OSCE Presence to train Albania’s police ahead of 25 April general elections

The OSCE Presence in Albania, in close partnership with the Albanian State Police and with the support of the Central Election Commission and the General Prosecutor’s Office, organized a series of training courses for about 6,000 police officer across Albania. The training courses, which started on 26 January 2021 and will run until mid-March, address the role of the police in the electoral process and comes ahead of the 25 April parliamentary elections.

Opening the training course series, Vincenzo Del Monaco, Head of the OSCE Presence, said: “As the new Head of the OSCE Presence, I am delighted to add to the continued support that the OSCE Presence is offering to Albanian institutions to organize and administer elections in line with internationally recognized practices that reflect the OSCE/ODIHR recommendations.”

General Director of the Albanian State Police, Ardi Veliu, said: “I thank the OSCE Presence, the Central Election Commission and the General Prosecutor’s Office for their contribution in this training, and want to assure the citizens that the police are focused on the correct implementation of the law and the law only.” 

About 145 high- and mid-level police officers, including the deputy general director, directors of departments, regional police, and border police directors, as well as chief of commissariats and deputy local directors on order and public safety will undergo training from 26 to 28 January. The training will then target about 170 trainers, who will in turn start the cascade training for about 6,000 police officers. In addition, the Presence has prepared an information booklet regarding the role of the police in the electoral process, which will be distributed to all relevant police officers.