Oxfam's work in Albania in depth
Since Albania’s communist regime collapsed in the early 1990s, the country has undergone the difficult process of adapting to a free market economy. With a growing gap between rich and poor people and little investment to support people’s livelihoods, Oxfam is working with people in rural areas to make their way of life sustainable and profitable.
Oxfam in Albania
Following 18 years of volatile transition to the free market economy and attempts to bring EU accession closer, Albania continues to face poverty, deep inequalities and limited investments. Although the overall rate of poverty has slightly gone down recently, 18,5 per cent of Albanians still live in absolute poverty whereas this figures rise to 24 per cent in rural areas. The country is witnessing an increase in regional disparities.
Oxfam began working in Albania in 1992, giving support to poor mountain communities. During the 1999 Kosovo crisis we provided water and sanitation for displaced people, and we established the Albanian Disability Rights Foundation.
Local organisations, rural producers associations work with us, developing innovative ways for people to make a secure living and helping producers to improve production and to reach potential markets. Such initiatives help to create new jobs within a community. Oxfam support them through economic social and technological advancement to accelerating the change. More widely, Oxfam is campaigning with and for small farmers, so that they can have a part in developing the rural economy.
Developing rural economies
Farming for profit
Much of Albania’s rural, mountainous heartland is difficult to reach, with poor roads and transport, but there is a living to be made from the land and forests. If well-supported, these resources could stop younger people from leaving the country in search of work abroad.
Our programme is helping small farmers from Shkodra, Dibra and Vlora regions to improve and diversify the agriculture products for their own consumption and for the market. We are doing this through the provision of affordable good quality inputs suitable for local conditions and professional advice on farming techniques/technical tools.
Supporting small business development in rural communities
Farmers who produce wine, olives, herbs, honey, fruits and vegetables and those who rear livestock are developing producers and marketing associations. We are assisting them with technical assistance and small business development also with packaging and labelling support, thereby enabling them to enter the market with standards. We also support them in the provision or improvement of storage and processing facilities using low-cost technology.
With training funded by Oxfam, many farmers are improving their ways of production and marketing, and are creating stronger links with local and national markets. For instance, a co-operative of grape growers in Hajmel has improved and packaged their wine so they could sell it in the capital, Tirana. Now, their new brand, Zadrima, is ready to grace the tables of the most discerning wine-buffs, which is a great step forward for these farmers who were struggling to make ends meet not so long ago.
A special focus of the programme is working with young rural people supporting their engagement in economic activities, vocational training vocational training and entrepreneurship.
Making trade fair
Although half of the Albanian population relies on farming, livestock, and forestry to make a living, the market is set against them; people have to compete with highly subsidised imports from European Union countries, and there is no protection for their fragile farming economies. Farmers and producers are promoting their wares – and increasing their opportunities to sell to consumers and traders – at agricultural trade fairs that Oxfam helped them to set up.
Fostering the inclusion of rural poor in decision making
The needs of poor farmers are often overlooked when the national and regional governments make planning decisions. But their needs should be included on the government’s agenda – so Oxfam is encouraging the opening-up of communication channels between farming communities, civil society organisations, and government. With dialogue on rural development issues, farmers are beginning to have more of a say in priorities, budgeting, and planning decisions that affect them.
Oxfam partners in Albania
Local Professional organisations
PRC (Permaculture Resource Center, Shkoder)
Agritra Vision (Diber Region)
ADAD (Association for the Development of Agricultural in Mountain Districts )
Community Based Organisations
Vocational Center Blinisht
Kooperativa Vreshtaret e Zadrima Malore
Rec Prodhimtar Association
National Organisations/ Think tankers
Alba Forest
Last updated: December 08
Share this page
