The EMPOWERED project is a regional initiative aimed at strengthening the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the Western Balkans through structured cooperation, advocacy, and community-based support systems. The project is led by Arbeiter Samariter Bund Deutschland e.V. (ASB Germany) and funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development of the Federal Republic of Germany (BMZ). It is implemented over a period of 44 months, from 1 September 2024 to 30 April 2028.
The Albanian Disability Rights Foundation (ADRF) participates in the project as a partner organization, alongside LIR Civil Society (LIR CD), PREDA Plus, Alfa Center, the Community Development Institute (CDI), and the Initiative for Development and Cooperation (IDC). Within the partnership, ADRF brings its expertise in disability rights advocacy, inclusive policy and service development, and cooperation with public institutions and civil society actors at national and local level in Albania.
From ADRF’s perspective, the project responds to persistent structural barriers faced by persons with disabilities in accessing education, employment, and community services. EMPOWERED seeks to address these barriers by reinforcing regional dialogue among organizations of persons with disabilities, public authorities, and private sector actors, while promoting the exchange of best practices across the Western Balkans.
A core objective of the project is to strengthen the position of persons with disabilities and their representative organizations through coordinated regional advocacy and jointly developed community-based support mechanisms. Within this framework, persons with disabilities and their organizations actively participate in regional forums and networking platforms to identify needs at local, national, and regional levels. The project also promotes effective partnerships between public, private, and civil society actors, with the aim of improving social investment approaches and inclusion-oriented policies.
Through its activities, EMPOWERED is expected to directly benefit approximately 500 representatives from public institutions, civil society, and the private sector, with a particular focus on organizations of persons with disabilities. These efforts are expected to contribute to improved social, educational, and employment-related services in 15 target municipalities across the region.
At community level, the project aims to expand access to services for approximately 21,500 persons with disabilities through training programmes, inclusion workshops, psychosocial support, and the development or revision of relevant local policies. In parallel, awareness-raising activities will seek to reach at least one million people through social and traditional media, addressing stigma and highlighting the rights and lived realities of persons with disabilities in the Western Balkans.
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