What is a European Project

The elements listed below are indicative. They vary, in fact, from programme to programme and from call to call. However, it is considered appropriate to provide information that may serve to guide the reader. For those wishing to submit a project, a careful reading of the programme of interest and the corresponding call for proposals is recommended.

• Beneficiaries. These are all those who can take part in European projects: public bodies, universities, research centres, companies, private bodies, NGOs, etc. who are based in one of the Member States, or in other countries authorised to take part in the programmes.
• Partnership. Projects must normally involve several partners from different countries. Exceptionally, for some programmes, there may be only one partner, or partners from only one country. The purpose of the partnership is to pool different experiences and sensitivities through which the problems identified can be addressed in an innovative and synergetic manner. The partnership must be appropriate to the objectives and results to be achieved, i.e. the partners usually belong to different sectors of society depending on the type of project: from public bodies to research organisations, from private individuals to trade associations, from research organisations to NGOs, etc. In order to participate in the project, partners must demonstrate adequate technical and financial reliability. For each project there is a lead partner whose tasks are to promote the project action, manage relations with the European Commission or the Managing Authority, coordinate the partnership and project activities. The Lead Partner is responsible for the achievement of objectives, reporting and financial management. He/she is the sole entity legally and financially responsible for the implementation of the project vis-à-vis the Commission with whom he/she signs the funding contract. All partners, including the lead partner, contribute to the realisation of the project through their specific activities and budget. The partners are bound to each other and to the lead partner through the partnership contract which regulates the legal relationship between the parties.
• Time limit. Projects usually last between one and three years on average, depending on the type of more or less complex activity to be carried out and the type of programme.
• Budget. It varies depending on the programme, the type of actions to be carried out and the number of partners involved. Amounts can range from thousands to millions of euros.
• EU co-financing. It varies depending on the programmes and the type of activities, on average it is between 50% and 90% of the eligible costs. Member states and/or partners must contribute to finance the part not covered by the EU contribution. In addition, partners must have the capacity to advance the payment of expenditure, as the Community contribution is normally paid after the expenditure has been paid and certified. Some programmes provide for financial advances to facilitate the start of activities.

Calls for proposals

These are calls for project proposals. Each programme periodically issues its own calls for proposals specifying the topics to be addressed, the total budget allocated, the entities that may participate, the documents and procedure for submitting the project and the deadline. The calls are published in the Official Journal of the European Union and on the websites of the respective programmes. Further information on the programmes and calls for proposals can be found on the Formez website.

Project Preparation

The preparation of a project goes through the following steps

• Identification of a real problem or need. The project must solve a real problem or meet a need in a specific intervention sector or area. Proper attention must be given to this activity. In fact, the more real and felt the problem, the greater the interest of the partners in drafting and implementing the project and, consequently, the greater the quality of the result.
• Identifying the programme and the call. The project manager must find the most suitable programme to solve the problem or meet the identified need and must also search for the most coherent call for proposals.
• Project design and partner search. This phase involves the elaboration of a project idea to be shared with other partners, and the subsequent drafting of a detailed project proposal that identifies the objectives, actions, timeframe and budget.
• Submission of the project proposal. By the deadline set in the call for proposals, the lead partner must submit the application form (form on which the project is to be drawn up) and the required documentation.

Project Evaluation

Evaluation and selection of the project proposals submitted. This activity is carried out directly by the European Commission, or by the relevant programme bodies. Depending on the programme, Member States and regions may also express opinions and contribute to the evaluation process. Selected projects move on to the implementation phase.

Project implementation

The implementation of a project is characterised by the following phases.

• Signing of the financing contract. The signature of the financing contract between the Lead Partner and the European Commission or Managing Authority is the precondition for starting the implementation of the project activities.
• Project management. The project starts with a kick-off meeting, a meeting in which the project is presented to stakeholders, the public, political/administrative authorities and the media. Then, each partner starts its work in coordination with the lead partner and the work-package leaders. The work-packages meet periodically to discuss the activities carried out and the results achieved and to plan the next activity. The work can be presented during workshops and seminars that are also open to the public. The project ends with a final conference for the presentation and dissemination of results.
• Information and publicity. Throughout project management, particular attention must also be paid to the implementation of information and publicity measures such as: website, newsletters, brochures, press releases, publications, conferences, etc.
• Financial and Activity Reporting. The partners submit to the lead partner, normally every six months, a detailed report on the activities carried out and the expenses incurred. The Lead Partner collects the reports and prepares a single project report to be sent to the competent Authorities and, depending on the programmes, the reimbursement request is also submitted.
• Monitoring. Given that each project must carefully and completely keep all documentation of the expenses incurred, the control system then varies from programme to programme. Expenditure in territorial cooperation programming projects is all subject to control procedures, whereas in sectoral programming, controls are not always necessary and depend many times on the amount of expenditure. Additional checks may be carried out by the programme authorities and/or the European Commission.
• Payment of the European contribution. Payment also varies from programme to programme. Whereas territorial cooperation is characterised by a reimbursement system (i.e. one must have the capacity to advance resources), sectoral programming also provides for the possibility of advance payments.