Young Women Shaping Their Future As Leaders

Young women, ambitious and ready to pursue their professional dreams amidst challenging times of coping and overcoming the COVID-19. Future lawyers, researchers, clinical psychologists, women who are gaining professional skills in their fields of studies to find sustainable employment, pursue their dream and become future leaders.

Donjeta Gjonbalaj is planning the schedule of activities for the children in the kindergarten. It has been nearly a month since she started her internship at a kindergarten in Prishtinë/Priština, as part of the Internship Programme supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Kosovo and the Ministry of Culture (MCYS), Youth and Sports.

As a recent graduate in psychology, Donjeta among many other young people had to put her plans aside due to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Now that she has been given the chance to start the internship in a profession of her choice, she is focused in matching her academic knowledge and professional skills and turning them into practice. She is tirelessly committed to bring happiness for children, especially the ones with special needs or developmental delays, thus contributing to resilience among children and providing care for them while – allowing their mothers to focus on their professional lives, as well. 

“Investing in children's mental health and wellbeing is crucial and so is the parents-psychologist-teacher cooperation throughout the way. Our children are our future, and we want to make sure we help them have a bright and safe future ahead.", says Donjeta.

There are 60 kids at the kindergarden where Donjeta currently works. She tries her best every day to be near those who need her the most, paying much attention to their emotional and social interaction and mental health development. No mask can hide Donjeta’s smile from the opportunity which was given to her and the joy of working with children, even though she admits that it is a big responsibility taking care of their needs. But she is committed to do that.

Donjeta’s professional vision is shaping slowly and steady as a future clinical psychologist, thus, right now she is investing her time to gather all the knowledge and experience.

“The need for clinical psychologists in Kosovo is of utmost importance, especially now after the COVID-19 pandemic. I hope that soon I am going to be able to establish my private clinic and become a leader in my profession”.

Protection of children is one of the future goals in someone’s professional plans. It’s Fllanza Hakaj, a law graduate and a woman who is strongly bonding with her profession. She has decided to become a lawyer working as human rights activist with focus on the rights of children and their protection as well as women’s rights. But as a student, it was not easy for Fllanza to decide what she wants to serve in the future.

“During the attendance of court hearings as a law student, I put myself in the shoes of the judge, the prosecutor, and the lawyer. This is when I decided that I wanted to be a lawyer, fighting, and protecting women’s property and inheritance rights, children’s protection and combating domestic violence, and especially violence against women – thus contributing to an equal future for all”.

Kosovo Agency of Statistics reported that 12 percent of women are home-owners compared to 88 percent men in 2017. This leaves a lot of space for gender equality when it comes to property rights and Fllanza is empowered to become a leader in protecting and fighting for women’s rights in general, with focus on property and inheritance rights.  

Domestic violence towards women in Kosovo is another concern and in the Kosovo Police official reports, most of the victims of domestic violence are women. 

According to the official Kosovo Police statistics, the number of reported cases of domestic violence has been increasing. According to these statistics, in March 2019, there were 124 cases of domestic violence reported, and during March 2020, there were 169. This shows an increase of reported domestic violence cases by 36%.

Raising awareness and advocating for women’s rights and fighting against the discrimination of all forms in Kosovo is a must when talking about gender equality in politics, economy, and society. That is what Donjeta Istrefi from Prishtinë/Priština is focused on while doing the internship at the Kosovar Gender Studies Center.

“I’m working hard to be a professional researcher for gender mainstreaming and equal rights among men and women. Women’s equal participation in decision-making is of utmost importance. Therefore we need more advocacy, action and cooperation among all”, says Donjeta.

Donjeta is concerned about the fact that, currently, no municipality in Kosovo is run by a woman. She says that in the upcoming local elections later this year, this should be a priority for the parties, so that the gender gap in participation in decision-making processes is finally closed.

Donjeta Gjonbalaj, Fllanza Hakaj and Donjeta Istrefi are among 228 other women who are part of the Internship Proramme supported by UNDP and Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport conducting their six-month internships in the private companies and NGO’s in Kosovo.

This targeted support to newly graduated young people come at a very opportune time when labour market inactivity among women continues to be high, and women’s unpaid care work has increased as a result of the COVID pandemic Recent data from the Socio-economic Impact Assessment for Kosovo reveals that 11 percent of the respondents have lost their jobs during the COVID crisis.

UNDP is making an effort to create more opportunities for the unemployed registered jobseekers with focus on those who are under-represented in the labour market – women and especially young women. As statistics show, women’s labour force inactivity rate is at a concerning level of 78.5 percent. Women’s employment rate in Kosovo is only 14.4 percent, and among young women (of age 15-24) at only 5.6%.

UNDP and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, through the Active Labour Market Programmes Project (ALMP2) and the Internship Programme, is supporting 400 young men and women who have recently graduated from the vocational secondary education and higher education, to gain professional knowledge in their fields of studies.

Official statistics for the unemployed jobseekers in Kosovo show a high rate of employment among post-graduates. In 2019 only, there were 7,833 unemployed registered jobseekers that had finished higher education (university) and were looking for jobs. Most of the graduate students are constantly facing the “work experience” question when applying for a job and have limited possibilities for professional experience. The Internship Programme is supporting youth in gaining the professional skills and promoting sustainable employment for them, allowing them to get started with their careers.

Written by Mimoza Kqiku