Government - institutional structure, policy definition, e-government services

Business - competitiveness, growth

Civil Society - accessibility

This summary is part of a research project carried out between March and October 2006 in support of the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD), one of The Communication Initiative (The CI)'s partners.

The Republic of Albania sees information, communication and technology (ICT) development as an essential tool in building an information society, which in turn is fundamental to the rapid development of Albania and the region. The report recognises that Albania lags behind other European countries, and despite several initiatives, has a lot of catching up to do. The national ICT strategy contributes to reducing the digital divide, the development gap between economically poorer and richer countries and particularly between Southeast Europe and the European Union. The report emphasises that the strategy must aim to develop the information society both in stimulating competitiveness and applying ICT for the benefit of the whole population.


Human capital is seen to be the major resource of the information society, and, according to this report, ICT applied in a socially inclusive way has the power to provide new opportunities for everyone, including the economically poor and disadvantaged. ICT is to be used in all sectors of life: business, transport, tourism, agriculture, environment, leisure, culture and responding to humanitarian and environmental crises. The report suggests that the information society has the potential to render the economy more competitive, more efficient and productive.

The overall goal of this policy is to construct a strategy, policy and implementation plan to exploit the potential of ICT in Albania. It is believed that ICT will help support growth, sustainable development, increase living standards, create employment, improve working conditions and motivate educated individuals to stay in the country. The strategy is based on principles of promoting human resources, equal access for everyone and a transparent and coherent policy aimed at the needs of all users, including government, business and citizens.

As noted in the executive summary, the ICT Strategy has to take into account several constraints, which are related to the general situation in the country. These include:

• Albania has good human capacities for ICT, but there is to a certain degree a lack of experience in using human resources for effective deployment of ICT, which has to be built up during the realisation of the Strategy;
• High social disparity in the country, with a relatively high illiteracy of the population 7% (1997 est.) and lack of knowledge of the English language;
• Lack of financial means of a considerable part of population to acquire access to ICT;
• The economic and political stability, which has to be guaranteed by the government as the general frame; and
• Irregular provision of electrical energy.

The formulation of the ICT Strategy for Albania coincides with, and should assist its transition into, the existence of a fully democratic society and market economy and the start of the process of accession to the European Union.