ELVANA KURTI: LEAD Albania Program Soon to Hit 100 Fellows

By Rudina Hoxha

LAST OCTOBER, the 11 Fellows of Cohort 9 of LEAD Albania Program were selected marking another success of this Program. TRAILBLAZING MAGAZINE took the liberty to look back to this Program to date with Mrs. Elvana Kurti, Project Manager of LEAD Albania Program.

FULL INTERVIEW BELOW:

1. How did it all begin with the LEAD Albania Program? What is different in its format and structure?

-In 2012 the Albanian-American Development Foundation (AADF) decided to bring in Albania the model of the US White House Fellows Program. An MoU was signed in 2012 with the Government of Albania for LEAD Albania Program (LEAD stands for Leadership Experience And Development) a one year Fellowship placement as Advisers to Prime Minister, President, Ministers, Tirana Municipality. After the first 5 very successful years of the implementation of the Program, a new MoU was signed again with the Government of Albania in 2018 for the extension of the Program

for 5 more years. The Program intends to build as a unique and prestigious contributor to development of future leadership in Albania and is budgeted at over 5 million dollars. - Fellows spend a year as full-time, paid advisors in the institutions that agreed to host the Fellows based both on the interest of each individual and professional fit. The number of Fellows each year is around ten. The AADF pays each Fellow salary and benefits based on the pay scale of the institution where they are placed. The experience in the host institution is supported by an education component. It increases the Fellows’ exposure to leaders from the public and privatesectors through meetings and roundtable discussions through the year. A series of workshops on public policy, European integration, foreign policy, security policy, decision making, leadership, soft skills development is also part of the education component calendar.

2. Let’s talk in figures: how many fellows has LEAD Albania program reported so far? More women or men? What is the percentage?

- 89 so far. 78 have been graduated from

the Program and 11 are active Fellows. By the Fall of 2022 with the 10th cohort, we will reach to the 100 number.

- There are no gender quotas in the selection of LEAD Albania Fellows. The best ones are the winners and little it matters if they are men or women. Saying this, we have had some very interesting compositions of cohorts. For example, the first cohort was composed of 9 men and 1 women. The 8th cohort fellows that just graduated were 7 women and 1 men, the 6th cohort of 2019 had a balance of 5 men and 5 women. In total there have been 52 women and 37 men.

3. LEAD Albania Program is a Big Success Story which entails many other success stories. In your view, what elements of the Programme have made the greatest impression on the participants all these years?

-With LEAD Albania Program we measure success not only with what happens with the Fellows during the program but also after the program. Especially after the program! When our Fellows receive an invitation by Host Institution itself to continue working there after the program, it is a success! When the Fellows jump in a leadership position either in private sector, in NGOs, International Organizations or Civil Society it is a success! When our

Alumni’ careers progress, when they are promoted in a new role it is a success! Yes, while the Program is a success story in itself, it truly entails many other success stories: the success stories of our LEAD Fellows and our LEAD Alumni. As the Chairman of the Board of the AADF, Mr. Michael D. Granoff said in his remarks during the graduation ceremony of the last cohort “We all have an opportunity to play a role in turning the tide, in turning toward a more positive direction and everything that all our LEAD Fellows do every day, is trying to turn that tide in a more positive direction and over time we create that kind of government and therefore that kind of society that we would like to live in and we would like our children to live in…”

-The elements of the program that have made the greatest impression on the participants all these years..? I would say the trust given by the AADF to be put in such an important position to the highest levels of leadership and the belief that they will succeed. Also the empowerment that we aim through the educational component (trainings, meetings, support, coaching and mentoring). Not to forget the network, with everyone they meet

and interact during the fellowship year, and especially among themselves within cohorts and with all LEAD Albania Alumni. They love it!

4. What were the expectations of this Program and are they all met nowadays?

- As mentioned above when established but also today, the Program intends to build as a unique and prestigious contributor to development of future leadership in Albania. We are soon reaching to the 100 number of Fellows. More than 75% of LEAD Albania Alumni continue their career in a leadership role either in public or private sector. Around 45% of them continue in public administration, mostly in a leadership position. Today we have LEAD Alumni in roles such Secretary General, Chief of Staff, Advisors, Directors in the governing institutions. We have others leading their own businesses and think tanks, others contributing to the development of the country through NGOs, civil society and academia. As of expectations, we set higher goals every day, grateful and proud of what we have achieved but eager to reach higher peaks.

5. How have the winners of the LEAD Albania Program impacted the implementation of the reforms necessary for the country to join the EU?

Once they start the program our Fellows are engaged directly with the work and the agenda of the Host Institution and most of them have been contributing on the reforms the country has gone through. I can mention here that the last three Fellows from the last three cohorts that served as advisors to the Minister of Justice have significantly contributed to the Justice Reform. Our Fellow of the 8th cohort in the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure worked directly for the Energy Reform, and so many others through the years have left their mark

through their hard work, contribution and impact in these reforms. Even at present, some of the active Fellows who started the program in November, have been assigned on working directly with chapters related directly with the Albanian accession to EU.

6. How has this Program overcome the problems created by the pandemic? Was any change necessary to be taken in this aspect?

-At the AADF we didn’t stop, we adopted. We didn’t do less during the pandemic, we did more and we supported more. That’s what we did with LEAD Albania Program as well. We adapted and continued. We switched to

virtual meetings and trainings. While we were providing training on topics such as Navigating Change or Leading in a VUCA World we were indeed living those times in reality, growing through them. Some of this education programs adopted as well, the yearly Emerging Leaders Executive Education Program from Harvard changed into Leadership and Character in Uncertain Times. And when some time passed we used those hard unpredictable times as lessons and opportunities and did even more trainings and meetings passing those national physical boundaries and reaching out globally. Our Fellows supported and contributed even more significantly to the institutions during these two pandemic years.

7. What should we do to reshape or enhance the Program given the developing times?

-With the times developing, LEAD Albania Program is also developing. One example is the governing new institutions that evolve as a result of the justice reform. We soon included them as Host Institution and this year, for the first time, we will have 2 Fellows respectively in the Office of the High Inspector of Justice and in the High Judicial Council. As well

as we will have a fellow for the first timein the office of the Chief Negotiator forAlbania’s Accession to EU.

8. Tell us more about the last cohor tof LEAD Albania winners 2021/2022who were selected last October.

-The actual cohort of 2021-2022selected this year started the Programin November. They are 11 brightly educated, experienced and innovative professionals full of grit and commitment to make the best out of this fellowship year. Below are their names and their host institutions, together with their short bios and photos so you can get an idea of who they are.

“We all have an opportunity to play a role in turning the tide, in turning toward a more positive direction and everything that all our LEAD Fellows do every day, is trying to turn that tide in a more positive direction and over time we create that kind of government and therefore that kind of society that we would like to live in and we would like our children to live in…” the AADF Chairman of the Board, Mr. Michael D. Granoff said in his remarks during the graduation ceremony of the last cohort.

Advisor | Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs

Ms. Alba Brojka

Alba Brojka holds a Master of Arts inInternational Relations and Diplomacy ofthe EU from the post-graduate instituteCollege of Europe. She has graduatedin political science from the Universityof New York Tirana and in law from theUniversity of Tirana. Alba has gained avast experience in democracy assistanceby working with organizations such asEuropean Endowment for Democracy,OSCE/ODIHR election observationmission in Albania, National DemocraticInstitute Albania, and other national civilsociety organizations. Alba has held themandate of the Special Representativeon Youth and Security during the Slovakand Albanian Chairmanship of theOSCE (2019-2020). She has volunteeredand contributed to numerous civic andyouth initiatives in Albania such asincreasing the capacities and supportingthe consolidation of the UN YouthAssociation Albania, while servingas its Director of Projects and lateras its Secretary General. Ms. Brojkahas contributed as guest lecturer andmember of panels on different topicsrelated to European integration, youthand gender mainstreaming and securityissues.

Advisor | Chief-Negotiator for Accession of the Republic of Albania to EU – Prime Minister’s Office

Mr. Donjet Gjoka

Donjet Gjoka holds a bachelor degreein diplomacy and international relationsfrom the Moscow State Institute forInternational Relations (MGIMO) and amaster degree in Advanced EuropeanStudies and International Relations inIstanbul, Nice and Berlin from the CentreInternational de Formation Européenne(CIFE). He has also graduated from theAlbanian School of Political Studies ofthe Council of Europe (CoE). DonjetGjoka has initiated his professional pathat the Ministry of Interior where he hasserved at the Directorate for Policies andStrategies and later on, he headed theSector for Civil Society and Security atthe Coordination Center for CounteringViolent Extremism – a subordinateinstitution of the Prime Minister’s Office.Through a fellowship from the EuropeanFund for the Balkans he has conducteda professional traineeship at the Ministryof Foreign Affairs and InternationalCooperation of Slovenia as well as hehas received numerous professionaltrainings from various internationalinstitutions and organisations such as theDiplomatic Academy of Vienna, WarsawEuro-Atlantic Summer Academy, theOSCE, Council of Europe etc. DonjetGjoka is also a Board Member for theestablishment of the Alumni Network atthe European Fund for the Balkans.

Advisor - Office of the High Inspector of Justice

Ms. Edlira Osmani

Edlira Osmani holds a double diploma inLaw and International Relations and an LL.M.in European Law and European Integrationfrom the Karl Franzens University, Graz(Austria) and since 2018 she holds titleAdvocate from the Albanian Chamber ofAdvocates. She is currently finishing herDoctorate at the University of Hamburg(Germany). During the past five years, in thecapacity of Legal Expert of the EU fundedproject “Consolidation of the Justice Systemin Albania” (EURALIUS) she has providedexpertise to the School of Magistrates, HighJudicial Council and High ProsecutorialCouncil, as well as to Parliament for thejustice reform laws and the penitentiarypackage laws. Edlira is an experiencedtrainer, and she has trained magistrates indiscrete fields of law and on performancemeasurement of courts and prosecutionoffices, as well as public officials on prescreeningprocess for judiciary, humanrights and anti-corruption. In addition, shehas contributed to the elaboration of thecurricula for the initial training of magistratesand of chancellors of courts and prosecutionoffices. She is specialized in teaching andresearch at the Europa Institut, SaarlandUniversity (Germany), in competition andregulation for the digital era at the EuropeanUniversity Institute, Florence (Italy), indiversity management at the VytautasMagnus University, Kaunas (Lithuania) andis an Alumnus of the Albanian School ofPolitical Studies. Edlira is the author ofarticles and law commentaries in nationaland international journals.

Advisor | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

Ms. Entela Çeliku

Entela Çeliku since 2010 is a lecturerat the Department of Chemistry atAgricultural University of Tirana inAlbania. She graduated as a FoodChemist in 2009, at the Faculty of NaturalSciences at the University of Tiranafollowed by a Second Level Master’sDegree and Doctor of Science degree in2017. She has received several awardsand fellowships from the European Union(Erasmus Mundus, Austrian Academyof Sciences) and the U.S Departmentof State (Fulbright Visiting Scholar atHarvard Medical School). Her researchinterest is focused on the discoveryof useful new molecules with a broadof activities such as anticancer, antiinflammatoryand antibacterial as newdrug leads from endemic plants ofAlbania and microbial natural products.Dr. Çeliku is a member of several EUand US scientific associations. She isan external expert contracted from theQuality Assurance Agency in HigherEducation in Albania for the accreditationof several programs.

Advisor | High Judicial Council

Mr. Eno Muja

Eno Muja holds a Bachelor’s Degree and a Master of Science in Civil Law from the University of Tirana, Faculty of Law. Eno has also successfully obtained a Professional Master Degree in European Union Business Law at this faculty. In 2015, he completed his training at the National School of Advocacy, after which he successfully passed the bar exam and was immediately provided with a lawyer’s license by the National Chamber of Advocates. Eno has almost 7 years of experience in the field of law practice, giving his contribution to various law firms in Albania. Recently, for almost 2 years, Eno has been engaged as a partner and lawyer at “Muja Law” Firm. He has also collaborated as an external expert and consultant for many projects in the field of law with nonprofit organizations in Albania, as well as with other international organizations. Additionally, Eno has almost 7 years of experience in media and television. During the last 2 years he has been engaged parttime at Euronews Albania television as a moderator and journalist. He has been a speaker to national and international scientific conferences mainly related to aspects of civil law.

Advisor | Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy

Mr. Fatri Morina

Fatri Morina holds a doctoral degree inSocial Sciences, with profile in PoliticalSciences and International Relations,and a Master of Science in InternationalRelations, with profile Strategic Studiesfrom European University of Tirana. Hehas graduated in International Relationsfrom the same University. Since 2013,he holds the position of lecturer ofinternational relations, security studies,foreign policy and geopolitics courses,at European University of Tirana, wherefor some years he was Head of InternalQuality Unit. During the academic year2020-2021, he has held the positionof Vice Dean of the Faculty of SocialSciences, Tourism and Sports, ‘Barleti’University. He is author and co-authorof several conference articles andjournal publications, related to securityissues, with a particular focus on energysecurity in the Balkans. He has engagedas expert in research and capacitybuilding projects, supported by EU suchas: “QAinAL”, “EUROPS”, “FINAC”,“STEPS”, “DRIVE”, “EduFootprint”, etc.

Advisor | Ministry of Culture

Ms. Joana Dhiamandi

Joana Dhiamandi is an Architect, Glass Artist,and lecturer of Architecture and Design, witha Ph.D. in Architecture and Urban Planning.She has been involved in architecture andinterior architecture projects as founderof Dhiamandi Studio and in creating glassartworks in the studio ‘’Dhiamandi Glass’’.Joana has conducted her Ph.D. studiesfocusing on ‘’Sacred Architecture- Analysisof the Bektashi Tekke in Albania’’. Duringthe last decade, she has held the role ofVice Dean of the Faculty of Research andDevelopment and as the Deputy Head ofthe Department of Art & Design at POLISUniversity. Joana is an active member of civilsociety in Albania and has been working toengage communities and develop a commonplatform for discussion in architecture anddesign. She was the co-curator of TiranaDesign Week editions of 2015 “Design now!”and 2017 “Design for an Inclusive Future”.Joana is the co-founder of ‘’WeWomen’’,a platform for the empowerment of girlsand women. She has been part of severalscientific and academic conferences.

Advisor | Municipality of Tirana

Mr. Kreshnik Skenderi

Kreshnik Skënderi graduated in Economics(MSc) at the Faculty of Economics,University of Tirana. He has also completedpostgraduate studies in Real EstateAppraisal at the Faculty of Civil Engineering,Polytechnic University of Tirana and Masterstudies in Public Administration (MPA) at theFaculty of Economics, University of Tirana.The passion for technology led Kreshnik to adiverse professional career. He served at theNational Bank of Greece as an informationsystems specialist and later as the Head ofAdministration, Procurement, Real EstateAppraisal, Security and Technical Unit. In2012-2015 Kreshnik enriched his professionalprofile with an international experiencein the implementation and integration ofcore banking systems, where he servedas a project manager in several countriesincluding Qatar, Jordan and the Philippines.In 2015-2020 he leaded the IT Consultingprojects department at Deloitte Albania &Kosovo and then Smartwork. During thisperiod, he also served as a lecturer in ProjectManagement in IT Environments course,at the Faculty of Economics, Universityof Tirana. In 2020 he founded BTech, acompany specialized in the implementationof financial and operational systems forbusinesses in Albania and Kosovo. Duringhis professional experience Kreshnik hasmanaged over 20 large and medium projects.

Advisor | Ministry of Health and Social Protection

Ms. Ornela Bardhi

Ornela Bardhi is a Marie Curie Ph.D. fellowand an applied artificial intelligence inmedicine researcher focusing on cancer.Ornela has conducted various scientificresearch in object recognition and imagesegmentation, and currently in predictiveanalytics in cancer in Spain, the USA,the Republic of Ireland, and Finland.Her research is published in prestigiousinternational scientific journals andconferences. Before her Ph.D., she was partof the joint Erasmus+ master program inPervasive Computing and Communicationfor Sustainable Development in France,Finland, Russia, and Sweden. During hermasters, she founded and co-founded twostartups in Sweden and Finland, respectively.She finished her BEng. in computerengineering in Albania and the UK. She isan active member of the Marie Curie AlumniAssociation, where she is the current chairof the MCAA Western Balkans Chapter.Ornela organizes events to promote scientificresearch and European grants in Albania andabroad. She holds various awards and hasreceived various grants from the EU.

Advisor | Prime Minister’s Office

Mr. Tedi Dobi

Tedi Dobi holds a double honours degree in Law and Politics from the University of Edinburgh (UK) and an LLM from Cornell University Law School (US). Following experiences as legal counsel in the private sector, Tedi has been engaged as national legal expert of the EU funded project “Consolidation of the Justice System in Albania” (EURALIUS) in the design and implementation of the Justice Reform process, being involved in the drafting of legal initiatives in the civil and administrative law areas, professional organisation and discipline, free legal professions and legal aid. In addition, he has supported change management and capacity building of the Inspection and Codification Directorates of the Ministry of Justice as well as supported the process of reorganization of the Supreme Court towards a more efficient structure and effective procedures in order to better tackle the backload of cases. Tedi has been an adjunct lecturer at the University of Tirana for courses in Social Security Law and Business Law during the years 2016 and 2017 and is a trainer in areas such as business law and legislative technique, delivering as of late a cycle of trainings for civil servants of the Ministry of Justice on legislative technique, constitutionality checking, interpretation and scrutiny of national law as well as interpretation and compliance checking with the acquis of the European Union, and has assisted the process of approximation of the national legislation with the EU acquis.

Advisor | Ministry of Finance and Economy

Ms. Erblina Shehu

Erblina Shehu has an MBA in “InternationalTrade” from ESCE, in Paris; a master in“Business Management from IAE de Potiers;and a master on “Management by Quality”she obtained at Kedge Business School inBordeaux in 2017. Erblina has 20 years ofacademic and professional experience inFrance, where she has become an expertin designing and implementing qualitysystems that improve the performanceand efficiency of the organizations. Shehas worked for 14 years with internationalcorporations, where she has occupiedmanagement roles, such as “Quality andProcess” Director EMEA, Customer ServiceManager Export-Import with North AfricanCountries, Project Manager with European,American, Indian and Chinese teams. Erblinais proficient in administering complexprocesses and systems. She has successfullyconducted several of the European Groupentities to ISO9001, ISO14001 and SEDEXcertifications. She has built the framework forthe CSR and performance audits reports, andensured compliance within GDPR and REACHeuropean regulations.