A final meeting of the national consultation with teachers and parents was held today in the capital, attended by Prime Minister Rama. During the meeting, the Minister of Education and Sports, Ogerta Manastirliu, presented the New Action Plan aimed at strengthening school safety mechanisms and enhancing the relationship between schools, students, and parents.

The new plan reflects the ideas and feedback gathered through a series of meetings and public consultations with parents and all stakeholders in the education system. This consultation tour began at the Sami Frashëri High School in Tirana and extended across the entire country.

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Prime Minister Edi Rama:

“Good morning, everyone, and thank you for being here this morning, even during a holiday, as representatives of parent councils, school leaders, teachers, and institutional representatives. This meeting brings together the entire consultation process carried out across Albania, from which the new action plan for strengthening school safety mechanisms has emerged. Safety here is understood as a comprehensive set of elements, not merely physical security.

A tragedy served as the catalyst for mobilizing an entire society, as well as school and parent communities across the country. On the other hand, it also triggered the same destructive internal force within society, represented and embodied in the Albanian Parliament and the media.

As is always the case, there are different approaches to a given event. As always, in such cases, there is farce, but also a sense of responsibility. And, as always, in our country, even in this case, the farce was not absent, with all its destructive power that, in reality, re-kills the dead, re-injures the injured, and prevents reflection and learning from taking place in a comprehensive and inclusive way. I emphasize this because it is crucial to understand that institutions, the government, and the state are structures that are constantly evolving, improving, and self-correcting.

Even the process of governance is, in itself, a process of continuous development, improvement, and self-correction. There is never, in any country, at any stage of development, a state, an institutional system, or a government that has nothing left to correct, nothing to improve, nothing to develop, and where everything functions like a perfectly working clock. Similarly, in such cases, there can never be a single responsibility, but rather a collective responsibility. What has emerged most clearly in this entire process, in which I have had the opportunity to participate in some of the consultations, is that, in experiencing, understanding, and reflecting on an event—even on a tragedy like this—there are two Albanians.

There is one Albania in Parliament and in the media, and there is another Albania in the community, where people who are directly affected—such as parents, because their children are in schools, or teachers, who are part of a system that should be able to prevent such events—reflect and discuss in an entirely different way. And what we have encouraged in this consultation process is a discussion about TikTok, but, in fact, what I have personally heard from many parents is that while TikTok is one issue, the real question is: what will be done about all this violence, all this mass diseducation, and the flood of media content that goes completely in the opposite direction of what we aim to achieve and want for our children?

I say all of this to make one thing very clear: not all tragic events can be prevented or avoided. What distinguishes the way these events are approached—whether at the community level, societal level, institutional level, or governmental level—is how we respond to them. Does the event become a powerful catalyst for improving that area of social activity, or does it serve as an excuse for society to engage in a blame game? These are the two paths that divide us.

Today, I feel relieved because, in a short period of time, after a broad and inclusive discussion with all the key stakeholders involved in this critical area of education and child safety, we now have a concrete outcome: a specific action plan with clear measures. And we are confident that by implementing this plan, we will have an even better and safer educational system. This is our duty.

Having said that, I want to publicly address those who, once again, sought to exploit the tragedy of a family and the loss of a life by pointing fingers, making baseless accusations, and demanding personal responsibility from the Minister of Education. The Minister has not only my support, but I am also convinced that, just as she played an undeniable role in transforming our healthcare system, she will play a similarly vital role in transforming our education system, making it even better, and for that, we will be grateful.

There’s a lot of talk about schools, teachers, and all the various elements involved. But if we take a moment to look back, we realize that these discussions would have been impossible not long ago. Just ten years ago—not fifty—the state of our schools was such that everyone in the teaching profession remembers it vividly.

Teachers had no protection; they could be moved from one school to another, from one job to another, or even pushed out of the profession entirely with no warning. Recruitment was entirely arbitrary. In fact, this country once had 4,500 teachers being paid to teach subjects they were not qualified in—music teachers teaching physical education, chemistry teachers teaching arithmetic, and math teachers teaching music.

This was the reality. Teachers were treated with such disregard that they were often rounded up and sent like herds of sheep to political rallies.

What more could be expected of teachers when their positions were so insecure? And yet, despite everything, they persevered, driven by their own passion and dedication.

Do we want to talk about salaries? What were teachers earning back then? Do we want to talk about school gyms? At the time, you could count the number of schools with gyms across all of Albania on your fingers.

Do we want to talk about how, when we came into office, physical education was completely removed from the curriculum—a legacy of the post-communist transition? I heard the lady earlier raise some valid points, but let me remind you: when we decided to reinstate physical education, we couldn’t even find enough qualified physical education teachers to fill the roles.

None of this is history from the National Liberation War; it’s all part of our recent past. Those of you with 15-16-year-old children today remember it very well. And more importantly, do you want to talk about textbooks? About the infamous altertext, when a number of publishing houses were involved in producing textbooks, and those textbooks became a massive marketplace?

Today, we have an education system that still needs a lot of work, and that’s undeniable. But, just like with any system, anyone who is making an objective assessment must not forget that when we compare where we are today to where we started, it’s like night and day. This is the reality. And today, I am absolutely confident that this action plan is not a list of wishes—it’s a plan based on well-researched possibilities. It’s grounded in the belief that these opportunities will be realized. Everything you saw here will be implemented step by step, just like the broader transformation program for schools, which has already brought smart labs to the classrooms for first graders and elementary school students. This is about creating an entirely new digital education system across the country. In the near future, all schools will have smart labs, because these are funded programs that are now in the process of being rolled out.

Likewise, all schools will be integrated into a digital monitoring system, through the program that the Minister described. But this is not just a wish for the future—it’s a program we’ve been working on for a year. In the coming weeks, we will sign the agreement and begin its implementation. With this system, every parent will have the opportunity to visit the school and say, ‘I want to see how my child is doing in class,’ and they will be able to watch a video of their child in class. If any issue arises, the school administration will have the tools to address it directly, confront the teacher, the student, and the parents, and say, ‘This is how it happened, and this is who said what.

Bullying is not an issue that we only discovered after this tragedy. We already have an institution that handles complaints on this matter, and these complaints are addressed. However, naturally, in the wake of this tragedy, and more importantly, people are now far more aware of the risks. There is a greater awareness of the need for collaboration.

The digital journal system, which will be enhanced with a component for communication between schools and parents, is another critical tool. Parents will no longer just receive information on absences and grades, but will also get continuous updates on their child’s behavior and any specific concerns related to their well-being. This will strengthen the interaction between schools and families. But let’s be very clear about one thing: no school, no state, no government, no ministry can replace the family or the role of the parent.

Similarly, if a teacher does not have the parent as an ally, they have very little leverage. On the other hand, if teachers, parents, and the institutions that support them don’t come together today to change the approach to this relationship, and make sure they’re doing everything necessary to safeguard the psychological development of our children, we will lose an entire generation.

It’s much stronger, far more influential, and far more enticing to a child when the ‘neighborhood troublemaker’ they follow on TikTok is more appealing than the values we want to instill at home. And we fear that when our children leave the house, that’s the influence they’ll connect with.

We will block TikTok for one year. Keep in mind that, in the meantime, we’ve already conducted all the necessary technological research. Starting from the beginning of next year, it will take us about 6 to 8 weeks to implement this, and within one year, we will completely block TikTok in the Republic of Albania. TikTok will no longer be accessible here!

During that year, we will monitor how other countries respond, what new technological restrictions or filters emerge, and how TikTok itself will react. TikTok is a company rooted in China, and if you compare TikTok in China to TikTok outside China, you’ll see two completely different platforms.

What’s important to note is that we’re extending our efforts for children beyond just this issue. Every ministry and institution in the Republic of Albania will be required to have its own program for children, regardless of the area of focus. This is not just about one issue; it’s about a broader strategy for our youth.

Additionally, we are developing a program at the Pediatric Hospital to bring education to children who are hospitalized. This will allow children to continue their schooling, with a simplified curriculum suited to their needs. It’s an excellent model we’ve adopted from Israel, and we’re working together with our Israeli partners to implement it.

Additionally, we are in the process of establishing the Institute for Children in Conflict with the Law, a European model for the new century, a school of re-education, if we can call it that, for all those children who have committed offenses. If they were not minors, they would be in prison, but since they are minors, we cannot send them to prison, because there they would become even more problematic than when they entered. This institute is a project, it’s funded, and soon we will launch the initial plan for it.

Similarly, the school farm program that we’ve started should evolve into a full program of the Ministry of Agriculture, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, and it will be funded by the government. It’s not just about having a garden where we go to plant things. This will be a comprehensive program, including production and selling, where children will understand that tomatoes don’t grow on TikTok, that work is not done on TikTok, and that relationships are not those of TikTok, but those of real life.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Defense will have a dedicated program for children, and the State Police will also have a dedicated program for children, going beyond just security officers. The Ministry of the Interior, together with the State Police, is working to ensure that we connect children with real life. It’s crucial that all the adults in this society, in every position they hold, are involved in bringing real life before the eyes of our children.

For years now, no construction permit for a school in any municipality is granted unless the project includes a gymnasium. More recently, we introduced another rule for those building resorts, apartment complexes, or similar developments: no resort will receive approval unless it includes a dedicated space for children. Additionally, we will revise the housing tax to incorporate, without increasing it, a component specifically aimed at supporting children.

This means that every construction project in Tirana and across Albania must contribute funds toward building a kindergarten, school, or daycare center.

In closing my typically brief speech, I want to stress once again that the fact this entire process was triggered by a tragedy says a great deal about our sense of awareness and responsibility.

This is how the European Union, which we aim to join—and will undoubtedly become a part of within this decade—has developed. And this is how Albania is developing and will continue to develop.

The Chair of the Tirana Parents’ Council highlighted that much more remains to be done. This is undeniable. However, this action plan is not a rigid, five-year plan like those of the past; it’s a flexible, open plan where every new idea is welcome. I told the Minister that, beyond all measurable outcomes, the most valuable aspect of this process has been the 1,300 meetings and discussions.

The establishment of an institutional bridge between the Ministry and the Parents’ Councils, along with the creation of a communication and dialogue system that generates recommendations, critiques, observations, and suggestions, is the most significant achievement. We are committed to doing everything necessary to strengthen this framework.

Thank you very much!