FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON THE USE OF FINANCING FOR PROJECTS PROVIDED BY THE ROMA EDUCATION FUND (REF)

What are administrative costs?

Administrative costs are indirect costs, such as: accounting, doing local purchase and procurement, secretariat, keeping documentation, reporting to REF, etc…. Generally, they should not be higher than 10% of the total project costs.  For very complex projects, with many sub-contractors and high administrative requirements, this percentage may be even as high as 15% of the total project costs.  An administrative cost exceeding 10% is subject to prior approval by the REF management committee, and will require extensive justification.

Are salaries allowable as budget items and project expenses?

Salaries of staff members and fees of consultants of a recipient of REF funding, working full time on the supported project can be paid using REF funding for the project period.  The salaries and fees should be reasonable, that is, in line with the average for the region, the professional qualifications of the respective individual and the type of activity performed.

When staff members devote only a part of their work time to the realization of the project, their partial salaries may be allowable only if there is a system in place, such as task-specific timesheets, which enables the recipient to clearly document the actual allocation of his/her work time, that is, the time the given employee has spent on project-related tasks and other tasks.

Staff already receiving a long term salary as part of an employment contract should not receive additional compensation.  The exception to this rule would be when the task required under the project clearly differs from the regular job of the concerned staff, and the project related activities are performed outside work hours.  In this case some limited honorarium could be granted for such tasks; but these should be reasonable and related to the actual specific outputs.  The fact that the regular job and the task related activities differ should be documented in detail in such cases.

In all cases, all employment and consultancy contracts should be kept as part of the projects documentation for monitoring purposes; and all such contracts should conform to the respective national regulations.

In case of public institutions receiving funding, local law may include restrictions on payments to civil servants by third parties. It is the sole responsibility of the recipient to comply with such applicable regulations, if any. In addition to full compliance with local law on this, the recipient shall be liable to disclose to REF all information available pertaining to cases when such restrictions apply.

How should per diem and travel costs be determined?

These costs should be on par with the average per diem and travel costs paid by local organizations in the country.  The length and purpose of travel needs to be clearly justified and documented in all cases, by mission statements, trip reports and required accounting documentation.  Travel should be limited to economy class.  Per diem and travel cost should also conform to national regulations.

Can REF funding be used for investment costs?

REF can finance investment costs in equipment or limited civil work (for rehabilitation or maintenance).  As with all other types of costs, these also need to be clearly justified and described in the project budget.  Recipient should adhere to prudent procurement practices when choosing the source for the investment, which includes but is not limited to obtaining competition in the widest circles possible, and documenting the competition and source selection process.

Are study trips allowable expenses?

REF can finance study visits directly related to meeting the goals of the projects; as with all other budget items, study trips should be in line with the practice among NGOs and Governments in the country and should also be clearly indicated in the budget.  Regarding cost determination, see the question on per diem and travel cost above.

What does “policy environment” intend to reflect in REF projects?

REF projects may support a variety of education policy changes, including, among others, curriculum reforms, new financing systems of public education, desegregation of education for Roma, changes in regional/local governments’ role in delivering education to students, promoting parent association involvement in education, and legislative initiatives to address Roma education issues, especially in countries participating in the Decade of Roma Inclusion.  There may be other policy reforms involved, which can be reviewed with REF staff during project preparation.