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Contracting Authority: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)

GmbH

Integrated Rural Development Programme in Kyrgyzstan

Guidelines for Grant Applicants

Published: 06 November 2020

Total budget for all calls within the programme: 5.000.000 Euro

Reference of this call: 17.2105.9-003 – IRDP C3

3rd Call for Proposals

Bishkek

Co-funded by the European Union

Impressum

As a federally owned enterprise, GIZ supports the German Government in achieving its objectives in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development.

Published by:

Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH Registered offices Bonn and Eschborn

Friedrich-Ebert-Allee 36 + 40 53113 Bonn, Germany Тел. +49 228 44 60-0 Факс +49 228 44 60-17 66 Dag-Hammarskjöld-Weg 1 - 5 65760 Eschborn, Germany Тел. +49 61 96 79-0 Факс +49 61 96 79-11 15 E info@giz.de I www.giz.de

Integrated Rural Development Programme

105, Isanov Str. 720001 Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan 122-a kvartal, Ayip Bulak, 715600 Jalal-Abad, Kyrgyzstan

T +996 312 906 543 E irdp-kg@giz.de I https://irdp.kg

The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of GIZ Integrated Rural Development Programme and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union and German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

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How to use this publication

The programme guidelines are designed to accompany those involved in all aspects of the programme implementation, from the application up to the final reporting.

It is organised around in three main parts: one on the programme in general, another one for procedures for the calls for proposals and a third one for the implementation of the projects.

This is a one-step Call for Proposals:

Applicants will be asked to send a registration document to the Contracting Authority with information about the applicant and tentative information in which lot the applicant is interested. The registration will also serve the Contracting Authority to invite applicants to information sessions. Deadline for the registration is noted in the announcement.

The Call for Full Application will be launched within 10 days, and documents needed will be provided for download on the programme’s website https://irdp.kg.

Please read this document carefully. The full application will be provided additionally in Russian language together with the forms for full application.

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1 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 THE INTEGRATED RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME .................................................................................... 5

1.1 PROJECT BACKGROUND ........................................................................................................................................... 5 1.2 OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME AND PRIORITY ISSUES ................................................................................................. 5

1.2.1 Programme objectives .............................................................................................................................. 5 1.2.2 Outputs to be implemented via Calls for Proposals .................................................................................. 6

1.3 CONTRACTING AUTHORITY AND FINANCIAL ALLOCATION ................................................................................................ 6

2 RULES AND PROCEDURES FOR CALLS FOR PROPOSALS BY IRDP ......................................................................... 7

2.1 GLOSSARY ............................................................................................................................................................. 7 2.2 ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA ................................................................................................................................................ 8

2.2.1 Eligibility of participants and their roles ................................................................................................... 8 2.2.2 Eligibility of actions ................................................................................................................................... 9 2.2.3 Eligible activities ..................................................................................................................................... 10 2.2.4 Number of applications and grants per applicant .................................................................................. 11 2.2.5 Financial support to final beneficiaries ................................................................................................... 11 2.2.6 Eligibility of costs: costs that can be included......................................................................................... 11

3 NUMBER OF LOTS AND PROCEDURES FOR THIS CALL FOR PROPOSALS .............................................................12

3.1 NUMBER OF LOTS AND PRE-ASSESSED MEASURES ........................................................................................................ 13 3.2 PROCEDURES FOR APPLICATIONS ............................................................................................................................. 13

3.2.1 General steps .......................................................................................................................................... 13 3.2.2 Preparation of the full application .......................................................................................................... 14 3.2.3 Where and how to send applications ..................................................................................................... 14 3.2.4 Deadline for submission of applications ................................................................................................. 14 3.2.5 Further information about applications ................................................................................................. 14

3.3 EVALUATION AND SELECTION OF FULL APPLICATIONS ................................................................................................... 15 3.3.1 Evaluation committee and procedures ................................................................................................... 15 3.3.2 Evaluation criteria – selection and award criteria .................................................................................. 15 3.3.3 Selection Criteria ..................................................................................................................................... 16 3.3.4 Award criteria ......................................................................................................................................... 18

4 IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ACTION ...................................................................................................................20

4.1 GRANT AWARD .................................................................................................................................................... 20 4.2 REPORTING AND MONITORING ............................................................................................................................... 20 4.3 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT ...................................................................................................................................... 20 4.4 COMMUNICATION AND VISIBILITY ............................................................................................................................ 21 4.5 PROGRAMME SUPPORT AND SYNERGIES .................................................................................................................... 21 4.6 INDICATIVE TIME TABLE ......................................................................................................................................... 22

5 LIST OF ANNEXES ...............................................................................................................................................22

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1 THE INTEGRATED RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

1.1 PROJECT BACKGROUND

Although the Kyrgyz Republic has made significant progress in poverty reduction over the last decade, these developments stagnated in recent years. Poverty is still a very serious challenge for the Government. 30.6% of Kyrgyzstan’s population lives below the poverty line, with 66% of the poor prevailing in the rural areas. Regional imbalances remain high, with chronic poverty reaching up to 70% in specific areas (Batken, Jalal-Abad, and Naryn regions). High underemployment and lack of income opportunities force the younger population to migrate abroad in search of low-skilled jobs. They leave their families behind for years supporting them only through remittances.

These are the challenging conditions in rural areas that the BMZ and EU co-funded Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) intends to overcome. The programme will be implemented in Jalal Abad oblast although not limited to the administrative borders in case the achievement of objectives requires going beyond. It aims to develop in cooperation with the rural population, SME, and the local self-governments opportunities for job creation and income generation. Identified sectors having high potential for development and opportunities for income generation are agriculture and rural tourism:

The agricultural sector occupies around 35% of the total labour force, however, because of its low competitiveness, contributes only around 20 % of the total GDP. Kyrgyz agriculture is marked by low levels of concentration and thus high levels of dispersion of activities and crops. Marketing of fresh and processed agricultural products is poorly organized, most farmers being small-scale producers with limited skills and poor access to support services, resulting in a relatively low and inhomogeneous production that is neither suitable for export nor processing in the country. The rural infrastructures for transportation, storage, and irrigation are not yet adequate. Low investment in the agricultural sector and/or modern technologies constrains growth for all stakeholders in the supply chain and only a few farmers are integrated into modern and export-oriented supply chains. Adapting modern eco-friendly practices, with regards to challenges posed by climate change, to produce fresh and organic food can pave the way to additional markets. Acquiring certification by international standards can open access to international markets of premium organic foods.

The tourism sector develops in different geographic areas in the Kyrgyz Republic and is supposed to have great potential for further destination development: Kyrgyzstan was rated place number 5 by Lonely Planet among the top 10 travel destinations for the year 2019. The cultural heritage, mountainous landscape, diverse flora, and fauna create many opportunities for developing eco-tourism and agro-tourism. Tourism-favouring policies, such as the visa-free regime for many countries, provide good conditions for using this potential to develop the sector. Opening of the border between the Kyrgyz Republic and Uzbekistan provides more opportunities, especially to explore the potential in and around Jalal-Abad Oblast.

The development of income opportunities arising from sector development needs the involvement of the self-governments. Therefore, the programme aims at working closely together with those self-governments situated in areas where sector development is conducted and hereby striving for inclusion of the whole population including vulnerable groups by identifying social needs and measures thereon. Strengthening and involving the local self-governments is assumed to have a pushing effect on the development of measures for income generation.

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME AND PRIORITY ISSUES

1.1.1 PROGRAMME OBJECTIVES

The overall objective of the Programme is to support poverty alleviation in rural areas of Kyrgyzstan through increasing social and economic development opportunities and the promotion of income generating activities in rural communities.

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The specific objective of the Programme is the improvement of income opportunities for the rural population in southern Kyrgyzstan with focus on Jalal-Abad Oblast to stimulate the local economy and social development.

With a geographical focus on Jalal-Abad Oblast, but not limited to its borders, it aims to achieve the specific objective through three interrelated outputs:

Output 1 aims to strengthen producers, processors and / or cooperatives in agriculture, MSME, rural tourism service providers and / or associations in tourism, in improving their degree of organization and co-operation, thus enabling them to co-ordinate their efforts in production, processing, development of tourism packages or marketing in order to increase efficiency and competitiveness.

Output 2. aims to increase the availability and quality of services needed for development of agriculture and tourism as well as for other rural businesses for the rural population.

Output 3 aims to improve the capacities of local authorities, the civil society and the private sector to jointly implement projects (measures), which improve the conditions for socio-economic development, such as better public services, which lead to improved business environment, and hence, improved and inclusive LED planning. This is to be achieved via an ongoing dialogue between the private sector / civil society and public sector to identify and jointly implement measures thereon.

1.1.2 OUTPUTS TO BE IMPLEMENTED VIA CALLS FOR PROPOSALS

In this programme, calls for proposals will address Output 1 and 3 of the specific objective while activities under Output 2 of the specific objective will be mainly implemented by the project team, which allows for more tailor-made reaction on service needs coming from Outputs 1 and 3 on an overarching level. A key element of the IRDP will be the efforts to co-ordinate Outputs 1, 2, and 3 in such a way that they mutually reinforce each other and contribute to each other’s respective objectives. The outputs will be co-ordinated in such a way that specific economic clusters can emerge in which the stakeholders jointly improve their economic opportunities. It will, at the same time, contribute to the Kyrgyz Government’s Rural Development Strategy by supporting the development of economic clusters.

1.2 CONTRACTING AUTHORITY AND FINANCIAL ALLOCATION

Contracting Authority: The project is implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. GIZ is the authority responsible for the calls for proposals and the Contracting Authority.

Funding: The Programme is jointly funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the European Union (EU) and makes available the budget of 5.000.000 Euro for calls for proposals over the period of about 3,5 years.

Range of the awarded grants: in general, the awarded grants range from a minimum of 30.000 Euro (thirty thousand Euro) to a maximum of 250.000 Euro (two hundred fifty thousand Euro) per contract.

Own contribution / co-financing: Generally, a grant may not finance the entire cost of the action. The difference between the total cost of the action and the amount requested from the Contracting Authority has to be covered by the lead applicant as own contribution and must be financed from

sources other than the BMZ, the European Union or the European Development Fund1. The

1 If a grant is financed by the European Development Fund, any mention of European Union financing must be understood as referring to European Development Fund financing.

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following applies: the co-financing may take the form of the Recipients own resources (self-financing), income generated by the action, e.g. by beneficiaries, and reinvested into the action, and financial contributions from the third parties. There is no minimum requirement for own contributions, however, any investment made shall become a long-term sustainable investment by contributions of the final beneficiaries.

No-profit Rule:

Grants have a single purpose to finance the action. Grants do not have the purpose or effect of producing any profit within the framework of the action. The no-profit rule shall not apply to non-profit organisations (NGOs) which are eligible applicants, constituted and legally established in the Kyrgyz Republic if these non-profit organisations offer kind of services in order to maintain the core tasks of the NGO. Locations: Actions under IRDP must focus on the rural area of the Jalal-Abad region (oblast) of the Kyrgyz Republic. Few activities may be exceeding the region, especially if markets or entry points outside of the oblast, e.g. Osh city, are involved. The number of calls: Several calls are launched during the project time, depending on the identification of further opportunities or development needs, and considering continuity and synergies of already started and implemented actions. The number of lots: Lots are defined according to pre-selected agricultural value chains, identified tourism actions (1st Call for Proposals), and complementary actions for Output 3 (2nd Call for Proposals), women and youth economic empowerment measures (3rd Call for Proposals) (please see details and further explanation in section 3.1). Contract duration: Contract duration depends on the respective lots and the proposals themselves. It ranges from a minimum of 18 months to a maximum of 28 months. It depends as well on the remaining project duration, which is available for implementation. For this call for proposal please see section 3.1.

2 RULES AND PROCEDURES FOR CALLS FOR PROPOSALS BY IRDP

2.1 GLOSSARY

Contracting Authority: The organisation / institution with whom the Grant agreement will be concluded, here GIZ GmbH.

Grant: A grant under this call for proposals is given to a specific grant recipient to finance an action intended to help achieve European Union and German policy objectives, such as poverty alleviation and / or support to socio-economic development. The grant may not increase profits of the recipient (i.e. it must only balance income and expenditure).

Grant Agreement: The Grant contract with the Contracting Authority GIZ

Lead applicant: The lead applicant is the entity submitting the application and responsible for it. The lead applicant may act individually or with co-applicant(s). If there is/are a co-applicant(s), the lead applicant coordinates the project implementation with the co-applicant(s). Where it is not specified otherwise, the lead applicant (i.e. the organisation which applies for a grant) and the co-applicant(s) are hereinafter jointly referred to as the applicant(s).

Co-applicants: Co-applicants are the partners of the lead applicant. Co-applicant(s) participate in designing and implementing the action and the costs they incur are eligible in the same way as those incurred by the lead applicant.

Contractors: The grant recipients are permitted to award contracts (services or works including construction). Contractors are subject to the procurement rules set out in the annex “Award procedure” to the Grant Agreement.

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Grant Recipient: If awarded the Grant Agreement, the lead applicant will become the Recipient of the GIZ Grant Agreement. The Recipient should not be confused with the “Beneficiaries” of the

action2 nor with the target group3. The Recipient is the main interlocutor with GIZ as Contracting

Authority. The Recipient represents and acts on behalf of the co-applicants and coordinates the design and implementation of the action. The Recipient on behalf of the co-applicants is the sole recipient of the payments by the Contracting Authority. The recipient shall ensure that the appropriate payments are then made to the co-applicants without delay.

Action: An action is composed of a set of activities for which a grant may be awarded and proposed to the Contracting Authority by an applicant, which falls within the normal framework of the applicant's activities. This contrasts with a service contract, in which the Contracting Authority draws up the terms of reference for a service it wants to be carried out. An action is composed of a set of activities.

Profit: Profit is defined as a surplus of the receipts over the eligible costs approved by the Contracting Authority when the request for payment of the balance is made.

Costs: Types of cost that may be considered in setting the amount of the grant.

2.2 ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

2.2.1 ELIGIBILITY OF PARTICIPANTS AND THEIR ROLES

Lead applicant must:

1. be a legal person,

2. be registered with competent body as a civil society organisation (CSO) / non-governmental organisation (NGO), non-governmental foundation / association or cooperative representing

economic and social interests or representing local people4. International organisations are not

eligible since they cannot be considered as civil society organisations / non-governmental

organisations5,

3. be constituted and legally established in the Kyrgyz Republic or in a Member State of the

European Union or in an EFTA member state6,

4. have no debts in respect to payments of taxes, fees, customs or other public charges and is up to date with all permits, public regulations (and social security payments of his staff),

5. have been registered with competent body for at least three years at the time of the submission of the application,

6. be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the co-applicant(s), not acting as an intermediary,

7. have the financial capacity to implement the action,

2 Beneficiaries are those who will benefit from the project in the long term at the level of the society or sector at large.

3 Target groups are the groups/entities who will be directly positively affected by the project at the project purpose level.

4 Organisations/ institutions owned or funded by local, regional or national (state) government authorities are not considered as falling into this category and not eligible.

5 International organisations are international public-sector organisations set up by intergovernmental agreements as well as specialised agencies set up by them; the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International Federation of National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, European Investment Bank (EIB) and European Investment Fund (EIF) are also recognized as international organisations.

6 To be determined on the basis of the organisation’s statutes, which should demonstrate that it has been established by an instrument governed by the national law of the country concerned and that its head office is located in an eligible country. In this respect, any legal entity whose statutes have been established in another country cannot be considered an eligible local organisation, even if the statutes are registered locally or a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ has been concluded.

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8. in case to be constituted and legally established in a Member State of the European Union, at least include one (1) national / local co-applicant which is constituted and legally established in the Kyrgyz Republic.

Co-applicant(s) must:

1. satisfy the eligibility criteria as applicable to the lead applicant under number 1 to 4 above,

2. have been registered for at least two (2) years at the time of the submission of an application

The lead applicant shall have stable and sufficient sources of funding to keep operating throughout the action. Lead applicant and co-applicants together must be able to demonstrate (with supporting documentation or other evidence) to have regularly carried out activities in the field of development of the kinds covered by the respective call.

Each member of a partnership (lead applicant + co-applicant/s) must have a precise and clearly identified role in the implementation of the project, which is clearly explained in the proposal. A partnership should be composed in such a way as to allow for the achievement of project objectives in the most effective and cost-efficient manner. However, the action shall respond to an initiative emanating from the local actor(s) ensuring their involvement during all the stages of the implementation of the action. This should be clearly demonstrated in the application.

It is strongly recommended that the lead applicant and its co-applicant/s draw up an agreement defining the technical and financial rights and obligations of each partnership member additionally to the Partnership Agreement submitted with the full application. A clear written allocation of responsibilities and a balanced distribution of costs will contribute to the partnership’s success.

Potential applicants may not participate in calls for proposals or be awarded grants if they are in any of the situations listed in Annex 6 of these guidelines. The Contracting Authority will use the official EU sanction list for assessment.

2.2.2 ELIGIBILITY OF ACTIONS

Proposed actions have to be in line with the priorities specified in chapter 1.2.

Consideration of activities of projects implemented by GIZ and by other organisations in Jalal -Abad oblast, as well as actions already under implementation by IRDP is essential to avoid overlapping and create synergies.

No matter under which lot and output the action falls, activities should ensure, demonstrate and prove engagement of women and youth into income generating activities. Attention should be paid to equal consideration of ethnic groups, and where possible inclusion of people with disabilities. Special attention should be given to activities which include poor rural households. Please note that the attention paid by the applicants to cross-cutting issues will be scored in the evaluation grid.

Activities for climate change adaptation, mainly relevant for agriculture, and climate change mitigation (e.g. through use of renewable energy) should be included where appropriate and where cost efficient. Environmental sustainability is a prerequisite for all actions.

In addition, please note that the proposals may include investments identified as needed for the development. In order to be eligible, it must be a part of an integrated effort, inseparable from the rest of the Action as well as indispensable for implementation of the project. For details see criteria for prioritized projects to be financed from the grant if applicable.

The activities proposed are expected to be based on a thorough analysis and assessment of the respective area, taking into consideration previous and ongoing activities. Part of this analysis is assessment of what other development projects did already, what they achieved and if there is a good chance to develop it further, as well as which organisation continues working in the respective output.

The applicants must demonstrate that they know the area and had consultations with the local stakeholders.

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To ensure financial sustainability, activities should have a clear and documented commercial approach such as payment by final beneficiaries for services established, payment for the use of equipment purchased from the Grant to cover variable costs and to cover – in the long-term - contributions to depreciation of such.

2.2.3 ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES

Output 1: Market and Business oriented organization of producers / tourism MSME / rural households in production groups / cooperatives / networks along value chains.

Main activities under Output 1 are:

Organize producers or tourism service providers along business opportunities, identifying and linking them to markets, support building of new groups or integration into existing groups or networks. Especially for tourism it is foreseen to have one strong network at project end, having all touristic economic activities under one roof, while for agriculture, specific groups can be founded, however, shall also seek to unite or cooperate on a higher level by project end. Develop methodologies and approaches for organising farmers, producers, processors and / or tourism service providers with a shared willingness and mutual trust to cooperate. Both existing organizations and / or persons interested in organising themselves will be targeted.

Assist established (farmer) groups or tourism networks and their members with better access to improved management, inputs, advice, storage and processing facilities, marketing and other required services, for tourism providers respectively.

Identify essential steps in the processing (farmers) or service procedures (tourism) to increase quality and profitability for defined market opportunities, and identify required investments thereon, including assisting in coordinating of marketing activities.

Link service providers to the established groups / organisations and vice versa, identify inputs and services required to increase production or use of touristic services, quality and profitability for defined market opportunities and negotiating power. Cooperate closely with the IRDP team in Jalal-Abad oblast for these linkages which as well fall under Output 2.

Identify and support measures which will support Output 2 and may form the basis of cluster development.

Output 3: Strengthening capacities of local self-government bodies, civil society and the private sector to implement projects for income generation and/or local economic development.

Main activities under Output 3 are:

Facilitate a participatory strategic planning process at municipality level involving representatives from the public and private sector as well as from civil society, where advantageous, build on existing formal / informal institutions, otherwise facilitate the establishment of novel mechanism.

Support identification and prioritization of social actions/investments and economic actions/investments to be prioritized during public private dialogues, which shall lead to jointly planned measures in which all roles are clearly defined. Prior to these dialogues, mobilize communities and ensure that private sector, civil society and public sector set priorities for these dialogues.

Provide capacity building of local governments and civil society to lead and carry out productive dialogues and planning processes, for strategic development planning, priority setting, management and organization of planned measures.

Support planning and implementation of social and economic measures and investments, which target and involve women and youth as well as vulnerable groups from the beginning.

Identify and support measures which will support economic activities in general and / or Output 1 and may form the basis of cluster development.

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2.2.4 NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS AND GRANTS PER APPLICANT

The lead applicant with respective co-applicant(s) may submit maximum one (1) application per lot.

Lead applicants are encouraged to apply for more than 1 lot if not otherwise defined for the specific call.

The lead applicant may be awarded for a maximum of two (2) different grants up to the maximum amount (Euro) given for the respective call for proposals (see chapter 3.1.) each, provided that the content of the respective proposals is different:

• For example: under Output 1 green house early vegetables value chain and late (field) vegetables value chain have different contents

• For example: under Output 1 plum value chain for organic dried plums for export and plum value chain for local fresh market have different contents

• For example: early strawberry value chain in Bazar-Korgon and early strawberry value chain in Suzak have the same content

• For example: under Output 3 LED planning based on public private dialogues in Bazar-Korgon and Suzak have all the same content

The lead applicant may not be awarded more than one (1) Grant Agreement for lots which have the same content.

The lead applicant or a co-applicant may be the co-applicant in more than 1 application.

2.2.5 FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO FINAL BENEFICIARIES

Applicants may not propose financial support to third parties.

2.2.6 ELIGIBILITY OF COSTS: COSTS THAT CAN BE INCLUDED

Only ‘eligible costs’ can be covered by a grant. The categories of costs that are eligible and non-eligible are indicated below. The budget to be provided together with the proposal is both, a cost estimate and an overall ceiling for ‘eligible costs’.

Eligible costs are the actual costs incurred by the Recipient and the Co-Applicants for execution of the Action.

Please take into consideration: The budget is a planning tool. An organisation with objectives and activities in the form of a budget will be able to plan and make better decisions. The budget is a control tool. A budget helps an organisation to control expenditure by setting cost guidelines, benchmarks, estimates and criteria. The budget must reflect all expenditure in line with the planned activities. The budget is a tool for financial compliance. The contractually agreed budget categories and lines are overall spending limits. The budget mirrors the financial report. Actual expenditure incurred will be presented in the financial report and be compared with budgeted expenditure.

The amounts or rates have to be based on estimates using objective data. The Recipient must be able upon request of the Contracting Authority to explain the assumptions used to draw up the Budget and the methods and sources used to quantify the project inputs (e.g. number of assets to be acquired, staff numbers to be employed / allocated and time period), and the value inputs (e.g. prices of assets to be acquired, salaries of staff, fees of consultants). Failure to do so casts doubt on the reliability and plausibility of the budget.

At contracting phase, the Contracting Authority decides whether to accept the proposed amounts or rates on the basis of the provisional budget submitted by the applicant, by analysing factual data of grants carried out by the applicant or of similar actions and by performing checks. Recommendations to award a grant are always subject to the condition that the checks preceding the signing of the contract do not reveal problems requiring changes to the budget (such as arithmetical errors, inaccuracies, unrealistic costs and ineligible costs). The checks may give rise to requests for clarification and may lead the Contracting Authority to impose modifications or

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reductions to address such mistakes or inaccuracies. It is not possible to increase the grant or the decrease the own contribution as a result of these corrections. However, the costs accounted to a specific budget line may be allocated to another budget line by up to 20%.

It is therefore in the applicant’s interest to provide a realistic and cost-effective budget.

Eligible direct costs

Broken down according to GIZ budget lines as reflected in the budget template:

Personal Costs: cost of staff assigned to the Action, corresponding to actual gross salaries including social security charges and other remuneration-related costs if these do not exceed those normally borne by the Beneficiary(ies);

Costs for External Experts: costs entailed by service contracts awarded by the Beneficiary(ies) for the purposes of the Action;

Travel Costs: travel costs for staff and other persons taking part in the Action, provided they do not exceed those normally borne by the Beneficiary(ies) according to the rules, regulations, and the rates published by the Contracting Authority at the time of implementation of the Action;

Event costs: travel of participants, venue, accommodation, catering;

Procurement of equipment and materials: purchase costs for equipment and supplies specifically for the purposes of the Action, if ownership is transferred at the end of the Action;

Other costs: costs deriving directly from the requirements of the Contract (dissemination of information, evaluation specific to the Action, audits other than those obligatory by GIZ rules, translation, reproduction, insurance, etc.).

Administrative overheads

The administrative overheads for carrying out the action are eligible for flat-rate funding, but the total must not exceed 7% of the estimated total eligible direct costs, including office rent and financial service costs (particularly the cost of transfers and financial guarantees where required according to the Contract);

Ineligible costs

The following costs are not eligible:

• debts and debt service charges (interest);

• provisions for losses or potential future liabilities;

• currency exchange losses;

• any credits to third parties;

• customs and import duties, or any other charges;

• fines, financial penalties and expenses of litigation;

• costs declared by the Beneficiary(ies) and financed by another action or work programme receiving the European Union (including through EDF) grant;

• purchases of land or buildings.

3 NUMBER OF LOTS AND PROCEDURES FOR THIS CALL FOR PROPOSALS

For calls launched end of 2020 and awarded in the beginning of 2021, 800.000 (eight hundred

thousand) Euro are available. The Contracting Authority reserves the right not to award all available funds. Selection of the proposal to be awarded does not oblige GIZ to finance the full amount applied for with the proposal.

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3.1 NUMBER OF LOTS AND PRE-ASSESSED MEASURES

Note: Not all calls will be launched at the same time7.

This call for proposals addresses

• Lot 1: Output 1, women economic empowerment

The call seeks to develop sustainable economic opportunities for women particularly in rural areas. Project proposals, which aim at contributing to the economic empowerment of women shall be submitted.

About 500.000 Euro are allocated to this lot, maximum amount per contract is 100.000 Euro.

• Lot 2: Output 1, youth economic empowerment

The call seeks project proposals, which aim at contributing to the economic inclusion and empowerment of young people in the age between 16 and 28 years.

About 300.000 Euro are allocated to this lot, maximum amount per contract is 100.000 Euro.

These proposals might include agricultural production, processing and/ or marketing or related (service) businesses, e.g. greenhouse production, berries, fruits and vegetables production, processing and/ or marketing, processing/ marketing of animal products, e.g. felt, wool, carpets, development of touristic products, marketing or related (service) businesses or tourism related business, e.g. handicrafts, food services, products to be sold to tourists, but are not limited to these ideas.

Any other idea which contributes to the goals of IRDP is highly welcomed, including economic activities outside of agriculture or tourism if these are contributing to the goals of IRDP: to create jobs and / or family occupation and income, to bring economically active rural households and people together to be more efficient, and to close existing gaps in needed services.

Contract duration will be maximal 18 months. Because of the restricted remaining project duration, the applicants are encouraged to find existing initiatives which can be further developed and will lead to results by October 2022 or identify new initiatives which will mature in this short period.

Target area for both lots is Jalal-Abad oblast.

Please find the detailed lot description in annex 1.

3.2 PROCEDURES FOR APPLICATIONS

3.2.1 GENERAL STEPS

In the first instance, IRDP asks for registration along with basic information about the applicant and information in which lot(s) the applicant is interested. This step serves to get to know who is interested, and whom to invite to information sessions. Registered and eligible applicants will be invited to an information session on how to participate in this call for proposals.

The launch for preparation of full applications will be within 10 days after the registration, by the registration deadline. The full package for the application will be published on the IRDP website www.irdp.kg. Links will be provided on other websites, such as the website of the EUD to the Kyrgyz Republic. Preparation time for the full application may vary between the calls, however for

7 Several rounds of calls will be held during the project duration

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this call about 4 weeks are planned (please see the tentative time table in section 4.6 and any further announcements).

Clarifications after the deadline will only be requested when the information provided is unclear and thus prevents the Contracting Authority from conducting an objective assessment.

Evaluation will be based on selection criteria and award criteria (P. 3.3.2 – 3.3.4). Please note that only the application form and the filled published annexes will be evaluated. A check of sanction list according to EU-standards will be done by the Contracting Authority in this stage.

The awarded applicants will conclude a Grant Agreement with GIZ. Contracting procedures might need up to two months.

3.2.2 PREPARATION OF THE FULL APPLICATION

Applicants must apply in English and Russian language, where the English version will be prevailing the Russian version and use the application form and annexes hereto as provided. No additional annexes should be sent. Hand-written applications will not be accepted. Please read carefully the detailed descriptions of all lots provided in annex 1. It is recommended to take into consideration proposed activities and approaches; however, please bring in your own ideas, concepts and approaches.

3.2.3 WHERE AND HOW TO SEND APPLICATIONS

Applications must be submitted in a sealed envelope by registered mail, private courier service or by hand-delivery (a signed and dated certificate of receipt will be given to the deliverer) at the address below:

IRDP Project

Isanov street 105

710001 Bishkek

Kyrgyzstan

Applications including all annexes must be submitted in closed envelopes in two originals and two copies in A4 size, one of each in Russian and one in English. The checklist of the grant application form must be stapled separately and enclosed in the envelope. The outer envelope must bear the reference number 17.2105.9-003 – IRDP C3, together with the title and number of the Lot, the full name and address of the lead applicant and the words ‘Not to be opened before the opening session’.

When a lead applicant sends several applications, each one has to be sent separately.

Applicants must verify that their application is complete using the checklist (see annex 5). Incomplete applications may be rejected.

The completed application form, budget, implementation plan and logical framework (free format) must also be supplied in electronic format (USB sticks). The electronic file must contain exactly the same application as the paper version enclosed.

Applications sent by any other means (e.g. by fax or by e-mail) or delivered to other addresses will be rejected.

3.2.4 DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF APPLICATIONS

The deadline for the submission of applications is as evidenced by the date of dispatch, the postmark or the date of the deposit slip. In the case of hand-deliveries, the deadline for receipt is at pm on 24 December 2020 local time as evidenced by the signed and dated receipt. Any application submitted after the deadline will automatically be rejected.

3.2.5 FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT APPLICATIONS

Information sessions on this IRDP call for proposals will be held in accordance with the schedule listed in the indicative timetable of this Call for Proposals in section 4.6.

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Questions may be sent by e-mail no later than indicated in the time table in section 4.6, indicating clearly the reference of the call for proposals:

E-mail address: irdp-kg@giz.de

The Contracting Authority (GIZ GmbH) does not provide explanations to questions received after the mentioned date. Replies will be given no later than indicated in the timetable in section 4.6.

Questions that may be relevant to other applicants, together with the answers, will be published on the IRDP website.

To ensure equal treatment of applicants, the Contracting Authority cannot give a prior opinion on the eligibility of lead applicants, co-applicants, any action or specific activities.

3.3 EVALUATION AND SELECTION OF FULL APPLICATIONS

3.3.1 EVALUATION COMMITTEE AND PROCEDURES

Evaluation Committee

Applications will be examined and evaluated by the Evaluation Committee, which is composed of a group of experts with technical knowledge to read, study and evaluate all proposals, using the evaluation criteria provided in section 3.3.3 and 3.3.4., and the Evaluation Committee members who do the final voting based on a summary of proposals and the scores given by the experts.

The Evaluation Committee shall be composed of a representative of the Ministry of Economy, of the Department for Regional Development of the Plenipotentiary Representative in Jalal-Abad region, the European Delegation to the Kyrgyz Republic, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Industry and Reclamation, the Ministry of Culture, Infrastructure and Tourism, SALSGIER/an expert on LED and 3 representatives of GIZ, of which 2 from IRDP and one from SED (Sustainable Economic Development). The number of voting members is an odd number because either the representative of the Ministry of Culture, Infrastructure and Tourism or the representative of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Industry and Reclamation, or the representative of SALSGIER/an expert on LED will vote, depending on the topic of the call and the proposal. The representative of the Plenipotentiary Representative of Jalal Abad region will be the Chairperson.

The IRDP staff of the Contracting Authority is responsible for co-ordinating the evaluation process and submit the evaluation report and details of the proposed grants to the EU. In cooperation with the representative of the EUD and of the partner Ministry, it will ensure the impartiality and transparency of the proceedings, and, when necessary, will supervise the work of the external evaluators. The employees of the IRDP are responsible for carrying out all administrative tasks in relation to the evaluation procedure. The Evaluation Committee carries out the implementation of the assessment steps: Opening of envelopes & administrative checks, verification of eligibility of the applicants and partners, and evaluation of the full application.

Evaluation Procedure

After the deadline, the sent envelopes with the full applications will be officially opened by GIZ in presence of the representative of the EU and / or the Ministry of Economy as observers. Then the proposals will be copied, and copies handed out to the assessors / experts for the first step of evaluation. Originals with all supporting documents will be kept confidentially. After final assessment of the written proposals, GIZ reserves the right to invite applicants to present their proposal and / or provide clarifications. Observers are invited to participate. The results of the presentations may change the ranking of applications.

3.3.2 EVALUATION CRITERIA – SELECTION AND AWARD CRITERIA

The evaluation criteria consist of selection and award criteria, all of which are defined in the evaluation grids.

Full applications that do not meet the deadlines will automatically be rejected.

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Not registered applicants might not participate in the call, the full application package of not registered applicants will not be accepted and if received via post not opened.

The selection criteria are used to assess the lead applicant's and co-applicants’ eligibility and the lead applicant’s financial capacity and partnership obligation. The selection criteria consist of minimum requirements (pass or fail) and scored selection criteria.

The award criteria are used to assess proposals against the set objectives and priorities, so that grants are awarded to actions that maximise the overall effectiveness of the call for proposals and show that the awarded recipient will comply with the objectives and priorities and guarantee the visibility of the European Union financing. The award criteria relate particularly to the relevance of the action and its compatibility with the objectives of the IRDP; the quality, expected impact and sustainability of the action as well as its cost-effectiveness.

3.3.3 SELECTION CRITERIA

If minimum requirements provided in the table below are not met, the application will be rejected on this sole basis. Clarification need to result in “yes” to pass. If clarification doesn’t result in “Yes”, the applicant will be rejected. The Contracting Authority GIZ GmbH reserves the right to check if the applicant is named in the sanction list of the European Union. If so, this will lead to exclusion of participation.

The lead applicant must have stable and sufficient sources of funding to keep operating throughout the implementation period in case of any delays of the next advance payment. The lead applicant must have sufficient financial capacity to manage a Grant Agreement or Local Subsidy Contract, the latter having lower requirements on financial capacity.

The financial capacity must always be verified. Assessments are made based on the supporting documents submitted in the context of the call for proposals. These may include an external audit report of the lead applicant, the profit and loss account and the balance sheet for the last financial year for which the accounts have been closed. In case of doubts about the capacity of the applicants, the evaluation committee may ask for additional proof.

Lead applicants and co-applicants must together have the necessary experience, professional competences and qualifications to complete the proposed action.

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Minimum requirements for participation in the calls

1. Fraud and corruption: sanction list check Yes No

1.1 The lead applicant and the co-applicant (if any) are not listed (pass) or listed (proven cases, fail) in the EU sanction list

pass reject

1.2 The lead applicant and the co-applicant (if any) or leading employees are listed in the EU sanction list (last 5 years), however, not proven

pass clarify

2. Legal status yes No

2.1 The Lead applicant and the Co-applicants are legally established in the Kyrgyz Republic or in a Member State of the European Union or in an EFTA member state, and registered as legal entity

pass reject

2.2 The lead applicant has been registered for at least three (3) years at the time of the submission of the application

pass reject

2.3 The co-applicant has been registered for at least two (2) year at the time of the submission of the application

pass reject

3. Purpose of the Organisation yes no

3.1 The lead applicant and Co-applicants are non-profit organisations (tax exempted according to Kyrgyz law)

pass reject

3.2 The lead applicant and Co-applicants are Civil society organisations (CSO) / non-governmental organisations (NGO), non-governmental foundations / associations and / or cooperative

pass reject

4. Obligations for partnerships and towards state yes no

4.1 The lead applicant is directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the co-applicant(s), not acting as an intermediary

pass reject

4.2 In case the lead applicant is constituted and legally established in an EU Member State or an EFTA member state, the Lead applicant agrees Partnership (co-application) with at least one local (national) co-applicant, who is/ are established and registered in the Kyrgyz Republic

pass reject

4.3 The applicants have no debt or disputes with the tax authority or the social fund

pass reject

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Selection criteria

5. Financial Capability of lead applicant to implement the action

Max. score 15

scale

or yes

weight

or no

5.1 Assessment of Financial Capacity is mainly based on assessment tool of GIZ, which considers the existence and quality of accounting system, contract award experience, internal and external controls such as audits, and is supplemented by the below criteria

n.a. n.a. n.a.

5.2 Experience to administrate financial contributions from donors/ projects

5 0 to 5 1

5.3 Availability of financial means to bridge funding gaps or pre-finance project activities

5 0 to 5 1

5.4 Ratio "requested budget (without physical investments)" / "annual budget of the applicant"

5 0,1,3 or

5 1

6. Management capacity of the lead applicant Max.

score 25 scale weight

6.1 Institutional sustainability: ratio of professional staff working for more than 3 years within or frequently with the organisation to current professional staff

5 0 to 5 1

6.2 Knowledge management: Number of current professional staff working for 3 or more years in the working field most relevant for the organisation

5 0 to 5 1

6.3 Monitoring experience: understanding of result monitoring and monitoring of sustainability

10 0, 1,3 or 5

2

6.4 Commitment to its mission: Did the lead applicant start "own projects/ activities" during the last 3 years (without donor/ project funding)

5 0, 1,3, or 5

1

7. Technical / Professional capacity of lead and co-applicants Max.

score 15 scale weight

7.1 The lead applicant has the needed experience in the implementation of actions proposed

5 0, 1,2, 3 or 5

1

7.2 The lead applicant together with the co-applicants have the needed experience in the technical / professional field/ can demonstrate sufficient technical / professional knowledge

5 0, 1,2, 3 or 5

1

7.3 The lead applicant has identified suitable specialists for project implementation and knows their capability

5 0, 1,3 or 5

1

3.3.4 AWARD CRITERIA

All applications will be assessed according to general criteria for all applications, and special criteria for the specific lots. The following criteria will be used to assess the proposals generally. Specific evaluation criteria will serve for evaluation of each lot.

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Award criteria related to the objectives of IRDP

8. Relevance of the action Max score

1088 scale weight

8.1. Outreach to households which apply innovation / improvements in economic activities

10 0 to 5 2

8.2. Outreach to poor households which apply innovation / improvements in economic activities

10 0,1,3, or 5

2

8.3. Average increase of income per household which apply innovation / improvements in economic activities (by October 2022)

10 0,2,3,4 or 5

2

8.4. Additional income opportunities (permanent, seasonal jobs, additional occupation within one HH and / or SME and / or farm, self-employment)

10 0 or 5 2

Of which for women 5 0 to 5 1

Of which for youth 5 0 to 5 1

8.5 a For agriculture only:

Number (minimum and maximum to ensure quality) of active sustainable producer groups supported/ established and targeted at economic activities for women

5 0 to 5 1

share of women in producer groups 10 (lot 1)

5 (lot 2)

0,1,3,4or 5

2 (lot 1)

1 (lot 2)

share of youth in producer groups 5 (lot 1)

10 (lot 2)

0, 1,3,4or 5

1 (lot 1)

2 (lot 2

8.5 b For tourism only:

Number of additional active female (lot 1) or youth (lot 2) participants in tourism network

10 0,2,4 or 5

2

8.5 b For tourism only:

Number of successive activities aimed at increasing the capacity of women (lot 1) or youth (lot 2) as actors in the tourism industry and/or in tourism network, so that these women (lot 1) or youth (lot 2) can secure and/or increase their income

10 0,1,3 or 5

2

8.6. Percentage of trained people within or along groups (producers, service providers, MSME in tourism), who may apply the training content

5 0 to 5 1

8.7. Contribution to cross-cutting issues (environment, digitalisation)

5 0, 1,3, or 5

1

8.8. Justification of the budget (prices and amounts) 5 0, 1,3, or 5

1

8.9. Value for money during project lifetime 5 0 to 5 1

8 From 8.1. to 8.9. 90 max. points: 90 * 120% = 108 points

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8.10. Likeliness to establish new sustainable agricultural producer groups or integrate new sustainable economic activities into the tourism network (based on quality of the proposal) and to achieve the objectives / indicators promised in the proposal, qualitative assessment: is the proposal realistic, are achievements proposed realistically achievable by the applicant?

% based on general evaluation

Weights the total score

50% to 120%

4 IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ACTION

4.1 GRANT AWARD

Before signature of the Grant Agreement with GIZ, in cooperation with the IRDP team, the correctness of the budget template will be ensured to avoid unnecessary questions for clarification. The Grant Agreement will be signed with GIZ headquarters in Germany. This might take up to two months. Before signature of the Grant, the IRDP will send a list of all recipients to the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development.

4.2 REPORTING AND MONITORING

The Grant Recipients must provide narrative and financial reports. Financial reports shall be provided for each period of pre-financing, which is three months. Details for financial management are laid down in the next chapter.

Narrative reports are requested according to the reporting schedule of IRDP; reporting periods are included in the Grant Agreement. They might be requested after a shorter period in cases the IRDP needs the reports for its own reporting obligations towards the European Union and / or the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development. Narrative reports will have to include activities carried out, results achieved, and indicators met, any challenges encountered and how these have been tackled. Activities planned for the next period are annexed as implementation plan

When concluding the Grant Agreement with GIZ, all annexes for financial reporting will be provided together with the Grant Agreement. Details on reporting are provided with the reporting template.

In addition to the Grant agreement signed in HQ of the Contracting Authority, a Special Agreement will be concluded between the Grant Recipient and the IRDP, which regulates monitoring obligations and meetings thereon, and provides the reporting and monitoring formats.

4.3 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

A separate cost unit in an existing bank account or a new bank account must be opened for the Grant. Advance payments are based on the financial schedule, which forms part of the Grant agreement for the 3-monthly periods. GIZ will always withhold 10% of the total Budget as security deposit until the last financial and narrative reports have been delivered and proven to be correct. Calls for disbursement can be made after 70% of the previous advance are used. Financial guidelines will be provided together with the Grant Agreement and all annexes, and trainings for financial reporting according to GIZ rules will be offered.

Contract award procedures according to GIZ rules must be followed, when the Recipient prepares sub-contracts for services or procurement. For specific procurement, such as pesticides, a special allowance must be received from GIZ HQ, for which the IRDP team will provide support. For all procured items, an inventory list must be kept, and regularly updated. The inventory forms a part of the financial report.

If significant infrastructure measures are part of the proposal, specific documents and approvals are needed from GIZ HQ, which is reflected in a specific annex to the Grant Agreement.

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4.4 COMMUNICATION AND VISIBILITY

The Grant Recipients are responsible for giving adequate visibility to the action they are implementing as well as to the support from the European Union and German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). There are several important attributes of the visibility the grant recipients should fulfil:

1. The common branding elements such as flags of the EU and German Cooperation: Both flags should be present when communicating on matters related to the action. The graphic identity of the EU and German Cooperation should be at equally prominent places and sizes with other logos. The EU logo comes first (left corner), followed by the German Cooperation logo with caption in Kyrgyz language.

2. The caption on the EU co-financing: The Grant recipient should use their normal stationery in letterheads or fax header sheets but should add the phrase “This project/programme is co-funded by the European Union”. The phrase should be added below the EU flag as a caption.

3. The disclaimer must be included in all publications: “The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of <name of your organisation> and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union and German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development.”

The branding elements should be used in briefings, written material, press conferences, presentations, invitations, signs, commemorative plaques and all other tools used to highlight the IRD Programme support. All visibility requirements and graphic identity materials will be presented by the IRD Programme at specific trainings.

As far as possible, actions that are wholly or partially funded by the EU must incorporate information and communication activities designed to raise the awareness of specific or general audiences of the reasons for the action and the EU support for the action in the country or region concerned, as well as the results and the impact of this support. In any event, communication activities should focus on achievements and the impact of the action, not on administrative and procedural milestones. Prior implementing the communication activities, the Grant recipients should inform about and approve the planned measures with the support of the IRD Programme’s communication focal point. Following the communication activities, the Grant Recipients shall provide the media monitoring report. Moreover, the standard project reports should include details on the progress of visibility activities.

4.5 PROGRAMME SUPPORT AND SYNERGIES

As mentioned in section 1.2.2, Output 2 will be implemented by the IRDP team. However, due to the nature of value chains, services are an essential part of the value chains and cannot be completely separated from value chain development. Output 2 is therefore the area, where close cooperation between IRDP team and the Grant recipient is requested. IRDP has the possibility to add essential activities and / or procurement to value chains, tourism development and to the LED process and prioritized projects as needed, as well as to contribute to services which have the character of being more overarching, such as further public-sector involvement, cluster committees which involve more than one value chain participant, matching projects with the use of oblast and / or rayon development funds, and such like. For cooperation, the Grant Recipient will be asked to participate in meetings with the IRDP team.

Cooperation with other projects of GIZ and other donors implementing project in the same area and / or the same topic is essential to create synergies and avoid overlapping. Such meetings might be coordinated by IRDP. Important are synergies with the SDC funded component on value chain development of the GIZ project Sustainable Economic Development and for the 3rd Call for Proposals with the joint project of UN Women, FAO UN, IFAD, WFP “Joint Programme on Accelerating Progress towards Economic Empowerment of Rural Women (JP RWEE)”.

To ensure the visibility of the European delegation and the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, events might be organised, and the Grant recipients might be asked to contribute.

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4.6 INDICATIVE TIME TABLE

DATE TIME

1. Call for Registration / express interest in participation

From 6.11.20 to 18.11.20

2. Launch of the third Call for Proposals (Invitation for Full Application)

19.11.20 - 20.11.20

3. Information / training on procedures between 20.11.20 – 26.11.20

4. Specific trainings if needed tbd

5. Deadline for requesting any clarifications from the GIZ

10.12.20 00:00 hours

6. Deadline for answers given by GIZ to clarifications GIZ, to be published

18.12.20 00:00 hours

7. Deadline for submission of Full Application 24.12.20 16:00 hours

8. Information to applicants on the result of evaluation of the Full Application

20.01.21 (tentatively)

9. Clarifications with selected NGOs 20.01.21 – 31.01.21

10. Contracting period February 21

5 LIST OF ANNEXES

(uploaded separately)

Annex 1: Description of lots 1 and 2

Annex 2: Application Form

Annex 3: Budget template

Annex 4: Implementation plan format

Annex 5: Checklist

Annex 6: EU sanction list