EBRD senior economic says Albania rode the bulk of the international crisis better than expected, but will face a new bump in the road as the Greek crisis affects companies and workers that do business in both countries.
TIRANA, March. 11 – Albania’s economy needs to be seen with cautious optimism, but the possibility that the economic crisis in Greece could affect neighboring countries, particularly Albania, does exist, a senior economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development told the Albanian Service of the BBC this week.
Peter Sanfey said Albania rode the bulk of the international crisis better than expected, but will face a new bump on the road as the Greek crisis affects companies and workers that do business in both countries.
“Albania cannot totally avoid the crisis, but seems to be less affected than most other countries in the region. To a certain extent, this reflects the fact that Albania is not as integrated into regional and global markets as several of other regional economies,” Mr. Sanfey told the BBC. “There were also responsible, strong and cautious macroeconomic policies, and these are producing results when it comes to economic growth.”
While Mr. Sanfey said it’s best to wait and see how things will unfold in Greece, he said Albania and others need to focus on what they can do themselves to improve the situation.
“And if there is a slump in the neighboring country, it is best to try to stay away as much as you can,” Mr. Sanfey said. “But I think that Albania and other countries in the region should focus on the medium and long-term future, in the sense that as they advance structural reforms to get closer to the European Union, the need to apply policies that make the countries more competitive and develop their potential.”
The neighboring region has been hit pretty hard. In 2009, the average GDP had fallen nearly 6 percent, unemployment and poverty had increased and companies were letting people go.
“Governments have understood that they have a limit to what they can do to act, and have understood they need to focus on the kind of reforms that had begun during the previous decade,” Mr. Sanfey told BBC’s Albanian services.
