Who we are

The Center for Gender Justice in Albania (CGJA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering women and girls, protect their rights and fight gender inequalities. CGJA was founded by the initiative of three women, civil society activists who, for more than 15 years, have been contributing for the protection and promotion of women’s human rights in Albania. Working for women’s organizations for a long time, the founders of CGJA are very familiar with the Albanian context in which women and girls live, the challenges they face and the situation of gender-based violence in the country. CGJA was registered in Tirana District Court on 28/06/2022 with decision no. 1738. In accordance with the Albanian legislation, CGJA is also registered in the Tax Office with TIN number: M22002451K.

Location

The Center is located in Tirana, but operates throughout the territory of the Republic of Albania, in accordance with the Albanian legislation in force, as well as outside the Albanian territory in accordance with the relevant local legislation.

Areas of work

The Center for Gender Justice:

• Works to promote gender equality, prevent gender-based violence, and raise awareness in Albanian society about gender issues.
• Supports women and girls in increasing their participation and influence in social, economic, and political life through the implementation of empowerment programs, enhancement of leadership and soft skills for their professional development.
• Addresses the needs of victims of gender-based violence, including domestic violence, by providing tailored services aimed at their social and economic empowerment.
• Enhances the capacities of service providers working to protect and support women and girls.
• Advocates for the protection of women’s rights and the achievement of gender justice in Albanian society.
• Conducts studies, analyses, and research on gender issues, including gender-based violence and domestic violence.

The beneficiaries of the Center’s services and activities are:

• Women and girls, survivors of gender-based violence, including domestic violence.
• Women and girls facing social and economic challenges.
• The Albanian community in general.
• Youngsters studying in universities.
• Youngsters of secondary and 9-year schools.
• Service providers working to protect and support women and girls.

1. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

The Board of Directors is the highest decision-making body of the organization and consists of 3 members with equal voting rights.

The Board defines the areas and programs of the organization’s activity; regularly supervises and controls the implementation of the organization’s activity; supervises financial and administration issues; approves annual narrative and financial reports, etc.

The Executive Director is the person who legally represents the organization. She is responsible for the management of the organization, the activities/services and expenses, supervised by the Board of Directors.

The staff is composed of 4 people with long-standing experience in the civil society sector, specifically: an Executive Director, a Project Coordinator, a Lawyer, and a Finance Manager. In addition, 3 advisors (in the social field) provide their services to the organization. Five interns/volunteers are engaged in the implementation of the organization’s activities. CGJA has a staff with extensive experience in the civil society sector. The Executive Director has over 15 years of work experience in national NGOs, while the Finance Manager has worked on projects funded by international organizations and agencies, possessing the necessary professional skills to maintain financial records and report in line with donor requirements. Furthermore, the Project Coordinator and the group of experts collaborating with the organization have many years of experience in the civil society sector and are professionals in their respective fields. Considering the above, CGJA possesses the operational, financial, and technical capacities necessary to successfully implement projects and achieve the planned objectives.

2. PARTNERSHIPS AND NETWORKING

Since September 2022, the organization is part of the Monitoring Network against Gender-Based Violence, a national network which monitors and promotes the implementation of the recommendations of the CEDAW Committee, GREVIO, UPR and contributes to address shortcomings/problems during and after the monitoring process.

In early November 2022, CGJA became member of the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID), a global feminist organization working to achieve gender justice and support women’s movements worldwide.

In December, CGJA become member of the Anna Lindh Foundation, a common institution for dialogue co-created by the European Union and its Mediterranean Partner countries. The Center is also member of the NGO Academy founded from Vienna University of Economics and Business with the aim to strengthen the civil society sector in Central and South-Eastern Europe.

Iris Network welcomed CGJA as a member in August 2023 with the aim to collaborate in services provision for women and girls, victims of domestic violence and gender-based violence.

At the end of September 2023, CGJA become an Associate Organization Member of CIVICUS, a global alliance of civil society organizations and activists dedicated to strengthening citizen action and civil society throughout the world.

The organization is also a member of the National Network of CSOs Against Corruption which aims to bring organizations together in efforts and initiatives against corruption, promoting good governance and strengthening the rule of law.

Since its establishment, CGJA has built partnerships with various organizations operating in the country, including the Center for Civic Legal Initiatives, the Institute for Democracy and Mediation (IDM), Partners Albania, the Albanian Media Institute, the Center for Labour Rights, Open Mind Spectrum Albania (OMSA), and others.

In terms of collaboration with state institutions, CGJA has developed significant partnerships with the General Directorate of State Police to train, build capacity, and mentor police officers across all Police Regional Directorates on managing domestic and gender-based violence cases; Tirana Municipality to provide social and legal services for victims of domestic violence and to enhance the skills of social workers in the Administrative Units; and Lushnja and Elbasan Municipalities to offer direct services for victims of gender-based violence.

Other important institutions with which CGJA has established cooperation include the Albanian Commissioner on Anti-Discrimination, the University of Tirana/Faculty of Law, the University of Elbasan “Aleksander Xhuvani”, the University of Durres “Aleksander Moisiu”, and the University of Vlora “Ismail Qemali”. Agreements have been made with these institutions to organize joint activities and undertake collaborative initiatives.

3. ACHIVMENTS

Since its establishment, CGJA has achieved several important milestones, including:

• Strengthened the capacities of over 250 police officers in the prevention of femicide, domestic violence, and gender-based violence;
• Strengthened the capacities of over 350 services providers on case management for domestic and gender-based violence (including online violence against women and girls);
• Established a Daily Care Center for Children with Disabilities in the Municipality of Vlora, prioritizing services for children of single or divorced mothers;
• Increased awareness among over 2,200 students in public and private universities in Tirana, Durrës, and Elbasan on women’s rights, gender equality, violence against women, and women’s rights in the labor market;
• Informed and raised awareness among 320 women and girls in rural areas about their inheritance and property rights;
• Informed over 1,500 women and girls about domestic violence legislation, reporting procedures, and available protection services;
• Conducted informative sessions on positive parenting with more than 120 women and men;
• Provided group psychotherapy for 20 women and girls who are survivors of domestic violence;
• Delivered direct social and legal services to over 250 women and girls;
• Offered emergency support to more than 100 survivors of domestic violence, including rent payments, food packages, hygiene supplies, medications, and school materials for children;
• Trained 20 women’s rights activists on safety planning;
• Published and distributed 1,300 informational materials on non-discrimination;
• Published a Manual on the Management of Domestic Violence Cases for Social Workers in Needs Assessment and Referral Units at the Administrative Unit level;
• Published a monitoring report on the implementation of gender-responsive budgeting in the Municipality of Elbasan.

In addition to the above, CGJA works in the direction of lobbying and advocacy where it has made important contribution to the improvement of legislation and policies for the protection of women and their rights, through: giving inputs to state institutions and international institutions/agencies; public statements; providing expertise in writing shadow reports for the implementation of the CEDAW Convention by Albania, the Istanbul Convention and recommandations of the Univeral Periodic Review (UPR); participation in protests for the protection of the rights of women and girls.

CGJA has contributed as an expert for the “Women, Business and Law 2024” report, published by the World Bank, from which it has also been awarded a Certificate of Appreciation.

During 2024, CGJA has been part of the Special Parliamentary Commission for Good Governance, Anti-Corruption, and the Rule of Law, where it has been engaged as a high-level expert and is contributing to “improving and consolidating good governance practices at all levels,” to “a deeper fight against corruption,” and to “further strengthening the enforcement of the law”.