EaSI - Employment and Social Innovation
The Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI) programme is a financing instrument at EU level to promote a high level of quality and sustainable employment, guaranteeing adequate and decent social protection, combating social exclusion and poverty and improving working conditions.
Structure and funding EaSI is managed directly by the European Commission. It brings together three EU programmes managed separately between 2007 and 2013: PROGRESS, EURES and Progress Microfinance. As of January 2014, these programmes form the three axes of EaSI. They support: the modernisation of employment and social policies with the PROGRESS axis; job mobility with the EURES axis; access to micro-finance and social entrepreneurship with the Microfinance and Social Entrepreneurship axis. The total budget for 2014-2020 is EUR 919 million.
What does it support? The PROGRESS helps in three thematic sections: employment, in particular to fight youth unemployment; social protection, social inclusion and the reduction and prevention of poverty; working conditions.
EURES covers three thematic sections: transparency of job vacancies, job applications and any related information for applicants and employers; development of services for the recruitment and placing of workers in employment; cross-border partnerships.
The Microfinance and Social Entrepreneurship (MF/SE) axis supports actions in two thematic sections: microcredit and microloans for vulnerable groups and micro-enterprises; social entrepreneurship.
Who can apply? The PROGRESS axis is open to all public and/or private bodies, actors and institutions, and in particular:
national, regional and local authorities;
employment services;
specialist bodies provided for under Union law;
the social partners;
non-governmental organisations;
higher education institutions and research institutes;
experts in evaluation and in impact assessment;
national statistical offices;
the media.
It can support cooperation with international organisations, and in particular with the Council of Europe, the OECD, the ILO, with other United Nations bodies and with the World Bank.
The EURES axis of EaSI is open to: national, regional and local authorities; employment services; social partner organisations and other interested parties.
The Microfinance and Social Entrepreneurship axis does not directly finance entrepreneurs or social enterprises, but enables selected microcredit providers and social enterprise investors to increase lending. The Commission has selected the European Investment Fund as its entrusted entity to implement this axis. Organisations that can apply for funding are: public and private bodies established at national, regional or local level and providing microcredit for persons and microenterprises and/or financing for social enterprises in these countries.
Terms of financing check here
Read more about EASI here and European Investment Fund here.