Teuta Arifi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Teuta Arifi
Теута Арифи
Arifi in 2016
Mayor of Municipality of Tetovo
In office April 2013 – October 2021
Preceded by	Sadi Bexheti
Succeeded by	Bilal Kasami
Personal details
Born	19 October 1969 Tetovo, SR Macedonia, SFR Yugoslavia
Political party	Democratic Union for Integration
Ethnicity	Albanian
Signature

Teuta Arifi (Macedonian: Теута Арифи) is a politician from North Macedonia. She was born on October 19, 1969. She is known for being the first Albanian woman elected to the Parliament of North Macedonia.

Teuta Arifi has had an important political career. She was elected to the Parliament in 2002, 2006, 2008, and 2011. She also served as the Vice-President of the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) party. This party is very important for the Albanian community in North Macedonia. In April 2013, she became the Mayor of the Municipality of Tetovo. She held this position until October 2021.

Teuta Arifi's Education

Teuta Arifi studied a lot to prepare for her career.

• In 1991, she earned a bachelor's degree in philology from the University of Prishtina. Philology is the study of language in written historical sources.
• In 1995, she received a master's degree in philosophy from Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje.
• In 2000, she completed her PhD in Philology at the same university. Her special study was about how women are shown in Albanian traditional law and literature.

Teuta Arifi speaks many languages. Her first language is Albanian. She also speaks Macedonian, Turkish, English, French, Italian, and Serbo-Croatian.

Teuta Arifi's Career Journey

Early Career in Media and Teaching

Before becoming a politician, Teuta Arifi worked in journalism and teaching.

• From 1991 to 1992, she wrote for a political newspaper called KOHA.
• For ten years, from 1992 to 2002, she was a news anchor for Deutsche Welle radio.
• She also worked as an adviser for the government of North Macedonia from 1995 to 1996.
• Later, she advised the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1996 to 1997.

Teuta Arifi also taught at universities.

• In 1997, she became an Assistant Professor at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University. She taught about the history of Albanian literature.
• From 1999 to 2001, she was a researcher at Hamburg University in Germany.
• In 2001, she became an Associate Professor at South East European University in Tetovo. She taught about different cultures.

Teuta Arifi's Political Roles

Teuta Arifi started her political career in 2002.

• She became the Deputy President of the Democratic Union for Integration party.
• As a Member of Parliament, she led the Committee for International Relations.
• She was also part of North Macedonia's team at NATO from 2002 to 2006.
• From 2006 to 2008, she led the Committee for Cultural Issues in Parliament.
• She served as Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs from 2011 to 2013.
• On April 12, 2013, she was elected Mayor of the municipality of Tetovo.

Teuta Arifi has also worked on international projects.

• In 1995, she represented North Macedonia at a big conference on women's rights.
• In 1996, she helped observe parliamentary elections in Albania for the OSCE.

She is a founding member of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights of the Republic of North Macedonia. She also helped start the League of Albanian Women in North Macedonia.

Teuta Arifi's Published Works

Teuta Arifi has written several books and studies:

• “Gjeografia ime” (My geography), published in 1996.
• “Feminizmi ekzistencialist” (Existential Feminism), published in 1997.
• “Uchestvo na zhenite vo sovremenite trendovi vo Republika Makedonija” (The participation of women in the contemporary trends of Macedonian Society) – a study she co-wrote in 1997.
• "Shatë ditë magjike” (Seven magic days), published in 1998.