OSCE Mission supports Kosovo Academy for Public Safety to sign co-operation agreement with North Carolina Justice Academy

The Kosovo Academy for Public Safety (KAPS) and the United States North Carolina Justice Academy (NCJA) signed a landmark co-operation agreement today. The agreement is the result of the OSCE Mission’s programmatic work aimed at further developing KAPS's capacities to train new professional generations of public safety officers.

The agreement was signed by the Deputy Director of the NCJA, Mr. Christopher Anderson, who was visiting KAPS as the key NCJA representative and KAPS Acting General Director Kastriot Jashari, supported by Jeta Tela-Shema from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

With this agreement, the KAPS and the NCJA pledge to share curriculum and quality assurance standards, link instructors, as well as share strategic planning goals that will lead both academies into a strong future for public safety education and career development.

“The North Carolina Justice Academy and the North Carolina Department of Justice are dedicated to supporting the agreement signed today and in continued collaboration with the KAPS.  The NCJA is dedicated to enhancing the careers of public safety professionals through our support and co-operation in the future.  NCJA remains thankful to the OSCE Mission in Kosovo and the Government for supporting this effort in signing of this agreement,” said Mr. Anderson.

KAPS Deputy Director, Mr. Jashari, said: “I wish to thank the OSCE Mission in Kosovo and the North Carolina Justice Academy Deputy Director Chris Anderson on this landmark agreement between the two academies. Of the many benefits of this historic agreement, I would like to highlight specifically the exchange of subject matter experts and curriculum development, as well as the willingness between the academies to advance executive-level academy development and quality assurance.”

Today’s signing follows the NCJA’s first visit to KAPS in 2023 - with OSCE support - which helped strengthen the collaboration between the two academies and familiarize KAPS with the recognized and tested quality assurance mechanisms, as well as curriculum and instructors’ development, which are the main standards set by the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training (IADLEST) and used by academies in the US.

A follow-on activity, also supported by the OSCE Mission, took place in 2024, when the KAPS and its representatives from public safety agencies visited the NCJA in the US and furthered quality assurance and curriculum development initiatives.

The Mission will continue to work with KAPS, the Kosovo Police, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to strengthen the training component of public safety agencies’ current and future staff.