Training Materials

Since its establishment in the year 2000, IDRA has put a particular emphasis on developing its training department, which is currently headed by Mrs. Enkelejda Dervishi, a lawyer by profession. IDRA staff has been specialized in more than 14 Training of Trainers Sessions organized by several donors and clients in other countries. Consequently, IDRA is now part of the network “Partners for Democratic Change”, which is a worldwide-renowned organization, very active in the region of Southeast Europe, that focuses mainly on delivering high quality trainings.

Several training sessions have been organized and conducted by IDRA during the last four years on various topics. Below are presented some of the most significant experiences of IDRA in the field of trainings.

Strategic Planning

Brief description: This training was organized within the frame of the “Strategic Planning for Local Economic Development in Albanian Municipalities” project, supported by the World Bank Institute.
Training curriculum: The topics of the trainings were:

• Strategic Planning for Economic Development
• Community Profile
• Business Improvement Districts

Accomplishments: The training modules, stretching over two days each, were organized separately for the employees of the Kukes and Vlora Municipalities. Around 25 people participated in each training session.

Public Service Management

Brief description: The training aims at improving public service management.
Training curriculum: The objectives of the training programs:

• To increase the participant knowledge and understanding about the management of operation and maintenance functions at the local government level.
• To increase participant skills in team decision making and problem solving based on their responsibilities.
• To provide an opportunity for participants, working in teams, to carry out a detailed examination of one specific public service function from the experience of their respective local authorities.
• Assist participant teams to prepare back-home action plans that will help them improve the management of public services in their respective organizations.

Accomplishments: It was initially conducted in two municipalities, Vlora and Pogradec, during the month of October 2001. As a result, 20 members of each of the two municipalities, staff from the public service section, roads, side-walks, drainage enterprise, urban planning section, “REI” Cleaning Company, green areas company etc., were taught how to manage public service more effectively and efficiently.

Codes of Ethics

Brief description:
Training curriculum:
Accomplishments: IDRA has trained more than 160 officials in the Code of Ethics for public employees.

Advocacy and Lobbying to Achieve your Anticorruption Goals

Brief description: The workshop aimed at strengthening participant capacities to rally the public in order to compel decision makers to effectively act on anticorruption issues in general and in those related to advocacy and lobbying in particular. IDRA specialists and Mr. Richard Wall (MSI Consultant) compiled all the training materials and conducted the sessions of this workshop.
Training curriculum:
Accomplishments: Participants were representatives of different municipalities and business & civil society organizations. They had all been previously involved in the corruption prevention program at the local government level undertaken by MSI. IDRA has trained 30 participants from local government, media, NGOs in Advocacy and Lobbying.

Local Government and NGO Cooperation

Brief description: The training aims at building cooperation between local government representatives and the NGO-s.
Training curriculum: The objectives of the training program were:

• Building NGO & local government understanding on their respective roles, as well as the role of the other side.
• Building the capacity of local governments in order to better identify and understand the needs of the local community.
• Building the capacity of local NGO-s on how to persuade and lobby the local government on controversial policy issues.
• Building the capacities of local government and local NGO representatives on ways to cooperate on issues on common interest.

Accomplishments: The three-day training, organized in the municipality of Vlora between October 18th and 20th 2001, was attended by 25 participants, half of which were members of different NGO-s in Vlora, while the other half was comprised of local officials from the Vlora Municipality.

Ethics and Anticorruption Tools

Brief description: These two trainings were organized and conducted by IDRA in cooperation with Management System International in the cities of Elbasan and Vlora. IDRA provided i) logistical arrangements ii) two trainers per each training session covering the subjects Code of Ethics and Administrative Procedures.
Participants to these training sessions (each lasting two days and a half), were employees of central and local government institutions, as well as members of civil society organizations.
Training curriculum:
Accomplishments: Around 30 peoples participated in each training session.

Council and Commission Roles in Local Government

Brief description: IDRA trainers were involved in delivering this training organized by the VNG Compass (Dutch) project. The training content referred to the roles and internal relations of city councils. It was organized in December 2001 in Shkoder, Golem, Berat and Gjirokaster, with members of councils and municipality administrative staff in attendance.
Training curriculum: The objectives of the training programs were:

• To identify the functions of the local government
• To identify the elements of the local government
• To present the principles of the local government
• To understand the legal framework of the local government in Albania
• To describe the responsibilities of councils and administrative staff
• To describe the potential areas of conflict between the council and the administrative staff, as well as identify potential solutions
• To determine a process for the establishment of budget priorities.

Accomplishments: Each training session helped educate around 35 participants.

Financial Management for Albanian Companies

Brief description: Three training sessions of three days each were organized in Vlora and Tirana for Albanian companies - mainly those involved in manufacturing goods. These courses aimed at providing both theoretical and practical insights to financial officers and executives of Albanian companies. The focus was put on the role of finance departments in the governance of firms and the way they could address current problems they are facing.
Training curriculum: Among the most important issues addressed by this IDRA training were the following:

• Employing advanced financial analysis and key performance indicators as measures of the firm’s success;
• Addressing FX risk exposure (hedging strategies) and floating-interest debt payments risk;
• Cash management related issues;
• Advancing the knowledge on using alternative ways of financing the firm’s growth (shares and bonds).

Accomplishments: IDRA trained more than 70 Albanian financial officers and executives. After the completion of the aforementioned training sessions, IDRA organized a Training of Trainers attended by the best participants, in order to create a pool of trainers/practitioners to use in future projects.