
Tirana, April 28, 2023 – This morning CRCA/ECPAT Albania welcomed the joint meeting of teachers, with our partner organizations EDGuard Kosovo and CED North Macedonia, and independent human rights institutions and national CSO’s in Albania. The meeting is part of the regional initiative “Together for Inclusion”, supported by the Western Balkans Fund and the European Union. The meeting was organized and hosted in the premises of the Center for Openness and Dialogue (COD) in the Prime Minister’s building in Tirana.
The aim of the meeting was to support, strengthen capacities and exchange best practices for better comprehensive and inclusive teaching between pre-university teachers from Kosovo, Albania and North Macedonia.
The open discussion took place in the COD Library Hall and together with more than 40 teachers from the three countries, it also gathered important actors and partners with influence in inclusive education in Albania with the aim of sharing with all participants a panorama of the functioning and role of inclusive education in Albania.
Guests and main speakers of the meeting were personalities from independent human rights institutions in Albania, as well as from civil society organizations.
Mr. Robert Gajda – Commissioner for Protection from Discrimination, emphasized on his speech the great role that inclusive education has towards elimination of discrimination against children in schools.
In her speech Mrs. Zela Koka, President, MEDPAK Association, underlined the great importance of supporting and protecting the rights of children with disabilities, current difficulties and how inclusive education should be the determining force in the public education system in Albania.
Ms. Olta Aliaj, Commissioner for the Protection and Promotion of Rights of the Child, at the Ombudsperson Office in Albania, in her speech highlighted some of the major problems that public education faces nowadays as well as the importance of promoting inclusive education.
Mr. Bledar Taho, Director of the Roma Cultural Institute focused on the challenges faced by the Roma and Egyptian community in school environments and the great engaging role that every professional should have in the inclusion in education of different communities in Albania.
Mrs. Dhurata Myrtollari, winner of the National Award “Teacher of the Year”, of CRCA/ECPAT Albania and the Albanian Coalition for Education, at the same time Director of a School in Tirana, spoke at length about the role teachers have to achieve and promote inclusive education and the constant challenges that they meet in all the three countries.
The regional meeting of teachers from Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia lasts 2 days, on April 28-29. On the second day of the meeting, the national online platform for inclusiveness in education will be announced and the joint agreement for the establishment of the regional network of teachers for inclusive education will be signed.