Public Call: Rural Support Grant Program in BiH (Financial support worth 6.5 million KM)
Deadline: 21-Nov-22
The European Union (EU) is inviting a Public call for a measure to support investments in the diversification of economic and social activities in rural areas.
Preference will be given to applications that include small farms that are registered in the register of agricultural farms, and whose income does not exceed 50,000 KM, that is, that are not registered in the unified register of indirect tax payers (VAT register). Through this public call, users will not be required to register a trade/entrepreneurial activity or company.
Also, through this public call, initiatives and activities will be supported that will contribute to better employability of young people in rural areas (e.g. business incubators, development hubs, etc.), improvement of innovation and competitiveness of rural enterprises (e.g. business innovation centers, business incubators, hubs, etc.). Additionally, activities that contribute to the employability and position of women in society will be supported through the creation of infrastructure support (e.g. kindergartens, support services for the elderly, etc.), and for activities that generally contribute to the improvement of the quality of life in the countryside, including young people (e.g. youth clubs, sports, educational and cultural-artistic facilities, etc.).
The project “EU support for the competitiveness of agriculture and rural development in Bosnia and Herzegovina – EU4AGRI” (the Project) is a four-year project (2020 – 2024) that aims to modernize the agricultural and food sector and improve the rural economy by increasing the competitiveness of agricultural production, jobs and services. The project is implemented by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and the Czech Development Agency (CzDA). The total value of the project is 20.25 million euros and it is financed by the European Union with 20 million euros, and UNDP and CzDA with 250,000 euros. Support to the agricultural and food sector will be provided through public calls for support in three areas:
Investment in primary production and processing capacities in order to strengthen market efficiency;
Strengthening advisory services for improving knowledge and developing skills.
Strengthening and diversification of the rural economy.
Objectives
Objectives of the public call for expressions of interest
Through this public call, the EU4AGRI project intends to support the concepts of project proposals whose goals promote:
Increasing the income of the population from rural areas through the diversification of income from economic and social activities on the farm and/or outside it;
Preservation of existing and creation of new jobs through development and diversification of rural activities on the farm and/or outside it and preservation of existing jobs;
Improvement of existing and development of new services that improve quality of life of rural residents;
Contribution to sustainable development through the introduction and promotion of good practices of food safety, environmental preservation and protection of workers, as well as other population from the consequences of COVID-19 and other public health negative negative.
Funding Information
The total amount of funds for this support measure is 6.5 million KM.
Within LOT 1, the amount of financial support that can be requested through the project proposal submitted by the LGU can be from a minimum of 50,000 KM to a maximum of 200,000 KM excluding VAT in total for all
Within LOT 2, the amount of financial support that can be requested through the project proposal submitted by the LGU can be from a minimum of 50,000 KM to a maximum of 200,000 KM excluding VAT, in total.
Expected Results
The rules of the public call define the steps of its realization, acceptable applicants, end users of grants, activities and costs, as well as the basic criteria for who to apply for.
The steps to implement the support measure of this public call are:
Submission of the project proposal concept,
Assessment and selection of project proposal concepts,
Technical assistance to selected project proposal concepts in the preparation of the final project proposal,
Assessment and ranking of final project proposals,
Contracting and realization of final project proposals in accordance with available financial resources.
The public call consists of two separate lots:
LOT 1 – Diversification of economic activities on farms (support to agricultural producers for the introduction of new sources of income on farms) and
LOT 2 – Diversification of economic/social activities in rural areas (support for improving the quality of life and creating a social and business environment that contributes to rural areas).
Eligibility Criteria
Eligible Applicants
Eligible applicants are only local self-government units (LGUs), however LGUs cannot be beneficiaries of financial support through this public call.
LGUs can submit their project proposal concept to one or simultaneously to both lots of this public call. LGUs can submit only one project proposal to this public call.
An acceptable application submitted by LGUs, which refers to support for the diversification of economic activities on farms (LOT 1), MUST refer to financial support for the minimum petrni.
An acceptable application submitted by LGUs, which refers to support for the diversification of economic/social activities in rural areas (LOT 2) MUST refer to financial.
LGUs are obliged to select acceptable direct users in a fair and transparent manner, which they will select and implement themselves.
Applicants (JLS) are responsible for the implementation of the project, including financial obligations.
Eligible direct beneficiaries of support for the diversification of economic/social activities in rural areas (LOT 2)
The direct beneficiaries of technical assistance and grants supporting the EU4AGRI project for the diversification of economic/social activities in rural areas (LOT 2) will be: slegojie slego
associations ,
private institutions or private companies
Which are registered no later than 01.01.2021. year and provide or plan to provide economic/social services in rural areas, this includes any of the following activities and services:
Activities that contribute to better employability of young people in rural areas (e.g. business incubators, development hubs, etc.),
Activities that will contribute to the innovation and competitiveness of rural enterprises (e.g. business innovation centers, business incubators, hubs, etc.),
Activities that contribute to women’s employability and thus their position in society (e.g. kindergartens, children’s educational playgrounds, support services for the elderly, etc.),
Activities that contribute to improving the quality of life in the countryside, including young people (e.g. youth clubs, sports, educational and cultural-artistic facilities, etc.).
For more information, visit https://eu4agri.ba/calls/javni-poziv-za-mjeru-podrske-investicijama-u-diverzifikaciju-ekonomskih-i-socijalnih-aktivnosti-u-ruralnim-podrucjima/