This programme takes an integrated approach to improving the wellbeing of people living in vulnerable conditions in Tropojë and Pukë.

The programme rests on two of Dorcas's core concepts: Social Empowerment and Protection, and Inclusive Entrepreneurship. The social and economic strands of SMILES therefore complement and strengthen each other.

Tropojë and Pukë share similar social and economic conditions: a poor, rural, mountainous area where small-scale farming, livestock and small businesses are among the main ways people make a living. Isolation, a lack of state support and limited individual and institutional capacity, among other factors, have kept a semi-subsistence way of life in place, based on traditional production methods and low incomes.

SMILES brings together a range of local players who do not just benefit from the programme but will also promote and contribute to the growth of the local economy and the region's tourism sector — making sure the process is led and owned by the local community itself.

The programme deliberately connects with local people and their livelihoods, so that the whole region benefits, not just a privileged few. It will also build social safety nets for the most marginalised people, who struggle to meet their basic needs.

Through Social Empowerment and Protection, the programme aims to lay the foundations for closer cooperation and strong community structures that can play a lasting part in local development. Here the Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) approach is essential: it equips individuals and groups to identify and use the resources that already exist in their own communities.

The programme's main beneficiaries are:

• Small and medium-sized farmers
• Owners of small guesthouses
• People with the potential to earn an income
• Young people and children
• Marginalised families
• Older people

Korçë County has one of the highest proportions of older people in Albania. According to the latest data, more than 20% of the population is over 65. Many older people live alone or without family support, and social assistance and institutional care are limited or insufficient. At the same time, unemployed women are an important human resource: they can meet a real social need while gaining training, work experience and support for their economic and social empowerment.

 The project naturally brings together: 

·   The need for community services for older people

·       The economic and social empowerment of women looking for work 

·       The promotion of volunteering, solidarity and social inclusion 

·       The sustainable development of the local community in Korçë 

By involving unemployed women in social care for older people, the project works towards: 

·   Easing the isolation of older people and improving their quality of life

·       Creating new opportunities for women through training, community involvement and possible future employment 

·       Building a model of cooperation between local institutions, NGOs and the community to tackle social problems together 

The project's main aim is:

Developing soft skills and preparing women looking for work for the job market.

Skills the project will develop: 

1. Training in home care for older people  

2. Soft-skills training   

3. Job-readiness training 

The project contributes to:

·   Greater self-sufficiency and self-confidence

·       Less social and economic exclusion 

·   More opportunities and skills for lasting employment.

This is a three-year programme in the Korçë region, running in four municipalities: Korçë, Maliq, Devoll and Pustec.

The programme rests on three approaches: “Community Safety Nets”, “Families in Development” and “A Future for Children”. They are delivered together, as one integrated whole, building social cohesion between the groups who benefit and creating active community groups.

The programme follows the Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) approach, which starts from the resources and potential that already exist in individuals and in the local community, and equips the people it serves to lead their own development.

The main beneficiaries are marginalised older people, marginalised young people, families in urban and rural areas, and children, mainly from these marginalised families.

The programme follows on from Dorcas's earlier KID programme, but is built on Dorcas's sustainability phases and runs in new communities. Its main aim is to strengthen focus and action at community and society level: stronger local structures, more support from local government, and the programme's components and models handed over to local organisations and stakeholders.