On the road Qafë Plloçë-Qukës, one of the key road segments of the national road and part of Corridor 8, the works managers have encountered serious difficulties in the project implementation. The project was absurdly designed with a gap of 24 meters, and some parts of the road were tendered without including the asphalting. In these conditions, the project had to be redrawn to improve all these elements, avoiding the problem of imbalances and other flaws in the design, which according to the specialists were an environmental massacre. After the redesigning, in addition to the first 700-metre tunnel, the 15.8 kilometre road includes the construction of a second 300-meter tunnel and two bridges. Prime Minister Edi Rama, accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister Niko Peleshi, visited this work site.
“This is the first tunnel exit. It was supposed to be 404 meters long, but changes have been made to improve the project, and the first tunnel was extended to 700 meters. The construction of a second 300-metre tunnel was proposed to avoid this U-shaped digging, which made no sense. An environmental massacre. Two long bridges are the continuation of the tunnel. There was a 24-metre gap”, one of the work leaders explained.
The project envisages also the construction of an emergency tunnel. “Another emergency tunnel will be open, 400 meters from the main tunnel. A small tunnel is open in case of fire or emergency, and the entire road will be asphalted and will be available for the emergency tunnel”, one of the designers explained.
Qafë Plloçë-Qukës is not the only road sector with major geometric and engineering flaws in terms of design. For this reason projects have been reviewed from scratch, something that took time but, as the Prime Minister noted, was necessary to avoid serious problems in the future.
“The roads made by Sali are all projects that need to be reviewed from scratch, with major topographic and engineering flaws. Some time was lost, but it was necessary. This change in the project was necessary because had we continued with the project we inherited, we would have been now in a far catastrophic situation than that with the Tirana-Elbasan road where a dramatic sliding occurred, and actually they wouldn’t have completed it duly. They would have been stuck in an abyss”, the Prime Minister noted.
The Prime Minister urged maximum concentration for the advancement of the works. “What we are interested in, of course without prejudice to the quality of work, is to have the maximum pace to make up for lost time.”
Qafë Plloçë-Qukës provides the shortest road link with Korça and villages in the southeast area of the country. It shortens travel time and reduces costs for vehicles.
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An abandoned building in Korçë since 1989, is being transformed in the “City of children”, a multifunctional centre to educate them in their spare time. Located in the sports area of the city, the function of the building has been completely redesigned as a space dedicated to children, where they have the opportunity to carry out various sports, entertainment and education age-appropriate activities. All these activities that today are performed in Korca in poor quality facilities that are not suitable for children, will be performed within a single polyvalent structure that encourages talent, confidence, socialization and a sense of community since an early age.
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Prime Minister Edi Rama continued conversation with Dvoran farmers, in the district of Korce, on projects and the greatest financial package in 25 years for agriculture. The National Guarantee Fund provides new opportunities for farmers who will receive up to 300 million euros in three years as a financial support from banks with state guarantees.
“Thanks to the effort we have made in a short period of time under the guidance of the Deputy Prime Minister, we could enter a new agreement that opens up a new perspective for farmers who want to invest in agriculture, who want to invest not only in production and processing lines, but also for the development of their agricultural production or livestock. Farmers will receive loans from banks, which are not ordinary loans but loans guaranteed by the government, hence by the National Guarantee Fund, where the government substitutes the farmer. In this case, the government gives a guarantee and acts as a mediator between the farmer and the bank to get soft loans, from those with zero interest to those with low interest rates. Municipalities have started work to be equipped with the necessary structure that will assist farmers applying to get these types of loans that are more favourable for the farm business.”
The irrigation and drainage project will replace the old system with a modern hydraulic and coverage system to be applied for the first time in the country.
“What we are doing with irrigation is an intermediate stage, because the irrigation system is old. We cannot continue with this system. We need to switch to hydraulic irrigation. We will start with Myzeqe where work is about to start at the end of October, to continue in the area of Myzeqe, Divjakë-Lushnje, Roskovec. The first hydraulic irrigator in Albania will be located precisely in that area.”
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The new opportunities provided to farmers by the National Guarantee Fund were talked by Prime Minister Rama with farmers of Stropckë, in Pogradec.
“The National Guarantee Fund makes lending available also to the countryside, even in a large extent, provided that we are prepared and have the right projects, to make appropriate applications. When I say we, I don’t mean the government, but I mean both the government and you”, the Prime Minister noted.
