Other Externally Funded Activities

1. Externally funded activities should be vetted and approved by the University via Office of Institutional Advancement (OIA), Research Office (RO), or Knowledge Transfer Office (KTO).

• • Donations – Donations and gifts to the University should be reported to the University via OIA, who will seek AAPC and Council approval for acceptance of donation.
  • Research grants – All applications for research grants should be approved by the University at the application stage. The application should be channeled through RO, and approval will be given by the Chairperson of the Research Committee upon the advice of the Research Committee and its subject Panels.
  • Contracts – The University enters into a variety of contracts with outside bodies. Contracts for research, knowledge transfer, consultancy or other services relating to research and knowledge transfer shall be handled by RO or KTO.
  • Members of the University as well as units in the University may not enter into any contract on behalf of the University unless authorized to do so.
  • For details, please refer to Policy on Research in the website of RO.

2. If the externally funded activity is not vetted and approved by the University via OIA, RO, or KTO, approval from an appropriate supervisory level (e.g. Faculty Dean / Institute Director / supervising Provost or PVC) is required.
3. Overhead charges may be levied on externally funded activities.

When an externally funded activity is approved by the University, the Principal Investigator (PI) can apply in writing and submit the following information to Donations and Projects Management Unit (DPU) for setting up a new project account:

• • Name of the activity and duration;
  • Name of the budget holder and the reporting department of the project;
  • Agreements / letters duly signed by the University and the outside parties;
  • Approved budget;
  • A copy of RPD form (for research activities);
  • Conference schedule / publicity materials; and
  • Any other relevant documents.

1.    Principal Investigator (PI): In the CUSAP Financial System, only one person is designated as the Principal Investigator for a project. The PI is solely responsible for the project account, and their reporting department will be considered the responsible department, unless otherwise specified.

2.    Delegation of Signing Authority and CUSAP Access Rights: If there is a need to delegate signing authority or grant CUSAP access rights to a co-PI or subordinate, the process should be initiated by completing the Authorization, Approval and Delegation log. This log should include all relevant details regarding the delegation and be submitted to DPU.

3.    In the event that the Principal Investigator (PI) intends to transfer to another department or depart from the University, it is important to notify the Finance Office ahead of time. This proactive communication will enable the Finance Office to make any necessary adjustments or changes in the CUSAP system smoothly and efficiently.

• Procurement
• Payment
• Invoicing & Receipts
• PIs or authorized delegates can retrieve and inquire financial information and transaction records in CUSAP Financial System.
• Statements with specific format for external reporting can be prepared, if necessary.

1.    Closure of Project Account:

The project account should be closed when either:

a.    The project activity is completed, or

b.    The funding is fully exhausted.

2.    Notification of Project Closure: The Principal Investigator (PI) is responsible for writing to DPU to inform them about the closure of the project.

3.    Clearance of Outstanding Issues: Before closing the project account, the following outstanding matters must be resolved:

a.    Project surplus or deficit, including outstanding commitments and contingencies.

b.    Repayment of loans from other funding sources.

4.    Arrangement of remaining balance:

a.    Any unspent balance should first be returned to its original funding source (e.g. Block Grant) according to the funding conditions.

b.    The unspent balance of a completed externally funded project, of which refund is not required by the funding agency, should be returned to the Departmental General Fund for redeployment.

c.    For redeployment, a separate request duly approved by the Department Chairperson is required to inform the Donations and Project Management Unit about the allocation from the Departmental General Fund to other project accounts.

d.    If the allocation is from the Departmental General Fund to the Chairperson’s own project account, approval from a supervisory level (i.e., the Dean) will be required.

5.    Closure Claim Limitation: No claims are allowed after the closure of the project. It is important to ensure that all necessary expenses and claims are submitted before the closure date.

6.    Temporary Suspension of Inactive Projects: If a project activity is known to be completed or has remained financially inactive for a significant period without confirmation, the project account will be temporarily suspended until further instructions are received from the PI.

1. As stipulated in the Policy on Research, which is endorsed and approved by the AAPC, the Senate and the Council, overhead charges may be levied on externally funded activities in order to meet the indirect costs associated with administration (personnel, contract administration, safety), increased use of facilities (libraries, computers), maintenance of premises, utility charges, increased depreciation of furniture and equipment etc. The intention is not to make any profit, but to ensure that resources are not drained from educational activities for which public funding is provided.
2. There shall be no overhead on donations or gifts.
3. The scale of overhead charges for research grants and contracts to provide research, knowledge transfer, consultancy or other services is listed as follows:
   

   	Research Grants	Contracts
   If activities take place on campus	20%	25%
   If activities take place off campus	15%	15%

4. Reduction in the scale of charges can only be approved by Research Committee / AAPC.