OriginAL’s mission is to bring the Albanian youth on a free two-week trip to their homeland countries every year that will: 

• Deepen Albanian identity understanding and belonging
• Foster lifelong friendships and cross-border networks
• Inspire leadership and future engagement with the homeland

For 2026, applicants can select their preferred participation period, making it easier to join the program at a time that fits their schedule.

Who Can Apply

Applicants must:

• Be of Albanian heritage
• Be between 18 and 24 years old
• Express interest in culture, history, community, and learning

How to Apply

To learn more about the program and submit your application, click the link below.

APPLY HERE!

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The session began with opening remarks from Mr. Mehdi Halimi, Ambassador of the Republic of Kosovo in France, and Mrs. Anila Hyka Smørgrav, Co-Director of GERMIN’s board and member of the Albanian Diaspora’s Coordinating Council. Their welcoming speeches set a warm and inclusive tone for the event.

Ms. Sihana Bejtullahu, Co-Executive Director at GERMIN, introduced the Engaging Diaspora Professionals (EDP) program to the audience. She highlighted the transformative opportunities the program offers and its significant impact on connecting the diaspora with their homeland.

The event concluded with an interactive discussion, where participants shared their ideas and proposed innovative solutions, paving the way for future initiatives to strengthen the ties between Kosovo and its diaspora.

These sessions are not only pivotal for GERMIN’s ongoing projects but also crucial in enhancing our mission to forge stronger connections between Kosovo and the global Albanian diaspora.

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Through discussions, group work, and diverse activities, the GERMIN staff and Board of Directors collaboratively reviewed successes, lessons learned, and plans for the organization’s sustainable growth in the next four years. The team assessed the work of the past years and discussed key potentials for the future.

During this workshop, Germin Board members: Anila Hyka Smorgrav from France, Avni Mustafaj from the USA, Anita Gjidoda from the Netherlands, Hilmi Gashi from Switzerland, together with the team members exchanged and shared their ideas and perspectives on several key issues:

• Further improvement of work, organization and activities of GERMIN;
• Advancing working conditions and rules within the organization
• Ensuring the financial sustainability of GERMIN;
• Increasing GERMIN’s influence and cooperation with partners, shareholders, and our primary audience, the diaspora.

The entire workshop was facilitated by Lenhard Hamza, who has been engaged for two years as an integrated expert in the organization, and has a closer look and perspective on Germin’s work and diaspora engagement.

The first presentations made by GERMIN’s Co-Executive Directors, Sihana Bejtullahu and Lirim Krasniqi, showcased the results and impact of GERMIN’s work over the past four years.

Vartan Marashlyan, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the ‘Repat Armenia‘ Foundation, a non-governmental and non-profit institution from Armenia, also participated in the two-day workshop.

During his presentation sessions, Marashlyan presented his proposals for diversifying the organization’s funds to the board. He detailed the strategies and paths that led to the success of the foundation he currently leads. Simultaneously, he offered advice to GERMIN to create the mechanisms for a sustainable growth.

The sessions also featured presentations on GERMIN’s current projects and their key outcomes.

Blerta Mexhuani, Project Manager at GERMIN, informed attendees about the Engaging Diaspora Professionals (EDP) platform. This initiative aims to establish a comprehensive database of diaspora professionals and actively facilitate their connections with institutions, businesses, and organizations in Kosovo and Albania.

Mexhuani next presented the ‘Peer-to-Peer Diaspora Mentorship’ project, where GERMIN connects diaspora professionals with leaders and members of the Sectoral Workforce Councils in the Wood Processing, Agribusiness, and ICT sectors through a virtual mentoring program. This initiative has delivered valuable knowledge and recommendations that contribute to the development of these sectors in Kosovo.

Blerinë Ukshini, Project Manager at GERMIN, presented the ‘Diaspora for Women in Politics‘ project, which aims to strengthen the position of women in politics at the local level in Kosovo.

Ukshini emphasized the key activities planned for the ‘Diaspora for Women in Politics’ project, which are designed to enhance inter-party cooperation in Kosovo. These activities include mentorship from diaspora mentors, thematic training sessions, Agora-style discussions, drafting of policy summaries with actionable recommendations, and the involvement of diaspora professionals in Municipal Offices for Gender Equality.

She also presented the project ‘Diaspora Engagement for the Advancement of Politics in Kosovo‘ whose primary goal is to improve the policy-making processes in Kosovo through the optimization of the contributions of the diaspora.

Ukshini elaborated on the core activities through which GERMIN intends to achieve the project’s goals. These include hosting six Agora discussions in the diaspora, engaging diaspora professionals within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora and the Parliamentary Committee on Labor of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, ongoing advocacy efforts, organizing thematic virtual meetings with diaspora members, and drafting recommendations for institutions based on the discussions held.

The presentations also highlighted GERMIN’s efforts in engaging and encouraging the Albanian Diaspora youth through the “OriginAL” program. This initiative is a collaborative project between GERMIN and the Global Albanians Foundation, aimed at achieving effective integration of young Albanians living abroad.

Since its inception in 2022, the OriginAL program has been offering an educational-cultural tour for young Albanians of the diaspora, a practice that continues to this day. This tour includes volunteer experiences and aims to inspire participants to explore and connect with their ancestral roots.

Naim Robelli, the OriginAL Project Manager, presented the program’s objectives, its achievements to date, its reach, participants’ feedback, encountered challenges, the need for growth, and future plans for expansion and increased engagement. He emphasized that it is important that this experience offered by GERMIN through OriginAL to the Albanian youth of the diaspora should be continued after the project with other activities that would keep the youth engaged in their country of origin. In this aspect, he revealed the plan for the engagement of OriginAL alumni in this year’s activities and the creation of OriginAL ambassadors around the world.

A key focus of the workshop was on fundraising strategies. Mark Kosmo, chairman of the Global Albanian Foundation, participated in a discussion with workshop participants about effective methods for short-term fundraising and the development of long-term strategies that would ensure sustainable funding for OriginAL and GERMIN overall.

GERMIN, through this workshop, further strengthens its commitment to building bridges between the diaspora and their homeland, while simultaneously enhancing working conditions and developing strategies that amplify the voice and impact of the Albanian diaspora.

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The roundtable, titled “International Partnerships and Diaspora Investments at the Local Level“, brought together key institutional stakeholders, investors, and experts from Kosova and the diaspora to evaluate Kosova’s current investment landscape.

The discussion explored opportunities and obstacles, with experts from the diaspora emphasizing factors conducive to investment in Kosova. These included the importance of a supportive business environment and centralized access to relevant information for foreign investment.

Discussions identified agriculture, construction, education, energy, information technology, and tourism as the most promising sectors for diaspora investment. Additionally, the roundtable highlighted the significant contributions of the diaspora to Kosova. Moreover, it emphasized the role of remittances in this regard. Furthermore, it discussed strategies for enhancing diaspora integration into Kosova.

The event also addressed deficiencies and critical challenges requiring attention from institutions and municipalities.

The second roundtable focused on “Catalyzing Local Development through Diaspora Engagement and International Partnerships“. Participants included representatives from municipalities, institutional bodies, and civil society.

Discussions revolved around the potential of twinning municipalities to enhance collaboration between Kosova and municipalities abroad. We explored the advantages and impacts on economic development and cultural exchange. However, we also highlighted challenges such as insufficient diaspora statistics, project scarcity, and the need for innovative approaches to connect municipalities with Kosova’s diaspora.

Other key points included emphasizing interdepartmental coordination, establishing diaspora clubs in municipalities, investing in ICT and tourism, and addressing mutual unfamiliarity between municipalities and diaspora potential. Participants also raised concerns about investment attraction strategies and the availability of economic zone spaces.

Representatives from municipal levels shared insights, outlining steps, challenges, and requirements for establishing channels linking these institutions with the diaspora.

GERMIN will compile a report with recommendations for central and local level institutions, based on discussions held at these tables.

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Blerinë Ukshini, Project Manager at GERMIN, outlined the key points of the Memorandum of Cooperation signed among GERMIN, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora of the Republic of Kosovo (MFAD), and the Parliamentary Committee for Foreign Affairs and Diaspora.

In this meeting, Civil Society organizations underscored the necessity of maintaining open lines of communication and collaboration with the committee to enhance parliamentary transparency.

Meanwhile, committee deputies shared their perspectives on the collaborative efforts between the committee and civil society organizations.

GERMIN reaffirms its commitment to fostering partnerships with all state institutions and civil society to coordinate activities and shared objectives effectively.

This meeting was held by GERMIN in the framework of the project “Engagement of the Diaspora for the Advancement of Policymaking in Kosovo, which is supported by the regional project “SMART Balkans – Civil Society for Common Values in the Western Balkans” implemented by the Centar za promocenje členi društa (CPCD) in collaboration with the Institute for Democracy and Mediation (IDM), and the Center for Research and Policymaking (CRPM) and financially supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA). This post’s content is GERMIN’s sole responsibility as the project implementer and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA).

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This Memorandum aims to include the diaspora in the development of policies in Kosova, and the cooperation will extend to the fulfillment of the following activities:

• Analysis of diaspora needs and identification of challenges;
•  Organizing public discussions of the ‘Agora’ format in diaspora communities;
•  Creation of diaspora advisory groups, which will contribute to the policy-making processes of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Commission for Foreign Affairs and Diaspora;
•  Organization of virtual meetings and thematic discussions;
•  Communication for the preparation of short thematic policies (policy briefs);
•  Engagement of professionals from the diaspora in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Parliamentary Committee for Foreign Affairs and Diaspora;
•  Co-organization of advocacy meetings with institutions;
•  Creation and implementation of supervisory mechanisms for monitoring the implementation of legislation regarding the diaspora;
•  Development of online information campaigns;
•  Organization of joint conferences.

GERMIN is dedicated to building and nurturing a strong connection between the Albanian community living abroad and their homeland. We actively work to strengthen the bonds with the diaspora, fostering a sense of connection to their roots and home country.

This Memorandum of Cooperation was drawn up and initiated within the project “Diaspora Engagement for the Advancement of Policymaking in Kosova” which is supported by the regional project “SMART Balkans – Civil Society for Common Values in the Western Balkans” implemented by Centar za promeno svetni društva (CPCD) in collaboration with the Institute for Democracy and Mediation (IDM), and the Center for Research and Policymaking (CRPM) and financially supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA). The content of this post is the sole responsibility of GERMIN as the project implementer and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA).

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• Project Achievements and Impact

Through this project, GERMIN utilized its vast network in the diaspora and engaged influential and knowledgeable Kosovo diaspora members involved in politics at local, regional, or national levels.

Women’s political engagement, particularly at the local level, remains a significant challenge in Kosovo. This challenge is exacerbated when working with smaller municipalities, where the patriarchal mindset is more deeply ingrained. Typically, political parties tend to include women in their electoral lists only during election periods to fulfil the mandatory gender quota requirements. This, in turn, further hinders women’s active engagement in politics on a broader scale within Kosovo.

In the municipalities that were the focal point of our project, we were fully cognizant of the difficulty in achieving all our numerical targets. However, this did not render the project unworkable. Although we initially aimed to involve 52 women in the project, GERMIN extended deadlines, conducted meetings with political parties, and made multiple attempts via email and phone to encourage participation.

• During the project implementation, the main achievements were as below:

• Compilation of a comprehensive database of over 300 women in politics from the targeted municipalities and political parties.
• Compilation of a database of over 80 diaspora professionals who can serve as mentors for the project.
• We have successfully engaged 26 mentors from 14 highly developed countries (such as the USA, Germany, Switzerland, the UK, France, Sweden, etc.), fostering robust connections with their respective political institutions. This inspiring collaboration has given mentees a unique opportunity to share experiences and knowledge with these esteemed mentors.

• Closing Conference Highlights

The project was finalized with the closing conference, which revealed women’s engagement in politics at the local level and mentors from the diaspora, in the one-year project supported by the National Endowment for Democracy. The event started with the opening speech of Mss Sihana Bejtullahu, Co-Executive Director of GERMIN, the fourth President of the Republic of Kosovo, Mss Atifete Jahjaga and Ms Vera Mjeku, Policy Analyst at the New York City Council.

The conference continued with a panel discussion on “From Challenges to Change” that brought together women from different political parties. Part of the panel were: The Minister of Justice of Kosovo, Albulena Haxhiu, and the Vice-President of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Vlora Çitaku, Vice Chair of the Women’s Forum in the Democratic League of Kosovo, Albulena Mujaj Bajraktaraj, and Diellza Kukaj, Chair of the Women’s Forum in the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo.

In the second part of the “Diaspora for Women in Politics” conference, 3 group discussions were facilitated by diaspora mentors: Kendresa Gerlica, Belgium, Selvete Dibrani Istrefi, Finland and Fatima Zekijiri, Germany.

A brief report with the project’s findings was also presented by Diana Morina, an expert on gender issues. The report can be found at this link.

For additional moments and speeches from this conference, click this link to access our Facebook video.

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During this meeting, GERMIN, along with Mr. Ferizi and Mrs. Bunjaku, discussed the possibility of potential collaborations, the unfolding of various projects with a focus on the diaspora, the engagement of the diaspora in municipalities, and the empowerment of women in politics.

The meeting also covered discussions about other projects outlined in the work plan of the Municipality of Vushtrri and GERMIN, aiming to coordinate shared priorities and activity schedules to ensure the effective implementation of planned initiatives.

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The two-day training is focused on the theoretical part of the drafting of investment projects and will then continue with the three-day workshop where officials will work on the drafting of investment projects-proposals in order for the respective municipalities to be able to attract foreign direct investments.

This activity also aims to bring new techniques for the inclusion of the diaspora as a potential investor.

The activity is carried out within the project “Action of Municipalities for Reintegration and Diaspora – MARDI” implemented by Caritas Switzerland in Kosovo in partnership with GERMIN.

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There comes the idea of OriginAL, a program launched by GERMIN and Global Albanians Foundation which aims to provide a free educational trip for the Albanian Diaspora Youth. As Victor Hugo, the French poet and novelist once said, “Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come“, we believe that this is the time for such a program to be implemented. 

The OriginAL program was born out of a need to give young people in the Diaspora the opportunity to get to discover their roots. The second and third generations of young people in the diaspora are naturally exposed to diverse communities, but not very much embodied in their native or original culture and countries. New dynamics of migration among Albanians have made it difficult for the parents to pass on ties with their homelands to their descendants. Meanwhile, home countries such as Albania and Kosovo, have not yet built institutional mechanisms to stay close to the new diaspora communities and keep them connected to the origin. OriginAL as well as the name itself is unique in many dimensions. Origin and AL means ‘Albanian Origin’ and is dedicated to all those young people who for one reason or another have not been able to connect to their country of origin.

That is why we have designed such a program, which will bring for the first time this year 40 young adults from the diaspora to Albania and Kosova for a two-week free educational trip. The application form was opened on May 25th and will continue until June 15th. While the program will take place in August 10-22, 2022. It is enough to show the Albanian origin (of at least one Albanian parent or grandparent) in order to be eligible to participate. 

OriginAL aims to strengthen the connection of the diaspora youth with the countries of their ancestors,  strengthen their Albanian identity, and connect them with their peers living in Albania and Kosova.

The program has been modeled based on the Israeli model, particularly that of Taglit – Birthright Israel, which has inspired other similar initiatives such as Birthright Africa, Reconnect Hungary, Birthright Armenia, etc. In order to get acquainted with the program, the co-director of GERMIN, Lirim Krasniqi, and the project manager, Arbnor Mjeku, visited Israel beginning of June, where they studied closely how their program is curated and implemented is realized in this country. 

As a pilot year, we aim to bring at least 40 young Albanians from around the world to Albania and Kosovo for two weeks in August 2022, to build this number to hundreds and then to thousands of young Albanians from all over the world in the years to come. The trip will start in Prishtina, capital of Kosova which vibrates positive energy during the summer, and will end – in the capital of Albania – Tirana. Meantime, OriginAL participants will have the opportunity to visit and feel some of the most remarkable landmarks of the homelands and hear about stories that will stay with them for a lifetime.

More information about the program can be found at www.original.org.al

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