On May 22, 2025, the U.S. Embassy’s Acting Deputy Chief of Mission Kathryn Hammond, along with U.S. Department of Justice ICITAP Assistant Director Stephen Fields, presented the first Accreditation Certificate by the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards & Training (IADLEST) and an Award of Excellence to Professor Dr. Ilirjan Mandro, Rector of the Albanian Security Academy. The ceremony took place at the Security Academy in Tirana, Albania.
The Security Academy is recognized as the sole higher education institution dedicated to public security in Albania and operates under the State Police organization. Since 2005, it has received support from the DOJ International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP), which has helped establish a foundation for modern police education and training.
The IADLEST Accreditation marks the end of a two-year evaluation process, resulting in an "Excellence" distinction for achieving an aggregate rating score of 93.75. This recognition places the Albanian Security Academy among only four international academies out of 77 worldwide to receive this award during its inaugural accreditation.
Throughout IADLEST's evaluation, over 560 questions were answered and more than 450 policies and procedures across twelve functional areas were reviewed by the Academy. These efforts improved rules, regulations, policies, recruitment standards, and protocols while enhancing public access to information via websites. The assessment highlighted superior performance by firearms instructors and medical staff while also advancing methods for operations continuity, administration, strategic planning, student health screening, privacy protection, testing security practices, and monitoring protocols aimed at boosting public trust.
The event was attended by Interior Deputy Minister Andi Mahila; State Police Director General Ilir Proda; Police Oversight Agency Director General Florian Sulejmani; representatives from U.S. Embassy including DOJ OPDAT and ICITAP officials; Department of State INL Bureau members; alongside international partners.
Rector Mandro remarked that this Accreditation would strengthen the Academy's partnership with America in addressing cross-border crimes such as terrorism and drug trafficking within the region. He concluded by acknowledging that achieving these strategic objectives was challenging but rewarding—reflecting on their motto: “We say what we do – and do what we say; change is our challenge.”