MISIONI

The Albanian Institute of Sciences AIS (Albanian: Instituti Shqiptar i Shkencave) is a non-governmental organization, established in 2011, with legal registration: Court registry number 3048, Albania, 28/03/2011. 

 

Field of Activity: 

We work in areas such as: #AntiCorruption; Checks and Balance (Independent Institutions and Parliament), #GoodGovernance, Oversight #PublicSpending, #OpenBudgets and #OpenProcurement etc. 

 

Principles: 

The work of the AIS is strongly related to Principles such as #Transparency; #Accountability; e-Participation; #CitizensEngagement, #YouthCapacity Building; and #GoodGovernance.   

The media is both a partner in and beneficiary of AIS activities. 

 

Scope of Work: 

  • Raised public reaction and pressure (Citizens Participation). 
  • Strengthened Anti-corruption efforts. 
  • Disclosure of information and accessibility in the public sector through Open Data. 
  • Information Symmetry. 
  • Youth capacitating and up skilling. 
  • Increased Citizens’ awareness. 
  • Instillation of the Watchdog Culture 

Projects implemented in the last 2 years (or currently under implementation): 

  • Open Data Access and Transparency over sectors exposed to Risk of Corruption 2021 – February 2024 Donor Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. 
  • Increasing Parliament’s Responsiveness to Citizens’ Concerns, 2023 – 2025 Project supported by the British Embassy in Tirana and implemented by a consortium led by IDM, in partnership with Citizens Channel and AIS 
  • C1- EU-NPA Improved Policy Debate and Accountability to Delivering on Fundamental First, through the Establishment of Cluster One Eu Negotiation Platform. 2022 – 2023 Donor Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the State of Netherlands. Project implemented by a consortium of 4 local NGO-s. 
  • Access Justice Register of Magistrates 2022 – 2023 donor US Democracy Commission. 
  • Local Partner at the Project EU4Ruleof Law: Citizens Engagement for Public Integrity CEPI 2022 – 2024, financed by European Commission (a Project as local partner, lead Organization is Transparency International Berlin.  

 

In Albania, the organization is widely recognized as Open Data Albania, as the program with significant impact over the years, empowering citizens, journalists, NGOs, and various stakeholders with transparent data (open data) on the public sector through the databases developed and maintained by the AIS organization: 

  1. Spending Data Albania, Monitor Public Expenditures, a database where citizens can access and monitor any expenditure with public money, treasury transactions for 2000 budgetary institutions such as the Ministries, Municipalities, Agencies, and Institutions. The database contains data on all transactions from 2012 to the present, aligning with the principles of transparency and promotion of active citizen participation, under the slogan “Public Money is My Money.” Link Spending Treasury Transactions: https://spending.data.al/en/treasury/list/year/2019 

  2. Money and Power – Asset Declaration, Declarations of Assets and Economic Interests of Elected or Appointed Senior Officials are publicly disclosed. This includes statements on the assets of government members, members of parliaments, heads of independent institutions, mayors, and judges. The information facilitates public scrutiny of the integrity of senior public officials. Link: https://spending.data.al/en/moneypower/list 

  3. Open Procurement Albania and Risk Assessment, The database provides a comprehensive overview of every tender within important sectors or local government, encompassed by a passport for each tender, offering real-time data and information for all stages of procurement, from planning to contract conclusion or payment fulfillment. Additionally, the database incorporates a risk assessment algorithm that evaluates various elements of the procedure, flagging any potential irregularities with a RedFlag indicator. Accessible to the public, this database is utilized by journalists, activists, and institutions alike for risk assessment processes. Link of the database:  https://openprocurement.al/en/index/index and  Link  for the ReFlag: https://openprocurement.al/en/redflag/index 

  4. Open Corporates Albania – Open Ownership tracking data for companies operating as public contractors, contractors in PPP agreements, or in strategic sectors. A business register has been developed, where each company is assigned, a passport containing information and documents on ownership, management, economic performance, origin of capital, connections with other businesses, and the object of activity. This information is sourced from the state database and registry of business, licenses, and ownership. Link https://opencorporates.al/sq 

  5. Access to Justice – Register of Magistrates is a comprehensive database containing data and documents for magistrates who have successfully undergone the vetting process and are currently serving as judges or prosecutors. This database enhances public access to information and data concerning the Integrity of the Justice System following the Sectoral Reform in 2016. Link https://aksesdrejtesi.al/ 

  6. Za – Lart Albania Raising Voice Albania, ICT for Fair Elections. Map of Electoral Irregularities. A web and app for real-time reporting of Electoral Problems and Violence during the 2017 Elections. Citizens were invited to report problems with photos, videos, or words by selecting a category of violation. Thus, interim reports and a map of election irregularities were created. The project encouraged citizens to monitor and respond, and contributed to the improvement of the process Link https://aksesdrejtesi.al/ 

  7. Open Data Albania – Research articles with socio-economic publications. Link https://opendata.al  

 

Impact and Media Partnership: Journalists have been our partners in ensuring transparency, accountability, and participation. The data published on our portals, Open Data Albania1 and Spending Data Albania2 are used at a level of 90% by the print media, online news agencies and TV programs. Fact-based journalism has initiated hundreds of stories on the front pages of newspapers and on the most prominent TV programs. Over time, our organization has conducted training sessions and workshops to empower journalists in leveraging open data for their journalistic work. 

 

Contact person: 

Aranita Brahaj, Executive Director 

[email protected]