UNMIK/PR/914
PRISTINA - A three-day orientation course for Municipal Gender Officers (MGOs) from all thirty municipalities of Kosovo was held from 29 to 31 January at the Grand Hotel in Pristina. The establishment of the posts of the MGOs on 1 January 2003 marks a historic milestone in civil service of Kosovo when gender will be incorporated into the daily work of municipal administration.
The MGOs are municipal civil servants who will work under the direct supervision of the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs). They will serve as an entry point and a referral base on gender issues in municipalities; assist them in identifying the needs and concerns of women, help in development of necessary policies and advise on actions to be taken by municipalities to address them, ensure streamlining of gender in local legislation, etc. Special emphasis will be made on economic empowerment of women, in particular of vulnerable groups of women (minority, returnees, disabled, etc.). The MGOs will also serve as an important tool for collection of information, monitoring and evaluation of gender situation and the municipal gender performance.
The programme is being carried out by the Office of Gender Affairs, UNMIK, in partnership with the Department of Local Administration (DLA), Ministry of Public Services of Kosovo. The programme included both Serbian and Albanian MGOs.
All the MGOs have passed through a highly competitive selection process. Successful candidate had to hold the University degree in Social Sciences, Law, Human Rights or Public Administration and relevant experience of at least two years. Both women and men were encouraged to apply for the posts. They were required to have strong leadership skills, be self-motivated, demonstrate creativity and sound judgement, be persistent in achieving their goals and open to new ideas. Furthermore, successful candidates were required to have proficiency in using word processors and be fluent in both Serbian and Albanian languages. Knowledge of English was also highly desirable.
The orientation course for the MGOs included general issues related to gender and will be followed by more training in future. It was organised by the Office of Gender Affairs in Pillar II in collaboration with Justice and Police (Pillar I) and the OSCE (Pillar III). The list of guests included representatives of the DLA, the Prime Minister’s Office and UNIFEM as well as women members of the Kosovo Assembly.
The course concluded by the award of certificates to the MGOs by Mr. Francesco M. Bastagli, DSRSG, Civil Administration. He commended the fruitful partnership between local and international stakeholders in the promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment in Kosovo. He also congratulated the MGOs and wished them success.