Republic of Albania

"You Albania, give me honor, give me the name Albanian"

Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger in Albania Report

By
Peeravich C.
Bhumrapee S.
Phurich R.
Peerawich S.
Table of Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1
Causes and Effects ......................................................................................................................... 4
Solutions ............................................................................................................................................ 5

A poverty reduction strategy .............................................................................................. 5

Policies ........................................................................................................................... 5
Education ....................................................................................................................... 5
Child Poverty ............................................................................................................... 6

Labor Market and Social Protection .................................................................. 6

Economics ...................................................................................................................... 7

European Union Integration ............................................................................................. 8

UNDP aids ................................................................................................................................ 8

References ......................................................................................................................................... 9
Introduction:
Albania is currently one of the poorest countries in Europe. With nearly a quarter of it
population struggle in extreme poverty and using only two US dollars a day. Most of poverty
located in rural area. The issue of extreme poverty taken roots in Albania during socialist rule
in Albania following the end of World War Two. After eastern half of Europe been liberated
by the Soviet Red Army, Albania form a socialist regime with socialist policy. Which means
the country economy was operated under rigid socialist system with planned economy. Made
Albanias economy underdeveloped and fail. In 1992 mark the end of socialist regime in
Albania and open a new era of democratic Albania. Even though the socialist regime was
defeated, the corruption in a new democratic government prolonged and extend the problem
instead of fixing them. Many Albanian stuck in an extreme poverty cycle and struggle to break
away. Still today many Albanian and the government put immense effort in an attempt to end
poverty in their country.
 Causes and Effects

Causes
The reason that Albania is known as one of the poorest countries in Europe came from the
effects of the transition from a centralized economy in a rigid communist state to a free market
economy in a democratic republic have weighed heavily on the people of Albania, particularly
on its poor people. Despite the economy's robust growth in recent years, about 7.5 percent of
the population lives in extreme poverty (UNDP MPI Index Report 2011/ CIA 2010) and
struggle to put food on the table each day. Rural and mountainous areas are the poorest places
in the country.

The free market economy struggles in Albania due to its isolated villages leading to a lack of
available consumers. Due to this rural, spread-out geography, farmers are unable to travel to
other markets and sell their crops. In such a setting, it is difficult for a sustainable economy to
thrive and for jobs to be created, and these low incomes and staggering unemployment keep
this cycle of poverty continuing.

Farming is one of the primary sources of income for this group of people and due to the cities
being much more expensive to live in for citizens without a high skill occupation, many have
to make ends meet by farming in mountains where small amounts of crops can get yielded from
the soil. These two issues in tandem contribute to the 19 percent of children having their growth
stunted and 7 percent of the infants being born with a low birth weight in the country. Thus,
citizens having a difficult time attaining a job and children dealing with malnutrition both
contribute to the causes of rural poverty in Albania.

Effects
The change from controlled economy to free market caused Albania to be one of the poorest
country in Europe. Living in cities takes much more expensive for the citizens that dont have
high skills so they have to move out to the rural area of the country which is the mountainous
areas. Farming is the only way for them to get money and unfortunately, they cant grow a lot
of crops at the mountainous areas because of the lack of nutrients in soil. This causes them to
be even more poor overtime.
 Solutions
A poverty reduction strategy
Policies

1. Albania should therefore focus on a fair distribution of the benefits of growth for the entire
population and should take into account existing social capital at the community level

2. Poverty reduction requires stronger public and private sector institutions that can operate in
a transparent and accountable fashion and that are accessible to the entire population, including
the poor. Economic activities in Albania have been severely constrained by the weak
institutional capacity for enforcement and the lack of transparency in administration which
have fostered the development of corrupt practices. As a step in this direction, a medium-term
expenditure framework (MTEF) is being introduced to improve the budget planning process
and to facilitate more effective expenditure prioritization.

3. The government has also initiated major steps to reform the judicial system by: upgrading
the quality of legal education; improving the functioning of the judicial system; creating a
system for out-of-court resolution of commercial cases; and, making essential legal information
more accessible.

4. Economic stability and growth, the government has, in consultation with the IMF,
elaborated a macroeconomic framework for the next three years which projects that Albanias
economy will expand at a growth rate of 8 percent over the next three years.This framework is
underpinned by a comprehensive set of structural reforms - including financial sector reforms,
privatization of the remaining state-owned enterprises, and measures to create an institutional
and legislative environment conducive to foreign and domestic investment. These reforms as
well as those measures geared more specifically towards poverty reduction are summarized in
the attached policy matrix.

5.To ensure that sustainable economic growth is inclusive in Albania, the government will
therefore promote human development through the design and implementation of
comprehensive and integrated strategies in health, education, child poverty, and social
protection sectors.

Education
1.The government aims to increase enrollment in basic and secondary education. In basic
education, the government will undertake an analysis of the recent decline in gross enrollment
rates. It will also review the structure of the secondary education system in order to make it
more appropriate to current demands in the labor market and identify measures for improving
the quality of secondary schooling. For the entire education system, the government will adopt
more appropriate curriculum standards, improve arrangements for the supply of textbooks, and
address issues of the quality of teaching staff. It will also explore how to improve the
integration of internal migrants into the education system. Furthermore, the government will
use its school mapping database to rationalize the allocation of resources for school
rehabilitation and construction.

Child Poverty
1. The government will pay particular attention to alleviating poverty and vulnerability among
children. The 1996 LSMS indicates that incidence of poverty among children, particularly in
rural areas, is high. Moreover, other evidence indicates that in north-eastern areas, malnutrition
is observed in around one quarter of children. In urban areas, the growing number of street
children needs to be addressed. The government intends to address child poverty and
vulnerability through its programs in education, health and social protection. In the area of
social protection, the government will take steps to ensure adequate income support to poor
families with children. Introduction of other programs, such as school feeding, food
supplements for infants and pregnant women, and assistance in kind to children from poor
families will also be considered.

2. The government will pay particular attention to protection of children without parental care.
As an alternative to their institutionalization, foster care arrangements will be developed,
including necessary legislation, financial support to foster care providers and appropriate
monitoring and supervision institutions and mechanisms. The government will prepare a plan
for the introduction of community based social care services (daily care centers, family
counseling centers, respite care centers, etc.) in order to provide assistance and support to
handicapped children and their families, dysfunctional families, children and youth with
disturbed behavior and other vulnerable groups.

Labor Market and Social Protection

1.Currently, 18 percent (or about 239,000 people) of the workforce is officially registered as
unemployed. In order to create a flexible labor market that promotes employment
opportunities, the government will review and, where necessary, revise its labor market
legislation and regulations, labor market policies and social insurance programs. The Ministry
of Labor and Social Affairs (MoLSA) will examine the possibility of implementing public
works programs focusing on poor communities, particularly in rural areas, and strengthening
job counseling and job search assistance for the unemployed. Well targeted, demand driven
training programs will continue to be implemented, with special focus on training and
retraining of workers who have been made redundant by privatization, structural changes, etc.
In addition, efforts will be undertaken to improve labor statistics.

Awareness and marketing will be achieved through work at multiple levels to develop domestic
tourism; consolidate a unifying theme to link the countrys tourism product with international
markets; and create a convincing image on the countrys assets for market opinion leaders
through specialized travel companies, local tourism companies, the internet, active
participation in international tourism trade fairs, as well as invitations to foreign media to visit
Albania. Product development and diversification will concentrate on the discovery of Albania
through its nature and culture. This depends on the ability of local areas to effectively organize
themselves to convert their natural and cultural assets into a viable tourism product, complete
with recommended sites and activities, information and interpretation, lodging, food, guide
services and a variety of other features that determine the value of a destination. New tourist
itineraries passing through rural areas that are rich in natural and cultural assets will diversify
the product on offer. Investments in nature areas and culture will be realized particularly
through the establishment of long-term financial mechanisms and the development and
approval of tourism plans which encourage investors providing them with the major
development directions and applying an incentive policy for potential tourism investments.
Human resource management, including the establishment of an elite group of tourist guides,
training of managers of tourism spots, training of hospitality professionals and staff, and
building of language skills, will be enabled through the enrichment of teaching programmes
with professional subjects on tourism, especially in higher education. Business climate:
Business sectors grow more successfully with a regulatory framework that is clear and ensures
that all actors are playing by the same set of rules. This will be achieved through a close
partnership with the public sector, calibrating to international tourism standards, and
establishing a common platform for the development of tourism. Data and information
management is fundamental for tourism planning, marketing and monitoring. The district
Tourism Information Offices will assist this effort, while a center will be established for data
collection, processing and dissemination.

Economics
To respond to these challenges, programme strategies will make economic growth priorities,
policies and programmes more inclusive, sustainable, and gender responsive, and address
major structural constraints related to decent job creation especially for young people and other
vulnerable groups, business competitiveness, and rural development. Strategies will:
Strengthen the delivery of economic support services at national level and local levels that
promote gender equality and green economy and contribute to inclusive and sustainable
industrial development;
Support further reform of regulatory and tax policies to reduce red tape for entrepreneurs,
Improve governance of the labor market, and support tripartite dialogue between government,
industry, and labor;
Enhance the employability of youth, women and other vulnerable groups;
Address gaps in occupational health and safety policies and standards;
Develop new capacities to design and implement policies and strategies for sustainable rural
development and modernization of the agricultural sector that are gender-sensitive and
empower rural women;
Enhance agricultural production and value chain development, with focus on small rural
households; Enhance capacity to build/revitalize infrastructure inter alia through public-
private partnerships and foster innovation sector; Improve access to adequate housing
including for those with special needs and vulnerable population groups; Support integration
of traders into regional and global value chains; Strengthen cultural industries, promote
cultural diversity and management of cultural heritage as a vehicle for sustainable
development.
EU Integration (European Union)
In June 2003, during Thessaloniki European Council summit. Albania along with other
Balkan countries are label as potential candidate for EU membership. In October 2012,
European Union Commission recommended Albania to be granted the candidate status. In June
2014, Albania was awarded candidate status by the EU. The fact that Albania joined NATO in
2009 also help.
If Albania become European Union member state, ALbania will benefit greatly from
the Union. Free trade will help boost Albania economy, and improve trade relation with other
member state. Albania will likely to get a financial aid from European Union. Albania will also
likely to become Schengen country, which will encourage tourism and can bring more revenue.

UNDP (United Nation Development Programme) aids

UNDP operate 170 different countries and territories to help eradicate poverty and
inequalities in the world. UNDP offer countries to help form policies, institutional
capabilities, partnering abilities, leadership skills and build resilience in order to sustain
development results. UNDP start to operate in Albania in 1991. UNDP continue to work with
the government of Albania, civil society and businesses to promote human rights and freedoms,
strengthen the rule of law, protect the environment and support economic and social reforms
for social inclusion and an equitable society.
UNDPs goal in Albania is sustainable human development in Albania. First is to
deepen the democratic practices in Albanian institution, and to align Albania laws with UN
Conventions and international human rights norms and standards. With roughly ten million
dollars in funding both from UN and EU, UNDP conduct many projects and programme to aid
Albania.

For more information visit their website:

http://www.al.undp.org/content/albania/en/home.html
References:
Norris, W. (2017, April 18). Poverty in Albania. Retrieved October 30, 2017, from
https://borgenproject.org/poverty-in-albania/
Qokaj, B. P., Communications Manager World Vision International. (2016, December
19). The chains of the poverty in Albania. Retrieved October 30, 2017, from
http://wvi.org/albania/article/chains-poverty-albania
Albania - European Neighbourhood Policy And Enlargement Negotiations - European
Commission. (2016, December 6). Retrieved November 14, 2017, from
https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/countries/detailed-country-
information/albania_en
Republic of Albania, Government of Albania. (n.d.). Albania Interim Poverty
Reduction Strategy Paper. (May 3, 2000 )
Republic of Albania, Government of Albania, Republic of Albania Council of
Ministers. (2008). Albania: poverty reduction strategy paper: national strategy for
development and integration. Washington, D.C.: International Monetary Fund.
United Nations Development Programme. (n.d.). UNDP in Albania. Retrieved
December 05, 2017, from http://www.al.undp.org/content/albania/en/home.html