CLUSTER SEMINAR FOR ERASMUS+ CBHE PROJECT TEAMS: Best Practice and Challenges for Projects Implementation and Grant Management (Content and Grant Funds) (20.09.18, Kyiv)
CLUSTER SEMINAR FOR ERASMUS+ CBHE PROJECT TEAMS: Best Practice and Challenges for Projects Implementation and Grant Management (Content and Grant Funds)
20 September 2018, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukraine
SUMMARY
On September 20, 2018, the Executive Agency for Education, Audiovisual and Culture (EACEA) and the National Erasmus+ Office in Ukraine, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine and the EU Delegation in Ukraine held the Cluster seminar “Best Practice and Challenges for Projects Implementation and Grant Management (content and grant funds)” for Ukrainian teams implementing Erasmus+ CBHE projects. 60 representatives of 20 CBHE project teams from 29 HEIs took part in the event.
Purpose of the event: generalization of the current projects outcomes and the best practices in using grants as well as identification of the challenges in projects implementation and grant management for preventing penalties in the form of grant reduction.
During the seminar, 10 CBHE project teams that are on completing stage presented the project outcomes with link to access, best practices of project implementation and grant management, informed about developments and their use and dissemination among Ukrainian colleagues and wider society.
The project coordinators and finance responsible persons had the opportunity to receive information from Belen ENCISO, the Project Officer responsible for Ukraine, EACEA for preparing financial statements for submission to EASEA with relevant supporting and supporting documents.
Belen ENCISO focused on key checklist points for implementation and reporting based on Erasmus+ Programme rules to avoid penalties (content, funds management). She provided recommendations on audit and ex-post audit for the Cluster seminar’s participants. Participants shared and exchanged their experience, received answers to questions about the peculiarities of working with documents, conducting audits, applying penalties, etc.
NEO-Ukraine presented key checklist for projects implementation and reporting based on UA legislation (Law on Higher Education, etc.) in frame of the project content issues as well as for curricula development in line with Bologna Process principles. Also NEO-Ukraine gave detail explanation on key checklist for grant management in frame of the projects implementation and reporting based on UA legislation.
Deputy Minister of Education and Sciences of Ukraine Yuriy RASHKEVYCH, HERE provided information about opportunities in frame of the Erasmus+ Window of additional funding for Ukraine and cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine.
The project teams’ networking and NEO’s individual consultations for high risks projects were continued after event.
Information and presentations: http://erasmusplus.org.ua/novyny/1923-do-uvahy-komandam-erazmus-cbhe.html
RECOMMENDATIONS:
(1) The whole project implementation must be a joint exercise: from the preparatory phase, to the application, organization of the workplan, of the activities, addressing the weaknesses or the challenges, reorienting the aims, reporting, etc. The project beneficiaries in the PC are key to the Final Report on the benefits that the project has brought to their institutions, to their departments, to their students, to their staff, to their systems
(2) Contractually required the Final Report of the project implementation should be prepared by joint efforts of all beneficiaries not only the project coordinator. However, the project team has remember that the assessment of the Report will aim to reflect the quality of the project’s implementation, as well as the consortium’s overall performance, taking into account:
• The CBHE requirements as specified in the Erasmus+ Programme Guide
• The relevance of the activities implemented, compared to the “Description of the action” included in Annex I of the Grant Agreement
• The desk monitoring activities conducted by the EACEA since the start of the eligibility period
• The field monitoring visits carried out by or on behalf of the Agency at any of the consortium partners
• The evaluation of the Technical Implementation Report
(3) The project team should provide publicity obligations taking into account verification on project website and on the project documents (studies, reports, promotional material, etc.) such issues:
• Respect of the Visual Identity
• Presence of the acknowledgement on the co-funding of the Erasmus+ Programme
• Presence of the Disclaimer concerning the content of the product
(4) It is important that the project team will start to use Final financial statement as a tool that will allow the project to record and report the costs (actual and unit costs) already during the implementation of the project as team will be able to control the budget consumption. The coordinator must share the reporting tools and project information with all the partners.
(5) Keep all the supporting documents specified in the Guidelines for the Use of the Grant for Actual costs and Unit costs from the beginning up to 5 years after closure of the project by the final payment or recovery order. The EACEA and/or the Commission may carry out technical and financial checks and audits in relation to the use of the grant. Auditors can ask for financial supporting documents both for actual and unit costs (e.g. proofs of payments for staff involved in the activities performed and extract of official accounting books with reference to staff).
(6) Ensure responsibility for the quality of the Erasmus + project outputs and outcomes for Higher Education Capacity Building, their openness to the world for dissemination and use, strengthening their impact and sustainability because these outputs and outcomes should be placed at the EACEA open platform: http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/projects/.
(7) External and internal peer review of the project results (especially for curriculum modernisation projects) should be Obligatory provision in the Quality Control and Monitoring Plan taking into account effectiveness of the project in the context of the implementation of the Bologna Process provisions. Useful HERE’s materials: http://erasmusplus.org.ua/erasmus/ka3-pidtrymka-reform/natsionalna-komanda-ekspertiv-here/materiali-here.html.
(8) It is important to develop educational programmes in close cooperation with project partner Universities from EU. In the preparation of teaching materials (description of the educational program, curriculum, course, teaching and learning methods and assessment tools, methodical recommendations, etc.) it is necessary to use modern European sources and literature.
(9) Educational programmes should be developed implementing key Bologna process tools: ECTS, competence-based and student-centered approaches, learning outcomes, NQF (EQF LLL; QF EHEA), DS. Description of the new programme developed within the project should be include into Information Package/Catalogue at the University website.