- The conference in Tirana, Albania brought together representatives from 13 European countries and Israel to discuss the key issues of aging in Albania such as poverty, social exclusion, discrimination, and inadequate support systems. - The UN report on aging in Albania identified the main challenges as the lack of specific measures and infrastructure to address the needs of the aging population and recommended strengthening capacity in policy development, data collection, healthcare facilities, and human resources. - Representatives from ASAG, the Albanian government, and other organizations emphasized the need for greater awareness, empowerment of older populations, and international cooperation to meet the challenges of aging in Albania.

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LETTER
RANA, APR
eing in Alb
1
R No.1
RIL 2014
banian

2. 2
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON
AGEING
TIRANA / ALBANIA
Under the auspices of the Foreign Minister of the Republic of
Albania, His Excellency, Mr. Ditmir Bushati
Friday, April 25, 2014, at 09 00 A.M. – 15 00 P.M.,
Conference Room at the Academy of Sciences of the Republic
of Albania
With the participation of 13 European countries and Israel

3. Jean Marc
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4. 4
-Day 1 (April 25, 2014)-
Program of Conference
9:00 – 9:30 Registration of participants
9:30 Opening speech, Mrs. Mira Pirdeni,
Executive Director of ASAG
Plenary Session : 9:45- 10:15
Moderator : Dr. Shpetim Cami
His Excellency, Mr. Ditmir Bushati, Foreign Minister of the Republic of Albania
Mrs. Emanuela Bello, Assistant Representative, UNFPA
Academic Muzafer Korkuti, President of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Albania
Mr. Dirk Jarre, President of EURAG
Mr. Igli Totozani, Ombudsman, Republic of Albania
Mrs. Albana Vokshi, Chairwoman of the Parliamentary Committee of Health and Social Affairs
Mrs. Nora Malaj, Deputy/Minister of Education
Mr. Gazmend Bejtja, Director of Health Services, Ministry of Health
Mr. Raziel Zwang, The Chairman of the Academic Retirees in Izrael
Mrs Etleva Bisha, General Director of the State Social Services
First Session 10:15 – 12:00.
Moderators: Dirk Jarre and Merita Xhumari
Prof. Dr. Ilia Telo, Demographic aspects of ageing population in our country and problems that
require solution.
Dana Steinova: EURAG, Memory training center and its role in making seniors more self
confident and independent
Tina Tambaum, Estonia: Older men as active learners in the community
Prof As Dr Merita Xhumari: An integrated approach to pension reform in Albania
Prof. As. Dr. Alban Ylli: Mobility, depression and chronic diseases among the elderly.
Prof. Dr. Pavel Kalvach: Importance of social justice in health care for seniors
Milos Vajs, Czech Rep: Poverty among senior population
Prof. As. Dr. Kiri Zallari: Preventive care in geriatric medicine. Geriatric assistance and the
dignity of the elderly.
Coffee break : 12: 00- 12 :30
Second Session 12:30 14:00
Moderators : Dana Steinova, Shpëtim Cami
Dr. Shpëtim Cami: Active ageing in active communities, the role of local government.
Monique Epstein, France: Elderly poverty and social exclusion in France
Jozica Puhar: Some facts and some comments on poverty in Slovenia

5. Dr. Saimir
Europe.
Mr. Enkel
the elderly
Mrs. Nurt
Dr. Afrim
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South-East
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6. 6
AN OVERVIEW OF THE ISSUES OF POVERTY,
SOCIAL EXCLUSION
The World Bank report: "Albanians – Old and Poor in 2025" urgently demand reforms in
health care and pensions.
Albania is a country with a prolonged transition period, which negatively impacted the older
persons. The political and social structures have by long marginalized the elderly, thus making them
a chronic issue, despite the opportunities offered by the democratic developments the country has
gone through. The poverty of the elderly is mainly due to: insufficient pensions, lack of services’
access and active ageing discrimination.
Human life can be seen as an exchange of resources among individuals and social institutions.
Imbalanced exchanges may result in imbalanced power relationships.
From the national, local point of view this is an issue that should be taken seriously into account in
a country like Albania, which represents a higher risk considering the lack of structures and
institutions in support of the elderly.
Older persons lack the opportunities to improve their resources due to social forces such as ageism,
irrational social discrimination, institutionalized social exclusion (such as mandatory retirement
systems), and negative perceptions of older persons. Therefore, it should be important to balance
power relationships among individuals and social institutions by helping older persons improve
existing resources and increase or acquire new ones. Ageism and negative perceptions of the ageing
society built upon prejudice and non-scientific assumptions seem to have reinforced the image of
Albanian older persons as powerless.
ASAG has been the coordinator between the government and the UNO. Nowadays, we have a
report on Ageing in Albania, prepared by a high-level mission of the UN.
General Objectives of the Mission were as follows:
A. To assess current socio-economic policies in order to identify areas for potential technical
assistance and further advisory services, as well as concrete interventions and actions required for
addressing the issue of ageing in Albania;
B. To provide advice to the Government in building national capacity to develop, coordinate and
implement policy measures to address ageing issues at the national level and to mainstream ageing
issues across public and private sectors;
C. To brief representatives of the Ministry, other relevant Government agencies and major
stakeholders on the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA) and its second review
and appraisal in 2011-2012 as well as the UNDESA technical cooperation mandate;
D. To identify further steps in conjunction with the UN Country Team in Albania for developing a
framework for assistance on social issues to the Government of Albania.

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20. HAPPPY BIRRTHDAYY - ADEVVIJE SHAAROFI/ 880 YEAARS OLD!
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21. 21

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