Shqip
English
On January 29, 2025, at the premises of Xheko Imperial Hotel, an info session was held on the Monitoring and Evaluation of Rule of Law (MEL) policies, with the aim of informing about MEL, the role that civil society organisations can play in monitoring reforms and policies related to strengthening the rule of law within the European integration process, and the needs for capacity building and increasing expertise regarding the MEL process, tools and methods that can be used.
Gledis Gjipali, the Executive Director of the European Movement in Albania (EMA), started his speech by thanking all the participants for their commitment and dedication. He emphasized the importance of increasing capacities for policy monitoring and evaluation, adding that this process has always needed a more detailed space that deals with this aspect in a more in-depth and structured way. He also emphasized that efforts to advance these capacities are essential for improving transparency and accountability in the policy of the rule of law, which becomes more relevant where these policies are directly related to the process of negotiations between Albania and the EU.
Mimoza Agolli, MEL expert, explained in more detail the content of the integrated MEL modules, focusing mainly on the policies in the field of the rule of law, noting that the reflection from the previous edition will be reflected in the future editions on the unresolved issues or the need for deepening on them. Agolli stated that the focus is intended to be on rule of law policies, but it also depends on the interests of the participants, and there will be a full understanding of the issues they will want to address in order to benefit from this program in accordance with their area of expertise. It was further stated that in addition to the theoretical part, there will be concrete cases of policy monitoring and the expected changes it may bring, so the participants will be able to literally apply the theories through different examples.
Irma Semini, MEL Specialist, Swiss Contact Albania, participant in the first edition of MEL, said that this was definitely a valuable experience for her. She underlined that activities of this type are necessary and often missing in our country, considering them as an excellent opportunity for professional development but also for raising the capacities of civil society. According to her, such an opportunity is very important for professionals who work in this field and want to engage more in the monitoring and evaluation of public policies undertaken in our country. Reflecting on her experience, she noted the importance of deepening the modules and extending them over a longer period of time, so that participants have the opportunity to explore the topics covered in more depth. According to her, a more extensive program would increase even more the benefits for professionals engaged in this field, giving them the time and space necessary to absorb knowledge and apply it in practice, given that for a good part of the participants from civil society, these topics are new and little known to them.
Klajdi Tozaj, Project Coordinator at the ALERT Center; also a participant in the first edition of the integrated MEL modules, stated that the deliberation of such important topics can be considered “as a school in itself.” He greatly appreciated the experience and claimed that it would be an excellent opportunity for participants in the future, if online webinars could be organised, in addition to physical ones, to offer more flexible opportunities for engagement and participation to participants from other cities of Albania who may not find it easy to attend them physically in Tirana. Tozaj also expressed that with the intensification of the reform process in the field of the rule of law, CSOs should also increase the spaces and opportunities for increasing capacities and expertise in monitoring and evaluating these policies for more transparency, accountability and strengthening of institutions and democratic processes in the country.
Later, the discussion was opened to the participants, offering them the opportunity to ask questions and share their ideas. The participants were part of the discussion expressing that they saw as a necessary opportunity the increase of capacities and expertise on MEL, based on their areas of interest, where they would like to deepen their knowledge. In this way, the session aimed not only to present the work of MEL so far, but also to create opportunities for a fruitful dialogue on the possibilities for improving future activities and focus and strengthening the capacities of civil society organisations in this field. At the end, the certificate distribution ceremony was held for the participants of the first edition of the MEL, a moment that appreciated the dedication and commitment of all those who contributed to this programme.
**This info session takes place within the framework of the “Building Partnership on Fundamentals: Empowered CSOs in the EU accession process” project, with the financial support of the European Union – IPA Civil Society Facility 2021, which is implemented by the European Movement in Albania, and in cooperation with the Academy of European Integration and Negotiations (AIEN), Slovak Foreign Policy Association (SFPA) and the Center for Transparency and Free Information (CTFI).
