Publications

Albania on the Cusp of Parliamentary Elections

Albania will elect its next parliament on 25 April. Prime Minister Edi Rama from the Socialist Party aims for re-election and his third mandate. Contender Lulzim Basha from the Democratic Party wants to prevent this.

Less than two months before the national parliamentary elections, Albanian parties are starting to position themselves. The opposition is trying to close the political ranks with an alliance of more than one dozen parties. It focuses its electoral campaign on the ailing economy with rising unemployment, mass migration as well as low levels of trust in the judicial system. The ruling Socialists point to the many infrastructure projects taking place across the country and place their hopes on Prime Minister Rama’s charisma. The debate on opening EU accession negotiations still hovers in the background. In principle, the election is also shaped by the special circumstances of the corona pandemic.

Media and information of the citizens in times of Corona

Study on the standards and quality of information of citizens in Albania from March 9 to May 31, 2020

The coronavirus pandemic in Albania and the adoption of measures to prevent it had consequences for the Albanian media. A large part of Albanian media companies is facing serious economic problems: The closure of companies has resulted in the absence of their advertisements in the media. This in turn resulted in a financial crisis in the media industry. However, this is not the only problem facing the media. The government's attempts to exploit the economically precarious situation in the Covid-19 pandemic are viewed with great concern. Especially when coercive measures are taken that violate the principles and standards of democracy.

Migration: Eine offene Wunde

Eine Reise durch die Geisterdörfer Albaniens

Jüngsten Statistiken zufolge ist Albanien, trotz einer kleinen Bevölkerung von ca. 2,8 Millionen Menschen, global unter den zehn Ländern mit den meisten Asylsuchenden im Ausland. Städte und Dörfer erleben einen konstanten Exodus und werden zu menschenlosen und vereinsamten Orten. Dabei ziehen die massenweise auswandernden jungen Menschen in größeren Mengen direkt ins Ausland als in die Städte, womit Emigration zu einem nationalen Problem wird.

Handbuch

Ein Handbuch über das Recht auf Ausbildung in Albanien

Light and Shadows – An Analysis of the EU’s Preconditions for Albania

Entering EU accession talks with Albania is subject to fulfilling the six preconditions – even if progress has been made, central points have not yet been fully met.

After the German Bundestag had established conditions for entering accession negotiations with Albania already in September 2019, the Council of the European Union (EU) followed suit in March 2020. The Ministers for Europe of the 27 EU states adopted and supplemented demands from the Bundestag so that the West Balkan state must now fulfil 15 conditions before the individual negotiations chapters or clusters can be opened. Six of which still need to be fulfilled prior to beginning the 1st intergovernmental conference. Even though great hopes were placed on these six conditions being fulfilled before the end of 2020 and, thus, on the conference taking place as part of the German EU Council Presidency, the chances of this are currently dwindling. A more detailed analysis on the status of fulfilling the six preconditions shows that Albania has made some good progress over the last half year, though some central points have not yet been fully met.

Research study report

Perceptions of albanian electorate over quality of albanian parliamentary affairs

This study was conducted in the framework of the election of the new Parliament to be conducted on April 25, 2021, where Albanians expect a radical change and improvement of the image of this institution. Perceptions and attitudes expressed by the electoral body of the country is the true mirror in which is reflected the entire performance of the work of the legislative representatives of the Assembly.

Research report

HEALTH CARE SYSTEM DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND SUPPLYING STAFF WITH PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT

In the framework of the project "Health care system during the COVID-19 pandemic and providing staff with Personal Protective Equipment"endorsed by "Konrad Adenauer" Foundation, the “Together for Life” Association conducted a study among public health care professionals in the primary, secondary and tertiary health care levels. The study aimed first and foremost to shed light on the situationof the provision of health care staff with personal protective equipment, their safety, and their job-related psychological concerns or symptoms during the initial phase of COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in Albania. The study – the only one conducted on the topicso far - provides a clear overview on the current situation and needs for Personal Protective Equipment, safety and mental well-being of the health staff in the country. This report incorporates a quantitative survey component more specifically, 306 successful online interviews have been conducted during the May 6th – June 3rd 2020 period. The quantitative data analysis, indicative of the experiences and evocations of the health care staff during the first three months of the pandemic outbreak in the country (March – May 2020), reveals the following key findings:

Albania: Autocratic Measures in the Shadows of Corona

Demolition of the Albanian National Theatre in Cloak-and-Dagger Operation

The Mayor of Tirana engaged in a cloak-and-dagger operation to demolish the capital´s historic National Theatre. This is not the only controversial decision taken by the ruling socialists during the Corona crisis.

"Connectivity Agenda and Structural Weaknesses of EU Candidate Countries"

In the framework of the Berlin Process Series, CDI issues the fifth report “Connectivity Agenda and Structural Weaknesses of EU Candidate Countries”.

Balkans: Geopolitics in Times of Corona

Foreign Aid and Public Relations Work and Their Perception in South East Europe

The coronavirus pandemic is a stress test for global value chains, national health systems and the resilience of societies – with no clear outcome. Against the backdrop of the crisis, we are also witnessing a geopolitical, systemic competition to win the hearts and minds of states and societies and to dominate global narratives. True to the motto that every crisis harbours an opportunity, the People´s Republic of China and the Russian Federation in particular are striving to gain sympathies in selected countries through rapid aid and its propagandistic staging, so as to highlight the superiority of their own systems and thus to expand their soft power. It would be naive to assume that their actions are guided solely by humanitarian considerations and international solidarity. What´s more, they are applying illegitimate methods such as fake news and disinformation campaigns as well.