Italy helping Albanian SMEs

TIRANA, Nov. 22 – Italy is supporting the development of Albanian small and medium-sized companies and ICT businesses under a 30 million euro soft loan programme to contribute to Albania’s economic growth. Addressing a seminar on the SME development project, whose implementation started in January 2009, Italian ambassador to Albania Saba D’Elia said he was pleased by the programme’s progress and reconfirmed further financial support to the development of Albanian business.
SMEs and ICT companies are being supported under three ongoing projects worth 30.26 million euros which are being implemented by the Italian Development Cooperation.
The first project under the programme, a euro 27.5 million loan includes three main components; a 25 million euro soft loan for a credit line in favor of Albanian SMEs, a 2.5 million euros soft loan for the establishment of a Guarantee Fund on SMEs access to the credit system and a 1.7 million euro grant for technical assistance to the programme implementation.
Appreciating Italy’s support, Economy and deputy Prime Minister Ilir Meta, said the programme for the development of SMEs, which account for 95 percent of businesses operating in Albania, would keep the country’s economy growth at high rates. “It is important for the country’s economy that the beneficiaries of this scheme also include IT companies” said Meta.
Innovation and IT Minister Genc Pollo said that promotion of IT was very important for Albania to narrow its gap with developed EU countries.
Under this project, Albanian SMEs will have better access to financial services including diversification and reinforcement of banking services, increased capital availability for medium and long term loans, and initiate a process of institutional building in order to create a favourable environment for SMEs development and interaction between companies, public authorities and local consultants.
A project grant, worth 1.76 million euros has also been committed to the technical assistance and training for a proper management of the programme.
Another 1 million euro grant is being implemented by the EBRD to assists Albanian small and medium enterprises to develop and grow by enhancing their competitiveness, marketing and financial management, quality of management systems and strategic business planning. The Business Advisory Services (BAS) programme works directly with individual SMEs utilizing, whenever possible, the skills of local professional consultants to provide specific and clearly defined, practical business advice to enterprises, assisting them to improve their business performance. BAS also supports Albanian consultants developing and delivering their service at highest professional standards.
Earlier this month, Italy reconfirmed its financial support to Albania’s economic development announcing the allocation of another 50 million euro fund for the next two years to implement projects supporting energy, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as agricultural and social development.
Albanian INSTAT Italy remains the country top trade partner. Exports with Italy made up 56.7 percent of the country’s total in September while imports were reported at 28.2 percent.
Italy also continued remaining Albania’s main destination for textile and shoe exports in the first nine months of this year with 34.4 billion lek or more than 80 percent of the total, followed by Germany with 2.5 billion lek and Greece with 2.2 billion lek.
According to Italy’s Confindustria lobby group, some 300 Italian companies operate in Albania, mainly operating footwear and garment manufacturing.