COMCEC Project Funding
What is COMCEC Project Funding?
COMCEC Project Funding (CPF) is a finance mechanism introduced by the COMCEC Coordination Office in 2013. It finances projects submitted by OIC Member Countries and OIC Institutions to realize the strategic objectives and outcomes of the COMCEC Strategy. The mechanism encourages Member Countries and OIC Institutions to transform their ideas into projects with concrete activities, budget and timeline among others. It requires several steps to be performed in a sequence starting from project identification, appraisal and implementation to monitoring and evaluation. (Please see Project Submission and Project Implementation Guidelines for more details).
Are there any thematic priorities for the COMCEC Project Funding?
COMCEC will only fund the projects focusing on the thematic priorities announced on the COMCEC Project Funding web-page. The projects that do not accord with the sectoral themes will not be supported.
Who can submit projects?
Relevant Ministries of the Member Countries and the OIC Institutions operating in the field of economic and commercial cooperation can propose projects.
Member Countries shall be a member of the corresponding COMCEC working group in order to be able to submit a project proposal. Project proposals can be submitted through the ministries that are determined as working group focal points in the Member Countries.
What kind of projects and activities are financed?
COMCEC Funded Projects are typically soft in character including training, workshop, conference and seminar, study visit, publicity meeting, feasibility study, preparation of audio, visual and written promotion materials and research reports.
Under the CPF, only technical cooperation and capacity building projects are eligible for funding. Projects have to aim at improving technical cooperation among member countries while also giving specific attention to building institutional capacity.
Although investment projects are not eligible, investments associated with project activities such as supply, small-scale renovation etc. which is directly related with project objectives might be funded.
What are the project selection criteria?
The CPF provides funding to projects serving the Strategy’s components namely principles, strategic objectives and output areas. In addition, project proposals have to aim at strengthening human, institutional and administrative capacity of the Member Countries along with promoting cooperation among them. The added-value of the projects shall be demonstrated by the Project Owner in the Project Fiche submitted to the COMCEC Coordination Office.
The COMCEC Coordination Office takes into account following main criteria while evaluating the project proposals:
- Relevance to the COMCEC Strategy
- Compliance with the COMCEC Ministerial Policy Recommendations and Supported Sectoral Themes published on the COMCEC website
- Promotion of multilateral cooperation among COMCEC member countries
- Regular participation of the PO’s focal points to the relevant Working Group Meetings
- Filling out the Project Fiche properly and with sufficient details
- Qualifications of the proposed project personnel
- Realistic cost estimations in the project budget
- Cooperation and communication with the CCO
- Connection with previous COMCEC funded projects implemented by the PO
Who are the main actors? What are their responsibilities?
The tasks and responsibilities with regard to implementation of Projects are distributed among three entities, namely the Project Owner (PO), COMCEC Coordination Office (CCO) and the Development and Investment Bank of Turkey (Bank).
Project Owner (PO): The PO is responsible to the CCO for the project application (preparation and submission of the project fiche) and overall implementation of the project. The PO drafts the initial project proposal and submits it to the CCO. After and if the initial proposal is short-listed, PO has to elaborate its proposal in coordination with the CCO in order to award a CCO grant.
The PO shall also work in close cooperation with the Bank in the fulfillment of its responsibilities (either in terms of implementation or reporting) as defined in the Contract after passing the Final Phase of the project submission. The PO submits regular progress reports to the Bank, during the implementation of the project. The PO is financially responsible to the Bank for the implementation of the project, the details of which will be given in the Contract signed with the Bank.
COMCEC Coordination Office (CCO): The CCO is responsible for the overall implementation and monitoring of the CPF. All project submissions shall be made to the CCO for appraisal. The POs are advised to consult the CCO during the project preparation and submission processes. After the appraisal phase, the CCO finalizes the list of projects eligible for financing and convey the final list to the Bank.
Development Bank of Turkey: The Bank acts as the intermediary institution. The Contract that envisages operational and financial issues of the project is signed between the Bank and the PO. The Bank works in close cooperation with the PO for smooth implementation of projects and monitors project implementation on behalf of the CCO. It submits regular progress reports to the CCO regarding the activities of the projects under the Program. The Bank is entitled to take necessary measures (including abolition of the contract) upon the request of the CCO in case of irregularities.
When will it start? How can I submit projects?
The COMCEC Coordination Office issues a call for project proposals each year in September. The call is made through the COMCEC web-site.
POs are required to submit their preliminary project proposals to the CCO by filling out the certain sections of the project fiche via the Online Submission system.
The deadline for electronic submission of the project proposals is the 30th day of the call. Proposals received after the respective submission deadlines will not be considered.
In one month after the submission deadline, the CCO makes preliminary appraisal and declares the short list.
POs of the projects in the short list are requested to complete the rest of the project fiche and submit it to the CCO in 45 days.
The POs are requested to submit the final project fiches to the CCO through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as official letters within 15 days after the completion of the second stage applications. Upon the submission of the completed project fiches, the CCO makes a substantive evaluation and declares the final list of projects in about 45 days through the COMCEC web-site.
CCO conveys the final list to the Development Bank of Turkey in 7 days.
Where can I get a username and password?
The CCO sends usernames and passwords to focal points of the COMCEC Working Groups. You can contact relevant focal point to gain access to online system and reference documents (Project Submission and Implementation Guidelines, Project Fiche and Visibility Manual). Please contact CCO (cpf@comcec.org) to find out the respective focal point in your country.
CCO recommends working in close cooperation with authorized focal points when designing a project proposal.
What are the details for project implementation and financing?
The Bank signs a contract with each PO within one month after receiving the final project list from the CCO.
After the signing of the Contract each year by the April 1st, at the latest, project implementation period (duration) begins.
Responsibility for the management of the project rests with the PO including ensuring adherence to the Project Submission and Implementation Guidelines, Project Fiche, Contract and Visibility Manual.
Payments to the project personnel are made directly to the Bank account of the personnel. Project personnel sends monthly timesheet to prove that he/she has worked for the period.
Payments related to projects are made by the Bank directly to the PO. The PO must submit invoices to the Bank to claim payment. Advance payment/pre-financing is not available. Payments are processed based on Detailed Work Plan, Monthly Progress Reports, Financial Progress Reports, Activity Reports, Project Completion Report, Draft and Final Research Reports (for research projects), Timesheets, invoices and other supporting documents submitted by the PO through Online Monitoring System.
What is the monitoring procedure?
All Projects are monitored to ensure that the implementation is in line with the timeframes, budgets, and procedures stated in the Project Fiche.
The Bank is responsible for both financial and technical monitoring, as well as formal reporting to the CCO with regard to the progress of the projects.
The PO sends Monthly Progress Reports and Financial Progress Reports through the Online Monitoring System. In addition, the PO submits an Activity Report after each core activity and a Project Completion Report after the closing of the project.
Where can I learn more?
Please examine the reference documents in Online Submission System for more information or contact CCO through cpf@comcec.org