ALBANIA: Fighting relentlessly against all forms of violence

Summary: In the “Eagle Country”, many children are subjected to all sorts of types of violence: physical, psychological or sexual. News from the field reveals acts of abuse which are often hidden and are never reported. To deal with this problem, this year Terre des hommes (Tdh) began the second phase of its development project to create a child protection network to combat trafficking and other forms of abuse, violence, exploitation and negligence.

The European Union and other actors involved with this issue have pointed out that policies to fight such abuse do actually exist in Albania , but that they are not implemented correctly. Despite the progress made over the past few years – in particular the new law to protect the rights of children which involves institutional mechanisms to deal with cases of abuse – the structures which are supposed to respond to cases of abuse do not protect the most vulnerable children, which include children from Roma or Egyptian backgrounds.

For Tdh on-going efforts imply working closely with the local and national authorities. Teams on the field wish to ensure that efforts are made to strengthen the promotion and protection of children’s rights. In order to achieve this, the second phase of Developing a Child Protection Safety Net in Albania was launched at the beginning of the week.

An approach centred upon the well-being of the child

From 2009 to 2012, the first phase of the project enabled more than 13,000 children to receive assistance and spurred an increase in the number of children identified and then assisted by the various protection services. It also led to a greater understanding of national standards and procedures by the local authorities.

The second part of the project aims to accompany the ministers for employment, social matters and equal opportunities in their reform of social services. In collaboration with UNICEF and the Swiss Development and Cooperation department (SDC), Tdh aims to develop and, over a longer period of time, institutionalize the structures, mechanisms and competencies which are required to ensure coordinated responses among the authorities and the various actors, whilst involving children directly in the struggle for their own protection against all forms of negligence, abuse and exploitation.

The second phase of the project, which began in January 2013, will carry on until the end of 2015 in five regions of Albania: Tirana, Durres, Elbasan, Fier and Korca, and should be of benefit to 5,000 children and 500 professional workers.

Beyond the figures – concrete results are expected

• The identification of child victims in the most vulnerable communities and awareness raising of members of these communities with regard to the consequences of trafficking and child exploitation;

• The improvement in the quality of child care services by providing training courses for people who are in a position to detect children who are being mistreated (social services, education staff, members of the police, health services and judicial authorities);

• The strengthening of protection for children who do not receive any support from their families and who are more vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation;

• The implementation of child protection policies outlined in Albanian law and compliance with international treaties which have been ratified by Albania.