Help & Support
banner WBT

Working Better Together in a Team Europe Approach

Resource
public
EU-official
Updated 15/07/2024 | Working Better Together in a Team Europe Approach through joint programming, joint implementation and Team Europe Initiatives Guidance

Table of contents

3.2 Steer, management and, coordination of Team Europe Initiatives

How to coordinate Team Europe Initiatives

Under the strategic guidance of CODEV on the joint engagements in a Team Europe approach, the political steer and management of TEIs should be part of a ‘whole-of-Delegation/Embassy’ approach and build on the existing coordination structures and ensure TEIs are a regular point in the exchanges. Without prejudice to the specificities of each TEI – there some key aspects and terminology relevant for the steer, management and coordination of TEIs that can provide guidance for the management, steer and coordination of TEIs in a nonbinding way. In this context two key roles are:

  • To provide ‘political steer’, which refers to the political orientation of a TEI, the decision on strategic lines of action and of communication, and the operational use of the political leverage of the TEI in the dialogue with partner countries and the rest of development and political actors.
  • To provide ‘management’, which refers to the coordination and implementation of activities, the overall monitoring of the TEI’s impact and the joint communication. Each TEI will need to agree its own management mechanism according to the specificities of its context. The mechanism should be light and flexible, whenever possible using existing mechanisms of coordination among TEI participants. This can be set out in the joint intervention logic (see right column in example of annex 7) in line with the principle of subsidiarity144 .

Naturally, where coordination mechanisms and structures are already in place, these should be kept or optimised. For the avoidance of doubt, the suggestions and best practices presented here are without prejudice to, and do not affect, the respective EU and Member States’ competences and decision-making processes (including programming145). The principles and provisions of the Treaties and other EU legislation prevail.

Principles

Each TEI design should take the following into account: (i) the set-up should be as simple as possible and retain flexibility, in particular so that other Member States, financial institutions and/or multilateral banks can join the TEI over time; (ii) as a general rule, TEI implementation at country level should build on the institutionallyaccepted coordination role of EU Delegations; and (iii) actors involved in regional TEIs should also take into account relevant country TEIs, so as to ensure complementarity, cross-regional coordination and maximum impact.

TEI partners will need to assess how mapping, establishing and/or facilitating productive relationships between TEI participants with relevant counterparts in government, regional bodies, and other partners can be done in a more coordinated and impactful way without duplicating efforts, and based on EU policy priorities. The Team Europe approach is not about creating legal obligations; it is a European coordinated approach to deliver a higher impact in the spirit of working better together. Country and Regional Teams can take the initiative and are in the lead for individual TEIs. CODEV exchanges on horizontal issues at aggregate level on the Team Europe approach. It will be regularly informed on progress. In addition, TEI participants should work towards a mutually reinforcing relationship between joint programming and TEIs to avoid duplication and to create efficiencies.

Setting-up TEIs

It is proposed that each TEI should have a steering group and a management group. Existing European coordination structures led by the EU at country and regional level provide the main basis to utilise. At regional level, existing HQ/Capitals expert(s) or ad hoc working groups could form the basis for the TEI management group, but it needs to be recognised that the high needs for steering and managing regional/continental TEIs require an agreement on burden-sharing by the participants in the TEI, where the Commission services/EEAS shall retain a strong coordination role and overall steering of issues. In general, as far as possible, it should not be the same individuals participating in steering and management groups and participation should be aligned with hierarchy in each participant in the TEI. However, they may collectively decide to combine elements of the two groups if relevant to the context of a TEI.

In addition, it is likely that the TEI will need a support function (in technical and/or logistical terms) to facilitate the work of the management group in the form of a ‘secretariat’. Following the agreement of all participants in the TEI, they can either fund or take on the TEI support role146. If this role is taken on by a Member State, it must be funded by the Member State and the Commission has no obligation to co-fund this role. The TEI support role does not replace the collective responsibility of coordination.

The following activities could be envisaged delivered by each level of the set-up:

The steering group could:

  • Provide and outline the longer-term vision of the TEI in consistency with the programming strategic orientations, while also help building/disseminating the political narrative about the TEI.
  • Facilitate the dialogue with the partner country/region, including preparation and delivery of countrytailored joint messages to support the TEI ambition,
  • Outline and join specific, country-led political and policy dialogues that should take place during the implementation period with national stakeholders.
  • Provide informative updates as and when relevant/requested to Council working groups.
  • Assess, in consultation with respective HQs/Capitals, any requests received from non-EU development partners or multilaterals to join the TEI.
  • Consider results and recommendations of reviews and evaluations to maximise effectiveness and efficiency of the TEI.
  • Organise high level TEI-visits.

The management group could:

  • Organise regular coordination meetings with all partners who contribute financially.
  • Organise regular coordination meetings with beneficiary countries/regions on the implementation of the TEI.
  • Ensure annual reporting on the TEI’s implementation at the level of expected results and impact.
  • Develop a joint understanding of how and when to communicate on the TEI, in consultation and coordination with the relevant communication unit.
  • Develop, agree and review the JIL to ensure that it remains fit for purpose as needed.
  • Undertake joint missions to visit components of a TEI.
  • Ensure regular exchanges with European political counsellors, economic counsellors etc. at country level.
  • Assess, in consultation with respective HQs/Capitals, any requests received from non-EU development partners or multilaterals to join the TEI.
  • Take action on results and recommendations of reviews and evaluations to maximise effectiveness and efficiency of the TEI

The TEI support role could:

  • Organise, chair (or co-chair) and provide follow up to TEI management meetings.
  • Provide a support link between the management group and the political steer level.
  • Support drafting of key elements of the TEI for discussion and agreement by the management group, for example, the joint intervention logic, joint positioning to be used in sector dialogue, inputs to press releases.
  • Liaise with pillar leads where they exist to link the different pillars and components of the TEI to each other, encouraging overall TEI coherence.
  • Maintain a financial overview of the TEI and follow up with participants in the TEI in the frame of their respective programming on potential contributions.
  • Maintain the mapping country/regional TEIs that are active in the same areas/sectors and, under the authority of the management group, proactively liaise with these to ensure complementarities/synergies across TE activities.
  • Organise joint reporting or other monitoring and evaluation activities, including data collection and data sharing related issues.
  • Logistically organise joint missions and joint policy dialogues with relevant stakeholders including civil society, parliaments, private sector, etc.
  • Support outreach at the technical level with beneficiary countries/regions for the implementation of the TEI.
  • Act as the TEI focal point for the INTPA, EEAS and NEAR TE Secretariat.

Examples of country/regional TEI management structures:

Regional TEI for LAC ¨Partnership on Justice and Security¨

Two-level structure: a political level (political steering committee) and a management level (management committee/core group), DG INTPA B1 supporting and in charge of the overall coordination and follow-up. The governance structure follows a “whole-of-TEI” approach and will facilitate cooperation and coordination among members across the TEI’s objectives, so to avoid working in silos.

Political steering committee (Directors from line Ministries)

Role: to provide the political orientation of the TEI, to foster a more strategic partnership between EU and LAC on justice and security. The political steering committee advises on the strategic lines of action, including communication and the political leverage of the TEI in the dialogue with partner countries and key stakeholders in the LAC region.

Functions:

  • To set the strategic lines of action of the TEI;
  • To approve TEI working documents;
  • To agree on possible joint projects/cooperation initiatives in LAC;
  • To agree on strategic communication initiatives with LAC counterparts;
  • To supervise overall implementation progress and results;
  • To facilitate opportunities for bi-regional dialogue and cooperation.

Members (director level):

  • INTPA B1, INTPA G5
  • EEAS (Regional Affairs Americas 1)
  • Other EC DGs: HOME, JUST, FPI, OLAF
  • Ministries from MS members of the TEI

Permanent chair: INTPA B1 and the EEAS (Regional Affairs Americas 1); the chair guides the political steering, calls for meetings, define the meeting’s agenda in consultation with the members. Updates on TEI work to be shared with EU MS during COLAC or/and CODEV meetings.

Frequency of meeting: 1 or 2 per year.
Whenever possible, political steering committee meetings will be organised back-to-back to high-level sectoral and political events. This will allow for greater visibility and focus on the common policy agenda, as well as more efficient organisation and logistics.

Management committee/core group (representatives from line Ministries/implementing agencies level):

Role: to bring the political steering committee decisions forth, to supervise the implementation of the TEIs, to facilitate coordination and exchanges among its members.

Functions:

  • To analyse priority areas of work, fostering synergies and promoting cooperation projects in LAC;
  • To continuously update TEI documents and financial mapping to identify common initiatives in LAC and foster new actions;
  • To report on the implementation and the progress of projects identified under the TEI;
  • To agree on joint messages and communication channels;
  • To agree on possible joint activities (e.g. seminars, events);
  • To facilitate information sharing and coordination among the TEI members.

Members (operation and managers level):

  • INTPA B1, INTPA G5
  • EEAS (Regional affairs Americas 1)
  • Other EC DGs: HOME, JUST, FPI, OLAF
  • Designated representatives from MS (from Ministries and/or implementing agencies, to be defined by each MS)
  • EU agencies (EUROPOL, EUROJUST, CEPOL, EMCDDA, FRONTEX): these agencies will participate if concrete topics related to their area of competence are discussed during the TEI meetings

Permanent chair: INTPA B1, in coordination with EEAS and relevant EC DGs: it guides the management committee, in coordination with the MS holding the TEI’s co-chair. Rotating co-chair by MS: in coordination with the permanent chair, it calls for meetings, defines the meeting’s agenda in consultation with the members. The rotating co-chair has a duration of 6 months. The co-chair is appointed on a voluntary basis, based on MS involvement in the sector and level of contribution. The 6-months period should allow for all members to assume the co-chair during the implementation of the TEI.

TEI members can establish “thematic working groups” to focus on particular topics/areas of security and justice under the TEI three specific objectives, or to deal with a particular aspect of the implementation – e.g., for the preparation of a specific event. The working groups can be established on a needs and demand basis and report to the management committee. Frequency of meeting: 2 or 3 per year.

Coordination

Role: Support the TEI on day-to-day operations

Functions:

  • Organization of meetings (political steering committee, management committee meetings and possible ad hoc meetings with LAC counterparts);
  • Liaise with TEI members to facilitate exchange of information;
  • Keep the relevant information and documentation updated (e.g. financial mapping, etc);
  • Consolidate and update outputs as needed;
  • Support communication efforts (communication and visibility products).

Participants: (operation and managers level):

  • INTPA Unit B1, with the support of technical assistance (e.g. the current ad hoc TA for the LAC TEI, or support from EU Programmes (e.g. future El PAcCTO 2.0).

In several partner countries, Team Europe approach groups also decided to create, in addition to the management and steering group recommended by the present guidance, a technical-level, ‘TEI focal points’ working group, to allow for more sector-level discussions and coordination between Team Europe approach programme managers in charge of the TEI-contributing programmes. The creation of this working group is entirely optional, it depends on the needs and demand from the TEI participants group at country level.

Rwanda

In Rwanda, TEI participants have drafted Terms of Reference for an (optional) TEI focal points group. TEI focal points are designated by each individual TEI member. He/she/they should ideally be the manager(s) of one or several key programmes contributing to the TEI.

TEI focal points could:

  • Establish a TEI focal points mailing list and WhatsApp group (for events sharing).
  • Develop and review the Joint Intervention logic, where needed.
  • Update the TEI mapping, where relevant/ needed.
  • Designate specific leads by TEI objective or TEI pillar, based on the number of contributing programmes, their level of expertise in the area and their capacity to take on the role. The role of TEI leads would be to suggest (via the mailing list or WhatsApp group) TEI focal point meetings, when seen as necessary/ appropriate; as well as to “lightly” coordinate (notably remind TEI members to provide input/ feedback about) joint positioning, mapping, reporting and visibility actions related to their TEI objective. They would also be responsible for liaising with the management level, where needed.
  • TEI focal points would meet upon request from TEI leads in order to discuss operational, technical, or sector-level issues related to the TEIs. These meetings may be linked to (organised ahead of or in the aftermath of) an existing, broader sector DP coordination meeting.
  • Ensure that key stakeholders (incl. project implementing organisations, CSOs, private sector…) are involved in the discussions where useful and appropriate. Existing consultation mechanisms (e.g. around the joint CSO roadmap; planned project consultations, etc) should be used as much as possible, to that end.
  • Formulate joint sector/ technical level messaging – which may be brought up to the HoCs level by TEI leads for cross-TEI messaging, where needed/ appropriate.
  • Organize joint TEI project visits and other project-based joint monitoring & visibility activities, in close coordination with TEI members’ comms teams and press officers.
  • Ensure TEI financial reporting – by using the new TEI flags when encoding their programmes within existing OECD DAC CRS and IATI systems

For country TEIs

Heads of Mission will provide the political steer to country TEIs and link them to political/policy dialogue, public diplomacy actions and overall communication. All TEI participants financially contributing to the TEI should 143 Country TEIs will be managed at country level, usually by the EU DEL, and multi-country/regional TEIs will be managed also at country level as much as possible, while guaranteeing the overall oversight and direction of the process by HQ ideally be part of the political steering discussions. Heads of Mission support to the TEI concept note provides the signal for design work to start – the format of this agreement to be decided at country level building on existing mechanisms i.e. point in a regular Heads of Mission meeting. Subsequent Heads of Mission agreement on the joint intervention logic will provide the basis for the launching of the TEI and its implementation.

Heads of Cooperation should facilitate the co-creation of TEIs, coordinating the TEI design work and monitoring the TEI results. All Member States and EU DFIs financially contributing to the TEI should ideally be part of the key management discussions. Member States and EU DFIs should be encouraged to take on a leadership role for different aspects of the TEI drawing on their expertise and knowledge (possible policy leads). The management discussions on TEIs should use existing Heads of Cooperation coordination mechanisms, potentially expanding these as needed to ensure the involvement of all TEI participants (resident and non-resident) at equivalent level.

For regional TEIs

For regional and any eventual global TEIs, the management will rely on the competent geographical/thematic unit/service. In these cases, as there are no pre-existing structures to manage the TEI, it is recommended that a TEI coordinators are created within the competent units. It is necessary also that the TEI design document defines how the coordination with TEI participants will happen and the linkages to country level components, while ensuring a light and functional approach. The political steer will be given through regular meetings of geographic directors of the TEI participants (for the EU: EEAS, INTPA and NEAR).

Regional public technical cooperation programmes already in place could serve as secretariats of regional TEIs, if relevant and agreed among TEI participants, supporting EU-led policy dialogues by leveraging existing structures and mechanisms such as ‘Mesas país’.

The Partnership for Justice and Security TEI responds to EU-LAC shared challenges in the area of security and justice: violence and crime are some of the most pressing problems affecting Latin American society and organised crime originating in LAC has a direct impact on EU security. The answer lies in strengthening of bi-regional partnership and cooperation at all levels of criminal justice chain. The global objective of the TEI is to establish an effective EU-LAC partnership on strengthening the rule of law and fight against organised crime, fostering citizen security and stability in LAC and in Europe. In order to achieve that, the TEI relies on EU-funded EL PAcCTO programme (second phase) for its secretariat, supporting the TEI and leveraging structured and already stablished dialogue mechanisms to strengthen bi-regional policy dialogues on justice and security.

Human Resources and Technical Assistance

In order to guarantee coherence and coordination among the TEI’s activities and effective joint communication, when possible, the lead coordinator would need to dedicate personnel specifically to the management of the TEI. The resources needed for coordination should be anticipated from the design phase to ensure they are successfully mobilised.

Available HQ support

For support on designing of TEIs, the first port of call should be thematic units of each DG. For instance, mainstreaming gender equality in the design of TEIs will be key to supporting our collective commitments under the EU’s Action Plan on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in External Action 2021-2025 (GAP III) and the thematic units covering gender can provide support on this. Equally, support to Delegations on private sector issues could be provided by the relevant thematic units through existing Technical Assistance facilities and the Sustainable Business for Africa network.

144 Country TEIs will be managed at country level, usually by the EU Delegation, and multi-country/regional TEIs will be managed also at country level as much as possible, while guaranteeing the overall oversight and direction of the process by HQ.
145 A TEI is the sum of a number of coordinated, but mostly independent, components funded and implemented by different participants in the TEI. TEI participants are solely responsible for the decision-making processes of their own components.
146 Ideally, the financial contribution should be over some time and at least 10% of the volume of TEI.