Pre-announcement of the Open Call within the Local Development, Poverty Reduction and Roma Inclusion Programme

22.05.2020

Pre-announcement of the Open Call within the Local Development, Poverty Reduction and Roma Inclusion Programme

Local Development Component

Call number:  LDI01

Estimated call launching: June 2020

Estimated call closure: November 2020

The call will be launched by the Programme Operator – the Government Office of the SR under Norway Grants 2014-2021

The aim of the call LDI01 is to support projects enhancing access of vulnerable children and youth to a broader range of extra–curricular activities to improve their personal development and provide them with skills increasing their chances to succeed in the society by creation a multifunctional youth centre. The projects shall support youth centres in the least developed districts.

Project grant: Euro 200 000 – Euro 1 000 000

Estimated total call allocation: Euro 7 700 000

Co-financing: 

  • for public sector entities, co-financing is not required,

Financing: payments of the project grant shall take the form of an advance payment, interim payments and a final payment. The level of advance payment to projects shall be set out in the project contract.

Eligible applicants:

  • Self-governing regions of Banská Bystrica, Košice, Prešov and their budgetary and allowance organisations,
  • Municipalities located in the Least Developed District and their budgetary and allowance organisations,
  • State administration bodies.

Applicants shall have at least two different project partners among those listed as Eligible partners.

Eligible partners:

Mandatory partners: entities established as a legal person in the Slovak Republic, (at least two different kinds from the list):

  • State budgetary and contributory organizations established in accordance with Act No. 523/2004 Coll. on Budget Rules of the Public Service;
  • Municipalities in accordance with Act No. 369/1990 Coll. on Municipal Administration
  • Higher territorial units and offices of self-governing regions in accordance with Act No. 302/2001 Coll. on self-government of higher territorial units
  • NGOs or other legal forms running a community centre or centre working with children and youth
  • Other partners in addition to 2 project partners from the list above in accordance with Article 7.2.2 of the Regulation, i.e.: Any public or private entity, commercial or non-commercial, as well as non-governmental organisations established as a legal person either in Norway, Beneficiary States  or a country outside the European Economic Area that has a common border with the respective Beneficiary State , or any international organisation or body or agency thereof, actively involved in, and effectively contributing to, the implementation of a project.

Other partners in addition to 2 project partners from the list above in accordance with Article 7.2.2 of the Regulation, i.e.: Any public or private entity, commercial or non-commercial, as well as non-governmental organisations established as a legal person either in Norway, Beneficiary States  or a country outside the European Economic Area that has a common border with the respective Beneficiary State , or any international organisation or body or agency thereof, actively involved in, and effectively contributing to, the implementation of a project.

Expected date of the project contracts signature:  September 2021

Further conditions:

  1. The multifunctional youth centre is defined as the whole structure of centres working with children and youth involved in the project. Establishment or support of such multifunctional youth centre within the project is mandatory.
  2. The Least Developed Districts must benefit from all project activities.
  3. Cooperation of multifunctional Youth centres with at least 2 field social workers and/or Roma mediators is mandatory.
  4. The mandatory attachments to the Grant Application are:
  1. the Budget;
  2. Partnership Statement, Letter of Intent or other similar document proving the interest of the applicant and its partners to jointly implement the Project, signed by the mandatory partners;
  3. Questionnaire (including the Sustainability Plan).
  1. Costs on infrastructure (hard measures)[1] must not exceed 70% of the total eligible costs of the project.
  2. Projects shall be implemented in line with applicable state aid rules.

Eligible activities:

The project grant can be used for the following purposes and activities in the area of local development, including more concrete examples of eligible activities:

  1. activities related to social and economic development in specific geographic areas, such as:
    • arts and culture education
    • sport and physical activities
  2. interventions to increase job prospect, such as: educational and vocational trainings and courses, creative and language courses, courses and trainings specifically focused on the regional needs, e.g. construction, manufacture, tourism etc.
  3. Anti-discriminatory activities focusing on groups vulnerable to social and economic exclusion, such as:
    • activities countering hate speech, radicalisation and extremism, incl. social media
    • protecting children from online hoaxes, cyber-bulling, sexual abuse, domestic violence
    • activities promoting understanding of social inclusion in general
    • working with information, understanding information, identifying suspicious sources of data
    • other activities specifically focused on children and youth at risk
  4. Activities related to early childhood education and care systems, such as:
    • support of kindergartens
    • support of community social services
    • health care educational activities
    • early intervention for children, especially children from a socially disadvantaged environment
  5. Activities related to prevention of early school-leaving, such as:
    • summer schools for underachieving pupils
    • extra lessons after schools for underachieving pupils
    • simultaneous work with teachers and counselling service for parents and pupils

All centres must offer affordable/free/inclusive (non-segregated) access to the centre for target group, while it is recommended to, whenever possible, offer paid access to general public in evening hours to foster the sustainability of the centres.

At least one centre under each project shall create space for civil society premises/activities for youth at risk, and enter into bilateral activities on multifunctional youth centres, organised by the Programme Operator and the Council of Europe, such as workshops and conferences on sharing experience and good practise.

All supported projects shall enter into compulsory networking (regular exchange), organised by the Programme Operator, with multifunctional youth centres supported under other projects funded by the Programme.

Eligible expenditure:

​Except for the so-called “excluded expenditures” listed in Article 8.7 of the Regulation on the Implementation of the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2014-2021 („the Regulation “), all types of expenditures may be eligible, provided that they meet the conditions listed in this Call and in Article 8.2, 8.3 and 8.5 of the Regulation.


[1] For the purposes of the Programme the infrastructure (hard measures) are defined as any activities that require a building permit/a building announcement or purchase of buildings or estates.