Merita Bunjaku from Municipality of Kaçanik, who recently has started studying Political Science decided to candidate in Local Elections held in 2017 for the Assembly of Municipality of Kaçanik. Bunjaku, who is one of the women who graduated in 2014 from K-W4W program speaks of her experience with the program and the influence it had in her decision to become a woman candidate who runs in Local Elections. In her words “the program was very profitable, necessary and an experience which came in the right time since the reality wasn’t so favorable for women in that period. She explains that “women were and continue to be less present in public life, and hereby series of training like those held by Women for Women International, now KW4W were more than welcomed and very profitable to somehow challenge the thought that women are meant to be just housewives” . Bunjaku tells that she was determined to challenge and to stand against these social norms that reproduce the constant discrimination of women. Thus, through the enormous discussions and professional trainings provided by the program, Bunjaku explains that she got more motivated to stand for the rights of women, the right to be treated equally with men. She adds that before the program she was focused only in housework and child caring, but after the program she explains that she became more active and started approach different activities more intensely, including studies, in order not to just provide her a better life but also to achieve a better social status as woman in her community.

The absence of women in Municipal Assembly and the touchable discrimination of women in community were one of the main factors which pushed her to candidate for Assembly. Furthermore, Merita stresses out the need for more women to be part of Assembly, since she considers that women in her Municipality are neglected, and this is helps as motivation to continue to fight for her cause, which is an equal treat for both genders in society. Taking this in consideration, she seems to be convinced that even though she did not make it to win in these elections to continue to educate herself and to become a change maker in her community. She tells that candidating for Assembly for her was just a starting point to continue to strengthen her ambition to run after four years in next Local Elections. As she says, the fact that she was the most voted woman in her village, has inspired her to continue to contribute in empowerment of women in her community in order to become a factor in society and to be equal with men.