Anila Basha, member of the Executive Committee of the AFL, at the same time the chairperson of the girls' football commission in Albania, was present at the Summit with the theme "Building a diverse future for sports".
Anila Basha promoted girls' football in our country from there, saying:
"We know that it is not easy to go against the current or inherited habits. But the Albanian Football Federation, with the help of UEFA and FIFA, approved last November the "Rising Stars" strategy for girls' football, which is actually part of the national strategy "Football for the Nation 2022 - 2025".
We have identified the terrain and the problems, while we are developing our sports policies in several directions: firstly, the extension to a broad base of age and children's football in many primary schools in the country.
Projects like "Playmakers", "UEFA championship for Girls", "Fifa Football4School" or "TDS" are a great support for the expansion of football among children and finding talents", said the EC member.
"Regarding national football, the AFL provides financial support and creates the right premises for the regular organization of competitions. As for the Albanian national team, it competes in all international competitions of all levels and the AFL creates the conditions and support for the best possible performance of our girls' teams", said Anila Basha in front of those present at the Summit.
Further, the focus of the discussion was directed towards the gender policies that the ALF follows in Albania, for which Basha stated that work is being done in several directions.
"We work in three directions in the policies of equality and diversity in football, starting from our organization. The organizational structure of the ALF consists of 120 employees, 40 of whom are women, who work in different departments. At the managerial level, half of the heads of departments in the ALF are women. The second direction is the empowerment of girls' football, which has grown in all aspects. Even in Albania we have an amateur championship for girls aged 11-15. The third direction for gender policies pursued by us focuses on education as an important tool to achieve our goal. We have added training courses, encouraging women and girls to take leadership roles in different sectors such as: coaches, referees or even technical directors. Some courses are free, while for courses like UEFA Pro, for all the girls who apply, there are differentiated prices to encourage them".
In the end, she focused on the importance of the cooperation of the Federation with the structures of FIFA and UEFA for the implementation of these policies.
"We know it is difficult but not impossible. The AFL does everything it takes to improve the sports infrastructure and create the conditions for girls and women who embrace the sport of football to feel in a calm, comfortable and cooperative environment. In many projects, of course, the help of international organizations such as FIFA and UEFA is required, without whose support, all these reforms would not have the expected results", - stressed the member of the Executive Committee, Anila Basha to the audience.
Participants in this Summit were many personalities from the world of girls' football, including Laura McAllister, member of the UEFA Executive Committee, Lise Klaveness, president of the Norwegian Football Association, as well as representatives from various federations, the most popular clubs European and international organizations.
