The Economist Conference discusses Albania’s way forward

TIRANA, Oct. 31 – Economist Conferences on Wednesday hosted the ‘Second Business Roundtable with the Government of Albania’ following a successful inaugural roundtable a year ago.
The conference discussed on the Government priorities toward business for the next 12 months; Update on the fight against organized crime and corruption; What is the government doing to attract more foreign direct investment? And Should companies be concerned about Albania’s domestic political environment?
Participants included Gazmend Oketa, Deputy Prime Minister; Steven Grunerud, Chief Executive Officer, Raiffeisen Bank in Albania; Samir Mane, President, Mane TCI; Nenad Pacek, Chairman of the Roundtable and Vice-president, EMEA, Economist Intelligence Unit.
It was sponsored by Raiffeisen Bank and Bankers Petroleum, and also Titan Cement, Philip Morris and Wolf Theiss.
Oketa said that the government was looking to make Albania one of the most hospitable countries for foreign investment, highlighting the recent creation of a national business registration centre, aimed at making it easier to start a business in Albania.
“The number of businesses being registered is increasing rapidly”, he noted, adding that economic growth in Albania would remain strong despite the current problems in the energy sector.
Oketa also answered questions from delegates about the need for government to keep businesses informed about new laws, the issue of transparency in public tenders and about whether Albania has the necessary legal framework for e-commerce.
Nenad Pacek, Chairman of the Roundtable and Vice-president, EMEA, Economist Intelligence Unit commented, “The economic and business environment in Albania has been steadily improving and record FDI testifies to that. But, businesses are still very concerned about power shortages, bureaucracy, the judiciary and infrastructure. The good news is that the government is very aware of the issues that companies face and therefore companies can expect steady improvements in the next two to three years.”
Richard Eames, Senior Analyst, Economist Intelligence Unit also added that political and economic risks in Albania should remain manageable over the next 12 months. The main challenge for the government is to improve the country’s business environment, for example by reforming the judicial system, and making it easier for companies to deal with the public administration.
“The second Roundtable demonstrated that interest in Albania continues to grow. The government is committed to bringing Albania closer to the other EU countries”, noted Grunerud, Chief Executive Officer of Raiffeisen Bank in Albania.
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