Assistance available under the Norwegian Financial Mechanism and EEA Financial Mechanism may be awarded in the form of support for individual projects, programmes (groups of projects) or specific forms of grant assistance - block grants and seed money facility.

Co-financing for the individual projects and groups of projects (programmes) may be granted within the framework of particular priority areas. The remaining types of projects (grant blocks and seed money fund) are of horizontal character i.e. their range embodies all priority areas of the Mechanisms.

Individual projects

An individual project is an economically indivisible series of works fulfilling a precise technical function and with clearly identifiable aims. An individual project may include one or more sub-projects.

An individual project generally addresses a single issue of economic, environmental or social need within any one of the priority sectors of the EEA Financial Mechanism and/or the Norwegian Financial Mechanism. It is an investment which may stand alone, or be composed of several sub-projects. All elements of the individual project, including any sub-projects, must be clearly identified for appraisal at the outset.

The amount of grant assistance applied for shall normally not be less than € 250 000.

Programmes

A programme is a co- ordinated portfolio of separate projects developed and delivered by a representative partnership and aimed at achieving common spatially/sectorally/thematically defined objectives. They are intended to facilitate the implementation of more comprehensive and cost-intensive strategies.

A programme consists of component projects linked by a common theme or shared objective proposed at the regional, sub-regional or local level, or target specific national themes. Well-targeted and well-managed programmes can achieve a greater socio-economic impact than the sum of their component projects standing alone.

Programmes are typically drawn up by partnerships who will be representative of all those with a key interest in the proposed activities to be carried out. These partnerships will operate within a recognized strategy and will appoint a lead partner – the programme intermediary – who will be responsible to the given Intermediate Body and the National Focal Point for the implementation of the programme under delegated authority. The programme intermediary will act as an accountable body with full financial responsibility for the delivery of the programme and the transfer of payments to the promoters of component projects.

Applications on programmes must give a detailed and comprehensive account of all aspects of the proposed programme: its main objectives, an indication of the project activities that will form the programme and a delivery plan with proposed implementation arrangements including criteria and procedures for selection of component projects. This description must include details on the systems proposed to ensure proper accountability for disbursements as well.

Block grants

A block grant is a fund, set up for a clearly defined purpose that may be used to provide assistance to individuals, organizations or institutions. Block grants are intended to facilitate the implementation of projects where each sub-project or end recipient is too small to be identified a priori or to be administered cost-effectively on an individual basis.

Block grants enable EEA Financial Mechanism and Norwegian Financial Mechanism resources to be made available more easily to organizations which are often well placed to respond to specific development issues (e.g. social inclusion, or local development initiatives) but not necessarily well equipped to deal with the demands of the application process themselves. Block grant intermediaries will be responsible to the National Focal Point and the EEA Financial Mechanism and/or the Norwegian Financial Mechanism for the implementation of the block grant under delegated authority.

Seed money facility is a specific form of grant assistance, which is to be established in order to support the preparation of applications that are to be submitted to the Financial Mechanisms, in particular to support innovative approaches, complex project themes and the establishment of new partnerships created for the purpose of designing new projects.