Call for applications

THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND NATIONAL HERITAGE

HEREBY OPENS A CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

FOR SMALL-INITIATIVES

financed from the BILATERAL FUND

of the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism

and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2014-2021

 

I. Introduction

The Small-Initiative Programme is a programme aimed at financial support for bilateral activities with a particular focus on supporting small and local activities. The primary aim of the Programme is to establish a starting point for long-term and wider cooperation between institutions from Poland and the Donor-States. Taking into account the ongoing war in Ukraine and the millions of refugees in Europe, the Programme wishes to create opportunities for the inclusion of Ukrainians in the initiatives. This is not a mandatory requirement, but inclusion of Ukrainian refugees from Poland and/or Donor States may result in additional evaluation points.

The total amount allocated for financing the Small-Initiatives is 297 048 EUR. The value of the grant must be between 10 000 EUR and 30 000 EUR.

The deadline for submitting applications within this call is September 30, 2022. The initiative start date should not be earlier than the date of the Minister responsible for culture and national heritage’s decision – it is estimated that the decision will be issued at the turn of November and December 2022. Initiatives may last up to 9 months; however, they must be concluded no later than October 31, 2023.

II. Legal basis

Agreement No. 1/2019/FWD on the Bilateral Fund under the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism for 2014-2021 of September 12, 2019.

III. Objective of the activity

The funds available within the Bilateral Fund for the Programme “Culture” will support bilateral activities for applicants from Poland and Donor States. The aim of the small-initiatives is to support the establishment of partnerships, networks and engagement in capacity-related activities in the field of culture and cultural heritage, expanding knowledge and/or skills of those involved in the initiatives.

In order for the Small-Initiative to take place, it is obligatory for the Polish entity to establish cooperation with the entities(s) from Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and for the Donor State entity to establish cooperation with the entities(s) from Poland.

The main objective of the Small-Initiative is the local and regional development. The subject of the evaluation of local and regional dimension on the project will consist of:

• the area in which the activities take place and intended effect (e.g. remote areas or city districts with low access),
• how planned activities contribute to improve access to arts and culture of local residents (e.g. planned cultural offer, engagement and active involvement or through capacity building of local cultural organizations),
• the extent to which these activities play a central role in the project,
• the composition of the partnership and the contribution of the partners to improved access or strengthened capacity of local cultural actors, e.g. via capacitybuilding or joint activities.

IV. Types of activities

Eligible activities under Small-Initiatives consist of activities increasing the knowledge / specialization of partners on a previously agreed topic. Activities must be selected from the following (more than one action may be selected):

• creating networking platforms that increase access to cultural opportunities,
• professional development (workshops, seminars, conferences, trainings for the applicants),
• working with experts in developing and trying out new work methods, professional strategic plans etc.,
• activities with an element of capacity building for artists / experts participating in the initiative,
• planning community-wide artistic or cultural events,
• others, in line with the objectives of the call

The activities are to focus on sharing the newly acquired knowledge and experience with a partner. Activities can be implemented both online and/or stationary.

V. Horizontal aspects

Each initiative must consist of activities that support at least one of the following aspects.

Cultural entrepreneurship and management of cultural initiatives.

The initiatives should contribute to improve the capability for management of cultural institutions and organisations (for example development in artistic programme, administration, communication etc.) and / or strengthening competences of cultural professionals in the market. The initiatives should result in the enhancement of skills required to put innovative ideas into use in order to develop the organisation or to generate business benefits and to establish a strategy related to entrepreneurship in a given organisation.

Audience development

The initiatives should contribute to increasing the interest, participation and cultural competence of the audience through use of new or innovative methods and tools to reach out to new groups or groups that seldom participate in cultural life. The initiatives should also result in increased knowledge about the needs of audiences and in establishing strategies related to the audience development.

Inclusion of ethnic and national minorities

The initiatives should promote the inclusion and participation of ethnic and national minorities in cultural events. The initiatives should result in artistic events which involve ethnic and national minorities.

Inclusion of Ukrainian refugees in the initiatives will be considered as part of this horizontal aspect.

Ukrainian refugees (artists and other cultural workers) can be included in the initiatives based on agreements made between these and the applicant and/or partners in the initiative. Their involvement in the initiative can be in the form of contribution to artistic productions, lectures, workshops, consultants, etc., on issues related to the initiative.

VI. Eligible applicants for Small-Initiatives

Entities from Poland:

• public cultural institutions,
• state archives,
• art schools and art universities,
• churches or religious associations,
• non-governmental organisations from the field of culture [1] ,
• local government units,
• entities managing the facilities individually entered on the UNESCO list or recognized by the President of the Republic of Poland as Monuments of History,
• public and private commercial entities active in the cultural and creative sectors as defined in Regulation (EU) No 1295/2013 on the Creative Europe Programme [2] & [3] ;

Entities from the Donor States (Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein):

• any entity, public or private, commercial or non-commercial and non-governmental organisations, established as legal person in the Donor States and natural persons who are legal residents in Liechtenstein.

Main activity of the Applicant shall be in the cultural, cultural heritage and creative sectors, including, but not limited to:

• cultural institutions, such as culture houses, museums, theatres, galleries, art halls, libraries, archives, ensembles/orchestras;
• artists representing, among others, such fields of art as visual arts, music, dance, theatre, circus, puppetry, street art, literature and art criticism;
• cultural entrepreneurs, including, inter alia, persons or entities operating in the cultural industry / creative sector and dealing, for instance, with management, festivals, photography, architecture, fashion and design;
• institutions dealing with cultural education and cultural research, including individual experts in those areas;
• schools and youth centres focusing on the cultural dimension;
• municipalities and regions;
• networks of cultural and creative entities as well as creative centres;
• umbrella organisations for artistic/cultural sectors and actors;
• cultural heritage entities, including those active in the field of crafts, archaeology, landscape.

Within this call one applicant may submit a maximum of 2 applications.

 VII. Partnership

All Small-Initiatives must be implemented in partnership between a Polish entity and an entity from a Donor State. There are no limitations in terms of additional partners from Poland and the Donor States.

Participation in the initiative needs to be confirmed at the application stage by the letter of intent (or by a partnership agreement) constituting one of the appendices to the application. The partnership agreement must be submitted before signing the contract concerning the grant.

Partner must meet all the following criteria:

• its participation in the initiative is justified;
• it does not generate any profits on participation in the initiative.

Donor State Partner: any eligible entity as described under point VI. Eligible applicants for Small Initiatives.

Partners from Poland must belong to one the following group of entities:

• public cultural institutions;
• state archives;
• art schools and art universities;
• churches and religious associations;
• non-governmental organisations in the field of culture [4] ;
• local government units;
• entities managing the facilities individually entered on the UNESCO list or recognized by the President of the Republic of Poland as Monuments of History,
• public and private commercial entities active in the cultural and creative sectors as defined in Regulation (EU) No 1295/2013 on the Creative Europe Programme [5] & [6] .

 VIII. Amount available for funding the Small-Initiative

The amount of funds allocated for financing the Small-Initiatives equals: EUR 297 048, i.e. 1 389 055,85 PLN being the arithmetic average of the European Commission's monthly exchange rates [7] from March to August 2022: 1 EURO = 4.6762 PLN.

 IX. Small-Initiatives grant rate

Initiatives will be financed at 100% of eligible costs. No own-contribution required from the applicant or partner/s.

X. Duration of the Small-Initiatives

Small-Initiative can start after the date of the decision of the minister responsible for culture and national heritage on financing. Small-Initiative shall last up to 9 months.

Small-Initiative expenditure eligibility expires on 31 October 2023.

It is expected that the decision related to the financing of the initiative will be announced at the turn of November and December 2022. Therefore the initiatives may be schedule from January 2023 until end of October 2023.

XI. Minimum / maximum grant amount

The minimum grant amount EUR 10,000.

The maximum grant amount EUR 30,000.

XII. Eligible expenditures

Under the Bilateral Fund for the Programme “Culture” eligible are expenses that have been identified by the Initiative Promoter and/or Partner as related to the implementation phase of the initiative. These include as following (costs related to the content of the initiative):

• costs of materials and services related to the organisation of events within the initiative;
• costs of publications, studies, analysis and translations;
• costs of remuneration of artists and experts involved in the initiative implementation, including actual salaries, social insurance, premiums and other expenses making up the remuneration;

• costs of travel, accommodation and board for persons participating in the initiative;
• management costs;
• costs of information and promotion;
• costs of independent auditor [8] .

XIII. Assessment of Application

The assessment is conducted by the Programme Operator. The initiative assessment process consists of two stages and includes: formal evaluation and content-related evaluation. Only those initiatives that meet all formal criteria may be qualified to content -related evaluation.

The formal evaluation shall last up to 30 calendar days (the evaluation period shall be suspended in case if applicant is asked by the Programme Operator to submit supplements/clarifications to the application). Upon the request of the Programme Operator, at the evaluation stage the application submitted by the applicant may be supplemented and/or provided with suitable clarifications. The supplementary procedure is a one-time procedure and shall suspend the period of formal evaluation by 3 business days.

The content-related evaluation stage shall last up to 30 calendar days. The application cannot be supplemented or corrected at the content-related evaluation stage. The content-related evaluation of each application shall be reviewed by leading expert and afterword evaluated by the Experts Committee; the number of points on the ranking list will be determined on the basis of the average of the rating given by each expert working within the Experts Committee.

The final decision shall be taken by the Minister responsible for culture and national heritage, basing on the ranking list.

XIV. Timeline for approval

In order to plan any activities within Small-Initiative, the applicants / partners need to be aware of the following deadlines and milestones.

Evaluation phase – after the call is completed the following deadlines starts:

• 30 calendar days for formal evaluation + 3 business days for supplementary procedure
• 30 calendar days for content-relation evaluation
• decision on the grant – without undue delay

Small-Initiative contract – after the decision is made the initiative contract will be drafted and signed within 2 months.

Advance payment – after the financial contract is signed and the guarantee of the correct performance of the contract is submitted the first tranche of funds will be paid within 20 business days.

Final Report – need to be delivered to the Programme Operator within 15 business days after the date of completion of the Small-Initiative.

Verification of the report – the PO has 40 calendar days to review the document. In case the Report needs amendments, the applicant – according to the PO request – has a 10-day period to submit the correct version. The PO has 10 days to review the final version of the report.

Final payment shall be made within 15 business days after the Final Report approval.

XV. Appeal procedure

There will be no possibility of appealing against the evaluation of applications, neither formal nor content-related. There will be no possibility of appealing against the decision on the grant.

XVI. Payment and reporting system

An advance payment in the amount of up to 90% of the total amount of the grant shall be made within 20 business days after the signing of the Small-Initiative Contract. The balancing payment in the form of a refund in the amount of up to 10% of the total amount of the grant shall be paid within 15 business days upon the approval of the Final Report.

Payments to beneficiaries will be made in PLN and (if needed) exchange into EURO using the monthly accounting rate of the EC exchange, in the month in which the expenditure were booked on the account of the Programme Operator.

The settlement of the Small-Initiative shall be based on the Final Report to be submitted to the Programme Operator within 15 business days after the completion of the initiative.

Financial clearance is based on the actual expenditure of the beneficiary and partner(s), as evidenced by bills and invoices. Furthermore, in case of Donor initiative beneficiaries and partners: reports of an independent auditor [9] confirming that the declared costs were incurred in accordance with the Regulation [10] , the provisions of national law and the accounting practices followed in the Partner’s country constitute sufficient proof of expenditure for costs incurred by the beneficiary [11] .

XVII. Submitting applications

The applications can be submitted until September 30, 2022.

The applications shall be submitted in English. The applicants who will receive a grant will be asked to translate their applications into Polish, before signing the agreement.

In the case of the main applicant being from one of the Donor States we encourage the Polish partner to take the responsibility of translating the application into Polish.

In order to properly submit the application, the Applicant is required to fill in the application form available at https://eogkultura.mkidn.gov.pl/pages/dzialania/fundus https://eogkultura.mkidn.gov.pl/pages/dzialania/fundusz-wspolpracy-dwustronnej/z https://eogkultura.mkidn.gov.pl/pages/dzialania/fundusz-wspolpracy-dwustronnej/zalaczniki-do-ogloszenia-2022.php alaczniki-do-ogloszenia-2022.php .

Applicants using a secure electronic signature:

• submit signed application and all required attachments to the application to the Programme Operator in the electronic format to ePUAP Programme Operator e-mail box: /5ij310qjlu/SkrytkaESP or send the application and all required attachments to the application in electronic format on CD/DVD or pendrive to the address of the Programme Operator (i.e. Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, Department of European Affairs and Funds , ul. Krakowskie Przedmieście 15/17, 00-071 Warsaw);
• all attachments in electronic format must be signed or certified as true copies using a qualified electronic signature by persons authorised to represent the Applicant;
• all attachments in electronic form must be numbered and uniquely named (e.g. Annex 3_Planned budget);
• the condition for examining the application is to submit the application and attachments within the deadline.

Applicants not using a secure electronic signature:

• print out the application form and all required attachments to the application and sign them;
• send to the Programme Operator the application and all required attachments to the application in electronic format on CD/DVD or pendrive to the address of the Programme Operator (i.e. Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, Department of European Affairs and Funds, ul. Krakowskie Przedmieście 15/17, 00-071 Warsaw);
• for applicants from the Donor States please send the signed application and the attachments in a digital version to e-mail address: fwd[at]kultura[dot]gov[dot]pl before deadline: 30 September 2022.

Attachments to the application in electronic form on a CD/DVD or pendrive shall be understood as:

• in case of documents signed by persons authorized to represent the Applicant – scans of these documents in pdf form;
• in case of other documents – scans of documents in pdf form certified as true copies by persons authorized to represent the Applicant.

The envelope with the application form and all attachments on CD/DVD or pendrive must bear the following inscriptions:

• Application for the Bilateral Fund for the Programme “Culture”;
• full name of the Applicant;
• the Applicant’s address;
• Initiative title.

In justified cases, when long-lasting technical problems prevents the submission of applications, the Programme Operator will publish the instructions concerning further actions on the Operator’s website ( https://eogkultura.mkidn.gov.pl ).

The applications submitted after deadline specified in the Call for Applications or in a manner other than identified above (e.g. by fax or e-mail) are not subject to the evaluation procedure and shall be rejected. Only applicants from Donor States can submit the application via email. 

The Applicant may withdraw the submitted application at any time during the Call. They shall communicate their decision, in writing, to the Operator who shall immediately confirm, in writing, the withdrawal of the application.

Correspondence between the Program Operator and the Applicant may be conducted in electronic form, i.e. via the ePUAP platform, if the Applicant has an electronic locker on this platform and indicates its address in the application form, or via e-mail, in other cases. It is obligatory for all Applicants to have an e-mail address and indicate it in the application.

XVIII. Attachments to the application

In order for the application to meet the formal requirements, it must be accompanied by the following appendices.

In case of Applicant from Poland:

1. Documents verifying the eligibility of the Applicant and the Polish partner(s) (e.g. a current excerpt from the relevant register, e.g. the National Court Register, the register of cultural institutions, the register kept by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Administration in case of churches and religious associations, a certificate confirming that the applicant entity has church legal personality). If these documents are possible to be determined by the Programme Operator on the basis of public registers held by other public entities it is not necessary to enclose them but provide information (e.g. in the application or in the form of an additional attachment) where these documents are available (e.g. link).
2. Documents verifying the eligibility of Donor State partner(s):

• for Norwegian entities Brønnøysundregisteret [12] & [13] , certificate of registration in English,
• for Icelandic entities Fyrirtækjaskrá [14] & [15] , certificate of registration in English,
• for Liechtenstein entities Handelsregister [16] & [17] , certificate of registration in English.

3. Document confirming the right to represent the Applicant (certificate of appointment, establishment, etc.) and power of attorney (where applicable).
4. Letter(s) of intent or Partnership Agreements with all partners.
5. Detailed information on state aid, operating expenses culture [18] .

• In case of positive results shall be attached: Form containing information required when applying for support other than support concerning agriculture or fisheries, de minimis aid or de minimis aid concerning agriculture or fisheries (mandatory in case of State Aid initiatives).
• Calculation of the maximum amount of aid in a project for operating aid and cultural activities.

Calculation of the maximum amount of aid in an initiative for operating aid and cultural activities;

Non-mandatory attachments that may be of importance for the content-related evaluation of the application:

6. Written declarations of artists/experts/specialists confirming their participation in the initiative – in English.

In case of Applicant from Donor-States:

7. Documents verifying the eligibility of the Applicant [19]

• for Norwegian entities Brønnøysundregisteret, certificate of registration in English,
• for Icelandic entities Fyrirtækjaskrá, certificate of registration in English,
• for Liechtenstein entities Handelsregister – certificate of registration in English.

8. Documents verifying the eligibility of the Polish partner (e.g. a current excerpt from the relevant register: e.g. the National Court Register, the register of cultural institutions, the register kept by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Administration in case of churches and religious associations, a certificate confirming that the applicant entity has church legal personality). If these documents are possible to be determined by the Programme Operator by electronic access, it is not necessary to enclose them, but provide information (e.g. in the application or in the form of an additional attachment) where these documents are available (e.g. link).
9. Letter(s) of intent or Partnership Agreements with all partners.
10. Detailed information on state aid, operating expenses culture [20] .

• In case of de minimis rule for entities from Norway this applies only in cases when the entity has received financial support [21] of a sum higher than EUR 200 000 accumulated over a period of three years from Polish authorities [22] .
• In case of positive results shall be attached: Form containing information required when applying for support other than support concerning agriculture or fisheries, de minimis aid or de minimis aid concerning agriculture or fisheries (mandatory in case of State Aid initiatives).
• Calculation of the maximum amount of aid in a project for operating aid and cultural activities.

Non-mandatory attachments that may be of importance for the content-related evaluation of the application:

11. Written declarations of artists/experts/specialists confirming their participation in the initiative – in English.

XIX. Call-related documentation

1. Application form.
2. The formal evaluation sheet.
3. The content-related evaluation sheet.
4. Template of the Letter of Intent.
5. Template of the Partnership Agreement.
6. State aid documentation.
7. Final report.

XX. Contact details

POLAND – Programme Operator in charge of the call for applications, evaluation and selection of initiatives

The Ministry of Culture and National Heritage

Department for European Affairs and Funds

ul. Krakowskie Przedmieście 15/17

00-071 Warszawa, Poland

Tel. + 48 22 69 25 562

Fax. +48 22 69 25 440

e-mail: fwd[at]kultura[dot]gov[dot]pl

https://eogkultura.mkidn.gov.pl/

Questions concerning the call for applications may be sent to the aforementioned e-mail address of: fwd[at]kultura[dot]gov[dot]pl . General explanations are published on the Operator’s website. Responses to questions concerning the initiative selection procedure and the submission of the application are provided on a case-by-case basis, without undue delay. Responses constituting an explanation of the procedures or their interpretations are also published on the aforementioned website containing information about this call for applications. Responses that contain solely references to or quotes of the provisions of applicable documents are not subject to publication. Responses to questions related to the initiative selection procedure shall be binding until they are modified. If the modification of a response does not result from generally applicable law, those Applicants who have complied with a given answer and have submitted their applications based on the guidelines contained therein, may not bear any negative consequences resulting from the modification of the response.

NORWAY – Programme Partners who may assist in seeking partners in Norway:

Art Council Norway/Kulturrådet

Tel.: +47 21045895
E-mail: eos-kultursamarbeid[at]kulturradet[dot]no
Website: www.kulturradet.no

Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage /Riksantikvaren

Tel. +47 22940400

Website: eeagrants[at]ra[dot]no

ICELAND – Programme Partner who may assist in seeking partners in Iceland:

Ragnhildur Zoëga

Senior Adviser
The Icelandic Centre for Research
Borgatúrn 30, IS-150 Reykjavík
Iceland
Tel. +354 515 5838
E-mail: ragnhildur[dot]zoega[at]rannis[dot]is

Website: https://en.rannis.is

LIECHTENSTEIN – Programme Partner who may assist in seeking partners in the Principality of Liechtenstein:

Sonja Näscher

EEA Grants Coordinator in the Field of Culture
Amt für Kultur / Office of Cultural Affairs
Kulturschaffen / Cultural Activities
Peter-Kaiser-Platz 2
Postfach 684
9490 Vaduz
Liechtenstein

Tel. +423 236 63 52
Fax. +423 236 63 59
e-mail: sonja[dot]naescher[at]llv[dot]li

Website: www.eeagrants.li

Reporting irregularities:

https://www.eog.gov.pl/strony/zapoznaj-sie-z-funduszami/zasady-zglaszania-nieprawidlowosci/