Erasmus + programme for youth initiatives of Latvia is estimated at around €25 million
The Erasmus + programme foresees around €25 million for youth initiatives in Latvia over the period 2014-2020, according to the information provided by the youth international programme agency (JSPA).
The European Union (EU) programme “Erasmus +” is being implemented with the aim of improving youth competences and youth policies and promoting their cooperation at international level, and to this end THE EU will shift €25 billion in the next seven years.
The programme is divided into three sub-programmes: KA1, which aims at mobility projects, including youth exchange projects, volunteering and the like; KA2 – strategic partnership projects, which are a priority for promoting international initiatives and promoting cross-border cooperation and exchange of good practice; KA3 – support for policy reforms aimed at bringing youth policymakers closer to the young people themselves.
As part of the seminar, particular attention was paid to THE KA2 sub-programme, which is one of the most important developments in Erasmus +.
It aims at promoting youth cooperation at international level. This means that the Latvian organization must first find a co-operation partner abroad to develop a project and apply for funding. As the JSPA representatives have explained, partners can be both from EU countries and from other non-EU countries, such as Iceland, Turkey or any other, but in that case project authors are particularly justified in demonstrating the significant added value of the project.
THE projects of THE KA2 sub-programme are particularly ambitious, explaining the workshop leaders, their nature expects the project to be implemented at the same time in two countries and has a duration of six months to two years. Possible cooperation partners can be found at the “salto-youth.net” site, which collects youth organisations abroad.
Given that IT is possible to qualify for very substantial funding under THE KA2, it is particularly important that the quality of the project has been developed, the JSPA representatives emphasized. When submitting the documentation, the nature of the project should be described as accurately as possible and the value of the value added after its completion. Clear mechanisms should be laid down for the control of cash flows and for overcoming potential obstacles. The most important condition is that the project is actually implemented by young people.
From this year, Erasmus + projects can be presented in both Latvian and English. Previously, it could only be done in Latin, which would be burdensome, given that the project should be developed bilaterally, that is, cooperation with foreign partner organisations.
Projects can only be submitted electronically and the application forms can be found on the jaunatne.gov.lv website. There is also detailed information on the requirements for the preparation of projects.
The closest deadline for submission of projects is April 30, and the next is October 1. Projects shall be submitted by the date of the relevant date 12 after Brussels time.
The projects submitted are assessed in two stages. It is first considered whether they meet the technical requirements and whether the submitted documentation is prepared correctly. If the project exceeds the first round of selection, a particularly invited expert Commission will assess its content by considering the extent to which it complies with the principles defined by Erasmus +.
In the case of a positive decision, the implementation of the project may be started three months later.
Information from esmaja.lv/