ETCIM guidance
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Roles and responsibilities
The Guidance states that the transnational partnership should appoint one participating DP within the transnational partnership, or agree a common co-ordinator, to take on the task of introducing the TCA data into ETCIM. This is the role of the ‘ETCIM secretary’. The secretary will have specific rights to create a TCA, to edit or modify it, to validate (and ask other DPs for their validation) and to ask the Managing Authorities concerned for their approval (please refer to page 5 of the DP User Guide for more information).
Login and passwords
ETCIM is accessible only by Internet to authorised users. Each DP receives one DP login and two passwords: a DP Reader password and a DP Writer password.
- The DP login is composed of a minimum of 5 letters (“LOG” + 2 to 4 letters (country identifier) + 2 to 4 numbers).
- The DP Reader password allows consultation only—it does not permit modification to the TCA. As a result, it can be made available widely within your DP.
The DP Writer password enables the ETCIM secretary to create a new TCA, and undertake subsequent updates, modifications, validations etc.
Note It is essential to note that the person who creates a new TCA by using the DP Writer password will automatically be assigned the role of ETCIM secretary. You should ensure that only the person identified by the transnational partnership as ETCIM secretary uses this password initially.
The DP Writer password may subsequently be used by other members of the partnership to consult the different phases of the TCA and to validate or reject the TCA.
For further information about accessing ETCIM, please refer to page 3 of the DP User Guide and clarify any issues raised with the Support Unit before you attempt to log in to the system.
A letter has been sent to all DsP to inform them of their ETCIM passwords; alternatively please contact the Support Unit if you need to obtain the ETCIM passwords for your DP.
Please note that login and passwords are case-sensitive: UPPERCASE and lowercase are read differently. Please make sure you enter your login and passwords exactly as set out above.
Deadlines for completion and submission
The TCA must be completed and validated by all partners before being forwarded to the Managing Authorities in all partner Member States for approval. On behalf of the GB Managing Authority, the Support Unit will need to receive your completed and validated TCA (and DPA) two months before your Action 2 start date. When all Managing Authorities have agreed the TCA, the TCA is ‘in force’ (please see page 4 of the DP User Guide) and becomes a public document available on the European Common Database (ECDB).
To be eligible for Action 2 you must conclude a TCA with at least one Development Partnership in another Member State. However, you are strongly recommended to form a transnational partnership with at least two Development Partnerships from other Member States. Choosing only one partner could present a risk to the transnational element of your if the partner drops out of the programme for any reason.
Whilst you are required to conclude a TCA with a minimum of one DP in another Member State to progress to Action 2, revisions can be made to an approved TCA in force during Action 2. For example, new partners may be added in, providing the new version of the TCA is re-validated and re-approved by all the partners concerned and the Managing Authorities.
If you are having any problems with your transnational work, please contact the Support Unit immediately to discuss the matter.
Multiple TCAs
It is expected in the majority of cases that each DP will conclude one TCA with its transnational partners.
Under exceptional circumstances, a single DP can be involved in more than one TCA if this can be justified. If you are considering entering into more than one TCA, you will need to ensure that the activities and financial allocations for your DP for each of the TCAs are clearly stated and that no duplication or double funding of activities takes place. You must reflect the activities and finances of both TCAs in your Development Partnership Agreement. You are reminded that the development of multiple TCAs will create an additional administrative burden on your DP.
Please contact the Support Unit if you would like to discuss your particular arrangements.
