Ministry of Science in search of strategic partner for implementation of pre-acceleration programme for innovative start-ups

Pursuant to Article 11 of the Law on Innovation Activities (Official Gazette of Montenegro 42/16), strategic framework: Programme of Incentives for Innovative Start-Ups in Montenegro (2019-2021), operational goal 3: “Financing and access to capital”,

MINISTRY OF SCIENCE
announces

A PUBLIC CALL

FOR STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP IN IMPLEMENTATION
OF PRE-ACCELERATION PROGRAMME FOR INNOVATIVE START-UPS

I – Subject-matter

The Ministry of Science supports entrepreneurs in validating their innovative ideas in the market and further development of innovative start-up projects. The pre-acceleration programme is aimed at entrepreneurs or innovators in the early stages of an entrepreneurial endeavour, who intend to bring new products or services to the market. This pre-acceleration programme aims to train and support up to 10 teams from Montenegro over the period of 4-6 months. The selected teams will be offered a range of instruments to help them better understand their clients’ needs, as well as to validate and improve their entrepreneurial projects, including training, market research and opportunity identification, mentoring and external expertise. At the end of the programme, participants will have the opportunity to present their ideas to a panel of successful entrepreneurs and potential investors. Participants in the programme will have the opportunity to cover their personal expenses during the programme, as well as the costs related to entrepreneurial project improvement.

Through this Public Call, the Ministry of Science is searching for a strategic partner who would further define the details of the programme and its implementation.

The thematic focus of the programme, i.e. innovative ideas to be selected, should be in line with the Smart Specialisation Strategy of Montenegro and / or the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

When applying to this Public Call, the strategic partners should submit an elaborate pre-acceleration programme for innovative entrepreneurs, which is in line with this Public Call, as well as a financial bid. Following the partner selection process, the final version of the programme will be further harmonised with the Ministry of Science.

II – Programme benefits

The programme will support applicants – entrepreneurs with an innovative idea that was identified by the expert evaluation team as promising and requiring market validation and further business model and technology / design development. Through meetings and dialogue with customers (trips are also possible to establish direct business contacts), the participants will gain valuable insight into business processes that will help them develop the products that customers are willing to buy. Finally, trainings and expert support throughout the programme will help participants to further develop their products / services and business model.

III – Eligibility criteria for strategic partners / consortia applying to implement the programme

1. Organisations that are, pursuant to their articles of association or organisational strategy, engaged in activities in the field of entrepreneurship and technological innovation development and related pre-acceleration and incubation programmes;

2. Applications may be submitted by a single legal entity or a consortium of several legal entities, from the business sector, public sector, higher education sector or the non-governmental sector (including scientific research institutions);

3. The lead partner in a potential consortium must be registered in Montenegro, while the other members of the consortium may be from Montenegro or abroad.

4. Necessary human resources for the implementation of the programme, with competencies such as: management of technological projects (software and hardware), start-up development, marketing (digital marketing, crowdfunding, branding), management of grants received from the state or the EU, financial management, etc.;

5. Ability to engage renowned experts from the country and abroad in training, mentoring and product / service / market development;

6. Financial and administrative capacity for programme management.

IV – Key programme elements with which a potential strategic partner needs to apply to prove that it has a convincing strategy and the necessary resources for its successful implementation are the following:

1. The manner of identification of potential beneficiaries (start-up teams) – how the programme will be promoted, what communication channels will be used, what kind of relationships the potential contracting party plans to build with third parties (start-ups) to ensure the success of the programme, etc.

2. Criteria for the evaluation of applications – it is necessary to set out the criteria for evaluation of applications of innovative start-ups for participation in the programme. The criteria should be objective and standardised and constitute one of the most important elements for evaluation of applications to this Public Call. In the process of evaluation of applications, particular attention should be given to the impact of projects on the objectives defined by the S3 Strategy and / or the UN SDGs.

3. References of the management team and external evaluators to participate in the evaluation of applications with start-up ideas (high-profile experts capable of making high-quality and impartial decisions are expected).

4. Attractive and creative programme title.

5. Detailed programme budget.

V – Eligible costs that the programme can cover using the funds of the Ministry of Science are the following:

1. Personal expenses for up to four members of the start-up team (although teams can have more members);

2. Expenses of the staff implementing the programme;

3. Engagement of external experts and mentors;

4. Marketing and PR;

5. Material operational costs of start-up teams, as well as the costs of programme management;

6. Travel expenses;

7. Indirect costs (maximum 7% of direct costs);

Priority in the evaluation process under this Public Call will be given to partners who contribute to the overall budget of the programme with their own funds / other sources of funding.

VI – Non-exhaustive list of conditions to be met by the pre-acceleration programme:

1. Members of start-up teams have permanent or temporary place of residence in Montenegro;

2. Teams should develop an innovation that aims to produce a significant impact on the goals (any of them) defined in the Smart Specialisation Strategy of Montenegro (S3.me) and / or UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);

3. The teams have not previously received significant funding (over EUR 10,000) supporting the validation of the same idea / innovation in the market (from any fund).

VII – Application contents

1. Elaboration of the pre-acceleration programme, with details of its implementation, including the financial bid, i.e. budget (in the envisaged application form);

2. Strategic partner / consortium profile and summaries of biographies of management team members and external experts;

3. Articles of association / excerpt from the articles of association or organisational strategy of all the partners involved, proving relevance for the subject-matter of this Public Call;

4. Proof of financial standing of the lead partner (account balance, final account for the previous 2 years).

VIII – Application evaluation

The application evaluation procedure will be carried out by a commission appointed by the Ministry.

IX – Contracting

The Ministry of Science will conclude a contract on business cooperation with the partner / consortium selected, with the partner being obliged to submit a bank guarantee.

X – State aid rules

This competition is conducted in accordance with the state aid rules, de-minimis. Following the selection of the end beneficiaries of the programme (third parties), in the case of companies, the contractor is obliged to submit the Agency for Protection of Competition with the completed statement forms for small-scale aid stating the amount of state aid granted in the previous three years for each company that is the end beneficiary of the programme.

XI – Envisaged deadline for programme implementation

The overall duration of the programme is 9 months (including the preparatory and the final stage). Potential start date for programme implementation is October 2019.

XII – Deadline for applications

Applications to this Public Call should be submitted by 15 September 2019, by 2 pm.

XIII – Manner of applying

Applications with complete documentation should be submitted in one hard copy and one electronic copy (CD/USB in .pdf format), personally or via post, to the following address: Ministry of Science, Rimski trg 46, 81000 Podgorica. The electronic copy should also be submitted via e-mail, to the following e-mail address: arhiva@mna.gov.me

The contact person for this Public Call in the Ministry of Science: Branka Žižić, branka.zizic@mna.gov.me, tel. 020 405 331.

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The text of the Public Call in .pdf format is available HERE.

The application form is available HERE.