Ministry of Culture
Laws and Regulations Retrieving System

2014 Ministry of Culture Grants Directions for Youth Participation in Village Cultural Development Project

I.                   The Ministry of Culture (MOC) has drawn up these Directions to ensure equitable access to cultural resources in urban and rural areas, and to encourage young people to participate in civil society, express their creativity and drive social innovation, and improve the environment for culture and the arts in villages, communities, and underprivileged areas.

II.                Eligibility

A.   For Republic of China citizens: submit proof of being between the ages of 20 and 35.

B.   For foreign nationals: submit proof of being between the ages of 20 and 35 as well as of being in possession of a resident’s visa issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Bureau of Consular Affair or an alien residence certificate issued by the National Immigration Agency.

III.             Project content: Proposals submitted must include a schedule for the project’s completion (which, in principle, must be before November 30 of the year following the year of application). Applicants are to select one of three application categories under which heading they submit a workable proposal. Categories:

A.   Promotion of culture and the arts at the community level: Activities concerning cultural assets preservation, performing arts, visual arts, handicrafts, drawing, music/video, animation, literature, or history that boost villages’ cultural development may be part of the proposal.

B.   Microenterprises: Activities that help communities build management experience in running microenterprises, increase social value, and/or open up new markets for culture and the arts through developing related microenterprises dealing in culture and the arts, building local microenterprises by having them tap into culture/the arts, or enlivening local economies may be part of the proposal.

C.   Matching platform: Activities that result in greater access to personnel, materials, or financing (from, for example, governments, tertiary education establishments, and domestic and foreign private groups) to help those running microenterprises or promoting culture and the arts meet development needs may be part of the proposal. Retirees, young volunteers, and cultural workers could all be involved in the effort to bolster village cultural development.

D.   Review criteria, procedure, notification of results, and recusal:

1.     Review criteria:

a.     Creativity (innovation, creative thinking, applied values, use of new media): 25 percent;

b.     Completeness and feasibility (project goals, execution strategy/methods, personnel, schedule): 25 percent;

c.      Understanding of local availability of resources, participation by local residents and young people (resource consolidation, encouraging community participation, etc): 25 percent;

d.     Sustainability (ability to attract and retain monetary/other support by connecting to various sectors of society, thus making the project self-sustaining): 15 percent;

e.      Influence on society (scope/depth of affect or change in the locale or community):10 percent.

2.     Review will be conducted in stages, including an inspection of   qualifications, an initial inspection, and a final inspection.

a.         Inspection of qualifications: The Ministry of Culture will conduct a review of written materials submitted. Where information is lacking, applicants will be granted one opportunity to provide the required information within a given time frame. Where applicants do not provide sufficient supplemental information, or do not do so by the stated deadline, their applications will be deemed void.

b.         Preliminary review: A review committee will be formed of MOC representatives and outside experts. The committee will conduct an exhaustive review of written materials submitted. Those applications successfully passing through the preliminary review will then be subjected to a final review.

c.          Final review: The MOC will notify applicants to present before a review committee. Where necessary, the MOC will conduct an on-site inspection. Applications that are approved of by the committee will be passed on to the Minister or his/her designate for final approval.

3.     Notification: Applicants will be notified by the MOC in writing of the results after the inspection is completed.

4.     Recusal: To ensure fairness for and secrecy of the review process, personnel involved are to preserve secrecy and to recuse themselves where they have a conflict of interest. Where the terms of Article 32 or Article 33 of the Administrative Procedure Act apply, committee members are to recuse themselves.

E.    Grant amount and prizes

1.     Award for selection: Applicants who have successfully passed through the final review are to receive NT$100,000 awards as well as awards for the completion of their project. Recipients, having received notification from the MOC that they have been so selected, are to provide documentation as stipulated in Paragraph 1 of Article 6 of these Directions. Failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the award.

2.     Grant for project completion: Grants are divided by category as follows:

The number of persons designated to the prize will be announced by the MOC.

The review committee shall be empowered with the discretion to increase the grant amount from that stipulated in these Directions for projects deemed particularly important. The budget for this project part of the MOC’s annual budget, which is subject to the approval of the Legislative Yuan (and subject to freezing). As such, grants and amounts may be changed or cancelled, and this does not give rise to claim for compensation or damages on the part of the grant recipient.

F.    Grant distribution:

1.     Selection award: During the period specified in the notification letter, a receipt for NT$100,000, a letter of authorization, and an affidavit affirming the project will be completed, shall be sent to the MOC, after which funds shall be remitted.

2.     Grant for completion: Awarded grants shall be remitted in stages as portions of the project are completed. For each remittance, recipient shall provide to the MOC the following:

a.     Stage I: During the period specified in the notification letter, recipients are to provide to the MOC a receipt for first-stage payment, a revised proposal, work program, and schedule. Following an MOC document review, 30 percent of the grant funding shall be remitted to the recipient.

b.     Stage II: Where greater than 50 percent of a project is to occur in the calendar year after that of the project’s start, receipts for second-stage payment and an interim status report are to be provided to the MOC. Following an MOC document review, 30 percent of the grant funding shall be remitted to the recipient.

c.      Stage III: Recipients who have completed 100 percent of their projects are to submit a receipt for third-stage payment and a final status report before November 30 of the calendar year after that of the project’s start. Following an MOC document review, 40 percent of the grant funding shall be remitted to the recipient.

G.   Application period and how to apply

1.     Application period: The MOC will make a separate announcement indicating the application period.

2.     How to apply:

a.     Applicants are to submit 10 copies (in principle, written in Chinese) of their proposal as well as a single DVD in which they defend their proposal (of 5-10 min. in length). The form the proposal is to take, as well as other documents requiring review by the MOC, shall be announced separately by the MOC.

b.     Applicants must submit the aforementioned documents by mail during the application period. The postmark will establish the date of mailing. If the due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the due date is delayed until the next business day. Late applications will not be processed.

c.      The front of the envelope in which the application is submitted shall read “Youth Participation in Village Cultural Development Project” and be directed to: Ministry of Culture Cultural Resources Department, Cultural Resources R&D Section, 13F, South Building, No. 439 Zhongping Rd., Xinzhuang Dist., New Taipei City.”

d.     Materials provided by applicants shall not be returned, regardless of whether funding is obtained or not, and applicants shall not request their return.

H.   Recipients shall abide by the following while implementing their proposal:

1.     Hold regular progress meetings and inform the Ministry of their date and time. The MOC will, as needed, dispatch a representative to attend.

2.     The applicant, or a designated representative with authority to speak for the project, will participate in case studies and other activities held by the MOC.  

3.     During the execution period, the recipient shall provide related documents and status reports to the MOC for use in evaluation and policy analysis.

4.     Recipients shall provide regular progress reports during the execution period, and accept visits by MOC staff advisory groups or other advisory groups designated by the MOC. Reports made by these groups following their visits shall become part of the evidence used in determining progress for grant funding distribution.

I.       Copyright

1.     Assurances are to be made that information provided as part of application documents and proposals during the execution period does not infringe upon the copyright of others, nor run afoul of related laws or regulations.

2.     Where information provided by recipients in their proposals as well as during the execution period employs content which is copyrighted by others, recipients are to first obtain authorization from the copyright holder.

3.     The copyright and intellectual property rights of proposals and reports provided by recipients (including text, photographs, video, and documentaries), scripts, documentation, books, film and audio, as well as cultural/creative products, shall belong to the Ministry of Cultural Affairs or its designee. Recipients shall not be otherwise compensated for this, and the MOC shall have the right to utilize these materials in its promotional activities or publications without restriction as to time, place, or method. The applicant shall affirm that the original copyright holder or unit shall have no claim on the Ministry or its designee.

J.      Other items:

1.     Fraudulent information or documents shall not be submitted; where applicants who have submitted fraudulent information are selected for funding, the MOC will revoke the award certificate and the grant funding. The recipient shall, without condition, return grant funding or award certificates that have been issued by the Ministry.

2.     Recipients’ plans are to be completed according to schedule. Where force majeure results in delays such that the original schedule cannot be kept to, recipients are to request Ministry approval in writing for an extension or a change to their original proposal within 15 days of their becoming aware of the situation. Those who to not abide by this regulation may, depending on the severity of the infraction, have their grant revoked or cancelled.

3.     Recipients are to affirm that they will execute and complete the elements of their proposal. During the execution period, where recipients find themselves unable to complete the elements of the plan as approved, or those who do not do so in a satisfactory way, or who do not submit reports and other information in accordance with regulations, or otherwise run afoul of these Directions, the MOC has the right to demand emendation within a specified time, or, depending on the severity of the infraction, to revoke or cancel the grant and require the repayment in full or in part of monies already remitted.

4.     Grants shall be reported on personal income tax returns, and income tax shall be withheld by the MOC at the time of disbursal, in accordance with ROC laws and regulations concerning taxation.

5.     Promotional materials related to the project (including invitations, posters, and published materials) are to indicate clearly that the grant is provided by the MOC. Recipients shall provide three weeks’ advance notice prior to the issuing of promotional materials and holding of key events such as press conferences and the opening and closing ceremonies for the project.

6.     To prevent the repeat grant of government funding to the same recipient, funding will not be awarded for plans which are the same as or similar to those which have already been granted funding by the MOC or its subsidiaries, the National Culture and Arts Foundation, the National Performing Arts Center, or central government agencies. Where, after approval for a grant has been made, it is discovered that a grant has previously been given for the same plan, the MOC reserves the right to cancel the grant and require that the recipient return funding and award certificates already given.

K.   Related laws and regulations shall govern areas not addressed by these Directions