This new seminar reflects of the impact of today’s dynamic landscape of EU-funding on the work of the Managing Authorities, Intermediate Bodies, Audit Authorities and all the other related units responsible for the management, control and audit of EU funds and the Recovery and Resilience and REPowerEU Plans.
These and other questions will be addressed by our new team of speakers, including current and former high-level managers and auditors at national and EU level. Everything will be complemented by our usual direct and practical approach, delivered through a mix of classroom discussion and on-site project visits.
These are challenging times for a Union. As it slowly comes out of a pandemic, it is now facing an unprecedented international crisis brought about by the Ukraine-Russia conflict at its doorstep. All this while it attempts to remain true to its original priorities for the coming decade – a greener, digital and more resilient EU.
So now, in 2022, Member States and its Regions have a coffer of funds of unexpected proportions. Apart from the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-27 providing funds, amongst other, for Cohesion Policy, rural development and migration and border management, MS will also benefit from the Recovery and Resilience Facility to finance their Recovery and Resilience Plans and REPowerEU Plans.
These and other questions will be addressed in this new seminar aimed at making sense out of the current confusion. For this reason, we start off by addressing the latest developments in the area of simplification of programmes, the management of the project pipeline and implementation of projects (including simplified cost options and financing not linked to costs). This will include a study visit to an ERDF-funded project currently being implemented at the St. John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta, presenting a clear case where the drive for procedural simplification had to face the reality of a complex, historically-sensitive location.
The impact on verification and audit work will also be discussed in detail, drawing on the latest developments on risk-based management verifications and audits, performance-based financing mechanisms (e.g. financing not linked to costs) and data management. Several management, control and audit findings will also be presented during our visit to the EU-funded projects implemented in Gozo in recent years.
EU institutions, Managing Authorities, First Level of Control Bodies, Intermediate Bodies, Certifying Authorities, Audit Authorities, Central Coordination Bodies, Methodology Departments, Central or Regional Ministries, persons involved in the management control and/or audit of the NextGenerationEU, the national Recovery and Resilience Plans and REPowerEU Plan.
Delivering knowledge, experience and good feelings!
Our Plan for day 1 - 5
Registration and distribution of training material
Introduction – Setting the objectives and expected outcomes
The eventful EU Funding landscape post-COVID and during the Ukraine Crisis
The Multiannual Financial Framework 21-27, NextGenerationEU (Recovery & Resilience Facility, REPowerEU) and the European Green Deal.
Management of NextGenerationEU – quick interventions in need of quick procedures
Performance budgeting mechanisms – the future of EU funding is happening now
An insight into the result-based management approaches, financing not linked to costs (FNLC), the use of soft indicators and milestones
Lunch
Simplified Cost Options – Back to Basics and Off-the-Shelf: Challenges and solutions to MAs, IBs and AAs
Coffee Break
Auditing Simplified Cost Options and FNLC –typical findings and errors
Concluding remarks and wrap-up of Day 1
Management of Calls for Project Proposals 21-27– lessons learnt for the future
Programmes
Calls for proposals
Enabling Conditionality
Horizontal Priorities
State Aid
Financial Instruments
Technical Assistance
Management of ESIF Operations and Payments to Beneficiaries in 21-27
Eligibility of expenditure
Managing Public Procurement vs Need for quick results – management and control challenges
Data management
Financial Commitment and Decommitments
Risk-based Management Verifications and proportionate controls – How will we verify ESIF, RRF, EAFRD, EMFAF, ISF/AMIF/BMVI projects in 21-27?
Most common errors and irregularities in ESIF, EAFRD, EMFAF and ISF/AMIF/BMVI projects & Financial Corrections during the Annual Clearance of Accounts
Audit work in 21-27 – Changes in scope of systems audits, audits of operations and audits of accounts
Arachne and other detection tools
The ever-stronger drift towards performance auditing over financial auditing – The Challenges to Audit Authorities
Audit findings from the 14-20 programming period – what lessons can be learnt from ECA, EC and national Audit Authorities?
2022 Training Programme