Study Visit | Towards a Safe, Stimulating and Rehabilitative Prison Environment for Juveniles in Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia

Study Visit 16-20 May 2022 | Towards Rehabilitative Criminal Justice in Western Balkans

To reflect on the developments and milestones of the “Towards a Safe, Stimulating and Rehabilitative Prison Environment for Children and Juveniles in Conflict with the Law in Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia” project, the NHC set up a study visit in The Netherlands with the partner organizations that contributed to the initiative.

The core themes for this visit: ownership & sustainability in the rehabilitation chain of detained young people, divided into different objectives.

• Strengthen a sustainable national and international network of actors within the youth rehabilitation chain in Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia.
• Stimulate ownership within the rehabilitation chain of young people through professionalization/training/education/networking.

More on project activities and milestones | Towards Rehabilitative Criminal Justice in Western Balkans

Start of project (2017)

Juvenile detainees in Albania, Macedonia and Kosovo are confronted with many problems. Successful reintegration into society is often challenging. On 01 September 2017, the NHC launched a new project “Towards a Safe, Stimulating and Rehabilitative Prison Environment for Children and Juveniles in Conflict with the Law in Albania, Kosovo and Macedonia 2017-2021”. The project built on the results of the “Improvement of Prison Conditions for Reintegration of Juvenile Detainees in Albania, Macedonia and Kosovo 2013-2017” initiative. Find out more: Start of a new Prison Project.

Meeting of stakeholders in The Hague (2018)

On 6 and 7 November 2018, the NHC hosted a meeting between Director Generals of Prison Administration, civil society representatives, and national and international experts on juvenile criminal justice in The Hague, to build sustainable institutional capacity. Find out more: Director Generals’ of Prison Administration from Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia Meet in The Hague for Juvenile Detention Reform

Development of training curricula in for Kosovo’s Juvenile Detention Centers (2019)

Our prison reform team was in Kosovo to develop training curricula of juvenile detention reform for prison staff working with juveniles in conflict with the law. The working group, consisting of prison management, social workers and security staff, came together to discuss possibilities for enhancing the curriculum to provide more tailored support for youth residing in the Correctional and Educational Centers of Lipjan. The aim of such reform is to facilitate their successful reintegration into society, after their release. Find out more: Improving Reintegration into Society for Juveniles in Conflict with the Law.

Help Mirlinda* become a lawyer (2020)

We got to know Mirlinda as part of our prison reform project in Kosovo. In partnership with the University of Applied Sciences Leiden (UAS Leiden) Mirlinda’s first year at university was successfully crowdfunded , ensuring she could start university and pursue her dream of a career in Law and Criminology; helping victims of childhood abuse. In order to make sure that Mirlinda could continue her studies for the next three years, her tuition was successfully crowdfunded, making her one of the success stories of this program. Find out more: Juvenile Rehabilitation: Help Mirlinda Become a Lawyer.

Regional partners meeting (2021)

On 13 April 2021, a regional meeting was held between the NHC and its partners in Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia. The aim of the regional meeting was to reflect on the work of the successful partnership and to gather differing perspectives from multiple levels and stimulating a mutual exchange of experiences and knowledge. Find out more: Regional meeting on the structural and strategic development of penitentiary staff.

Training of correctional staff – TOPs! (2021/2022)

TOPs! training completed by Qendrës Korrektuese Lipjan (QKL, Lipjan Correctional Center) and Qendrës Edukuese Korrektuese Lipjan (QKL, Lipjan Educational Correctional Center), Kosovo. Find out more: Towards a safe, stimulating and rehabilitative juvenile prison environment: TOPS! training

Social Climate Tool (2022)

Rita Selimi, PhD student working closely with Mirlinda and studying the topic of rehabilitative justice in Kosovo explained the use of the social climate tool to “measure the living and educational climate within prisons, as the tool sort of gives a voice to the minors.” Find out more: Improving the Social Climate of Kosovo’s Juvenile Centers

*Name changed to protect identity