The Transparency International report on the Government Defence Integrity Index 2020, concludes that corruption risks are high in Albania’s defence sector, which suffers from the lack of transparency, especially in procurement and financial management. The report, which is the world’s leading assessment of the corruption risks in government defence institutions, acknowledges an active focus on modernizing the defence and security apparatus in Albania, and also on the strengthening of the procurement legislation. Nevertheless, it evaluates that “most defence procurement remain single-sourced”, and “significant corruption risks exist in relation to military operations”. The external oversight remains weak, and according to the report the parliament fails to scrutinize the government performance regularly.
The Index is divided into 5 key corruption risk areas in the defence sector (Political, Financial, Personnel, Operational, and Procurement), and assesses the corruption risk for each area, by analyzing different indicators. Starting from 0 points (Critical corruption risk) to 100 (Very low corruption risk), each indicator gets a mark, which then is added to the area overall risk score. For example, the Operational risk area, is the worst-performing section, with an overall score of 15/100, indicating that the corruption risk here is at a Critical point. The report suggests that there is no military doctrine on corruption in operations, and there is no elaboration from the Albanian Armed Forces plan on how to tackle it. Given the small size of the Albanian Armed Forces, “there are no dedicated and trained anti-corruption officials to monitor corruption risks in operations.” The Index adds that “no reports on corruption risks are provided to the oversight bodies (parliament), nor has the parliament proactively requested information of that type.”
The second area performing more badly is the Procurement area, with an overall score of 36/100, indicating that the corruption risk is considered High. According to the report, “political influence on awarding contracts has been reported”, while adding that there’s a general belief among bidders “that tenders can only be acquired through political connections.” There are no obligatory provisions for the companies to sign anti-corruption clauses in contracts with the government or that require them to develop anti-corruption practices at the company level. Another issue of concern remains the fact that there are no publically known cases of investigations or prosecutions that have been conducted into breaches of the competition legislation in the defence and security sector. The political affiliations of companies with the ruling party also determine how and how much money is spent in particular areas.
The Financial area is also assessed as being at High risk of corruption, with a score of 38/100. Some of the problems listed here are related to the lack of information on various issues, such as the disposal of assets and immovable properties of the Albanian Armed Forces. The properties registered to different units remains an issue to be addressed. Also, the information on the incomes from the disposal of movable military assets is not available on the websites of the ministries.
The Political area risk factor score is 47/100, which is still considered High. The report suggests that there is very little debate on defence and security policy in Albania, with limited public scrutiny on the sources of funding of the defence sector. While organized crime is defined as one of the top threats to Albania in the Military Strategy, there are no specific action-plans or reports by the Ministry of Defence to inform on the outcomes of the efforts conducted in the implementation of the strategy. The political polarization continues to be an issue, and the majority in parliament rarely challenges the executive’s proposals, therefore making the opposition the only force that reviews the drafts or propose amendments. This produces a limited effectiveness of the check and balances system. Conducting long investigations is also not a common practice from the Committee of National Security.
Personal area risk factor score is 60/100, which is considered Moderate, making it the best performing category. Some of the problems listed here are related to the limited training on anti-corruption, the lack of data on the number of prosecutions and investigations involving defence and security personnel, and the little communication on anti-corruption within the Ministry of Defence and the armed forces. There are “no reports published by the MoD on the activity of anti-corruption and integrity bodies, so the number of administrative sanctions for wrongdoing concerning appointments is not publically known”. The action also does not reflect the overall anti-corruption discourse, and the MoD still does not have an integrity plan. The trust in the system continues to be low, which is reflected also in the lack of whistleblowers cases.
In total, Albania overall score is 39/100, meaning that there’s a High corruption risk in the defence sector. In the region, Kosovo, Serbia are regarded also as High risk countries for corruption in the defence sector, while Montenegro is considered a Very high-risk country. North Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina are considered as Moderate risk countries.
