Call for expression of interest for experts to conduct the independent evaluation of research proposals for the PRIMA Initiative

 

 

On the 17^th December 2018, PRIMA (Partnership for Research & Innovation in the Mediterranean Area) launched five Calls for Proposals (four Calls for Section 1 and one Call for Section 2) under its Annual Work Plan 2019. Details of these Calls are available on the PRIMA website –

 

www.prima-med.org

 

PRIMA is seeking expressions of interest from qualified experts to conduct the independent evaluation of proposals on the following topics:

 

Topics for PRIMA Section 1 Calls 2019

 

Thematic Area – Water Management

 

• • Topic 1.1.1 RIA Sustainable ground water management in water-stressed Mediterranean areas

 

Thematic Area – Farming Systems

 

• • Topic 1.2.1. RIA Conserving water and soil in Mediterranean dry-farming, smallholder agriculture

 

• • Topic 1.2.2 IA Sustainability and competitiveness of Mediterranean greenhouse and intensive horticulture

 

Thematic Area – Agro-food Value Chain

 

• • Topic 1.3.1 IA Implementation of analytical tools and digital technology to achieve traceability and authenticity control of traditional Mediterranean foods

 

Nexus Theme

 

• • Topic 1.4.1 RIA Assessing social, technical and economic benefits of a cross-sectoral governance of the Water-Ecosystems-Food Nexus
  • Topic 1.4.2 CSA Platform for mapping and capitalisation of best practices from on-going and past experiences related to Farming system, Water management and Food Value Chain in the Mediterranean Area

 

Topics for PRIMA Section 2 Call – Multi-topic 2019

 

Thematic Area – Water Management

 

• • Topic 2.1.1 RIA Bridging the gap between potential and actual irrigation performance in the Mediterranean
  • Topic 2.1.2 RIA Management of low quality waters under water scarcity and climate change conditions

 

Thematic Area – Farming Systems

 

• • Topic 2.2.1 RIA Small scale farming systems innovation
  • Topic 2.2.2 RIA Use and management of biodiversity as a major lever of sustainability in farming systems

 

Thematic Area – Agro-food Value Chain

 

• • Topic 2.3.1 RIA Extending shelf-life of perishable Mediterranean food products
  • Topic 2.3.2 RIA Enhancing horizontal and vertical integration in Mediterranean agro-food value chains

 

 

Tasks and responsibilities

 

Experts will contribute to the evaluation for their area of specialisation. They will receive a portfolio of proposals to be evaluated. They will perform a remote evaluation of the proposals, which implies giving scores and written comments for each criterion of evaluation, before attending a panel review meeting.

 

Depending on the type of call for proposals, the evaluation might be carried out in a single-stage or two-stage evaluation process (in the latter case, experts may be asked to evaluate First Stage “pre-proposals” and Second Stage “full proposals”).

 

Experts will be supported by the PRIMA Project Officers during the evaluation process and will be provided with all necessary materials and documents to perform their tasks.

 

 

Requirements

 

The minimum requirements are:

 

• • Postgraduate degree in relevant discipline (preferably a PhD or equivalent in one of the areas addressed by the PRIMA Programme);
  • At least 5 years of professional experience;
  • Sound expertise in the topics highlighted above;
  • Sound evaluation experience in international research and innovation programmes;
  • Fluency in English, both written and spoken;
  • Excellent writing skills

 

The desirable requirements are:

 

• • Previous experience with coordination of and cross-linkages between programmes and policies at regional and national level;
  • Previous work experience in the Mediterranean area and knowledge of regional issues

 

 

Important Note

 

The candidates shall not have been involved in the design or implementation of PRIMA activities being assessed by the evaluation process and will also be required to sign a conflict of interest declaration.

 

Individuals who are participating in proposals (as coordinator, partner or in any other role) submitted against any of the PRIMA Calls for Proposals 2019 (both Section 1 and Section 2 Calls) cannot apply to be selected as evaluators.

 

 

Additional information

 

PRIMA strives to achieve gender and geographical balance in the composition of the Evaluation Panels.

 

 

Indicative timeline for the selection of experts

 

• • Interested parties are to register themselves in the “PRIMA Database of Experts” by 31^st January 2019 EOB. The PRIMA website features a section called “Register as an expert” where interested parties will need to fill in the online template, in which personal, administrative and scientific data will be requested. A detailed Curriculum Vitae has to be uploaded (preferably in Europass format).

 

• • The PRIMA Secretariat will be contacting suitable candidates in January / February 2019.
  • The final selection will take place in March 2019.

 

 

Remuneration

 

Experts will be remunerated directly from the PRIMA Secretariat according to PRIMA rules which include travel and subsistence costs.

 

DISCLAIMER: Registration does not mean that an individual is automatically selected as an expert evaluator. Only the selected experts will be contacted directly by the PRIMA secretariat in due time.