Albania receives 257 mln Euros from EU to continue reforms

TIRANA, July 13 – Albania will benefit Euro 257 million of EU funding from the Instrument for Pre-Accession assistance (IPA) to continue reforms for the 2011-2013 period. The European Union says it has earmarked 5.5 billion Euros for reforms in the Western Balkans, Turkey and Iceland. “The funding will focus on areas such as reform of the judiciary and public administration, enhancing regional cooperation in the fight against organised crime and corruption, building up a vibrant civil society, fostering reforms and regional cooperation in education, as well as underpinning sustainable recovery from the economic crisis through investment in strategic infrastructure projects,” says the European Commission. Since 2007, candidate countries and potential candidates have received focused EU funding and support through a single channel – the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance, or IPA. The total pre-accession funding for the period 2007-2013 is Euro 11.5 billion.