New road to Butrint Park under construction

TIRANA, March 30 – A new road is being built next to the National park of Butrint in Saranda, southern Albania, to protect archeological heritage and promote sustainable development of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Inspecting the works on Tuesday, Culture and Tourism Minister Ferdinand Xhaferaj said the road would make the Butrint Park more easily accessible. “This is a road which is not treated as a common road but as a road suitable for an archeological park of global values,” said Xhaferaj as quoted by the ministry’s press office.
The Minister assured all that the road would undergo all aesthetic intervention and have its vegetation replanted to promote tourism and cultural heritage.
“Apart from the sun and sand tourism, we want tourists coming to Albania to enjoy the values of cultural heritage further extending their experience in the country,” added Xhafaraj.
All agencies of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture and companies implementing the road project are cooperating to fulfill the recommendations of the National Council of Archeology.
The current narrow road to the National Park of Butrint, which attracts thousands of foreign tourists annually, will have two lanes after its reconstruction.
The importance of Butrint to the nation’s cultural heritage was first recognized in 1948 when it became a site of historical importance. In 1992, Butrint was designated as a World Heritage Site, a status that identifies cultural and natural sites of outstanding universal value. However, it wasn’t until 2000 that the archeological site of Butrint became a National Park of 26 sq km.