TIRANA, Jan. 12 – Twenty years since the start of de-collectivisation, agricultural farming systems in Albania still remain small, highly fragmented low-input systems that lack strong links to the market for agricultural products, says the European Commission in a report on the characteristics of farming systems in Albania.
Agriculture is vital for the Albanian economy as it employs about half of the country’s population and provides 20 percent of the GDP.
The farms that are specialized in agricultural activities such as fruit tree farms generally have a lower farm net income than the other farm types that aim to have agriculture as their main economic activity (poly-culture for market), says the report based on information collected from a face-to-face survey of more than 1,000 farmers from the three Albanian Berat, Elbasan and Lezha.
The lack of credit facilities drives farmers towards specialization strategies that do not need significant investment, that supply a steady income throughout the whole year and that are diversified (not linked with only one type of crop or livestock), notes the reports.
The survey found that the average repayment for farm-type labor in rural areas is lower than the minimum wage in Albania.
It warns the low labor productivity may lead to the conclusion that rural migration towards urban areas or abroad will continue into the future.
Regarding the living standard of household members for each farm type, considering the farm net income, the report concludes that household members of farm types such as poly-culture for market, livestock, fruit trees and arable crops for market are living above the complete poverty line. By contrast, household members of farm types such as self-sufficient, leisure and specialized fruit trees are living below the complete poverty line.
The report concludes that non-agricultural incomes in Albanian rural areas are not only extra income for the family household but in some cases the main income that provides for the needs of the family. This co-existence of agricultural and non-agricultural incomes provides, on the one hand, greater resilience for farm households but, on the other hand, less interest in and potential for farmers to invest in agriculture and to improve existing farming systems.
Experts say the small size of farms, lack of appropriate management of land and agricultural infrastructure and technology make the Albanian agricultural sector more problematic compared to other countries in the region.
