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Common trends found in response to EU funding consultation
9 February 2010
Euclid Network (EN) is analysing all contributions that have been submitted to the European Commission's public consultation on review of the financial regulation on behalf DG Education and Culture civil society working group. A complete presentation concerning our study will be available soon.
243 participants responded to the public consultation, including private citizens, organizations and public authorities.
The main reforms suggested are:
- More information about upcoming calls
Suggestions include a dedicated website, a calendar collecting the calls for the incoming year and e-alerts when new calls are open - More flexibility for co-financing arrangements
Lowering the co-financing threshold is generally welcomed. Some organizations advocate for 100% grant, since they experienced several difficulties in finding extra funds. In-kind contribution should be eligible as costs - Higher threshold for indirect costs
The 7% indirect costs currently applicable for various ‘overhead' costs is extremely low and should be increased to a more realistic 15 - 20% - Review of the no-profit principle
For some organizations, it is fundamental and should be strictly adhered to; for others, the rule requires flexibility - More flexible procedures for pre-financing payments
All contributions call for the simplification of EU funding procedures.
In particular, they ask for the two-stage application approach (first the concept note and then the complete call) and a "label system" for organisations who have already completed EU projects so do not require to re-submit legal and financial documents.
This is part of EN'c campaign for the reform of European funding. EN submitted a response to the public consultation following an consultation with its own members.
These findings were then included in the response of the Civil Society Working Group on EU Financial Support, which EN chairs.
If you wish to know more, please contact Luisa De Amicis at luisa.deamicis@euclidnetwork.eu