Tag: Kosovo

The project analyses reports published by the National Audit Office on Kosovo’s municipalities.

The results of BIRN’s monitoring and analysis were presented and discussed in an open debate with more than 30 participants from the municipality, the National Audit Office and civil society. The debate was also streamed live on BIRN’s anti-corruption platform KALLXO.com.

Visar Prebreza, BIRN Kosovo’s managing editor, gave a brief presentation on the project and its findings.

Prebreza said that over the last four years the main issue that has been highlighted is the non-recording of financial statements.

He said that in 2017 the municipality received a qualified opinion from the auditors, rather than a positive assessment, and that the recommendations received have not been implemented to a satisfactory level.

The mayor of Malisheva, Ragip Begaj, said that most of the recommendations given by the auditors were implemented, while some of them are in the process of being realised.

During the debate, a representative from the National Audit Office, Faruk Rrahmani, stated that only 33 per cent of recommendations from 2017 have been implemented, a percentage which is close to the average among the municipalities but still represents a low level of implementation.

“The implementation of the auditor’s recommendations generates a better performance from the municipalities and improves the lives of citizens,” Rrahmani said.

As well as providing an avenue to discuss the implementation of recommendations by the Audit Office, the debates give an opportunity for BIRN to record promises made both by the General Auditor and the municipality of Malisheva, to be followed-up through Kallxo.com’s fact-checking platform, Krypometer.

The debate was organised within the framework of the project ‘Support Civil Society to Increase Public Oversight and Accountability of Kosovo Public Institutions’, funded by the British Embassy in Pristina. This specific activity is organised as part of a component looking into the compliance of targeted institutions with the recommendations from the Auditor General’s reports.

Similar debates will be held in other municipalities in the country, with the aim of presenting BIRN Kosovo’s analysis of the success in implementing recommendations made by the Auditor. Every debate will be held during municipal assemblies of the municipalities in question, and will be live-streamed by BIRN Kosovo.

The quake in Albania has so far left at least 40 dead, more than 650 injured and thousands of others without shelter.

The platform ‘Kallxo për Shqipërinë’ (Kallxo for Albania), serves as an online hub for all individuals, groups and organisations that want to donate to people who suffered from the quake – and where people in need can find all current offers of shelter, food, clothes and transport.

Less than two hours after the platform was created, more than 150 people had registered to provide aid.

Kosovo President Hashim Thaci declared Wednesday a day of mourning for the quake victims in neighbouring Albania. Kosovo police and military rescue teams were sent to the scene immediately to work in the ruins of destroyed buildings, seeking survivors.

In the port city of Durres, the area worst affected, rescuers have continued to search the ruins of apartment building for survivors.

While rescue work continues, the western Kosovo town of Pejë/Pec has already provided shelter for 60 people from the affected zones.

Arben Aliaj, from Durres, has been sheltering with a Peja family since Tuesday. “I will always appreciate the extraordinary help of Kosovars. I will not forget it in my lifetime,” he said on Wednesday.

The municipal authorities said those seeking help from Albania will be offered food, clothes, medical checks and care.

On the first day of training, talks were given by Visar Prebreza, Kallxo.com’s editor, and Labinot Leposhtica, BIRN Kosovo’s law office coordinator.

The day started with Leposhtica talking through some of the legal issues the students might face in the future, discussing ethics in journalism, privacy issues, copyright and the protection of sources.

Sharing his experiences at BIRN with the students, Prebreza highlighted the importance of facts during research, giving specific examples from his work.

He also elaborated on the reporting done through Kallxo’s fact-checking platform‘Krypometer’ (‘Truth-o-Meter’), which uses the platform and information from the public to investigate major cases of corruption and organised crime.

On the second day, students had the opportunity to gain insights from Kreshnik Gashi, anchor of the TV programme ‘Justice in Kosovo’.

Gashi elaborated on how to establish facts and ensure verified reporting in journalism, as well as outlining thorough research methods based on International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) standards and research based on reports from whistleblowers.

During the second part of the second day, the students had the chance to see some of the ‘doorstep’ interviews that have been conducted by Kallxo.com journalists.

After watching some examples of this kind of interview, the students practiced them with their colleagues.

Journalism students on the course were provided with certificates to demonstrate the knowledge and experience gained from the three lectures.

The training was provided by the Civil Society Program for Albania and Kosovo, funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and managed by the Kosovo Foundation for Civil Society (KCSF) in partnership with Partners Albania for Change and Development (PA).

The training session was attended by more than 20 participants, all from senior positions within the NAO.

The ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Kosovo, Gerrie Willems, who opened the session, emphasised the role of the project in improving public understanding.

“Transparency and accountability are key elements for stability in Kosovo’s institutions,” Willems said.

“The National Audit Office is the highest institution in the field of transparency and accountability regarding the management of public funds under the constitution and laws of Kosovo, so together with BIRN we will ensure that your public appearance corresponds to your work,” the ambassador added.

Jeta Xharra, executive director of BIRN Kosovo and anchor of the ‘Life in Kosovo’ TV show, highlighted the importance of the training session, and the cooperation between BIRN and the NAO.

“The work of the Auditor General together with National Audit Office is full of findings, results and recommendations given to public institutions, but it is not sufficiently promoted through social media,” Xharra said.

“At the same time, the message of National Audit Office in not being communicated to the public,” she added.

Besnik Osmani, the Auditor General, emphasised that the NAO needs to be “open and to inform the general public that our work is 100 per cent transparent”.

He went on to say that together with support from BIRN Kosovo and the embassy, the organisation “will be able to improve many things”, and added that the NAO will seek to hire permanent staff to help with communication in the future.

Information on social media use and security at the training session was provided by BIRN Kosovo’s media editor Granit Mavriqi, while insights regarding ethics and social media visibility were provided by Kreshnik Gashi, BIRN Kosovo’s managing editor.

Finally, BIRN Kosovo’s legal expert, Labinot Leposhtica, trained the NAO staff in legislation governing the use of social media and the potential consequences of its use.

The training session was organised as part of the project ‘Promoting the Auditor General and NAO’s Role in Kosovo’, founded by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Prishtina.

The session was held as a part of a three-day comprehensive training course which BIRN Kosovo will provide to the Auditor General and the National Audit Office.

Media representatives at the workshop, including journalists, media correspondents and court monitors from the municipalities of Prizren, Suhareka/Suva Reka and Dragash, discussed the importance of fact-based research and learned about BIRN’s Kosovo’s fact-checking platform, Krypometer.

The training continued with workshops on ethics in journalism, truthful reporting, privacy and copyright issues and resource protection.

Participants then had the opportunity to gain insight into reporting using information from whistleblowers, security in journalism, research based on the standards set out by the International Fact-Checking Network and in-depth investigations for television.

The lecturers included Kreshnik Gashi, host of the TV programme ‘Justice in Kosovo’, Visar Prebreza, research editor at BIRN Kosovo, and Labinot Leposhtica, coordinator of the BIRN Kosovo Legal Office.

The training was facilitated by the Civil Society Program for Albania and Kosovo, funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and managed by the Kosovo Foundation for Civil Society (KCSF) in partnership with Partners Albania for Change and Development (PA).

The first part of the course provided information on the importance of facts in research and the work of BIRN Kosovo’s online fact-checking platform, Kryptometer, while the second part dealt with ethics in journalism, accurate reporting, privacy, copyright and resource protection.

In the third part of the course, participants had the opportunity to gain insights into reporting based on whistleblowing, fact-finding, security, research based on International Fact-Checking Network standards and in-depth television research.

The lecturers were Kreshnik Gashi, director of BIRN Kosovo’s ‘Justice in Kosovo’ TV programme, Visar Prebreza, editor in charge of BIRN Kosovo’s research, and Labinot Leposhtica, coordinator of BIRN Kosovo’s legal office.

Attending the course were local journalists, correspondents for national media in Ferizaj, and court monitors.

This training course was provided by the Civil Society Program for Albania and Kosovo, funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and managed by the Kosovo Foundation for Civil Society (KCSF) in partnership with Partners in Albania for Change and Development (PA).

At the training session, journalists were further informed on how to fact-check and report on cases related to public finances, how to read audit reports and how to combat informality in the Tax Administration of Kosovo.

The training session was attended by journalists from various media, including those from the Serb community in Kosovo.

Visar Prebreza from BIRN Kosovo addressed the topic of fact-checking related to the economy, procurement and public spending, while Kreshnik Gashi, anchor of the ‘Justice in Kosovo’ TV programme, provided more information about fighting informality in the Tax Administration of Kosovo.

At the end of the session, the journalists were certified by BIRN Kosovo for their successful completion of the training.

The training session was held within the framework of the “CSOs as Equal Partners in Monitoring Public Finance” project.

The training course was held at AAB college in the Ferizaj municipality.

The course was divided into two sessions, one led by Drita Hajdari, a prosecutor at the Kosovo Special Prosecution, and the second by Kreshnik Gashi, editor of the TV programme ‘Justice in Kosovo’.

Hajdari described the history of Islamic extremism over the years and how extremist Islamic ideology made its way to Kosovo. She further described Kosovo’s national strategy for the years 2015-2020 and how the prosecution continues to do a lot of work within the framework of the national strategy to prevent and counter violent extremism.

She pointed out the importance of youth cooperation in reporting suspected cases of radicalisation, and the importance of regional cooperation for preventing violent extremism.

Gashi engaged in a more in-depth conversation with the participants and addressed questions on radicalisation through social media, monitoring of debates on social media, and the methods of reporting cases of terrorism.

According to Gashi, in order to prevent radicalisation through social media, a debate around extremist ideologies should be fostered in order to provide a counter-narrative to extremism.

The course was organised as part of the project ‘With Participatory Democracy for a Kosovo without Radicalisation’, funded by the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund, GCERF.

In the Kosovo municipality of Podujevo, BIRN Kosovo held the third segment of its series of debates discussing the findings of BIRN Kosovo’s audit report monitoring project on Monday, October 28, analysing reports published by the National Audit Office concerning the country’s municipalities.

The results of BIRN’s monitoring and analysis were published and discussed in an open debate with more than 30 participants from the municipality, the National Audit Office and civil society. The debate was streamed live on BIRN’s anti-corruption platform KALLXO.com.

Visar Prebreza, BIRN Kosovo’s Managing Director, gave a brief presentation on the project and the findings.

According to Prebreza, the procurement sector has seen continuous violations during the last four years of audit reports. He recalled that the municipality received a large number of recommendations, but its level of implementation of these recommendations was not satisfactory.

Compared to other ministries or independent agencies, he said, municipalities are less successful in their implementation of the Audit Office’s recommendations.

Prebreza highlighted the positive opinion issued by the Audit Office in its emphasis of what mattered for the Municipality of Podujevo. However, he added, there have also been cases of failure to register municipal property.

Deputy Mayor of Podujevo Nexhmi Rudari said they were aware of the recommendations of the Audit Office, but circumstances faced by the institution had prevented their implementation.

“Many of the recommendations have been partially implemented, some of them fully implemented – but we have to say that a large part of them have not been implemented,” Rudari said. “It is not a lack of will but rather circumstances that have made their implementation impossible,” he added.

During the debate, a representative from the National Audit Office, Ilir Salihu, discussed the importance of this kind of meeting, saying that they help address the unsatisfactory standards of implementation of recommendations by Kosovo municipalities.

“The overall level of implementation of the Audit Office’s recommendations at Kosovo institutional level is around 40 per cent – while municipalities are around 10 per cent. Audit reports aim to present the most accurate picture of public spending,” he said.

Following keynote speakers and discussion of the analysis from BIRN Kosovo, time was devoted to an open discussion and participants answered questions from the audience.

Beside providing an avenue to discuss implementation of recommendations by the Audit’s Office, the debates are also an opportunity for BIRN to record promises made both by the General Auditor and the Municipality of Podujevo – to be followed-up through Kallxo.com’s fact-checking platform, Krypometer.

The debate was organised within the framework of the project, “Support civil society to increase public oversight and accountability of Kosovo public institutions”, which is funded by the British Embassy in Pristina.

This specific activity is organised as part of the component looking into the compliance of targeted institutions with the recommendations of the Auditor General’s Reports.

Similar debates will be held across other municipalities in Kosovo, with the aim of presenting BIRN Kosovo’s analysis of the success of the implementation recommendations made by the Auditor. Every debate will be held during municipal assemblies of the municipalities in question, and will be live streamed by BIRN Kosovo.