Crisis will affect Albania too says ILO

TIRANA, May 70؍ark Levin, executive director of International Labor Organization (ILO) for South Eastern Europe, declared that “the global economic crisis will also affect Albania.”
The statement was made during a ceremony celebrating the 90th anniversary of ILO creation as part of the Versailles Treaty that ended the First World War.
According to Levin, countries in difficulty should boost exports and ILO and other international institutions should review their financing schemes toward small and medium economies.
“All countries are subject to the global crisis and there many indicators to measure its depth and impact. As far as Albania is concerned, exports are an important issue. If exports fall, then a lot businesses will fall with them which in turn will result in higher unemployment. Another indicator is remittances from emigrants. Diminished remittances carry many problems with them,” said Levin.
Albania President, Bamir Topi, who also attended the ceremony, said that Albania should create more jobs for its youth in the face the economic crisis and a new social dialoge should be raised by the National Council of Labor.
“New measure are needed for the employment of youth, women, especially in the suburbs of big cities,” said Topi.
Textiles industry, which counts for a good part of Albanian exports has suffered a huge blow in the last months due to the global economic crisis and general shrinkage in global trade. The sector is the biggest employer of women and with many textile business closing down, the said working category are hardest hit in job losses and valuable income.