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APPROVED

By the Minister of Interior of the Republic of Lithuania on 2015 January 23rd

Order No 1V-40

GUIDELINES TO APPLICANTS FOR OBTAINING ASSISTANCE UNDER THE 2009-2014 NORWEGIAN FINANCIAL MECHANISM PROGRAMME LT10 “CAPACITY-BUILDING AND INSTITUTIONAL COOPERATION BETWEEN BENEFICIARY STATE AND NORWEGIAN PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS, LOCAL AND REGIONAL AUTHORITIES”

CHAPTER I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. The Guidelines to Applicants for Obtaining Assistance under the 2009-2014 Norwegian Financial Mechanism Programme LT10 “Capacity-Building and Institutional Cooperation between Beneficiary State and Norwegian Public Institutions, Local and Regional Authorities” (hereinafter referred to as “the Guidelines”) establish the requirements and terms and conditions for the applicants intending to submit project applications (hereinafter referred to as “the Applications”) and the procedures of submission, evaluation and selection of the Applications, decision-making in assistance granting, submission and handling of claims, implementation of the projects, supervision over implementation of the projects, and reporting on the received assistance co-financed by the Republic of Lithuania and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism.

2. The guidelines was adopted in accordance with:

2.1. The Memorandum of Understanding on the Implementation of the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2009-2014 by and between the Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Lithuania dated 5 April 2011 (hereinafter referred to as “the Memorandum”);

2.2. The Regulation on the Implementation of the Norwegian Financial Mechanism for 2009– 2014 (hereinafter referred to as “the Regulation”) approved by the Norway Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 11 February 2011);

2.3. Resolution of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania No 57 of 18 January 2012 m.

“Concerning Administration of the European Economic Area and Norwegian Financial Mechanisms for 2009–2014 in Lithuania”

2.4.The Rules for the Financing and Implementation of Programmes and Projects under the European Economic Area and Norwegian Financial Mechanisms 2009-2014 (hereinafter referred to as “the Administration Rules”),

2.5. The Description of Functions of the Institutions Responsible for the Management and Control the European Economic Area and Norwegian Financial Mechanisms for 2009–2014 in Lithuania (hereinafter referred to as “the Description of Functions”);

2.6. The Programme Agreement for the Programme No LT10 “Capacity-Building and Institutional Cooperation between Beneficiary State and Norwegian Public Institutions, Local and Regional Authorities” under the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2009-2014 dated 28 August 2013 (hereinafter referred to as “the Programme Agreement”);

2.7. The Agreement on the Implementation of Programme Agreement for the Programme “Capacity-Building and Institutional Cooperation between Beneficiary State and Norwegian Public Institutions, Local and Regional Authorities” No LT10 dated 9 October 2013 (hereinafter referred to as “the Programme Implementation Agreement”);

2.8. the Procedure for the Conduct and Supervision of Procurement by Legal Persons That Are Not Contracting Authorities under the Republic of Lithuania Law on Public Procurement in the Implementation of Projects under the European Economic Area and Norwegian Financial Mechanisms 2009-2014 approved by Order of the Minister of Finance of the Republic of Lithuania No 1K-135 of 11 April 2012 (hereinafter referred to as “the Procedure”).

3. The following terms shall have the meanings assigned to them here:

3.1. Application – a document prepared by the applicant, according to the form laid down in the Administration rules and the Guidelines, in order to receive a project grant.

3.2.Project grant –a grant awarded by the Programme Operator to the Project Promoter for financing project implementation by the 2009-2014 Norwegian financial mechanism and co-financing.

3.3.Applicant: a legal entity located and registered in the Republic of Lithuania who files the Application for the Programme “Capacity-Building and Institutional Cooperation between Beneficiary State and Norwegian Public Institutions, Local and Regional Authorities” (hereinafter referred to as „the Programme“)

3.4.Project partner: a legal entity registered in the Republic of Lithuania or in the Kingdom of Norway, which takes an active part in the preparation of the project application and contributes to the implementation of the project under a joint activity (partnership) agreement.

3.5.Project promoter: a legal entitylocated and registered in Lithuania which has received assistance under the Programme and which is responsible for the implementation of the Project under the agreement concluded with the Central Project Management Agency (CPMA) and the Ministry of Interior.

3.6. Programme operator – a public or private entity, commercial or non-commercial, as well as non-governmental organisations, having the responsibility for preparing and implementing a programme.

3.7. Project contract: a project agreement concluded between the Programme Operator and the Project Promoter.

4. Other terms used in these Guidelines have the meanings as defined in the Regulation, the Description of Functions and the Administration Rules. All the documents related to the implementation of the 2009-2014 Norwegian Financing Mechanism and referred to in these Guidelines have been published in the website of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Lithuania (

CHAPTER II

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME AND the AREAS OF ASSISTANCE

5. The Programme corresponds to the programme area „Capacity-building and Institutional Cooperation between Beneficiary State and Norwegian Public Institutions, Local and Regional Authorities” as defined in the Memorandum.

6. The main objective of the Programme is to complement regional policy goals by transferring of know-how and good practice experience of Norwegian institutions to Lithuanian counterparts and by strengthening capacity building as well as co-operation among public institutions and local and regional partners in Lithuania and Norway.

7. The total budget of the Programme is 9 411 765,00 EUR, where 8 000 000,00 EUR is financed by the Norwegian financial mechanism and 1 411 765,00 EUR is co-financed by the Lithuanian State Budget.

8. The budget for the Project implementation is 8 329 410,00 EUR, where7 079 998,27 EURis covered by Norwegian financial mechanism grant and 1 249 411,73 EURis co-financed by the Lithuanian State Budget.

9. According to the Guidelines the Project grant will be awarded by one of the following schemes:

9.1. Small grant scheme – 1 882 352 EUR(a scheme designed for the small scale projects), which accounts for not more than 20% of all eligible expenses of the Programme;

9.2. Large projects – 4 287 358 EUR(a scheme designed for the large scale projects).

10. The monitoring indicators of the Programme are the following:

10.1. result indicator: satisfaction with the quality of different capacity-building events (target 75%).

10.2. Output indicator:

10.2.1. the percentage of successfully implemented projects;

10.2.2. number of participants in various training activities.

11. Expected outcomes of the Programme are:

11.1. Enhanced institutional capacity in local and regional authorities in the Republic of Lithuania;

11.2. Enhanced human resources development in public institutions, local and regional authorities in the Republic of Lithuania.

CHAPTER III

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS, PROJECT PARTNERS AND REQUIREMENTS FOR A PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT

12. The following entities shall be eligible applicants:

12.1. Localauthorities;

12.2. Institutions of regional authorities,if they have territorial units providing public services at regional or local level and institutions of local authorities(any public institution, which provides services for the community and islocated and registered in a particular municipality or region, including, but not limited to, schools, hospitals, youth organizations, day care centers, community centers, sports organizations, museums culture houses, communal services providing enterprises, fire brigades, etc.);

12.3. Non-profit public institutions, which provide educational services according to their statuses;

12.4. Associations of local and regional authorities.

13. Applicant is directly responsible for project preparation and implementation, and cannot act as an intermediary.

14. Other requirements for the applicants are set in the Annex 3 to the Guidelines, paragraphs 1.1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3.1-1.1.3.9, 2.2 and 2.3.

15. According to the Programme Agreement Annex 2, paragraph 3.3 applicant is obliged to implement the project with at least one partner, which is a legal entity registered in the Kingdom of Norway.

16.Applicant also has a possibility to implement the project with a Project partner(s), which are legal entities registered in the Republic of Lithuania.

17. The Project partner(s) is a subject to the same eligibility requirements as the applicant.The requirements for Project partner(s) are set in the Annex 3 to the Guidelines, paragraphs 1.1.1.1, 1.1.1.3, 1.1.2, 1.1.3.1–1.1.3.9.

18. It is forbidden to include Project partner for the goal of avoiding public procurements.

19.Participation of the partner(s) in the project shall be justified in the project application. The applicant shall select as partners only such legal entities or other organizations which will be able to make an actual contribution to the project activities and/or actively use the results or outputs of the project.

20. Project partner(s) participates in the project implementation and enjoys the results or outputs of the project, however, the responsibility for successful project implementation, coordination and usage of funds is held by the Project promoter. If a Project is awarded a grant, the Project agreement is being signed with the applicant, who from that moment becomes a Project promoter. Project grant is received by the Project promoter, who then settles accounts with the Project partner(s).

21. Project partners can participate in more than one project. The applicant can submit only one application for the grant under this Programme. If, however, applicant files more than one application, only the first application (based on the date and time of the submission) will be evaluated, while the latter ones will be rejected and returned to the applicant.

22. The number of the Project partners is not restricted, however, the applicant ought to critically assess the necessity of the Project partner’s participation in the project and challenges in the project management rising from it.

23. Together with the application, the applicant and the Project partner(s) have to submit a copy of a valid joint-activity (partnership) agreement (in English).

24. Joint-activity (partnership) agreement(s) should be signed by the applicant and the Project partner(s).

25. The following conditions shall be discussed in the joint-activity (partnership) agreement:

25.1. persons representing the applicant and the partner(s);

25.2. purpose of agreement and allocation of tasks between the applicant and the partner(s);

25.3. detailed budget, eligibility of expenditure incurred by the project partner(s), procedures for settlements between the applicant and the partner(s), allocation and payment of eligible and ineligible expenditure between the applicant and the partner(s), provisions on indirect costs and their method of calculation;

25.4. currency exchange rules;

25.5. the obligations and rights of the parties with regard to the project (financial and objective contribution of each party with regard to the project, rights to the mutually created or acquired assets, including intellectual property, results of the project and other) and accountability of the parties, as well as, commitment to follow the general rules of good partnership practice: the applicant must ensure that all partners have read the application and are familiarized with their rights and obligations in project implementation; during the time of implementation the Project promoter must consult the partner(s) on regular basis and constantly inform it (them) about the course of implementation; Project promoter must forward copies of all reports provided by CPMA to all partners;

25.6.provision, that the Project partner(s) must ensure the conditions (for the institutions, possessing the right to do so while implementing the Programme) to monitor and audit the documents related to the project;

25.7.provision, that during the project implementation, according to the rules set in the Administration Rules, Project partner(s) from the Kingdom of Norway, must provide Project promoter with the audit conclusion (in Lithuanian or English) about the eligibility of the expenditure incurred by the partner.

25.8. provisions concerning settlement of disputes;

26. Procedure for amendments to joint-activity (partnership) agreement:

26.1.when the joint-activity (partnership) agreement is being amended prior to the completion of administrative compliance, eligibility, benefits and quality evaluation phase, amendments shall be executed as amendments to the joint-activity (partnership) agreement, upon coordination with the CPMA;

26.2. when the joint-activity (partnership) agreement is being amended after the effective date of the Project contract, an amendment to the joint-activity (partnership) agreement is possible, provided that the amendment would not have affected the decision on the financing of the project and is not in contravention of these Guidelines. The amendments shall be executed as amendments to the joint-activity (partnership) agreement, upon coordination with the CPMA. The Project promoter may consult the CPMA on matters related to amendments;

26.3. any amendment to the joint-activity (partnership) agreement affecting the rights and obligation of the partner(s) shall be agreed with the partner(s) in writing prior to approaching the CPMA.

CHAPTER IV

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PROJECT

27. The eligibility of the project is based on its goals, activities, duration and location of the implementation:

27.1. project must comply with the Objectives of the 2009-2014 Norwegian Financial mechanism and of the Programme;

27.2. the main project activities (or the largest part of it) is physically conducted within the territory of the Republic of Lithuania or the Kingdom of Norway;

27.3. the results or (and) benefits of activities taking place in the Kingdom of Norway, should be used in the activities of Project promoter and Project partner(s) in the Republic of Lithuania;

27.4projectis related to at least one of the priority activities:

27.4.1. transfer of knowledge and perfecting skills in various fields;

27.4.2. improving the level of administrative and public capacities of local and regional institutions,

27.4.3. promoting life-long learning;

27.4.4. promoting anti-corruption measures on local and regional level.

28. The project should meet the following requirements:

28.1. match the main purpose of the Programme (as defined in the paragraph 6 of the Guidelines);

28.2. to be continuous from the financial and institutional point of view – the applicant and (or) project partner(s) must ensure the continuity of the project results (for which achievement the Project grant was awarded) and continuous usage and maintenance for at least five years after the project has ended;

28.3. to accord with the sustainable development (effective and economical use of resources, while ensuring its preservation for the future generations; compatibility of social, economic and environmental factors), good governance (accountability, transparency, involvement) and gender equality (equal opportunities for exercising the same rights, enjoying the availability of the same products and services, etc. despite the difference in social (or other) status of the group) principles; the results or impact of the project cannot conflict or have a negative effect on any of these principles.

29. The success of the project implementation will be evaluated by using monitoring indicators, listed in the pargapah10 of the Guidelines. The methodology for the calculation of monitoring indicators is provided in the Annex 6. The applicant has to select and monitor these indicators:

29.1.satisfaction with the quality of different capacity-building events (result indicator). By choosing this indicator, the applicant commits itself to carry out surveys during each event of the project. These surveys should capture how many participants evaluated the quality of the event as “good” or “very good”, thus reflectingon the participants’ satisfaction with the quality of these events.The form of the survey is set by the applicant.

29.2. number of participants in various training activities (output indicator). By choosing this indicator, the applicant commits itself to monitor how many participants are present in each of the project training activities.

30. Output indicator – “the percentage of successfully implemented projects” is calculated by the CPMA according to the Annex 6 to the Guidelines.

31. The Project promoter and Project partner(s) should ensure that Project grant does not overlap with any other type of financing. The project or project activities cannot be financed (in the past or present) or apply for grants from a different Programmes, financed by the State Budget, other funds or financial mechanisms (European Union Structural Funds, Swiss Confederation, etc.), as well as, other Norwegian or the Programmes of European Economic Area financial mechanisms, if for this reason the eligible expenditure of the project (or part of the project) is being financed more than once.

32. The amount for the requested Project grant (disregarding own contribution of the Project promoter and Project partner(s)) should be selected within one of this respective range:

32.1.small grant scheme: from 10 000 EUR to 150 000 EUR;

32.2.large projects: from 170 000 EUR to 1 000 000 EUR.

33. The amount for the requested Project grant should be listed in the Annex 9 of the Administration Rules (Application part A), part 10. 1.

34. The Project grant can cover up to 85 % of all eligible project expenditures. When setting the size of the Project grant, the valid rules of the state assistance should be kept andany type of public financial assistance awarded to the project, Project promoter or Project partner should be taken into consideration. The rest of the eligible project expenditure (at least 15% of all eligible expenditures of the project) should be covered by the Project promoter or (and) Project partner(s). Project promoter and (or) Project partner(s) must ensure that the part of the eligible expenditure not covered by the Project grant, as well as, ineligible expenditure will be financed from their own funds.

35. The requirement to cover an own contribution of 15% of the project budget (as stipulated in the paragraph 36 of the Guidelines) is directed to the Project promoter. After that an optional division of the own project contribution becomes a subject to negotiation between Project promoter and the partner; their possible share of the total own contribution should be settled in the Partnership Agreement.

36. The expected duration of all projects is from the effective date of the Project contract until the date stated in the Project contract, but not later than April 30, 2016.

CHAPTER V

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PROJECT ELIGIBLE AND INELIGIBLE EXPENDITURES

37. Eligible project expenditure to be financed is the expenditure which meets the requirements laid down in the Programme Agreement, the Regulation, the Administration Rules, and the Guidelines. The period of the eligibility of expenditure for the funding during the implementation of the project is the period from the effective date of the project contract until the date stated in the project contract but not later than 30 April, 2016. All the activities of the projects to which funding is allocated, must be completed, all the documents supporting project expenditure must be issued and all the expenditure must be covered during the period of the eligibility of expenditure.