Partnership Memorandum of Understanding
“Strengthening/Consolidation Local Associations Structures”
Development of the initiative for a consolidation support
1.Rationale/Scope
The purpose of this MOU is to bear witness of the initiative undertaken by both the Albanian Association of Municipalities (AAM) and the Association for Local Autonomy of Albania (ALAA) to consolidate both associations.
Upcoming decentralization reforms in Albania require that the interests and needs of Albanian municipalities are effectively represented within the intergovernmental dialogue.
In this context, the potential of awareness raising through lobbying and advocacy, communication and negotiation that lies within both associations needs to be strengthened in view of attaining a unified voice of and for Albanian municipalities.
This MOU is the result of a shared conviction among both associations that only common concerted action will result into a better consideration of municipalities’ roles and functions in the Albanian decentralization reform. Under these circumstances, AAM and ALAA expressed their disposition to explore common grounds for future cooperation and their determination for joint collaboration and concentration regarding the challenges that lie ahead.
2. Goals and objectives
The goal lies within the scope of attaining ever closer institutional ties. This goal comprises the concrete intention to reach in a first step a Technical Merger to be complemented in due time by a complete genuine merger of both associations into a common institutional framework.
The objectives are:
- To contribute within the decentralization reform in Albania as authentic and legitimate representatives of local governments and its population to a constructive dialogue that focuses on the wellbeing of its citizen, the promotion of economically and environmentally sustainable and inclusive development at local level. This contribution is realized within the framework of the National Strategy for Development and Integration 2014-2020 for social and economic development towards European Integration and is in line with the principles of the European Charter of Local Self-Government
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