Deadline: 1 October 2019

The European Union (EU) is seeking proposals from eligible organisations for a program entitled “Digital Financial Services for ACP (Digital4Inclusion).

The global objective of this call for proposals isto deepen financial inclusion in ACP countries by promoting inclusive and responsible Digital Financial Services (DFS) ecosystems that can benefit people living in poverty and entrepreneurs (in particular women and youth).

Specific Objectives

• Partnerships to promote Policy and Regulatory environment for digital financial inclusion.
• Partnerships to promote innovative and scalable digital financial solutions.

Funding Information

The indicative allocation for the two lots is as follows:

• Lot 1: EUR 12,000,000
• Lot 2: EUR 12,500,000

Eligibility Criteria

Lead applicant

• In order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:
  • Be a legal personand
  • Be a specific type of organisation such as: non-governmental organisation, social business, foundation, inter-professional or intermediary organisation, international (inter-governmental) organisation as the Rules of application of the EU Financial Regulation and
  • Be established in one of the following eligible country or territories:
    • an ACP State or
    • a Member State of the European Union or
  • For British applicants: Please be aware that eligibility criteria must be complied with for the entire duration of the grant. Unless sector-specific eligibility rules provide otherwise, if the United Kingdom withdraws from the EU during the grant period without concluding an agreement with the EU ensuring in particular that British applicants continue to be eligible, applicants will cease to receive EU funding (while continuing, where possible to participate) or will be required to leave the project of the grant agreement’.
• This obligation does not apply to international organisations.
  • a beneficiary country of the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance or
  • a Member State of the European Economic Area or
  • an Overseas Country and Territory (OCTs) covered by Council Decision 2013/755/EU of 25 November 2013 on the association of the overseas countries and territories with the European Union or
• a developing country or territory, included in the OECD-DAC list of ODA recipients , which is not member of the G20 group, without prejudice to the status of the Republic of South Africa, as governed by Protocol 3 of the partnership Agreement:
  • Least Developed Countries (LDCs);
  • Other Low Income Countries;
  • Lower Middle Income Countries and Territories;
  • Upper Middle Income Countries and Territories;
  • a Member State of the OECD only when contracts are implemented in Least Developed Countries (LDC) and/or in Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) only and
• Potential applicants may not participate in calls for proposals or be awarded grants if they are in any of the situations.

Co-applicant(s)

• Lot 1: The lead applicant must act with at least three (3) co-applicants.
• Lot 2: The lead applicant must act with at least two (2) co-applicants.

Affiliated entities

• The lead applicant and its co-applicant(s) may act with affiliated entity(ies).
• Only the following entities may be considered as affiliated entities to the lead applicant and/or to co-applicant(s):
  • Only entities having a structural link with the applicants (i.e. the lead applicant or a co-applicant), in particular a legal or capital link.
  • This structural link encompasses mainly two notions:
    • Control, as defined in Directive 2013/34/EU on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings:
      • Entities affiliated to applicant may hence be:
        • Entities directly or indirectly controlled by anapplicant (daughter companies or first-tier subsidiaries). They may also be entities controlled by an entity controlled by an applicant(granddaughter companies or second-tier subsidiaries) and the same applies to further tiers of control;
        • Entities directly or indirectly controlling theapplicant (parent companies). Likewise, they may be entities controlling an entity controlling the applicant;
        • Entities under the same direct or indirect control as the applicant (sister companies).
    • Membership, i.e. the applicantis legally defined as a e.g. network, federation, association in which the proposed affiliated entities also participate or the applicant participates in the same entity (e.g. network, federation, association) as the proposed affiliated entities.

How to Apply

In order to apply for the grants, applicants have to register themselves in PADOR, an on-line database via given website.

For more information, visit this link.