Call for project proposal, also Call

It refers to an announcement by the programme bodies to solicit project proposals from potential applicants. Every call comes with Terms of Reference (ToR), a document that outlines the specific requirements, objectives, and guidelines for the applicants to submit proposals. The opening and closing dates of the call are decided by the Programme committee. Depending on the availability of funds, it is foreseen to launch one call per year. The launch of a call is announced on this website and every other communication channels of the Alpine Space programme.

For further information, please contact your national ACP or the JS.

Classic project

Find out about the characteristics of a classic project here.

Control certificate

This document is issued by the controller to certify the regularity of the expenditures declared in a partner report at the end of the verification. It is generated and available on JEMS. The payments of ERDF co-financing hinge upon control certificates.

Controller

Internal (accouting officer) or external (audit firm) auditor qualified to carry out controls on the legality and regularity of the expenditures declared by a beneficiary. These institutions must be authorized by the National control coordinating body (NCCB) to act as controllers.

See also National control coordinating body and Control certificate.

Cooperation area

The cooperation area of the programme consists of alpine regions spanning over the 7 Partner States (Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovenia and Switzerland). To consult the map of the cooperation area, please click here. Moreover, activities carried out outside the cooperation area may also be considered eligible.

Deliverable

A deliverable is a tangible or intangible item that is a by-product resulting of project activities. Examples of deliverables could include studies, guidelines, prototypes, software applications, or training materials. It is a specific, measurable, and verifiable outcome that can be provided to the project stakeholders.

Deliverables are not mandatory to demonstrate the achievement of an activity of the project.

See also Outputs and Results.

Eligibility criteria

These are sets of criteria used by the JS and ACPs to perform the eligibility check in the first step in the project assessment procedure. Compliance with these criteria ensures that the AF meets the basic requirements of the programme and the call. Only if the proposal passes the eligibility check will it be further evaluated against the assessment criteria. Failure to meet any of these criteria will result in the outright rejection of the application.

See also Selection procedure.

ERDF co-financing

The financial support the programme grants to a project. Combined with other financial contributions, it makes up the total project budget.

European Commission (EC)

The European Commission is one of the main institutions of the European Union. A representative of the EC is a member of the Programme committee in a monitoring and advisory capacity.

For all the necessary information, please click here.

European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)

Is one of the European Structural and Investment Funds of the European Union. It “aims to strengthen economic, social and territorial cohesion in the EU by correcting imbalances between its regions”. Interreg programmes are funded by ERDF.

Source and further information here.

European Territorial Cooperation (ETC)

“ETC, better known as Interreg, is one of the two goals of cohesion policy and provides a framework for the implementation of joint actions and policy exchanges between national, regional and local actors from different Member States.” The ETC’s central goal is to promote a well-balanced economic, social and territorial development within the EU and with EU neighbour states. Interreg comprises the following fields of cooperation: cross-border (Interreg A), transnational (Interreg B) and interregional (Interreg C). Interreg is currently in its sixth programming period (2021–2027). It first started in 1990.

Source and further information about the ETC here.

External expert

Project partners may contract external experts and service providers to implement the work plan. Each beneficiary must ensure that the involvement of external expertise and services complies with the national public procurement rules and the respective programme rules.

Finance Report

refers to one of the two types of project report (progress report and finance report). This document covers almost exclusively the financial monitoring of a project over the past reporting period. The template of the progress report can be found here.

See Project report, Reporting schedule.

Interact

Interact is an EU programme funded by the ERDF. It is dedicated to the provision of services in support of cooperation programmes.

For more information, please click here.

Interreg

Please see European Territorial Cooperation (ETC).

JEMS

The Joint Electronic Monitoring System (JEMS) is the monitoring system of the programme. This digital interface allows applicants to submit proposal, project partners to report, controller to perform their verification and MA/JS to monitor the programme altogether.

Further information about JEMS.

Joint secretariat (JS)

The Joint secretariat is one of the Alpine Space programme bodies.

To read more about the responsibilities of this body, click here.

Lead partner

Project participant who takes the overall responsibility for the development and implementation of a project. Each lead partner is expected to conclude the partnership agreement (with its project partners) and the grant agreement (with the managing authority). Lead partner must ensure sound project management and transnational implementation. The lead partner is the recepient of ERDF payments. It shall transfer to each project partner their share in a timely manner.

See also Project participants and Project partner.

Managing authority (MA)

The Managing authority is one of the Alpine Space programme bodies.

To read more about the responsibilities of this body, click here.

National Control Coordinating Body (NCCB)

Designated institution at national level in charge of coordinating and instructing the controllers on the relevant regulations for the reporting of project co-financed by the Alpine Space programme.

Objective

Defines what the project aims at achieving to the benefit of the target group(s) and points to the results (and territorial change) that the project wants to achieve.

The overall project objective addresses the core strategic aspects. It is broken down into one or more project specific objectives.

The project specific obective is an immediate goal that a project can realistically achieve within the project lifetime through its planned activities, related outputs and deliverables. It has to clearly contribute to the overall project objective and adress a specific problematic. At the end of the project, it should be verifiable whether the specific objective has been reached. Each project specific objective should correspond to a dedicated work package.

Observer

Project participant taking part to the project without receiving any ERDF co-funding. Travel and accommodation costs to project meetings and events could be covered by a project partner under external experts and services. Project observers are listed in the application form with indication of involvement in project activities.

See also Project participants, Lead partner and Project partner.

Output

Refers to a product or a service that results from the implementation of project activities. Outputs are clustered into the following types: pilot actions, jointly developed solutions, capacity-building of the macroregional strategies and other types of outputs. All outputs need to be clearly consistent with and contribute to the achievement of one or more project specific objectives.

See also Outcome, Results, Deliverable and Objective.

Outcome

Is the intended situation, which is a combination of project results, outputs and deliverables, envisaged during project design and achieved at the end of the project, or shortly thereafter. It is an umbrella term that does not coincide with any programme indicator, unlike project outputs and results.

See also Results and Output.

Partner report

Refers to a digital document to be filled in on JEMS by each project partner at the end of each reporting period which reports its contribution to the project’s advancement and its expenditures. The template of the partner report can be found here. Partner reports are verified by an assigned controller and clustered by the lead partner to draft project reports.

See Progress report, Finance report, Reporting schedule.

Partnership agreement

Contract signed between the lead partner and all project partners containing all duties and responsibilities of each project partner before, during and after the project implementation.

Programme manual

Dedicated document providing relevant information on the programme and on the different phases of the project lifecycle (project generation, application, contracting and implementation). It should serve as a guidance for potential partners, project participants and programme bodies. It includes also relevant forms and guidelines for their completion.

More information can be found here.

Progress report

Refers to one of the two types of project report (progress report and finance report). This document provides an update on the project achievements in terms of content and financially. The template of the progress report can be found here.

See Project report, Reporting schedule.

Project idea

Is an outline of the project proposal, thus not an official submission of a project proposal. It is prepared by project applicants for the purpose of mutual understanding of their project concept, for partner search and for communication with ACPs and JS. More information can be found here.

See also Project proposal.

Project participant

Any organisation that actively contributes to the implementation of a project either as external expert, observer, project partner or lead partner.

See corresponding terms.

Project partner

Organisation, public or private, that directly participates in the preparation and implementation of an Alpine Space project, is officially listed in the application form (AF) of the project and is bound with a Lead partner by a Partnership agreement.

See also Project participants, Partnership agrement.

Project proposal

When the project idea is officially submitted to a call for proposals via JEMS, it becomes a project proposal that will undergo the selection procedure and might be approved. Project proposal and project application are synonyms.

See also Project idea, Selection procedure.

Project report

Refers to a digital document to be filled in on JEMS by the lead partner that reports on the overall project’s advancement. Project report shall be submitted to the Joint Secretariat for verification according to the reporting schedule. Project reports are called a finance report when they only address the financial monitoring and they are called progress report when they cover both the financial monitoring and the project’s achievements in terms of content. Finance and progress reports must be submitted alternatively following the reporting schedule.

See Progress report, Finance report, Reporting schedule.

Regional policy of the EU

More information can be found here.

Results

The immediate effect and territorial change, compared to the initial situation, which a project intends to achieve through the use of its outputs. They are supposed to meet the project objectives. The Alpine Space programme categorises these results in three different types depending on the thematical orientation of the project : solutions that can be taken up or scale-up by organisations, transnational capacity-building and other type of results.

See also Output, Outcome.

Reporting period

A designated timeframe during which project partners are required to provide an update and documentation on the activities of the project on partner-level and on project-level. Reporting periods  last 6 months for a Classic project and 9 months for a Small-scale project.

Reporting schedule

A predetermined timetable of reporting periods defined in the Subsidy contract that outlines when partner reports and project reports are due throughout the project’s duration and marks out the temporal eligibility of expenditures. It helps facilitate timely and structured information exchange among project partners and ensures compliance with reporting requirements.

Selection procedure

Refers to the 1st and 2nd step of the procedure for calls for classic project proposals, and to the one-step application procedure for call for small-scale project proposals. The procedure consists in an assessment of the applications and their approval by the Programme committee.

See also Assessment and Eligibility criteria.

Small-scale project

Find out about the characteristics of a small-scale project here.

Statement of expenditure

To be submitted together with the payment application to the EC by the CA.

Subsidy contract

Grant agreement between the contracting authority (Managing authority) and the Lead partner. This contract stipulates the rights and duties of the LP (and ERDF-LP, if such exists) as well as of the programme bodies and other organisations involved in the implementation of the programme.

Task force (TF)

A task force (TF) is an Alpine Space programme body.

To read more about the responsibilities of this body, click here.

Terms of references (ToR)

Specific rules applying to a call for project proposals. Every call for proposals has its specific terms of references setting its frame and conditions that have to be met for successful project application.