Single Market Programme
Overall Budget: 4.2 billion euros
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Pivotal initiative aimed at fortifying the governance of the EU single market. Is designed to address various facets of market dynamics, with a primary focus on enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of the internal market.
GENERAL OBJECTIVES
(1) Enhancing Market Functionality through measures such as enhanced market surveillance, facilitating problem-solving support for citizens and businesses, and strengthening competition policy.
(2) Boosting Business Competitiveness through targeted support and resources, SMEs are empowered to thrive and innovate, contributing to overall economic growth and resilience.
(3) Developing Effective European Standards and international financial and non-financial reporting and auditing standards. Aims to enhance transparency, reliability, and trust within the market by establishing robust standards, thereby facilitating smoother cross-border transactions and investments.
(4) Strengthening Consumer Protection by implementing measures to bolster consumer rights and safeguards, fostering a thriving and equitable marketplace.
(5) Ensuring Food Safety: The programme allocates resources to uphold stringent food safety standards, safeguarding public health and consumer confidence in food products.
(6) Producing High-Quality Statistics: accurate and reliable statistics are essential for informed decision-making and policy formulation. The programme promises to produce and disseminate high-quality statistics, providing stakeholders with reliable data to guide their actions and strategies.
Click here for more information: https://commission.europa.eu/funding-tenders/find-funding/eu-funding-programmes/single-market-programme/overview_en
OPEN CALLS
MARTIES for SMEs
SMARTIES for SMEs: Pills of Sustainable, Smart, Regenerative Tourism to Empower SMEs in the EU Mediterranean area (SMP-COSME-2022-TOURSME)
Deadline: 24 January 2025 (17:00 CET)
DESCRIPTION
SMARTIES for SMEs offers technical support, mentoring, and financial assistance to tourism-related SMEs in select Mediterranean countries, including Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Portugal, and Slovenia. The program is structured to fund 75 innovative projects that align with goals of digital transformation and environmental sustainability in the tourism sector.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
(1) Promote sustainable and regenerative tourism
(2) Support green and digital transitions
(3) Enhance competitiveness and innovation
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Eligible are SMEs established and operating in Mediterranean with fewer than 250 employees that operate within the tourism ecosystem. The project particularly seeks those engaged in sectors such as cultural tourism, ecotourism, health and wellness tourism, and various forms of recreational tourism. Selected SMEs will receive a grant of €25,000 as well as 15 months of free mentoring and support to implement sustainable innovations.
FU-TOURISM:
FU-TOURISM 5.0 - FUTURE-READY BUSINESS SUPPORT ECOSYSTEM FOR TOURISM SME TRANSITION TO GREEN AND DIGITAL RESILIENCE (SMP-COSME-2022-TOURSME-01-)
Deadline: 31 January 2025 (17:00 CET)
DESCRIPTION
FU-TOURISM is a groundbreaking programme that empowers tourism SMEs to thrive in the green and digital era. By creating a network of business support organisations in six European countries, FU-TOURISM provides funding and expertise to 102 SME projects that aim to transform their tourism practices. FU-TOURISM helps tourism SMEs to become more sustainable, resilient, and innovative, while contributing to the European Green Deal and Digital Single Market.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
(1) transform promising innovative ideas into marketable and/or replicable and/or scalable products, services, or business models that will be able to contribute to the shaping of the future of sustainable and digital tourism in the target pilot destinations, the 6 pilot countries and beyond.
(2) accelerate the growth and impact of these innovative SMEs
(3) fostering a more resilient and forward-thinking tourism ecosystem across the participating countries.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Eligible are individual SMEs advancing sustainability and digitalization within the tourism sector across Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Greece, Poland, and Spain. Α total of 60 SMEs will be supported through an 8-month programme which offers a blended approach of funding and comprehensive learning and training support to drive innovation in the tourism industry. Business proposals must present projects involving one or more innovative elements (new processes, products, and/or business models) in the sense of a structured and strategic approach that develops, implements, and enables the scalability of the solutions for a sustainable, digital, and inclusive tourism. These innovations should clearly contribute to enhancing and transforming the tourism sector or its ecosystem and respond to the crucial challenges of tourism and connected sectors defined through the FU-TOURISM project priority mapping process.
CLOSED CALLS
INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL FSTP – RESIST:
REsilience through Sustainable processes and production for the European automotive InduSTry for SMEs working in the Mobility, Transport and Automotive ecosystem to participate in internationalisation acceleration activities organised in non-EU third countries (SMP-COSME-2021-CLUSTER-01 - Euroclusters for Europe's recovery)
Deadline: 20 December 2024 (12:00 CET)
DESCRIPTION
The RESIST initiative is geared towards providing financial assistance to European small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), start-ups, and very-small businesses (VSBs) seeking to accelerate their internationalisation efforts. Through the international travel Fast-Track to Innovation (FSTP) call, applicants have the opportunity to secure funding for various internationalisation activities.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
(1) Participation in conferences, trade fairs, and exhibitions in target markets.
(2) Attendance at in-person trainings or events focused on internationalisation.
(3) Engagement in matchmaking events to foster business connections.
(4) Arrangement of bilateral meetings with potential customers or suppliers, encompassing business-to-business (B2B), business-to-consumer (B2C), and consumer-to-consumer (C2C) interactions.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Funding does not cover booth fees at conferences or exhibitions. Internal events organised within the RESIST Eurocluster framework are not eligible for this funding opportunity.
EU DigiTOUR
Innovation uptake and digitalisation in the tourism sector (TOURINN-01-2020) - Call for selection of tourism SMEs - Stage 2
Deadline: 31 January 2024 (17:00 CET)
DESCRIPTION
EU DigiTOUR is a pioneering project, supported by the COSME Programme of the European Union, specifically crafted to empower Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) operating in the tourism sector to embark on a journey of digital transformation.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
The initiative is designed to:
(1) Provide direct support to innovative projects proposed by third parties, such as SMEs.
(2) Offer technical guidance, advice, and capacity-building initiatives to a wide range of SMEs, tailored to their specific needs and covering diverse geographical areas.
(3) Compile best practices to furnish policymakers with current, empirical evidence regarding the implementation of. priorities outlines in the Transition Pathway for Tourism.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
SMEs must be registered in Italy, Germany, Croatia or Slovenia.
Transitioning to a more sustainable and resilient ecosystem - Empowering Tourism SMEs
(SMP-COSME-2023-TOURSME-01)
Deadline: 21 February 2024 (17:00 CET)
DESCRIPTION
This call seeks to enable and empower SMEs to transition towards more sustainable and resilient practices, aligning with the priorities outlined in the Tourism Transition Pathway as part of the Industrial Strategy Update (COM(2021)350 final).
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
The initiative is designed to:
(1) Provide direct support to innovative projects proposed by third parties, such as SMEs.
(2) Offer technical guidance, advice, and capacity-building initiatives to a wide range of SMEs, tailored to their specific needs and covering diverse geographical areas.
(3) Compile best practices to furnish policymakers with current, empirical evidence regarding the implementation of. priorities outlines in the Transition Pathway for Tourism.
COASTOUR Grants Scheme for Tourism Businesses:
Sustainable and Resilient Transformation of the Rural Coastal Tourism Industry (SMP-COSME-2021-TOURSME-01 – COVID-19 Recovery Through Sustainable Tourism Growth and SME Support)
Deadline: 12 March 2024 (17:00 CET)
DESCRIPTION
COASTOUR is an ambitious project co-funded by the European Commission under the Single Market Programme (SMP) aimed at catalysing a sustainable transition within the tourism sector. This initiative seeks to develop a robust sustainability monitoring framework designed to support the sustainable evolution of a minimum of 80 tourism SMEs across five countries: Denmark, Portugal, Italy, Slovenia, and Lithuania.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
(1) Empower tourism SMEs with tools, knowledge, and resources to enhance sustainability performance.
(2) Foster greater awareness and understanding of sustainable practices.
(3) Facilitate development and capacity-building initiatives to drive sustainable innovations.
(4) Provide funding grants to 80 SMEs.
(5) Facilitate the sustainable transition of approximately 300 rural coastal tourism SMEs.
(6) Offer complimentary sustainability advisor services, workshops, and personalised assessments with detailed recommendation reports.
(7) Foster long-term sustainability and resilience within the coastal tourism sector.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Eligible are SMEs established and operating in Denmark, Italy, Slovenia, Portugal, or Lithuania.