The National Committee of Strategic Planning in the recently approved Sectorial Strategy for Transportation and its relevant Action Plan, has issued a list of projects mainly in infrastructure that are priorities for Albania’s economic and social development. Line after line numerous projects of building new roads, rehabilitating old ones, extending and connecting segments, investing in the non-existent railroad infrastructure as well as other important infrastructure interventions in energy, education and even prevention of floods. The overwhelming majority of these projects are old news, issues that have been masticated and regurgitated so many times in public discussion that they have almost lost not only salience but also meaning.
Most of the listed projects lack clear indication of the funding origin, except from the total hefty figure of 1.8 billion Euro. No more than half of them are subject to financial planning. On the top of it stands the ‘Road of Arbri’ which has undergone so many changes in its planning and calculations while still being unbuilt that it can stand as the a-priori example of hurdles and delays. In a similar fashion the completion of the road from Tirana to Elbasan, despite consisting in quit few kilometers is still part of the list.
The list can be interpreted as both ambitious and sad. Ambitious in the extent of changes it reaches in its objectives, in the imagination of the results which would finally rescue Albania from its calcified reputation of lacking or at bets lagging behind in the development of the basic physical and organizational structures and facilities needed for the operation of its state, economy and society. Its sadness consists in the repetition of projects, the exposure of the important gaps in the development of the country still after 25 years and finally in the subtle pinpointing of the difficulty of making these changes from both the political will and the financial component side.
The list except from instilling some sadness to the careful observer which sees the projects going nowhere year after year raises also important questions. There seems to be no coordination between this list and the projects submitted as part of the Berlin process’ connectivity agenda despite the fact that the strategy mentions the process quite a few times. It is a well-known fact that Albania remains quite isolated form the rest of the region, largely also due to its lack of rail connections. The list includes important aspirations in this sector however its current situation would require an outright revolution to see any of those projects start. With so many clear priorities, one cannot help but wonder not only on the general low level of public investments made so far, justified by the need for fiscal consolidation but also on their overwhelming orientation on rehabilitating squares, facades and fountains leaving the major infrastructure behind as a secondary item. While it would be cynic to underestimate the former, it would be outright wrong to forget the importance of the latter for the core development of the country. In this regard the strategy comes also as a welcome eye-opening nudge.
Finally the timeline of the strategy and action plan that extend to around 2023 is not realistic. With most of the plans not being accompanied by committed or secure funds, with thousands of obstacles that plague major infrastructure interventions in Albania and the usual political use of public investments the dream list seems to belong to a time frame made at least of several decades if not a century.
