Queen’s Academics Host Prime Minister of Kosovo for Collaborative Discussions

The Centre for Shared Education at Queen’s has been working for almost a decade to support the development of initiatives in Kosovo based on the Northern Ireland Shared Education model, working with colleagues from across different sectors in both jurisdictions, including academics, policy-makers, school leaders, politicians and NGOs. 

The Prime Minister visited a shared education partnership at Nettlefield and St Matthew’s primary schools located at an interface in Belfast, meeting with the school children, teachers, and school principals to talk about their experiences and the advantages of being in a shared education partnership. 

Speaking during the visit to Northern Ireland, Prime Minister Kurti commented:

“I’ve thought a lot about Northern Ireland and inevitably how the story weaves with that of Kosovo. I believe the overarching theme is the power of hope as a catalyst for transformation. 

“It’s truly striking to consider that both here and in Kosovo, conflict once dominated every aspect of daily life. So change is possible, and peace is possible too.” 

Professor Joanne Hughes, Director of the Centre for Shared Education at Queen’s said:

“The Centre for Shared Education at Queen’s has a long history of working with colleagues in Kosovo to support the development of an adapted shared education model there. We were delighted to meet Prime Minister Albin Kurti and his team, and to share with them the shared education journey in Northern Ireland. We were especially pleased that that our meeting took place at the Nettlefield/ St Matthew’s site, so the Prime Minister could see first-hand the partnership that has developed between schools located on one of the most divided interfaces in Belfast.” 

Dr Edona Maloku, former Deputy Minister of Education in Kosovo, currently holds a Fellowship at the Centre for Shared Education at Queen’s, funded by the Social Change Initiative. Dr Maloku remarked:

“I was very proud to have the Prime Minister of Kosovo and our Kosovo team visit Northern Ireland to see up close the work that is being done here in peace-building.

“As former Deputy Minister of Education in Prime Minister Kurti’s government and a current scholarly fellow of the Centre for Shared Education at Queen’s, I am particularly vested in strengthening the partnerships between our two contexts so that a model of Shared Education is locally tailored and piloted in Kosovo. It is an initiative we have been working on for a while now with our Northern Ireland collaborators, so getting the Kosovo government team to talk to the stakeholders and see the partnering schools in practice was a big milestone in this direction. There is much to learn and exchange between our two countries.” 

The Prime Minister later delivered a public lecture followed by a discussion at Queen’s on the topic of ‘State-building in Kosovo: Challenges and Opportunities.’ The event was hosted by Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Stuart Elborn and Director of the Centre for Shared Education at Queen’s, Professor Joanne Hughes.  

The lecture was attended by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harris; His Excellency Mr Ilir Kapiti, Ambassador of the Republic of Kosovo to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; and former British Ambassador to Kosovo, Nicholas Abbott.  

The Centre for Shared Education at Queen’s was honoured with a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for the University’s work on Shared Education in 2019.