HIV/AIDS

K.A.B.P. Survey

UNDP Public Information Office

NGO Coordination

Albanian Mine Action Committee

HIV/AIDS

The commemoration of World AIDS Day was begun in Albania in 1996 and has been supported by the UN Theme Group on HIV/AIDS, which includes UNAIDS, WHO, UNFPA, UNDP, The World Bank and UNICEF, and functions under the Resident Coordinator system. The UN TG advocates a better response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic through a multi-sectoral approach and the involvement of diverse local partners.

The December 1 activities in 1999 were supported by UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF and UNAIDS. The campaign was addressed to the younger segment of society, mainly adolescents, with the logo: DEGJO, MESO, JETO! LISTEN, LEARN, LIVE! Activities included: the preparation of a documentary movie; a nationally televised TV marathon on HIV/AIDS, workshops with adolescents in high schools throughout Albania involving also teachers and parents; concerts and artistic theme tours by NGOs; and interviews and messages from celebrities addressed to young people, as well as messages from young people to their peers and to the general public. The Theme Group emphasized direct Youth participation in all aspects of the planning process, allowing them to experience "ownership" in the process and leadership in their initiatives so as to be fully conscious of the change that their efforts may bring about. The Theme Group also began the preparation phase of the Strategic Planning Process which consists of situation analyses, response analyses, plan formulation and resource mobilization in understanding how to best deal with the threat of HIV/AIDS in Albania.

K.A.B.P. Survey

In 1999 UNAIDS, in cooperation with UNDP, UNFPA and UNICEF, initiated the KABP Survey – Knowledge, Attitudes, Behaviors, and Practices. The survey will be conducted nationwide and will deal with issues of reproductive health, mother & child health, and drug use, as well as the treatment of these issues in the media. The project is a joint effort to gather much-needed quantitative data and information on levels of public awareness and the location and nature of gaps in knowledge with regard to these crucial issues. Preparation of the questionnaire and training of the interview team, Phase I, was realized in cooperation with the Academy of Educational Development of Johns Hopkins University, the International Center for Migration and Health, the Albanian Institute of Public Health, and the Social Sciences Department of the University of Tirana. Phase II, the interview process, will be carried out in the spring, in order that the entire country may be sampled within a relatively short time frame. It is foreseen that this quantitative data will serve as a basis for qualitative research and in general as an evaluation tool for all stakeholders in the development process.

UNDP Public Information Office

The Kosovo crisis brought not only a flood of refugees into Albania, but also a flood of international media. Tirana became a hub of the world’s media in their efforts to follow and report on the NATO air strikes and the refugee situation. Every major international news organization - television, radio, and print - was represented in Tirana, and scores of journalists passed through the capital on a daily basis. UNDP deployed a Public Information specialist from Oslo in May, and later contracted an expert long-term to cope with the pressing need to coordinate the dissemination of information regarding UN activities in Albania in general. During the crisis, the UNDP Public Information Office initiated bi-weekly UN Joint Press Briefings and a UN Information Desk. All UN Agencies, in particular UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP and UNFPA, and on occasion UNDCP, FAO, UNHCR, the World Bank, UNAIDS, and the WHO took advantage of this platform to disseminate information on a regular basis throughout the crisis. The UNDP Public Information Office coordinated the briefings, notified the local and international press through press releases and telephone calls, and facilitated during question and answer. The UN Information Desk was located and maintained in the UNDP Office foyer, and included general UN informational materials and press releases as well as Government sources. It became a reference point for international and local media, as well as the international community in general.

Since the end of the crisis, the UNDP Public Information Office has initiated, organized and facilitated monthly UN Public Information Meetings as a forum for the sharing of information and the discussion of integrated activities. Plans emanating from these meetings include the establishment of a United Nations Albania website, and a United Nations Albania monthly update – all to be supported through the Resident Coordinator budget and organized and facilitated through the UNDP Public Information Office. In November, the UN system was invited to participate in a regional trade fair to be held in Tirana and which would include a section on international donors and their activities in Albania. The UNDP P.I. Office, once again through the support of Resident Coordinator funds, purchased an integrated space within the fair and designed a cohesive UN image presentation scheme which included a computer with internet access to UN websites, a UN Albania map showing the wide distribution of UN activities, and a UN video which ran continuously. The trade fair, Panair "Klik Ekspo Klik," was attended by an array of top Government officials, thousands of private citizens as well as the vast majority of the international community present in Tirana. UNICEF, UNFPA, UNAIDS, FAO, WHO, UNDCP, UNDP, The World Bank, WFP and UNHCR were present with exhibitions at the six-day event.

NGO Coordination

In November UNDP assumed the lead in NGO coordination in Albania by providing financial support to the Humanitarian Information Center (HIC). The HIC was established during the crisis primarily as an international NGO focal point and supported by UNHCR. Post-crisis activities have centered on the collection and dissemination of information regarding development aid in an attempt to eliminate gaps and avoid overlap in the distribution of funds. The HIC is in close contact with line ministries and international donors, including the UN system, and facilitates the flow of information between them and the local and international NGO communities. With UNDP support the HIC has made the important transformation from an international NGO coordination center to a resource center – a point of reference – for local NGOs, while remaining a focal point for international NGOs as well. Future plans include training to build the capacity of these Albanian NGOs in the areas of budget and administrative management, project design and implementation, making them stronger implementing partners for the UN Agencies and international donors.

Albanian Mine Action Committee

During the Kosovo crisis, the Government formed the A.M.A.C., chaired by the Deputy Minister of Defense, and supported by the Ministry of Local Government to deal with the life-threatening mine and UXO situation caused in the north of the country by the armed conflict. The Government requested the participation of UNDP and UNICEF in the Committee. UNDP coordinated fact-finding activities related to the possibility of beginning a humanitarian demining program, and deployed a demining expert from the ERD New York office to perform a preliminary feasibility study. UNICEF was involved in an extensive and multi-faceted mine-awareness public information campaign aimed primarily at youth. UNHCR, through the QIPs (see 1.3) Program, trained a rescue response team to react to mine-related incidents and injuries in the north of the country.