1. Projects utilizing the Perez-Guerrero Trust Fund (PGTF) should be of such a nature that they lead to balanced and general benefits for the member countries of the Group of 77. These projects should be designed so as to have a maximum multiplier effect and, in the case of regional projects, serve as pilot projects for the other regions.
2. The objective of the PGTF is to provide seed money for (i) financing pre-investment/feasibility studies/reports prepared by professional consultancy organizations in developing countries; and (ii) facilitating the implementation of projects within the framework of the Caracas Programme of Action on ECDC.
3. The PGTF should not be used as a substitute for resources available to the United Nations agencies for undertaking activities in favour of economic cooperation among developing countries.
4. Proposing organizations and institutions may submit no more than one (1) project proposal per annum for funding from the PGTF.
5. All projects benefiting from PGTF financing should, to the maximum extent possible, comply with ECDC/TCDC modalities in their execution.
6. Projects that are of a national nature would not be eligible for financing. For nationally executed projects to be eligible, the cooperative component of the project has to be established through the identification and declared interest of and explicit participation by other developing countries as potential beneficiaries in the activities of the project, as appropriate. Accordingly, written evidence of endorsement or declared interest should be part of the proposal. The Committee of Experts would not consider proposals failing to comply with this requirement.
7. Cooperative projects can be carried out on a sub-regional, regional or inter-regional basis, with a minimum of three (3) participating countries. Therefore, projects that are of a bilateral nature are not eligible for funding.
8. Dissemination of results to interested countries cannot by itself be considered as a rationale for the cooperative character and hence the eligibility of the project.
9. The projects that are selected should not duplicate existing projects in developing countries and should make optimum use of capacities which already exist in developing countries at the national, regional and inter-regional levels.
10. The support provided by PGTF is of a catalytic nature and cannot be used for the full implementation of a project, which is the responsibility of the participating countries. In this regard, regular budget activities of organizations or institutions are not eligible for funding from PGTF resources.
11. Before submitting project proposals to the PGTF, governmental and non- governmental organizations, subregional and regional institutions of developing countries should obtain approval of their respective governing bodies and countries involved in the project.
12. Project proposals submitted for funding from PGTF should address the sectoral priorities contained in the Caracas Programme of Action, that is Trade, Technology, Food and Agriculture, Energy, Raw Materials, Finance, Industrialization and Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries, as well as in the Havana Programme of Action in the areas of South-South cooperation.
13. All project proposals submitted to PGTF should include inputs from other sources of an amount at least equal to the resources requested from PGTF. These inputs should be secured by the sponsors prior to submission of the proposal to PGTF.
14. Project proposals by governmental or non-governmental organizations should be submitted to PGTF through their respective National Focal Points for ECDC/TCDC or competent national authorities, as appropriate.
15. The deadline for submission of project proposals shall be April 30 of each year, so that the necessary consultations between the experts, the Office of the Chairman, governments, organizations and institutions submitting proposals should take place, so as to improve and expedite the process of examination of projects as well as to avoid duplication with the existing activities.
16. Project proposals received after the established deadline of each given year would not be considered by the Committee at its meeting of that year and consideration would be deferred to the next meeting of the Committee. However, these proposals would only be considered by the Committee if the submitting entities resubmit these proposals, in their original form or updated as appropriate, before the deadline of the following year.
17. The financial support given to any project proposal in a given year cannot exceed one-seventh of the total resources available to PGTF for that year. The Office of the Chairman of the Group of 77 will inform at the beginning of each calendar year the corresponding availability of resources. The maximum amount available in 2019 for supporting any given project will be US$35,000.
18. In order to ensure successful implementation of approved projects a lead country or organization, as appropriate, should be identified when necessary.

1. B. Appraisal and evaluation of project proposals

1. A committee of six experts, two from each region of the Group of 77, acting in their personal capacities, is hereby established. The regional groups of the Group of 77 in New York shall nominate and endorse the names of the experts and submit them to the Chairman of the Group of 77 in New York. The terms of office of the experts shall be five years and shall be structured so as to avoid replacement of both experts from a given region in the same year. Whenever the nomination of a new expert by the respective regional group does not occur up to end-April of the year following expiration of the term of office of the outgoing expert, the term of office of the outgoing expert shall be extended until the nomination of the new expert takes place.
2. The task of this Committee of Experts shall be to prepare a list of projects in order of priority in respect of which the preparations of pre-investment/feasibility studies/reports could be assigned to professional consultancy organizations available in developing countries. The report of the Committee of Experts shall also include all relevant financial implications.
3. At least four experts would constitute the quorum in any meeting of the Committee of Experts. A smooth transition should be ensured between the work of the outgoing group of experts and the group to be designated, inter alia, through the presence of the Chairman of the current Committee in the first meeting of the newly designated Committee.
4. When due to unforeseen circumstances, the quorum established in guideline B(c) could not be attained and hence holding of a given regular meeting of the Committee of Experts might be compromised or impeded, the Chairman of the Committee of Experts, in consultation with the Chair of the Group of 77, is authorized to take all necessary actions and make single-meeting appointments to secure the quorum for that meeting. Should this be the case, the Chairman of the Committee should inform of the actions taken when the report of that meeting of the Committee is submitted for approval.
5. When project proposals are received by the Intergovernmental Follow-up and Coordination Committee (IFCC) or Ministerial Meetings of the Group of 77, such project proposals should be referred to the Committee of Experts before a final decision is taken.
6. Whenever feasible, the Committee of Experts should indicate in its recommendation for adoption of a given project if disbursement of funds should take place in two or more tranches. The disbursement of subsequent tranches would be subject to the timely submission of the corresponding financial and progress reports. A token 10 percent of the funds allocated to each project will be withheld until the submission by the project sponsors of the relevant substantive and financial reports which are to be submitted upon completion of each project.
7. No follow-up project would be considered until the previous one is implemented.
8. Countries or groups of countries, including action committees, will continue to have the possibility of submitting projects to the IFCC and/or Ministerial Meetings of the Group of 77 for financing from the PGTF. To the extent possible the views of the Committee of Experts would be ascertained on these projects.
9. In order to identify a uniform project cycle and ensure full participation of its members, the regular meeting of the Committee of Experts should take place between 1 July and 15 August of each year, and if necessary the Chairman of the Group of 77, in consultation with the Chairman of the Committee of Experts of the PGTF, will convene an extraordinary meeting of the Committee.
10. The expenditures relating to the participation of the members at the meetings of the Committee of Experts, up to a maximum of two meetings per year, will be covered by the PGTF.

C. Project approval

1. The report of the Committee of Experts shall be circulated to Governments by the Chairman of the Group of 77 in New York at least one month in advance of the next annual ministerial meeting of the Group of 77. Both the IFCC and the Ministerial Meeting of the Group of 77 would be empowered to approve the report of the experts.
2. In the year when no IFCC meetings are held, the report of the Committee would be considered by the annual meeting of senior officials the Group of 77 which is entrusted with the preparation of the annual meeting of the ministers for foreign affairs held in New York. The report as amended by the annual meeting of senior officials will be submitted for consideration and approval to the ministerial meeting.
3. The approving authorities (IFCC and/or Ministerial Meetings) should have before them a list of all the projects submitted for consideration by the Committee of Experts.

1. The Chairman of the Group of 77 in New York should approach directly, in consultation with concerned Governments, organizations and institutions in developing countries capable of preparing projects eligible for financing under the Perez-Guerrero Trust Fund. Such an approach must go beyond sending invitations to submit project proposals. In carrying out this task, which should take place under the coordination of appropriate authorities and designated national focal points of host developing countries, the participation of the members of the Committee of Experts should be sought in order to benefit from their experience and expertise.
2. The Chairman of the Group of 77 could also seek the assistance of the Committee of Experts in identifying organizations and institutions of developing countries capable of preparing project proposals that could be submitted for funding by PGTF.
3. Once the report is approved, pre-investment/feasibility studies/reports shall be commissioned on a strictly time-bound basis. When available such pre-investment/feasibility studies/reports shall be circulated by the Chairman of the Group of 77 in New York to all countries members of the Group of 77.
4. The core of assistants of the Chairman of the Group of 77 will provide continuing support for the work of the Committee, in order to ensure a permanent operating and follow-up capability in identifying, selecting and recommending projects as well as in assisting the Chairman in monitoring the implementation of the approved projects.

1. Requests for the financing of projects by Action Committees as defined in the Caracas Programme of Action, existing or prospective, from the Perez-Guerrero Trust Fund for South-South Cooperation will be considered by the Committee of Experts on the same parameters that governed the approval for providing financial support to the Action Committee on Consultancy, Construction and Engineering as a form of support to its preparatory phase in order to facilitate its early and effective launching. (The Action Committee will receive the recommended amount only after it has received a matching contribution of the same amount from its members). The Committee of Experts shall apply the same norms and modalities concerning the procedure of submission of requests for support and/or projects by other Action Committees.

1. Within the existing guidelines due regard should be given to equitable geographical distribution as far as possible.
2. The initiation of the implementation of projects, determined by the signature of the project document and the corresponding sub-contract where appropriate, should take place no more than two years after the adoption of the project by IFCC or the Ministerial Meeting of the Group of 77. Should this condition not be fulfilled the funds would revert to PGTF following consideration and recommendation by the Committee of Experts.
3. In order to increase the quality and number of project proposals submitted, appropriate institutions and organizations of developing countries should be provided with comprehensive information on the potentiality of the PGTF and on the procedures for the submission of proposals. These contacts should be carried out in consultation with national governments.
4. In order to increase awareness of the PGTF, relevant information in all the official languages of the Group should be disseminated by the Office of the Chairman of the Group of 77 in New York through all appropriate channels, such as printed brochures and the web page of the Group. This information should include the guidelines as well as the standard format for submission of project proposals.
5. The utilization of the PGTF shall be reviewed at the meetings of the IFCC.
6. Only the interest accruing on the Fund should be utilized. This would preserve intact the core capital.