017) 130 final - Commission Staff Working Document, Framework for Action accompanying the document
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and
the Committee of the Regions - Initiative for the Sustainable Development of the Blue Economy in the Western Mediterranean,
https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/sites/maritimeaffairs/files/swd-2017-130_en.pdf 51 https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/maritimeforum/en/node/3846 52 ‘invasive non-indigenous species’ means ‘invasive alien species’ within the meaning of Article 3(2) of Regulation (EU) No
1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council.
14
"Reducing pressure on oceans and seas and creating the conditions for a sustainable blue
economy" has been identified as key priority area in the Joint Communication on international
ocean governance. To achieve this objective, the Joint Communication set Action 6 "Implementing
the COP21 Agreement and mitigating the harmful impact of climate change on oceans, coastlines
and ecosystems". Among a number of important initiatives, the European Commission is now
setting up work with international partners "to agree on joint actions to protect and restore
marine and coastal ecosystems" (Action 6.1) and "will launch international public-private
partnerships aimed at restoring, adapting or developing 'blue green infrastructures" (Action 6.2).
A number of EU policies and initiative, such as the Marine Strategic Framework Directive53
, the
Habitats Directive54
, Birds Directive55
and the EU Biodiversity Strategy56
have been key in
contributing to protecting biodiversity and restoring ecosystems including in marine and coastal
areas.
Furthermore, a number of regional policies and initiatives have been actively contributing to
protecting biodiversity and restoring ecosystems, such as the Barcelona Convention and its
Protocols including in particular the Specially Protected Areas and Biodiversity Protocol, and the
Integrated Coastal Zone Management Protocol57
. The Contracting Parties of the Barcelona
Convention expressed their commitment to reach Good Environmental Status (GES) of the
Mediterranean by 2020 through the Ecosystem Approach Initiative and Integrated Monitoring and
Assessment Programme.
Additionally, a number of EU programmes and other funding schemes support(ed) research and
initiatives on coastal and marine restoration and protection58
across Europe (e.g. MERCES59
,
BEST60
, Adriatic plus61, Danube Delta restoration project62
, Biomares63, LIFE+ POSEIDONE64
,
Blue Reef65
, Coconet66
, Posidonia Baleares67
, Life Posidonia Andalucia68
, Coralchange69
, Red-
Med Marine Bioinvasion70
, etc.). Also relevant are some of the projects in the Mediterranean
53 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/marine/eu-coast-and-marine-policy/marine-strategy-framework-directive/index_en.htm 54 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/legislation/habitatsdirective/index_en.htm 55 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/legislation/birdsdirective/index_en.htm 56 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/biodiversity/strategy/index_en.htm 57 Such as the SPA Protocol Council Decision 84/132/EEC of 1 March 1984 on the conclusion of the Protocol concerning
Mediterranean specially protected areas; and the ICZM Protocol, Council Decision 2010/631/EU. 58 Such as FP7, H2020, the LIFE programme, etc. 59 MERCES project – Marine ecosystem restoration in changing European seas, http://www.merces-project.eu/ 60 BEST – Voluntary scheme for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in Territories of European overseas, which aims to support
the conservation of biodiversity and sustainable use of ecosystem services including ecosystem-based approaches to climate change
adaptation and mitigation in the EU Outermost Regions and Overseas Countries and Territories,
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/biodiversity/best/index_en.htm 61 ADRIATIC + – Sharing Marine and Coastal cross management experiences in the Adriatic basin (IPA ADRIATIC CBC
PROGRAMME 2007-2013). It is a partnership across six countries and regions in the Adriatic aimed at marine and coastal
restoration, http://blue-world.org/en/news/2016/10/14/adriatic-policy-brief-conference/ 62 DANUBE DELTA RESTORATION project,
http://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/documentation/studies/regional_social_economic_impacts/danube_delta_en.pdf 63 Biomares project - Restoration and Management of Biodiversity in the Marine Park Site Arrábida-Espichel, Portugal (LIFE06
NAT/P/000192),
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/project/Projects/index.cfm?fuseaction=search.dspPage&n_proj_id=3164&docType=pdf 64 POSEIDONE project "Urgent Measures to protect Posidonia meadows in Northern Lazio" (LIFE09NAT/IT/000176)
http://www.lifeposeidone.eu/ 65 Restoration of stone reefs in the Kattegat,
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/project/Projects/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.showFile&rep=file&fil=LIFE06_NAT_DK_000
159_LAYMAN.pdf 66 COCONET: http://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/101654_en.html 67 Posidonia Baleares,
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/project/Projects/index.cfm?fuseaction=search.dspPage&n_proj_id=1775 68 Posidonia Andalucia,
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/project/Projects/index.cfm?fuseaction=search.dspPage&n_proj_id=3829 69 Coralchange, http://cordis.europa.eu/result/rcn/60278_en.html 70 Red-Med Marine Bioinvation, http://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/104552_en.html
15
conducted by the Barcelona Convention. Regional Activity Center for Specially Protected Areas
(RAC/SPA) worked on Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs) as well as
on joint actions between EU and third countries through MedPartnership71
. Acknowledging this,
the project under this strand should build on the results of these or other relevant projects and
complement them.
71 http://www.unep.org/unepmap/what-we-do/projects
16
STRAND SPECIFIC
INFORMATION
17
S1- DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS MAKING BLUE
TECHNOLOGIES MARKET- AND INVESTOR-
READY
2. OBJECTIVES – PRIORITIES – ACTIVITIES – OUTPUTS - IMPACTS
2.1 Objectives
As outlined in the specific policy background in section 1.4, recent reports7273
underlined the
existence of considerable funding gaps in scaling up projects from pilot to demonstration projects
and moving from demonstration to flagship/first-of-a-kind and industrial-scale projects in different
blue growth sectors. In this context, this strand aims to support demonstration projects based on
innovative technologies testing/deploying/scaling-up of new industrial or service applications and
solutions for the blue economy.
Such support is important to:
i. Help innovative technologies and/or maritime services improve their market readiness and
advance towards market entry, allowing economic players, in particular SMEs, to apply
new ideas and research results in marketable goods and services;
ii. Facilitate scaling up business models and service concepts;
iii. De-risk the deployment of these demonstration projects and provide the necessary
credibility for these projects to enable them to access other financing for the development
of their activities.
Going beyond research/applied research, applicants must explain how their proposals will help
innovative technologies and/or maritime services improve their market-readiness and advance
towards the commercial phase demonstrating the benefit of a new product, service, process, and
system to potential clients in a real environment.
In this respect, the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of the proposed actions must be between 6
(“technology demonstrated in relevant environment”) and 9 (“actual system proven in operational
environment”), as defined in Commission Decision C(2014)499574
. Proposals focusing on a lower
TRL will be rejected.
Likewise, proposals must have a completed proof of concept and early field trials under way. In
order to achieve the objectives above, proposals must:
tackle innovation that goes beyond research and aims at helping innovative technologies
and/or maritime services close to market-readiness to advance towards the commercial
phase;
contribute to at least one of the EU priority areas of the Circular Economy75
, the (Blue)
Bioeconomy76
, the Digital Agenda for Europe77
, as well as the Energy union and climate78
;
72 Commission Staff Working document Report on the "Blue Growth Strategy Towards more sustainable growth and jobs in the
blue economy", SWD(2017) 128 final. 73 EIB - Study on Access to Finance Conditions for Investments in Bio-based Industries and the Blue Economy. 74 See General Annex G of the H2020 Work Programme to assess the Technological Readiness Level of your innovation. 75 http://ec.europa.eu/priorities/jobs-growth-investment/circular-economy/docs/communication-action-plan-for-circular-
economy_en.pdf 76 http://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/index.cfm?pg=policy&lib=strategy
18
demonstrate a clear link/application of enabling technologies such as imaging and physical
sensors, satellite technologies, advanced materials, ICT, big data analytics, autonomous
systems, biotechnology, nanotechnology and subsea engineering.
The action needs to have a sea basin79
(s) focus and a specific blue growth related technology,
domain or value chain. Hence, applicants must have a specific interest in the growth and
development of the sea basin(s) concerned and/or offer a key contribution to the chosen blue
growth related technology, domain or value chain in question.
As part of the evaluation process, priority80
will furthermore be given to proposals that are based
on the outcome of EU-funded research81
or applied research projects and/or that are aligned with
the objectives of the relevant sea basin strategy or initiative82
. In this context, proposals shall
describe how they build on, complement and differ from finalised or ongoing research and
innovation projects, including under the EU Framework Programmes, if relevant.
2.2 Activities
Applicants must explain in their proposal how they will implement the targeted activities below,
resulting in concrete and measurable results83
within the project's duration.
Core activities
Projects must undertake concrete activities in at least one of the following categories as part of the
project implementation:
Produce new materials, products or devices, and/or install new processes, systems and
services, and/or improve substantially those already designed, produced and/or
installed; and/or operating pre-commercial pilot manufacturing system; and/or test and
validate the manufacturing process of first small series of pre-commercial products84;
Consult, obtain feedback and validate with relevant stakeholders the
technologies/services/products being tested/deployed/scaled-up and/or prepare internal
and external organisations for full manufacturing, including development of a value
chain; and/or prepare for full commercialisation, e.g. market/competitor/investment
analyses, elaborated business plans (including risk management, intellectual property
rights, access to financing, replication potential to other industrial/commercial
application or to other sectors, entities, regions etc.).
Complementary activities
In addition to the core activities, applicants may include in their project one or more of the
following complementary activities to support the above core activities:
77 https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/europe-2020-strategy 78 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/energy-union-and-climate_en 79 Proposals can focus also on a sub-sea basin (i.e. a sub-region of the chosen sea basin, e.g. the Adriatic-Ionian sub-sea basin of the
Mediterranean). 80 See sub-award criterion 1.2 in page 24 81 Seal of Excellence initiative or equivalent initiatives (See section 4) 82 Sea basins strategies Atlantic, Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Mediterranean or North Sea and equivalent sea basin strategies:
https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/policy/sea_basins_hr 83 Results: capture more direct, short to medium term changes in a situation. 84 Please. note this does not include routine or periodic changes made to existing products, production lines, manufacturing
processes, services and other operations in progress, even if those changes may represent improvements.
19
Undertake activities that will increase the likelihood of market uptake from the
demonstration projects such as business development activities involving end users,
potential customers and investors, workshops BtoB, BtoC outreach;
Perform activities linked to technology licensing, patents registration and deposit;
knowledge management and protection, performance verification and validation ;
Support innovation activities and/or channel a mix of different targeted business and
innovation support measures (including crowdfunding, fund raising mentoring,
coaching, training, investment readiness support, other advisory and financial planning);
Conduct activities that will seek to increase complementarity and synergies with
relevant projects funded under other EU programmes (e.g. H2020, LIFE+ programme,
European Structural and Investment Funds) as well as with relevant initiatives and
transnational programmes or policies (e.g. sea basin and macro-regional strategies).
Measures to seek complementarity).
The list of complementary activities is non-exhaustive and aims at providing guidance to
applicants. Applicants may propose other activities as long as the choice is justified and
establishes a coherent link with the project objectives and the objectives of this strand.
Networking with other projects
During the lifetime of the projects financed under this strand, a number of meetings will be
organised at EU level for the grant beneficiaries to facilitate the exchange of experience and good
practices across sea basins, to foster mutual learning and to enhance the European dimension of
the blue growth focus. Project beneficiaries are expected to participate in these meetings, which
will be held in Brussels or other relevant locations.
2.3 Geographical scope of the activities
The geographical are covered by this strand includes the North Sea, Baltic Sea, Black Sea, the
Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea basins as well as the EU Outermost regions marine areas.
Proposals must concern one or more of the above sea basins/areas85
. Activities can be extended
into neighbouring waters outside the territory of the EU under specific conditions86
.
2.4 Expected outputs87
Selected proposals will be required to deliver concrete and quantified outputs 88
by the end of the
project:
– Technology (product/service) demonstration (TRL from 6 to 9), including e.g.
service/product prototype demonstration, technical improvement, performance verification,
miniaturisation, piloting and market validation processes encompassing standardization,
certification, licensing and metrology demands.
85 The proposal can focus on a sub-region of the above sea basins/areas. 86 For more details please see section 3 on Eligibility criteria. 87 For more information on outputs/results/impacts, you can consult the H2020 brochure on indicators.
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/news/horizon-2020-indicators-assessing-results-and-impact-horizon
88 An output is what is directly produced or supplied through the EU intervention. They often relate to the expected deliverables of
the intervention. Outputs generally occur within the short to medium term.
20
The above list of outputs is non-exhaustive and additional outputs may be included by the
applicant as long as the choice is justified and establishes a clear and direct link with the proposed
activities.
2.5 Expected results/impacts
Applicants must describe in their proposal what results89
they expect from the project. Expected
results must be quantified as far as possible.
Applicants must also explain how their work will contribute to the relevant expected impacts90
.
The list of expected impacts below is non-exhaustive and applicants may add other expected
impacts if relevant.
New market opportunities for European industry and SMEs in high potential and
innovative blue growth technology areas, domains or value chains;
More rapid market uptake of new technologies or industry applications, processes or
services;
New transnational business and investment opportunities and value chains in high potential
blue growth domains across a sea basin(s).
Applicants must provide a list of impact indicators91
, both qualitative and quantitative, indicating
the baseline and concrete targets of the project.
3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA92
3.1 Geographical eligibility
A/ Applicants from EU Member States93
(including their Outermost regions) and applicants
established in third countries bordering the North Sea, Baltic Sea, Black Sea, the Atlantic and the
Mediterranean sea basins and participating in the respective cooperation frameworks (e.g. Union
for the Mediterranean, EU Atlantic Strategy, EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian region, Black
Sea Synergy, etc.), excluding volatile regions94, are eligible to participate in this strand.
B/ Applicants established in those non-EU countries are eligible only:
– if a project activity is carried out outside the territory of the Union, and
– if the involvement of those applicants from non-EU countries is necessary in view of the
nature of the action and in order to achieve its objectives.
89 Results: capture more direct, short to medium term changes in a situation. 90 Impact: broadly defines the wider societal, economic or environmental cumulative changes over a longer period of time than the
EU intervention. 91 Impact indicators: represent what the successful outcome should be in terms of impact on the economy/society/ environment
beyond those directly affected by the intervention. Indicators are defined as the measurement of an objective to be met, a resource
mobilised, an effect obtained or a context variable. Indicators need to be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. Some examples of possible impact indicators could be the reduction of cost per unit or process in Euros / unit or % change, the
number of expected Jobs created in FTE (or % change), an indication of the market uptake in terms of market size (prospective
customers and/or expected revenues) of the proposed solution, the number of entities/individuals in the investment community
reached/ made aware, 'quality of the social and/or environmental impact' 92 Art. 131 Financial Regulation, 201 Rules of Application. 93 For British applicants: Please be aware that eligibility criteria must be complied with for the entire duration of the grant. If the
United Kingdom withdraws from the EU during the grant period without concluding an agreement with the EU ensuring in
particular that British applicants continue to be eligible, you will cease to receive EU funding (while continuing, where possible, to
participate) or be required to leave the project on the basis of Article II.17 of the grant agreement. 94 Crimea, Abkhazia, Transnistria, Libya and Syria.
21
For the purpose of this strand, the eligible non-EU countries are the following:
– Participating in the EU Atlantic Sea Strategy: Canada and United States of America
– Participating in the EU Baltic Sea Strategy: Belarus, Iceland, Norway and Russia
– Participating in the Adriatic-Ionian Macro-regional Strategy: Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia
– Participating in the Union for the Mediterranean: Algeria, Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco,
Palestine, Tunisia, Turkey
– Participating in the Black Sea Synergy: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Russia,
Turkey and Ukraine.
C/ If a project activity to be carried out in the waters of the EU or an EU Outermost Region also
extends into neighbouring waters95
outside the territory of the Union, applicants established in the
non-EU countries in whose jurisdiction these waters fall, are eligible, providing that the
involvement of those applicants is necessary in view of the nature of the action and in order to
achieve its objectives.
3.2 Eligible applicants
1. Applicants must be legal entities. They can be public or private bodies. In the event of private
bodies, they must be properly constituted and registered under national law. In the event of
international organisations96
, they must be constituted under international law.
To be considered a public entity, the body in question must fulfil all of the following criteria:
• The body has been created by a public authority or is governed by private law with a
public service mission;
• The public interest of the body must be explicitly mentioned in the relevant legal or
administrative act(s);
• The body is financed totally or to a large extent (more than 50%) by public sources;
• In the event that the entity stops its activities, all rights and obligations including financial
rights and obligations will be transferred to a public authority.
For bodies to be considered as public entity, proof of compliance with all above criteria must
be provided together with the proposal.
2. Natural persons are not eligible as applicant for the purpose of the present call.
3. Applicants must be active in the field of research and innovation, and/or in the blue economy
and related sectors (such as marine renewable energies, blue biotechnology, coastal tourism,
aquaculture, maritime transport, shipbuilding and ship repair, shipping, offshore oil and gas,
fisheries or aquaculture).
95 Neighbouring waters is to be understood in the geographical sense, e.g. countries with a common border of their territorial
waters, contiguous zones or EEZ. 96 An international organisation can be considered as such if the following criteria are met:
- it is international;
- it is a public sector organisation;
- it is set up by intergovernmental agreements.
The specialised agencies set up by these organisations will also be considered international organisations.
The formal proof is the intergovernmental agreement that establishes the international organisation.
22
4. Examples of potential applicants
The following non-exhaustive list provides examples of potential applicants:
• public or private, small, medium or large enterprises
• public authorities (national, regional)
• research centres, innovation agencies; and centres of excellence
• cluster organisations or equivalent business network organisations in so far as they are
established as an independent legal entity
• non-profit organisations (private or public)
5. Affiliated entities
Legal entities having a legal or capital link with applicants, which is neither limited to the
action nor established for the sole purpose of its implementation, may take part in the action as
affiliated entities, and may declare eligible costs as specified in section 11.2.
For that purpose, applicants shall identify such affiliated entities in the application form. The
affiliated entities will have to comply with the eligibility and exclusion criteria.
6. Supporting documents
In order to assess the applicants' eligibility, the following supporting documents are requested
for the coordinator and each of the partners:
• Public entity: copy of the resolution/law/decree/decision establishing the entity OR if not
available, any other official document proving the establishment of the entity by the
national authorities;
• Private entity: extract from the official journal, copy of articles of association, extract of
trade or association register, VAT registration document;
• Affiliated entities: shall demonstrate their legal/capital link with the applicant.
3.3 Eligibility conditions for consortia
1. Proposals must be submitted by a consortium (partnership) of minimum 2 legal entities
established in a different eligible country, one of which must be an EU Member State. The
consortium coordinator must be established in an EU Member State.
2. The consortium must comprise at least one business partner in the sense of a profit-making legal
entity.
3. Mandate
All partners of the consortium will provide the coordinator with a power of attorney in writing
through a mandate signed for that purpose97
. The mandate shall fully empower the coordinator
to act on the partners' behalf in the context of the grant agreement.
97 A template for this mandate is included as Annex IV to the grant agreement published together with this call.
23
4. AWARD CRITERIA98
Applications will be assessed on the basis of the following award criteria:
1. Relevance and added
value
(max 40 points)
Relevance of the proposal
and its expected results to
achieving the objectives of
the action and of the strand
in question. Added value of
the proposal in terms of
synergies/complementarity
with other relevant
initiatives (notably
established sea basin-based
initiatives and regional
plans, international
commitments), projects or
EU policies, and in terms of
geographical coverage.
The relevance and added value of the proposal will be assessed on the
following basis:
Sub-criterion 1.1 - Relevance of the proposal and its expected
results/impacts to achieving the objectives (max 20 points):
– the extent to which it is relevant to the objectives of the strand
defined in section 2;
– the extent to which the proposal is based on an appropriate
analysis of market needs/gaps and commercial potential and that
an adequate justification is provided for the proposed
solution/approach including identifying the specific
needs/challenges of the blue economy domain/sea basin/area
targeted;
– the extent to which it provides clear, measurable and realistic
objectives that are achievable within the duration of the project;
– the extent to which the proposal actively involves relevant
business partner, in particular SMEs, throughout the different
project phases;
– the extent to which there is a clear link between the project
objectives, the activities proposed and their expected
results/impacts.
In view of this assessment, the proposal should convincingly
elaborate the following aspects:
– state-of-the-art analysis of the specific challenge/opportunity of
the blue economy domain/sea basin/area targeted through the
proposed project;
– identification of the specific needs and/or market gaps and
opportunities that the project wants to address;
– description of previous research and development activities/tests
and results;
– description of and reasons for the chosen solution and scale as
proposed in the project proposal;
– assessment of market prospects, market positioning, competitors,
of the envisaged product/service/tool/etc.
98 Art. 132 Financial Regulation, 203 Rules of Application.
24
Sub-criterion 1.2 - Added value of the activities (max 20 points):
– the extent to which the proposal demonstrates its added value
compared to existing solutions (e.g. technologies/approaches/
practices where relevant) and, where relevant, represents an
uptake of results of related research and innovation projects from
the EU or other programmes in particular if the proposal
received the seal of excellence label99;
– the extent to which it proposes concrete and effective solutions
to accelerate the transfer of research results to the market for the
chosen blue growth domain (e.g. intellectual property,
knowledge protection and regulatory issues);
– the extent to which the proposal describes how the project
differentiates itself from others and provides the highest added
value for potential customers, investors;
– the extent to which it demonstrates how it will address specific
industrial/economic/social challenges of the sea basin/area (e.g.
direct link to a Sea Basin/Macro-Regional Strategy, if relevant,
and to national/regional Blue Growth-related strategies100
).
2. Project implementation
(max 25 points)
Effectiveness and coherence
of the work plan. Feasibility
in terms of activities and
timetable. Appropriate and
balanced allocation of tasks
and human resources.
Appropriate project
management set-up.
Complementarity of
partners. Adequate risk
management.
The quality of the project implementation will be assessed on the
following basis:
Effectiveness and coherence of the work plan:
– the extent to which there is a clear description of planned
activities, including a coherent and effective work plan,
providing a time-efficient planning (Gantt chart or equivalent)
clearly showing the progress of each work package, including a
timetable of deliverables;
– the extent to which the expected outputs/results of the project are
clearly identified, quantified and the proposed activities
contribute to potentially reach them;
– the extent to which appropriate qualitative and/or quantitative
indicators have been provided to assess the expected impacts of
the project.
Complementarity of partners and project management:
99 The Seal of Excellence is a quality label granted by the EC to proposals submitted under Horizon 2020, which succeeded an
independent highly competitive evaluation at EU level but could not be funded due to insufficient call budget. The Seal allows
regions, Member States or any other funding sources to easily identify these high quality proposals and possibly support them. 100 Action Plan for a Maritime Strategy in the Atlantic area, EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, EU Strategy for the Adriatic
and Ionian Region and Initiative for the sustainable development of the blue economy in the western Mediterranean. Union for the
Mediterranean, Strategic cooperation on Blue Growth in the North Sea, national or regional research and innovation strategies for
smart specialisation (RIS3)
25
– the extent to which the partners complement each other in view
of delivering the expected outputs and results;
– the extent to which appropriate management structures and
procedures within the consortium (e.g. clear description of
management responsibilities, decision-making mechanisms and
communication arrangements) are proposed;
– the extent to which there is a risk management plan identifying
potential risks and providing risk prevention and mitigation
measures.
3. Cost-effectiveness
(max 10 points)
Clearly presented and
appropriate budget
representing value for
money in comparison to
expected results, involving
a cost-effective allocation of
financial resources in
relation to the planned
activities and outputs.
The cost-effectiveness of the proposal will be assessed on the
following basis:
– the extent to which the budget is clear, consistent with the
proposed activities, expected outputs/results and sufficiently
detailed and justified;
– the extent to which the project is cost-effective and represents
value for money.
4. Impact
(max 25 points)
Expected outputs, results
and impact. Dissemination,
sustainability and
transferability of the
expected outputs, potential
multiplier effect.
The impact of the proposal will be assessed on the following basis:
Impact, communication, dissemination and exploitation:
– the extent to which the proposal describes the intended impact
on the blue growth domain/value chain beyond the project
lifetime indicating the growth potential of the solution proposed
(turnover market share, employment creation, profit,
environmental benefits, …);
– the extent to which the project will actively consult, involve and
cooperate with stakeholders (industry/businesses, local
community, NGOs) necessary and/or relevant to the
outputs/expected impacts of the project;
– the extent to which adequate communication measures are
proposed to promote the project (with a description of relevant
target group(s), activities, tools and channels);
– the extent to which measures to disseminate and exploit the
project's outputs/results will maximise the impact of the project
(including management of IPR if relevant).
26
Sustainability101
:
– the extent to which the proposal provides appropriate and
concrete measures to sustain the project outputs/results after the
end of the EU funding, including leverage potential in terms of
mobilising public/private funds.
Transferability and multiplier effect:
– the extent to which the solutions/methodology/approach
proposed may be transferable/transferred to other
areas/regions/domains.
Evaluation procedure
The evaluation procedure is explained in section 4.2.
101 This part can cover different aspects of sustainability: financial, economic, institutional/structural (structures/ organisational set-
up to allow the results of the action to continue, business plan), policy, etc as indicated in the Application form section 1.g)
27
S2 - MARINE LITTER
28
S2 - MARINE LITTER
2. OBJECTIVES – PRIORITIES – ACTIVITIES – OUTPUTS - IMPACTS
2.1 Objectives
As outlined in the specific policy background section, this strand aims to support the reduction,
monitoring and quantification, removal and recycling of marine litter, in line with Action 9 of the
Joint Communication on International Ocean Governance. It will build on the results of relevant
projects whilst specifically focusing on tackling marine litter from sea-based sources as defined in
the background section 1.5.
This strands aims at supporting projects that develop methodologies and technologies to:
i. Reduce the amount and harmfulness of marine litter from sea-based sources;
ii. Monitor and quantify the contribution of sea-based sources of marine litter;
iii. Remove and recycle, in an environmentally sound and resource-efficient way, marine litter
found in seas and oceans in the European sea basins/areas.
In order to achieve the objectives above, proposals must address the following elements:
the project’s support to existing EU policies and legislation, such as the Integrated
Maritime Policy (including sea-basin or macro-regional strategies/initiatives), the
International Ocean Governance communication, the Circular Economy package102
, the
Marine Strategy Framework Directive, Waste Legislation, the Port Reception Facilities
Directive, the upcoming EU Strategy on Plastics and existing global and regional marine
litter action plans;
the project’s focus103
on either pilot or demonstrative action clearly stating whether the
project develops/tests a new methodology or technology or whether it applies a proven
methodology or technology in a new geographical, ecological or socio-economic context.
In either case, the state of the art the project builds on and its innovative character needs to
be described;
the project’s added value: all projects are expected to take fully account of and build on
other already funded or ongoing projects at regional, national or EU level104
;
consult and promote dialogue and cooperation with relevant stakeholders and demonstrate
a high degree of sustainability in the proposed methodologies and technologies.
Priority areas
For this strand, projects have to be undertaken in at least one the following priority areas. Projects
may cover more than one of these areas. The examples provided under each priority areas are non-
exhaustive.
102http://ec.europa.eu/priorities/jobs-growth-investment/circular-economy/docs/communication-action-plan-for-circular-
economy_en.pdf 103 Research activities should be limited in time and effort for the inception phase of the project 104 Such as e.g. those under the EU Research and Innovation Programme Horizon 2020 or under the ESIF, as well as by any other
relevant initiative under transnational programmes or sea-basin or macro-regional strategies/initiatives
29
a) Reduction and prevention
Development and testing of methodologies and/or technologies to prevent and reduce
marine litter from sea-based sources, including increased recyclability of fishing and
aquaculture gears.
Projects may include e.g.: Strategies and/or technologies to prevent the loss or discarding in the marine environment of fishing
or aquaculture gears and fish aggregating devices (FADs);
New product design of fishing and aquaculture gears and FADs that help preventing their loss or
voluntary discarding in the sea or the impact of those gears and FADs in the marine environment
(including ghost fishing), and/or increase their recyclability:
Better practices of on-board waste management, e.g. segregation of household and operational
waste;
Training and awareness raising of fishers and the fishing and aquaculture sectors in general, for all
the above issues.
b) Monitoring and quantification of marine litter
Development and testing of methodologies and/or technologies to monitor and quantify the
contribution of sea-based sources of marine litter in the different compartments (i.e. at the
sea surface, in the water column, on the sea floor or along coasts) including transport
pathways and hotspots of marine litter facilitating harmonised and standardised approaches
as far as possible.105
Projects may include e.g.: Supporting the developing and testing of a harmonised methodology for the quantification and
mapping of the contribution of fishing or aquaculture gear and of FADs to marine litter;
Assessing the contribution of containers lost at sea to marine littering;
Assessing the contribution of waste generated on large cargo, cruise liners and other commercial
vessels as well as from the recreational activities to marine litter;
Developing tools for identifying marine litter hotspots and forecasting marine litter.
c) Removal and recycling
Development and testing of methodologies and/or technologies for environmentally sound
and cost-efficient retrieval of marine litter, such as lost gear, fragments of plastic, etc., in
open waters and/or coastal areas and for methodologies and/or technologies facilitating
recycling and contributing to increasing recycling rates.
Projects may include e.g.: Development of guidance for the retrieval of fishing and aquaculture gears from the marine
environment based on environmental impact assessment;
Development of cost efficient and sustainable measures and methodologies of retrieving marine
litter in different compartments i.e. floating litter, sea column, sea floor, and compilation in a data
base; Schemes for the separate collection of garbage at ports;
Schemes for the collection, dismantling, preparation for recycling and/or transportation to
recycling facilities of fishing gears.
105 Monitoring technologies and protocols must take into account the work of Member States to comply with the requirements of
the MSFD with regard to monitoring marine litter and support the efforts in the Technical Group on Marine Litter to develop
harmonised monitoring methodologies and protocols for marine litter in the EU.
30
2.2 Activities
Applicants must explain in their proposals how they will implement the targeted activities below,
resulting in concrete and measurable results106
within the project's duration.
Core activities
Projects must undertake all of the following activities as part of the project implementation:
Development and testing of the methodology and/or technology;
Evaluation of the cost-efficiency of the proposed methodology and/or technology;
Assessment of the environmental impacts of the proposed methodology and/or
technology;
Assessment of the project´s quantifiable contribution to the respective objectives under
priorities a to c set out in section 2.1 above, such as
o reduction of concentration and harmfulness of marine litter and increase of
recyclability of sea-based sources (priority a),
o harmonised monitoring and quantification (priority b),
o increase of retrieval and/or recycling rate (priority c)
Consultation and validation of the methodology and/or technology with relevant
stakeholders, including relevant national administrations;
Efficient cooperation with relevant projects, in particular those funded by the EU;
Targeted communication and dissemination activities;
Assessment of the replication potential of the project in other EU regions;
Measures to ensure the sustainability and continuation of the project activities and the
application of the developed methodology or technology beyond the project’s lifetime
and/or replicating it beyond its geographical context (e.g. by fund raising financing,
self-sustainable commercial or benefit driven–application, uptake by stakeholders).
Complementary activities
In addition to the core activities, applicants may include in their proposals complementary
activities to support the above core activities (e.g. field work, training and capacity building,
coaching, creation or development of partnerships, market oriented activities, fund raising, etc.) as
long as the choice is justified and establishes a coherent link between the project objectives and
with the objectives of this strand.
Measures to seek complementarity).w
Networking with other projects
During the lifetime of the projects financed under this action, a number of meetings will be
organised at EU level for the grant beneficiaries to facilitate the exchange of experience and good
practice between projects, to foster mutual learning and to enhance the European dimensions of
the selected projects. Project beneficiaries are expected to participate in these meetings, which will
be held in Brussels or other relevant locations.
2.3 Geographical scope of activities
The geographical area covered by this strand includes the North Sea, Baltic Sea, Black Sea, the
Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea basins as well as the EU Outermost regions marine areas.
106 Results: capture more direct, short to medium term changes in a situation.
31
Proposals must concern one or more of the above sea basins/areas107
. Activities can be extended
into neighbouring waters outside the territory of the EU under specific conditions108
.
2.4 Expected outputs 109
Projects under this strand should achieve the following concrete and quantified outputs110
by the
end of the project:
New tested methodology and/or technology adding value compared to the state of the art in
terms of prevention and reduction and/or monitoring and quantification of marine litter
from sea-based sources and/or removal and recycling marine litter;
Assessment of cost-efficiency and environmental impact of tested methodology and/or
technology;
Applied mechanism for consultation, validation and buy-in from relevant stakeholders of
the tested methodology and/or technology;
Strategy for the long-term sustainability of the tested methodology and/or technology after
the project’s life time, including up-scaling the tested methodology and/or technology or
replicating it in another geographical area or sea-basin;
Support for the development and implementation of policies to reduce marine litter from
sea based sources, notably from the fishing and aquaculture sectors.
The above list of outputs is non-exhaustive and additional outputs may be included by the
applicant as long as the choice is justified and establishes a clear and direct link with the proposed
activities.
2.5 Expected results/impacts
Applicants must describe in their proposal what results111
they expect from the project. Applicants
must describe in their proposal what results they expect from the project. Expected results must be
quantified as far as possible.
Applicants must also explain how their work will contribute to the relevant expected impacts112
.
The list of expected impacts below is non-exhaustive and applicants may add other expected
impacts if relevant.
Applicants must describe in their proposals how the project will contribute to the relevant
expected impacts, which may include:
Reduced risk of fishing or aquaculture gear being lost or abandoned at sea due to increased
awareness, better handling and/or or reduced gear conflicts amongst fishers and sectors
concerned;
107 The proposal can focus on a sub-region of the above sea basins/areas. 108 For more details please see section 3 on Eligibility criteria. 109 For more information on outputs/impacts, you can consult the H2020 brochure on indicators.
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/news/horizon-2020-indicators-assessing-results-and-impact-horizon 110 An output is what is directly produced or supplied through the EU intervention. They often relate to the expected deliverables of
the intervention. Outputs generally occur within the short to medium term. 111 Results: capture more direct, short to medium term changes in a situation. 112 Impact: broadly defines the wider societal, economic or environmental cumulative changes over a longer period of time than
the EU intervention.
32
Reduced marine litter concentration and harmfulness from sea-based sources and improved
quality of the marine environment in European sea basins;
Increased technological innovation and recyclability of fishing and aquaculture gears;
Better harmonised monitoring and quantification of sea-based sources of marine litter;
More cost-efficient and sustainable retrieval and cleaning activities and higher retrieval
rates;
Better preparation (including transport) of fishing gear for recycling;
Higher recycling rates of marine litter retrieved from the sea and especially of fishing and
aquaculture gear;
Improved environmental performance of blue economy sectors such as fisheries and
aquaculture;
Improved professional skills and competences of fishers, ship operators and crew and blue
economy workers in marine sustainability and circular economy fields;
Increased investments in marine litter solutions;
Increased green business opportunities;
Increased participation of blue economy sectors in initiatives and policies protecting the
marine environment, such as the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the Circular
Economy Package, the PRF Directive, the upcoming EU Strategy on Plastics, the Joint
Communication on International Ocean Governance and marine litter action plans, etc.
Applicants must provide a list of impact indicators113
, both qualitative and quantitative, indicating
the baseline and concrete targets of the project.
3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA114
3.1 Geographical eligibility
A/ Applicants from EU Member States115
(including their Outermost regions) and applicants
established in third countries bordering the North Sea, Baltic Sea, Black Sea, the Atlantic and the
Mediterranean sea basins and participating in the respective cooperation frameworks (e.g. Union
for the Mediterranean, EU Atlantic Strategy, EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian region, Black
Sea Synergy, etc.), excluding volatile regions116, are eligible to participate in this strand.
113 Impact indicators: represent what the successful outcome should be in terms of impact on the economy/society/ environment
beyond those directly affected by the intervention. Indicators are defined as the measurement of an objective to be met, a resource
mobilised, an effect obtained or a context variable. Indicators need to be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely.
Applicants can choose the relevant impact indicators for their project from the list, depending on the priority area the proposal
focuses and the scope of the project. Some examples of possible impact indicators could be: quantity of marine litter
removed/recycled (tonnes), composition, amount and spatial distribution of marine litter (before/after project), number of
birds/mammals/reptiles/fish/invertebrates which are adversely affected by marine litter (before/after project), number of
entities/individuals reached and made aware (awareness raising), number of entities taking part of the partnership, green jobs
created (FTE – Full time equivalents), number of volunteers, donors and donations throughout the project implementation, etc.
Indicators of improved marine environmental status should be aligned with the criteria and methodological standards laid down by
the Commission Decision 2017/848 (17 May 2017). 114 Art. 131 FR, 201 RAP 115 For British applicants: Please be aware that eligibility criteria must be complied with for the entire duration of the grant. If the
United Kingdom withdraws from the EU during the grant period without concluding an agreement with the EU ensuring in
particular that British applicants continue to be eligible, you will cease to receive EU funding (while continuing, where possible, to
participate) or be required to leave the project on the basis of Article II.17 of the grant agreement. 116 Crimea, Abkhazia, Transnistria, Libya and Syria.
33
B/ Applicants established in those non-EU countries are eligible only:
– if a project activity is carried out outside the territory of the Union, and
– if the involvement of those applicants from non-EU countries is necessary in view of the
nature of the action and in order to achieve its objectives.
For the purpose of this strand, the eligible non-EU countries are the following:
– Participating in the EU Atlantic Sea Strategy: Canada and United States of America
– Participating in the EU Baltic Sea Strategy: Belarus, Iceland, Norway and Russia
– Participating in the Adriatic-Ionian Macro-regional Strategy: Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia
– Participating in the Union for the Mediterranean: Algeria, Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco,
Palestine, Tunisia, Turkey
– Participating in the Black Sea Synergy: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Russia,
Turkey and Ukraine.
C/ If a project activity to be carried out in the waters of the EU or an EU Outermost Region also
extends into neighbouring waters117
outside the territory of the Union, applicants established in the
non-EU countries in whose jurisdiction these waters fall, are eligible, providing that the
involvement of those applicants is necessary in view of the nature of the action and in order to
achieve its objectives.
3.2 Eligible applicants
1. Applicants must be legal entities. They can be public or private bodies. In the event of private
bodies, they must be properly constituted and registered under national law. In the event of
international organisations118
, they must be constituted under international law.
To be considered a public entity, the body in question must fulfil all of the following criteria:
• The body has been created by a public authority or is governed by private law with a
public service mission;
• The public interest of the body must be explicitly mentioned in the relevant legal or
administrative act(s);
• The body is financed totally or to a large extent (more than 50%) by public sources;
• In the event that the entity stops its activities, all rights and obligations including financial
rights and obligations will be transferred to a public authority.
For bodies to be considered as public entity, proof of compliance with all above criteria must
be provided together with the proposal.
117 Neighbouring waters is to be understood in the geographical sense, e.g. countries with a common border of their territorial
waters, contiguous zones or EEZ. 118 An international organisation can be considered as such if the following criteria are met:
- it is international;
- it is a public sector organisation;
- it is set up by intergovernmental agreements.
The specialised agencies set up by these organisations will also be considered international organisations.
The formal proof is the intergovernmental agreement that establishes the international organisation.
34
2. Natural persons are not eligible as applicant for the purpose of the present call.
3. Applicants must be active in the field of research and innovation, in the blue economy and
related sectors, environmental management or any other field if their relevance for the project
is duly justified in the proposal.
4. Examples of potential applicants
The following non-exhaustive list provides examples of potential applicants:
• public authorities (national, regional);
• research centres, innovation agencies; and centres of excellence;
• public or private, small, medium or large enterprises;
• cluster organisations or equivalent business network organisations that have an own
independent legal entity;
• non-profit organisations (private or public);
• the four regional sea conventions (Barcelona, Bucharest, HELCOM, OSPAR).
5. Affiliated entities: legal entities having a legal or capital link with applicants, which is neither
limited to the action nor established for the sole purpose of its implementation, may take part in
the action as affiliated entities, and may declare eligible costs as specified in section 11.2.
For that purpose, applicants shall identify such affiliated entities in the application form. The
affiliated entities will have to comply with the eligibility and exclusion criteria.
6. Supporting documents: in order to assess the applicants' eligibility, the following supporting
documents are requested for the coordinator and each of the partners:
• Public entity: copy of the resolution/law/decree/decision establishing the entity OR if not
available, any other official document proving the establishment of the entity by the
national authorities;
• Private entity: extract from the official journal, copy of articles of association, extract of
trade or association register, VAT registration document;
• Affiliated entities: shall demonstrate their legal/capital link with the applicant.
3.3 Eligibility conditions for consortia
1. Proposals must be submitted by a consortium (partnership) of minimum 2 legal entities
established in a different eligible country, one of which must be an EU Member State. One of
these must act as the consortium coordinator, while the other(s) will act as partner(s).
2. The consortium coordinator has to be established in an EU Member State.
3. Mandate
35
All partners of the consortium will provide the coordinator with a power of attorney in writing
through a mandate signed for that purpose119
. The mandate shall fully empower the coordinator to
act on the partners' behalf in the context of the grant agreement.
4. AWARD CRITERIA120
4.1 Strand specific award criteria
Applications will be assessed on the basis of the following award criteria:
1. Relevance and added
value (max 40 points)
Relevance of the proposal
and its expected results to
achieving the objectives of
this strand. Added value of
the proposal in terms of
synergies/complementarity
with other relevant
initiatives (notably
established sea basin-based
initiatives and regional
plans, international
commitments), projects or
EU policies, and in terms of
geographical coverage.
The relevance and added value of the proposal will be assessed on
the following basis:
Sub-criterion 1.1 - Relevance of the proposal and its expected
results/impacts to achieving the objectives (max 20 points):
– the extent to which it is relevant to the general objectives of the
strand as well as to the priority areas defined in section 2;
– whether an adequate justification is provided for the proposed
solution/approach including identifying the specific
needs/challenges in relation to marine litter of the blue economy
sector/sea basin/area targeted;
– the extent to which the proposal is based on a sound intervention
logic, i.e. building on a needs/gaps analysis and establishing a
clear link between needs, objectives, proposed activities and
expected results and impacts;
– the extent to which it provides clear, measurable and realistic
objectives that are achievable within the duration of the project.
Sub-criterion 1.2 – added value of the activities (max 20 points):
– the extent to which the proposal demonstrates its added value
and synergies/complementarity with existing projects, strategies
or technologies and, where relevant, represents an uptake of
results of related research and innovation projects from the EU
or other programmes;
– the extent to which it proposes concrete and effective solutions
to tackle the problem of marine litter from sea-based sources;
– the extent to which it demonstrates added value by supporting
major EU policies linked to marine litter;
– the extent to which it demonstrates its added value in terms of
direct contribution to the objectives/priorities of established sea-
119 A template for this mandate is included as Annex IV to the grant agreement published together with this call. 120 Art. 132 FR, 203 RAP
36
basin or macro-regional strategies/initiatives and implementing
global and/or regional marine litter action plans.
2. Project implementation
(max 25 points)
Effectiveness and coherence
of the work plan. Feasibility
in terms of activities and
timetable. Appropriate and
balanced allocation of tasks
and human resources.
Appropriate project
management set-up.
Complementarity of
partners. Adequate risk
management.
The quality of the project implementation will be assessed on the
following basis:
Effectiveness and coherence of the work plan:
– the extent to which there is a clear description of planned
activities, including a coherent and effective work plan,
providing a time-efficient planning (Gantt chart or equivalent)
clearly showing the progress of each work package, including a
timetable of deliverables;
– the extent to which the expected outputs/results of the project
are clearly identified, quantified, and the proposed activities
contribute to potentially reach them;
– the extent to which appropriate qualitative and/or quantitative
indicators have been provided to assess the expected impacts of
the project where relevant.
Complementarity of partners and project management:
– the extent to which the partners complement each other in view
of delivering the expected outputs and results;
– the extent to which appropriate management structures and
procedures within the consortium (e.g. clear description of
management responsibilities, decision-making mechanisms and
communication arrangements) are proposed;
– the extent to which there is a risk management plan identifying
potential risks and providing risk prevention and mitigation
measures.
3. Cost-effectiveness
(max 10 points)
Clearly presented and
appropriate budget
representing value for
money in comparison to
expected results, involving
a cost-effective allocation of
financial resources in
relation to the planned
activities and outputs.
The cost-effectiveness of the proposal will be assessed on the
following basis:
– the extent to which the budget is clear, consistent with the
activities proposed, expected results and sufficiently detailed
and justified;
– the extent to which the project is cost-effective and represents
value for money.
37
4. Impact
(max 25 points)
Expected outputs, results
and impact. Dissemination,
sustainability and
transferability of the
expected outputs, potential
multiplier effect.
The impact of the proposal will be assessed on the following basis:
Impact, communication, dissemination and exploitation:
– the extent to which the project will contribute to the expected
impacts (see list of expected impacts in section 2 of the strand);
– the extent to which the project will actively consult, involve and
cooperate with stakeholders (industry/businesses, local
community, NGOs) necessary and/or relevant to the
outputs/expected impacts of the project;
– the extent to which adequate communication measures are
proposed to promote the project (with a description of relevant
target group(s), activities, tools and channels);
– the extent to which measures to disseminate and exploit the
project's outputs/results will maximise the impact of the project
(including management of IPR if relevant).
Sustainability121
:
– the extent to which the proposal is based on a sound assessment
of environmental impact and ensures that long-term
environmental sustainability is addressed;
– the extent to which the proposal provides appropriate and
concrete measures to sustain the project activities/outputs after
the end of the EU funding.
Transferability and multiplier effect:
– the extent to which the solutions/methodology/approach
proposed may be transferable/transferred to other
areas/regions/domains;
– the extent to which the proposal provides appropriate concrete
measures to facilitate the transferability of the project activities
and outputs.
The evaluation procedure is explained in section 4.2.
121 This part can cover different aspects of sustainability: financial, economic, institutional/structural (structures/ organisational set-
up to allow the results of the action to continue, business plan), policy, etc as indicated in the Application form section 1.g)
38
S3 - BLUE NETWORKS IN THE
MEDITERRANEAN
39
S3 - BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN
2. OBJECTIVES – PRIORITIES – ACTIVITIES – OUTPUTS - IMPACTS
2.1 Objectives
General objective
As outlined in the specific policy background in section 1.6, this strand aims to accelerate the
development of the blue economy in the Mediterranean through closer cooperation between public
and private maritime stakeholders such as education and training institutes, maritime clusters and
fisheries local communities from the EU and its partner countries in the Mediterranean. It will
support skills, innovation, entrepreneurship as well as job diversification and local communities'
empowerment.
Specific objectives
In the context of this strand, the following specific objectives have been identified. Applicants
must indicate clearly to which specific objective they are applying. They must select only one of
the following specific objectives per proposal:
a) promote networking and collaboration between marine and/or maritime, port and logistics-
related education and training institutes in the Mediterranean to develop relevant skills and
promote maritime professions in cooperation with business and public authorities;
b) promote networking between maritime clusters in the Mediterranean to produce concrete
results in terms of maritime innovation and maritime technologies, business development
and innovation (including boosters, business angels and start-ups) and skills development;
c) pilot twinning of fisheries local coastal communities in the western Mediterranean based
on the Community-Led Local Development (CLLD) approach to produce concrete results
in areas such as diversification of fishing activities, both within and outside commercial
fisheries and including tourism, pesca-tourism, sustainable aquaculture development and
skills development, with a particular emphasis on women and youth.
Applicants must explain in their proposal how the proposed collaboration mechanisms reflect the
different socio-economic conditions in place in the targeted countries, as well as their concrete
plans for future development.
This strand includes a strong element of capacity building between the Northern and Southern part
of the Mediterranean. The degree of regional outreach and involvement of southern Mediterranean
partner countries is therefore a key element that applicants must consider and explain in their
proposals.
2.2 Activities
Applicants must explain in their proposal how they will implement the targeted activities resulting
in concrete and measurable results122
within the project's duration.
122 Results: capture more direct, short to medium term changes in a situation.
40
Core activities
Applicants must implement specific sets of core activities depending on the specific objective to
which they are applying, as described below.
a) Applicants under specific objective a) must explain how their proposals will establish a
networking mechanism between education and training institutes in the Mediterranean dealing
with marine and/or maritime, port and logistics education and training in order to strengthen
skills across the Mediterranean and better align them with the needs of the Blue Economy in
the region.
In addition to setting-up an appropriate networking mechanism between education and training
organisations, proposals must explain how applicants will carry out concrete activities in each
of the following categories:
1) promote cooperation with private sector and public authorities and/or public
administrations and identify needs and joint actions to develop maritime skills and
professions;
2) undertake concrete actions such as defining common education and training programmes
with common qualification standards, sharing and pooling resources (e.g. infrastructures),
establishing exchange programmes (including pilot exchanges) and progress towards
mutual recognition of qualifications and skills etc.;
3) develop measures to raise the awareness about and attractiveness of maritime professions
(e.g. VET) including development and provision of career guidance towards citizens and in
particular young people and students).
b) Applicants under specific objective b) must explain how their proposals will establish a
networking mechanism between and driven by maritime clusters that will aim to promote
concrete activities to strengthen their innovation capacity and services to business123;
In addition to setting up an appropriate networking mechanism between maritime clusters,
applicants will undertake concrete activities in each of the following categories:
1) promote cooperation between key actors of maritime clusters (business, research and
education establishments, public authorities) and financial intermediaries;
2) undertake concrete joint activities such as joint investment in research and innovation,
developing cluster strategies, improve cluster management practices124
;
3) undertake concrete activities to strengthen cluster services to business such as promoting
start-ups, e.g. through boosters and business angel services, developing business services,
facilitating access to finance125
;
4) undertake capacity-building and knowledge transfer activities such as exchanging good
practices, transferring capacity and enhancing mutual learning.
123 In addition, clusters should register on the European Cluster Collaboration Platform (https://www.clustercollaboration.eu/) to
increase visibility of their activities at European and international level. 124 See for example the European Cluster excellence initiative: https://ec.europa.eu/growth/industry/policy/cluster/excellence_en 125 Please note that according to section 11.1.f financial contributions to third parties are not an eligible expenditure
41
c) Applicants under specific objective c) must explain how their proposals will establish
coastal/fisheries local communities in the Southern partner countries of the western
Mediterranean, based on the Community-Led Local Development (CLLD) approach and
develop concrete twinning activities with at least one established CLLD in a EU Member
State.
To do so, proposals must explain how applicants will carry out concrete activities in each of
the following categories:
1) promote cooperation between local private and public stakeholders, identification of local
needs with a view to set up a CLLD-like partnership in the targeted community in areas
such as sustainable small-scale fisheries, recreational fishing, diversification of fishing
activities, both within and outside commercial fisheries, including coastal tourism, pesca-
tourism, and sustainable aquaculture development;
2) promote and strenghten the participation of fisheries communities and civil society in the
decision making processes at local level, in particular in relation to the governance of local
fisheries resources and maritime activities;
3) propose twinning activities and awareness-raising activities such as promoting
transnational cooperation, skills' development, exchanges and study visits, activities
supporting women and young people, social well-being and cultural heritage, climate
change mitigation and adaptation.
In addition to implementing the core activities above-mentioned, any proposal must also include
the following aspects:
– An evaluation method which will measure the project direct contribution to (depending on
the specific objective of the project) creating or diversifying jobs, increasing student
mobility and traineeships, improving ocean literacy, filling skills gaps, more effectively
using existing infrastructure to increase innovation or research capacities or facilitating
technology transfers.
– Measures to seek complementarity and synergies with relevant projects funded under other
EU programmes126
or other relevant initiatives in order to facilitate mutual learning,
exchange of experiences and good practices.
– Measures to ensure the sustainability of the project outputs/results after the end of the EU
support;
Complementary activities
Applicants may propose complementary activities they deem necessary to achieve the objectives
of this strand as long as the choice is justified and establishes a coherent link with the project
objectives and the selected specific objective of the strand.
126 Such as other related projects funded under EMFF (e.g. BLUENET, MENTOR …) or other ESIF, (e.g. INTERREG MED),
European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI), ENI CBC MED, LIFE + etc.
42
Networking with other projects
During the lifetime of the projects, a number of meetings will be organised at EU level for the
grant beneficiaries to facilitate the exchange of experience and good practices. Project
beneficiaries are expected to participate in these meetings, which will be held in Brussels or other
relevant locations.
2.3 Geographical scope of activities
The geographic area covered by the call concerns the Mediterranean Sea basin.
Depending on the specific objective selected, the proposal will include EU Member States and
Southern partner countries participating the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), the EU Strategy
for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR) and the Initiative for the sustainable development of
the blue economy in the western Mediterranean (WestMED), as defined in section 3.3.
2.4 Expected outputs127
Selected proposals will be required to deliver concrete and quantified outputs128
by the end of the
project.
For specific objective a)
– Sustainable networking cooperation mechanism in place between education and training
organisations to identify common needs and launch concrete activities;
– New education and training programmes agreed/developed with common standards of
qualifications;
– Pilot/tested new common education and training programmes (including pooling of
infrastructures and sharing resources);
– Pilot exchange programmes and study visits of students/trainees and teachers
started/realised.
For specific objective b)
– Sustainable networking mechanism in place between maritime clusters that reinforce the
clusters' innovation capacity and services to business;
– Cluster strategies developed;
– Concrete North-South partnerships and joint projects/investments launched;
– Provision of business services and facilitated access to finance for clusters' partners.
For specific objective c)
– Fisheries/coastal local action groups established in the western Mediterranean based on the
CLLD approach;
– Community-led local strategies developed;
– New concrete cooperation projects and twinning activities identified/undertaken.
The list above is non-exhaustive and additional outputs may be included by the applicant as long
as the choice is justified and establishes a clear and direct link with the proposed activities.
127 For more information on outputs/impacts, you can consult the H2020 brochure on indicators
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/news/horizon-2020-indicators-assessing-results-and-impact-horizon 128 An output is what is directly produced or supplied through the EU intervention. They often relate to the expected deliverables of
the intervention. Outputs generally occur within the short to medium term.
43
2.5 Expected results/impacts
Applicants must describe in their proposal what results129
they expect from the project. Expected
results must be quantified as far as possible.
Applicants must also explain how their work will contribute to the relevant expected impacts130 .
The list of expected impacts below is non-exhaustive and applicants may add other expected
impacts if relevant.
For specific objective a)
– Enhanced cooperation and new synergies between the sectors of education, training and
business in the Mediterranean;
– New high quality common education and training offer matching the local or regional
needs of the blue economy in the Mediterranean;
– Increased student/teachers mobility between education and training organisations and
business;
– Improved ocean literacy and increased visibility and attractiveness of maritime
professions.
For specific objective b)
– Improved technology/research uptake by the market;
– Improved business model innovation;
– Increased investment in maritime economic activities.
For specific objective c)
– Increased participation of local actors and civil society in decision-making processes and in
the governance of local fisheries resources and maritime activities;
– Increased diversification of jobs in the targeted local/coastal communities;
– Empowerment of targeted local communities in the western Mediterranean including
young people and women;
– Improved quality of the marine environment and environmental performance of fisheries in
the area concerned.
Applicants must provide a list of impact indicators131
, both qualitative and quantitative, indicating
the baseline and concrete targets of the project.
129 Results: capture more direct, short to medium term changes in a situation. 130 Impact: broadly defines the wider societal, economic or environmental cumulative changes over a longer period of time than
the EU intervention. 131 Impact indicators: represent what the successful outcome should be in terms of impact on the economy/society/ environment
beyond those directly affected by the intervention. Indicators are defined as the measurement of an objective to be met, a resource
mobilised, an effect obtained or a context variable. Indicators need to be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely.
Some examples of indicators could be (expressed in number of % of change):
- for objective a) number of common standard education/training programmes agreed/developed, number of agreements for joint
programmes/student exchanges signed/in place between education, training institutes and private sector business, number of
students/researchers having physical or remote access to shared research infrastructures/facilities, number of entities/individuals
reached or made aware of maritime professions, number of individuals reached by ocean literacy activities/material, etc.
- for objective b) number of joint research/training projects launched/carried out, number of cluster strategies developed, number of
business assisted, Number or % of cluster partners that have introduced innovations to the company or to the market, new
companies created, jobs created in FTEs,;etc;
44
3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA132
3.1 Geographical eligibility
Both applicants from EU Member States133
and applicants established in a Mediterranean partner
country are eligible to participate.
For the purpose of the present strand, the Mediterranean partner countries eligible are the
following, excluding volatile regions134
:
– Participating in the Adriatic-Ionian Macro-regional Strategy: Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia;
– Participating in the Union for the Mediterranean: Algeria, Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco,
Palestine, Tunisia, Turkey;
– Participating in the Western Mediterranean Initiative (for specific objective c): Algeria,
Tunisia, Mauritania, Morocco)
3.2 Eligible applicants
1. Applicants must be legal entities. Proposals must be submitted by a consortium of minimum
two legal entities as described under section 3.3. They can be public or private bodies. In the
event of private bodies, they must be properly constituted and registered under national law. In
the event of international organisations135
, they must be constituted under international law.
To be considered a public entity, the body in question must fulfil all of the following criteria:
• The body has been created by a public authority or is governed by private law with a
public service mission;
• The public interest of the body must be explicitly mentioned in the relevant legal or
administrative act(s);
• The body is financed totally or to a large extent (more than 50%) by public sources;
• In the event that the entity stops its activities, all rights and obligations including financial
rights and obligations will be transferred to a public authority.
For bodies to be considered as public entity, proof of compliance with all above criteria must
be provided together with the proposal.
2. Natural persons are not eligible as applicant for the purpose of the present call.
- for objective c) number of cooperation projects/twinning activities undertaken, number of social partners/environmental partners
participating in the local community partnership, number of jobs created or maintained, etc. 132 Art. 131 Financial Regulation, 201 Rules of Application. 133 For British applicants: Please be aware that eligibility criteria must be complied with for the entire duration of the grant. If the
United Kingdom withdraws from the EU during the grant period without concluding an agreement with the EU ensuring in
particular that British applicants continue to be eligible, you will cease to receive EU funding (while continuing, where possible, to
participate) or be required to leave the project on the basis of Article II.17 of the grant agreement. 134 Libya and Syria. 135 An international organisation can be considered as such if the following criteria are met:
- it is international;
- it is a public sector organisation;
- it is set up by intergovernmental agreements.
The specialised agencies set up by these organisations will also be considered international organisations.
The formal proof is the intergovernmental agreement that establishes the international organisation.
45
3. Applicants must be active in the field of blue economy and related sectors (such as marine
renewable energies, blue biotechnology, coastal tourism, aquaculture, maritime transport,
shipbuilding and ship repair, shipping, offshore oil and gas, fisheries or aquaculture etc.).
4. Examples of potential applicants
The following non-exhaustive list provides examples of potential applicants:
cluster organisations or equivalent business network organisations established as an
independent legal entity136
;
educational and training institutions;
secondary school/institute/educational centre137
;
public or private, small, medium or large enterprises;
chambers of commerce;
social partners;
research centres;
professional associations;
non-profit organisations (private or public);
public authorities (national, regional, local);
federations and associations;
fisheries local action groups (FLAGs) established according to Article 32(2)(b) of
Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 and art. 61 of Regulation (EU) No 508/2014138
;
Community-led Local Development action groups (LAGs/FLAGs) or local public-private
partnerships that aim to develop and implement a community-led local development
strategy outside the European Union' in accordance with Article 35(1) (c) of the CPR,
and Article 64 of Regulation (EU) No 508/2014139
;
5. Affiliated entities
Legal entities having a legal or capital link with applicants, which is neither limited to the
action nor established for the sole purpose of its implementation, may take part in the action as
affiliated entities, and may declare eligible costs as specified in section 11.2.
For that purpose, applicants shall identify such affiliated entities in the application form. The
affiliated entities will have to comply with the eligibility and exclusion criteria.
6. Supporting documents
In order to assess the applicants' eligibility, the following supporting documents are requested
for the coordinator and each of the partners:
136 See the Study on maritime clusters in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, chapter 1.2 found at:
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/maritimeforum/sites/maritimeforum/files/Maritime%20Clusters%20in%20MED-BS%20def_0.pdf
where maritime clusters are defined as "geographically proximate group of interconnected companies and associated institutions in
the maritime field, linked by commonalities and complementarities (external economies)" 137 i.e. an institution providing general, vocation or technical education, on any level of secondary education. 138 See more information on FLAGS here: https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/cms/farnet2/on-the-ground/flag-factsheets 139 More information on CLLD here: https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/cms/farnet2/about/at-a-glance/clld
46
Public entity: copy of the resolution/law/decree/decision establishing the entity OR if not
available, any other official document proving the establishment of the entity by the
national authorities;
Private entity: extract from the official journal, copy of articles of association, extract of
trade or association register, VAT registration document;
Affiliated entities: shall demonstrate their legal/capital link with the applicant.
3.3 Eligibility conditions for consortia
1. Proposals must be submitted by a consortium of minimum two legal entities from two different
countries.
2. The coordinating entity (lead partner) must be established in an EU Member State.
In addition, specific eligibility criteria apply for each of the specific objectives under this strand:
– For specific objective a) of this strand, proposals must include a transnational partnership
of applicants from at least 3 different eligible countries as described under section 3.1. Of
these, at least two must be from different EU Member States and at least one must be from
an eligible Mediterranean partner country.
– For specific objective b) of this strand, proposals must include a transnational partnership
of applicants, which must be private or public legal entities, from at least 3 different
eligible countries as described under section 3.1. Of these, at least two must be legal
entities qualifying as maritime clusters, whether from an EU Member State or from an
eligible third country.
– For specific objective c) of this strand, the coordinating entity (lead partner) must be a
Fisheries Local Action Group established according to Article 32(2)(b) of Regulation (EU)
No 1303/2013 and art. 61 of Regulation (EU) No 508/2014. The proposals must include a
transnational partnership of applicants from countries adhering to the WestMED Initiative.
It shall include participants from at least one of the following EU Member States (France,
Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain) and one eligible Mediterranean partner Country (Algeria,
Tunisia, Mauritania, Morocco).
3. Mandate
All partners of the consortium will provide the coordinator with a power of attorney in writing
through a mandate signed for that purpose140
. The mandate shall fully empower the coordinator to
act on the partners' behalf in the context of the grant agreement.
4. AWARD CRITERIA141
4.1 Strand specific award criteria
One proposal per specific objective having passed the minimum scores and all the criteria laid
down in this call for proposals will be selected. Applications will be assessed on the basis of the
following award criteria:
1. Relevance and added
value
(max 40 points)
The relevance and added value of the proposal will be assessed on
the following basis:
140 A template for this mandate is included as Annex IV to the grant agreement published together with this call. 141 Art. 132 FR, 203 RAP
47
Relevance of the proposal
and its expected results to
achieving the selected
specific objective of the
strand. Added value of the
proposal in terms of
synergies/complementarity
with other relevant
initiatives (notably
established sea basin-based
initiatives and regional
plans, international
commitments), projects or
EU policies, and in terms of
geographical coverage.
Sub-criterion 1.1 - Relevance of the proposal and its expected
results/impacts to achieving the objectives (max 20 points):
– the extent to which it is relevant to the selected specific
objective of the strand as defined in section 2;
– whether an adequate justification is provided for the proposed
solution/approach including identifying the specific
needs/challenges in relation to the blue economy sector/sea
basin/area targeted and reflecting the socio-economic conditions
in place;
– the extent to which the proposal is based on a sound intervention
logic, i.e. building on a needs/gaps analysis and establishing a
clear link between needs, objectives, proposed activities and
expected results and impacts;
Sub-criterion 1.2 - Added value of the proposal (max 20 points):
– the extent to which the proposal demonstrates its added value
compared to existing solutions/situation (e.g.
technologies/approaches/ practices where relevant);
– the extent to which it demonstrates the added value of the
involvement of Mediterranean partner countries to support the
achievement of the strand's specific objectives;
– the extent to which it demonstrates its added value in terms of
synergies/complementarity with existing projects, EU policies,
and other relevant initiatives;
– the extent to which it demonstrates its added value in terms of
direct contribution to the objectives/priorities of the Framework
for Action or the Action Plan of an existing sea basin or macro-
regional strategy/initiative (e.g. Western Mediterranean
Initiative, the EU Strategy for the Adriatic-Ionian Region and
the Union for the Mediterranean)142
.
2. Project implementation
(max 25 points)
Effectiveness and coherence
of the work plan. Feasibility
in terms of activities and
timetable. Appropriate and
balanced allocation of tasks
and human resources.
Appropriate project
management set-up.
The quality of the project implementation will be assessed on the
following basis:
Effectiveness and coherence of the work plan:
– the extent to which there is a clear description of planned
activities, including a coherent and effective work plan,
providing a time-efficient planning (Gantt chart or equivalent),
clearly showing the progress of each work package, including a
142
Up to 7 points could be reserved for this aspect.
48
Complementarity of
partners. Adequate risk
management.
timetable of deliverables;
– the extent to which the expected outputs/results of the project
are clearly identified, quantified and the proposed activities
contribute to potentially reach them;
– the extent to which appropriate qualitative and/or quantitative
indicators have been provided to assess the expected impacts of
the project where relevant.
Complementarity of partners and project management:
– the extent to which the partners complement each other in view
of delivering the expected outputs and results;
– the extent to which appropriate management structures and
procedures within the consortium (e.g. clear description of
management responsibilities, decision-making mechanisms and
communication arrangements) are proposed;
– the extent to which there is a risk management plan identifying
potential risks and providing risk prevention and mitigation
measures.
Cost-effectiveness
(max 10 points)
Clearly presented and
appropriate budget
representing value for
money in comparison to
expected results, involving
a cost-effective allocation of
financial resources in
relation to the planned
activities and outputs.
The cost-effectiveness of the proposal will be assessed on the
following basis:
– the extent to which the budget is clear, consistent with the
activities proposed, expected outputs/results and sufficiently
detailed and justified;
– the extent to which the project is cost-effective and represents
value for money.
4. Impact
(max 25 points)
Expected outputs, results
and impact. Dissemination,
sustainability and
transferability of the
expected outputs, potential
multiplier effect.
The impact of the proposal will be assessed on the following basis:
Impact, communication, dissemination and exploitation:
– the extent to which the project will contribute to the expected
impacts (see list of expected impacts in section 2);
– the extent to which it provides a clear, concrete and robust
method for evaluating the project results and their contribution
to the expected impacts
– the extent to which the project will actively consult, involve and
cooperate with stakeholders (industry/businesses, local
community, NGOs) necessary and/or relevant to the
49
outputs/expected impacts of the project;
– the extent to which adequate communication measures are
proposed to promote the project (with a description of relevant
target group(s), activities, tools and channels);
– the extent to which the measures to disseminate and exploit the
project's outputs/results will maximise the impact of the project
(including management of IPR if relevant).
Sustainability143
:
– the extent to which the proposal provides appropriate and
concrete measures to sustain the project outputs/results after the
end of the EU funding.
Transferability and multiplier effect:
– the extent to which the solutions/methodology/approach
proposed may be transferable/transferred to other
areas/regions/domains.
The evaluation procedure is explained in section 4.2
143 This part can cover different aspects of sustainability: financial, economic, institutional/structural (structures/ organisational set-
up to allow the results of the action to continue, business plan), policy, etc as indicated in the Application form section 1.g)
50
S4 – RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE
MED
.
51
S4 – RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE
MED
2. OBJECTIVES – PRIORITIES – ACTIVITIES – OUTPUTS/IMPACTS
2.1 Objectives and priorities
Following the specific policy background explained in section 0, the main objective of this strand
is to contribute to the implementation of Action 6.1144
of the Joint Communication on
international ocean governance. The strand aims at funding a project that will focus on the
restoration of damaged or degraded Mediterranean coastal and marine ecosystems in zones with a
particularly high potential to provide a wide range of marine ecosystem services.
Given the link between Action 6.1 and Action 6.2145
, a project that also addresses the development
of (existing or new) blue-green infrastructures will be given priority as part of the evaluation
process146
.
In line with key Commission policy initiatives, the support of this strand is important, in the short
and medium term, to help:
i. improving the health and good environmental status (GES) of marine ecosystems in the
Mediterranean Sea and its coast and contributing to the Mediterranean efforts on
biodiversity conservation and restoration. as well as integrated coastal zone management;
ii. ensuring the continuation and improved provision of a wide range of services such as
natural fish stock restoration, carbon sequestration, aesthetic, cultural or leisure services
attracting visitors, and seawater purification;
iii. preserving the oceans' natural function as a climate regulator;
iv. increasing marine and coastal resilience to climate change;
v. supporting in a sustainable manner the basis and conditions for blue economy sectors such
as tourism, aquaculture and fisheries, which are of great importance for the Mediterranean
Sea basin;
vi. supporting the implementation of relevant strategies/initiatives and policy priorities in the
Mediterranean at all levels, in particular the regional level.
2.2 Activities
Applicants must explain in their proposals how they will implement the targeted activities
resulting in concrete and measurable results147
within the project's duration.
144 Which states that "the Commission will step up work with international partners to agree on joint action to protect and restore
marine and coastal ecosystems". 145 Which aims to "launch international public-private partnerships aimed at restoring, adapting or developing 'blue green
infrastructures'. 146 COM(2013) 249 final, page 3 - Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Green Infrastructure (GI) — Enhancing Europe’s Natural
Capital. 147 Results: capture more direct, short to medium term changes in a situation.
52
Core activities
Applicants must undertake the following core activities as part of the project implementation:
a) Identify and select at least one damaged or degraded coastal and marine natural
ecosystem in the Mediterranean Sea or along its coast. The focal area(s) for activities
should be located in zones with a particularly high potential to provide a wide range of
marine ecosystem services (e.g. in or around Marine Protected Areas, areas located
near marine biodiversity hotspots or areas where pressures have been reduced but
ecosystems have not returned to a healthy state). Examples of possible target areas are
areas where marine habitats and/or biodiversity needs support to recover and areas that
have been degraded by invasive non-indigenous species;
b) Identify and implement concrete activities to restore the selected area(s) and their
capacity to provide goods and services. The activities have to make use of state of the
art or innovative methods of marine restoration. The selected project has to carry out
initial testing and experimentation so as to provide the basis for upgrading the project
to a larger scale in the future;
c) Establish a partnership or develop an existing partnership, for example including public
authorities, NGOs, businesses, research bodies, local communities and integrating local
knowledge;
d) Develop a robust method for evaluating the results of the project (e.g. assess the
success of restoration measures, quantify ecosystem services provided before and after
the project implementation), and the robustness, relevance and added-value of the
partnership;
e) Prepare a detailed roadmap for a follow-up project that would be able to continue the
implementation and extend the activities piloted by this project to significantly larger
areas of restoration, as well as building a more diverse partnership, that could also
include further forms of investment and donors.
Complementary activities
In addition to the core activities, applicants may include in their project one or more of the
following complementary activities to support the above core activities:
a) Develop and include specific plans for the creation of new or the extension of already
existing areas of blue-green infrastructure in the selected areas, which could include
nature-based climate adaptation approaches (linked to Action 6.2 of the International
Ocean Governance Joint Communication);
b) Prepare awareness raising materials and activities to involve relevant stakeholders,
creating the "buy-in" of the local community and prepare the ground for future
investments in marine and coastal restoration.
The list of complementary activities is non-exhaustive and aims at providing guidance to
applicants. Applicants may propose other activities as long as the choice is justified and
establishes a coherent link with the project objectives and the objectives of this strand.
53
Networking with other projects
During the lifetime of the project financed under this strand, a number of meetings will be
organised at EU level for the grant beneficiaries to facilitate the exchange of experience and good
practices. Project beneficiaries are expected to participate in these meetings, which will be held in
Brussels or other relevant locations.
2.3 Geographical scope of activities
In line with the International Ocean Governance Joint Communication (actions 6.1 and 6.2), this
strand will support projects in the Mediterranean Sea or along its coast, which are based on a
partnership between entities based in the EU and in third countries in the Mediterranean.
2.4 Expected outputs148
The selected proposal shall be required to deliver the following concrete and quantified
outputs149
by the end of the project.
a pilot example of restoration of previously damaged or degraded coastal and marine
ecosystems in areas with particular ecological importance in the Mediterranean Sea or
along its coasts;
a pilot joint action between entities based in the EU and in third countries in the
Mediterranean Sea;
a partnership that combines multidisciplinary competences from businesses and research
bodies and integrates local knowledge, resulting in an increased capacity to protect and
restore marine and coastal ecosystems;
a concrete and robust method for evaluating the results of the project in order to facilitate
the scaling up to other Mediterranean sea areas;
a detailed roadmap for a follow-up project that would be able to implement and extend the
pilot activities to significantly larger areas of restoration, as well as building a more diverse
partnership, that could also include further forms of investment and donors.
The list above is non-exhaustive and additional outputs may be included by the applicant as long
as the choice is justified and establishes a clear and direct link with the proposed activities.
2.5 Expected results and impacts
Applicants must describe in their proposal what results150
they expect from the project. Expected
results must be quantified as far as possible.
Applicants must also explain how their work will contribute to the relevant expected impacts151
.
The list of expected impacts below is non-exhaustive and applicants may add other expected
impacts if relevant.
148 For more information on outputs/impacts, you can consult the H2020 brochure on indicators
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/news/horizon-2020-indicators-assessing-results-and-impact-horizon 149 An output is what is directly produced or supplied through the EU intervention. They often relate to the expected deliverables of
the intervention. Outputs generally occur within the short to medium term. 150 Results: capture more direct, short to medium term changes in a situation. 151 Impact: broadly defines the wider societal, economic or environmental cumulative changes over a longer period of time than
the EU intervention.
54
enhanced contribution to the implementation of actions 6.1 and 6.2 of the Joint
Communication on international ocean governance to restore damaged or degraded marine
and coastal ecosystems, and adapt or develop green blue infrastructure;
restored marine areas, increase in area under sustainable management;
enhanced context to launch and implement a larger scale project in the future entailing a
partnership for restoration;
increased awareness of relevant regional stakeholders about restoration and preservation of
marine areas;
extended "buy-in" of the local community and better ground for future investment in
marine and coastal restoration activities;
increased diversification of jobs into green jobs in the targeted local communities for
sustainable blue economy in the Mediterranean Sea basin.
Applicants must provide a list of impact indicators152
, both qualitative and quantitative, indicating
the baseline and concrete targets of the project.
3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA153
3.1Geographical eligibility
Applicants from EU Member States154
and applicants established in third countries bordering the
Mediterranean sea basin, excluding volatile regions155
, are eligible to participate.
For the purpose of the present strand, the eligible Mediterranean partner countries are the
following:
– Participating in the Adriatic-Ionian Macro-regional Strategy: Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia;
– Participating in the Union for the Mediterranean: Algeria, Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco,
Palestine, Tunisia, Turkey;
– Participating in the Western Mediterranean Initiative (for specific objective c): Algeria,
Tunisia, Mauritania, Morocco)
Applicants established in other non-EU countries are eligible only:
– if a project activity is carried out outside the territory of the Union, and
152 Impact indicators: represent what the successful outcome should be in terms of impact on the economy/society/ environment
beyond those directly affected by the intervention. Indicators are defined as the measurement of an objective to be met, a resource
mobilised, an effect obtained or a context variable. Indicators need to be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely.
Some examples of possible impact indicators could be: areas progressing towards improvement or restoration (hectares), number of
marine species present in the selected area (before/after), nutrient uptake through primary production, number of non-indigenous
species (before/after), seagrass coverage change (hectares), number/spatial extent/duration of harmful algal bloom events, nursery
habitats for key species (%), biomass of relevant selected species (kg.km-2), kinetic energy of surface waters (m2s-2), number of
entities/individuals reached and made aware (awareness raising), number of entities taking part of the joint action and partnership,
green jobs created (FTE – Full time equivalents), number of volunteers, donors and donations throughout the project
implementation, etc. Indicators of improved marine ecosystem structure and functioning should be aligned with the criteria and
methodological standards laid down by the Commission Decision 2017/848 (17 May 2017). 153 Art. 131 Financial Regulation, 201 Rules of Application. 154 For British applicants: Please be aware that eligibility criteria must be complied with for the entire duration of the grant. If the
United Kingdom withdraws from the EU during the grant period without concluding an agreement with the EU ensuring in
particular that British applicants continue to be eligible, you will cease to receive EU funding (while continuing, where possible, to
participate) or be required to leave the project on the basis of Article II.17 of the grant agreement. 155 Libya and Syria.
55
– if the involvement of those applicants from other non-EU countries is necessary in view of
the nature of the action and in order to achieve its objectives.
3.2 Eligible applicants
1. Applicants must be legal entities. They can be public or private bodies. In the event of private
bodies, they must be properly constituted and registered under national law. In the event of
international organisations156
, they must be constituted under international law.
To be considered a public entity, the body in question must fulfil all of the following criteria:
• The body has been created by a public authority or is governed by private law with a
public service mission;
• The public interest of the body must be explicitly mentioned in the relevant legal or
administrative act(s);
• The body is financed totally or to a large extent (more than 50%) by public sources;
• In the event that the entity stops its activities, all rights and obligations including financial
rights and obligations will be transferred to a public authority.
2. Natural persons are not eligible as applicant for the purpose of the present call.
For bodies to be considered as public entity, proof of compliance with all above criteria must be
provided together with the proposal.
3. Applicants must be active in the field of marine environment, research, marine, maritime affairs
or any other field if their relevance for the project is duly justified in the proposal.
4. Examples of potential applicants
The following non-exhaustive list provides examples of potential applicants:
non-profit organisations (private or public).
public authorities (national, regional, local);
research centres;
educational and training institutions;
public or private, small, medium or large enterprises;
professional associations;
federations and associations.
5. Affiliated entities
Legal entities having a legal or capital link with applicants, which is neither limited to the
action nor established for the sole purpose of its implementation, may take part in the action as
affiliated entities, and may declare eligible costs as specified in section 11.2.
156 An international organisation can be considered as such if the following criteria are met:
- it is international;
- it is a public sector organisation;
- it is set up by intergovernmental agreements.
The specialised agencies set up by these organisations will also be considered international organisations.
The formal proof is the intergovernmental agreement that establishes the international organisation.
56
For that purpose, applicants shall identify such affiliated entities in the application form. The
affiliated entities will have to comply with the eligibility and exclusion criteria.
6. Supporting documents
In order to assess the applicants' eligibility, the following supporting documents are requested
for the coordinator and each of the partners:
• Public entity: copy of the resolution/law/decree/decision establishing the entity OR if not
available, any other official document proving the establishment of the entity by the
national authorities;
• Private entity: extract from the official journal, copy of articles of association, extract of
trade or association register, VAT registration document;
• Affiliated entities: shall demonstrate their legal/capital link with the applicant.
3.3 Eligibility conditions for consortia
1. Proposals must be submitted by a consortium of minimum two legal entities from at least two
different eligible countries, of which at least one must be based in an EU Member State and at
least one in a non-EU country, both of which shall be bordering the Mediterranean Sea
basin157
/area158
, excluding volatile regions159
.
2. The coordinating entity (lead partner) must be established in an EU Member State.
3. Mandate
All partners of the consortium will provide the coordinator with a power of attorney in writing
through a mandate signed for that purpose160
. The mandate shall fully empower the coordinator to
act on the partners' behalf in the context of the grant agreement.
4. AWARD CRITERIA161
4.1 Strand specific award criteria
Applications will be assessed on the basis of the following award criteria:
1. Relevance and added
value (max 40 points)
Relevance of the proposal
and its expected results to
achieving the objectives of
the strand. Added value of
the proposal in terms of
synergies/complementarity
with other relevant
initiatives (notably
established sea basin-based
initiatives and regional
The relevance and added value of the proposal will be assessed on
the following basis:
Sub-criterion 1.1 - Relevance of the proposal and its expected
results/impacts to achieving the objectives (max 20 points):
– the extent to which the proposal is relevant to the objectives of
the strand defined in section 2;
– the extent to which it provides clear, measurable and realistic
objectives that are achievable within the duration of the project;
157 Proposals can focus also on a sub-sea basin (i.e. a sub-region of the chosen sea basin, e.g. the Adriatic-Ionian sub-sea basin of
the Mediterranean). 158 See section 3 on Eligibility criteria. 159 Libya and Syria. 160 A template for this mandate is included as Annex IV to the grant agreement published together with this call. 161 Art. 132 FR, 203 RAP
57
plans, international
commitments), projects or
EU policies, and in terms of
geographical coverage.
– the extent to which the proposal is based on an appropriate
needs/gaps analysis and that an adequate justification is
provided for the proposed activities, including identifying the
specific needs/challenges of the marine or/and coastal
ecosystems targeted;
– the extent to which there is a clear link between the project
objectives, the activities proposed and their expected
results/impacts.
Sub-criterion 1.2 – Added value of the activities (max 20 points):
– the extent to which the proposal demonstrates its added value
compared to the existing environmental situation in the area and,
if relevant, how the proposal builds on the results of research
projects and initiatives on coastal and marine restoration and
protection funded by the EU or other funding schemes;
– the extent to which it proposes concrete and effective strategies
and activities to restore the targeted ecosystems, adapt/develop
green blue infrastructures and establish/develop a robust
transnational partnership;
– the extent to which it provides a clear, concrete and robust
method for evaluating the project results in order to facilitate the
scale up to other Mediterranean sea areas;
– the extent to which the proposal provides a detailed and realistic
roadmap for a follow-up project as defined in the core activities
in section 2;
– the extent to which it demonstrates its clear added value and
contribution to supporting actions 6.1. and 6.2 of the Joint
Communication on International Ocean Governance.
2. Project implementation
(max 25 points)
Effectiveness and coherence
of the work plan. Feasibility
in terms of activities and
timetable. Appropriate and
balanced allocation of tasks
and human resources.
Appropriate project
management set-up.
Complementarity of
partners. Adequate risk
management.
The quality of the project implementation will be assessed on the
following basis:
Effectiveness and coherence of the work plan:
– the extent to which there is a clear description of planned
activities, including a coherent and effective work plan,
providing a time-efficient planning (Gantt chart or equivalent),
clearly showing the progress of each work package, including a
timetable of deliverables;
– the extent to which the expected outputs/results of the project
are clearly identified and the proposed activities contribute to
potentially reach them;
58
– the extent to which appropriate qualitative and/or quantitative
indicators have been provided to assess the expected impacts of
the project where relevant.
Complementarity of partners and project management:
– the extent to which the partners complement each other in view
of delivering the expected outputs and results;
– the extent to which appropriate management structures and
procedures within the consortium (e.g. clear description of
management responsibilities, decision-making mechanisms and
communication arrangements) are proposed;
– the extent to which there is a risk management plan identifying
potential risks and providing risk prevention and mitigation
measures.
3. Cost-effectiveness
(max 10 points)
Clearly presented and
appropriate budget
representing value for
money in comparison to
expected results, involving
a cost-effective allocation of
financial resources in
relation to the planned
activities and outputs.
The cost-effectiveness of the proposal will be assessed on the
following basis:
– the extent to which the budget is clear, consistent with the
activities proposed, expected outputs/results and sufficiently
detailed and justified;
– the extent to which the project is cost-effective and represents
value for money.
4. Impact
(max 25 points)
Expected outputs and
impact. Dissemination,
sustainability and
transferability of the
expected outputs, potential
multiplier effect.
The impact of the proposal will be assessed on the following basis:
Impact, communication, dissemination and exploitation:
– the extent to which the project will contribute to the expected
impacts (see list of expected impacts in section 2);
– the extent to which the project will actively consult, involve and
cooperate with stakeholders (industry/businesses, local
community, NGOs) necessary and/or relevant to the
outputs/expected impacts of the project;
– the extent to which adequate communication measures are
proposed to promote the project (with a description of relevant
target group(s), activities, tools and channels);
– the extent to which the measures to disseminate and exploit the
project's outputs/results will maximise the impact of the project
(including management of IPR if relevant).
59
Sustainability162
:
– the extent to which the proposal ensures that long-term
environmental sustainability is addressed;
– the extent to which the proposal provides appropriate and
concrete measures to sustain the project activities/outputs after
the end of the EU funding.
Transferability and multiplier effect:
– the extent to which the activities/methodologies/approaches/
partnerships proposed and/or developed may be
transferable/transferred to other Mediterranean Sea areas;
– the extent to which the proposal provides appropriate concrete
measures to facilitate the transferability of the project activities
and outputs.
The evaluation procedure is explained in section 4.2.
162 This part can cover different aspects of sustainability: financial, economic, institutional/structural (structures/ organisational set-
up to allow the results of the action to continue, business plan), policy, etc as indicated in the Application form section 1.g)
60
COMMON PROVISIONS
FOR ALL STRANDS
61
COMMON PROVISIONS
FOR ALL STRANDS
4.2 Evaluation procedure
Proposals that are outside the scope of the strands under which they were submitted will be
marked ‘0’ for the Relevance and added value criterion — with the comment ‘out of scope of the
call’; they will not be further evaluated.
A maximum of 100 points will be awarded for the quality of a proposal. The required minimum
overall score is 65 points and a minimum score of 50% is required for each criterion.
At the end of the evaluation by independent experts, all the proposals under evaluation for the
same strand will be ranked, according to the scores obtained for of each of the award criteria as
indicated above.
Highest scored proposals having passed the minimum overall scores and all the criteria laid down
in this call for proposals will be selected for funding within the available estimated budget per
strand.
If necessary, a priority order for proposals which have obtained the same score within the same
strand will be determined. Whether or not such a prioritisation is carried out will depend on the
available budget. The following approach will be applied successively for every group of ex aequo
proposals requiring prioritisation, starting with the highest scored group, and continuing in
descending order:
i. The ex aequo proposals within the same strand will be prioritised according to the scores they
have been awarded for the criterion Relevance and added value. When these scores are
equal, priority will be based on scores for the criterion Impact. When these scores are equal,
priority will be based on scores for the criterion project implementation. When these scores
are equal, priority will be based on scores for the criterion cost-effectiveness.
ii. Proposals focusing on a sea basin which is not otherwise covered by more highly-ranked
proposals will be considered to have the highest priority (geographical coverage).
If a distinction still cannot be made, a further prioritisation can be done by considering the overall
project portfolio and the creation of positive synergies between projects, or other factors related to
the objectives of the call proposals. These factors will be documented in the evaluation report.
Following the selection of proposals within each strand following the above principles, the
remainder of the total indicative budget for the call for proposals will be used to fund projects
across the different strands to ensuring a balanced spread of the geographical and thematic
coverage of the selected projects while respecting to the maximum possible extent the order of
merit based on the evaluation of the award criteria.
62
5. TIMETABLE
5.1 Indicative timetable
The indicative timetable for this call for proposals is the following:
Stages Date and time or
indicative period
a) Publication of the call 24//10/2017
b) Deadline for submitting applications S1- DEMO
PROJECTS 28/02/2018
S2- MARINE
LITTER
08/02/2018
S3 BLUE
NETWORKS IN
THE MED
28/02/2018
S4- RESTORING
MARINE
ECOSYSTEMS
IN THE MED
08/02/2018
c) Evaluation period March–July 2018
d) Information to applicants August-September 2018
e) Preparation and signature of the grant
agreement
September-December 2018
f) Starting date of the project January 2019
g) Progress report Every 6 months
h) Interim report for projects of 24 or 36 months Within 60 days after the end of the first
reporting period
i) Final report Within 60 days of the end of the project
5.2 Implementation period
The project duration shall start on the first day of the month following the day when the last of
both parties signs the related grant agreement or at a fixed starting date specified in the grant
agreement.
For each of the individual strands, depending on the scope of the project, EASME expects projects
to run for the following durations:
63
Strand Duration
S1-DEMO PROJECTS 24 or 36 months
S2- MARINE LITTER 12 or 24 months
S3- BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MED 24 or 36 months
S4- RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS
IN THE MED
36 months
6. BUDGET AVAILABLE
The indicative total budget for this call for proposals is EUR 14.500.000.
This budget might be increased by maximum 20%.
EASME reserves the right not to distribute all the funds available.
Specific budget information per strand can be found in the table below:
EASME considers that proposals requesting a contribution in the ranges indicated below per
strand would allow the specific objectives per strand to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless,
this does not preclude submission and selection of proposals requesting other amounts, except
where a maximum grant amount is set.
Strand Indicative budget Estimated EU contribution per project
and
number of projects to be funded
S1 - DEMO PROJECTS EUR 8.000.000 Normally up to EUR 1.000.000, with an
absolute maximum of EUR 1.500.000.
EASME expects to fund approximately eight
proposals.
S2 - MARINE LITTER EUR 2.000.000 Between EUR 200.000 and EUR 500.000163
EASME expects to fund approximately six
proposals.
163 The amount requested should be consistent and proportional with the scope of the proposal (i.e. number of priority areas
covered, number and extent of the activities proposed, etc.). Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of
proposals requesting other amounts.
64
S3 - BLUE NETWORKS
IN THE MED EUR 3.000.000
For specific objective a): between EUR
400.000 and EUR 500.000
For specific objective b): EUR 500.000 and
EUR 700.000
For specific objective c): between EUR
300.000 and EUR 400.000
EASME expects to fund approximately six
proposals.
EASME expects to fund at least 1 proposal
per specific objective.
S4 – RESTORING
MARINE ECOSYSTEMS
IN THE MED
EUR 1.500.000
EUR 1.500.000
EASME expects to fund one proposal.
7. ADMISSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
Failure to comply with the following requirements will lead to the rejection of the application:
Applications must be sent no later than the deadline for submitting applications referred to in
section 5.
Applications must be submitted in writing (see section 15), using the application form
provided in annex to this Call for Proposals.
Applications must be drafted in one the EU official languages. Submission in English is
strongly encouraged and will facilitate the evaluation process.
8. EXCLUSION CRITERIA
All applicants, including both the consortium coordinator and other partners, must provide a
declaration of honour (see template in the annexed application form), signed and dated by an
authorised representative, stating that they are not in one of the situations of exclusion listed in
that declaration of honour.
EASME reserves the right to verify whether the successful applicants are in any of the situations
of exclusion by requiring the supporting documents listed in the declaration of honour.
65
9. SELECTION CRITERIA164
9.1. Financial capacity165
Applicants must have stable and sufficient sources of funding to maintain their activity throughout
the period during which the action is being carried out or the year for which the grant is awarded
and to participate in its funding.
For public entities and international organisations:
On the basis of article 131(3) FR and in case such entities and organisations are eligible applicants
for the strand concerned, such applicants are considered to have stable and sufficient sources of
funding to maintain their activity throughout the period during which the action is being carried
out and to participate in its funding.
This type of applicants has to submit a declaration of honour that they have the financial capacity
to carry out the project, but no additional supporting documents are requested.
For all other entities:
The applicants' financial capacity will be assessed on the basis of the following supporting
documents to be submitted with the application:
A) Total grant value166
is ≤ EUR 60 000:
• a declaration of honour (to be provided by each of the applicants)
B) Total grant value is > EUR 60 000:
For those individual beneficiaries (other than the lead partner/coordinator) requesting an EU
contribution of ≤ EUR 60 000 as part of the overall grant amount, only the Declaration of
honour will be requested.
For all other beneficiaries requesting an EU contribution of > EUR 60 000 as part of the
overall grant amount, the following supporting documents will be requested:
• a declaration of honour (to be provided by each of the applicants), AND
• the profit and loss accounts as well as the balance sheets for the past 2 years for which
the accounts were closed;
• the financial capacity table167
provided for in the application form, filled in with the
relevant statutory accounting figures, in order to calculate the ratios as detailed in the
form.
For newly created entities, the business plan might replace the above documents.
C) Grant value is ≥ EUR 750 000:
• In addition to the supporting documents required under B) above, applicants shall
provide an audit report produced by an approved external auditor certifying the accounts
for the last financial year available.
164 Art. 132 FR, 202 RAP. 165 Art. 131, 132 FR, 202 RAP. 166 The 'total grant value' is the total grant amount requested for the proposed action, not the portion of the requested grant per
applicant. 167 Annex 1b
66
• In the event of an application grouping several applicants (consortium), the above
threshold applies by applicant.
If on the basis of the documents submitted, the financial capacity is not considered satisfactory,
the EASME may:
• request further information168
;
• propose a grant agreement with a pre-financing covered by a bank guarantee (see
section 11.4 below);
• where applicable, require the joint and several financial liability of all the co-
beneficiaries;
• or reject the application.
9.2. Operational capacity169
Applicants must have the professional competencies as well as appropriate qualifications
necessary to complete the proposed project. In this respect, applicants have to submit a declaration
on their honour, and the following supporting documents:
Where appropriate, a description of the technical equipment, tools or facilities and patents
at the disposal of the applicants170
;
For each applicant, a list of up to 3 activities (i.e. projects, publications, products, services
and/or other achievements) relevant to the call content171
.
The EASME may request further supporting documents to confirm the operational capacity of any
applicant.
10. LEGAL COMMITMENTS172
In the event of a grant awarded by the EASME, a grant agreement, drawn up in euro and detailing
the conditions and level of funding, will be sent to the coordinator as well as the procedure in view
to formalise the obligations of the parties.
Two copies of the original agreement must be signed first by the coordinator and returned to the
EASME immediately. The EASME will sign it last.
Please note that the award of a grant does not establish an entitlement for further support after the
end of the project.
168 If supporting documents are not available in an EU language, translation in one of the EU languages will be requested from the
applicant at its own expenses 169 Art. 131 FR, 202 RAP. 170 To be completed in section II.1 of the application form. 171 To be completed in section II.1 of the application form. 172 Art. 121 FR, 174 RAP.
67
11. FINANCIAL PROVISIONS
11.1. General principles
a) Non-cumulative award173
An action may only receive one grant from the EU budget.
In no circumstances shall the same costs be financed twice by the Union budget. To ensure this,
applicants shall indicate the sources and amounts of Union funding received or applied for the
same action or part of the action or for its functioning during the same financial year as well as
any other funding received or applied for the same action.174
b) Non-retroactivity175
No grant may be awarded retrospectively for actions already completed.
A grant may be awarded for an action which has already begun only where the applicant can
demonstrate the need to start the action before the grant agreement is signed or the grant decision
is notified. In such cases, costs eligible for financing may not have been incurred prior to the date
of submission of the grant application.
c) Co-financing176
Co-financing means that the resources which are necessary to carry out the action may not be
entirely provided by the EU grant.
Co-financing of the action may take the form of:
the beneficiary's and affiliated entities' own resources,
income generated by the action,
financial contributions from third parties.
Co-financing may also take the form of in-kind contributions from third parties, i.e. non-financial
resources made available free of charge by third parties to the beneficiary.177
d) Balanced budget178
The estimated budget of the action is to be attached to the application form. It must have revenue
and expenditure in balance. A model of a budget overview can be found in Annex of the
application form.
The budget must be drawn up in euros.
Applicants who foresee that costs will not be incurred in euros, shall use the exchange rate
published on the Infor-euro website available at
http://ec.europa.eu/budget/contracts_grants/info_contracts/inforeuro/inforeuro_en.cfm.
173 Art. 129 Financial Regulation. 174 Art. 196.4 Rules of Application. 175 Art. 130 Financial Regulation. 176 Art. 125 Financial Regulation, 183 Rules of Application. 177 Art. 127 Financial Regulation. 178 Art. 196.2 Rules of Application.
68
e) Implementation contracts/sub-contracting 179
Where the implementation of the action requires the award of procurement contracts
(implementation contracts), the beneficiary must award the contract to the bid offering best value
for money or the lowest price (as appropriate), avoiding conflicts of interests and retain the
documentation for the event of an audit.
Entities acting in their capacity of contracting authorities in the meaning of Directive
2004/18/EC180
or contracting entities in the meaning of Directive 2004/17/EC181
shall abide by the
applicable national public procurement rules.
Sub-contracting, i.e. the externalisation of specific tasks or activities which form part of the action
as described in the proposal must satisfy the conditions applicable to any implementation contract
(as specified above) and in addition to them the following conditions:
it may only cover the implementation of a limited part of the action;
it must be justified having regard to the nature of the action and what is necessary for its
implementation;
it must be clearly stated in the proposal.
The grant beneficiary has the possibility to award contracts to provide services or to assist in the
implementation of certain limited activities.
The term “subcontracts” is applied to expenses paid by the beneficiary on the basis of:
Contracts, and
Invoices/request for reimbursement to external service providers who carry out certain tasks
or assist in the implementation of certain limited activities for the project because the
beneficiary lacks the resources or expertise to carry them out.
N.B. The model grant agreement imposes additional requirements where the value of the
contracts necessary for the implementation of the action or subcontracting of tasks forming part
of the action exceeds EUR 130.000.
f) Financial support to third parties
Financial support to third parties is not an eligible expenditure.
11.2. Form of funding 182
Funding takes the form of mixed financing.
Mixed financing grants are calculated on the basis of a detailed estimated budget indicating clearly
the costs that are eligible for EU funding. The grant amount may neither exceed the eligible costs
nor the amount requested. Amounts are indicated in euros.
179 Art. 137 Financial Regulation, 209 Rules of Application. 180 Directive 2004/18/EC on the coordination of procedures for the award of public work contracts, public supply contracts and
public service contracts. 181 Directive 2004/17/EC coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal
services sectors. 182 Art. 123 Financial Regulation, 181 Rules of Application.
69
Maximum amount requested
For each of the following strands, the EU grant is limited to the following maximum co-financing
rate of eligible costs actually incurred:
Strand Maximum co-funding rate
S1-DEMO PROJECTS 65%
S2- MARINE LITTER 80%
S3- BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MED 80%
S4- RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS
IN THE MED
80%
Consequently, part of the total eligible expenses entered in the estimated budget must be financed
from sources other than the EU grant (see section 11.1c).
Contributions in kind183
The external co-financing may be made up of contributions in kind in order to cover other costs
necessary to carry out the project. Such contributions must not exceed:
- either the costs actually borne and duly supported by accounting documents;
- or, in the absence of such documents, the costs generally accepted on the market in
question.
In-kind contributions shall be presented separately in the estimated budget to reflect the total
resources allocated to the action. Their unit value is evaluated in the provisional budget and shall
not be subject to subsequent changes.
In-kind contributions shall comply with national tax and social security rules.
Eligible costs184
Eligible costs are costs actually incurred by the beneficiary of a grant which meet all the following
criteria:
a) they are incurred during the duration of the action, with the exception of costs relating to final
reports;
b) the period of eligibility of costs will be defined in the grant agreement. If a beneficiary can
demonstrate the need to start the action before the agreement is signed, expenditure may be
authorised before the grant is awarded. Under no circumstances can the eligibility period start
before the date of submission of the grant application (see section 11.1b).
c) they are indicated in the estimated budget of the action;
d) they are necessary for the implementation of the action;
e) they are identifiable and verifiable, in particular being recorded in the accounting records of
the beneficiary and determined according to the applicable accounting standards of the
183 Art. 127 Financial Regulation. 184 Art. 126 Financial Regulation.
70
country where the beneficiary is established and according to the usual cost accounting
practices of the beneficiary;
f) they comply with the requirements of applicable tax and social legislation;
g) they are reasonable, justified, and comply with the requirements of sound financial
management, in particular regarding economy and efficiency.
The beneficiary's internal accounting and auditing procedures must permit direct reconciliation of
the costs and revenue declared in respect of the action/project with the corresponding accounting
statements and supporting documents.
The same criteria apply to the affiliated entities.
Eligible direct costs
The eligible direct costs for the action are those costs which, with due regard for the conditions
of eligibility set out above, are identifiable as specific costs directly linked to the performance of
the action and which can therefore be booked to it directly:
the costs of personnel working under an employment contract with the applicant or equivalent
appointing act and assigned to the action, comprising actual salaries plus social security
contributions and other statutory costs included in the remuneration, provided that these costs
are in line with the applicant's usual policy on remuneration. Those costs may include
additional remuneration, including payments on the basis of supplementary contracts
regardless of their nature, provided that it is paid in a consistent manner whenever the same
kind of work or expertise is required and independently from the source of funding used. For
the calculation of costs of personnel, the calculation sheet is available in the dedicated EMFF
website185
;
costs of the personnel of national administrations to the extent that they relate to the cost of
activities which the relevant public authority would not carry out if the project concerned
were not undertaken;
subsistence allowances (for meetings, including kick-off meetings where applicable,
conferences etc.) provided that these costs are in line with the beneficiary's usual practices;
costs of travel (for meetings, including kick-off meetings where applicable, conferences etc),
provided that these costs are in line with the beneficiary's usual practices on travel;
depreciation cost of equipment (new or second-hand): only the portion of the equipment's
depreciation corresponding to the duration of the action/project and the rate of actual use for
the purposes of the action may be taken into account;
costs entailed by subcontracting awarded by the beneficiaries for the purposes of carrying out
the action/project, provided that the conditions laid down in the grant agreement are met;
costs arising directly from requirements linked to the implementation of the action/project
(dissemination of information, specific evaluation of the action, translations, reproduction);
contributions in-kind: if necessary to implement the action, the beneficiaries may use inkind
contributions provided by third parties whether against payment or free of charge. If the in-
kind contribution is provided against payment, the beneficiaries may declare costs related to
the payment of in-kind contributions as eligible, up to the third parties’ costs for the seconded
persons, contributed equipment, infrastructure or other assets or other contributed goods and
185 at the following address: https://ec.europa.eu/easme/en/european-maritime-and-fisheries-fund
71
services. If the in-kind contribution is provided free of charge, the beneficiaries may declare
costs incurred by the third parties for the seconded persons, contributed equipment,
infrastructure or other assets or other contributed goods and services as eligible. The third
parties and their contributions must be set out in Annex 1. The beneficiaries must ensure that
the Agency, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) and the European Anti-Fraud Office
(OLAF) can exercise their rights.
value added tax (VAT) in relation to eligible direct costs where it is not
recoverable/deductible by the beneficiary.
N.B. Applicants must include in their budget proposal the costs for participation of maximum
two representatives of the consortium (including at least one representative of the coordinating
organisation) in up to three project meetings organised at EU level during the project lifetime.
Eligible indirect costs (overheads)
A flat-rate amount of 7% of the total eligible direct costs of the action is eligible under
indirect costs, representing the beneficiary's general administrative costs which can be
regarded as chargeable to the action/project.
Indirect costs may not include costs entered under another budget heading.
Ineligible costs
return on capital;
debt and debt service charges;
provisions for losses or debts;
interest owed;
doubtful debts;
exchange losses;
costs of transfers charged by the bank of a beneficiary;
costs declared by a beneficiary and covered by another action receiving a European Union
grant. In particular, indirect costs shall not be eligible under a grant for an action awarded to a
beneficiary who already receives an operating grant financed from the Union budget during
the period in question;
excessive or reckless expenditure;
deductible VAT (N.B. VAT is eligible where provided by the relevant articles of the FR186).
Calculation of the final grant amount
The final amount of the grant to be awarded to the beneficiary is established after completion of
the action, upon approval of the request for payment containing the following documents187
,
including relevant supporting documents where appropriate:
a final report providing details of the implementation and results of the action;
a final financial statement of costs actually incurred;
186 Article 126(3)(c) of the FR 187 Art. 135 FR
72
where applicable, a certificate on the financial statements of the action for each beneficiary.
EU grants may not have the purpose or effect of producing a profit within the framework of the
action of the beneficiary. Profit shall be defined as a surplus of the receipts over the eligible
costs incurred by the beneficiary, when the request is made for payment of the balance. In this
respect, where a profit is made, the EASME shall be entitled to recover the percentage of the profit
corresponding to the Union contribution to the eligible costs actually incurred by the beneficiary
to carry out the action.
11.3. Payment arrangements 188
11.3.1. Pre-financing payment
For projects of a 24 or 36 months duration, a pre-financing payment189
corresponding to 40 % of
the maximum grant amount will be transferred to the beneficiary within 30190
days of the date
when the last of the two parties signs the grant agreement or from the date stipulated in the grant
agreement.
For projects of a 12 months' duration a pre-financing payment191
corresponding to 60 % of the
maximum grant amount will be transferred to the beneficiary within 30192
days of the date when
the last of the two parties signs the grant agreement or from the date stipulated in the grant
agreement.
11.3.2. Interim payment
For projects of a 24 or 36 months duration, an interim payment193
of maximum 30 % of the grant
amount will be made within 60 days of receipt and approval by the EASME of an interim report
on the project implementation including a financial statement and payment claim.
The total amount of pre-financing and interim payment shall not exceed 70 % of the grant amount.
11.3.3. Final payment
A balance payment will be made within 60 days of receipt and approval by the EASME of the
final report on the project implementation including a final technical report, a final financial
statement and a payment claim, as well as all other supporting documents that may be requested in
accordance with the grant agreement.
The amount of the final payment to be made to the beneficiary will be established on the basis of
the calculation of the final grant amount. If the total of earlier payments received is higher than the
final grant amount, the beneficiary will be required to reimburse the amount paid in excess
through a recovery order194
.
188 Art. 90, 135 Financial Regulation, 207 Rules of Application (RAP). 189 Art. 109, 110 RAP. 190 Art. 92 FR. 191 Art. 109, 110 RAP. 192 Art. 92 FR. 193 Art. 207.1 RAP. 194 Art. 109, 110 RAP.
73
11.4. Pre-financing guarantee195
In the event that the beneficiary is a private entity and its financial capacity is not sufficient, a pre-
financing guarantee for up to the same amount as the pre-financing may be requested in order to
limit the financial risks linked to the pre-financing payment. This is not necessary where the
amount of the pre-financing is up to EUR 60.000 included.
The guarantee may be replaced by a joint and several guarantee by a third party or by a joint
guarantee of the beneficiaries of an action who are parties to the same grant agreement.
The guarantee shall be released as the pre-financing is cleared as the payments of balances to the
beneficiary, in accordance with the conditions laid down in the grant agreement.
11.5. Reporting requirements
Reporting periods
The coordinator shall submit the following reports to the EASME:
- Six-monthly technical progress reports;
- 1 interim technical implementation report and interim financial statement (only for projects
of 24 or 36 months);
- 1 final technical implementation report and final financial statement.
Depending on the selected strand and corresponding expected project duration, progress reports
shall cover the following periods:
Progress reports shall be submitted to the EASME within 15 calendar days of the end of the
periods in question. To avoid overlaps with the interim report, a progress report will not be
required when its due date is within two months before or after the end of the first half of the
project.
An interim report196
is due within 60 days of the end of the first interim period:
- 12 months for project of 24 months or
- 18 months for project of 36 months.
A final report is due within 60 days of the end of the project duration.
Reporting format
Progress reports shall be submitted to the EASME in electronic format. They shall explain the
progress made on the milestones provided for by the grant agreement. Progress reports are
requested for project monitoring purposes and do not result in any payment. Deliverables due for
the corresponding period should be submitted with the progress reports.
The interim and final reports are to be sent to the EASME both electronically as well as in paper
form.
195 Art. 134 Financial Regulation, 206 Rules of Application. 196 No interim report shall be submitted for project of 12 months duration.
74
The interim report shall detail the work progress and achievements as well as assessment of the
budget implementation during the reporting period, the outputs delivered, and provide a forecast
for the second year of implementation. Deliverables due for the corresponding period should be
submitted with the interim report.
The final report shall include an executive summary and shall detail all the actions done, the
outputs delivered and the final results achieved. All final deliverables should be submitted with the
final report.
Reports must be submitted by the coordinator in English, using the available reporting templates.
In case deliverables are not available in English, the applicant should provide a short summary in
English (max 2 pages) together with the corresponding deliverable.
Any other document requested by EASME according to the provisions of the grant agreement
must be submitted in any of the EU official languages.
12. PUBLICITY
12.1. By the beneficiary
The beneficiaries (and their affiliated entities) must clearly acknowledge the European Union’s
contribution in all publications or in conjunction with activities for which the grant is used.
In this respect, the beneficiaries (and their affiliated entities) are required to give prominence to
the name and emblem of the European Commission and EASME on all their publications,
posters, programmes and other products realised under the co-financed project.
If this requirement is not fully complied with, the grant may be reduced in accordance with the
provisions of the grant agreement.
12.2. By the EASME
With the exception of scholarships paid to natural persons and other direct support paid to
natural persons in most need, all information relating to grants awarded in the course of a
financial year shall be published on an internet site of the European Union institutions no later
than the 30 June of the year following the financial year in which the grants were awarded.
The EASME will publish the following information:
- name of the beneficiary
- address of the beneficiary when the latter is a legal person, region when the beneficiary is
a natural person, as defined on NUTS 2 level197
if he/she is domiciled within EU or
equivalent if domiciled outside EU,
- subject of the grant,
- amount awarded.
Upon a reasoned and duly substantiated request by the beneficiary, the publication shall be
waived if such disclosure risks threatening the rights and freedoms of individuals concerned as
protected by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union or harm the commercial
interests of the beneficiaries.
197 European Union Official Journal L 39, of 10 February 2007.
75
13. DATA PROTECTION
The reply to any call involves the recording and processing of personal data (such as name,
address and Curriculum Vitae). Such data will be processed pursuant to Regulation (EC) No
45/2001 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the EU
institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data. Unless indicated otherwise, the
questions and any personal data requested are required to evaluate the application in accordance
with the specifications of the call and will be processed solely for that purpose by EASME. Details
concerning the processing of personal data are available on the privacy statement at:
http://ec.europa.eu/easme/sites/easme-site/files/privacy-statement-calls-EASME.pdf
Personal data may be registered in the Early Detection and Exclusion System (EDES)198 by the
Commission, should the beneficiary be in one of the situations mentioned in Article 106(1) and
107 of the Financial Regulation 966/2012: (for more information see the Privacy Statement on:
http://ec.europa.eu/budget/library/explained/management/protecting/privacy_statement_edes_en.p
df
14. PROCEDURE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
14.1. Evaluation Review procedure
Unsuccessful applicants may request the review of the evaluation procedure of their proposals
within one month after the dispatch of the communication to the applicants of the evaluation
results. In case of proposals submitted on behalf of a consortium of applicants, the request must be
raised by the coordinator.
The scope of the review will be limited to procedural aspects of the evaluation which includes
procedural errors, factual errors, and manifest errors of assessment of the evaluation.
An internal Review Committee will be convened to examine each case. It is out of the scope of the
Committee to review the merits of the proposal. The role of the Committee is neither to call into
question the judgement of appropriately qualified experts and therefore it does not cover
assessment by these experts with relation to the evaluation criteria.
The Committee provides specialist opinions on the implementation of the evaluation process on
the basis of all the available information related to the proposal and its evaluation in the form of a
report with recommendations on line of action for each request. In the light of its review, the
Committee will recommend a course of action to the responsible authorising officer. Three
recommendations are foreseen: (i) that the complaint is rejected as unfounded; (ii) that the
complaint is upheld but the problem concerned did not jeopardise the decision whether or not to
fund the proposal; (iii) that the complaint is upheld and a re-evaluation is recommended.
In all cases, a reply will be sent to the applicant within two weeks (ten working days) of the date
of reception of the request for review. The Committee shall inform the applicant about the result
of the evaluation review at the latest 2 months after the meeting of the Committee.
198 Art 108 of Regulation 2015/1929 of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation n°966/2012 on the
financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union, OJ L 286 of 30.10.2015, p.1.
76
14.2. Admissibility and Eligibility Review procedure
Any unsuccessful applicant may request a review within 30 days from the date of the rejection
letter by the Agency. The rejection letter shall indicate the means for submission of the request for
review.
Complaints on failed submission proposals due to an online submission system fault have to be
submitted through the IT Helpdesk within 4 calendar days from the call closure date.
The scope of the review will be limited to assess the fulfilment of either admissibility or eligibility
criteria as laid down in the call for proposals.
An internal Admissibility and Eligibility Review Committee will be convened to examine each
case. The Committee provides specialist opinions in the form of a report with recommendations on
line of action for each request. In the light of its review, the Committee will recommend a course
of action to the responsible authorising officer. Three recommendations are foreseen: (i) that the
complaint is not eligible for admissibility/eligibility review; (ii) that the complaint is rejected as
unfounded: (iii) that the complaint is founded, which may lead to the evaluation of the
proposals/the participation in the action.
15. PROCEDURE FOR THE SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS
The proposal must be submitted in accordance with the formal requirements and by the deadline
set out in section 5.
No modification to the application is allowed once the deadline for submission has elapsed.
However, if there is a need to clarify certain aspects or for the correction of clerical mistakes, the
EASME may contact the applicant for this purpose during the evaluation process199
.
Applicants will be informed in writing about the result of the selection process200
.
The application form, annexes and relevant documents can be found at:
https://ec.europa.eu/easme/en/european-maritime-and-fisheries-fund
Submission
Applicants are requested to send their complete application according to the procedure below.
The application must contain the following documents:
1. Grant application form (including declaration on honour);
2. Estimated budget of the action (budget form);
3. Information on the applicants:
– supporting documents as specified in section 9.1
– a Legal Entity Form and supporting documents (section 3.2.6) for all applicants and
affiliated entities
– a Financial Identification Form (only by the coordinator of the consortium)
All supporting documents required during the submission and/or evaluation procedures must be
submitted in any of the EU official languages. Submission in English will facilitate the evaluation
process.
199 Art. 96 Financial Regulation. 200 Art. 133 Financial Regulation, 205 Rules of Application.
77
The paper version of the application will legally constitute the application. The paper version must
include the completed grant application form including the declarations of honour (see point 1
above) and the estimated budget of the action (see point 2 above). The documents providing
further information on the applicants (see point 3 above) shall be provided only in electronic
format at application stage; a paper version of these documents may be requested later in the
award process.
The application shall be submitted using the correct forms and shall be duly completed, dated,
showing a balanced budget (revenue/expenditure), submitted in 1 original copy, signed by the
person authorised to enter into legally binding commitments on behalf of the coordinating
applicant organisation. Before submission, please make sure to carefully check the last page of the
application form, which provides the checklist of all documents to be submitted with the
application.
The envelope of the paper version must clearly indicate the reference code of the Call and of the
selected strand among from the following list:
- EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S1 DEMO PROJECTS ;
- EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S2 MARINE LITTER;
- EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S3 BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MED;
- EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S4 RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE
MED
The application must be submitted in a sealed envelope and be201:
– Either sent by registered mail, posted or dispatched no later than:
a) For strand 2 and 4:
08/02/2018 using the reference code:
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S2 MARINE LITTER or
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S4 RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE
MED
b) For strand 1 and 3:
28/02/2018 using the reference code:
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S1 DEMO PROJECTS or
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S3 BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MED
to the address indicated below:
European Commission
EASME
Unit A3 – EMFF
Ref: (for reference code see above depending on selected strand)
Place Charles Rogier, 16
B-1049 Brussels
BELGIUM
In this case, the evidence of the date of dispatch shall be constituted by the postmark.
201 Art. 195.3 Rules of Application.
78
– Or delivered by hand (by the applicant in person or by an agent),
or sent by courier service/express mail, posted or dispatched no later than:
a) For strand 2 and 4
08/02/2018 at 16:00 Brussels time using the reference code:
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S2 MARINE LITTER or
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S4 RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE
MED
b) For strand 1 and 3
28/02/2018 at 16:00 Brussels time using the reference code:
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S1 DEMO PROJECTS or
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S3 BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MED
to the address indicated below:
European Commission
EASME
Mail Service
Ref. EASME/EMFF/2017.1.2.1.12/[include strand reference code]
Avenue du Bourget 1
B-1140 Brussels
In case of submission by courier service, the evidence of the date of dispatch shall be
constituted by the date of dispatch on the deposit slip.
In case of hand delivery by the applicant, a receipt must be obtained as proof of submission,
signed and dated by the official in the Commission's central mail department who takes
delivery. The department is open from 08.00 to 17.00 from Monday to Thursday, and from
8.00 to 16.00 on Fridays. It is closed on Saturdays, Sundays and Commission holidays.
Applications sent by fax will not be accepted.
Electronic copy
In addition to the submission on paper, the applicant is requested to submit an electronic copy202
of the proposal (i.e. the grant application including the declarations of honour and the estimated
budget) and all its annexes (see point 3 above) on a CD-ROM or USB-stick in the same envelope
as the paper version.
202 Please include the electronic version of the application form in a 'searchable' PDF format or in a word doc version.
79
Contact
Requests for further information shall be sent by exclusively by e-mail to EASME-EMFF-
a) For strand 2 and 4:
- no later than 31/01/2018 indicating as subject title depending on the strand
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S2 MARINE LITTER or
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S4 RESTORING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE MED
b) For strand 1 and 3:
- no later than 21/02/2018 indicating as subject title depending on the strand
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S1 DEMO PROJECTS or
EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12-S3 BLUE NETWORKS IN THE MED.
Such questions, together with their answers, if of a general interest, will be published at:
https://ec.europa.eu/easme/en/european-maritime-and-fisheries-fund
In addition, important information for the applicants may, if need be, be published on this website.
Applicants are thus strongly recommended to consult this website regularly.
Annexes to this Call for Proposals
Application form203
(with checklist of documents to be provided)
Financial capacity table
Model Grant Agreement (GA) for multi-beneficiary projects including:
– Special conditions
– General Conditions (hereinafter referred to as “the General Conditions”) (Annex II to
the GA)
Estimated budget of the action (Annex III to the GA)
Templates to be downloaded and completed:
Legal entity form
All applicants (Coordinator and partner(s)) must fill in the "Legal entity form" available at the
following address:
http://ec.europa.eu/budget/contracts_grants/info_contracts/legal_entities/legal_entities_en.cfm
Financial identification form
The "Financial identification form" available at the following address shall be completed only
by the coordinator of the consortium:
http://ec.europa.eu/budget/contracts_grants/info_contracts/financial_id/financial_id_en.cfm
203 The application will become Annex I of the Grant Agreement once approved by the contracting authority.
80
Templates to be downloaded and used during project implementation:
Mandate204
(Annex IV to the GA)
Model technical reports (Annex V to the GA): progress report, [interim report] and final
report
Model financial statement (Annex VI to the GA)
Model terms of reference for the certificate on the financial statements (Annex VII to the
GA)
Model Report on the Distribution of the EU Final Financial Contribution (Annex IX to the
GA)
Form for calculation of staff costs
These templates can be downloaded by applicants for reference at the following address:
https://ec.europa.eu/easme/en/european-maritime-and-fisheries-fund
____________________
204 Completed mandates will be requested only from successful applicants during grant agreement preparation phase.
Electronically signed on 24/10/2017 09:32 (UTC+02) in accordance with article 4.2 (Validity of electronic documents) of Commission Decision 2004/563