Connecting to the Home Country After 20 Years

“It is a unique life changing experience to return back to Albania after 20 years and contribute to my home country development,” reveals Ms. Valbona Flora, the IOM Albania Diaspora Programme fellow.

Together with her family, Valbona moved to Italy 20 years ago after she finished the primary school in Tirana, the capital of Albania.During these years she did not have opportunities to come back to Albania considering that the connections with her friends and with her country of origin were not so strong. ‘I was very young when I left Albania. “Since my family was with me in Italy, I thought that I don’t have strong reasons to be back to Albania and to keep the connections,” says Valbona, with a sense a regret on her face.

“I was almost a teenager when I moved to Italy. The first challenge was to be accommodated with a new society, culture and language. When I was enrolled at the high school (scientific high school) it was tough since I didn’t know Italian language. It required a lot of study hours to face such challenge. I was often forced to translate every line word by word when I read the history books. In Albania I had been an excellent student and the fact that when I came in Italy, I failed to get high grades, it made me suffer so much,” recalls Valbona. “I feel very proud for everything I have achieved so far. This has been thanks to my daily efforts to overcome such barriers. At the same time, I can’t forget the sacrifices I have made to date by doing any part-time jobs which enabled me to buy the books and cover the study expenses.” Beside the challenges that all the migrants face, she feels lucky and grateful for the study opportunities given to her in Italy.

Although she did not have a simple journey in Italy, she took the advantages that this country offers to complete her studies and build a professional career. Valbona a Ph.D. in Territorial, Urban and Landscape Planning at Sapienza University of Rome; a Master Degree in Management of Building Amnesty and a Master Degree in Science in Regional Urban and Environmental Planning at the Faculty of Architecture (Florence, Italy).

Valbona has collaborated with professional architectural firms and contributed to various initiatives in Italy such as drafting Urban General City Plan of Italian Municipalities. In addition, she contributed in a project which aimed to review and improve the Tuscan regional toponymy digital archive, promoted by the Department of Architecture (DIDA) of the University of Florence. She has also been part of international competitions in urban and territorial planning, as well as the co-author of several scientific publications.

Beyond her contribution in the country of destination, in 2019, in the framework of the IOM Programme “Engage the Albanian Diaspora to the Social and Economic Development of Albania”, Valbona become part of the research project “The Diaspora as a Resource for the Knowledge, Preservation and Enhancement of the Lesser Known Cultural sites in Albania”, which engaged six Albanian Diaspora young researchers and 13 students who study at the University of Florence.

“At some point during my journey, I understood the sense of belonging and origin, so I started to look for occasions to reconnect with my home country. I was very happy when I saw this fellowship opportunity provided by IOM Diaspora Programme, through the University of Florence, Italy,” recalls Valbona.

This research project supports the Albanian territorial development strategy contributing to Albania’s 5 cultural monuments in five villages (“case studies”) of Albania: the three villages of Përmet - Bënja, Leusë, Kosinë, the mountain village of Razëm (Shkodra) and the coastal village of Zvërnec (Vlorë).The research is made possible thanks to an innovative 3D laser scanning technique (“points cloud”) of the Laboratory of Digital Survey of Architecture of the Department of Architecture (DIDA), University of Florence.

“Currently we have finished the guidelines for the 5 cultural monuments and we are finalizing the book which documents the process of the research project, as well as has well defined guidelines on how this monuments and the surrounding areas can be restored and become attractive touristic areas to generate employment and incomes for the local communities,” explains Valbona.

The impact of Diaspora on the Sustainable Goals is multidimensional and multifaceted, supporting Albanian government, Albanian Diaspora living in Italy and other stakeholders in main three directions:

• capacity building (such as the involvement in development policy making and implementation process, the support to the recent established institutions for Diaspora and the development of curricula and trainings for the dispora officials)
• transfer of skills, knowledge and technology mainly through fellowship scheme
• attraction of investment through the Albanian Diaspora members as Development Agents.

The main aim of IOM Diaspora Programme, beyond enhancing partnerships between the Government of Albania and the Albanian Diaspora communities abroad for mutual benefits, is establishing well-functioning and sustainable mechanisms and schemes, capable to engage Diaspora both for their own benefit as well as to support socio-cultural-economic development in their communities of origin.

“The success of the fellowship scheme enhance the perspective of the GoA partners on the role that Diaspora can play in the development of Albania and on the importance of the human and professional engagement of the Diaspora members as a key factor for improving the life in their home country.” highlights Ms. Manoela Lussi, the Manager of IOM Albania Diaspora Programme. “The success of the fellowship scheme implemented in the partnership with University of Florence has been acknowledged by all stakeholders to the point that we have been requested to replicate the model within other sectors.”

Apart from this fellowship scheme, IOM Diaspora is supporting Albanian Government by appointing seconded staff in the Albanian Institutions as well as in the Albanian Embassy in Rome and Albanian General Consulates in Bari and Milan (Italy). To intensify the information exchange with the Albanian Diaspora in Italy, the programme has also engaged 5 Diaspora Focal Points in Italian Pilot Regions (Lombardy, Piedmont, Tuscany, Lazio and Emilia Romagna) and 1 FP in Sicily Region for the Arberesh community.

According to INSTAT there are over 1.4 million Albanians living outside the country, representing a huge and largely untapped opportunity. The challenge is to create an environment that encourages and supports Diaspora members to contribute to socio-economic development their home country.

“Coming back to the country of origin has totally changed my perspective. I want to continue such contribution by making possible the transfer of knowledge to my home country on my area of expertise as part of the professional experience. I feel privileged to be one of the building stones in this bridge that connects members of Albanian Diaspora in Italy with their home country,” concluded Valbona proudly.

The IOM Albania Diaspora Programme is implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Albania, the UN Migration Agency, with funding from the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) in coordination with the Albanian State Minister for Diaspora, Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Finance and Economy through Albanian Investment Development Agency (AIDA).