TIRANA, Dec 4 /ATA/ Minister of Education and Sports, Ogerta Manastirliu, participated on Wednesday in the roundtable “Gender-Based Violence in the Digital Space” as part of the global initiative of the “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence” organized by the Parliament of Albania.
In her remarks, Minister Manastirliu shared her message regarding the importance of technology as a tool to prevent violence and strengthen protective systems.
“Technology is not the enemy and, in fact, it will not be the problem as long as we live in the digital age and are making rapid strides in Albania, both in accessing online platforms and in providing digital services. Certainly, we are threatened by the risks that technology brings, but we must use it as an ally to strengthen violence prevention mechanisms,” stated the minister.
Minister Manastirliu also emphasized the ongoing work to incorporate civic, digital, media, and legal literacy into the educational system.
“I want to highlight the work that the Ministry of Education and Sports has done to address these aspects in the new curriculum, which we have now finalized. Digital literacy must begin to be built in the early years of education. We have included digital literacy starting from the first grade, introducing a modern approach to our education system,” said Manastirliu.
The roundtable also discussed the importance of the role of teachers, psychologists, social workers, and security officers in schools.
“Life-long training of these professionals is essential to address awareness issues and strengthen prevention mechanisms. Today, we have new instruments within schools, such as coordinator teachers, social and health services, which guarantee security for our children. A total of 2,030 cases of violence have been prevented for the years 2023-2024, with 95% of them reported to the parents, social workers, psychologists, school security officers, state police, or other child protection structures,” said Manastirliu.
Minister Manastirliu underlined the importance of collaboration between institutions, schools, and parents to ensure a safe digital space for young people and to build a robust culture of awareness and security, highlighting the consultation tour that the Ministry of Education and Sports has kicked off with parent communities across Albania.
“We have started an open dialogue with parents in all schools across the country. So far, 170 consultations have been organized, with the participation of over 5,000 parents. The majority of them agree on banning the TikTok platform, which in most cases promotes misbehavior and harmful models that encourage violence,” she concluded.
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