TRANSPARENCY, ACCOUNTABILITY AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT
AIS Newsletter January 2024
Empowering Youth Against Corruption – Civic Education and Improving the Fact-Checking Model Conference on the Oversight of Public Finances, the Role of the Parliament, Independent Institutions and Civil Society The publication of the Corruption Perception Index by TI, AIS comments in the media on the Rule of Law and the independence of Public Institutions issues 
Empowering Youth Against Corruption – Civic Education and Improving the Fact Checking Model
AIS collaborated with 45 students and young professionals, empowering them to use Open Data, evaluate facts and generate evidence. OpenData Fellowship Network, Voicing Youth for Anti – Corruption operated as a three-year program from 2021 to 2023 producing a training cycle, creative events, informative sessions, DataThons, dhe MasterClasses. The program aimed at fostering civic education and youth empowerment in data collection and analysis, as well as presenting the research findings to the public and preparing articles for the FollowtheMoney blog. (Data.al ).Several Fellowship Members were employed for short periods, ranging from 3 to 6 months, as junior analysts at the organization, where they gained experience and insight in data-based analysis. This Program received support throughout its three-year duration from 2021 to 2023 by the Swedish Embassy in Tirana, with funds from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency Sida. As of 2024, the project is in the fund rising process.
Conference on the Oversight of Public Finances, the Role of the Parliament, Independent Institutions and Civil Society
On January 31st, AIS organized a Conference entitled “Oversight of Public Expenditures and the Role of Parliament, Independent Institutions and Civil Society”. The conference was attended by Members of Parliament and Chairs of Parliamentary Committees, senior representatives from the Supreme State Audit, Officials from Independent Institutions, as well as representatives from Embassies, international organizations, civil society, media, and academic institutions. During the conference’s two panels, a Policy Paper Parliamentary Oversight of Public Finances and the Supreme State Audit was presented, along with an Analysis Report on Parliament and its role in overseeing the drafting, execution, and effectiveness of fiscal policies. The presentation of findings and the recommendations by experts was followed by a session of debate and discussion, during which panelists and participants shared their views and opinions on the topic. This event was held withing the framework of the Project “Increasing Parliament's Responsiveness to Citizens' Concerns”, supported by the British Embassy in Tirana and implemented by a consortium led by IDM in partnership with Citizens Channel and AIS. Earlier, AIS had organized workshops with civil society representatives in various regions of the country.
The publication of the Corruption Perception Index by TI, AIS comments in the media on the Rule of Law and the independence of Public Institutions issues
On January 30th, Transparency International published the Corruption Perceptions Index for 2023, revealing that Albania has improved by only one point, and is ranked 98 out of 180 countries. The Director of the AIS, Aranita Brahaj, was invited to A2 CNN Albania to comment on Albania’s situation and ranking. Ms. Brahaj highlighted that the country is in a stagnant position, without significant progress, citing evident Rule of Law issues and lack of independent institutions. The role of Parliament in the oversight of the Executive is still weak and, at times, non-existent. Brahaj also commented on the creation of the Anticorruption Ministry, underlying that a strong Anticorruption Task Force should operate independently, separate from the Executive. She further advocated for the strengthening of the independent institutions such as the Supreme State Audit (SSA) or the High Inspectorate for the Declaration and Control of Assets and Conflicts of Interest (HIDACI), suggesting that this would be more effective approach.
Albanian Institute of Science
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