As a good starting point of the project "Increasing community engagement in Vaun e Dejes for solving local issues", Together for Life organized a first fruitful meeting with key local actors and interest groups in Vaun e Dejes, with the aim of presenting the project and have a constructive consultation to highlight some of the needs/priorities of the Municipality and the community in terms of transparency and accountability.
The project is supported by the Small Grants Program of the Commission for Democracy of the US Embassy in Tirana.
Representatives from the Municipal Council, the sectors of social service, education, child protection in the Municipality of Vau i Dejes, representatives from various target groups of the community and civil society organizations representing women/girls, children and persons with disabilities, were present at the meeting.
Vice Mayor of the Municipality, Mrs. Aleksandra Gjoni, in her welcoming speech, welcomed the project and expressed the readiness of the Vau i Dejes Municipality for a fruitful cooperation in order to address the needs of the community and build an open dialogue with them, for the improvement of the decision-making process.
The meeting, focused on sharing of the main inputs related to transparency and good governance, as well as the interactive discussion among the attendees.
Good governance expert, Mrs. Entela Pinguli shared some of the basic principles related to good governance at the local level, emphasizing community involvement in decision-making that enables a democratic process for making informed and transparent decisions, in accordance with the law.
Regardless of the position they represented, each of the participants put themselves in the role of the community, expressing their point of view also as a citizen of Vau i Dejes. On the other hand, the community itself tried to "sit in the chair of the decision-makers” who face of a long list of priorities and pressure to fulfill the criteria for EU integration.
One of the problems that arose during the discussion was related to the lack of capacities and misunderstanding regarding the limit of decision-making power of local institutions. - "Often in the eyes of the community, it seems as if there is a lot of power, but in fact this is a power that is limited by the local government. The municipality raises its voice, organizes effective hearings with the community, but does not have the capacities and financial expertise to move the issue forward. While the community blames us."
On the other hand, under the gaze of NGOs and the community, the participation of civil society and the community in democratic decision-making, still remains challenging. There is a lack of trust by the community, who is faced with frustration and consequently has lost interest in participating in public hearings.
"As an NGO have not been invited to the consultation roundtables as we have always told the truth. Certain individuals are in control of the mechanisms of power and choose the issues that are a priority."
- "There is still a war against mediocrity and lack of capacity, incompetence."
challenges and this process needs to build/strengthen sustainable systems. - "The pressure of the community on the local government must be increased, while the latter increases the pressure on the central government, but this is a process that must happen gradually".
Vau i Dejes Municipality should ensure better participation and engagement of interest groups to take on the supervisory role by creating a platform for citizens to advocate for their rights.
On the other hand, it is essential to promote effective cooperation between the Municipality through the Office of European Integration and local NGOs, with the aim of well representation of the priorities needs of the community and achieving financial support from donors. This can be achieved through the establishment of a group of experts to design a functional Integrity Plan, as well as the establishment of a representative platform of civil participation.
