4.3 Team Europe Initiative components and their funding/financing
TEIs are made up of different components (programmes) that are each funded/financed by TEI participants – either in parallel or in a joined-up manner – and which contribute to achieving the TEI joint objectives. TEIs bring these different elements to the table and combine them in a coherent whole. TEIs do not have an overarching independent budget, and co-funding or pooling resources is not required for contributions to TEIs.
A financial contribution by a TEI participant means any contribution with a financial value. The contribution could therefore be through any implementation modality or financing instrument (e.g. grant, loan, guarantee, blended finance, technical assistance or organisation of an event), including in-kind contributions if a financial value can be associated with them. It must come from that participant’s national budget or own balance sheet (e.g. if a Member States implementing agency is managing EU funds through delegated cooperation, this would not count as a financial contribution from the Member State’s implementing agency).
The regional TEI on Water, Energy and Climate Change in Central Asia has pooled relevant ongoing and newly adopted programmes conducted by all participants as a first step towards better coordination in this key area. AAP 2023 will finance a coordination mechanism that will ensure the monitoring of participants’ actions and serve as an entry point for TEI participants and Central Asian governments to discuss priorities in the region. Italy is contributing in kind to the TEI with its leadership on the EU-Central Asia Platform for Environment and Water Cooperation and its Working Group on Environment and Climate Change (WGECC). The TEI coordination mechanism will support and strengthen the Platform as a relevant venue for discussion with Central Asian governments, while also benefiting from the Platform participants’ experience since 2009 in policy dialogue on issues relevant to the TEI.
The EU’s contribution to the TEIs comes primarily from the NDICI-Global Europe instrument. These are programmed through multiannual indicative programmes (MIPs) in which the EU defines its medium- and long-term international cooperation priorities at country, regional and global level. Information on adopted country and regional MIPs is publicly available online80. The TEIs are embedded within the MIP priority areas. The NDICI-Global Europe contribution to TEIs is then confirmed through EU (annual) action plans.
Member States and other actors following a Team Europe approach have their own processes for programming their contribution to TEIs81.
For a country TEI, there should be at least three TEI participants making a financial contribution (e.g. the EU and two Member States; or two Member States, the EU and the EIB). In countries or specific sectors where few EU actors operate, this could be reduced to at least two TEI participants making a financial contribution. For a regional TEI, at least four actors following a Team Europe approach should participate with a financial contribution to the TEI. In regions or specific sectors where few EU actors operate, this could be reduced to at least two actors following a Team Europe approach participating with a financial contribution.
⇒ The principles and criteria for regional TEIs are outlined in Annex 4.1.
80 https://ec.europa.eu/international-partnerships/global-europe-programming_en
81 For example, EDFI, the association of 15 development finance institutions (DFIs) has developed the EDFI guidance note for DFI involvement in TEIs. This outlines the process for TEI involvement of financial actors in TEIs across actors following a Team Europe approach and Global Gateway. For further information, please contact EDFI@EDFI.EU.