EULEX organised a workshop for  50 female Corrections Officers within the Kosovo Correctional Services (KCS) to discuss about their career development opportunities and identify barriers faced among women in KCS.

The workshop aimed to explore the environment within the KCS to gain a greater understanding of the reasons for the low representation of women in decision making positions. The event also aimed to assess the educational and professional background of KCS officers and identify possible further training needs.

Alina Matache, project manager and Special Assistant to Head of Strengthening Division of EULEX said "The goal is to have a gender assessment of the KCS, which means to understand what are the challenges faced for female officers to access promotion. As part of this workshop we will include both an institutional and individual assessments in order to gather a greater understanding of the barriers faced".

The workshop is part of a follow up from a survey previous done by EULEX Correctional Unit with the female staff within the Kosovo Correctional Services. According to the survey results, the women in KCS have limited opportunities for career development and access to trainings.

Tefta Bytyqi, KCS Head of the Sector for treatment of inmates, said “I am happy that we are continuing our cooperation with EULEX in promoting gender equality and empower female corrections officers. This workshop encourages and motivates female officers to strive for managerial position in KCS”.  Additionally the Director of KCS Nehat Thaci, in his opening remarks, expressed his full commitment to improve the career advancement opportunities of the female officers in the correctional services.

During the training, the female corrections officers were made aware of policy framework, legal instruments and individual assessment of the educational and work experience needs in their career.

One of the participants said, “This occasion was very beneficial and we appreciate this opportunity to meet and discuss our common experiences. It motivates and encourages us as women to raise our voice and work harder for our advancement”.

A report from the workshop will be presented to the senior management of the KCS on the ratio of women and men in decision making positions and the challenges that women face with access to higher positions.