The Provincial Executive’s international development cooperation initiatives

Initiatives of particular institutional significance in the field of international development cooperation, identified annually by the Provincial Executive.

APPROVAL PROCESS

The approval process for projects relating to initiatives planned by the Provincial Executive involves the following stages:

1. The Provincial Executive approves the draft public notice for co-design ( hereinafter ‘the notice’) and the relevant forms, and at the same time determines the total amount of financial resources available.
2. Implementing bodies submit an expression of interest in participating in the co-design process, accompanied by a project proposal;
3. the evaluation panel issues an opinion on the project ideas received;
4. the competent provincial body, following the assessment panel’s opinion, prepares the approval measure for the project ideas and the organisations admitted to the co-design process, thereby launching the work of the co-design working group (hereinafter the ‘working group’);
5. the work of the panel concludes with the signing of the operational project by the participants in the panel;
6. the relevant provincial authority adopts the measure approving the operational project, identifies the implementing body or bodies, defines the eligible expenditure and the amount of the grant, as well as the draft agreements through which each party undertakes to fulfil its mutual obligations;
7. should the working group prove unsuccessful, the Provincial Executive shall adopt a resolution taking note of this. 

 PUBLIC NOTICE OF CO-DESIGN

The notice shall include at least the following elements:

1. a description of the planned initiative, the thematic and geographical areas of intervention, and the objectives to be pursued through co-design;
2. eligible parties, participation requirements and grounds for exclusion, with particular regard to the rules on conflicts of interest;
3. the procedures and deadlines for submitting applications to participate, together with the relevant declarations and forms;
4. the selection criteria for project ideas to be admitted to the co-design process;
5. an overview of the available resources;
6. the procedures for conducting and participating in the round-table discussions;
7. the information referred to in Article 25 of Provincial Law No. 23/1992;
8. any other elements deemed appropriate in relation to the specific characteristics of the initiatives.

EVALUATION PANEL

1. The evaluation panel provided for in Article 14-bis of Provincial Law No. 4 of 15 March 2005, comprising three experts in the field of international cooperation with proven experience and expertise appointed by the Provincial Executive, shall give its opinion on the project proposals on the basis of the criteria set out in the call for proposals.
2. The panel may attend the round-table meetings and make comments on the development of the projects.

ELIGIBLE EXPENSES AND FUNDING PERCENTAGE

1. Taking into account the budget established at the time of approval of the call for proposals, implementing bodies may be granted a contribution of up to 100 per cent of eligible expenditure, which is paid out on the basis of expenditure actually incurred. Agreements may only provide for the reimbursement of expenditure actually incurred and documented.
2. During the co-design phase, expenditure may be reassessed, taking into account the project’s objectives, in relation to the scale of the provincial contribution and other resources, the practical feasibility of the project and the reasonableness of the planned expenditure.
3. All incurred and documented expenditure necessary for the implementation of the actions and provided for in the project itself is eligible. Expenditure that is not clearly identified (e.g. miscellaneous, contingent, unforeseen) and expenditure not consistent with the project activities is not eligible.
4. Any limits on specific types of expenditure are set out in the call for proposals.
5. Indirect costs are recognised up to the maximum amount specified in the call for proposals, limited to the portion directly attributable to the funded project’s activities and subject to documented reporting.
6. In any event, provincial funding may not exceed the deficit set out in the project’s financial plan.

Third-sector organisations that have been registered in the National Register of the Third Sector for at least six months and whose articles of association include, amongst their corporate purposes, development cooperation or similar terms such as international cooperation or solidarity, and which operate in the Province of Trento, may take part in the initiatives planned by the Provincial Executive.

The Provincial Executive may set out further specific requirements in the call for proposals, depending on the characteristics of each planned initiative.

The participation of a local partner is required if expressly stipulated in the call for proposals.

The Province, through the provincial body responsible for international cooperation (hereinafter the ‘competent provincial body’), participates as coordinator in the implementation of the initiatives.

Every year, a PUBLIC NOTICE ON CO-DESIGN is published, setting out the description of the initiative, the thematic and geographical areas of intervention, the objectives to be pursued and the total amount of financial resources available.

SELECTION OF PARTICIPANTS AND LAUNCH OF THE CO-DESIGN PROCESS

1. Interested parties must submit an expression of interest in the co-design process to the relevant provincial authority, in accordance with the procedures and deadlines set out in the notice itself, accompanied by the relevant forms and including a description of the project idea.
2. Within 15 days of the deadline for the submission of applications for admission, the relevant provincial authority shall verify the formal validity of the applications for the purposes of determining eligibility for the applicants’ roundtable and shall forward the project proposals drawn up by those meeting the formal requirements for participation to the assessment panel referred to in Article 6 of these criteria.
3. The panel shall examine the project proposals and issue its opinion within 30 days of their submission by the relevant provincial authority.
4. Subject to the resources set out in the call for applications, the relevant provincial authority shall draw up the decision approving the project proposals and the parties admitted to the co-design process, thereby commencing the work of the working group.

CO-DESIGN WORKING GROUP

1. Without prejudice to the Province’s authority over decision-making, within the framework of the collaborative relationships established through co-design, the Province and the participants become partners in developing the projects necessary to achieve the objectives set by the Provincial Executive.
2. The relevant provincial department coordinates the working group, which is responsible for drawing up the operational projects.
3. At the invitation of the relevant provincial department, other provincial departments with competence in the relevant subject area and other stakeholders in Trentino’s international cooperation system, both at national and international level, may participate in the co-design working group.
4. The working group’s proceedings are concluded within 90 days of the date of the first meeting, with the operational project being signed by the participants in the working group. 
5. Subject to the resources set out in the call for proposals, the relevant provincial body shall adopt the measure approving the operational project, identify the implementing body or bodies, define the eligible expenditure and the amount of the grant, as well as the draft agreements, pursuant to Article 55 of the Third Sector Code, through which each party undertakes to fulfil its mutual obligations.

WORKING METHODS 

1. Co-design, as a participatory and collaborative process, presupposes, in addition to the implementation of the principle of horizontal subsidiarity, a relationship of loyal cooperation aimed at building a rapport between participants, based on the principles of good faith, proactivity and reciprocity. 
2. The head of the relevant provincial authority shall, by means of a reasoned decision, exclude from the co-design process those who do not ensure the minimum level of participation required by the call for proposals – in both quantitative and qualitative terms – in the working group’s proceedings.

Below we publish the forms required for the stages following the conclusion of the co-design working group’s proceedings, for the disbursement of the grant to the implementing body.

The deadlines for individual notices will be set annually and published in the NOTICES section

IMPLEMENTATION, COMPLETION AND REPORTING DEADLINES

1. The project start date shall be the date specified in the agreement.
2. Project activities must be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the agreement. During implementation, the implementing body may request amendments to the project from the relevant provincial authority. Any amendment must be requested before it is implemented, must be clearly justified, must highlight any changes to the financial plan, must leave the objectives and the type of beneficiaries unchanged, and must not involve any increase in the grant awarded. The relevant provincial authority shall assess the request for a modification and, within 30 days, shall grant authorisation, if applicable, by decision of the head of the relevant provincial authority.
3. The deadline for submitting the final report is set out in the agreement and may be extended by up to 12 months. Any requests for an extension of the deadline for submitting the final report must be justified and submitted before the project’s expiry date. Authorisation from the competent provincial authority is granted by decision of the head of that authority.
4. Any amendment to substantial elements not authorised in advance, failure to achieve or only partial achievement of the objectives due to irregularities in the conduct of the project, or failure to comply with the deadlines set for completion and/or final reporting, shall result in the reduction or total or partial revocation of the grant awarded and the recovery of any sums disbursed, plus simple interest calculated at the statutory rate from the date the payment order for the grant was debited until the sums have been repaid. 

METHODS OF GRANT DISBURSEMENT AND FINAL REPORTING

The grant is paid out as follows:

a) The first advance payment (up to a maximum of 25 per cent of the grant awarded for the project) upon signing of the agreement, following submission of the application for the advance payment;

b) The second advance payment (up to a maximum of 35 per cent of the total grant awarded for the project) and the third and final advance payment (up to a maximum of 25 per cent of the total grant awarded for the project) shall be paid upon submission of the following documentation:

• application for payment of the further advance;
• a progress report on the project consistent with the timetable;
• photographic evidence;
• a statement of expenditure;
• a list of expenditure documents totalling at least the amount of the advances received;
• expenditure documentation;

c) For the purposes of settling the balance of the grant awarded, the implementing body shall submit to the relevant provincial authority:

• an application for payment of the balance;
• a final explanatory report;
• photographic/video documentation of the completed project;
• a statement of income and expenditure;
• a list of expenditure incurred for the entire project;
• expenditure documentation relating to the final part of the expenses incurred (the expenditure documentation must be in the name of the implementing body or the partners with whom partnership agreements have been signed; it must be receipted and submitted either as an original or as a copy certified by the competent authority); 
• a declaration regarding the documentation submitted in simple copy, to be provided where, for tax reasons, the originals of the expenditure documents must remain in the country where the project was carried out.

The percentage allocated at the time the grant was awarded will be recalculated on the basis of the eligible expenditure as per the final accounts.

With regard to the CUP, issued by the relevant provincial authority, the following procedures must be observed:

• the CUP must always be included in the supporting documents for expenditure (invoices and payment documents) issued after the CUP has been communicated;
• ‘reconciliation’ is permitted by manually adding the CUP code and accompanying it with a declaration issued by the beneficiary in the following cases:

 i) an error in the entry of the CUP code; 

(ii) the CUP code appears on at least one of the supporting documents for the expenditure (invoice or receipt). 

To claim payment of the amounts due, the implementing body must submit a formal request to the relevant provincial authority, using the forms attached to the notice.

At the time of the final account, if the amount to be paid as a balance to the implementing body is less than the amount already paid on the basis of requests for advance payments, the implementing body shall, upon request by the Province, repay the excess amount received, plus simple interest calculated at the statutory rate from the date the payment order for the grant was debited until the repayment is made.

During the reporting phase, offsetting between the main expenditure categories set out in the project is permitted, subject to a maximum limit of 20 per cent of the budgeted eligible expenditure for each individual category. Any offsetting exceeding the specified percentage is considered a project variation and must therefore be requested prior to its implementation.

GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. Documentation submitted for the purpose of receiving the grant must be in Italian; if in a foreign language, it must be translated.

2. In the event of failure to submit a financial report, failure to achieve the project objectives due to serious breaches by the implementing body, or other serious irregularities, the implementing body may not apply for funding provided for under provincial legislation on development cooperation for a period of two years.

3. Provincial funding is provided in accordance with the applicable legislation on state aid.

4. It is compulsory to display the logo of the Autonomous Province of Trento and the phrase ‘Produced in collaboration with and with the support of the Autonomous Province of Trento’ on all structures and materials produced with project funding.

5. All communication materials produced with project funding must be made available to the Autonomous Province of Trento.