The wind is blowing in Albania’s favour when it comes to future international investments.
The United States is looking to expand its economic presence in Albania, a top American visiting official has made clear this week. And that’s a welcome sign.
Albania needs more investors from economic powerhouses, and despite its strong political presence in Albania, the current level of U.S. investments does not match the otherwise powerful role the U.S. plays in Albania as a major political and military ally.
Change is coming to Albania’s economic profile and importance, however. With the country’s NATO membership as a first step, and now official candidate status for membership in the European Union – Albania projects to the world a stable image that will attract more and more foreign investors.
While a small market on its own, the wider region is increasingly working to present itself as a unified market to attract investors – and Albania can play a significant role in that regard.
Furthermore, Albania needs investments from large, well-established corporations that operate under the best international standards and are unable to legally and ethically break the rules that subsidize the major ill Albania suffers today: corruption. It is easier for smaller companies to fall into the bribe-paying trap. The same is true for companies that themselves come from countries that perform badly in the international corruption index.
The road for important and stable investments has already been paved: Albania will soon be in the world energy map through the construction next year of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, or TAP, which runs from the Caspian Sea via Albania to southern Italy. Through it, Albania will have a vital role in energy security for Europe.
It’s a major strategic development that has implications far beyond Albania. It is clear that with the crisis in Ukraine and tougher sanctions on Russia, the American and EU attention has shifted to Eastern Europe and energy security. With TAP entirely bypassing Russia and its zone of influence, it will be a vital link between Europe and oil and gas that is not tied to Russia.
When it comes to the United States, it is one of the few countries that has continuously worked on the protection of the interests of Albania and the Albanian nation. It is no surprise then that the U.S. has a lot of political clout in Albania. Now, it is high time to turn that into the more clout in the economic arena.
Organizations like the American Chamber of Commerce in Albania have done an excellent job for years promoting Albania as a place to invest for both American and international investors. It is time these efforts be joined by others well.
After all, geography is no barrier to investment in today’s globalized world. The curious fact that few people know is that Albania’s larger foreign investor is not Italy, Greece or Germany – it is Canada, America’s neighbour with a tenth the population size.
