Shqip
English
The European Movement in Albania held its latest discussion forum, focusing on the latest developments – in Albania’s negotiation process for EU integration. The main focus was the opening of Cluster 1 – Fundamentals, and the implications this will have on the continuation of reforms for Cluster 23 – Judiciary and Fundamental Rights. Another key focus of the forum was the presentation of the guideline for monitoring strategic documents, specifically the new Cross-Cutting Justice Strategy 2024-2030, as a tool for measuring and evaluating the integration processes, as well as involving civil society actors in the monitoring phases of these documents.
Dr. Gentjan Skara, Lecturer and Expert, opened his speech by highlighting the importance and urgency of accelerating and deepening reforms under Cluster 23, which are essential for Albania’s progress on the path to European Union integration. He emphasized that the European Commission’s 2024 report assesses Albania’s preparedness in this area as in the moderate level, acknowledging the progress made so far, but also stressing that much work remains to be done to meet the standards required by the EU. Skara considered the continued strengthening of the justice system as crucial, ensuring transparency and accountability, while noting that the impartiality of first-instance courts remains a significant concern for the quality of the justice administration. He expressed concern about the significant delays in issuing judicial decisions, which, as he argued, create uncertainty and may reduce citizens’ trust in the justice system.
Dr. Elda Zotaj, Lecturer and Expert in European Studies, in her speech, praised the measures and activities outlined in the new Cross-Cutting Justice Strategy 2024-2030, which marks the third strategy to be approved in this context. According to the 2024 European Commission report, the implementation of the Cross-Cutting Justice Strategy 2021-2025 still requires improvement, as the level of implementation and the capacity of the judicial institutions responsible for reporting remain low. Zotaj emphasized that the measures or activities left pending by the previous strategy should be addressed in this new strategy and serve as a reflection on the gaps observed during its implementation. Since this is the third phase of implementing this strategy, the goal is to complete the major reforms undertaken and further consolidate the legal and institutional framework of the justice system, as well as reduce and eliminate the remaining judicial “backlog” cases. Zotaj highlighted that, public consultations also helped in refining this strategy, and addressing them in the strategy is inevitable, as they are also dictated by the EU. Assoc.
Prof. Dr. Bojana Hajdini, Lecturer and Expert, presented the guideline for monitoring strategic documents, drawing attention to examples from the Cross-Cutting Justice Strategy 2024-2030. This guideline will serve as further guidance for CSOs, experts, researchers, media representatives, and as a tool to analyse, in this case, significant issues related to the integration process; the process of adopting and implementing reforms in this context; progress in fulfilling the priorities set by national and EU institutions, primarily by analysing the gaps and main challenges in the legislative and institutional framework; as well as monitoring the functioning of negotiating structures or strategic documents, as in this case. Hajdini further clarified that this guide offers a detailed methodology for the drafting, understanding, and monitoring of strategic documents, explaining their importance and content. The guideline explains that policies and specific objectives are essential for achieving long-term goals, and for each objective, measurable indicators must be established to enable monitoring of progress. It also includes instructions for organising work, the responsibilities of institutions, and budget analysis, ensuring that monitoring and evaluation processes are sustainable and transparent. For each section of the strategy, the guide includes several control questions for its evaluation, which dictate to stakeholders the method of monitoring for other strategies not linked to Cluster 23. In conclusion, Hajdini reiterated that the involvement of civil society in such processes contributes to advancing the country’s accession process.
This forum fostered essential and in-depth discussion among the participants, primarily focusing on ways in which they can concretely engage in monitoring strategic documents and in the evaluation process of these documents. They discussed the importance of a clear and structured methodology for following this process, suggesting that the methods used for monitoring should be transparent and easy to implement in order to ensure the efficiency of the process. Additionally, participants provided practical examples and successful cases of evaluating other strategies, highlighting various aspects of monitoring and evaluating different policies that have been applied in similar fields.
