Kukes and Youth in Free Initiative

Lorena Cengu and Klodjan Braha, Albania

Our famous boza, flia, potatoes, our traditional folk dance…
2000 years of history, and the only city in the world with a candidature for the Nobel Peace Prize. Motivation? Hosting over 450.000 Albanians from Kosovo during the 99′ exodus. Yes, we are the city of hospitality and generosity!

In 2010, Kukes residents announced the happiest people in Albania (according to data from USAID polls). This surface, 2373 km2, northeast of Albania. Social problems adorn us, as long as we try to solve them, it’s something good… Problems with gender equality, needs for better conditions through educational institutions, Radio and TV, infrastructure, etc… But, these are things what are going to change when everybody play his own role, in the same time. (!)

What about YFI? I’m not going to talk about every activity of YFI, because, a large part of their sound familiar to you, our organization is sister of your organizations. Lets share with you this activity, and lets start with this “autojoke”: London is the city of people from Kukes. All Albanians say that. It’s not so difficult to understand why it was called autojoke. So, we are those who emigrate, we are the poorest county (in Albania). Many villages do not have the previous vitality. If you are young and a boy and you didn’t have opportunities to pursue your studies, in one way or another, you trick yourself into believing that life will be better abroad. If you are a girl and you don’t have the opportunities to pursue your studies, probably you just marry (someone in London from Albania)… Wonderful landscape, but abandoned villages. These two factors, together, made YFI to start the initiative:

# Lets populate an abandoned village for a day

It is an initiative that has increased support. We have been in Koretnik, Pashtrik, Sasat, Shishtavec. We are planning for other visits.Top Channel (one of the most watched TV instead) support this initiative.

Are you coming with us? Don’t wait for invites. You have your place, for sure. And don’t forget, our nature and those families who live there currently, have so much to talk about…
Join us!