Introduction
The association is now composed of 75 national institutes, research centers and non-profit organizations representing the 37 countries of the Euro-Med Region. The association has as objectives: "(i) to conduct policy research and make recommendations with respect to economic relations between Europe and their Mediterranean partners; (ii) to publish and disseminate this research for the benefit of public and private, national and multilateral institutions, (iii) to work for the broadest possible dissemination by the most appropriate means".
For its 2005-2009 research programme, Femise is financed by the European Commission to launch studies on the 7 following broad topics:
Theme 1: the economic transition and the reforms including the economic governance ;
Theme 2: Liberalization of agriculture,Trade in services, Energy and environment ;
Theme 3: Development and fight against poverty ;
Theme 4: Social policies, notably in terms of public health and employment;
Theme 5: Education, training and the role of women in enterprises ;
Theme 6: Euro-med Regional integration and the cooperation and integration between southern countries and the East of Mediterranean territory ;
Theme 7: The role of the State, economic and institutional reform.
The FEMISE 2008 Internal Consultation
FEMISE member institutes are invited to submit research proposals to receive subsidy for their research projects. The topic of the research project should fall under one (or more) of the subjects specified within the seven themes as detailed in the scientific programme.
This notice includes eligibility conditions, guidelines for submission, funding elements, schedule, evaluation and selection procedures and guidelines for proposals writing.
I. ELIGIBILITY
1) Only member institutes of the FEMISE Association can apply to this internal consultation. However, non-FEMISE members could still be part of the ELLIGIBLE consortium (as detailed in the following item 2).
2) All proposals have to be submitted in consortium, including at least one FEMISE member from the North and one Femise member from the South OR consortium including at least 2 Femise members from the South. Proposals submitted with ONE member only will not be considered.
3) The dossier of the submitted proposals of the consortium should use the dedicated forms, and should include:
1. Cover letter and Form 1: 2008 (click to download)
2. Form 2: Research Proposal (see below for details on its contents)
3. Form 3: Budget form (see application form)
4. Form 4: CVs of research consortium (click to download)
4) The pack of the research proposal has to reach the Institut de la Méditerranée by fax or courier or by email, before June 30th, 2008:
Dr. Frédéric Blanc
FEMISE Association
c/o Institut de la Méditerranée
Palais du Pharo,
58 Bd Charles Livon 13007 Marseille
Fax : +33 491 31 50 38
email : ci2008@femise.org
Please, be sure to use this email to avoid any problem
II. STUDY AREAS
For the present internal consultation, eligible research proposals have to fall under the following the detailed issues (scientific programme).
III. LEVEL OF FUNDING & FUNDING ELEMENTS
For the present internal consultation, 15 research proposals will be selected by the Research Selection Group (RSG) with a maximum total budget of €580,000. The number of selected research is only indicative and may be revised depending on the quality of the proposals. In reference to the approval of the European Commission, funding of the research proposals will be made in three categories: euros 20,000; 40,000; and 60,000. Each proposal should include a detailed budget form to indicate the requested amount (from the three categories available) and how it will be distributed. The requested amount/category will be revised by the RSG who reserves the right to modify it, in case necessary. Financing will cover 100% of research costs, which means that no co-financing has to be demonstrated.
IV. RESEARCH DURATION
Duration of the project should not exceed 12 months. In any case, final reports must be submitted before the 30th September 2009. No report of the dead line will be possible.
V. EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCESS
After the first screening of the proposals for eligibility, the proposals are evaluated by FEMISE Refereeing Committee (FRC). The selection of proposals for funding is made by the Research Selection Group (RSG). The process is detailed below.
(i) The Femise Refereeing Committee reports to RSG the scientific and technical evaluation of the eligible proposals (academic evaluation). This Refereeing Committee includes approximately 20 international experts. At least three referees evaluate every proposal on the basis of the following criteria:
1. Scientific quality of the proposal, which relies on:
- 2. Other selection criteria
- number of countries covered
- coverage of countries weakly covered (e.g. Algeria, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon)
- comparison with other countries, regions
Each of these seven criteria have an equal weight in the evaluation.
(ii) The Femise Research Selection Group (RSG) consists of the two Femise coordinators (ERF and IM) and of five international experts specialized on the Mediterranean area working in multilateral institutions (like World Bank, IMF, DG Relex, OECD, Arab Monetary Fund). This committee is responsible of the final selection of the research proposals. The RSG studies all the proposals received as well as all the reports of evaluation and it drafts an overall evaluation on every proposal on the basis of all the previous criteria.
The Committee decides for every proposal, considering the objectives of the network FEMISE and the available budget, if:
- The coordinators (ERF and IM) will inform every team that submitted a proposal by email about the decision of the Research Selection Group. The reports of evaluation received by the referees of Femise and the written justification of the decision will be also sent. If the proposals is accepted for funding, a copy of the contract and the general conditions will also be sent.
VI. Guidelines for Proposal Writing
Proposals must be submitted in the provided format, which can be downloaded , as mentionned above from the Femise Website in .doc format (click to download) and click here for the CV form in rtf). If you have a problem accessing this file, we can send it to you by email. Proposals that not use this form, or with missing fields may be considered as ineligible.
The text of submission will have to follow this structure:
A. Summary (1 page maximum)
B. Statement of the Research Issue highlighting the value added of the research to the already existing knowledge (3 pages maximum)
C. Conceptual Framework (3 pages maximum)
D. Research Methodology (2 pages maximum)
E. Literature review (1 page maximum)
F. Time Frame, expected output and division of labour in the consortium (1 page maximum)
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