Donors are reluctant to use Albanian public procurement and public financial management (PFM) systems and feel that challenges are due to change of staff in key institutions, says the OECD survey
TIRANA, Dec. 5 – Albania has met targets for only for 5 out of 13 indicators outlined in the Paris Declaration, according to the latest OECD survey on Aid Effectiveness 2005-10: Progress in implementing the Paris Declaration. The report says that since 2007 Albania progressed on a three indicators, one indicator remains unchanged and three indicators have seen setbacks. Of the targets that have not yet been achieved, slow progress has been made regarding alignment and harmonization and based on the current rate of progress, these indicators are unlikely to reach even their 2010 target in the next few years, says the report.
“Albania has made progress in ownership, management for results, and mutual accountability. Progress in these areas provides the foundation for moving the remaining indicators forward and at a faster pace. In particular, the preparation process and implementation of the National Strategy for Development and Integration 2007-13 and associated initiatives have created specific mechanisms to facilitate increased aid effectiveness.”
Among challenges, the report notes that in the alignment indicator “Donors are reluctant to use Albanian public procurement and Public financial management (PFM) systems and feel that challenges are due to change of staff in key institutions.”
The 2011 Survey indicates that 56 percent of scheduled aid was recorded in public accounts, falling below the 2010 target of 74 percent. The baseline score in 2005 was 49 percent, which decreased to 29 percent in 2007, and finally resulting in a 2010 score of 56 percent.
The differences come from slower than anticipated project implementation, meaning that some projects under-spend their budgets. The 2011 survey responses cover 23 donors and 76 percent of Albania’s core Official Development Assistance. Albania participated in the previous 2006 and 2008 surveys. In 2010, several stakeholders, including both donor and government bodies, were involved in the preparation of the report.
The report describes Albania as an upper-middle income country with a gross national income (GNI) of USD 4 000 per capita (2009) which has grown at an average rate of 5.7% per annum since 2005. It has a population of just over 3 million, 0.6% of whom (20 000 people) currently live under the 1.25 dollar-a-day income poverty line.
