Our Team in Albania

Alma JANI is the Head of Office of the IOM Mission in Albania, since 2014. With over 30 years of professional experience, she brings strong and dynamic leadership skills and strategic management experience. She has extensive experience and knowledge in migration issues and IOM policies, programmes and operations. Ms Jani joint IOM back in 2001 and has served with the organization in various capacities, including Resource Management Officer during 2005 - 2020 and Chief Accountant from 2001 to 2005. Prior to joining IOM, during 1999-2001, Ms. Jani has served in leadership and management roles in other international organizations. From 1993-1999, she gained considerable experience in the public and private sector. In fulfilling her role, she builds upon a combination of international experience and knowledge of Albania, which has played a vital role in development and growth of the mission and in leading IOM Albania’s programs into the future. Alma’s 23 years of professional experience with IOM also includes short term assignments with IOM missions in Montenegro, Kosovo, Iraq, Cyprus, Libya, and Washington D.C. Her achievements are built on a broad professional and academic background which includes an Executive Master’s in Business Administration, Diploma in International Relations and Diplomacy, University Degree in Finance, and various professional trainings. During the period Sept 2020 – March 2021, Alma successfully completed the IOM-Harvard course on Strategic Thinking and Management. In her free time, Alma enjoys spending time with her family, she likes singing, swimming, interior design and she loves to travel and explore new places. Alma is dual citizen of Albania and the USA. She is married and has a son and a daughter.

Since 2016, Dr. Gazmend Bejtja, a medical doctor, specialized in Infectious Diseases, with advanced degrees in Public Health, has served as a Public Health Officer at the WHO Country Office in Albania, where he currently acts as Officer in Charge.

He has held key roles in public health, starting with his work during the Kosovo conflict. As a researcher at Albania’s National Institute of Public Health, he focused on epidemiology, sexual and reproductive health and health services mapping. As a public administration official, Dr Bejtja has contributed to various initiatives related to Public Health and Primary Health Care policy development, implementation, and monitoring. In his tenure as General Director of Health Policies at the Albanian MoH, he has also represented the member state in WHO Executive Board (2013-2016). He plays an active role following-up with national authorities on WHO governing bodies' resolutions, aiming at strengthening the capacity of the Member State to contribute to regional and global health priorities and WHO’s work.

Lorena is an accomplished professional with extensive government and UN experience in Albania. She held various positions, including as Chief of Staff of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Albania where she collaborated closely with relevant government agencies, organizations, research institutions, and the private sector.
Lorena holds a Master’s Degree in International Relations from the University of Bologna in Italy. She is a native Albanian and speaks fluently English, Italian, as well as knows French.

Manuela Bello, UNFPA Albania Head of Office started her work with UNFPA in March 1994 as Deputy Director of UNFPA Maternal and Child Health Programme and in 1997 she became National Programme Officer of UNFPA Country Programme. Manuela holds a bachelor degree in General Medicine from the Tirana Faculty of Medicine, a diploma on Intensive Care and Anaesthesiologist and a Master Degree on Gender and Development from Tirana Faculty of Social Sciences. Working for more than 20 years with UNFPA, Manuela brings high professionalism, commitment and dedication to UNFPA programmes and has proven to be a good manager of the UNFPA CO office, by acting for more than 15 years as Assistant Representative and member of the UN Country Team in Albania.

Mr. Ribotta joined UN Women Albania in September 2019. Prior to this assignment, he was adviser to the Director of the UN System Coordination Division in New York. In his capacity, he has driven UN Women’s efforts to mainstream gender in the work of the UN Development System at global, regional and country levels. Before joining UN Women, Mr. Ribotta led the UN Coherence learning team at the UN System Staff College, providing training and facilitation services to UN Country Teams on leadership and strategic planning. Prior to that, he served with UNDP Egypt as Head of the UN Resident Coordinator Office. Mr. Ribotta has a master’s degree in law obtained at the University of Rome, La Sapienza.

Mr. Murat Sahin joined as UNICEF Representative in Albania on 3 January 2024. Mr. Sahin has been leading UNICEF’s humanitarian response and recovery work in Ukraine since 2021. Prior to that, Mr. Sahin has led UNICEF programmes as Head of office in Kosovo (2018-2021), Deputy Representative in DPR Korea (2016-2018). Mr. Sahin provided strategic direction in the planning, design, formulation and implementation of the Country Programme and its activities in line with national development priorities and the UN Development Assistance Framework.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Sahin served the organization as adviser and specialist responsible for the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene and Education programmes at UNICEF Headquarters in New York (2009-2016) and multiple duty stations including the DPRK (2005-2009), Tajikistan (2001-2005) and Turkey (1999-2001) and has been with the organization since 1999.

Mr. Sahin has post graduate degree in business research methods from Edinburg Business School, Master’s degree in Business administration from Bilgi University in Istanbul and civil engineering degree from Middle East Technical University in Ankara.

Mr. Sahin is a Turkish national. He is joined in Albania by his partner, Ms. Nilgun Sahin from Turkey.

Sabine has worked for the United Nations since 2004. In 2008 she joined the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS).
She worked across several duty stations in different continents like Africa, Asia in countries like Chad, Sao Tome e Principe, Kenya, Somalia, Myanmar, and more recently in Europe, at the UNOPS HQ in Copenhagen, holding several senior leadership roles.
Prior to this assignment, she held the position of the Integrated Practice and Advisory Support (IPAS) Manager, leading a multidisciplinary team of over 80 professionals based in the UNOPS HQ in Copenhagen.
Sabine is a Swiss national, with a Master Degree in Social Anthropology and International Politics from the University of Zurich.
She speaks fluent English, German and French. She is married and the mother of a son and a daughter. In her free time Sabine likes music, hiking and running and exploring new places.

Toshitsuki Kawauchi is the UNHCR Representative in Albania, bringing over 25 years of expertise in protecting and assisting refugees, forcibly displaced persons, and stateless persons. Throughout his career, Mr. Kawauchi has held various leadership positions at UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, including serving as Senior Protection Officer in Tokyo, Japan (2017-2022), Head of Sub-Office in Mashhad, Iran (2014-2017), and Senior Field Coordinator in Bunj, South Sudan (2013). Prior to these roles, he led UNHCR offices in Bulgaria (Representative a.i.), Timor-Leste, and Cambodia, and specialized in refugee protection and assistance in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Afghanistan, Malaysia, and Indonesia. In these roles, he worked closely with individual refugees and engaged in policy discussions, while also coordinating with various stakeholders to find solutions for refugees and others. He holds a B.A. in Public Law from the University of Tokyo, a postgraduate diploma in International Relations, and an M.A. in Peace Studies from Lancaster University. Mr. Kawauchi is married and has a daughter and a son.

With over 25 years of experience managing development programs, Mrs. Zhulieta Harasani is the National Coordinator of the International Labor Organization (ILO) to Albania since 2016. Prior to joining the ILO, Zhulieta served as the UNESCO National Professional Officer in Albania and Director General of Strategic Planning of National Cultural Heritage at the Ministry of Culture of Albania. Earlier in her career she was Co-director of the Education Division at the Albanian Education Development Mega Program (AEDP) and Inspector of the Department of High Education at the Ministry of Education and Science of Albania. She started her career as a university professor at the Agricultural University in Tirana in 1992-1993 and then at the Polytechnic University of Tirana (TU) from 2003-2008. She holds a master’s in business administration (MBA) from Nebraska University (USA) and Tirana University Faculties of Economics (2001) and completed an MA in Education Sciences from Tirana University (2003). She also studied education and law at Tirana University (2000).