Deadline: 5 June 2019

This Open Call for the Award of the Small Grants is announced under the WeB4YES project (Western Balkan Civil Society Organizations for Youth Employment Support) which has been supported under the framework of the Civil Society Facility and Media Programme 2016 – 2017 – Consolidating Regional Thematic Networks of Civil Society Organizations by the European Commission.

The objective of this call is to improve the effectiveness of the civil society organizations in Western Balkans in undertaking initiatives for improving youth employment and entrepreneurship policies at the local level.

The Call aims to further build capacities of the civil society organizations from the Western Balkans and strengthen their involvement in public decision-making and also to design and implement the innovative initiatives related to youth employment, employability and entrepreneurship. Furthermore, Call aims to stimulate CSOs from WB region to mutually cooperate in the design and implementation of the innovative approaches aimed at youth employability and employment.

Expected Results

The results that are expected include:

• Raised number of CSOs involved in the design and implementation of local employment and entrepreneurship policy.
• Raised number of young people who have benefited from innovative employment services thus gaining employment or significant increase in their perspectives for further employment.
• Innovative approaches in fostering youth employment and entrepreneurship applied and tested in practice based on specific local needs, with a potential for scaling up and feeding further policy processes.
• Achieved measurable improvement of local youth employment policy in regions (adopted laws and bylaws amendments, inclusion of young people in public working bodies, adopted mechanisms for dialogue with CSOs and youth …).
• Raised public awareness on the need for cross-sectorial dialogue and cooperation in implementing youth employment and entrepreneurship policies.

Budget Information

• The budget ceiling for each individual project will be up to 10.000,00 € (The maximum amount awarded by BOS is up to 9.000,00 EUR).
• The overall indicative amount made available from Grant Support Scheme of the Action is up to 150.000,00 €.

Duration

The duration of supported projects within this Grant Support Scheme is from 6 to up to 12 months Maximum.

Eligibility Criteria

In order to be eligible for support from Grant Support Schemes, the applicant and the co-applicant(s) must:

• Be legal person.
• Be non-profit making.
• Be civil society organization or non-profit making enterprises.
• Have a proven track record or experience in working on youth or employment/entrepreneurship field.
• Be established and operate in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo or Serbia.
• Be directly responsible for preparation and management of the project.
• Have an annual turnover of less or equal to EUR 50,000.00.
• Has never been a recipient of an EU grant from the IPA programme or has limited experience in participating under the EU grant support framework.
• Have the management capacity, professional competences and qualification required to successfully complete the proposed action.

Eligible Activities

Within the Grant Support Scheme the following activities may be supported:

• Policy advocacy campaigns or policy monitoring at the local level in line with the Regional Policy Briefs and National Advocacy Campaign Goals defined within the WeB4YES Project.
• Local advocacy initiatives for improvement of policy and legislative framework in the field of youth employment; – Supporting innovative youth entrepreneurial initiatives.
• Innovative services and programmes for young unemployed people.
• Local cross-sectorial cooperation projects aimed at increasing perspectives for youth employment.
• Actions improving the socio-economic situation of youth coming from the remote and rural areas.
• Good quality traineeship or internships which involve young people and potentially lead to employment.
• Employability boosting trainings for young unemployed people.
• Career guidance and counselling support to young unemployed people.
• Innovative approaches which will be used to feed into local, national and regional policies.

Selection Criteria

• The lead applicant involves at least one co-applicant from national or another WB country or territory.
• Both the lead applicant and the co-applicants meet the eligibility criteria.
• Proposed projects must target local needs and be in alignment with the national and local strategic framework on youth employment and entrepreneurship.
• Partnership on national or WB level must be based on the real needs of project implementation.
• The applicant shows determination to work together with relevant public authorities in the preparation and implementation stage.
• The applicant has a clear vision of the change it wants to pursuit with its initiative and contributes to the youth employment.
• The applicant has community support to launch innovative initiative through the proposed project.

How to Apply

Applicants can apply online via given website.

For more information, please visit this link.