EU FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT TIPS

• Extra costs must be reimbursed and rules applied flexibly
• Students must not lose an academic year
• EU volunteers could help member states to tackle the COVID-19 crisis

1) Eligibility of costs in ongoing actions or contracts

Where individuals who were to take part in mobilities, meetings or events are prevented from doing so, for example owing to their recent contact with someone suffering from the virus or their presence in an area considered to be at high risk, EACEA may consider as eligible* expenses of travel or accommodation that could not be cancelled and which are not reimbursed from other sources provided that the beneficiaries/contractors/experts submit relevant supporting documents in this sense (in particular that they have claimed reimbursement and that it was denied).

2) Where COVID-19 prevents implementation of action or contract

Where the execution of contracts is impeded because of COVID-19 (for example due to unavailability of key staff, the impossibility of carrying on work in a zone affected by the virus or any other case which can be regarded as force majeure), EACEA may accept replacement activities or delayed performance. This could be done following a justified request by the beneficiary/contractor/expert to amend the contract including by extending the period of its implementation/ performance.

Documentation

Beneficiaries/contractors/experts must collect and keep the relevant documentation which might be needed at a later stage to prove/justify any decision taken having an impact on the implementation of the project (notably from a financial point of view). Other updates may follow as the situation evolves.

Given the limited size of the EU budget, the main response will come from Member States' national budgets. 

The Temporary Framework provides for five types of aid:

(i)  Direct grants, selective tax advantages and advance payments: Member States will be able to set up schemes to grant up to €800,000 to a company to address its urgent liquidity needs.

(ii)  State guarantees for loans taken by companies from banks: Member States will be able to provide State guarantees to ensure banks keep providing loans to the customers who need them.

(iii) Subsidised public loans to companies: Member States will be able to grant loans with favourable interest rates to companies. These loans can help businesses cover immediate working capital and investment needs.

(iv) Safeguards for banks that channel State aid to the real economy: Some Member States plan to build on banks' existing lending capacities, and use them as a channel for support to businesses – in particular to small and medium-sized companies. The Framework makes clear that such aid is considered as direct aid to the banks' customers, not to the banks themselves, and gives guidance on how to ensure minimal distortion of competition between banks.

(v) Short-term export credit insurance: The Framework introduces additional flexibility on how to demonstrate that certain countries are not-marketable risks, thereby enabling short-term export credit insurance to be provided by the State where needed.

EAC/2019/0669

“Cultural Heritage in Action” peer-learning scheme http://www.culturalheritageinaction.eu/culture/Good_practices for local authorities financed by Creative Europe.

The deadline for this open call for local authorities to submit good practices on their cultural heritage actions has been extended until 27 April 2020, 17:00 pm CET.

EACEA 39/2019

Cultural Cooperation Projects in the Western Balkans 2019 https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/sites/ipa/funding/coopwb_en

The deadline for the call for proposals for “Strengthening cultural cooperation with and competiveness of cultural and creative industries in the Western Balkans” has been extended until 28 April 2020, 17:00 pm CET.

EAC/S18/2019

Co-Creation and Co-Production scheme for the music sector https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/creative-europe/content/co-creation-and-co-production-scheme-music-sector_en.

The deadline for this call for the 2019 Preparatory Action “Music Moves Europe: Boosting European diversity and talent” has been extended until 30 April 2020, 13:00 pm CET.

EAC/S53/2019

Music education and learning https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/creative-europe/content/music-education-and-learning_en .

The deadline for this call for the 2019 Preparatory Action “Music Moves Europe: Boosting European diversity and talent” has been extended until 30 April 2020, 13:00 pm CET.

Organisations active in ongoing EU Aid deployment projects are responsible for the safety and security of EU Aid Volunteers, including threats to health. Therefore, organisations are obliged to review their security assessment and decide which steps to take bearing in mind the safety and security of volunteers currently deployed. Organisations shall instruct their EU Aid Volunteers accordingly.