Working Group for Chapter 23 – The Law on Volunteering in Albania: A priority for the development of an enabling environment for civil society, 09 July 2024

On July 9, 2024, the roundtable regarding the Law on Volunteering as a priority for the development of an enabling environment for civil society within the framework of the National Convention for European Integration was held in Tirana. The roundtable was organised by the European Movement in Albania in close cooperation with the Minister of State for Youth and Children, the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation, as well as the National Resource Center for Civil Society in Albania, Partners Albania for Change and Development. This roundtable came as an impetus from civil society actors, who for more than four years have been seeking the revision of the law by issuing recommendations and analyses for the problems of the existing law.

In her opening remarks, the Minister of State for Youth and Children, Ms. Bora Muzhaqi clarified the importance of revising Law 45/2016 “On Volunteering” for an enabling environment for all beneficiaries and providers of volunteering in the country. 8 years since the adoption of this law, she emphasised that now is the need for close consultations with the interest groups to compile an improved draft. She stated that these series of meetings focused on an open dialogue with mainly young professionals, as one of the most numerous groups in terms of benefiting  from volunteering, and with civil society organisations as providers of volunteering, mark an important step, as the consultation process is also being carried out before preparing the law. The Minister of State highlighted the importance of the cooperation between the Minister of State for Youth and Children, the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation and Civil Society Organizations, in order to benefit from a wider range of ideas, so that the effectiveness of these consultations to be optimal.

Ms. Olta Manjani, Deputy Minister of Economy, Culture and Innovation, said that the existing law is a good foundation for practising volunteerism in the country, but further improvements and changes will facilitate this process. Manjani emphasised that there is a lack of information concerning volunteering , and work is being done on this issue by extending the cooperation between the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation, the Ministry for Youth and Children and the National Agency for Employment and Training.

In this context, H.E.Mr. Silvio Gonzato, EU Ambassador to Albania , noted that the revision of the Law on Volunteering is not only important for volunteers and civil society organisations in Albania, but is also an essential step in the process of European integration. This review addresses the challenges identified in the screening report for Cluster 1, where volunteering is one of the priorities to promote an enabling environment for civil society, an issue included in the Political Criteria.

Mr. Gledis Gjipali, Executive Director of EMA, emphasised that the involvement of civil society in these discussions is important in order to have a various spectrum of the problems and issues regarding the Law on Volunteering, and the continuous consultation with the organisations of civil society at all stages should be seen as valuable, since they are the direct providers of volunteering. Gjipali also stated that the further cooperation of state institutions not only with each other but also with CSOs and the youth themselves, will enable a more qualitative, realistic and appropriate draft law.

Ms. Arjola Agolli, Manager of the National Resource Center for Civil Society in Albania, Partners Albania for Change and Development, stated that the current law is quite truncated, not consulted and inapplicable, making the process of its revision even more necessary. Agolli emphasised that the revised law will contribute to the harmonisation of the legal situation and will help to eliminate the barriers that prevent the development of volunteerism in the country, reducing abuses, increasing the level of security for volunteers and hoping that the new law will make possible the increase of the numbers of volunteers and beneficiaries. On this issue, she highlighted that the cooperation of state institutions with Civil Society Organizations is essential, where in the second panel she also offered a presentation related to this point of view.

During the second panela presentation was held regarding the revision of the Law on Volunteering in Albania by Mr. Oltion Pengu, Legal Advisor to the Minister of State for Youth and Children, who spoke about the process, objectives and infrastructure prepared for this legal review. He explained that based on Prime Minister’s Order No. 9, dated 17.1.2024, the Interinstitutional Working Group was established for the compilation of the draft law “On some additions and amendments to Law 45/2016 “On volunteering”. He also informed that as a result of the ex-post evaluation of the law and the coordination of the work between the ministries and other agencies, there is a complete overview of the existing problems and issues in the current law and the possible changes that may be applicable in it, following the best practices from the EU Member States. He highlighted some essential aspects that could be amended in this draft law, including clarification of  the difference between forms of volunteering, such as structured/long-term volunteering and mass/short-term  volunteering; determining the amount of the contribution that the volunteering provider must pay to ensure the health of the volunteer and the form of insurance; the purpose of maintaining and using the volunteer database by National Agency for Employment and Skills (AKPA) and the establishment of an electronic platform that will be used by providers and beneficiaries of volunteering, to advertise volunteer initiatives and make the request/offer connection for the voluntary projects. He concluded that  the next steps of the process is the coordination and approval by the  Council of Ministers for this draft law expected in the period September-December 2024.

Ms. Arjola Agolli, on the other hand, presented the perspective of the civil society sector regarding the development of volunteerism in Albania. She emphasised that the initiative to review this law was started in 2020 by Partners Albania, the National Resource Center and the Beyond Barriers organisation in collaboration with a wide network of CSOs, which have enabled a series of meetings with organisations in the country that work with volunteers. They have also published and signed an open letter to the government, donors, international institutions, etc.; to start the dialogue with the institutions on the revision of the legal framework (signed by over 120 CSOs and networks of CSOs) and, she emphasised that only in 2022 the dialogue with the institutions started. Agolli highlighted that the current law even though tends to regulate volunteerism taking into account the nature and functioning of civil society organisations, arranging of agreements, ; insurance costs for volunteers; registration of volunteers; the responsible institutions and the division of powers, still it is not totally clear and many issues remain unresolved or problematic. At the end of her speech, she underlined some key recommendations, which have emerged from the consultation process with civil society organisations and legal experts, for addressing the main issues of this law.

A valuable contribution in this activity was the presence of the Slovak expert, Ms. Alžbeta Brozmanová Gregorová, President of the Platform of Voluntary Organizations and Centers in Slovakia, shared Slovakia’s experience in the process of harmonising their national volunteering law with European standards, bringing an important perspective to the participants at the table. She highlighted that there is no unified legal framework for volunteering, as policies and regulations are set at the national level, while the EU supports volunteering through various programs and initiatives. The expert pointed out that in order to have a special legal framework for volunteering, it is important to recognize all forms of volunteering and provide a suitable environment for their implementation. Moreover, through the amendment of the legislation the intended goals should be clearly defined. ; The legal framework should  facilitate the process of volunteering and not hinder it more, taking into account the economic, social and cultural circumstances of each country, and involving all actors in the review and drafting phase. Gregorová also focused on the contractual details between the volunteer and the volunteering provider, specifically on the provision for compensation according to a specific regulation or reimbursement of the volunteer for expenses incurred for health insurance or voluntary unemployment and pension insurance. Also, she added that the law in Slovakia provides for the possibility of assigning a 3% tax to volunteers who have worked at least 40 hours and handing over a certificate. One of the good practices of volunteering in the community is to exercise it against the exemption or reduction from the local tax. The expert emphasised that accreditation is not a condition for  an organisation in order to carry out  voluntary activities, as a host or a recipient organisation. All these inputs constitute as policy proposals for improving the legal framework for volunteering in Albania.

The participants contributed with tangible and practical  recommendations for the compilation of the draft Law on Volunteering in Albania, for an enabling environment and implementation capacities, marking an important step towards improving the legal conditions and practices of volunteering in the country. They discussed the further specification between well-structured and not regulated volunteerism and the provision of different provisions for them, as well as the contractual relationship between the beneficiary and the volunteer provider, health insurance contributions from providers as well as enabling public funds to cover these expenses.