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History

History of the Program

The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) support to Albania is guided by the Strategy for Sweden’s reform cooperation with the Western Balkans and Turkey for 2021-2027, which gives priorities to areas such as democracy, rule of law, gender equality and inclusive and peaceful societies. A key focus of this strategy’s operationalization plan is community policing with the aim of improving the public safety and security, prevention and police and community partnerships. Since 2012, Sweden has supported the Ministry of the Interior of Albania and the Albanian State Police in developing and implementing the Community Policy through the SCPA Program – ‘Strengthening Community Policing in Albania’. SIDA and the Embassy of Sweden in Albania have provided support in the two previous phases. The first phase of the program (2012-2015) focused improving public security services, establishing the trust between police and citizens, and strengthening partnerships with the community, especially with the youth, whereas the second phase (2017-2022) focused on improving the community policing structure of  ASP, strengthening local partnerships and building the staff capacities; the strategic management support of ASP and implementation of the new Strategy on Public Safety; and the increase of responses to domestic violence through skills development and better coordination between stakeholders for a comprehensive support. Based on the interest expressed by the beneficiaries of the Program and on an external evaluation carried out, the Swedish Government committed funds for the third phase of the Program with the aim of providing ongoing support on community policing reforms, by emphasizing the need for changes in attitude and culture within police and the need to gradually build trust within the community.

2012-2015

SACP Program – Swedish Assistance for Community Policing - Phase I

The SACP program began with an initial period in 2012 and lasted until 2015. Phase I of the SACP was designed to support Community Policing in Albania, with the Ministry of Interior and the Albanian State Police as the primary beneficiaries. The SACP program provided assistance in three interconnected pillars: I. Performance Management; II. Partnership and Youth; and III. Domestic Violence. The program closely supported and collaborated with its beneficiaries to achieve a police service that fully embraced the philosophy of Community Policing by creating partnerships and synergies among different groups, a community that supported the new role of the State Police, and developed expertise within the Ministry of Interior to continue efforts in developing the performance system.

2017-2022

The SCPA Program – Swedish Support for Community Policing in Albania - Phase II

The second phase of the program began with the initial period in 2017 and lasted until 2022. The SCPA – Phase II was designed to support Community Policing in Albania with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the State Police as the main beneficiaries. The second phase recognized and built upon the results achieved from the first phase of the SACP and aimed to establish mutual trust and partnership between the police and communities as its primary goal within the Philosophy of Community Policing. The program provided assistance in three interconnected pillars: I. Support for Community Policing in the District Police Directorates; II. Support for Strategic Management (SM); III. Support for Domestic Violence (DV). The program collaborated with its beneficiaries to contribute to increasing partnership and interaction levels among various actors and communities for security and order in the community; it worked with all elements of the DPVs as well as with police officers assigned to community policing; it assisted the State Police in implementing the strategic management system that enabled the organization to track their performance and strategically allocate appropriate resources in an effective and efficient manner based on the development of Monitoring and Evaluation capacities; it supported the State Police in enhancing their capacity to respond better to cases of domestic violence and also improved coordination with other stakeholders involved in addressing domestic violence.

2024-2029

SCPA Program – Swedish Support for Community Policing in Albania - Phase III

The third phase of the Community Policing Program began on June 20, 2024, with a planned duration of five years. This phase aligns with the Intersectoral Strategy for Community Safety (2021-2026) and focuses on strengthening police structures for community policing, enhancing the capabilities of Local Public Safety Councils, raising community awareness on security issues, and improving cooperation among all actors for community safety. The program will provide assistance in three interconnected components:

I. Support for Community Policing – Improving the effectiveness of community policing implementation. This component focuses on consolidating and expanding the adoption of community policing by the State Police as an approach.

II. Analysis and Accountability in Community Policing – Strengthening police accountability and coordination, along with the capacity for analysis in community policing. The second component continues to develop a data-driven approach to community policing across the State Police while strengthening links between government entities with accountability for ensuring public safety, particularly local governments and Public Safety Councils.

III. Improving Police Responses to Community Priorities, including domestic violence. This component aims to ensure that the State Police has sufficient capacity on specific policing topics such as domestic violence, road safety, and youth engagement.

Grant Scheme – As with previous phases, the program will include an intersectoral grant component aimed at reinforcing community participation and influencing the development of community policing approaches.