The ACP

Innovation
Fund
Joint Meeting of the ACP Sub-Committees on
Finance and Development and on
Sustainable Development

Brussels, 02 October 2019

The context

 The Intra-ACP Cooperation Strategy 2014 – 2020

 Objective 1.5: Contribute to the improvement of ACP

countries' development policies, research and innovation
and TVET capacities

 11th EDF Intra-ACP Annual Action Programme 2018 – Part

3, adopted in October 2018

 Action Document "ACP-EU Programme to strengthen

Research and Innovation capacity in ACP countries"
The Action

Objectives Components

Contribute to a conductive
and inclusive environment • ACP Innovation Fund
for research and innovation

Enhance the quality of • ACP Policy Support

research and innovation
Facility
policies and systems

Facilitate access to, sharing • ACP Research &

and transfer of information
Innovation Hub
and knowledge
The opportunities

STI recognised and powerful drivers of sustainable and

inclusive development

Innovation at the core of Reducing inequality Driver of economic

development plans growth
Global R&D expenditures growing Knowledge and skills diffusion are Every $ invested in R&D
faster than the economy key to the reduction of inequality generates nearly 2$ in return

Mobile-cellular network Widespread growth in Working age

coverage researchers population
More than 7M researchers Africa expected to have the
+90% of the population lives within
worldwide and more mobile largest working-age population
reach of a 3G mobile network

Shifts in global Role of indigenous ACP-EU consolidated

innovation landscape knowledge systems experience
The geography of innovation is Indigenous peoples are the de Four consecutive capacity-
shifting from high-income to middle- facto guardians of 80% of global building programmes since 2006
income economies biodiversity
The challenges

Innovation and knowledge creation are still driven by

and concentrated around a few countries

Global innovation divide Uneven globalisation of Weak enabling

persists technology & knowledge environments
Intensity of tech adoption is larger for Poor and non-systemic
Innovation expenditures remain
newer than for old technologies interactions and knowledge-
concentrated in a few economies
sharing among all R&I actors
and regions

The gender divide in Lack of digital Capabilities for non-

STI
Women account for 29% of the
world’s researchers. Women are less
likely to know how to operate a
smartphone or navigate the internet
education and skills
The gap between people having
access to Internet and not using it is
largest in LDCs
routine and
cognitive jobs
Skills policies and investments
struggle to ensure that countries
continue to benefit from rapid
technological changes

No sustainable development without protecting traditional knowledge

Indigenous peoples continue to suffer disproportionately high levels of land insecurity, social
dislocation, violence and youth migration
The ACP-EU response

The ACP Innovation Fund: a conducive and inclusive

environment for Research and Innovation in ACP countries

 Integrated programme approach: capacity of stakeholders,

policy development and knowledge transfer

 Acknowledgement of the differing levels of development

 An organic and inclusive innovation ecosystem propelled by

collaboration amongst all relevant actors

 Value of intra-ACP dimension, closeness to local/regional

realities and opportunities for all
Key features

 Priority areas
 Regional windows (lots)
 Mechanism of redistribution of
resources
 Eligible entities
 Eligible activities
Key features Priority areas

Digital literacy,
knowledge and use of
emerging technologies

R&I skills development

and labour market
demand

cross-sector Synergies in the R&I

challenges
ecosystem, technology
transfer, R&I uptake

Local and indigenous

knowledge
Key features Regional windows

Indicative amount available: EUR 50,400,000 equally

divided into 6 regional windows (Lots)
Western Africa Caribbean

Central Africa

Eastern Africa

Southern Africa Pacific

Key features Funding mechanism

"Actions under this call must include financial support

to third parties and sound mechanisms to transfer to
third parties skills, know-how and experience in
relation to the objectives and priorities of the call."

ACP
Applicants Beneficiary Third
Innovation
of the grant parties
Fund

Eligibility criteria Lot: Pacific Grant award Organisations

(section 2.1.1) (max 85% of the established in the
DL: 29/01/2020 total eligible costs Pacific countries
Eligible actions of the action)
(section 2.1.4) Eligibility criteria
65% of the total (Annex M)
grant amount
redistributed
This is just an example! Projects linked to the
priority areas
Key features Funding mechanism

Proposed Action

Third
party Example:
(150-400k €)

Total cost of the

Third Action ±
Financial party 4,750,000 €
support (150-400k €)
Beneficiar
y of the
grant Third EU grant ±
Technical 4,000,000 €
party
support (150-400k €) (i.e. 85% of the
total cost)

Third
party Redistributed to
(150-400k €)
third parties ≥
2,600,000 €
Third (i.e. min 65% of the
party total grant amount)
(150-400k €)

4M – 4.2M € max 48 months

Key features Funding mechanism

 A minimum of 65% of the total grant amount must be

further distributed to third parties
Proposed Action  The beneficiary (i.e. coordinator) is responsible for
the financial implementation of the overall action
(including the projects implemented by third parties)
Financial support towards the contracting authority
 The beneficiary (i.e. coordinator) issue a call for
proposal to select third parties' projects

 The beneficiary (i.e. coordinator) must put in place

Technical sound mechanisms to transfer to third parties skills,
support know-how and experience in relation to the objectives
and priorities of the call. For instance:
• Training and capacity building, peer assistance and/or
4M - 4,2M € max 48 mentoring of third parties
months • Networking, exchange and dissemination of practices,
experiences and results, and related policy advocacy
Key features Eligible entities

Applicants (and co-applicants)

 Legal personality
 Non-profit making
 Be established in one of the eligible countries (Annex L)
 Be directly responsible for the preparation and
management of the action
 Have experience in the management of research and
innovation support funds:
• Have awarded and managed at least 2 R&I grants in at
least 2 ACP countries during the last 5 years
• Demonstrate an annual turnover or annual budget of at
least EUR 1,500,000 for each financial year for the last 3
years
Key features Eligible entities

Applicants (and co-applicants)

 At least: 1 applicant + 2 co-applicants

 Established in at least two different ACP countries

 The number of partners established in the ACP

countries must always be greater than the
number of partners established in non-ACP
countries

There might also be affiliated entities (section 2.1.2)

Key features Eligible entities

Third parties

 Legal personality
 Be established at least since 2017 in one ACP Member
States of the Lot
 Be directly responsible for the preparation and
management of the activities being funded
 Have directly implemented research and innovation
projects with the following characteristics:
• At least two grants for research and innovation projects,
for an amount of EUR 75,000 each, during the last two
years (2017-2018)
Key features Eligible activities

Examples of activities that may be implemented by the

third parties:

Priority 1 Training and mentoring programmes for researchers and

innovation practitioners in digital and information technology,
with a focus on women researchers and innovators

Priority 2 Setting up systems to support the collection, tracking, analysis

and sharing of sex-disaggregated data related to the research
and innovation labour market

Priority 3 Improve the skills set of technology transfer professionals;

support the development of certification schemes for technology
transfer professionals

Priority 4 Activities to raise awareness and foster collaboration between

organisations advocating for indigenous and local knowledge
(ILK), academy and research institutions, and policy-makers
encouraging the validation and use of local knowledge and
practices
Example

University in
Burkina Faso,
200k €, priority 1
Western Africa Lot
Gender equality

ACP Innovation Fund

organisation in
Financial support Burkina Faso, 400k
€, priority 2
Call for

Grant
third
Applicant Start-up in
parties'
proposals Senegal, 300k €,
Technical priority 3
support
Lead Different
applicant modalities ILK NGO in Mali,
(ACP) (Annex M, iv) 150k €, priority 4
4,2M € 48 m

Co-applicant
1 (ACP)
Etc.
(min 2,730,000 € to
Co-applicant third parties'
2 (EU) projects)

This is just an example!

Indicative timetable

Deadline for requesting clarifications 08/01/2020

Last date on which clarifications are published 17/01/2020

Deadline for submission of applications 29/01/2020

Information on opening, administrative checks

and concept note evaluation (Step 1) 20/04/2020

Information on the evaluation of full applications

(Step 2) 15/06/2020

Notification of the award (after eligibility check)

(Step 3) 24/07/2020

Contract signature August 2020

Resources

• The call is published on the website of DG

International Cooperation and Development:
https://
webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-services/
index.cfm?ADSSChck=1452009752845&do=publi
.welcome&userlanguage=en
 Thank you

• http://acp.int/
• https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/