TIRANA, June 19 – Student organizations and high-schoolers protested in front of the Ministry of Education in Tirana on Monday, asking for their Student Card to be approved and become functional.
Protesters claimed the governing parties have yet to meet this 13-year-old promise, although it is a legal obligation, as the Student Card foresees a number of economic mitigations for university and highschool students.
The National Youth Council said authorities have been talking about the Student Card for the last thirteen years, but have yet to meet a legal right students all over the world enjoy.
Protest participants sought their rights as thousands of European youths do, for a service that was promised since 2005 for 115,000 students and 95,000 high-schoolers.
The National Youth Action Plan 2015-2020 obliges the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports to prepare and make the Student Card available by equating it with the European Student Card.
The Law on Higher Education and Scientific Research obliges the ministry of education to offer Albanian students a card that will provide economic, social and cultural benefits, but the law has not being implemented for several years, the youth stated.
The Student Card is expected to offer all students free or reduced cost services, as well as mitigations for all state and private services throughout the country, including the banking sectors, telecommunications, transportation, supermarkets, cinemas, theatres, sports halls, etc.
The National Youth Council said it cannot accept a situation where students have to pay for everything like the rest of citizens, while asking state institutions to implement the law as part of their legitimate right in a democratic society.
