Ambassador of the Kingdom of The Netherlands visits Prespa

Last week Dutch Ambassador Reinout Vos and his wife Corien Vos, paid a two-day visit to the Prespa region with executive director of PONT, Mirjam de Koning.

The visit started with a meeting with Une, Gruaja in Pogradec. The Ambassador met their dedicated and diverse team. For over twenty years, Une, Gruaja, has been empowering women in and around Pogradec. As a small organization with a big network of volunteers and experts, Une, Gruaja has been able to solidify their position in the community. The staff provided insight into their work in promoting gender equality and battling gender-based violence, as well as their role in taking care of their environment. Through Local Action Groups, they have aided nature preservation while empowering women to be more organized and invested in the region.

Before sundown, the trip continued to the Little Prespa Lake. While a period of much rainfall preceded this visit, it was clearly visible how the lake is shrinking.

The next day started with a beautiful drive through the mountains to the village of Pustec. The program was coordinated by PPNEA (Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania), the oldest environmental organization in Albania. In 2020, PPNEA opened their local office in nearby Goricë e Vogël and continues to increase their local and transboundary work in the Prespa region. In Pustec, the Ambassador was met with a warm welcome from the mayor, representatives of PPNEA and local women tending to the church.

The day started with an exploration of the area through a boat trip to the historical Kisha Shën Mëria church on Maligrad Island. This showed the connectedness between the rich culture and biodiversity surrounding the lake. Afterward, the group attended a lesson on the biodiversity of Prespa Lake in the joint primary and secondary schools, Mitre Kolefski and Trajan Gjorgijovski. Their class of high school students participated in an education session of PPNEA’s Dalmatian Pelican Educational Package. Educated on the difference between the Dalmatian Pelican and the Pink Pelican, some students joined the installation of a stork platform in the nearby village of Kallamas. It was great to see the care with which spaces are created to welcome storks in the region and to see local interest increasing.

The visit was wrapped up by a visit to PPNEA’s local office, and a joint lunch during which an animated conversation about transboundary cooperation through PrespaNet and the value of the preservation of biodiversity internationally took place.