The European Integration Units staff, in all 61 Municipalities of Albania, gathered in an online meeting, organized and coordinated by the Municipalities for Europe project and led by the director of the Agency for the Support of Local Self-Government, Mr. Bekim Murati. The extended meeting was attended by 105 participants, thanks to the infrastructure provided by MfE.
The purpose of this online event was the discussion of issues of a special importance, directly related to the functioning of the European Integration Units in the Municipalities of Albania, the process of setting them up in every local unit and especially to the requirements regarding the reporting from the local government.
The discussion during the meeting was characterized by a constructive approach, where the local staff presented issues related to reporting, the workload and other problems associated to their daily work routine.
Mr. Murati once again expressed the support and total availability of the Agency he leads, in helping local government units in the process of European integration and more specifically, that of implementing such an obligation as the creation of European Integration Units. Mr. Murati highlighted the fruitful work and cooperation with the Municipalities for Europe project and all Albanian Municipalities, and once again stressed the importance that their reporting has, whether in terms of accuracy or time.
Emphasizing the fact that over 70% of the European Integration legislation is implemented at a local level, Mr. Murati told to the attendees in the extended meeting that they still have a long way ahead in preparing and working to be ready for such a process, especially now that Albania is a candidate country.
The winners of two competitions organized by MfE were announced at the end of the event: the video competition in the framework of Europe Week and the children’s competition also dedicated to Europe Week (drawings, music and videos).
After Mr. Murati and Mrs. Trebicka announced the winners, the Deputy Mayor of Gjirokastra expressed her satisfaction that the video prepared by the Integration Unit in her Municipality – with a powerful message for the EU – was selected as the winner.
