Madam Chair,

Honorable Secretary General,

Dear Colleagues,

I would like to congratulate Helen Clark, and her team, not only for bringing us together to celebrate the 50^thanniversary of UNDP, but particularly, for her engagement and leadership in adopting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development last September.

Eradicating poverty and fostering development is UNDP’s core mission and it remains a cornerstone of current global efforts, even after half a century. Ending violence and building peace means accepting and respecting each-other, establishing inclusive development, democratic governance, rule of law, respecting and promoting human rights, co-existence and cooperation.

When we consider development models, it appears that the traditional dichotomy between conflict and stable countries is a model of the past. It does not always reflect what is at the root of a conflict nor the dynamics of conflict resolution nowadays.

The first point I’d like to make is that attention to regional conflicts may well be the key to forestalling their expansion.

Therefore every development agenda should integrate instruments that address what keeps old contradictions alive and counter what feeds new ones.

The Western Balkans used to be the typical conflict region two decades ago. The region is now engaged in processes of cooperation and integration, demonstrating readiness to address bilateral disputes, in a spirit of good neighbourliness.

It is important to remind that this process is not irreversible: it is the EU accession perspective that keeps us going, that pushes use closer together, that demands that we get more interconnected.

In our corner of Europe, we face the same challenges, so our response needs to be in concert too. Where threats, like terrorism and violent extremism, know no borders, neither can our action to counter them, whether through hard or soft measures.

In Albania, we have recently adopted a National Strategy to Counter Violent Extremism. The success of its implementation will depend much on the involvement of all segments of our society: family, women, youth and religious leaders. But it is also contingent on how successful our neighbours are in CVE. And that is why we are establishing a Regional CVE Center.

The young are our future, which is why, for the first time in the recent history of the Western Balkans, we have established a Regional Youth Cooperation Office, with its seat in Tirana and based on the post-World War II Franco-German model.

We want the future of our regional cooperation to be based on acceptance and tolerance, not on xenophobia or hate. In that vein, this simple effort may well prove a powerful instrument for meeting the targets of Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth, Peace and Security.

My second point relates to Albania’s partnership with the UNDP. In mid-2014, we embarked on a pilot project on Goal 16: “Peace, justice and strong institutions”. We are committed to realise this goal, because we strongly believe that there is neither development, nor sustainability without peace, there is no peace without justice, and there is no justice without strong institutions.

This pilot project has national and global dimensions.

At the national level, it will focus, primarily, on innovative approaches to implement and monitor good governance regarding accountability, transparency, participation and predictability. Sustainable development for Albania means reinforcing the rule of law, strengthening our values of democracy, deepening our broad-based social harmony.

At the global level, the project will serve the Government of Albania to share its experiences with other countries, informing on the progress of the Sustainable Development Goals in the area of “rule of law, effective and capable institutions”. We look forward to continuing our excellent cooperation with UNDP on this.

Last September, the UN Sustainable Development Summit successfully crowned the most ambitious effort ever undertaken.

The importance of this Summit’s work was described in these words by Pope Francis: “the common home of all men and women must continue to rise on the foundations of a right understanding of universal fraternity and respect for the sacredness of every human life”

Agenda 2030 translates accountability and willingness to concrete results. It is our epochal commitment to not leave anyone behind, not only those who can and know, but all those in need.

Sustainable development in Albania is translated in many respects, but the main object and core of our success will be determined by the reform in the field of justice, the rule of law in the economy and environmental protection, as necessary steps to establish a competitive economy and a fair and cohesive society.

For us, the successful implementation of the Sustainable Development Agenda means that Albania will be a consolidated country of the European Union; a place that will be able to contribute even more to regional security and beyond.

Thank you!