Deadline: 5 April 2019

The European Union (EU) is currently accepting proposals for its Thematic Program entitled “Organizations of Civil Society and Local Authorities and Support for the development work of Civil Society Organizations in Cuba”.

The overall objective of this call for proposals is to contribute to the strengthening of the role of organizations of civil society in Cuba as actors in governance and sustainable development and inclusive of the country.

The specific objective of this call for proposals is to strengthen the work of the organizations of civil society in Cuba in the promotion of culture as a vector of sustainable development and for the social inclusion and dialogue between communities.

This call also prioritizes the following topics as important challenges for the Social and sustainable inclusion:

• environment and climate change;
• values ​​for citizenship;
• equity and equality of opportunities due to gender; by age (with emphasis on boys, girls, teenagers and seniors); for sexual orientation and gender identity; and for people with a disability

The priorities of this call are:

• Support for innovative actions in the cultural field that promote social inclusion in the country;
• Support for innovative actions in the cultural field that contribute to economic development inclusive in the country, through creative and cultural industries and ventures;
• Support for innovative actions in the cultural field that contribute to mutual knowledge, dialogue and consensus among social actors on challenges in inclusive and sustainable development.

At the implementation level, it will be positively valued that the proposals address the following aspects:

• Articulation and dialogue between actors of the sector for the promotion of culture as a vector of economic dynamism and social inclusion (exchanges of relevant experiences, partnerships multi-actor in the country or multi-country, especially in the Latin American and Caribbean region, etc.);
• Articulation and dialogue between civil society organizations and Local Authorities, depending on of the specific roles of each of the actors, in the promotion of culture as a vector of local development, within the framework of municipal and provincial development plans;
• Strengthening the technical capacities of CSOs in Cuba for economic sustainability and financing in the field of culture.

Funding Information

The grants requested within this Call for Proposals will be between the following minimum and maximum amounts:

• minimum amount: EUR 300,000
• maximum amount: EUR 650,000

Eligibility Criteria

• Principal applicant
  • In order to qualify for a grant, the principal applicant must:
    • be a legal person;
    • not have a profit motive;
    • be a civil society organization or an association of society organizations civil;
    •  be established in Cuba or in one of the Member States of the European Union or of the Space European Economic;
    • For British applicants: keep in mind that the criteria for eligibility during the entire duration of the grant. Unless the eligibility rules specific to each sector have the opposite, if the United Kingdomwithdraws from the EU during the period of the subsidy without having reached an agreement with the Union that ensure, in particular, that British applicants are still eligible, will stop receiving EU funding (as long as it continues, if it is possible to participate), or applicants will be asked to abandon the project under the article [insert the reference to the article that allows the completion of the grant agreement (change in the legal status of the beneficiary)] of the grant agreement.
    • be directly responsible, with its co-applicants and other affiliated entities, for the preparation and management of the action and not simply to act as an intermediary;
    • have, at least, a Cuban co-applicant, in the event that the main applicant is established in one of the Member States of the European Union or the Economic Space European.
• Co-applicants
  • The co-applicants will participate in the design and execution of the action, and the costs incurred will be eligible in the same way as those made by the main applicant.
  • The co-applicants must meet the eligibility criteria applicable to the main applicant.
  • In addition to the categories mentioned above, the following will also be eligible: Local Authorities or associations of local authorities, established in Cuba or in one of the States Members of the European Union or the European Economic Area or in the Latin American Region and the Caribbean.
  • In the case of awarding the grant contract, the co-applicant (s) (if applicable) will become beneficiary (s) of the action (together with the coordinator).
• Affiliated entities
  • The principal applicant and his / her co-applicant (s) may act with affiliated entities.
  • Only the following entities may be considered entities affiliated with the principal applicant or the Co-applicant (s):
    • Only entities that have a structural link with the applicants (ie, the applicant principal or a co-applicant), especially if the link is legal or capital.
    • This structural link mainly covers two aspects:
      • Control, as defined in Directive 2013/34 / EU on annual financial statements, Consolidated financial statements and other related reports of certain types of companies:
        • Thus, the entities affiliated with an applicant can be:
          • Entities controlled directly or indirectly by the applicant (subsidiary companies or affiliates of first level). They can also be entities controlled by a controlled entity in turn by the applicant (second level subsidiaries), and the same applies to the following levels of control.
          • Entities that directly or indirectly control the applicants (parent companies). Likewise, they may be entities that control an entity that in turn controls the applicant.
          • Entities under the same direct or indirect control as the applicant (associated companies).
      • Accession, that is, the applicant is legally defined as, for example, network, federation or association in which the proposed affiliated entities also participate, or participate in the same entity (for example, network, federation or association) than the proposed affiliated entities.

How to Apply

In order to apply for the grants, applicants have to register themselves in PADOR, an on-line database via given website.

For more information, please visit https://bit.ly/2UU9zS2 and download the guidelines.