Protection of whistleblowers in Albania – Focus Group Nr. II
Institute for Democracy and Mediation, October 4th 2013
The Institute for Democracy and Mediation organized on the 4th of October 2013 the second focus group discussing on the protection of whistleblowers in Albania, the legislation and the actual practice. The focus group was organized within the framework of the research project “Improve and Strengthen Implementation of Whistleblowers in Albania.” funded by Konrad Adenauer Foundation and implemented by IDM. Participants in the focus group included representatives from the ministry of interior, the state police and the ministry of defence.
It aimed to gather the participant’s opinion regarding the actual practice of the whistleblowing instrument in the Albanian framework.
Discussion revealed that the represented institutions had certain practices regarding reporting of misconduct and that such practices were enforced to a certain extent. Nevertheless it was also stated that while in some cases the practices and channels for whistleblowers to disclose exist in many occasions employers are not properly informed on their existence. Most participants were convinced that introducing this instrument as a practice in the Albanian context constitutes a positive initiative for preventing corruptive practices and other misbehaviors in public administration and for strengthening the principles of good governance and transparency in Albania. Nevertheless they stated that beyond the drafting and approval of the law, there is the need to assess how enforceable this law can be considering the ground specifics.
The main findings of this focus group will be incorporated to a study on whistleblowers that will be presented at a national conference on the 15th of November 2013.