VLORE ANTI-TRAFFICKING NGO TO STAY OPEN AFTER FUNDING PULLS

UNCLAS TIRANA 000617 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/SCE; G/TIP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM AL SUBJECT: VLORE ANTI-TRAFFICKING NGO TO STAY OPEN AFTER FUNDING PULLS THROUGH ¶1. SUMMARY: On July 11 PolOff and the USAID Anti-Trafficking Advisor met with staff from the Vatra Shelter, one of the oldest anti-trafficking NGOs in Albania. Vatra is one of four non-governmental reintegration shelters which provides a package of social services to repatriated victims of trafficking. The Vatra shelter, like other anti-trafficking NGOs, has come under increasingly difficult times as foreign donors are reducing financial support for anti-trafficking projects, and the Albanian government has not yet assumed responsibility for these structures. Post is concerned about keeping foreign donors engaged until the Government of Albania becomes appropriately engaged in the fight against human trafficking. (Note: Albania fell to Tier II Watch List in ths year's Trafficking in Persons Report.) END SUMMARY. -------------- FUNDING UNCERTAINTY -------------- ¶2. Vatra was started in 1999 by former military officer, Vera Lesko, in order to address the increasing phenomenon of human trafficking through and from Albania. She realized that trafficking was becoming a serious problem in Albania and started the center to respond to the lack of social services available to returned victims. During the most recent visit to the shelter, the Deputy Director of Vatra gave Embassy representatives an overview of the shelter, services provided to returned victims, and described cutbacks in services that the shelter has had to make due to decreasing support from donors and the Albanian government. Vatra receives approximately 45 percent of their funding from Norwegian Church Aid (NCA),with additional funding from USAID and the Swedish MFA (through Kvinna til Kvinna). This year, however, the Norwegian MFA, which provides funding to NCA, closed out their program in Albania without informing local partners. As a result NCA was uncertain if they could renew their funding to Vatra, leaving the NGO in an unexpected funding crisis. ¶3. Vatra's funding and support problems started in late 2006 when the three Albanian State Police (ASP) officers who guarded the shelter were pulled from their positions because the ASP felt that protecting the shelter was not an effective use of state resources. For the past year and a half the shelter has been struggling to find the funds to employ a private security officer to protect the shelter residents. In the spring of this year, a grant from an international donor providing legal services to the victims came to an end, leaving victims dependent on the legal services of already overburdened and under-qualified state prosecutors. In late spring, when it appeared that NCA funding would not be renewed, Vatra sought funding from the GOA and several foreign donors and also made contingency plans to close down in September 2008. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶4. Vatra's financial woes are representative of a wider problem of a trend of foreign donors pulling out of projects throughout Albania. Waning foreign donor support is becoming a great concern to NGOs that rely more on outside support than they do on their own government. Moreover, the problem is exacerbated by the GOA's lack of commitment and continued denial that there remains a serious problem with trafficking in Albania. This year, Vatra was lucky. At the end of July, and just one month shy of shutting the shelter, the Norwegian funding came through. It is expected that because the Norweigan MFA planned to pull all funding from Albania this year, that this will be the last year they will fund anti-trafficking projects. On August 11, Foreign Minister Basha told visiting EUR/SCE Director Jason Hyland that the GOA will soon begin funding all four trafficking shelters in Albania. Although this is certainly a very welcome announcement, Post will continue to follow-up with the MFA to make sure that adequate funding from the GOA begins quickly. WITHERS