Towards simplification : analysis of selection of operations : taking stock of practices in the EU Member States : handbook on selection of operations

This handbook provides examples of good practices for the selection of operations financed by the European Structural and Investment (ESI) Funds in EU Member States, particularly the ERDF, the ESF, and the Cohesion Fund. It is aimed primarily at authorities responsible for managing the funds, namely managing authorities (MAs) and intermediate bodies (IBs), but it may also be relevant to other authorities and practitioners that are involved or interested in selecting operations. The handbook highlights the most common challenges that can be encountered during the operation-selection process, and the challenges that emerged in the context of EU cohesion policy in 2014-2020. For each of these challenges, the handbook provides some possible solutions. The handbook is structured around the main steps of the selection process, from preparing the intervention to appraising proposals, to signing contracts. For each step of the selection process, the handbook provides: (i) an overview of the step; (ii) a description of the key challenges encountered in the selection process; (iii) some examples of good practices used to address those challenges; and (iv) a list of guiding questions, which can be considered by the authorities when carrying out the specific step. The handbook also contains a synthesis of other cross-cutting lessons relevant to the selection of operations. The handbook is one of the outputs of the European Commission project 'Towards simplification - Analysis of selection of operations - Taking stock of practices in the EU Member States'. This project aimed to take stock of - and disseminate information on - the practices and procedures that authorities responsible for managing cohesion policy have used when selecting operations in the 2014-2020 programming period.