Invitation

Appendix I – Indicative Logical Framework Matrix

Results

Results chain:

Main expected results

(maximum 10)

Indicators

(at least one indicator per expected

result)

Baselines

(2026)

Targets by the end of the

programme (2030)

Sources of data

(1 per indicator) Assumptions

Impact

To increase the resilience

to natural and human-

induced disasters in the

Eastern Partnership

countries

a) Level of improvement of

procedures in place in the Eastern

Partnership countries for disaster risk

management and cross-border/UCPM

cooperation

a) Based on

PPRD East 3

reports

a) Additional targets have

been met and existing ones

have improved in each of

the countries

Self-assessment

by Partner

Countries and

European

Commission

Reports and Peer-

reviews

Sub-committees

on civil protection

with Partner

Countries

Not applicable

Outcome

1

Strengthened capacities

of Partner Countries to

prevent, prepare for,

respond to and recover

from natural and human-

induced disasters

a) Extent to which laws, secondary

legislation, strategies and procedures

of Partner Countries are approximated

with the EU requirements

b) Level of institutional capacities for

preparing, preventing, responding and

recovering, as well as level of

cooperation on national and regional

level

a) The

institutional

and legal

framework in

the field of

civil protection

b) Baseline as

outlined in the

reports of

PPRD East 3

programme

a) The institutional and

legal framework of Partner

Countries in the field of

civil protection is

increasingly aligned to the

EU requirements and

UCPM standards

b) Higher level of

institutional capacities in

the areas of prevention,

preparedness, response and

recovery

Self-assessment

by Partner

Countries and

European

Commission

(Enlargement

Reports)

Programme

reports

Political

commitment to

engage and

prioritise the

sector

Political will to

increase

cooperation in

civil protection

Political stability

within countries,

absence of

tensions

Adequate human

and financial

resources

Outcome

2

Further integration of

new Participating States

into the UCPM and

increased capacity in

other Eastern Partnership

countries to potentially

join the UCPM

a) Extent of improved understanding

and knowledge of the UCPM and its

tools

b) Extent to which relevant staff have

benefitted from

projects/trainings/exchanges/technical

assistance

a, b) Baseline

to be set at the

inception of

the programme

a, b) Targets to be

developed at the inception

of the programme

DG ECHO

reports

Programme/proje

ct reports

Sustained

commitment from

Partner Countries

Available

necessary human,

financial and

material resources

Willingness to

participate and/or

join UCPM

Outcome

3

Increased Partner

Countries participation in

and cooperation with the

UCPM, including

regional and cross-border

cooperation

a) Number of times assistance

provided among Eastern Partnership

countries or with other beneficiaries in

actual emergencies (per year)

channelled through UCPM (this

depends on whether disasters happen

or not)

b) Number of times that Eastern

Partnership countries activates the

UCPM in justified circumstances or

use it to channel international

assistance to Participating States

a) Baseline to

be set at the

inception of

the programme

b) Baseline to

be set at the

inception of

the programme

a, b) Targets to be set at the

inception phase of the

programme

Programme

reports

UCPM reports

ERCC

beneficiary

statistics

Sustained

commitment from

Partner Countries

Available

necessary human,

financial and

material resources

Commitment to

regional

cooperation in

disaster

preparedness and

response

Outputs

related to

outcome 1

a) Improved national

legal and institutional

framework

a1) Extent of

comprehensive risk

assessment and risk

management planning on

national and/or sub-

national level, including

local communities, civil

society organisations,

volunteers as well as

cross-cutting issues

a2) Improved risk

prevention and

preparedness measures,

including

institutionalised multi-

hazard early warning

system, contingency and

emergency planning,

public awareness and

risk communication, as

well as innovation and

knowledge services

b) Enhanced knowledge

and capacities for

emergency response,

including

interministerial/interagen

cy coordination in line

with EU practices and

international standards

c) Enhanced planning

and preparedness for

disaster recovery and

reconstruction on local,

a) Existence of

reviewed/developed/updated legal and

institutional framework

a1) Number of risk assessments and

risk management capabilities in

place/submitted/reviewed

a2) Number of road maps, guidelines,

and procedures developed/improved

and in use

a3) Number of hazards for which the

action led to the establishment of

procedures and coverage for

monitoring, detection and early action

(previously uncovered at a national

level)

b) Number of response capacities,

which are developed/upgraded

according to internationally

recognised standards (e.g.

Medium/Heavy Search and Rescue

modules)

b1) Extent to which Host Nation

Support (HNS) procedures are

improved/developed

c) ‘Build-back better’ tools and

guidelines

d) Number of people who have been

trained (number of gender trainings);

number of training curriculum

developed

d1) Number of table-top exercises at

national level

a) 3

a1) 4

a2) emergency

plans: 6; SOPs

for EWS: 4

a3) Baseline to

be set at the

inception

phase

b) 3

b1) 1

c) 0

d) Baseline to

be set at the

inception

phase

d1) Pilot areas

to be defined

during the

inception

phase

e) Baseline to

be set at the

inception

phase

f) Training

possibilities

and expertise

is available in

the region

a) Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme based on

countries current needs but

technical assistance should

be provided for at least 2

documents

a1) Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme based on

countries current needs but

technical assistance should

be provided in five

countries for at least 3

documents

a2) Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme based on

countries current needs but

technical assistance should

be provided in five

countries

b) At least one module

gaining INSARAG

classification during

programme

implementation

b1)

Updated/developed/review

er HNS procedures in at

least 2 countries

c) Technical assistance to

be provided in at least

three countries

Official gazette of

Partner Countries

Programme

reports

Reports from

governments and

local

administration

Ensured

sustainability and

durability to the

respective

projects by

making available

the necessary

human, financial

and material

resources

Willingness to

engage and

improve legal and

institutional

framework and

practices and to

ensure inter-

institutional

coordination;

willingness to

engage and

develop their

volunteering

networks

regional and national

level

d) Strengthened local

training capacities and civil protection actors

e) Strengthened network

of civil protection

volunteers at national

and regional level

f) National capacities for

Disaster Risk

Assessment and

production of Disaster

Loss Data are

strengthened

e) A functioning system of training

and supporting volunteers

f) Extent to which relevant staff have

benefitted from training/received

technical assistance

d)Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme

e) Target to be set at the

inception phase

f) Staff have participated

in/benefitted from

workshops, study visits,

technical assistance and

expert advice

Outputs

related to

outcome 2

a) Increased awareness

and use (quantitative and

qualitative) of UCPM

tools and services

available to Partner

Countries

b) Strengthened network

and exchanges between

new and aspiring

Participating States in the

Eastern Partnership

region and EU Member

States/Participating

States of the UCPM

a1) Number of registrations of

response teams, technical equipment

and other resources in the Common

Emergency Communication and

Information System (CECIS) and into

the European Civil Protection Pool

(ECPP), as well as reporting on

Article 6 and participation in the

Expert Groups (for Participating

States)

a2) Participation in projects, exercises,

trainings, and other tools available

under the UCPM (for Participating

States and non-Participating States)

b) Number of training, workshops,

exchange of experts visits

a1) Baseline to

be set at

inception

phase of

programme

a2) Baseline to

be set at

inception

phase of

programme

b) Based on

PRRD East 3

reports

a, b) Target to be set at

inception phase of

programme

Official

documents from

the governments

or domestic civil

protection

authorities

DG ECHO,

ERCC reports

Project/programm

e reports

Ensured

sustainability and

durability to the

respective

projects by

making available

the necessary

human, financial

and material

resources

The adequate staff

following the

training and

workshops and

participating in

activities

Outputs

related to

Outcome

3

a) Strengthened

institutional and

operational coordination

between the UCPM and

Partner Countries in the

areas of prevention,

preparedness, response

and recovery

b) Improved national

frameworks in each

Partner Country on

requesting and receiving

assistance through the

UCPM, as well as

interinstitutional

coordination on national

and regional level (in the

case of transboundary

risks)

c) Enhanced cross-border

and sub-regional

cooperation among

Eastern Partnership

countries, including

transboundary risk

assessment and response

planning

a, b, c) Number of times assistance is

provided among Partner Countries or

with other beneficiaries in

actual emergencies channelled

through the UCPM

a, b, c) Number of

updated/developed procedures/emerge

ncy response plans/protocols and

guidelines in place for requesting

and offering assistance incl. Host

nation Support (HNS)

a1) Number of exchange of experts

visits, workshops, trainings

b) Extent to which beneficiary

specific recommendations for inter-

institutional coordination mechanisms

are further developed

c) Number of joint regional and full-

scale exercises

c) Existence of multi-sectoral and

cross-border emergency plans in line

with the EU and international

standards

a, b, c)

Baseline to be

set at the

inception of

the programme

based on

PPRD East 3

final report

and the results

of the other

EU-funded

projects

a1) Based on

PPRD East 3

reports

a2) Baseline to

be set at the

inception of

the programme

based on

current

numbers

b) Baseline to

be set at the

inception of

the programme

c) 2

c) No updated

cross border

emergency

response plans

in line with

EU and

international

standards

a, b) Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme

c) 1 regional and full-scale

exercise

c) At least 1 Cross border

emergency response plan

developed in line with EU

and international standards

exist

DG ECHO,

ERCC reports

Reports from civil

protection

authorities of

Eastern

Partnership

countries

Programme

reports

Lessons learned

from practical

exercises and

actual disasters

Evidence on

communication/c

o-ordination

among the partner

countries and the

UCPM (ERCC) in real life

emergency

situations

Appendix I – Indicative Logical Framework Matrix

Results

Results chain:

Main expected results

(maximum 10)

Indicators

(at least one indicator per expected

result)

Baselines

(2026)

Targets by the end of the

programme (2030)

Sources of data

(1 per indicator) Assumptions

Impact

To increase the resilience

to natural and human-

induced disasters in the

Eastern Partnership

countries

a) Level of improvement of

procedures in place in the Eastern

Partnership countries for disaster risk

management and cross-border/UCPM

cooperation

a) Based on

PPRD East 3

reports

a) Additional targets have

been met and existing ones

have improved in each of

the countries

Self-assessment

by Partner

Countries and

European

Commission

Reports and Peer-

reviews

Sub-committees

on civil protection

with Partner

Countries

Not applicable

Outcome

1

Strengthened capacities

of Partner Countries to

prevent, prepare for,

respond to and recover

from natural and human-

induced disasters

a) Extent to which laws, secondary

legislation, strategies and procedures

of Partner Countries are approximated

with the EU requirements

b) Level of institutional capacities for

preparing, preventing, responding and

recovering, as well as level of

cooperation on national and regional

level

a) The

institutional

and legal

framework in

the field of

civil protection

b) Baseline as

outlined in the

reports of

PPRD East 3

programme

a) The institutional and

legal framework of Partner

Countries in the field of

civil protection is

increasingly aligned to the

EU requirements and

UCPM standards

b) Higher level of

institutional capacities in

the areas of prevention,

preparedness, response and

recovery

Self-assessment

by Partner

Countries and

European

Commission

(Enlargement

Reports)

Programme

reports

Political

commitment to

engage and

prioritise the

sector

Political will to

increase

cooperation in

civil protection

Political stability

within countries,

absence of

tensions

Adequate human

and financial

resources

Outcome

2

Further integration of

new Participating States

into the UCPM and

increased capacity in

other Eastern Partnership

countries to potentially

join the UCPM

a) Extent of improved understanding

and knowledge of the UCPM and its

tools

b) Extent to which relevant staff have

benefitted from

projects/trainings/exchanges/technical

assistance

a, b) Baseline

to be set at the

inception of

the programme

a, b) Targets to be

developed at the inception

of the programme

DG ECHO

reports

Programme/proje

ct reports

Sustained

commitment from

Partner Countries

Available

necessary human,

financial and

material resources

Willingness to

participate and/or

join UCPM

Outcome

3

Increased Partner

Countries participation in

and cooperation with the

UCPM, including

regional and cross-border

cooperation

a) Number of times assistance

provided among Eastern Partnership

countries or with other beneficiaries in

actual emergencies (per year)

channelled through UCPM (this

depends on whether disasters happen

or not)

b) Number of times that Eastern

Partnership countries activates the

UCPM in justified circumstances or

use it to channel international

assistance to Participating States

a) Baseline to

be set at the

inception of

the programme

b) Baseline to

be set at the

inception of

the programme

a, b) Targets to be set at the

inception phase of the

programme

Programme

reports

UCPM reports

ERCC

beneficiary

statistics

Sustained

commitment from

Partner Countries

Available

necessary human,

financial and

material resources

Commitment to

regional

cooperation in

disaster

preparedness and

response

Outputs

related to

outcome 1

a) Improved national

legal and institutional

framework

a1) Extent of

comprehensive risk

assessment and risk

management planning on

national and/or sub-

national level, including

local communities, civil

society organisations,

volunteers as well as

cross-cutting issues

a2) Improved risk

prevention and

preparedness measures,

including

institutionalised multi-

hazard early warning

system, contingency and

emergency planning,

public awareness and

risk communication, as

well as innovation and

knowledge services

b) Enhanced knowledge

and capacities for

emergency response,

including

interministerial/interagen

cy coordination in line

with EU practices and

international standards

c) Enhanced planning

and preparedness for

disaster recovery and

reconstruction on local,

a) Existence of

reviewed/developed/updated legal and

institutional framework

a1) Number of risk assessments and

risk management capabilities in

place/submitted/reviewed

a2) Number of road maps, guidelines,

and procedures developed/improved

and in use

a3) Number of hazards for which the

action led to the establishment of

procedures and coverage for

monitoring, detection and early action

(previously uncovered at a national

level)

b) Number of response capacities,

which are developed/upgraded

according to internationally

recognised standards (e.g.

Medium/Heavy Search and Rescue

modules)

b1) Extent to which Host Nation

Support (HNS) procedures are

improved/developed

c) ‘Build-back better’ tools and

guidelines

d) Number of people who have been

trained (number of gender trainings);

number of training curriculum

developed

d1) Number of table-top exercises at

national level

a) 3

a1) 4

a2) emergency

plans: 6; SOPs

for EWS: 4

a3) Baseline to

be set at the

inception

phase

b) 3

b1) 1

c) 0

d) Baseline to

be set at the

inception

phase

d1) Pilot areas

to be defined

during the

inception

phase

e) Baseline to

be set at the

inception

phase

f) Training

possibilities

and expertise

is available in

the region

a) Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme based on

countries current needs but

technical assistance should

be provided for at least 2

documents

a1) Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme based on

countries current needs but

technical assistance should

be provided in five

countries for at least 3

documents

a2) Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme based on

countries current needs but

technical assistance should

be provided in five

countries

b) At least one module

gaining INSARAG

classification during

programme

implementation

b1)

Updated/developed/review

er HNS procedures in at

least 2 countries

c) Technical assistance to

be provided in at least

three countries

Official gazette of

Partner Countries

Programme

reports

Reports from

governments and

local

administration

Ensured

sustainability and

durability to the

respective

projects by

making available

the necessary

human, financial

and material

resources

Willingness to

engage and

improve legal and

institutional

framework and

practices and to

ensure inter-

institutional

coordination;

willingness to

engage and

develop their

volunteering

networks

regional and national

level

d) Strengthened local

training capacities and civil protection actors

e) Strengthened network

of civil protection

volunteers at national

and regional level

f) National capacities for

Disaster Risk

Assessment and

production of Disaster

Loss Data are

strengthened

e) A functioning system of training

and supporting volunteers

f) Extent to which relevant staff have

benefitted from training/received

technical assistance

d)Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme

e) Target to be set at the

inception phase

f) Staff have participated

in/benefitted from

workshops, study visits,

technical assistance and

expert advice

Outputs

related to

outcome 2

a) Increased awareness

and use (quantitative and

qualitative) of UCPM

tools and services

available to Partner

Countries

b) Strengthened network

and exchanges between

new and aspiring

Participating States in the

Eastern Partnership

region and EU Member

States/Participating

States of the UCPM

a1) Number of registrations of

response teams, technical equipment

and other resources in the Common

Emergency Communication and

Information System (CECIS) and into

the European Civil Protection Pool

(ECPP), as well as reporting on

Article 6 and participation in the

Expert Groups (for Participating

States)

a2) Participation in projects, exercises,

trainings, and other tools available

under the UCPM (for Participating

States and non-Participating States)

b) Number of training, workshops,

exchange of experts visits

a1) Baseline to

be set at

inception

phase of

programme

a2) Baseline to

be set at

inception

phase of

programme

b) Based on

PRRD East 3

reports

a, b) Target to be set at

inception phase of

programme

Official

documents from

the governments

or domestic civil

protection

authorities

DG ECHO,

ERCC reports

Project/programm

e reports

Ensured

sustainability and

durability to the

respective

projects by

making available

the necessary

human, financial

and material

resources

The adequate staff

following the

training and

workshops and

participating in

activities

Outputs

related to

Outcome

3

a) Strengthened

institutional and

operational coordination

between the UCPM and

Partner Countries in the

areas of prevention,

preparedness, response

and recovery

b) Improved national

frameworks in each

Partner Country on

requesting and receiving

assistance through the

UCPM, as well as

interinstitutional

coordination on national

and regional level (in the

case of transboundary

risks)

c) Enhanced cross-border

and sub-regional

cooperation among

Eastern Partnership

countries, including

transboundary risk

assessment and response

planning

a, b, c) Number of times assistance is

provided among Partner Countries or

with other beneficiaries in

actual emergencies channelled

through the UCPM

a, b, c) Number of

updated/developed procedures/emerge

ncy response plans/protocols and

guidelines in place for requesting

and offering assistance incl. Host

nation Support (HNS)

a1) Number of exchange of experts

visits, workshops, trainings

b) Extent to which beneficiary

specific recommendations for inter-

institutional coordination mechanisms

are further developed

c) Number of joint regional and full-

scale exercises

c) Existence of multi-sectoral and

cross-border emergency plans in line

with the EU and international

standards

a, b, c)

Baseline to be

set at the

inception of

the programme

based on

PPRD East 3

final report

and the results

of the other

EU-funded

projects

a1) Based on

PPRD East 3

reports

a2) Baseline to

be set at the

inception of

the programme

based on

current

numbers

b) Baseline to

be set at the

inception of

the programme

c) 2

c) No updated

cross border

emergency

response plans

in line with

EU and

international

standards

a, b) Target to be set at the

inception of the

programme

c) 1 regional and full-scale

exercise

c) At least 1 Cross border

emergency response plan

developed in line with EU

and international standards

exist

DG ECHO,

ERCC reports

Reports from civil

protection

authorities of

Eastern

Partnership

countries

Programme

reports

Lessons learned

from practical

exercises and

actual disasters

Evidence on

communication/c

o-ordination

among the partner

countries and the

UCPM (ERCC) in real life

emergency

situations

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM)

Invitation to submit a proposal

Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

(UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4)

Version 1.0 15 January 2025

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

HISTORY OF CHANGES

Version Publication

Date Change Page

1.0 15.01.2025 ▪ Initial version

▪

▪

▪

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

0. Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 5

1. Background ............................................................................................................................... 7

Context ................................................................................................................................... 9

National Civil Protection Authorities ............................................................................................ 10

Lessons Learned ...................................................................................................................... 10

Links with the relevant initiatives ............................................................................................... 11

Intervention Logic .................................................................................................................... 12

Cross-cutting principles ............................................................................................................ 13

Programme Management .......................................................................................................... 13

2. Objectives — Specific objectives — Expected impact – Activities that can be funded .......................... 15

UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA — Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human- induced Disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries (PPRD East 4) ........................................ 15

Objective ................................................................................................................................ 15

Specific objectives ................................................................................................................... 15

Expected results ...................................................................................................................... 15

Activities that can be funded ..................................................................................................... 17

3. Available budget ....................................................................................................................... 20

4. Timetable and deadlines ............................................................................................................ 20

5. Admissibility and documents ...................................................................................................... 21

6. Eligibility .................................................................................................................................. 22

Eligible participants (eligible countries) ....................................................................................... 22

Specific cases and definitions .................................................................................................... 22

Consortium composition ........................................................................................................... 23

Eligible activities ...................................................................................................................... 23

Geographic location (target countries) ........................................................................................ 24

7. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion ........................................................................... 25

Financial capacity .................................................................................................................... 25

Operational capacity ................................................................................................................ 25

Exclusion ................................................................................................................................ 26

8. Evaluation and award procedure ................................................................................................. 27

9. Award criteria ........................................................................................................................... 29

EUROPEAN COMMISSION Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations

ECHO.C – Neighbourhood, Middle East, South-West and Central Asia ECHO.C.1 – Southeast Europe and Eastern Neighbourhood and Central Asia

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

10. Legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements ..................................................................... 32

Starting date and programme duration ....................................................................................... 32

Milestones and deliverables ....................................................................................................... 32

Form of grant, funding rate and maximum grant amount .............................................................. 34

Budget categories and cost eligibility rules .................................................................................. 34

Reporting and payment arrangements ........................................................................................ 35

Prefinancing guarantees ........................................................................................................... 36

Certificates ............................................................................................................................. 36

Liability regime for recoveries ................................................................................................... 36

Provisions concerning the programme implementation ................................................................. 36

Other specificities .................................................................................................................... 37

Non-compliance and breach of contract ...................................................................................... 37

11. How to submit an application .................................................................................................... 38

12. Help ...................................................................................................................................... 39

13. Important .............................................................................................................................. 40

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

0. Introduction

This is an invitation to submit a proposal for EU action grant in the field of civil

protection under the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM).

The regulatory framework for this EU Funding Programme is set out in:

− Regulation 2024/2509 (EU Financial Regulation1)

− Regulation 2021/947 (Neighbourhood, Development and International

Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe2)

− the UCPM Decision 1313/20133.

The invitation is launched in accordance with the 2024 Annual Action Plan for

Governance and EU Related reforms4 and will be managed by the European

Commission, Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and

Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO).

The call covers the following programme:

− UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 — Prevention, Preparedness and Response to

natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership

countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

We invite you to read the call documentation carefully, and in particular this Call

document, the Model Grant Agreement, the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Online

Manual and the EU Grants AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement.

These documents provide clarifications and answers to questions you may have when

preparing your application:

− the Call document outlines the:

− background, objectives, specific objectives, expected results and the

activities that can be funded (sections 1 and 2)

− timetable and available budget (sections 3 and 4)

− admissibility and eligibility conditions (including mandatory documents;

sections 5 and 6)

− criteria for financial and operational capacity and exclusion (section 7)

− evaluation and award procedure (section 8)

− award criteria (section 9)

− legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements (section 10)

1 Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 September

2024 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (recast) (‘EU Financial Regulation’) (OJ L, 2024/2509, 26.9.2024).

2 Regulation (EU) 2021/947 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 June 2021 establishing

the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe, (OJ L

209, 14.6.2021, p. 1–78). 3 Decision No 1313/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on a

Union Civil Protection Mechanism (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 924). 4 Commission Implementing Decision C(2024)5375 on the financing of the annual action plan in favour of

the NDICI Neighbourhood East Region for 2024.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

− how to submit an application (section 11)

− the Online Manual outlines the:

− procedures to register and submit proposals online via the EU Funding

& Tenders Portal (‘Portal’)

− recommendations for the preparation of the application

− the AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement contains:

− detailed annotations on all the provisions in the Grant Agreement you

will have to sign in order to obtain the grant (including cost eligibility,

payment schedule, accessory obligations, etc).

You are also encouraged to consult previous PPRD East programmes (PPRD East 1,

PPRD East 2 and PPRD East 3).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

1. Background

The programme for Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-

induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries (PPRD East) was initiated in

2010 under the Eastern Partnership (EaP) initiative. It aimed to strengthen disaster

risk reduction and crisis management in the EaP countries, to promote regional

cooperation and bring Partner Countries in cooperation with the Union Civil Protection

Mechanism (UCPM)5.

The UCPM, established in 2001, has become a comprehensive framework for

cooperation in disaster management in Europe and beyond. The overall objective of

the UCPM is to strengthen the cooperation in the field of civil protection, to facilitate

coordination, and to improve the effectiveness of the system for preventing,

preparing for, and responding to natural and human-induced disasters. Currently, 37

EU Member States and Participating States, are participating in the UCPM6.

The programmes of PPRD East 1 (2010-2014) and PPRD East 2 (2014-2019) were

directly linked with the “Eastern Partnership – 20 deliverables for 2020”, which

highlighted the importance of capacity building in crisis management. In line with the

“Recovery, resilience and reform: post 2020 Eastern Partnership priorities”, the PPRD

East 3 significantly enhanced Partner Countries‘ preparedness, prevention and

response to natural and human-induced disasters through capacity building activities.

The three phases of PPRD East have been transformative, significantly aiding Partner

Countries in their efforts to align national legislation with EU acquis and adopt best

practices in civil protection. These phases have facilitated important institutional

changes and fostered closer ties between the EU and Partner Countries by creating a

unique platform for both policy and technical dialogue, supported by extensive

capacity building. In addition, cooperation between Partner Countries and the UCPM

has been notably strengthened, with Ukraine joining as a Participating State in 2023

and the Republic of Moldova7 in 2024. While PPRD East is a regional program, it has

maintained the flexibility to accommodate the differing needs and priorities of each

Partner Country.

The overall aim of this invitation to submit a proposal is to identify and finance a

programme of PPRD East 4. The beneficiary countries are: Armenia, Azerbaijan,

Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine8.

The new programme of PPRD East will continue capacity building in the Partner

Countries to enhance resilience, deepen the engagements on local, national and

regional level and consolidate recommendations identified under the previous phase.

As per the results of PPRD East 3, continuous efforts should be focused on:

1. assisting and facilitating the development and/or update of National Disaster

Risk Assessment, ensuring the integration of cross-cutting issues;

2. reinforcing risk assessments integration in national and local emergency

planning to specific and/or multi-hazards;

5 The UCPM legal base is the Decision No 1313/2013/EU. 6 In light of Article 28(1a) of Decision No 1313/2013/EU, where reference is made to Member States, it

shall be understood as including Participating States as defined in Article 4(12) of Decision No 1313/2013/EU.

7 Hereinafter referred to as Moldova. 8 In line with the Council Conclusions of 12 October 2020 and in light of Belarus’s involvement in the

Russian military aggression against Ukraine, recognised in the European Council Conclusions of February 2022, the EU has stopped engaging with representatives of Belarus public bodies and state- owned enterprises. Should there be a change of the context this may be reconsidered.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

3. operationalising and institutionalising early warning systems, broadening the

scope of hazards, enhancing interinstitutional coordination for impact-based

forecasting;

4. enhancing training capacities and training curriculums;

5. strengthening interagency coordination and cooperation for requesting and

receiving international assistance, including Host Nation Support guidelines;

6. increasing networks between national authorities and civil society

organisations/volunteers.

The programme is also expected to place emphasis on innovation/knowledge transfer

and Disaster Risk Reduction, providing more systematic and integrated disaster

prevention and preparedness for quicker recovery. The new elements of the

programme include disaster recovery focusing on capacity building and technical

guidance for preparedness for disaster reconstruction as well as facilitating the link

between relief, rehabilitation and development. Moreover, the programme should

focus on the integration of new and aspiring Participating States of the UCPM into the

Mechanism.

The programme should take into account cross-cutting issues specified below. It

should also focus on improving civil protection capacities in line with the Sendai

Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 and the EU Disaster Resilience

Goals.

PPRD East 4 will be the last phase of the action. With 15 years of programme

implementation, the fourth phase of the programme shall focus on phasing out and

ensuring sustainability of the results after the end of the programme. The following

principles should be at the centre of these efforts:

1. Building upon recommendations from previous PPRD East phases:

where applicable, ensuring continuity and follow up to already developed

resources and capacities, taking lessons learned from previous programme,

addressing challenges previously encountered and avoiding duplication of

efforts.

2. Enhancing ownership and sustainability of programme: ensuring that

developed capacities and cooperation structures at local, national and regional

level respond to the needs of the beneficiaries and are further integrated into

the relevant national structures in order to ensure sustainability of the results

after the end of the programme.

3. Address country specific needs while maintaining regional approach:

the programme should be flexible and tailored to address the needs and

priorities of each Partner Country and identify cross-border/sub-regional and

regional cooperation opportunities.

4. Alignment with the UCPM and other disaster risk management

initiatives in the region (in addition to the EU acquis, where

applicable): the Union Disaster Resilience Goals, the Article 6.1 report

recommendations on disaster risk management9, mirroring programme

activities to bring countries closer to the UCPM and creating synergies with

initiatives funded by EU/UCPM and/or implemented by the international

9 Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on progress on implementation

of Article 6 of the Union Civil Protection Mechanism COM(2024)130 final.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

community (UN, World Bank, EIB, NATO, INGOs, bilateral cooperation with EU

Member States) and ensuring complementarity and coherence.

5. Result-oriented approach: placing focus on outcome-oriented rather than

output-oriented project planning. A robust results framework should form the

basis for adequate and timely monitoring and evaluation of the programme.

Particular emphasis should be paid to the applicants’ choice of indicators.

Context

The targeted region is characterised by a highly complex disaster profile. Despite their

large geographical coverage, the targeted countries can be characterised by their

considerably similar exposure to natural and human-induced disaster risks, ranging

from earthquakes, floods, landslides, forest and ground fires, heat and cold waves.

Environmental, industrial, and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN)

risks are serious.

Strengthening resilience which includes enhancing capacities to prevent, prepare and

respond to disasters across the entire region is one of the post 2020 Eastern

Partnership priorities10. The EaP countries recognise the need to further enhance

disaster management system. They have embarked into a process of capacity

building at all phases of disaster management, involving various stakeholders at local

and national level. Emergency planning, comprehensive disaster risk assessments and

methodology, inter-agency coordination and early warning systems have been

improved, with the support of previous PPRD East programme. These efforts have

contributed to the gradual and ongoing shift from overtly response-based civil

protection approach to prevention and preparedness one.

Nonetheless, capacities of the national authorities in the Partner Countries to

effectively manage disasters vary significantly. Lack of financial, human or technical

resources as well as inadequate capacities and expertise have often been cited as

obstacles to concrete implementation of a sound disaster risk management.

The instructional, legislative and financial arrangements for comprehensive and

gender-inclusive disaster risk management should be strengthened, taking into

account climate change impacts. Adaptation to climate change, although closely

related, is still not implemented in synergy and full coordination with disaster risk

management policies.

It is also necessary to strengthen inclusion of gender and vulnerable groups into the

disaster risk management process at both national and local levels, involving various

stakeholders and national agencies (volunteers, civil society organisations, etc.). Civil

protection education/training and volunteerism should be improved and further

institutionalised. Procedures for requesting and receiving international assistance

should be further developed and enshrined in the legislation. Effective disaster

recovery is another element of importance that requires capacity development.

Most of the countries have established cross-border cooperation agreements with

their neighbours regarding mutual assistance in case of major disasters, however in

some cases actual contacts need to be developed/better maintained and frameworks

for cooperation and international assistance in disasters should be strengthened.

In addition, Partner Countries cooperation with the UCPM is at different stages. Efforts

should be dedicated for the integration of Moldova and Ukraine into the UCPM, as well

10 Commission Joint Staff Working Document SWD(2021)186 on Recovery, resilience and reform: post

2020 Eastern Partnership priorities.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

as for Georgia, as a potential Participating State of the UCPM. Throughout the EaP

region, Moldova and Ukraine, as well as Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia are

particularly exposed to high transboundary risk in case of a disaster. These different

layers of cooperation need to be further enhanced and implemented in practice for an

efficient coordination in the region, with the UCPM, the EU Member States and other

international actors.

National Civil Protection Authorities

In Armenia, the newly created Ministry of Internal Affairs has taken the responsibility

of civil protection and disaster risk management. It incorporates the Rescue Service

of Armenia. The Ministry is undergoing major reforms, including in the Rescue

Service.

Azerbaijan has assigned Ministry of Emergency Situations with a wide range of

powers and responsibilities confirmed by large financial support from the state

budget.

In Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, the corresponding responsibilities are under the

jurisdiction of the Ministries of Internal Affairs. In Georgia, the strategic and

coordination functions (including the situation room) remain under the Prime

Minister’s office.

The capacities of the national authorities in Armenia, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine

can be characterised as advanced yet still unevenly distributed at national, regional,

and local levels. Generally, limited resources create deficiencies of emergency assets

for daily operations. However, it is worth noting that, given the ongoing war in

Ukraine with its direct cascading effects in Moldova, the two countries have

experienced non-negligeable advancements in the area of civil protection over the last

approximately 2.5 years.

Lessons Learned

The proposed action should build on the findings and lessons learnt from previously

implemented PPRD East programmes.

The previous PPRD East actions have enhanced legal and institutional frameworks to

improve disaster risk management and supported institutional coordination among all

actors to a varying extent. To note, not all Partner Countries are facing the same level

of difficulties or have the same needs and not all countries aspire to reach the same

level of cooperation with the UCPM, or with each other. National ownership has been

strong but varied throughout the implementation of the PPRD East programmes. It is

therefore important to ensure a high-level of commitment for a successful

implementation of PPRD East 4.

In addition, the recruitment of a local coordinator in each Partner Country during

PPRD East 3 has significantly facilitated communication and collaboration between the

programme team and national stakeholders.

Throughout phase 3 of PPRD East, adaptability and flexibility have been identified as

crucial for success, enabling relevant solutions and effective programme

implementation in view of changing circumstances (e.g. COVID-19) and challenges

(e.g. Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine).

The regional approach has been highlighted to be of great importance for the

assessment of cross-border risks, regional risk prioritisation and development of

similar national methodologies to enable the comparison of risks and exchange of

experts. Regional activities (such as trainings, table-top and full-scale exercises

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

conducted) provided a unique platform for dialogue on technical level and

operationalisation of programme outputs.

Furthermore, in order to ensure continuity and sustainability of the programme, it is

advised that national civil protection services undertake close cooperation with the

UCPM, particularly regarding policy alignment, thus ensuring an endurable

implementation of the action. The aforementioned sustainability and long-term

availability of the programme’s results could be made available and accessed as

needed via the Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network (UCPKN) online platform.

Links with the relevant initiatives

To avoid duplication of activities, the action should pursue synergies and attempt to

connect with other Commission-funded initiatives in the region. Efforts should already

be made in the proposal design phase to avoid an isolated programme

implementation. As part of their initial needs assessment, every proposal should

include a mapping of relevant past and present initiatives in the target countries,

especially if the initiatives received EU/UCPM funding. In cases in which relevant

initiatives exist, applicants should explain how they will pursue synergies with ongoing

initiatives or incorporate existing results from past initiatives into their programme

implementation.

Coordination and complementarities with similar regional or bilateral initiatives

through regular exchanges and the common anchoring to the UCPM are encouraged.

Those include:

- Ongoing Prevention and Preparedness projects in civil protection11;

- Multi-country mapping study on disaster risks and gaps: The applicants are

encouraged to build upon the comprehensive analysis of the disaster risk

landscape and capabilities/capacities of the countries in the targeted regions to

respond to disasters. The analysis will provide evidence on where the main

national, cross-border, regional risks, and gaps are in addressing those risks;

- On Site Technical Assistance: The overall objective of this programme is to

provide civil protection technical support to DG ECHO and contribute to a

smooth implementation of the civil protection cooperation programmes and

enhance their regional impact in the beneficiary countries. In the framework of

this action, ad hoc technical assistance is provided where the main national

authorities, participants and stakeholders meet obstacles and difficulties;

- Peer Review on disaster risk management system was carried out under the

UCPM in Moldova12. The proposals are invited to take into account the

recommendations from this Peer Review;

- Exchange of Experts programme which gives civil protection experts the

opportunity to share experiences, gain valuable knowledge and strengthen

operational skills by a system of exchange. Thus, this programme makes a

significant contribution to the ongoing development of the UCPM and builds

capacity in the field of civil protection;

- Other EU-funded bilateral projects in the Partner Countries complementing DG

ECHO-funded actions;

11 Prevention and Preparedness Projects in Civil Protection - European Commission (europa.eu) 12 Peer Review programme - European Commission (europa.eu)

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

- Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network (UCPKN): Proposals are invited to

use the UCPKN tools and activities to strengthen their dissemination and

engagement efforts. At the time of publication of this call, the UCPKN online

platform provides all UCPM-funded projects with a dedicated working space

with features enabling communication and dissemination, as well as

collaborative interaction with other users of the platform (discussion fora).

With time, additional features may be developed, including based on needs

identified by programme consortia during implementation stage.

Good practices can be drawn also from other regional programmes managed by DG

ECHO in the European Neighbourhood, namely the ongoing regional programmes for

Capacity for Risk Management of Earthquakes and Health Emergencies in Türkiye and

the Western Balkans (IPA CARE)13 and Prevention, Preparedness, Response to natural

and man-made Disasters in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean (PPRD Med)14.

Coordination with current and upcoming EU programmes and programmes of other

donors and partners (EU Member States, the OSCE, the US, the UN) will be sought

throughout the programme implementation.

Intervention Logic

Within the UCPM, the activities open to neighbouring countries include training,

exchange of experts, meetings, conferences, exercises, modules exercises, prevention

and preparedness projects. However, the demand from the neighbourhood countries

exceeds the offer.

In light of the above, the PPRD East 4 will be complementary to DG ECHO’s support

as it will allow a more regional and sub-regional focus including:

- provision of activities mirroring the activities of the UCPM, where the demand

of Partner Countries exceeds the offer by the UCPM or where activities shall be

tailor-made to the needs in the Eastern Neighbourhood;

- provision of technical support in understanding the financial components of the

Mechanism (e.g. calls for proposals for single- and multi-country grants, full-

scale exercises, etc.);

- provision of support beyond the scope of the activities traditionally offered to

neighbourhood countries, but in line with the UCPM principles and approaches;

- organisation of (sub)regional activities.

The phase 4 of the PPRD East programme is aimed at supporting policy development

in the broader area of disaster risks management to improve the countries’ capacity

to prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from natural and human-induced

hazards. In addition, the programme aims to complement DG ECHO’s efforts in

integrating the recent and potential Participating States of the UCPM into the

Mechanism. Lastly, the programme should have a high level of flexibility in order to

correspond to the changing needs and political situations in Partner Countries.

The programme will remain the platform for exchange and support on policy dialogue

within the institutional EaP architecture. Moreover, the platform should increase its

role as catalyser for synergies and partnerships with other actors present in the

region (e.g. the UN, the World Bank, etc.), in order to ensure consistency of EU

funding opportunities.

13 https://www.ipacare.eu/ 14 https://www.pprdmed.eu/

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Phase 4 of the programme is also intended to ensure that the results are sustainable

over time, and that durable cooperation links are established.

Cross-cutting principles

Cooperation with the Eastern Neighbourhood aims not only to prevent, prepare for,

respond to, and recover from disasters in the Partner Countries, but also to contribute

to social and political stability.

The applicants should address and integrate relevant cross-cutting issues. Proposals

are therefore invited to highlight their contribution to the Commission’s horizontal

commitments such as: resilience and conflict sensitivity, good governance and

human rights; environmental sustainability; the reduction of climate impacts

associated with programme implementation as well as the broader concept of

greening in civil protection; the promotion of gender balance and equality in

programme implementation; as well as the consideration of needs and perspectives of

vulnerable groups and persons with disabilities15.

Disaster Risk Reduction should be the central principle of the action, in full coherence

with the Sendai Framework: to prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters as well

as to better adapt to climate change. The Sendai Framework stresses the importance

of mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction into all policies and sectors as well as the of

the preservation of ecosystems. The action should therefore focus on the

development of early warning systems and community-based planning to prepare for

potential hazards and disasters, national and community-level training and

strengthening of legislative frameworks that foster Disaster Risk Reduction.

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction also emphasises the role of

vulnerable groups (including women, children, youth, elderly persons or persons with

disabilities) and advocates for resilient communities and an inclusive and all-of-

society disaster risk management. To this effect, awareness and understanding of

cultural specificities and differences will be considered throughout this action.

Programme Management

A Steering Committee (SC) will be established with the participation of the

Contracting Authority (DG ECHO) as well as the implementing consortium and the

beneficiary countries. The EU Delegations should be invited to the Steering

Committee as observers. The Steering Committee should meet at least once a year

and receive updates from the programme expert team regarding the implementation

of the programme and provide feedback. It will advise on the programme’s progress,

discuss the scheduled activities, and review results related to the activities completed.

The implementing consortium will prepare the agenda, supporting documents and the

minutes of the SC meetings and further distribute these documents to all SC

members. The Implementing consortium will submit these documents as part of its

reports to DG ECHO.

The EU Delegations in the Partner Countries will receive regular updates on the

progress of the Programme and will have the opportunity to provide comments and

input. The Delegations could also rely on the expertise of the Programme team, in

close collaboration with the Programme Manager of the Action.

15 Guidelines on integrating cross-cutting issues into Disaster Risk Management can be found in PPRD East

3 page on Knowledge Network: Prevention Preparedness and Response to natural and man-made disasters | UCP Knowledge Network (europa.eu)

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

National Programme Coordinators and Thematic Focal Points shall be appointed and

specific guidelines for these roles should be developed to ensure smooth cooperation.

National Programme Coordinators will be the main national interlocutors for the

programme expert team and will be directly involved in the implementation and

overall monitoring of the programme in their respective countries. Thematic Focal

Points will ensure continuous cooperation between the programme expert team and

Partner Countries’ institutions in specific thematic areas by coordinating all sectors

concerned (e.g. Disaster Risk Assessment, Host Nation Support, etc.). In order to

ensure involvement of all relevant sectors and actors, national multistakeholder

mechanism(s) shall be established to share information.

The working language of the programme is English. Translation/interpretation into the

national languages of the countries where the programme is implemented in should

be foreseen for relevant documents and when necessary for meetings.

For the indicative logical framework including general/specific objectives, outcomes,

outputs, indicators, sources of verification and assumptions please refer to Appendix

I. The general objective, specific objectives and expected results are pre-defined. The

proposal must define specific indicators, activities and deliverables that contribute to

the achievement of all specific objectives and the general objective. All components of

the proposed logical framework (overall objective, specific objectives, results,

activities, and indicators) should be linked through a logical, result-driven chain and

should demonstrate how the proposed action will contribute to achieving specific

objective 1, 2 and 3.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

2. Objectives — Specific objectives — Expected impact – Activities that can

be funded

UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA — Prevention, Preparedness and Response to

natural and human-induced Disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries

(PPRD East 4)

Objective

The general objective of the PPRD East 4 programme is to increase the resilience to

natural and human-induced disasters in the EaP countries.

Specific objectives

The specific objectives are to:

- Strengthen the capabilities of Partner Countries to prevent, prepare for,

respond to and recover from natural and human-induced disasters, and to

further enhance their disaster risk management governance;

- Support the further integration into the UCPM of the new Participating States,

as well as the countries eligible to join the UCPM;

- Increase Partner Countries participation in and cooperation with the UCPM,

including regional and cross-border cooperation.

Expected results

Related to Specific Objective 1: Strengthen the capabilities of Partner Countries to

prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from natural and human-induced

disasters, and to further enhance their disaster risk management governance

• Improved national legal and institutional framework on disaster risk

management and aligned to the EU acquis, building on the progress of phase

three and the other EU-funded projects, and ensuring the mainstreaming of

cross-cutting issues. This entails:

- Comprehensive risk assessment and risk management planning at

national and/or sub-national level, private sector and critical entities,

including local communities, civil society organisations, volunteers as

well as cross-cutting issues;

- Risk prevention and preparedness measures, including institutionalised

multi-hazard early warning systems, disaster loss data collection,

contingency and emergency planning, public awareness and risk

communication, innovation and knowledge services, nature-based

solutions and comprehensive prevention and preparedness action plans

and synergies between climate change adaptation and disaster risk

management;

- Strengthened capabilities to monitor, detect, forecast and assess the

impacts of natural and anthropogenic hazards using early warning and

information systems;

- Strengthened risk assessment methodologies considering cross-border,

high impact low probability and emerging risks and considering multi-

sectorial elements and areas such as climate change and geopolitical

risks;

- Strengthened cross-sectorial disaster risk management by considering

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

other areas such as critical infrastructure;

- Enhanced mapping and identification of capacity gaps to fill and

understanding of the causes (lack of technology, of knowledge, of

funding, of human resources) to allow targeted policies and

investments;

- Clearer distribution of tasks among relevant authorities and

organisations, in relation to the above-mentioned topics;

- Strengthened cooperation with the private sector, research and

academia, civil society organisations and the public should be further

promoted to favour the adoption of a whole-of-society approach.

• Enhanced knowledge and capacities for emergency response, including

interministerial/interagency coordination and in line with EU practices and

international standards (e.g. INSARAG standards, quality requirements for

assets in the European Civil Protection Pool, Host Nation Support, etc.);

increased interoperability of capacities with UCPM Member and Participating

States;

• Enhanced planning and preparedness for disaster recovery and reconstruction

on local, regional and national level, in line with build-back better principles,

and the improvement of disaster loss data collection;

• Civil protection actors are better trained in the entire disaster risk

management cycle; national training programmes and capacities are

strengthened as well as interlinked with UCPM training; a needs-driven and

training-of-trainers approach is pursued; ability to participate in regional and

international training and exercises, including leading, organising, and hosting

them, is increased;

• Strengthened network of civil protection national and regional volunteers;

Related to Specific Objective 2: Support the further integration into the UCPM of the

new Participating States, as well as the increased capacity in other Eastern

Partnership countries to potentially join the UCPM

• Increased awareness and use (quantitative and qualitative) of the UCPM tools

and the services available to Partner Countries; among the tools, the reporting

exercise to the Commission under Article 6.1 and the participation in the

Disaster Prevention Expert Group which contribute to the provision of policy

recommendations and the sharing of good practices;

• Strengthened network and exchanges between UCPM Member

States/Participating States and new integrated countries into the Mechanism.

Related to Specific Objective 3: Increase Partner Countries participation in and

cooperation with the UCPM, including regional and cross-border cooperation

• Strengthened institutional and operational coordination between the

Emergency Response Coordination Centre and Partner Countries;

• Improved national frameworks in each Partner Country on requesting and

receiving assistance through the UCPM, as well as interinstitutional

coordination on national and regional level (in the case of transboundary

risks);

• Enhanced cross-border and sub-regional cooperation among Eastern

Partnership countries, including transboundary risk assessment and response

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

planning.

Activities that can be funded

The choice and design of the PPRD East 4 activities should be aligned with the

principles and approaches underpinning the UCPM and, to the extent possible, mirror

the tools and support provided under the UCPM, without duplicating efforts.

Related to all Specific Objectives (1, 2, 3)

In order to develop a sound ownership of the proposed programme and to tailor the

programme according to Partner Countries’ needs, the action will commence with the

inception period (9 months16). This period will allow for stakeholder mapping and

identification of the current needs and priorities in each Partner Country as well as

discussion and review of proposed activities with Partner Countries. They will then be

submitted for endorsement by the Steering Committee (SC) and validated by DG

ECHO.

During the inception phase, on site visits to the Eastern Partnership countries will be

organised, with the expected additional support of the expert involved in the On Site

Technical Assistance. Activities validated at the end of inception phase by the SC will

be implemented throughout the remaining duration of the programme.

In addition, all activities should be coherent and must demonstrate contribution to the

objectives of the Action. Activities should have tangible outputs/outcomes with

relevant objectively verifiable indicators and clearly show complementarity with other

existing programmes mentioned above in the sub-section on Links with relevant

initiatives.

Any purchase of small-scale equipment should clearly contribute to the achievement

of the objectives of the programme and shall not exceed the 20% of the total value of

the Action and should be handed over to the final beneficiaries by the end of the

programme implementation.

Related to Specific Objective 1: Strengthen the capabilities of Partner Countries to

prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from natural and human-induced

disasters, and to further enhance their disaster risk management governance

• Technical assistance missions on the basis of needs assessment building on

the PPRD East 3 programme recommendations and/or specific demands by the

Partner Countries’ authorities inter alia covering legislative, regulatory,

management and technical needs. Cross-cutting issues in disaster risk

management should be reflected during needs assessment;

• Based on PPRD East 3 results, continue providing technical and expert support

on standardised operational procedures, forecast, early warning systems,

damage/need assessment, disaster loss data collection, risk assessment,

emergency communication tools and international assistance, including how to

use the most readily available technology and tools. Science use for decision-

making is encouraged;

• Mapping of needs with regard to Early Warning Systems and Public Warning

capabilities and recommendations to address these in a comprehensive

manner;

16 This 9-month period might be adapted to the circumstances if approved by the SC.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

• Technical assistance to support the disaster management authorities in

translating scientific information deriving from national, European or global

early warning systems to operational activities;

• Preparation of investment plans to increase disaster risk management

capacities;

• Public risk awareness and preparedness campaigns;

• Operational Recommendations for integration of selected actions into national

disaster risk management governance;

• Expert support on evaluation and improvement of legislation in disaster risk

management;

• National table top exercises, risk based mapping of existing response

capacities and identification of gaps in relation to the quality requirements set

by the EU. Multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder approach is encouraged;

• Technical assistance including for developing multi-hazards disaster recovery

framework to better manage pre- and post-disaster planning and operations.

This also includes development of solutions to integrate lessons learnt into

existing structures and processes;

• Mentoring, workshops and training courses for managers, experts and

volunteers. The training should be targeted based on national needs and

complement, when necessary, the courses offered by the UCPM Training

Programme (e.g. Union Civil Protection Introduction Course and the

Operational Management Course). Integration of cross-cutting issues in

disaster risk management is encouraged;

• Support to strengthen national training programmes and curricula;

• Support to incorporate and strengthen existing volunteer-based organisations

within the national and local civil protection system. Support in integrating

them within legal framework of the Partner Country.

Related to Specific Objective 2: Support the further integration into the UCPM of the

new Participating States, as well as the increased capacity in other Eastern

Partnership countries to potentially join the UCPM

• Meetings and workshops on UCPM tools and opportunities for collaborations;

• Technical assistance for civil protection experts in Partner Countries to develop

capacities in preparing quality proposals for call for proposals of UCPM grants;

• Training, mentoring and workshops mirroring the courses available under the

UCPM Training Programme (conducted only in English language);

• Participation in the Disaster Prevention Expert Group and other related

workshops;

• Exchange of Experts programme to other EU Member/Participating States of

the UCPM;

• Technical support for the reporting to the Commission on the Disaster risk

Management under Article 6.1;

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

• Trainings on the use of the Early Warning and Information Systems and of the

ARISTOTLE Scientific Partnership for natural hazards in order to acquire

complementary support in detection and monitoring activities.

Related to Specific Objective 3: Increase Partner Countries participation in and

cooperation with the UCPM, including regional and cross-border cooperation

• Meetings, workshops and conferences: Organise events promoting regional

and international cooperation, involving to the extent possible UCPM Member

and Participating States;

• Study visits to other Eastern Partnership or UCPM Member States/Participating

States; exchange programme to go on an exchange mission or invite civil

protection expert(s);

• Develop procedures for requesting and receiving international assistance

through UCPM, as well as facilitate operationalisation of the procedures on a

national level;

• Exercises: At least one joint regional table-top and joint full-scale exercise

involving the EaP beneficiary countries at the end of the programme, following

relevant national table-top exercises. The regional full-scale exercise should

test the quality of the response capacities and their operability and efficiency

in a real-life situation. The exercise should include the following topics:

activation of the UCPM; EU Civil Protection Team, deployment of modules

and/or other response capacities; national operational structures, Host Nation

Support Guidelines; Observers and Evaluation Programmes;

• Technical assistance in developing transboundary disaster risk assessments

and response plans, as well as facilitating the institutionalisation and

operationalisation of these measures.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

3. Available budget

The estimated available call budget is EUR 5 000 000. The Commission envisages to

sign one Grant Agreement.

The Commission reserves the right not to award all available funds depending on the

proposals received and the results of the evaluation.

4. Timetable and deadlines

Timetable and deadlines (indicative)

Call opening: 30 January 2025

Deadline for submission: 29 April 2025 – 17:00:00 CET (Brussels)

Evaluation: May-June 2025

Information on evaluation results: June-July 2025

GA signature: October-November 2025

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

5. Admissibility and documents

Proposals must be submitted before the call deadline (see timetable section 4).

Proposals must be submitted electronically via the Funding & Tenders Portal

Electronic Submission System (accessible via the link in the invitation letter). Paper

submissions are NOT possible.

Proposals (including annexes and supporting documents) must be submitted using

the forms provided inside the Submission System ( NOT the documents available

on the Topic page — they are only for information).

Proposals must be complete and contain all the requested information and all

required annexes and supporting documents:

− Application Form Part A — contains administrative information about the

participants (future coordinator, beneficiaries and affiliated entities) and the

summarised budget for the programme (to be filled in directly online)

− Application Form Part B — contains the technical description of the programme

(template to be downloaded from the Portal Submission System, completed,

assembled and re-uploaded)

− mandatory annexes and supporting documents (templates to be downloaded

from the Portal Submission System, completed, assembled and re-uploaded):

− detailed budget table (template available in the Submission System)

– CVs (standard) of core programme team

– list of previous projects/programmes (key projects for the last 4 years)

(template available in Part B)

– Letter of support from the competent national civil protection authority:

not applicable to national civil protection authorities themselves.

Please note that the amounts entered into the summarised budget table (filled in

directly online) must correspond to the amounts calculated in the detailed budget

table. In case of discrepancies, the amounts in the online summarised budget table

will prevail.

At proposal submission, you will have to confirm that you have the mandate to act

for all applicants. Moreover, you will have to confirm that the information in the

application is correct and complete and that all participants comply with the

conditions for receiving EU funding (especially eligibility, financial and operational

capacity, exclusion, etc). Before signing the grant, each beneficiary and affiliated

entity will have to confirm this again by signing a declaration of honour (DoH).

Proposals without full support will be rejected.

Your application must be readable, accessible and printable (please check

carefully the layout of the documents uploaded).

Proposals are limited to maximum 60 pages (Part B). Evaluators will not consider

any additional pages.

You may be asked at a later stage for further documents (for legal entity validation,

financial capacity check, bank account validation, etc).

For more information about the submission process (including IT aspects), consult

the Online Manual.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

6. Eligibility

Eligible participants (eligible countries)

In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:

− be national and/or sub-national civil protection authorities (or relevant

competent authorities or entities)

− be established only in one of the EU Member States or Participating States

(including overseas countries and territories (OCTs)) according to the

Regulation 2021/947.

Beneficiaries and affiliated entities must register in the Participant Register — before

submitting the proposal — and will have to be validated by the Central Validation

Service (REA Validation). For the validation, they will be requested to upload

documents showing legal status and origin.

Other entities may participate in other consortium roles, such as associated partners,

subcontractors, third parties giving in-kind contributions, etc (see section 13).

Specific cases and definitions

Natural persons — Natural persons are NOT eligible (with the exception of self-

employed persons, i.e. sole traders, where the company does not have legal

personality separate from that of the natural person).

International organisations — International organisations are NOT eligible. The rules

on eligible countries do not apply to them.

Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under

their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives

have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees

for the protection of the EU financial interests equivalent to that offered by legal

persons17.

Associations and interest groupings — Entities composed of members may participate

as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality’18. Please note that

if the action will be implemented by the members, they should also participate (either

as beneficiaries or as affiliated entities, otherwise their costs will NOT be eligible).

Countries currently negotiating association agreements — Beneficiaries from countries

with ongoing negotiations for participation in the programme (see list of participating

countries above) may participate in the call and can sign grants if the negotiations are

concluded before grant signature and if the association covers the call (i.e. is

retroactive and covers both the part of the programme and the year when the call

was launched).

EU restrictive measures — Special rules apply for entities subject to EU restrictive

measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and Article 215

of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU)19. Such entities are not eligible to

participate in any capacity, including as beneficiaries, affiliated entities, associated

partners, subcontractors or recipients of financial support to third parties (if any).

17 See Article 200(2)(c) EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509. 18 For the definitions, see Articles 190(2) and 200(2)(c) EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509. 19 Please note that the EU Official Journal contains the official list and, in case of conflict, its content

prevails over that of the EU Sanctions Map.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

EU conditionality measures — Special rules apply for entities subject to measures

adopted on the basis of EU Regulation 2020/209220. Such entities are not eligible to

participate in any funded role (beneficiaries, affiliated entities, subcontractors,

recipients of financial support to third parties, etc.). Currently such measures are in

place for Hungarian public interest trusts established under the Hungarian Act IX of

2021 or any entity they maintain (see Council Implementing Decision (EU)

2022/2506, as of 16 December 2022).

For more information, see Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and

Financial Capacity Assessment.

Consortium composition

Proposals must be submitted by a consortium of at least two national or sub-

national civil protection authorities (or relevant competent authorities or entities)

coming from a minimum of two different EU Member States.

Reminder: Only entities from EU Member States are eligible.

The proposal needs to show that a meaningful contribution to the programme is made

by all of the beneficiaries participating in the consortium, which ensure that the

minimum eligibility criteria are met, and to demonstrate that activities and results will

be developed jointly in partnership. All the proposals, regardless of the composition of

the consortium, must demonstrate relevance and added value for the UCPM.

In order to ensure a strong focus on the results it is strongly recommended that the

composition of the consortium be very targeted and that the number of consortium

members does not exceed 5 entities.

Eligible activities

Applications will only be considered eligible if their content corresponds wholly (or at

least in part) to the programme description for which they are submitted.

Eligible activities are the ones set out in section 2 above.

Activities should take place in the EaP countries stipulated in the background section.

They may also take place in other countries (EU Members States and UCPM

Participating States if it is relevant and duly justified).

All actions under this grant should be for the benefit of the EaP countries. The results

of the programme shall be transferred to the target institutions/final beneficiaries of

the action, at the latest when the final report is submitted to DG ECHO.

Programmes must comply with EU policy interests and priorities (such as

environment, social, security, industrial and trade policy, etc). Programmes must also

respect EU values and European Commission policy regarding reputational matters

(e.g. activities involving capacity building, policy support, awareness raising,

communication, dissemination, etc).

The following activities are not considered as eligible for funding under this invitation:

− Online platforms: To avoid duplication with the UCPKN online platform,

proposed action should make use of the existing features and tools available

20 Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2092 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December

2020 on a general regime of conditionality for the protection of the Union budget (OJ L 325, 20.12.2022, p. 94).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

on the platform for their programme activities. If relevant, outputs and

activities should be linked to the UCPKN platform and shall not replicate or

foresee the development of similar online platforms. It is possible that some

programme outputs may be selected to become integrated into the UCPKN

online platform.

− Activities which consist exclusively or primarily in capital expenditure, e.g.

buildings, vehicles.

− Works.

Financial support to third parties is not allowed.

Geographic location (target countries)

Proposals must relate to activities taking place in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia,

Moldova and Ukraine21.

21 In line with the Council Conclusions of 12 October 2020 and in light of Belarus’s involvement in the

Russian military aggression against Ukraine, recognised in the European Council Conclusions of

February 2022, the EU has stopped engaging with representatives of Belarus public bodies and state- owned enterprises. Should there be a change of the context this may be reconsidered.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

7. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion

Financial capacity

Applicants must have stable and sufficient resources to successfully implement

the programme and contribute their share. Organisations participating in several

projects must have sufficient capacity to implement all projects.

The financial capacity check will be carried out on the basis of the documents you will

be requested to upload in the Participant Register during grant preparation (e.g. profit

and loss account and balance sheet, business plan, audit report produced by an

approved external auditor, certifying the accounts for the last closed financial year,

etc). The analysis will be based on neutral financial indicators, but will also take into

account other aspects, such as dependency on EU funding and deficit and revenue in

previous years.

The check will normally be done for all beneficiaries, except:

− public bodies (entities established as public body under national law, including

local, regional or national authorities) or international organisations

− if the individual requested grant amount is not more than EUR 60 000.

If needed, it may also be done for affiliated entities.

If we consider that your financial capacity is not satisfactory, we may require:

− further information

− an enhanced financial responsibility regime, i.e. joint and several responsibility

for all beneficiaries or joint and several liability of affiliated entities (see below,

section 10)

− prefinancing paid in instalments

− (one or more) prefinancing guarantees (see below, section 10)

or

− propose no prefinancing

− request that you are replaced or, if needed, reject the entire proposal.

For more information, see Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and

Financial Capacity Assessment.

Operational capacity

Applicants must have the know-how, qualifications and resources to successfully

implement the programme and contribute their share (including sufficient experience

in programmes of comparable size and nature).

This capacity will be assessed together with the ‘Quality’ award criterion, on the basis

of the competence and experience of the applicants and their programme teams,

including operational resources (human, technical and other) or, exceptionally, the

measures proposed to obtain it by the time the task implementation starts.

If the evaluation of the award criterion is positive, the applicants are considered to

have sufficient operational capacity.

Applicants will have to show their capacity via the following information:

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

− general profiles (qualifications and experiences) of the staff responsible for

managing and implementing the programme

− description of the consortium participants

− list of previous projects/programmes (key projects for the last 4 years)

(template available in Part B)

It is suggested that profiles listed below are included in the team responsible for

managing and implementing the action. Evidence will consist of CVs of the key staff

responsible for the implementation of the action. Each CV should indicate the

intended function in the programme implementation and percentage of expected

engagement. Proficiency in English is required for all roles. The team should be

gender-balanced.

- Programme Manager: Extensive experience in project/programme

management for programmes of similar size and coverage, with experience in

cooperating closely with different stakeholders, including public

administrations, civil society, private sector and scientific communities;

Experience in the Eastern Neighbourhood and the UCPM.

- Senior Civil Protection Experts with experience in respective areas covered

by the programme activities (e.g. disaster risk reduction and assessment,

contingency/emergency planning, early warning); Experience in international

disaster risk management cooperation or multi-national programmes/projects

in the field of civil protection.

- Senior Training & Exercises Experts: extensive experience in UCPM

trainings and exercises. Experience in designing, organising and evaluating

civil protection training activities and exercises; Recruitment of experts from

various Member States/Participating States is encouraged to further promote

synergies between UCPM and Partner Countries and increase EU added value.

- Evaluation and Monitoring Expert: The expert should ensure adequate and

timely monitoring and evaluation of the overall programme.

- Communications Expert: The expert should be fluent in English and Russian,

has excellent communication skills and have good knowledge about the UCPM.

Additional supporting documents may be requested, if needed to confirm the

operational capacity of any applicant.

Public bodies, Member State organisations and international organisations are

exempted from the operational capacity check.

Exclusion

Applicants which are subject to an EU exclusion decision or in one of the following

exclusion situations that bar them from receiving EU funding can NOT participate22:

− bankruptcy, winding up, affairs administered by the courts, arrangement with

creditors, suspended business activities or other similar procedures (including

procedures for persons with unlimited liability for the applicant’s debts)

− in breach of social security or tax obligations (including if done by persons with

unlimited liability for the applicant’s debts)

22 See Articles 138 and 143 of EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

− guilty of grave professional misconduct23 (including if done by persons having

powers of representation, decision-making or control, beneficial owners or

persons who are essential for the award/implementation of the grant)

− committed fraud, corruption, links to a criminal organisation, money

laundering, terrorism-related crimes (including terrorism financing), child

labour or human trafficking (including if done by persons having powers of

representation, decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who

are essential for the award/implementation of the grant)

− shown significant deficiencies in complying with main obligations under an EU

procurement contract, grant agreement, prize, expert contract, or similar

(including if done by persons having powers of representation,

decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for

the award/implementation of the grant)

− guilty of irregularities within the meaning of Article 1(2) of EU Regulation

2988/95 (including if done by persons having powers of representation,

decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for

the award/implementation of the grant)

− created under a different jurisdiction with the intent to circumvent fiscal, social

or other legal obligations in the country of origin or created another entity with

this purpose (including if done by persons having powers of representation,

decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for

the award/implementation of the grant)

− intentionally and without proper justification resisted24 an investigation, check

or audit carried out by an EU authorising officer (or their representative or

auditor), OLAF, the EPPO, or the European Court of Auditors.

Applicants will also be rejected if it turns out that25:

− during the award procedure they misrepresented information required as a

condition for participating or failed to supply that information

− they were previously involved in the preparation of the call and this entails a

distortion of competition that cannot be remedied otherwise (conflict of

interest).

23 ‘Professional misconduct’ includes, in particular, the following: violation of ethical standards of the

profession; wrongful conduct with impact on professional credibility; breach of generally accepted professional ethical standards; false declarations/misrepresentation of information; participation in a cartel or other agreement distorting competition; violation of IPR; attempting to influence decision- making processes by taking advantage, through misrepresentation, of a conflict of interests, or to obtain confidential information from public authorities to gain an advantage; incitement to discrimination, hatred or violence or similar activities contrary to the EU values where negatively affecting or risking to affect the performance of a legal commitment.

24 ‘Resisting an investigation, check or audit’ means carrying out actions with the goal or effect of preventing, hindering or delaying the conduct of any of the activities needed to perform the investigation, check or audit, such as refusing to grant the necessary access to its premises or any other areas used for business purposes, concealing or refusing to disclose information or providing false information.

25 See Article 143 EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

8. Evaluation and award procedure

The proposals will have to follow the standard submission and evaluation

procedure (one-stage submission + one-step evaluation).

An evaluation committee will assess all applications. Proposals will first be checked

for formal requirements (admissibility, and eligibility, see sections 5 and 6). Proposals

found admissible and eligible will be evaluated against the operational capacity and

award criteria (see sections 7 and 9) and then ranked according to their scores.

For proposals with the same score (within a budget envelope) a priority order will be

determined according to the following approach:

Successively for every group of ex aequo proposals, starting with the highest

scored group, and continuing in descending order:

1) Programme focusing on a theme/activities that is not otherwise covered by

higher ranked programme will be considered to have the highest priority.

2) The ex aequo proposals will be prioritised according to the scores they have

been awarded for the award criterion ‘Relevance’. When these scores are

equal, priority will be based on their scores for the criterion ‘Impact’. When

these scores are equal, priority will be based on their scores for the criterion

‘Quality’.

3) If this does not allow to determine the priority, a further prioritisation can be

done by considering the overall programme portfolio and the creation of

positive synergies between other programmes/projects, or other factors

related to the objectives of the call. These factors will be documented in the

panel report.

All proposals will be informed about the evaluation result (evaluation result letter).

Successful proposals will be invited for grant preparation; the other ones will be put

on the reserve list or rejected.

No commitment for funding — Invitation to grant preparation does NOT constitute

a formal commitment for funding. We will still need to make various legal checks

before grant award: legal entity validation, financial capacity, exclusion check, etc.

Grant preparation will involve a dialogue in order to fine-tune technical or financial

aspects of the programme and may require extra information from your side. It may

also include adjustments to the proposal to address recommendations of the

evaluation committee or other concerns. Full compliance will be a pre-condition for

signing the grant.

If you believe that the evaluation procedure was flawed, you can submit a complaint

(following the deadlines and procedures set out in the evaluation result letter). Please

note that notifications which have not been opened within 10 days after sending will

be considered to have been accessed and that deadlines will be counted from

opening/access (see also Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions). Please

also be aware that for complaints submitted electronically, there may be character

limitations.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

9. Award criteria

The award criteria facilitate the evaluation of proposals in relation to the set

objectives and priorities. They enable the selection of proposals which the Contracting

Authority can be confident will comply with its objectives and priorities.

The award criteria for this call are as follows:

1. Relevance (min. 15 / max. 30 points):

The criterion refers to the contribution of the proposed action to the achievement of

the general and specific objectives of the action (section 2); the extent to which the

proposed action balances between regional and specific national needs of the Eastern

Partnership countries; coherence with ongoing initiatives in the region and the

relevance of the proposed action to the UCPM in general (section 1).

For all specific objectives:

- Extend to which the proposed action takes into account the needs and the

specific situation in each Eastern Partnership countries, as well as cross-

border, regional, cross-cutting issues and climate change impacts.

- Extent to which the proposed action addresses lessons learnt identified in

previous PPRD East programmes, including as concerns regional cooperation

and cooperation with the UCPM;

- Extend to which the proposed action takes into consideration the broad policy

context and relevant existing initiatives in the region;

- Extend to which the proposed action complements ongoing initiatives and

programmes in the region in the area of civil protection.

For the activities related to the specific objective 1:

- Extent to which the proposed action contributes to enhance the national

prevention, preparedness, response and recovery measures;

- The proposed action plans/guidelines for developing risk assessments are in

line with the Guidelines for disaster Management26, Sendai Framework

priorities and the EU good practices, and facilitate development of regionally

harmonised methodology;

- Extent to which the proposed action takes into account current disaster risk

management governance structures in the selected Partner Countries,

addresses its potential areas for improvement focusing on interinstitutional

and multi-stakeholder coordination, early warning systems, climate change

adaptation, risk and post-disaster assessment;

- Extent to which the proposed action follows the needs-based and training of

trainers approach;

- Effectiveness and sustainability of proposed cooperation structures involving

non-civil protection actors, including volunteers.

For the activities related to the specific objective 2:

26 SEC(2010) 1626 final

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

- Extent to which the proposed action takes into account the current needs and

gaps of each (aspiring) Participating State to further integrate into the

Mechanism;

- Extend to which the proposed action is improving the operational cooperation

with UCPM and its tools.

For the activities related to the specific objective 3:

- Extend to which the proposed action is promoting the local, national and

regional inter-ministerial/interagency cooperation;

- Extend to which the proposed action is promoting synergies with other

initiatives/actions and relevant actors in the region and with the EU;

- Extend to which the proposed action is improving the operational cooperation

with UCPM and its tools;

- The proposed action includes at least one regional table-top and full-scale

exercise.

2. Quality (min. 20 / max. 40 points):

This criterion will evaluate:

- Quality of the proposed logical framework matrix with particular emphasis on

the choice of indicators. Outcome-oriented approach instead of focusing on

outputs.

- Adequacy and quality of the implementation structure/methodology and

resources deployed in relation to the objectives envisaged (particularly in

terms of cost-effectiveness);

- Clarity of the budget requested to carry out the action, as indicated in the

budget (Application Form Part A);

- If the planning of the action is reasonably developed, if monitoring and quality

control measures (e.g. Logical Framework Matrix, mitigation measures,

reporting) are in place and if the organisation of the action is well adapted to

its nature and objectives. Demonstration on how monitoring and evaluation

will be ensured based on the results framework. Risk management plan is

elaborated and addresses most relevant risks to be faced during the

programme implementation.

3. Impact (min. 15 / max. 30 points):

This criterion will evaluate the proposed action in terms of:

- Actions enhance ownership of the programme outputs at national and regional

level;

- Outcomes respond to the needs of the beneficiaries and are used by the

targeted groups of beneficiaries. Outcomes can also be maintained after the

end of the programme;

- Full involvement of concerned stakeholders in the activities of the action to

ensure long-term impact and transferability of expected results.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Maximum points: 100 points.

Individual thresholds per criterion: 15/30, 20/40 and 15/30 points.

Overall threshold: 65 points. The overall threshold is not the result of the addition of

the minimum pass scores per award criteria.

A decision to reject an application can be based on the following grounds:

- the application was submitted after the closing date;

- the application is incomplete or otherwise non-compliant with the stated

administrative conditions or in any other way does not comply with the eligibility

criteria as set out the call for proposals.

Proposals that pass the individual thresholds AND the overall threshold will be

considered for funding — within the limits of the available budget (i.e. up to the

budget ceiling). Other proposals will be rejected.

Award criteria Minimum pass score

Maximum score

Relevance 15 30

Quality 20 40

Impact 15 30

Overall (pass) scores 65 100

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

10. Legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements

If you pass evaluation, your programme will be invited for grant preparation, where

you will be asked to prepare the Grant Agreement together with the EU Programme

Officer.

This Grant Agreement will set the framework for your grant and its terms and

conditions, in particular concerning deliverables, reporting and payments.

The Model Grant Agreement that will be used (and all other relevant templates and

guidance documents) can be found on Portal Reference Documents.

Starting date and programme duration

The programme starting date and duration will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data

Sheet, point 1). Normally the starting date will be after grant signature. A retroactive

starting date can be granted exceptionally for duly justified reasons — but never

earlier than the proposal submission date.

Programme duration: the initial duration of the programme cannot exceed 48

months.

Extensions are possible, if duly justified and through an amendment.

Milestones and deliverables

The milestones and deliverables for the programme will be managed through the

Portal Grant Management System and will be reflected in Annex 1 of the Grant

Agreement.

The following deliverables are mandatory:

Name of report Content Time of submission

Inception Report Analysis of existing

situation and work plan for

the programme. The work

plan shall include a time

schedule with milestones

and specific outputs, as

well as estimated

resources for successful

implementation of the

contract.

No later than 9 months

after the start of

implementation

Visibility plan and

communication plan

Clear strategy for

communication activities.

Plan for ensuring visibility

(in compliance with

guidelines) throughout the

programme duration.

No later than 9 months

after the start of

implementation.

It could be part of the

Inception report.

12-month Technical

Reports

In line with Periodic Report No later than 3 months

after the end of each 12-

month implementation

period.

12-month Financial In line with Detailed Cost No later than 3 months

after the end of each 12-

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Reports Reporting Table month implementation

period.

Draft Final Report Covers the full period of

implementation.

Description of

achievements, results and

impacts. Shall also include

problems encountered and

recommendations.

Includes a summary to be

published on the UCPKN

programme website when

approved.

An analysis of the

contribution of the

programme to the results

should be provided as part

of the report (focus on

outcome and results, and

potential impact, not only

on activities). The report

contains a two-page annex

per country (for

distribution to Delegations

of concerned countries).

No later than 1 month

before the end of the

implementation period.

Final Report Covers the full period of

implementation.

Description of

achievements, results and

impacts. Shall also include

problems encountered and

recommendations.

Includes a summary to be

published on the UCPKN

programme website when

approved.

An analysis of the

contribution of the

programme to the results

should be provided as part

of the report (focus on

outcome and results, and

potential impact, not only

on activities). The report

contains a two-page annex

per country (for

distribution to Delegations

of concerned countries).

Within 60 days after

receiving comments on the

draft final report from the

Programme Manager.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Form of grant, funding rate and maximum grant amount

The grant parameters (maximum grant amount, funding rate, total eligible costs, etc)

will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data Sheet, point 3 and art 5).

The programme budget (requested grant amount): EUR 5 000 000.

The grant awarded may be lower than the amount requested.

The grant will be a budget-based mixed actual cost grant (actual costs, with unit cost

and flat-rate elements). This means that it will reimburse ONLY certain types of costs

(eligible costs) and costs that were actually incurred for your programme (NOT the

budgeted costs). For unit costs and flat-rates, you can charge the amounts calculated

as explained in the Grant Agreement (see art 6 and Annex 2 and 2a).

The costs will be reimbursed at the funding rate fixed in the Grant Agreement

(100%).

Grants may NOT produce a profit (i.e. surplus of revenues + EU grant over costs).

For-profit organisations must declare their revenues and, if there is a profit, we will

deduct this from the final grant amount (see art 22.3).

Moreover, please be aware that the final grant amount may be reduced in case of

non-compliance with the Grant Agreement (e.g. improper implementation, breach of

obligations, etc).

Budget categories and cost eligibility rules

The budget categories and cost eligibility rules are fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data

Sheet, point 3, art 6 and Annex 2).

Budget categories for this call:

− A. Personnel costs

− A.1 Employees, A.2 Natural persons under direct contract, A.3 Seconded

persons

− A.4 SME owners and natural person beneficiaries

− B. Subcontracting costs

− C. Purchase costs

− C.1 Travel and subsistence

− C.2 Equipment

− C.3 Other goods, works and services

− E. Indirect costs

Specific cost eligibility conditions for this call:

− personnel costs:

− SME owner/natural person unit cost 27

: Yes

− volunteers unit cost 28

: No

27 Commission Decision of 20 October 2020 authorising the use of unit costs for the personnel costs of

the owners of small and medium-sized enterprises and beneficiaries that are natural persons not receiving a salary for the work carried out by themselves under an action or work programme (C(2020)7115).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

− travel and subsistence unit cost 29

: Yes30

− equipment costs: depreciation + full cost for listed equipment

− indirect cost flat-rate: 7% of the eligible direct costs (categories A-D, except

volunteers costs and exempted specific cost categories, if any)

− VAT: VAT is NOT eligible

− other:

− in-kind contributions for free are allowed, but cost-neutral, i.e. they cannot

be declared as cost

− programme websites: communication costs for presenting the programme

on the participants’ websites or social media accounts are eligible; costs

for separate programme websites are not eligible

− other ineligible costs: No

Reporting and payment arrangements

The reporting and payment arrangements are fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data

Sheet, point 4 and art 21 and 22).

After grant signature, the implementing consortium will normally receive a

prefinancing corresponding to 20% of the maximum grant amount to start working

on the programme (exceptionally less or no prefinancing). The prefinancing will be

paid 30 days from entry into force financial guarantee (if required) — whichever is the

latest.

There will be one or more additional prefinancing payments linked to a

prefinancing report. In addition, you are expected to submit progress reports linked to

payments (see milestones and deliverables section).

Payment of the balance: At the end of the programme, we will calculate your final

grant amount. If the total of earlier payments is higher than the final grant amount,

we will ask you (your coordinator) to pay back the difference (recovery).

All payments will be made to the coordinator.

Please be aware that payments will be automatically lowered if you or one of your

consortium members has outstanding debts towards the EU (granting authority or

other EU bodies). Such debts will be offset by us — in line with the conditions set out

in the Grant Agreement (see art 22).

Please also note that you are responsible for keeping records on all the work done

and the costs declared.

Prefinancing guarantees

28 Commission Decision of 10 April 2019 authorising the use of unit costs for declaring personnel costs for

the work carried out by volunteers under an action or a work programme (C(2019)2646). 29 Commission Decision of 12 January 2021 authorising the use of unit costs for travel, accommodation

and subsistence costs under an action or work programme under the 2021-2027 multi-annual financial framework (C(2021)35).

30 See EU Grants AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement, art 6 on eligible costs: travel and subsistence costs

must be declared using the unit cost according to Annex 2a of the grant agreement. If a particular instance of travel, accommodation or subsistence in the action is not covered by one of the unit costs mentioned in Decision C(2021)35 the actual costs may be used.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

If a prefinancing guarantee is required, it will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data

Sheet, point 4). The amount will be set during grant preparation and it will normally

be equal or lower than the prefinancing for your grant.

The guarantee should be in euro and issued by an approved bank/financial institution

established in an EU Member State. If you are established in a non-EU country and

would like to provide a guarantee from a bank/financial institution in your country,

please contact us (this may be exceptionally accepted, if it offers equivalent security).

Amounts blocked in bank accounts will NOT be accepted as financial guarantees.

Prefinancing guarantees are normally requested from the coordinator, for the

consortium. They must be provided during grant preparation, in time to make the

prefinancing (scanned copy via Portal AND original by post).

If agreed with us, the bank guarantee may be replaced by a guarantee from a third

party.

The guarantee will be released at the end of the grant, in accordance with the

conditions laid down in the Grant Agreement (art 23).

Certificates

Depending on the type of action, size of grant amount and type of beneficiaries, you

may be requested to submit different certificates. The types, schedules and

thresholds for each certificate are fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data Sheet, point 4

and art 24).

A CFS must be provided for each beneficiary and affiliated entity when the requested

EU contribution at interim or final payment is EUR 325 000 or more.

Liability regime for recoveries

The liability regime for recoveries will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data Sheet,

point 4.4 and art 22).

For beneficiaries, it is one of the following:

− limited joint and several liability with individual ceilings — each beneficiary up

to their maximum grant amount

− unconditional joint and several liability — each beneficiary up to the maximum

grant amount for the action

or

− individual financial responsibility — each beneficiary only for their own debts.

In addition, the granting authority may require joint and several liability of affiliated

entities (with their beneficiary).

Provisions concerning the programme implementation

Security rules: see Model Grant Agreement (art 13 and Annex 5)

IPR rules: see Model Grant Agreement (art 16 and Annex 5):

− rights of use on results: Yes

Communication, dissemination and visibility of funding: see Model Grant Agreement

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

(art 17 and Annex 5):

− additional communication and dissemination activities: Yes

− limited communication and visibility to protect persons involved: Yes

− visibility in field operations outside the EU: Yes

Specific rules for carrying out the action: see Model Grant Agreement (art 18 and

Annex 5):

− zero tolerance: Yes

− transfer of assets at the end of the action: Yes

− EU restrictive measures: Yes

Other specificities

Consortium agreement: Yes

Non-compliance and breach of contract

The Grant Agreement (chapter 5) provides for the measures we may take in case of

breach of contract (and other non-compliance issues).

For more information, see AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

11. How to submit an application

All proposals must be submitted directly online via the Funding & Tenders Portal

Electronic Submission System. Paper applications are NOT accepted.

Submission is a 2-step process:

a) create a user account and register your organisation

To use the Submission System (the only way to apply), all participants need to create

an EU Login user account.

Once you have an EULogin account, you can register your organisation in the

Participant Register. When your registration is finalised, you will receive a 9-digit

participant identification code (PIC).

b) submit the proposal

Access the Electronic Submission System through the following hyperlink:

https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/submission/manage/screen/su

bmission/create-draft/39720?topic=UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA

Submit your proposal in 3 parts, as follows:

− Part A includes administrative information about the applicant organisations

(future coordinator, beneficiaries, affiliated entities and associated partners)

and the summarised budget for the proposal. Fill it in directly online

− Part B (description of the action) covers the technical content of the proposal.

Download the mandatory word template from the Submission System, fill it in

and upload it as a PDF file

− Annexes (see section 5). Upload them as PDF file (single or multiple

depending on the slots). Excel upload is sometimes possible, depending on the

file type.

The proposal must keep to the page limits (see section 5); excess pages will be

disregarded. Additional information on the technical content of the proposal could be

included as Annexes.

Documents must be uploaded to the right category in the Submission System,

otherwise the proposal may be considered incomplete and thus inadmissible.

The proposal must be submitted before the call deadline (see section 4). After this

deadline, the system is closed and proposals can no longer be submitted.

Once the proposal is submitted, you will receive a confirmation e-mail (with date

and time of your application). If you do not receive this confirmation e-mail, it means

your proposal has NOT been submitted. If you believe this is due to a fault in the

Submission System, you should immediately file a complaint via the IT Helpdesk

webform, explaining the circumstances and attaching a copy of the proposal (and, if

possible, screenshots to show what happened).

Details on processes and procedures are described in the Online Manual. The Online

Manual also contains the links to FAQs and detailed instructions regarding the Portal

Electronic Exchange System.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

12. Help

As far as possible, please try to find the answers you need yourself, in this and

the other documentation (we have limited resources for handling direct enquiries):

− Online Manual

− Portal FAQ (for general questions).

Please also consult the Topic page regularly, since we will use it to publish call

updates. (For invitations, we will contact you directly in case of a call update).

Contact

For individual questions on the Portal Submission System, please contact the IT

Helpdesk.

Non-IT related questions should be sent to the following email address: ECHO-CP-

[email protected].

Please:

− send your questions at the latest 7 days before the submission deadline (see

section 4)

− indicate clearly the reference of the call and topic to which your question

relates (see cover page).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

13. Important

IMPORTANT

• Don’t wait until the end — Complete your application sufficiently in advance of the deadline to avoid any last minute technical problems. Problems due to last

minute submissions (e.g. congestion, etc) will be entirely at your risk. Call deadlines can NOT be extended.

• Consult the Portal Topic page regularly. We will use it to publish updates and additional information on the call (call and topic updates).

• Funding & Tenders Portal Electronic Exchange System — By submitting the

application, all participants accept to use the electronic exchange system in

accordance with the Portal Terms & Conditions.

• Registration — Before submitting the application, all beneficiaries, affiliated entities and associated partners must be registered in the Participant Register. The

participant identification code (PIC) (one per participant) is mandatory for the Application Form.

• Consortium roles — When setting up your consortium, you should think of organisations that help you reach objectives and solve problems.

The roles should be attributed according to the level of participation in the project.

Main participants should participate as beneficiaries or affiliated entities; other entities can participate as associated partners, subcontractors, third parties giving in-kind contributions. Associated partners and third parties giving in-kind contributions should bear their own costs (they will not become formal recipients of

EU funding). Subcontracting should normally constitute a limited part and must be performed by third parties (not by one of the beneficiaries/affiliated entities). Subcontracting going beyond 30% of the total eligible costs must be justified in the application.

• Coordinator — In multi-beneficiary grants, the beneficiaries participate as consortium (group of beneficiaries). They will have to choose a coordinator, who will take care of the project management and coordination and will represent the consortium towards the granting authority. In mono-beneficiary grants, the single beneficiary will automatically be coordinator.

• Affiliated entities — Applicants may participate with affiliated entities (i.e. entities linked to a beneficiary which participate in the action with similar rights and obligations as the beneficiaries, but do not sign the grant and therefore do not become beneficiaries themselves). They will get a part of the grant money and must therefore comply with all the call conditions and be validated (just like

beneficiaries); but they do not count towards the minimum eligibility criteria for consortium composition (if any). If affiliated entities participate in your project, please do not forget to provide documents demonstrating their affiliation link to

your organisation as part of your application.

• Associated partners — Applicants may participate with associated partners (i.e. partner organisations which participate in the action but without the right to get grant money). They participate without funding and therefore do not need to be validated.

• Consortium agreement — For practical and legal reasons it is recommended to set up internal arrangements that allow you to deal with exceptional or unforeseen circumstances (in all cases, even if not mandatory under the Grant Agreement). The consortium agreement also gives you the possibility to redistribute the grant money according to your own consortium-internal principles and parameters (for

instance, one beneficiary can reattribute its grant money to another beneficiary). The consortium agreement thus allows you to customise the EU grant to the needs inside your consortium and can also help to protect you in case of disputes.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

• Balanced project budget— Grant applications must ensure a balanced project budget and sufficient other resources to implement the project successfully (e.g.

own contributions, income generated by the action, financial contributions from third parties, etc). You may be requested to lower your estimated costs, if they are ineligible (including excessive).

• Completed/ongoing projects — Proposals for projects that have already been completed will be rejected; proposals for projects that have already started will be

assessed on a case-by-case basis (in this case, no costs can be reimbursed for activities that took place before the project starting date/proposal submission).

• No-profit rule — Grants may NOT give a profit (i.e. surplus of revenues + EU grant over costs). This will be checked by us at the end of the project.

• No cumulation of funding/no double funding — It is strictly prohibited to cumulate funding from the EU budget (except under ‘EU Synergies actions’). Outside such Synergies actions, any given action may receive only ONE grant from the EU budget and cost items may under NO circumstances be declared under two EU grants; projects must be designed as different actions, clearly delineated and

separated for each grant (without overlaps).

• Combination with EU operating grants — Combination with EU operating grants is possible, if the project remains outside the operating grant work programme and you make sure that cost items are clearly separated in your

accounting and NOT declared twice (see AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement, art 6.2.E).

• Multiple proposals — Applicants may submit more than one proposal for different

projects under the same call (and be awarded funding for them).

Organisations may participate in several proposals.

BUT: if there are several proposals for very similar projects, only one application will be accepted and evaluated; the applicants will be asked to withdraw the others (or they will be rejected).

• Resubmission — Proposals may be changed and re-submitted until the deadline

for submission.

• Rejection — By submitting the application, all applicants accept the call conditions set out in this this Call document (and the documents it refers to). Proposals that do not comply with all the call conditions will be rejected. This applies also to applicants: All applicants need to fulfil the criteria; if any one of them doesn’t, they

must be replaced or the entire proposal will be rejected.

• Cancellation — There may be circumstances which may require the cancellation of the call. In this case, you will be informed via a call or topic update. Please note that cancellations are without entitlement to compensation.

• Language — You can submit your proposal in any official EU language (project abstract/summary should however always be in English). For reasons of efficiency, we strongly advise you to use English for the entire application. If you need the call documentation in another official EU language, please submit a request within 10 days after call publication (for the contact information, see section 12).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

• Transparency — In accordance with Article 38 of the EU Financial Regulation, information about EU grants awarded is published each year on the Europa website.

This includes:

− beneficiary names

− beneficiary addresses

− the purpose for which the grant was awarded

− the maximum amount awarded.

The publication can exceptionally be waived (on reasoned and duly substantiated request), if there is a risk that the disclosure could jeopardise your rights and freedoms under the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights or harm your commercial interests.

• Data protection — The submission of a proposal under this call involves the

collection, use and processing of personal data. This data will be processed in accordance with the applicable legal framework. It will be processed solely for the purpose of evaluating your proposal, subsequent management of your grant and, if needed, programme monitoring, evaluation and communication. Details are explained in the Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

Electronically signed on 17/12/2024 17:13 (UTC+01) in accordance with Article 11 of Commission Decision (EU) 2021/2121

Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË – Tel. +32 22991111

EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR EUROPEAN CIVIL PROTECTION AND HUMANITARIAN AID

OPERATIONS (ECHO) Neighbourhood, Middle East, South-West and Central Asia

The Director

Brussels ECHO.C/AP

Addressees: Directors-General for Civil Protection of the EU Member States of

the Union Civil Protection Mechanism

Members of the Civil Protection Committee of the EU Member States

Subject: Invitation to submit proposals for the regional programme

“Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-

induced Disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4

(PPRD East 4)” (UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA)

Dear Directors-General,

Dear Members of the Civil Protection Committee,

I have the pleasure to inform you that the Commission is launching an invitation to submit

proposals for the regional programme “Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and

human-induced Disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)”.

Please find enclosed the call document, which provides detailed guidance and conditions for

awarding grants, as well as related documents for application.

The PPRD East 4 will aim to increase the resilience of the Eastern Partnership countries to

natural and human-induced disasters, including capacity-building to reinforce their alignment

with EU standards and practices, facilitating integration and participation in the Union Civil

Protection Mechanism (UCPM) and enhancing regional cooperation. PPRD East 4 will build

on the results of the PPRD East 3 programme that finished in September 2024. The duration

of the action is four years and the budget allocated amounts to EUR 5 000 000.

The opening date for the submission of proposals in the Funding & Tenders Portal is 30

January 2025. The deadline for the submission of proposals is 29 April 2025 17:00:00

(Brussels time).

Yours sincerely,

Andreas PAPACONSTANTINOU

Enclosure: Invitation to submit a proposal PPRD East 4

Appendix I – Indicative Logical Framework Matrix PPRD East 4

Electronically signed

Electronically signed on 17/12/2024 17:13 (UTC+01) in accordance with Article 11 of Commission Decision (EU) 2021/2121

Saatja: <[email protected]>

Saadetud: 15.01.2025 12:51

Adressaat: <[email protected]>

Teema: Invitation to submit proposals for the action “Prevention, Preparedness and Response to

natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries - phase 4” (UCPM-

2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA)

Manused: image001.jpg; Letter_Invitation to submit a proposal (IBA)_PPRD East 4.pdf;

Invitation to submit a proposal_PPRD East 4.pdf; Appendix I - Indicative Logframework_PPRD

East 4.pdf

TÄHELEPANU! Tegemist on väljastpoolt asutust saabunud kirjaga. Tundmatu saatja korral palume linke ja faile mitte avada!

Dear Colleagues, The European Commission has the pleasure to inform your authorities about the launch of the call for proposals for regional civil protection programme in the Eastern Partnership countries (PPRD East 4). The submission of proposals will be available on the Funding & Tenders Portal starting on 30 January 2025. The deadline for the submission of proposals is 29 April 2025. Please facilitate the transmission of this email, together with documents explaining the procedure of the application, to relevant persons in charge of a potential application. In addition, we would like to inform that the PPRD East 4 programme will be presented at the information day on 4 February 2025. The agenda and other practical details on the live streaming event will be published on the Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network website. Thank you very much for your attention in advance. With kind regards, ECHO CP EAST Team

European Commission DG ECHO - Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations

Unit C.1 - Southeast Europe, Eastern Neighbourhood and Central Asia E-mail: [email protected]

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM)

Invitation to submit a proposal

Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

(UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4)

Version 1.0 15 January 2025

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

HISTORY OF CHANGES

Version Publication

Date Change Page

1.0 15.01.2025 ▪ Initial version

▪

▪

▪

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

0. Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 5

1. Background ............................................................................................................................... 7

Context ................................................................................................................................... 9

National Civil Protection Authorities ............................................................................................ 10

Lessons Learned ...................................................................................................................... 10

Links with the relevant initiatives ............................................................................................... 11

Intervention Logic .................................................................................................................... 12

Cross-cutting principles ............................................................................................................ 13

Programme Management .......................................................................................................... 13

2. Objectives — Specific objectives — Expected impact – Activities that can be funded .......................... 15

UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA — Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human- induced Disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries (PPRD East 4) ........................................ 15

Objective ................................................................................................................................ 15

Specific objectives ................................................................................................................... 15

Expected results ...................................................................................................................... 15

Activities that can be funded ..................................................................................................... 17

3. Available budget ....................................................................................................................... 20

4. Timetable and deadlines ............................................................................................................ 20

5. Admissibility and documents ...................................................................................................... 21

6. Eligibility .................................................................................................................................. 22

Eligible participants (eligible countries) ....................................................................................... 22

Specific cases and definitions .................................................................................................... 22

Consortium composition ........................................................................................................... 23

Eligible activities ...................................................................................................................... 23

Geographic location (target countries) ........................................................................................ 24

7. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion ........................................................................... 25

Financial capacity .................................................................................................................... 25

Operational capacity ................................................................................................................ 25

Exclusion ................................................................................................................................ 26

8. Evaluation and award procedure ................................................................................................. 27

9. Award criteria ........................................................................................................................... 29

EUROPEAN COMMISSION Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations

ECHO.C – Neighbourhood, Middle East, South-West and Central Asia ECHO.C.1 – Southeast Europe and Eastern Neighbourhood and Central Asia

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

10. Legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements ..................................................................... 32

Starting date and programme duration ....................................................................................... 32

Milestones and deliverables ....................................................................................................... 32

Form of grant, funding rate and maximum grant amount .............................................................. 34

Budget categories and cost eligibility rules .................................................................................. 34

Reporting and payment arrangements ........................................................................................ 35

Prefinancing guarantees ........................................................................................................... 36

Certificates ............................................................................................................................. 36

Liability regime for recoveries ................................................................................................... 36

Provisions concerning the programme implementation ................................................................. 36

Other specificities .................................................................................................................... 37

Non-compliance and breach of contract ...................................................................................... 37

11. How to submit an application .................................................................................................... 38

12. Help ...................................................................................................................................... 39

13. Important .............................................................................................................................. 40

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

0. Introduction

This is an invitation to submit a proposal for EU action grant in the field of civil

protection under the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM).

The regulatory framework for this EU Funding Programme is set out in:

− Regulation 2024/2509 (EU Financial Regulation1)

− Regulation 2021/947 (Neighbourhood, Development and International

Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe2)

− the UCPM Decision 1313/20133.

The invitation is launched in accordance with the 2024 Annual Action Plan for

Governance and EU Related reforms4 and will be managed by the European

Commission, Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and

Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO).

The call covers the following programme:

− UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 — Prevention, Preparedness and Response to

natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership

countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

We invite you to read the call documentation carefully, and in particular this Call

document, the Model Grant Agreement, the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Online

Manual and the EU Grants AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement.

These documents provide clarifications and answers to questions you may have when

preparing your application:

− the Call document outlines the:

− background, objectives, specific objectives, expected results and the

activities that can be funded (sections 1 and 2)

− timetable and available budget (sections 3 and 4)

− admissibility and eligibility conditions (including mandatory documents;

sections 5 and 6)

− criteria for financial and operational capacity and exclusion (section 7)

− evaluation and award procedure (section 8)

− award criteria (section 9)

− legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements (section 10)

1 Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 September

2024 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (recast) (‘EU Financial Regulation’) (OJ L, 2024/2509, 26.9.2024).

2 Regulation (EU) 2021/947 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 June 2021 establishing

the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe, (OJ L

209, 14.6.2021, p. 1–78). 3 Decision No 1313/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on a

Union Civil Protection Mechanism (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 924). 4 Commission Implementing Decision C(2024)5375 on the financing of the annual action plan in favour of

the NDICI Neighbourhood East Region for 2024.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

− how to submit an application (section 11)

− the Online Manual outlines the:

− procedures to register and submit proposals online via the EU Funding

& Tenders Portal (‘Portal’)

− recommendations for the preparation of the application

− the AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement contains:

− detailed annotations on all the provisions in the Grant Agreement you

will have to sign in order to obtain the grant (including cost eligibility,

payment schedule, accessory obligations, etc).

You are also encouraged to consult previous PPRD East programmes (PPRD East 1,

PPRD East 2 and PPRD East 3).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

1. Background

The programme for Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-

induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries (PPRD East) was initiated in

2010 under the Eastern Partnership (EaP) initiative. It aimed to strengthen disaster

risk reduction and crisis management in the EaP countries, to promote regional

cooperation and bring Partner Countries in cooperation with the Union Civil Protection

Mechanism (UCPM)5.

The UCPM, established in 2001, has become a comprehensive framework for

cooperation in disaster management in Europe and beyond. The overall objective of

the UCPM is to strengthen the cooperation in the field of civil protection, to facilitate

coordination, and to improve the effectiveness of the system for preventing,

preparing for, and responding to natural and human-induced disasters. Currently, 37

EU Member States and Participating States, are participating in the UCPM6.

The programmes of PPRD East 1 (2010-2014) and PPRD East 2 (2014-2019) were

directly linked with the “Eastern Partnership – 20 deliverables for 2020”, which

highlighted the importance of capacity building in crisis management. In line with the

“Recovery, resilience and reform: post 2020 Eastern Partnership priorities”, the PPRD

East 3 significantly enhanced Partner Countries‘ preparedness, prevention and

response to natural and human-induced disasters through capacity building activities.

The three phases of PPRD East have been transformative, significantly aiding Partner

Countries in their efforts to align national legislation with EU acquis and adopt best

practices in civil protection. These phases have facilitated important institutional

changes and fostered closer ties between the EU and Partner Countries by creating a

unique platform for both policy and technical dialogue, supported by extensive

capacity building. In addition, cooperation between Partner Countries and the UCPM

has been notably strengthened, with Ukraine joining as a Participating State in 2023

and the Republic of Moldova7 in 2024. While PPRD East is a regional program, it has

maintained the flexibility to accommodate the differing needs and priorities of each

Partner Country.

The overall aim of this invitation to submit a proposal is to identify and finance a

programme of PPRD East 4. The beneficiary countries are: Armenia, Azerbaijan,

Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine8.

The new programme of PPRD East will continue capacity building in the Partner

Countries to enhance resilience, deepen the engagements on local, national and

regional level and consolidate recommendations identified under the previous phase.

As per the results of PPRD East 3, continuous efforts should be focused on:

1. assisting and facilitating the development and/or update of National Disaster

Risk Assessment, ensuring the integration of cross-cutting issues;

2. reinforcing risk assessments integration in national and local emergency

planning to specific and/or multi-hazards;

5 The UCPM legal base is the Decision No 1313/2013/EU. 6 In light of Article 28(1a) of Decision No 1313/2013/EU, where reference is made to Member States, it

shall be understood as including Participating States as defined in Article 4(12) of Decision No 1313/2013/EU.

7 Hereinafter referred to as Moldova. 8 In line with the Council Conclusions of 12 October 2020 and in light of Belarus’s involvement in the

Russian military aggression against Ukraine, recognised in the European Council Conclusions of February 2022, the EU has stopped engaging with representatives of Belarus public bodies and state- owned enterprises. Should there be a change of the context this may be reconsidered.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

3. operationalising and institutionalising early warning systems, broadening the

scope of hazards, enhancing interinstitutional coordination for impact-based

forecasting;

4. enhancing training capacities and training curriculums;

5. strengthening interagency coordination and cooperation for requesting and

receiving international assistance, including Host Nation Support guidelines;

6. increasing networks between national authorities and civil society

organisations/volunteers.

The programme is also expected to place emphasis on innovation/knowledge transfer

and Disaster Risk Reduction, providing more systematic and integrated disaster

prevention and preparedness for quicker recovery. The new elements of the

programme include disaster recovery focusing on capacity building and technical

guidance for preparedness for disaster reconstruction as well as facilitating the link

between relief, rehabilitation and development. Moreover, the programme should

focus on the integration of new and aspiring Participating States of the UCPM into the

Mechanism.

The programme should take into account cross-cutting issues specified below. It

should also focus on improving civil protection capacities in line with the Sendai

Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 and the EU Disaster Resilience

Goals.

PPRD East 4 will be the last phase of the action. With 15 years of programme

implementation, the fourth phase of the programme shall focus on phasing out and

ensuring sustainability of the results after the end of the programme. The following

principles should be at the centre of these efforts:

1. Building upon recommendations from previous PPRD East phases:

where applicable, ensuring continuity and follow up to already developed

resources and capacities, taking lessons learned from previous programme,

addressing challenges previously encountered and avoiding duplication of

efforts.

2. Enhancing ownership and sustainability of programme: ensuring that

developed capacities and cooperation structures at local, national and regional

level respond to the needs of the beneficiaries and are further integrated into

the relevant national structures in order to ensure sustainability of the results

after the end of the programme.

3. Address country specific needs while maintaining regional approach:

the programme should be flexible and tailored to address the needs and

priorities of each Partner Country and identify cross-border/sub-regional and

regional cooperation opportunities.

4. Alignment with the UCPM and other disaster risk management

initiatives in the region (in addition to the EU acquis, where

applicable): the Union Disaster Resilience Goals, the Article 6.1 report

recommendations on disaster risk management9, mirroring programme

activities to bring countries closer to the UCPM and creating synergies with

initiatives funded by EU/UCPM and/or implemented by the international

9 Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on progress on implementation

of Article 6 of the Union Civil Protection Mechanism COM(2024)130 final.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

community (UN, World Bank, EIB, NATO, INGOs, bilateral cooperation with EU

Member States) and ensuring complementarity and coherence.

5. Result-oriented approach: placing focus on outcome-oriented rather than

output-oriented project planning. A robust results framework should form the

basis for adequate and timely monitoring and evaluation of the programme.

Particular emphasis should be paid to the applicants’ choice of indicators.

Context

The targeted region is characterised by a highly complex disaster profile. Despite their

large geographical coverage, the targeted countries can be characterised by their

considerably similar exposure to natural and human-induced disaster risks, ranging

from earthquakes, floods, landslides, forest and ground fires, heat and cold waves.

Environmental, industrial, and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN)

risks are serious.

Strengthening resilience which includes enhancing capacities to prevent, prepare and

respond to disasters across the entire region is one of the post 2020 Eastern

Partnership priorities10. The EaP countries recognise the need to further enhance

disaster management system. They have embarked into a process of capacity

building at all phases of disaster management, involving various stakeholders at local

and national level. Emergency planning, comprehensive disaster risk assessments and

methodology, inter-agency coordination and early warning systems have been

improved, with the support of previous PPRD East programme. These efforts have

contributed to the gradual and ongoing shift from overtly response-based civil

protection approach to prevention and preparedness one.

Nonetheless, capacities of the national authorities in the Partner Countries to

effectively manage disasters vary significantly. Lack of financial, human or technical

resources as well as inadequate capacities and expertise have often been cited as

obstacles to concrete implementation of a sound disaster risk management.

The instructional, legislative and financial arrangements for comprehensive and

gender-inclusive disaster risk management should be strengthened, taking into

account climate change impacts. Adaptation to climate change, although closely

related, is still not implemented in synergy and full coordination with disaster risk

management policies.

It is also necessary to strengthen inclusion of gender and vulnerable groups into the

disaster risk management process at both national and local levels, involving various

stakeholders and national agencies (volunteers, civil society organisations, etc.). Civil

protection education/training and volunteerism should be improved and further

institutionalised. Procedures for requesting and receiving international assistance

should be further developed and enshrined in the legislation. Effective disaster

recovery is another element of importance that requires capacity development.

Most of the countries have established cross-border cooperation agreements with

their neighbours regarding mutual assistance in case of major disasters, however in

some cases actual contacts need to be developed/better maintained and frameworks

for cooperation and international assistance in disasters should be strengthened.

In addition, Partner Countries cooperation with the UCPM is at different stages. Efforts

should be dedicated for the integration of Moldova and Ukraine into the UCPM, as well

10 Commission Joint Staff Working Document SWD(2021)186 on Recovery, resilience and reform: post

2020 Eastern Partnership priorities.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

as for Georgia, as a potential Participating State of the UCPM. Throughout the EaP

region, Moldova and Ukraine, as well as Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia are

particularly exposed to high transboundary risk in case of a disaster. These different

layers of cooperation need to be further enhanced and implemented in practice for an

efficient coordination in the region, with the UCPM, the EU Member States and other

international actors.

National Civil Protection Authorities

In Armenia, the newly created Ministry of Internal Affairs has taken the responsibility

of civil protection and disaster risk management. It incorporates the Rescue Service

of Armenia. The Ministry is undergoing major reforms, including in the Rescue

Service.

Azerbaijan has assigned Ministry of Emergency Situations with a wide range of

powers and responsibilities confirmed by large financial support from the state

budget.

In Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, the corresponding responsibilities are under the

jurisdiction of the Ministries of Internal Affairs. In Georgia, the strategic and

coordination functions (including the situation room) remain under the Prime

Minister’s office.

The capacities of the national authorities in Armenia, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine

can be characterised as advanced yet still unevenly distributed at national, regional,

and local levels. Generally, limited resources create deficiencies of emergency assets

for daily operations. However, it is worth noting that, given the ongoing war in

Ukraine with its direct cascading effects in Moldova, the two countries have

experienced non-negligeable advancements in the area of civil protection over the last

approximately 2.5 years.

Lessons Learned

The proposed action should build on the findings and lessons learnt from previously

implemented PPRD East programmes.

The previous PPRD East actions have enhanced legal and institutional frameworks to

improve disaster risk management and supported institutional coordination among all

actors to a varying extent. To note, not all Partner Countries are facing the same level

of difficulties or have the same needs and not all countries aspire to reach the same

level of cooperation with the UCPM, or with each other. National ownership has been

strong but varied throughout the implementation of the PPRD East programmes. It is

therefore important to ensure a high-level of commitment for a successful

implementation of PPRD East 4.

In addition, the recruitment of a local coordinator in each Partner Country during

PPRD East 3 has significantly facilitated communication and collaboration between the

programme team and national stakeholders.

Throughout phase 3 of PPRD East, adaptability and flexibility have been identified as

crucial for success, enabling relevant solutions and effective programme

implementation in view of changing circumstances (e.g. COVID-19) and challenges

(e.g. Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine).

The regional approach has been highlighted to be of great importance for the

assessment of cross-border risks, regional risk prioritisation and development of

similar national methodologies to enable the comparison of risks and exchange of

experts. Regional activities (such as trainings, table-top and full-scale exercises

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

conducted) provided a unique platform for dialogue on technical level and

operationalisation of programme outputs.

Furthermore, in order to ensure continuity and sustainability of the programme, it is

advised that national civil protection services undertake close cooperation with the

UCPM, particularly regarding policy alignment, thus ensuring an endurable

implementation of the action. The aforementioned sustainability and long-term

availability of the programme’s results could be made available and accessed as

needed via the Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network (UCPKN) online platform.

Links with the relevant initiatives

To avoid duplication of activities, the action should pursue synergies and attempt to

connect with other Commission-funded initiatives in the region. Efforts should already

be made in the proposal design phase to avoid an isolated programme

implementation. As part of their initial needs assessment, every proposal should

include a mapping of relevant past and present initiatives in the target countries,

especially if the initiatives received EU/UCPM funding. In cases in which relevant

initiatives exist, applicants should explain how they will pursue synergies with ongoing

initiatives or incorporate existing results from past initiatives into their programme

implementation.

Coordination and complementarities with similar regional or bilateral initiatives

through regular exchanges and the common anchoring to the UCPM are encouraged.

Those include:

- Ongoing Prevention and Preparedness projects in civil protection11;

- Multi-country mapping study on disaster risks and gaps: The applicants are

encouraged to build upon the comprehensive analysis of the disaster risk

landscape and capabilities/capacities of the countries in the targeted regions to

respond to disasters. The analysis will provide evidence on where the main

national, cross-border, regional risks, and gaps are in addressing those risks;

- On Site Technical Assistance: The overall objective of this programme is to

provide civil protection technical support to DG ECHO and contribute to a

smooth implementation of the civil protection cooperation programmes and

enhance their regional impact in the beneficiary countries. In the framework of

this action, ad hoc technical assistance is provided where the main national

authorities, participants and stakeholders meet obstacles and difficulties;

- Peer Review on disaster risk management system was carried out under the

UCPM in Moldova12. The proposals are invited to take into account the

recommendations from this Peer Review;

- Exchange of Experts programme which gives civil protection experts the

opportunity to share experiences, gain valuable knowledge and strengthen

operational skills by a system of exchange. Thus, this programme makes a

significant contribution to the ongoing development of the UCPM and builds

capacity in the field of civil protection;

- Other EU-funded bilateral projects in the Partner Countries complementing DG

ECHO-funded actions;

11 Prevention and Preparedness Projects in Civil Protection - European Commission (europa.eu) 12 Peer Review programme - European Commission (europa.eu)

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

- Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network (UCPKN): Proposals are invited to

use the UCPKN tools and activities to strengthen their dissemination and

engagement efforts. At the time of publication of this call, the UCPKN online

platform provides all UCPM-funded projects with a dedicated working space

with features enabling communication and dissemination, as well as

collaborative interaction with other users of the platform (discussion fora).

With time, additional features may be developed, including based on needs

identified by programme consortia during implementation stage.

Good practices can be drawn also from other regional programmes managed by DG

ECHO in the European Neighbourhood, namely the ongoing regional programmes for

Capacity for Risk Management of Earthquakes and Health Emergencies in Türkiye and

the Western Balkans (IPA CARE)13 and Prevention, Preparedness, Response to natural

and man-made Disasters in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean (PPRD Med)14.

Coordination with current and upcoming EU programmes and programmes of other

donors and partners (EU Member States, the OSCE, the US, the UN) will be sought

throughout the programme implementation.

Intervention Logic

Within the UCPM, the activities open to neighbouring countries include training,

exchange of experts, meetings, conferences, exercises, modules exercises, prevention

and preparedness projects. However, the demand from the neighbourhood countries

exceeds the offer.

In light of the above, the PPRD East 4 will be complementary to DG ECHO’s support

as it will allow a more regional and sub-regional focus including:

- provision of activities mirroring the activities of the UCPM, where the demand

of Partner Countries exceeds the offer by the UCPM or where activities shall be

tailor-made to the needs in the Eastern Neighbourhood;

- provision of technical support in understanding the financial components of the

Mechanism (e.g. calls for proposals for single- and multi-country grants, full-

scale exercises, etc.);

- provision of support beyond the scope of the activities traditionally offered to

neighbourhood countries, but in line with the UCPM principles and approaches;

- organisation of (sub)regional activities.

The phase 4 of the PPRD East programme is aimed at supporting policy development

in the broader area of disaster risks management to improve the countries’ capacity

to prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from natural and human-induced

hazards. In addition, the programme aims to complement DG ECHO’s efforts in

integrating the recent and potential Participating States of the UCPM into the

Mechanism. Lastly, the programme should have a high level of flexibility in order to

correspond to the changing needs and political situations in Partner Countries.

The programme will remain the platform for exchange and support on policy dialogue

within the institutional EaP architecture. Moreover, the platform should increase its

role as catalyser for synergies and partnerships with other actors present in the

region (e.g. the UN, the World Bank, etc.), in order to ensure consistency of EU

funding opportunities.

13 https://www.ipacare.eu/ 14 https://www.pprdmed.eu/

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Phase 4 of the programme is also intended to ensure that the results are sustainable

over time, and that durable cooperation links are established.

Cross-cutting principles

Cooperation with the Eastern Neighbourhood aims not only to prevent, prepare for,

respond to, and recover from disasters in the Partner Countries, but also to contribute

to social and political stability.

The applicants should address and integrate relevant cross-cutting issues. Proposals

are therefore invited to highlight their contribution to the Commission’s horizontal

commitments such as: resilience and conflict sensitivity, good governance and

human rights; environmental sustainability; the reduction of climate impacts

associated with programme implementation as well as the broader concept of

greening in civil protection; the promotion of gender balance and equality in

programme implementation; as well as the consideration of needs and perspectives of

vulnerable groups and persons with disabilities15.

Disaster Risk Reduction should be the central principle of the action, in full coherence

with the Sendai Framework: to prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters as well

as to better adapt to climate change. The Sendai Framework stresses the importance

of mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction into all policies and sectors as well as the of

the preservation of ecosystems. The action should therefore focus on the

development of early warning systems and community-based planning to prepare for

potential hazards and disasters, national and community-level training and

strengthening of legislative frameworks that foster Disaster Risk Reduction.

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction also emphasises the role of

vulnerable groups (including women, children, youth, elderly persons or persons with

disabilities) and advocates for resilient communities and an inclusive and all-of-

society disaster risk management. To this effect, awareness and understanding of

cultural specificities and differences will be considered throughout this action.

Programme Management

A Steering Committee (SC) will be established with the participation of the

Contracting Authority (DG ECHO) as well as the implementing consortium and the

beneficiary countries. The EU Delegations should be invited to the Steering

Committee as observers. The Steering Committee should meet at least once a year

and receive updates from the programme expert team regarding the implementation

of the programme and provide feedback. It will advise on the programme’s progress,

discuss the scheduled activities, and review results related to the activities completed.

The implementing consortium will prepare the agenda, supporting documents and the

minutes of the SC meetings and further distribute these documents to all SC

members. The Implementing consortium will submit these documents as part of its

reports to DG ECHO.

The EU Delegations in the Partner Countries will receive regular updates on the

progress of the Programme and will have the opportunity to provide comments and

input. The Delegations could also rely on the expertise of the Programme team, in

close collaboration with the Programme Manager of the Action.

15 Guidelines on integrating cross-cutting issues into Disaster Risk Management can be found in PPRD East

3 page on Knowledge Network: Prevention Preparedness and Response to natural and man-made disasters | UCP Knowledge Network (europa.eu)

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

National Programme Coordinators and Thematic Focal Points shall be appointed and

specific guidelines for these roles should be developed to ensure smooth cooperation.

National Programme Coordinators will be the main national interlocutors for the

programme expert team and will be directly involved in the implementation and

overall monitoring of the programme in their respective countries. Thematic Focal

Points will ensure continuous cooperation between the programme expert team and

Partner Countries’ institutions in specific thematic areas by coordinating all sectors

concerned (e.g. Disaster Risk Assessment, Host Nation Support, etc.). In order to

ensure involvement of all relevant sectors and actors, national multistakeholder

mechanism(s) shall be established to share information.

The working language of the programme is English. Translation/interpretation into the

national languages of the countries where the programme is implemented in should

be foreseen for relevant documents and when necessary for meetings.

For the indicative logical framework including general/specific objectives, outcomes,

outputs, indicators, sources of verification and assumptions please refer to Appendix

I. The general objective, specific objectives and expected results are pre-defined. The

proposal must define specific indicators, activities and deliverables that contribute to

the achievement of all specific objectives and the general objective. All components of

the proposed logical framework (overall objective, specific objectives, results,

activities, and indicators) should be linked through a logical, result-driven chain and

should demonstrate how the proposed action will contribute to achieving specific

objective 1, 2 and 3.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

2. Objectives — Specific objectives — Expected impact – Activities that can

be funded

UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA — Prevention, Preparedness and Response to

natural and human-induced Disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries

(PPRD East 4)

Objective

The general objective of the PPRD East 4 programme is to increase the resilience to

natural and human-induced disasters in the EaP countries.

Specific objectives

The specific objectives are to:

- Strengthen the capabilities of Partner Countries to prevent, prepare for,

respond to and recover from natural and human-induced disasters, and to

further enhance their disaster risk management governance;

- Support the further integration into the UCPM of the new Participating States,

as well as the countries eligible to join the UCPM;

- Increase Partner Countries participation in and cooperation with the UCPM,

including regional and cross-border cooperation.

Expected results

Related to Specific Objective 1: Strengthen the capabilities of Partner Countries to

prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from natural and human-induced

disasters, and to further enhance their disaster risk management governance

• Improved national legal and institutional framework on disaster risk

management and aligned to the EU acquis, building on the progress of phase

three and the other EU-funded projects, and ensuring the mainstreaming of

cross-cutting issues. This entails:

- Comprehensive risk assessment and risk management planning at

national and/or sub-national level, private sector and critical entities,

including local communities, civil society organisations, volunteers as

well as cross-cutting issues;

- Risk prevention and preparedness measures, including institutionalised

multi-hazard early warning systems, disaster loss data collection,

contingency and emergency planning, public awareness and risk

communication, innovation and knowledge services, nature-based

solutions and comprehensive prevention and preparedness action plans

and synergies between climate change adaptation and disaster risk

management;

- Strengthened capabilities to monitor, detect, forecast and assess the

impacts of natural and anthropogenic hazards using early warning and

information systems;

- Strengthened risk assessment methodologies considering cross-border,

high impact low probability and emerging risks and considering multi-

sectorial elements and areas such as climate change and geopolitical

risks;

- Strengthened cross-sectorial disaster risk management by considering

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

other areas such as critical infrastructure;

- Enhanced mapping and identification of capacity gaps to fill and

understanding of the causes (lack of technology, of knowledge, of

funding, of human resources) to allow targeted policies and

investments;

- Clearer distribution of tasks among relevant authorities and

organisations, in relation to the above-mentioned topics;

- Strengthened cooperation with the private sector, research and

academia, civil society organisations and the public should be further

promoted to favour the adoption of a whole-of-society approach.

• Enhanced knowledge and capacities for emergency response, including

interministerial/interagency coordination and in line with EU practices and

international standards (e.g. INSARAG standards, quality requirements for

assets in the European Civil Protection Pool, Host Nation Support, etc.);

increased interoperability of capacities with UCPM Member and Participating

States;

• Enhanced planning and preparedness for disaster recovery and reconstruction

on local, regional and national level, in line with build-back better principles,

and the improvement of disaster loss data collection;

• Civil protection actors are better trained in the entire disaster risk

management cycle; national training programmes and capacities are

strengthened as well as interlinked with UCPM training; a needs-driven and

training-of-trainers approach is pursued; ability to participate in regional and

international training and exercises, including leading, organising, and hosting

them, is increased;

• Strengthened network of civil protection national and regional volunteers;

Related to Specific Objective 2: Support the further integration into the UCPM of the

new Participating States, as well as the increased capacity in other Eastern

Partnership countries to potentially join the UCPM

• Increased awareness and use (quantitative and qualitative) of the UCPM tools

and the services available to Partner Countries; among the tools, the reporting

exercise to the Commission under Article 6.1 and the participation in the

Disaster Prevention Expert Group which contribute to the provision of policy

recommendations and the sharing of good practices;

• Strengthened network and exchanges between UCPM Member

States/Participating States and new integrated countries into the Mechanism.

Related to Specific Objective 3: Increase Partner Countries participation in and

cooperation with the UCPM, including regional and cross-border cooperation

• Strengthened institutional and operational coordination between the

Emergency Response Coordination Centre and Partner Countries;

• Improved national frameworks in each Partner Country on requesting and

receiving assistance through the UCPM, as well as interinstitutional

coordination on national and regional level (in the case of transboundary

risks);

• Enhanced cross-border and sub-regional cooperation among Eastern

Partnership countries, including transboundary risk assessment and response

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

planning.

Activities that can be funded

The choice and design of the PPRD East 4 activities should be aligned with the

principles and approaches underpinning the UCPM and, to the extent possible, mirror

the tools and support provided under the UCPM, without duplicating efforts.

Related to all Specific Objectives (1, 2, 3)

In order to develop a sound ownership of the proposed programme and to tailor the

programme according to Partner Countries’ needs, the action will commence with the

inception period (9 months16). This period will allow for stakeholder mapping and

identification of the current needs and priorities in each Partner Country as well as

discussion and review of proposed activities with Partner Countries. They will then be

submitted for endorsement by the Steering Committee (SC) and validated by DG

ECHO.

During the inception phase, on site visits to the Eastern Partnership countries will be

organised, with the expected additional support of the expert involved in the On Site

Technical Assistance. Activities validated at the end of inception phase by the SC will

be implemented throughout the remaining duration of the programme.

In addition, all activities should be coherent and must demonstrate contribution to the

objectives of the Action. Activities should have tangible outputs/outcomes with

relevant objectively verifiable indicators and clearly show complementarity with other

existing programmes mentioned above in the sub-section on Links with relevant

initiatives.

Any purchase of small-scale equipment should clearly contribute to the achievement

of the objectives of the programme and shall not exceed the 20% of the total value of

the Action and should be handed over to the final beneficiaries by the end of the

programme implementation.

Related to Specific Objective 1: Strengthen the capabilities of Partner Countries to

prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from natural and human-induced

disasters, and to further enhance their disaster risk management governance

• Technical assistance missions on the basis of needs assessment building on

the PPRD East 3 programme recommendations and/or specific demands by the

Partner Countries’ authorities inter alia covering legislative, regulatory,

management and technical needs. Cross-cutting issues in disaster risk

management should be reflected during needs assessment;

• Based on PPRD East 3 results, continue providing technical and expert support

on standardised operational procedures, forecast, early warning systems,

damage/need assessment, disaster loss data collection, risk assessment,

emergency communication tools and international assistance, including how to

use the most readily available technology and tools. Science use for decision-

making is encouraged;

• Mapping of needs with regard to Early Warning Systems and Public Warning

capabilities and recommendations to address these in a comprehensive

manner;

16 This 9-month period might be adapted to the circumstances if approved by the SC.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

• Technical assistance to support the disaster management authorities in

translating scientific information deriving from national, European or global

early warning systems to operational activities;

• Preparation of investment plans to increase disaster risk management

capacities;

• Public risk awareness and preparedness campaigns;

• Operational Recommendations for integration of selected actions into national

disaster risk management governance;

• Expert support on evaluation and improvement of legislation in disaster risk

management;

• National table top exercises, risk based mapping of existing response

capacities and identification of gaps in relation to the quality requirements set

by the EU. Multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder approach is encouraged;

• Technical assistance including for developing multi-hazards disaster recovery

framework to better manage pre- and post-disaster planning and operations.

This also includes development of solutions to integrate lessons learnt into

existing structures and processes;

• Mentoring, workshops and training courses for managers, experts and

volunteers. The training should be targeted based on national needs and

complement, when necessary, the courses offered by the UCPM Training

Programme (e.g. Union Civil Protection Introduction Course and the

Operational Management Course). Integration of cross-cutting issues in

disaster risk management is encouraged;

• Support to strengthen national training programmes and curricula;

• Support to incorporate and strengthen existing volunteer-based organisations

within the national and local civil protection system. Support in integrating

them within legal framework of the Partner Country.

Related to Specific Objective 2: Support the further integration into the UCPM of the

new Participating States, as well as the increased capacity in other Eastern

Partnership countries to potentially join the UCPM

• Meetings and workshops on UCPM tools and opportunities for collaborations;

• Technical assistance for civil protection experts in Partner Countries to develop

capacities in preparing quality proposals for call for proposals of UCPM grants;

• Training, mentoring and workshops mirroring the courses available under the

UCPM Training Programme (conducted only in English language);

• Participation in the Disaster Prevention Expert Group and other related

workshops;

• Exchange of Experts programme to other EU Member/Participating States of

the UCPM;

• Technical support for the reporting to the Commission on the Disaster risk

Management under Article 6.1;

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

• Trainings on the use of the Early Warning and Information Systems and of the

ARISTOTLE Scientific Partnership for natural hazards in order to acquire

complementary support in detection and monitoring activities.

Related to Specific Objective 3: Increase Partner Countries participation in and

cooperation with the UCPM, including regional and cross-border cooperation

• Meetings, workshops and conferences: Organise events promoting regional

and international cooperation, involving to the extent possible UCPM Member

and Participating States;

• Study visits to other Eastern Partnership or UCPM Member States/Participating

States; exchange programme to go on an exchange mission or invite civil

protection expert(s);

• Develop procedures for requesting and receiving international assistance

through UCPM, as well as facilitate operationalisation of the procedures on a

national level;

• Exercises: At least one joint regional table-top and joint full-scale exercise

involving the EaP beneficiary countries at the end of the programme, following

relevant national table-top exercises. The regional full-scale exercise should

test the quality of the response capacities and their operability and efficiency

in a real-life situation. The exercise should include the following topics:

activation of the UCPM; EU Civil Protection Team, deployment of modules

and/or other response capacities; national operational structures, Host Nation

Support Guidelines; Observers and Evaluation Programmes;

• Technical assistance in developing transboundary disaster risk assessments

and response plans, as well as facilitating the institutionalisation and

operationalisation of these measures.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

3. Available budget

The estimated available call budget is EUR 5 000 000. The Commission envisages to

sign one Grant Agreement.

The Commission reserves the right not to award all available funds depending on the

proposals received and the results of the evaluation.

4. Timetable and deadlines

Timetable and deadlines (indicative)

Call opening: 30 January 2025

Deadline for submission: 29 April 2025 – 17:00:00 CET (Brussels)

Evaluation: May-June 2025

Information on evaluation results: June-July 2025

GA signature: October-November 2025

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

5. Admissibility and documents

Proposals must be submitted before the call deadline (see timetable section 4).

Proposals must be submitted electronically via the Funding & Tenders Portal

Electronic Submission System (accessible via the link in the invitation letter). Paper

submissions are NOT possible.

Proposals (including annexes and supporting documents) must be submitted using

the forms provided inside the Submission System ( NOT the documents available

on the Topic page — they are only for information).

Proposals must be complete and contain all the requested information and all

required annexes and supporting documents:

− Application Form Part A — contains administrative information about the

participants (future coordinator, beneficiaries and affiliated entities) and the

summarised budget for the programme (to be filled in directly online)

− Application Form Part B — contains the technical description of the programme

(template to be downloaded from the Portal Submission System, completed,

assembled and re-uploaded)

− mandatory annexes and supporting documents (templates to be downloaded

from the Portal Submission System, completed, assembled and re-uploaded):

− detailed budget table (template available in the Submission System)

– CVs (standard) of core programme team

– list of previous projects/programmes (key projects for the last 4 years)

(template available in Part B)

– Letter of support from the competent national civil protection authority:

not applicable to national civil protection authorities themselves.

Please note that the amounts entered into the summarised budget table (filled in

directly online) must correspond to the amounts calculated in the detailed budget

table. In case of discrepancies, the amounts in the online summarised budget table

will prevail.

At proposal submission, you will have to confirm that you have the mandate to act

for all applicants. Moreover, you will have to confirm that the information in the

application is correct and complete and that all participants comply with the

conditions for receiving EU funding (especially eligibility, financial and operational

capacity, exclusion, etc). Before signing the grant, each beneficiary and affiliated

entity will have to confirm this again by signing a declaration of honour (DoH).

Proposals without full support will be rejected.

Your application must be readable, accessible and printable (please check

carefully the layout of the documents uploaded).

Proposals are limited to maximum 60 pages (Part B). Evaluators will not consider

any additional pages.

You may be asked at a later stage for further documents (for legal entity validation,

financial capacity check, bank account validation, etc).

For more information about the submission process (including IT aspects), consult

the Online Manual.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

6. Eligibility

Eligible participants (eligible countries)

In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:

− be national and/or sub-national civil protection authorities (or relevant

competent authorities or entities)

− be established only in one of the EU Member States or Participating States

(including overseas countries and territories (OCTs)) according to the

Regulation 2021/947.

Beneficiaries and affiliated entities must register in the Participant Register — before

submitting the proposal — and will have to be validated by the Central Validation

Service (REA Validation). For the validation, they will be requested to upload

documents showing legal status and origin.

Other entities may participate in other consortium roles, such as associated partners,

subcontractors, third parties giving in-kind contributions, etc (see section 13).

Specific cases and definitions

Natural persons — Natural persons are NOT eligible (with the exception of self-

employed persons, i.e. sole traders, where the company does not have legal

personality separate from that of the natural person).

International organisations — International organisations are NOT eligible. The rules

on eligible countries do not apply to them.

Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under

their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives

have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees

for the protection of the EU financial interests equivalent to that offered by legal

persons17.

Associations and interest groupings — Entities composed of members may participate

as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality’18. Please note that

if the action will be implemented by the members, they should also participate (either

as beneficiaries or as affiliated entities, otherwise their costs will NOT be eligible).

Countries currently negotiating association agreements — Beneficiaries from countries

with ongoing negotiations for participation in the programme (see list of participating

countries above) may participate in the call and can sign grants if the negotiations are

concluded before grant signature and if the association covers the call (i.e. is

retroactive and covers both the part of the programme and the year when the call

was launched).

EU restrictive measures — Special rules apply for entities subject to EU restrictive

measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and Article 215

of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU)19. Such entities are not eligible to

participate in any capacity, including as beneficiaries, affiliated entities, associated

partners, subcontractors or recipients of financial support to third parties (if any).

17 See Article 200(2)(c) EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509. 18 For the definitions, see Articles 190(2) and 200(2)(c) EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509. 19 Please note that the EU Official Journal contains the official list and, in case of conflict, its content

prevails over that of the EU Sanctions Map.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

EU conditionality measures — Special rules apply for entities subject to measures

adopted on the basis of EU Regulation 2020/209220. Such entities are not eligible to

participate in any funded role (beneficiaries, affiliated entities, subcontractors,

recipients of financial support to third parties, etc.). Currently such measures are in

place for Hungarian public interest trusts established under the Hungarian Act IX of

2021 or any entity they maintain (see Council Implementing Decision (EU)

2022/2506, as of 16 December 2022).

For more information, see Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and

Financial Capacity Assessment.

Consortium composition

Proposals must be submitted by a consortium of at least two national or sub-

national civil protection authorities (or relevant competent authorities or entities)

coming from a minimum of two different EU Member States.

Reminder: Only entities from EU Member States are eligible.

The proposal needs to show that a meaningful contribution to the programme is made

by all of the beneficiaries participating in the consortium, which ensure that the

minimum eligibility criteria are met, and to demonstrate that activities and results will

be developed jointly in partnership. All the proposals, regardless of the composition of

the consortium, must demonstrate relevance and added value for the UCPM.

In order to ensure a strong focus on the results it is strongly recommended that the

composition of the consortium be very targeted and that the number of consortium

members does not exceed 5 entities.

Eligible activities

Applications will only be considered eligible if their content corresponds wholly (or at

least in part) to the programme description for which they are submitted.

Eligible activities are the ones set out in section 2 above.

Activities should take place in the EaP countries stipulated in the background section.

They may also take place in other countries (EU Members States and UCPM

Participating States if it is relevant and duly justified).

All actions under this grant should be for the benefit of the EaP countries. The results

of the programme shall be transferred to the target institutions/final beneficiaries of

the action, at the latest when the final report is submitted to DG ECHO.

Programmes must comply with EU policy interests and priorities (such as

environment, social, security, industrial and trade policy, etc). Programmes must also

respect EU values and European Commission policy regarding reputational matters

(e.g. activities involving capacity building, policy support, awareness raising,

communication, dissemination, etc).

The following activities are not considered as eligible for funding under this invitation:

− Online platforms: To avoid duplication with the UCPKN online platform,

proposed action should make use of the existing features and tools available

20 Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2092 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December

2020 on a general regime of conditionality for the protection of the Union budget (OJ L 325, 20.12.2022, p. 94).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

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on the platform for their programme activities. If relevant, outputs and

activities should be linked to the UCPKN platform and shall not replicate or

foresee the development of similar online platforms. It is possible that some

programme outputs may be selected to become integrated into the UCPKN

online platform.

− Activities which consist exclusively or primarily in capital expenditure, e.g.

buildings, vehicles.

− Works.

Financial support to third parties is not allowed.

Geographic location (target countries)

Proposals must relate to activities taking place in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia,

Moldova and Ukraine21.

21 In line with the Council Conclusions of 12 October 2020 and in light of Belarus’s involvement in the

Russian military aggression against Ukraine, recognised in the European Council Conclusions of

February 2022, the EU has stopped engaging with representatives of Belarus public bodies and state- owned enterprises. Should there be a change of the context this may be reconsidered.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

7. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion

Financial capacity

Applicants must have stable and sufficient resources to successfully implement

the programme and contribute their share. Organisations participating in several

projects must have sufficient capacity to implement all projects.

The financial capacity check will be carried out on the basis of the documents you will

be requested to upload in the Participant Register during grant preparation (e.g. profit

and loss account and balance sheet, business plan, audit report produced by an

approved external auditor, certifying the accounts for the last closed financial year,

etc). The analysis will be based on neutral financial indicators, but will also take into

account other aspects, such as dependency on EU funding and deficit and revenue in

previous years.

The check will normally be done for all beneficiaries, except:

− public bodies (entities established as public body under national law, including

local, regional or national authorities) or international organisations

− if the individual requested grant amount is not more than EUR 60 000.

If needed, it may also be done for affiliated entities.

If we consider that your financial capacity is not satisfactory, we may require:

− further information

− an enhanced financial responsibility regime, i.e. joint and several responsibility

for all beneficiaries or joint and several liability of affiliated entities (see below,

section 10)

− prefinancing paid in instalments

− (one or more) prefinancing guarantees (see below, section 10)

or

− propose no prefinancing

− request that you are replaced or, if needed, reject the entire proposal.

For more information, see Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and

Financial Capacity Assessment.

Operational capacity

Applicants must have the know-how, qualifications and resources to successfully

implement the programme and contribute their share (including sufficient experience

in programmes of comparable size and nature).

This capacity will be assessed together with the ‘Quality’ award criterion, on the basis

of the competence and experience of the applicants and their programme teams,

including operational resources (human, technical and other) or, exceptionally, the

measures proposed to obtain it by the time the task implementation starts.

If the evaluation of the award criterion is positive, the applicants are considered to

have sufficient operational capacity.

Applicants will have to show their capacity via the following information:

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

− general profiles (qualifications and experiences) of the staff responsible for

managing and implementing the programme

− description of the consortium participants

− list of previous projects/programmes (key projects for the last 4 years)

(template available in Part B)

It is suggested that profiles listed below are included in the team responsible for

managing and implementing the action. Evidence will consist of CVs of the key staff

responsible for the implementation of the action. Each CV should indicate the

intended function in the programme implementation and percentage of expected

engagement. Proficiency in English is required for all roles. The team should be

gender-balanced.

- Programme Manager: Extensive experience in project/programme

management for programmes of similar size and coverage, with experience in

cooperating closely with different stakeholders, including public

administrations, civil society, private sector and scientific communities;

Experience in the Eastern Neighbourhood and the UCPM.

- Senior Civil Protection Experts with experience in respective areas covered

by the programme activities (e.g. disaster risk reduction and assessment,

contingency/emergency planning, early warning); Experience in international

disaster risk management cooperation or multi-national programmes/projects

in the field of civil protection.

- Senior Training & Exercises Experts: extensive experience in UCPM

trainings and exercises. Experience in designing, organising and evaluating

civil protection training activities and exercises; Recruitment of experts from

various Member States/Participating States is encouraged to further promote

synergies between UCPM and Partner Countries and increase EU added value.

- Evaluation and Monitoring Expert: The expert should ensure adequate and

timely monitoring and evaluation of the overall programme.

- Communications Expert: The expert should be fluent in English and Russian,

has excellent communication skills and have good knowledge about the UCPM.

Additional supporting documents may be requested, if needed to confirm the

operational capacity of any applicant.

Public bodies, Member State organisations and international organisations are

exempted from the operational capacity check.

Exclusion

Applicants which are subject to an EU exclusion decision or in one of the following

exclusion situations that bar them from receiving EU funding can NOT participate22:

− bankruptcy, winding up, affairs administered by the courts, arrangement with

creditors, suspended business activities or other similar procedures (including

procedures for persons with unlimited liability for the applicant’s debts)

− in breach of social security or tax obligations (including if done by persons with

unlimited liability for the applicant’s debts)

22 See Articles 138 and 143 of EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

− guilty of grave professional misconduct23 (including if done by persons having

powers of representation, decision-making or control, beneficial owners or

persons who are essential for the award/implementation of the grant)

− committed fraud, corruption, links to a criminal organisation, money

laundering, terrorism-related crimes (including terrorism financing), child

labour or human trafficking (including if done by persons having powers of

representation, decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who

are essential for the award/implementation of the grant)

− shown significant deficiencies in complying with main obligations under an EU

procurement contract, grant agreement, prize, expert contract, or similar

(including if done by persons having powers of representation,

decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for

the award/implementation of the grant)

− guilty of irregularities within the meaning of Article 1(2) of EU Regulation

2988/95 (including if done by persons having powers of representation,

decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for

the award/implementation of the grant)

− created under a different jurisdiction with the intent to circumvent fiscal, social

or other legal obligations in the country of origin or created another entity with

this purpose (including if done by persons having powers of representation,

decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for

the award/implementation of the grant)

− intentionally and without proper justification resisted24 an investigation, check

or audit carried out by an EU authorising officer (or their representative or

auditor), OLAF, the EPPO, or the European Court of Auditors.

Applicants will also be rejected if it turns out that25:

− during the award procedure they misrepresented information required as a

condition for participating or failed to supply that information

− they were previously involved in the preparation of the call and this entails a

distortion of competition that cannot be remedied otherwise (conflict of

interest).

23 ‘Professional misconduct’ includes, in particular, the following: violation of ethical standards of the

profession; wrongful conduct with impact on professional credibility; breach of generally accepted professional ethical standards; false declarations/misrepresentation of information; participation in a cartel or other agreement distorting competition; violation of IPR; attempting to influence decision- making processes by taking advantage, through misrepresentation, of a conflict of interests, or to obtain confidential information from public authorities to gain an advantage; incitement to discrimination, hatred or violence or similar activities contrary to the EU values where negatively affecting or risking to affect the performance of a legal commitment.

24 ‘Resisting an investigation, check or audit’ means carrying out actions with the goal or effect of preventing, hindering or delaying the conduct of any of the activities needed to perform the investigation, check or audit, such as refusing to grant the necessary access to its premises or any other areas used for business purposes, concealing or refusing to disclose information or providing false information.

25 See Article 143 EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

8. Evaluation and award procedure

The proposals will have to follow the standard submission and evaluation

procedure (one-stage submission + one-step evaluation).

An evaluation committee will assess all applications. Proposals will first be checked

for formal requirements (admissibility, and eligibility, see sections 5 and 6). Proposals

found admissible and eligible will be evaluated against the operational capacity and

award criteria (see sections 7 and 9) and then ranked according to their scores.

For proposals with the same score (within a budget envelope) a priority order will be

determined according to the following approach:

Successively for every group of ex aequo proposals, starting with the highest

scored group, and continuing in descending order:

1) Programme focusing on a theme/activities that is not otherwise covered by

higher ranked programme will be considered to have the highest priority.

2) The ex aequo proposals will be prioritised according to the scores they have

been awarded for the award criterion ‘Relevance’. When these scores are

equal, priority will be based on their scores for the criterion ‘Impact’. When

these scores are equal, priority will be based on their scores for the criterion

‘Quality’.

3) If this does not allow to determine the priority, a further prioritisation can be

done by considering the overall programme portfolio and the creation of

positive synergies between other programmes/projects, or other factors

related to the objectives of the call. These factors will be documented in the

panel report.

All proposals will be informed about the evaluation result (evaluation result letter).

Successful proposals will be invited for grant preparation; the other ones will be put

on the reserve list or rejected.

No commitment for funding — Invitation to grant preparation does NOT constitute

a formal commitment for funding. We will still need to make various legal checks

before grant award: legal entity validation, financial capacity, exclusion check, etc.

Grant preparation will involve a dialogue in order to fine-tune technical or financial

aspects of the programme and may require extra information from your side. It may

also include adjustments to the proposal to address recommendations of the

evaluation committee or other concerns. Full compliance will be a pre-condition for

signing the grant.

If you believe that the evaluation procedure was flawed, you can submit a complaint

(following the deadlines and procedures set out in the evaluation result letter). Please

note that notifications which have not been opened within 10 days after sending will

be considered to have been accessed and that deadlines will be counted from

opening/access (see also Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions). Please

also be aware that for complaints submitted electronically, there may be character

limitations.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

9. Award criteria

The award criteria facilitate the evaluation of proposals in relation to the set

objectives and priorities. They enable the selection of proposals which the Contracting

Authority can be confident will comply with its objectives and priorities.

The award criteria for this call are as follows:

1. Relevance (min. 15 / max. 30 points):

The criterion refers to the contribution of the proposed action to the achievement of

the general and specific objectives of the action (section 2); the extent to which the

proposed action balances between regional and specific national needs of the Eastern

Partnership countries; coherence with ongoing initiatives in the region and the

relevance of the proposed action to the UCPM in general (section 1).

For all specific objectives:

- Extend to which the proposed action takes into account the needs and the

specific situation in each Eastern Partnership countries, as well as cross-

border, regional, cross-cutting issues and climate change impacts.

- Extent to which the proposed action addresses lessons learnt identified in

previous PPRD East programmes, including as concerns regional cooperation

and cooperation with the UCPM;

- Extend to which the proposed action takes into consideration the broad policy

context and relevant existing initiatives in the region;

- Extend to which the proposed action complements ongoing initiatives and

programmes in the region in the area of civil protection.

For the activities related to the specific objective 1:

- Extent to which the proposed action contributes to enhance the national

prevention, preparedness, response and recovery measures;

- The proposed action plans/guidelines for developing risk assessments are in

line with the Guidelines for disaster Management26, Sendai Framework

priorities and the EU good practices, and facilitate development of regionally

harmonised methodology;

- Extent to which the proposed action takes into account current disaster risk

management governance structures in the selected Partner Countries,

addresses its potential areas for improvement focusing on interinstitutional

and multi-stakeholder coordination, early warning systems, climate change

adaptation, risk and post-disaster assessment;

- Extent to which the proposed action follows the needs-based and training of

trainers approach;

- Effectiveness and sustainability of proposed cooperation structures involving

non-civil protection actors, including volunteers.

For the activities related to the specific objective 2:

26 SEC(2010) 1626 final

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

- Extent to which the proposed action takes into account the current needs and

gaps of each (aspiring) Participating State to further integrate into the

Mechanism;

- Extend to which the proposed action is improving the operational cooperation

with UCPM and its tools.

For the activities related to the specific objective 3:

- Extend to which the proposed action is promoting the local, national and

regional inter-ministerial/interagency cooperation;

- Extend to which the proposed action is promoting synergies with other

initiatives/actions and relevant actors in the region and with the EU;

- Extend to which the proposed action is improving the operational cooperation

with UCPM and its tools;

- The proposed action includes at least one regional table-top and full-scale

exercise.

2. Quality (min. 20 / max. 40 points):

This criterion will evaluate:

- Quality of the proposed logical framework matrix with particular emphasis on

the choice of indicators. Outcome-oriented approach instead of focusing on

outputs.

- Adequacy and quality of the implementation structure/methodology and

resources deployed in relation to the objectives envisaged (particularly in

terms of cost-effectiveness);

- Clarity of the budget requested to carry out the action, as indicated in the

budget (Application Form Part A);

- If the planning of the action is reasonably developed, if monitoring and quality

control measures (e.g. Logical Framework Matrix, mitigation measures,

reporting) are in place and if the organisation of the action is well adapted to

its nature and objectives. Demonstration on how monitoring and evaluation

will be ensured based on the results framework. Risk management plan is

elaborated and addresses most relevant risks to be faced during the

programme implementation.

3. Impact (min. 15 / max. 30 points):

This criterion will evaluate the proposed action in terms of:

- Actions enhance ownership of the programme outputs at national and regional

level;

- Outcomes respond to the needs of the beneficiaries and are used by the

targeted groups of beneficiaries. Outcomes can also be maintained after the

end of the programme;

- Full involvement of concerned stakeholders in the activities of the action to

ensure long-term impact and transferability of expected results.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Maximum points: 100 points.

Individual thresholds per criterion: 15/30, 20/40 and 15/30 points.

Overall threshold: 65 points. The overall threshold is not the result of the addition of

the minimum pass scores per award criteria.

A decision to reject an application can be based on the following grounds:

- the application was submitted after the closing date;

- the application is incomplete or otherwise non-compliant with the stated

administrative conditions or in any other way does not comply with the eligibility

criteria as set out the call for proposals.

Proposals that pass the individual thresholds AND the overall threshold will be

considered for funding — within the limits of the available budget (i.e. up to the

budget ceiling). Other proposals will be rejected.

Award criteria Minimum pass score

Maximum score

Relevance 15 30

Quality 20 40

Impact 15 30

Overall (pass) scores 65 100

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

10. Legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements

If you pass evaluation, your programme will be invited for grant preparation, where

you will be asked to prepare the Grant Agreement together with the EU Programme

Officer.

This Grant Agreement will set the framework for your grant and its terms and

conditions, in particular concerning deliverables, reporting and payments.

The Model Grant Agreement that will be used (and all other relevant templates and

guidance documents) can be found on Portal Reference Documents.

Starting date and programme duration

The programme starting date and duration will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data

Sheet, point 1). Normally the starting date will be after grant signature. A retroactive

starting date can be granted exceptionally for duly justified reasons — but never

earlier than the proposal submission date.

Programme duration: the initial duration of the programme cannot exceed 48

months.

Extensions are possible, if duly justified and through an amendment.

Milestones and deliverables

The milestones and deliverables for the programme will be managed through the

Portal Grant Management System and will be reflected in Annex 1 of the Grant

Agreement.

The following deliverables are mandatory:

Name of report Content Time of submission

Inception Report Analysis of existing

situation and work plan for

the programme. The work

plan shall include a time

schedule with milestones

and specific outputs, as

well as estimated

resources for successful

implementation of the

contract.

No later than 9 months

after the start of

implementation

Visibility plan and

communication plan

Clear strategy for

communication activities.

Plan for ensuring visibility

(in compliance with

guidelines) throughout the

programme duration.

No later than 9 months

after the start of

implementation.

It could be part of the

Inception report.

12-month Technical

Reports

In line with Periodic Report No later than 3 months

after the end of each 12-

month implementation

period.

12-month Financial In line with Detailed Cost No later than 3 months

after the end of each 12-

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Reports Reporting Table month implementation

period.

Draft Final Report Covers the full period of

implementation.

Description of

achievements, results and

impacts. Shall also include

problems encountered and

recommendations.

Includes a summary to be

published on the UCPKN

programme website when

approved.

An analysis of the

contribution of the

programme to the results

should be provided as part

of the report (focus on

outcome and results, and

potential impact, not only

on activities). The report

contains a two-page annex

per country (for

distribution to Delegations

of concerned countries).

No later than 1 month

before the end of the

implementation period.

Final Report Covers the full period of

implementation.

Description of

achievements, results and

impacts. Shall also include

problems encountered and

recommendations.

Includes a summary to be

published on the UCPKN

programme website when

approved.

An analysis of the

contribution of the

programme to the results

should be provided as part

of the report (focus on

outcome and results, and

potential impact, not only

on activities). The report

contains a two-page annex

per country (for

distribution to Delegations

of concerned countries).

Within 60 days after

receiving comments on the

draft final report from the

Programme Manager.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

Form of grant, funding rate and maximum grant amount

The grant parameters (maximum grant amount, funding rate, total eligible costs, etc)

will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data Sheet, point 3 and art 5).

The programme budget (requested grant amount): EUR 5 000 000.

The grant awarded may be lower than the amount requested.

The grant will be a budget-based mixed actual cost grant (actual costs, with unit cost

and flat-rate elements). This means that it will reimburse ONLY certain types of costs

(eligible costs) and costs that were actually incurred for your programme (NOT the

budgeted costs). For unit costs and flat-rates, you can charge the amounts calculated

as explained in the Grant Agreement (see art 6 and Annex 2 and 2a).

The costs will be reimbursed at the funding rate fixed in the Grant Agreement

(100%).

Grants may NOT produce a profit (i.e. surplus of revenues + EU grant over costs).

For-profit organisations must declare their revenues and, if there is a profit, we will

deduct this from the final grant amount (see art 22.3).

Moreover, please be aware that the final grant amount may be reduced in case of

non-compliance with the Grant Agreement (e.g. improper implementation, breach of

obligations, etc).

Budget categories and cost eligibility rules

The budget categories and cost eligibility rules are fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data

Sheet, point 3, art 6 and Annex 2).

Budget categories for this call:

− A. Personnel costs

− A.1 Employees, A.2 Natural persons under direct contract, A.3 Seconded

persons

− A.4 SME owners and natural person beneficiaries

− B. Subcontracting costs

− C. Purchase costs

− C.1 Travel and subsistence

− C.2 Equipment

− C.3 Other goods, works and services

− E. Indirect costs

Specific cost eligibility conditions for this call:

− personnel costs:

− SME owner/natural person unit cost 27

: Yes

− volunteers unit cost 28

: No

27 Commission Decision of 20 October 2020 authorising the use of unit costs for the personnel costs of

the owners of small and medium-sized enterprises and beneficiaries that are natural persons not receiving a salary for the work carried out by themselves under an action or work programme (C(2020)7115).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

− travel and subsistence unit cost 29

: Yes30

− equipment costs: depreciation + full cost for listed equipment

− indirect cost flat-rate: 7% of the eligible direct costs (categories A-D, except

volunteers costs and exempted specific cost categories, if any)

− VAT: VAT is NOT eligible

− other:

− in-kind contributions for free are allowed, but cost-neutral, i.e. they cannot

be declared as cost

− programme websites: communication costs for presenting the programme

on the participants’ websites or social media accounts are eligible; costs

for separate programme websites are not eligible

− other ineligible costs: No

Reporting and payment arrangements

The reporting and payment arrangements are fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data

Sheet, point 4 and art 21 and 22).

After grant signature, the implementing consortium will normally receive a

prefinancing corresponding to 20% of the maximum grant amount to start working

on the programme (exceptionally less or no prefinancing). The prefinancing will be

paid 30 days from entry into force financial guarantee (if required) — whichever is the

latest.

There will be one or more additional prefinancing payments linked to a

prefinancing report. In addition, you are expected to submit progress reports linked to

payments (see milestones and deliverables section).

Payment of the balance: At the end of the programme, we will calculate your final

grant amount. If the total of earlier payments is higher than the final grant amount,

we will ask you (your coordinator) to pay back the difference (recovery).

All payments will be made to the coordinator.

Please be aware that payments will be automatically lowered if you or one of your

consortium members has outstanding debts towards the EU (granting authority or

other EU bodies). Such debts will be offset by us — in line with the conditions set out

in the Grant Agreement (see art 22).

Please also note that you are responsible for keeping records on all the work done

and the costs declared.

Prefinancing guarantees

28 Commission Decision of 10 April 2019 authorising the use of unit costs for declaring personnel costs for

the work carried out by volunteers under an action or a work programme (C(2019)2646). 29 Commission Decision of 12 January 2021 authorising the use of unit costs for travel, accommodation

and subsistence costs under an action or work programme under the 2021-2027 multi-annual financial framework (C(2021)35).

30 See EU Grants AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement, art 6 on eligible costs: travel and subsistence costs

must be declared using the unit cost according to Annex 2a of the grant agreement. If a particular instance of travel, accommodation or subsistence in the action is not covered by one of the unit costs mentioned in Decision C(2021)35 the actual costs may be used.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

If a prefinancing guarantee is required, it will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data

Sheet, point 4). The amount will be set during grant preparation and it will normally

be equal or lower than the prefinancing for your grant.

The guarantee should be in euro and issued by an approved bank/financial institution

established in an EU Member State. If you are established in a non-EU country and

would like to provide a guarantee from a bank/financial institution in your country,

please contact us (this may be exceptionally accepted, if it offers equivalent security).

Amounts blocked in bank accounts will NOT be accepted as financial guarantees.

Prefinancing guarantees are normally requested from the coordinator, for the

consortium. They must be provided during grant preparation, in time to make the

prefinancing (scanned copy via Portal AND original by post).

If agreed with us, the bank guarantee may be replaced by a guarantee from a third

party.

The guarantee will be released at the end of the grant, in accordance with the

conditions laid down in the Grant Agreement (art 23).

Certificates

Depending on the type of action, size of grant amount and type of beneficiaries, you

may be requested to submit different certificates. The types, schedules and

thresholds for each certificate are fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data Sheet, point 4

and art 24).

A CFS must be provided for each beneficiary and affiliated entity when the requested

EU contribution at interim or final payment is EUR 325 000 or more.

Liability regime for recoveries

The liability regime for recoveries will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data Sheet,

point 4.4 and art 22).

For beneficiaries, it is one of the following:

− limited joint and several liability with individual ceilings — each beneficiary up

to their maximum grant amount

− unconditional joint and several liability — each beneficiary up to the maximum

grant amount for the action

or

− individual financial responsibility — each beneficiary only for their own debts.

In addition, the granting authority may require joint and several liability of affiliated

entities (with their beneficiary).

Provisions concerning the programme implementation

Security rules: see Model Grant Agreement (art 13 and Annex 5)

IPR rules: see Model Grant Agreement (art 16 and Annex 5):

− rights of use on results: Yes

Communication, dissemination and visibility of funding: see Model Grant Agreement

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

(art 17 and Annex 5):

− additional communication and dissemination activities: Yes

− limited communication and visibility to protect persons involved: Yes

− visibility in field operations outside the EU: Yes

Specific rules for carrying out the action: see Model Grant Agreement (art 18 and

Annex 5):

− zero tolerance: Yes

− transfer of assets at the end of the action: Yes

− EU restrictive measures: Yes

Other specificities

Consortium agreement: Yes

Non-compliance and breach of contract

The Grant Agreement (chapter 5) provides for the measures we may take in case of

breach of contract (and other non-compliance issues).

For more information, see AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

11. How to submit an application

All proposals must be submitted directly online via the Funding & Tenders Portal

Electronic Submission System. Paper applications are NOT accepted.

Submission is a 2-step process:

a) create a user account and register your organisation

To use the Submission System (the only way to apply), all participants need to create

an EU Login user account.

Once you have an EULogin account, you can register your organisation in the

Participant Register. When your registration is finalised, you will receive a 9-digit

participant identification code (PIC).

b) submit the proposal

Access the Electronic Submission System through the following hyperlink:

https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/submission/manage/screen/su

bmission/create-draft/39720?topic=UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA

Submit your proposal in 3 parts, as follows:

− Part A includes administrative information about the applicant organisations

(future coordinator, beneficiaries, affiliated entities and associated partners)

and the summarised budget for the proposal. Fill it in directly online

− Part B (description of the action) covers the technical content of the proposal.

Download the mandatory word template from the Submission System, fill it in

and upload it as a PDF file

− Annexes (see section 5). Upload them as PDF file (single or multiple

depending on the slots). Excel upload is sometimes possible, depending on the

file type.

The proposal must keep to the page limits (see section 5); excess pages will be

disregarded. Additional information on the technical content of the proposal could be

included as Annexes.

Documents must be uploaded to the right category in the Submission System,

otherwise the proposal may be considered incomplete and thus inadmissible.

The proposal must be submitted before the call deadline (see section 4). After this

deadline, the system is closed and proposals can no longer be submitted.

Once the proposal is submitted, you will receive a confirmation e-mail (with date

and time of your application). If you do not receive this confirmation e-mail, it means

your proposal has NOT been submitted. If you believe this is due to a fault in the

Submission System, you should immediately file a complaint via the IT Helpdesk

webform, explaining the circumstances and attaching a copy of the proposal (and, if

possible, screenshots to show what happened).

Details on processes and procedures are described in the Online Manual. The Online

Manual also contains the links to FAQs and detailed instructions regarding the Portal

Electronic Exchange System.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

12. Help

As far as possible, please try to find the answers you need yourself, in this and

the other documentation (we have limited resources for handling direct enquiries):

− Online Manual

− Portal FAQ (for general questions).

Please also consult the Topic page regularly, since we will use it to publish call

updates. (For invitations, we will contact you directly in case of a call update).

Contact

For individual questions on the Portal Submission System, please contact the IT

Helpdesk.

Non-IT related questions should be sent to the following email address: ECHO-CP-

[email protected].

Please:

− send your questions at the latest 7 days before the submission deadline (see

section 4)

− indicate clearly the reference of the call and topic to which your question

relates (see cover page).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

13. Important

IMPORTANT

• Don’t wait until the end — Complete your application sufficiently in advance of the deadline to avoid any last minute technical problems. Problems due to last

minute submissions (e.g. congestion, etc) will be entirely at your risk. Call deadlines can NOT be extended.

• Consult the Portal Topic page regularly. We will use it to publish updates and additional information on the call (call and topic updates).

• Funding & Tenders Portal Electronic Exchange System — By submitting the

application, all participants accept to use the electronic exchange system in

accordance with the Portal Terms & Conditions.

• Registration — Before submitting the application, all beneficiaries, affiliated entities and associated partners must be registered in the Participant Register. The

participant identification code (PIC) (one per participant) is mandatory for the Application Form.

• Consortium roles — When setting up your consortium, you should think of organisations that help you reach objectives and solve problems.

The roles should be attributed according to the level of participation in the project.

Main participants should participate as beneficiaries or affiliated entities; other entities can participate as associated partners, subcontractors, third parties giving in-kind contributions. Associated partners and third parties giving in-kind contributions should bear their own costs (they will not become formal recipients of

EU funding). Subcontracting should normally constitute a limited part and must be performed by third parties (not by one of the beneficiaries/affiliated entities). Subcontracting going beyond 30% of the total eligible costs must be justified in the application.

• Coordinator — In multi-beneficiary grants, the beneficiaries participate as consortium (group of beneficiaries). They will have to choose a coordinator, who will take care of the project management and coordination and will represent the consortium towards the granting authority. In mono-beneficiary grants, the single beneficiary will automatically be coordinator.

• Affiliated entities — Applicants may participate with affiliated entities (i.e. entities linked to a beneficiary which participate in the action with similar rights and obligations as the beneficiaries, but do not sign the grant and therefore do not become beneficiaries themselves). They will get a part of the grant money and must therefore comply with all the call conditions and be validated (just like

beneficiaries); but they do not count towards the minimum eligibility criteria for consortium composition (if any). If affiliated entities participate in your project, please do not forget to provide documents demonstrating their affiliation link to

your organisation as part of your application.

• Associated partners — Applicants may participate with associated partners (i.e. partner organisations which participate in the action but without the right to get grant money). They participate without funding and therefore do not need to be validated.

• Consortium agreement — For practical and legal reasons it is recommended to set up internal arrangements that allow you to deal with exceptional or unforeseen circumstances (in all cases, even if not mandatory under the Grant Agreement). The consortium agreement also gives you the possibility to redistribute the grant money according to your own consortium-internal principles and parameters (for

instance, one beneficiary can reattribute its grant money to another beneficiary). The consortium agreement thus allows you to customise the EU grant to the needs inside your consortium and can also help to protect you in case of disputes.

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

• Balanced project budget— Grant applications must ensure a balanced project budget and sufficient other resources to implement the project successfully (e.g.

own contributions, income generated by the action, financial contributions from third parties, etc). You may be requested to lower your estimated costs, if they are ineligible (including excessive).

• Completed/ongoing projects — Proposals for projects that have already been completed will be rejected; proposals for projects that have already started will be

assessed on a case-by-case basis (in this case, no costs can be reimbursed for activities that took place before the project starting date/proposal submission).

• No-profit rule — Grants may NOT give a profit (i.e. surplus of revenues + EU grant over costs). This will be checked by us at the end of the project.

• No cumulation of funding/no double funding — It is strictly prohibited to cumulate funding from the EU budget (except under ‘EU Synergies actions’). Outside such Synergies actions, any given action may receive only ONE grant from the EU budget and cost items may under NO circumstances be declared under two EU grants; projects must be designed as different actions, clearly delineated and

separated for each grant (without overlaps).

• Combination with EU operating grants — Combination with EU operating grants is possible, if the project remains outside the operating grant work programme and you make sure that cost items are clearly separated in your

accounting and NOT declared twice (see AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement, art 6.2.E).

• Multiple proposals — Applicants may submit more than one proposal for different

projects under the same call (and be awarded funding for them).

Organisations may participate in several proposals.

BUT: if there are several proposals for very similar projects, only one application will be accepted and evaluated; the applicants will be asked to withdraw the others (or they will be rejected).

• Resubmission — Proposals may be changed and re-submitted until the deadline

for submission.

• Rejection — By submitting the application, all applicants accept the call conditions set out in this this Call document (and the documents it refers to). Proposals that do not comply with all the call conditions will be rejected. This applies also to applicants: All applicants need to fulfil the criteria; if any one of them doesn’t, they

must be replaced or the entire proposal will be rejected.

• Cancellation — There may be circumstances which may require the cancellation of the call. In this case, you will be informed via a call or topic update. Please note that cancellations are without entitlement to compensation.

• Language — You can submit your proposal in any official EU language (project abstract/summary should however always be in English). For reasons of efficiency, we strongly advise you to use English for the entire application. If you need the call documentation in another official EU language, please submit a request within 10 days after call publication (for the contact information, see section 12).

Call: UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4 – Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-induced disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)

EU Grants: Call document (UCPM): V1.0 – 15.01.2025

• Transparency — In accordance with Article 38 of the EU Financial Regulation, information about EU grants awarded is published each year on the Europa website.

This includes:

− beneficiary names

− beneficiary addresses

− the purpose for which the grant was awarded

− the maximum amount awarded.

The publication can exceptionally be waived (on reasoned and duly substantiated request), if there is a risk that the disclosure could jeopardise your rights and freedoms under the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights or harm your commercial interests.

• Data protection — The submission of a proposal under this call involves the

collection, use and processing of personal data. This data will be processed in accordance with the applicable legal framework. It will be processed solely for the purpose of evaluating your proposal, subsequent management of your grant and, if needed, programme monitoring, evaluation and communication. Details are explained in the Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

Electronically signed on 17/12/2024 17:13 (UTC+01) in accordance with Article 11 of Commission Decision (EU) 2021/2121

Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË – Tel. +32 22991111

EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR EUROPEAN CIVIL PROTECTION AND HUMANITARIAN AID

OPERATIONS (ECHO) Neighbourhood, Middle East, South-West and Central Asia

The Director

Brussels ECHO.C/AP

Addressees: Directors-General for Civil Protection of the EU Member States of

the Union Civil Protection Mechanism

Members of the Civil Protection Committee of the EU Member States

Subject: Invitation to submit proposals for the regional programme

“Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and human-

induced Disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4

(PPRD East 4)” (UCPM-2025-PPRDEAST4-IBA)

Dear Directors-General,

Dear Members of the Civil Protection Committee,

I have the pleasure to inform you that the Commission is launching an invitation to submit

proposals for the regional programme “Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and

human-induced Disasters in the Eastern Partnership countries – phase 4 (PPRD East 4)”.

Please find enclosed the call document, which provides detailed guidance and conditions for

awarding grants, as well as related documents for application.

The PPRD East 4 will aim to increase the resilience of the Eastern Partnership countries to

natural and human-induced disasters, including capacity-building to reinforce their alignment

with EU standards and practices, facilitating integration and participation in the Union Civil

Protection Mechanism (UCPM) and enhancing regional cooperation. PPRD East 4 will build

on the results of the PPRD East 3 programme that finished in September 2024. The duration

of the action is four years and the budget allocated amounts to EUR 5 000 000.

The opening date for the submission of proposals in the Funding & Tenders Portal is 30

January 2025. The deadline for the submission of proposals is 29 April 2025 17:00:00

(Brussels time).

Yours sincerely,

Andreas PAPACONSTANTINOU

Enclosure: Invitation to submit a proposal PPRD East 4

Appendix I – Indicative Logical Framework Matrix PPRD East 4

Electronically signed

Electronically signed on 17/12/2024 17:13 (UTC+01) in accordance with Article 11 of Commission Decision (EU) 2021/2121