102 young women and men from Lezha and surrounded areas graduated in a special ceremony after successfully completing the training courses on culinary, bartender and waiter, HACCP, ice-cream and pizzeria provided by AA Kurse Formimi Hotelerie with the support of the Swiss Government through RisiAlbania project.  Almost all of them received job offers from businesses working in the tourism sector.

Nard Luli, as known as the owner of Poseidon fish restaurant in Tale, Lezhe was among the invitees at the ceremony and proudly told us that 9 people, existing and recently recruited staff, completed the training on bartending, restaurant, culinary and HACCP courses.

“I own a fish restaurant and in the beginning it was extremely difficult to find skilled employees. Since I got in contact with Arber from AA Kurse Formimi Hotelerie, I trained all my staff and employed new ones graduated from Arber this season.  I have now completed my personnel” – said Luli.

Elton, Elidona, Marinela and Brunilda are some of the young graduates who found a job right after the completion of the training. They are excited about their first job in bars and restaurants in Lezha beach. “I love my job, – says the new waitress Elidona. I like interacting with people and I think this job suits me perfectly! – added Elidona while posing with the training certificate.

Etleva Jaku, head of Service Sector at the regional directorate of Employment in Lezha praised Arber’s work especially with young people. “We have a long and strong partnership with Arber. We refer unemployed people registered in our offices to his training centre and cooperate with him to find financial mechanism for funding the courses especially for people coming from disadvantaged groups. Thanks to Arber’s commitment and influence in the business community in the region most of the people trained get employed” –stressed Jaku.

“It is rewarding for us to see that young people are not only trained with the necessary skills required by the tourism sector in this area but also employed! We would like to see that positive results, like the amazing work of AA Kurse Formimi Hotelerie in Lezha, and especially Arber’s work could be replicated all over Albania! – said Edlira Muedini, RisiAlbania Project Manager during the certificate awarding ceremony.

AA Kurse Formimi Hotelerie is one of the training providers that Risi is supporting to diversify the training offer and respond to the growing demand for skilled young people in tourism sector in Lezha by introducing new courses and improve existing courses with new curricula in culinary, bar and restaurant, ice-cream, pizzeria and HACCP which are in high demand from the market, thanks to also partnering with HAT. 

Arber Avdija, a passionate cook by profession, is helping not only young people to gain skilled and get employed, but also the private businesses operating in tourism sector in Lezha to find skilled employees, perform better and grow.