Meeting new Mayors in the framework of the Coordinating Committee

In the framework of its activities, DLDP organized on July 27th, 2015, in Rogner Hotel the Coordination Committee meeting. Invited in this meeting were 18 mayors of Qarks where DLDP program operates and the Swiss Ambassador in Tirana, Mr. Christoph Graf. Representatives of the line ministries, Star Program and DLDP partner organizations who piloted the Functional Areas Program were also attending.

The opening remarks were held by Mrs. Valbona Karakaçi, DLDP Program Manager. She thanked the new mayors for the acceptance of DLDP invitation even though legal procedures for the setting up of the city councils are yet to be concluded in all municipalities.

She said that “we evaluate that the local authorities need platforms where their voice can be heard, and the Coordinating Committee is one of them.” Karakaçi stressed that 11 out of 18 municipalities of the DLDP program area (5 Qarks) were present, while for the sake of the great importance that a number of forthcoming reforms have, representatives from line ministries on national level have joined this meeting of DLDP Coordinating Committee.

Further, Mrs. Karakaçi stressed the importance of this meeting who is being held in a period corresponding with DLDP planning its support packages for the second semester of 2015. Then she invited the Swiss Ambassador to address the meeting.

H.E. the Ambassador underlined possibilities and new challenges in local development that are present after the implementation of the new territorial reform. He said that there is progress in local governance, and international partners, including Switzerland, have supported the reform with the aim to improve the administration of local issues in Albania. “New challenges require new responses and DLDP, other Swiss-supported programs and other international partners’ projects are ready to help.” he stressed. 

The message of the Ambassador for new mayors was: “…You, as freshly elected mayors of municipalities, are part of an important milestone regarding local governance in Albania. Time and possibilities have presented themselves to make decentralization a reality, and to show the Albanian citizens that a more efficient administration will be established in the new territories can be established.”

After the Ambassador’s speech, Mrs. Karakaçi presented more in detail the DLDP program, its action lines, a brief history of the program since 2006, and then made an introduction of each medium-term support packages: September – December 2015.