“Good planning by the Center for Publications for the Diaspora and the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs made it easy to reach many Albanian communities abroad,” said Kumbaro.

According to her, this initiative supports children learning Albanian and honors teachers who preserve our cultural identity.

“More Diaspora countries, more Albanian books, more children connected to their roots,” said Kumbaro. /m.m/a.f/p.s./

The protesters marched further on towards the North Macedonian embassy in Tirana, holding national flags and placards writing “We are together”.

At the start of the protest, there was played the national anthem and there were calls such as “Albanian language, our language”, “We want official Albanian” and “How good it would be to be Albanian!”. The protesters also played the song “I Got Words” by Shkurte Fejza.

The students emphasized that their protest has no political character and requested that it should not be used for party purposes.

They emphasized the necessity of guaranteeing the Albanian language its rightful place in academic processes in North Macedonia.

A student from North Macedonia told the protesters that their demand is related to equality and dignity.

“We are not asking for privileges, but equality and respect for our language. The Albanian language is our identity and the legacy of generations,” he said.

Students from Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia participated in the protest. /gj.m/r.e/p.s./

“As Albanian becomes a language of the home rather than education for generations abroad, diaspora language maintenance has shifted from natural transmission to a critical need for structured educational intervention”, emphasized Kumbaro.

Minister Kumbaro stated that, “While the first generation naturally keeps our language alive, the second requires support, and the third faces total loss without deliberate action. We must stop treating the diaspora merely as a cultural curiosity and recognize it as an educational imperative requiring structured, long-term policy. This demands a National Agency for the Albanian Language—not merely to change our terminology, but to fundamentally shift our pedagogical approach”.

The minister also explained the vision on which this agency will lay its foundations, underlining that this challenge is directly related to our vision for Albania 2030.

Kumbaro particularly praised the efforts of teachers and diaspora communities for a unified approach to the Albanian language. /k.s/a.f/p.s./

Speaking about the request of the students in North Macedonia to take the exam in the Albanian language, Minister Hoxha appreciated this as a legitimate right guaranteed by the Constitution.

“This right should not be questioned, nor limited, nor become an obstacle in practice. This issue should be addressed institutionally, through dialogue and in accordance with the legislation of that country and the standards of the European Union. To advance their EU bids, Albania and North Macedonia must speed up legal and political alignment with European standards. North Macedonia and Albania are treated as a single block; the disparity in their current negotiation pace does not change our position. Their aim is also to become a member of the European Union”, emphasized Hoxha.

Hoxha said that it is important that these matters are managed with responsible, non-political oversight to foster regional stability, coexistence, and European integration.

In conclusion, Hoxha reiterated that Albania remains a partner committed to peace, stability and strengthening good neighborly relations in the region. /e.i/j.p/p.s./

During the visit, Spiropali emphasized that Skopje is a city where Albanian history lingers with its deep and lasting traces. And she mentioned prominent figures of the nation such as Saint Teresa, Pjetër Bogdani and Hasan Prishtina, who represent the foundations on which the identity, dignity and national vision of Albanians is built.

She praised the role of the Institute as a point of reference not only for Albanians in North Macedonia, but for the entire Albanian space, underlining the importance of scientific studies on the Albanian language, cultural heritage and historical memory, which directly contribute to strengthening collective consciousness.

In her speech, Spiropali also emphasized that the Albanian language, as the official language of North Macedonia, must be protected and continuously cultivated, both in legal terms and in everyday practice.

She highlighted the significance of its transmission from generation to generation, with love and responsibility, as a common asset of the country’s multiethnic mosaic.

The minister stated that the Albanian language unites us as a voice of history and root of identity and that each letter holds memory anchor, light and sacrifice that still lives. /gj.m/a.f/p.s./

Prime Minister Edi Rama shared in social media the message of Ina Majko, the first representative of this community in the government, who also holds the position of Deputy Minister of Health and Social Welfare.

Majko underlined in her message that, “International Romani Language Day is an occasion to remember that our language is not just words. It means memory, roots and history”.

Majko said that, “Over 10 thousand Roma people in Albania speak Romani language, a language that has kept our history alive, unwritten in books, but preserved in the hearts of our people”.

“Today, I invite you to honor this history and not let it remain silent. From November 5 to April 5, send your family history to oprerroma5@gmail.com. A memory, a story, a piece of pride because every small story is part of a big story,” concluded Majko.

UNESCO set World Romani Language Day in 2015 to promote the preservation of the Romani language and culture, to improve the well-being of the Romani people and to recognize the significance of all languages, whose diversity is a source of strength for all societies. /e.i/j.p/p.s./

This bilingual program, the first of its kind, will be held by the New York City Department of Education and will begin in the 2025/2026 school year.

Political Director of the Socialist Party for the Diaspora Taulant Balla gave the news. Through a post in the Facebook, Balla said that this is a historic step for the preservation of the Albanian language and culture in the Diaspora.

He extended special thanks to Drita Gjongecaj – deputy school principal, member of the Diaspora Coordinating Council and founder of the “Children of the Eagle” organization – for her key contribution to the materialization of this project.

The program will be conducted five days a week, in Albanian and English, by NYCDOE certified teachers and will be launched in Bronx, New York.

This is an important achievement for the Albanian community in the US and a concrete example of how the Diaspora can build lasting cultural and educational bridges between generations. The Albanian language and its teaching and heritage everywhere among Albanians living around the world is one of the most important platforms of the Albanian government, with the “Teachers for the Diaspora” program, which started in Greece, and thanks to which Albanian teachers are paid by Tirana and teach their native language to children born in Greece to Albanian families. /a.f/p.s./

Minister of Education and Sports Ogerta Manastirliu was present at the launch of the competition from the “Red” school in Tirana, emphasizing the significance of this initiative for preservation and promotion of the Albanian language.

“The National Albanian Language Competition is now being held for the third consecutive year in 9-grade schools and there are 700 schools throughout Albania that are part of the organization of this great national competition. We expect more than 11,000 students to engage in this competition on what we hold most dear, the Albanian language, our great wealth, our national identity, which connects and unites us,” said Manastirliu.

This year’s theme “Albanian Language and Civic Communication in the Digital Age” reflects the new challenges that digital communication brings to the preservation and development of our national language.

“The Albanian language is not simply a means of communication, it is our greatest asset, so we must protect it, inherit it, speak it beautifully”, added Minister Manastirliu.

The competition will include various elements starting from poems, quick questions, innovative projects, showing how much knowledge students have about the Albanian language.

After this first phase, the teams will compete at the regional level to select the 20 best teams that will go to the semi-final phase, which will be broadcast live on the public Albanian Radio-Television (RTSH).

The winners of the competition will be announced at grand finale following their evaluation for their in-depth knowledge of the Albanian language./k.s/j.p/p.s./

The representatives of the Albanian community living in different countries of the world, who have preserved their mother tongue from one generation to the other, while respecting linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism, responded to the message of the Head of State.

Thus, a group of Albanian children in the Diaspora recited verses from the poem: “To the Albanian Language” by Mitrush Kuteli, one of the Albanian activists who, in addition to contributing to the country’s economic field, collected folk tales and promoted the language through translations into Albanian and also dedicated himself to the publication and distribution of Albanian books for the emigrants.

President has in focus preservation of the mother tongue and its transmission to children from Albanian families living abroad. He also encouraged opening of as many Albanian schools as possible in Albanian communities around the world through voluntary and institutional initiatives.

The Head of State considered such an effort vital for preservation of the Albanian language as one of the fundamental elements of our national identity.

“The Albanian language is the fundamental feature of our national identity, which must unite us in the effort to preserve, inherit and enrich it”, wrote the Head of State.

The 25th anniversary of International Mother Language Day celebrates a quarter-century of efforts to preserve linguistic diversity and promote mother tongues. /r.e/p.s./

Prime Minister Edi Rama shared today in the social media a summary of some of the main activities organized during last year.

Rama appreciated that, “In the Year of the Albanian Language, we set new goals for the preservation and promotion of our language, as part of the national identity”.

“This special year gave us the opportunity to reflect on the value of the language, as a common asset that unites us as a people, wherever we are and to further develop our plans for supporting learning of the Albanian in the Diaspora”, said the prime minister.

Meanwhile, the year 2024 was characterized by a series of initiatives aimed at protection and preservation of the Albanian language.

One of them was the national competition of the Albanian Language, in which over 11 thousand 9th grade students from all over Albania participated.

Also, in context of modernization of the Albanian language curricula, 4,600 Albanian language teachers joined the national training program. During 2024, there was also compiled the joint book “Albanian Language and Albanian Culture”. /m.m/j.p/p.s./