Planning, preparation, execution and evaluation are the four key golden rules for starting a good European project. That’s what participants learned at the recent European Union Programmes Agency (EUPA) workshop focusing on making the most quality and impact from Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps.
Erasmus+ is a European Union programme that supports education through opportunities for study, internship or work experience abroad. The European Solidarity Corps is an EU initiative that creates opportunities for young people to volunteer in different projects in their country or abroad.
NGOs or other associations must submit a dossier on time that clearly explains their project covering the quality of the project design, the quality of follow-up actions and the relevance to obtain approval.
They also need to think about how the project can be sustained in the long term, must clearly define the goals of the project, choose and commit partners, and also ensure sufficient resources, time and tools. They have to make sure communication is planned and continuous, and use their learning in everyday work.
How to avoid pitfalls?
Ambiguity in participant’s selection? You must give more details about the selection.
Ambiguity in target audience? You must explain why you have chosen these targets.
Ambiguity in programme content? You must define your day-to-day activities clearly.
Insufficient reasons for selection? You must mention how and why trainers were chosen.
Limited use of digital tools? You must incorporate digital platforms.
Over-reliance on a single individual? You must support the team and plan for the long term.
Weak needs analysis? You must identify challenges.
Collaborating with the same partners? You must change partners.
Inclusion? You must justify the choice of people.
Inadequate spending of resources? You must not send a huge group of people to the same country.
Unclear and unstructured objectives? You must have smart objectives, it means Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound.
Insufficient or passive dissemination strategy? You must have an active approach.
Overwhelming dissemination strategy? You must prioritize quality over quantity.
Vague action plans and outcomes? You must make clear your justifications.
Over-ambitious or unrealistic targets? You must reassess the targets for learners and staff.
Weak integration of Erasmus+ or European Solidarity Corps horizontal priorities? You must align your project.
Insufficient details on follow-up and evaluation? You must clear your plan.
Lack of speciality in training content and outcomes? You must include descriptions.
To obtain more details, you can contact EUPA with the email address: eupa@gov.mt
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