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In the ambit of targeted industrial talks with members, FIAA held an interesting meeting with representatives from the manufacturing industry that remains a key evolving industry in the country, as this industry is boosting exports and fostering economic growth.

The meeting held on February 11^th was very fruitful as it brought more insights from the perspective of this industry, sharing the experiences during the pandemic, discussing the key challenges that the industry is dealing with and hearing recommendations on how to further support this important industry!

The Independent Assessment Team (IEG) at the World Bank organized a meeting to assess the impact of the project on Developing Competitiveness Policies. The team discussed with the groups that contributed to the implementation of the project (government representatives, international partners, civil society, etc.), getting their opinion on achievement of the project objectives, what worked and what could work with well  otherwise, to draw conclusions and recommendations that might help preparing similar future projects.

FIAA strongly believes that the improvement of the Business Climate in Albania remains fundamental.

As Albania has entered in the electoral period and the political Parties have prepared their economic programs, FIAA strongly believe that these Parties must give focus to the business climate signals and alerts.

In this ambit, at the initiative of the Board of Directors of FIAA and in close consultation with its Committees, FIAA has prepared a Manifest which addresses the Challenges for bringing Albania’s economy forward in the next four years.

FIAA is convinced that these challenges remain crucial to the improvement of the business climate and is appealing for the attention of the main Political Leaders and not only. FIAA believes that the need to stimulate growth, to attract foreign investors and fit for EU accession is more than urgent.

For more details download here FIAA MANIFEST

In the framework of the communications that FIAA keeps with Diplomatic Bodies in Albania, early this year FIAA’s President Dr. Alvensleben and Executive Director Ms. Jazoj have meet with two Diplomats in Albania, respectively H.E Mr. MITSUYUKI, Ambassador of Japan to Albania and H.E Mr. GENDLER, Ambassador of Israel to Albania.

The main purpose of the meetings was exchanging views on the business climate, impacts of the pandemic and current business and political situation in Albania, as well as opportunities for strengthening cooperation.

FIAA shall continue meetings with other diplomats in the coming months and assist potential foreign investors interested on the Albanian market.

The Open Government Partnership (OGP) aims to improve governance through government–civil society collaboration to develop reforms that promote transparency, public accountability and civic participation. From July 2020 until now, the Albanian government has worked with public institutions and members of civil society organizations (CSOs) during 14 stakeholder consultations to draft a set of ten reform commitments for inclusion in Albania’s 2020-2022 OGP Action Plan. All citizens & civil society organizations have been invited to provide feedback on the draft.

For more information, please follow the link:  https://www.konsultimipublik.gov.al/Konsultime/Detaje/318

CESPIC is delighted to announce the release of the report ALBANIA IN THE EYES OF THE WORLD 2020. ‘Albania in the Eyes of the World’ is an annual report that collects and analyses different socio-economic metrics drawn from specialized reports and studies. In particular, the aim of ‘Albania in the Eyes of the World’ is to describe where Albania currently is and where it is heading in different social, economic and political fields. In brief, ‘Albania in the Eyes in the World’ is intended to be a kind of vademecum providing guidance on Albanian development path. In only one document it is possible to find a set of information whose combination eventually turns out to be extremely valuable for students, scholars, journalists, policy-makers, entrepreneurs and investors.

Ministry of Finance and Economy (MFE) is implementing last year of the Action Plan for 2014-2020 of the Business Development and Investment Strategy. MFE with the support of GIZ ProSeed project, in February 2020 started the work for drafting the new Business Development and Investment Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027.

In this frame, in January 20^th, 2021 it was organized a consulting meeting with business organizations discussing on the proposed measures in the Draft. Present in the meeting was the deputy Minister of MFE and international experts that have supported drafting of the strategy, which will serve as a key instrument for policies to foster business and attract investments in Albania, basing on the competitive advantages that Albania offers.

As of January 1^st, 2021, the Albanian Government started the implementation of the Fiscalization. Fiscalization in practice, appears to be a concerning issue for businesses in overall, with many gaps for clarifications and need for support in this transition process.

In this frame, FIAA has been deeply involved in the respective discussions on clarifying various raised issues and questions from members through the great cooperation with the Big 4s in Albania (Members of FIAA and the Tax Council) and General Directory of Taxes experts. The Questions and Answers process on various raised issues is still going on and FIAA is following up through regular communication with the Tax authorities.

FIAA Board of Directors held its first meeting in early January where among others was bid “Farewell” to two Board Members who further continue their careers with other challenges, respectively Mr. Rohan D’Souza the Chairman of Shell Albania who was promoted to another country, and Mr. Perparim Kalo who recently was elected as a Judge in the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Albania.

The Board recalled the year that Albania and the entire world went through, with all the difficulties the business coped with and also shared the insights and perspectives from the various industries FIAA represents and not only.

During December ’20, the Ministry of Finance issued an Instruction in the Tax Procedures, where Account-blocking orders were foreseen to be issued for debtor businesses and for shareholders and administrators. In this ambit, Meeting discussions have been hold among the Board Members and the Tax & Law Committees of FIAA, and we prepared a Letter to the Minister of Finance and Economy asking for the Review of the “Instruction in the Tax Procedures. The Ministry had a quick reaction on considering the concerns that business community raised and decided to amend the instruction.