In Albania, WFD focuses on improving the accessibility of political parties by working with their youth wings through a cross-party platform and by generating research and evidence for improving the political and national discourse. WFD Albania is also working with Civil Society Organisations to strengthen their capacities, facilitate networking and exchanges among them, and help them to better interact with different layers of governance.
WFD’s programme in Albania is part of the Western Balkans Democracy Initiative, which seeks to contribute to the development of more resilient and legitimate democratic governance throughout the Western balkans region. WFD is achieving this through engaging with entities across the democratic spectrum to strengthen their ability to fulfil their mandates and promote inclusive governance which delivers for citizens. Regionally, the programme intends to deliver stronger political parties which are more policy-focused and orientated towards voters’ needs; more effective parliamentary practice which increasingly results in better quality legislation, closely scrutinises executives and represents voters’ interests; and enhanced democratic dialogue and culture.
Albania, officially known as the Republic of Albania, is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic. Albania has an upper-middle income economy dominated by the service sector, followed by agriculture, farming, mining, forestry, fishing, quarrying, manufacturing, processing, and construction. The country went through a process of transition, following the end of communism in 1990, from a centralised to a market-based economy.
The country is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, UNESCO, NATO, WTO, COE, OSCE, INTERPOL and OIC. It is also an official candidate for membership of the European Union.
The Socialist Party, headed by Prime Minister Edi Rama, has governed since 2013. An ongoing political crisis culminated in opposition MPs relinquishing their mandates in February 2019. The country is also undergoing some state-building reforms such as the Justice and Electoral Reforms.
This initiative aims to work with the new political elite and the next generation of political parties through their youth forums. Youngsters need to have an alternative role model that can increase cooperation and open the parties to new ideas that can improve their ideology, platforms and behaviours. Working and empowering youth of the three main political forums (Socialist Party, Democratic Party and Socialist Movement for Integration) on specific topics with will contribute to: a) reducing the polarization of politics; b) capacitating youth with specific issues related to internal democrac;y and c) enabling them to claim more space within their structures. A polling on youth attitudes towards politics and important youth issues took place at the national level and provided very important findings.
The three political forums are carrying out small scale projects to address some of the issues that youngsters identified during the training sessions.
A research study of the political parties’ trends of development for the next 10 years will assist to better understand their current situation and how to address the main problems such as: a) their internal democracy and openness towards youth and women; b) their ideological platform; and c) connections with citizens’ needs. Three research studies “Political Parties -10 years from now” have been conducted for the three main parties and their conclusion and recommendations are to be shared extensively with parties’ leadership and membership to assist their future development.
This initiative aims to engage with civil society organizations working in the health sector, decision-makers at local and central levels and independent institutions.
More specifically, this initiative:
In Albania, as in most other countries in the world, the COVID-19 pandemic posed an unusual health emergency that directly or indirectly affected the wellbeing of the citizens, economy, and other social processes. The government had to quickly adjust many decisions, including the state annual budget to address the problems and effects caused by the […]
Since the democratic transition in Albania in 1990, the country has gone through many reform processes, but it has not experienced an extensive growth of social (civic) movements. Nevertheless, in recent years social movements arising around new causes are propelling progressive ideas into the public domain. Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) has released a study which assesses the dynamics and potential of the most prominent social (civic) movements in Albania. The study provides an insight into their […]
Civil society organisations (CSOs) are a channel through which citizens can engage constructively with government to make sure that adequate services are provided, helping to build more inclusive and accountable democracies. Their role is especially important during the current coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, as people’s freedoms are curtailed and usual channels of engagement with government are […]
