The nine-year school “Shaqe Mazreku” in Durres is being rebuilt to become even larger and more beautiful educational facility for its 720 pupils and teachers. On Nov 26, on the first anniversary of the devastating earthquake that hit Albania last year, its students, instead of the old and derelict school building constructed in 1937, will find a brand new and transformed school building designed to meet contemporary standards for habitability and environmental comfort and provide spaces for contemporary education.
With a total of 24 classrooms, labs, a gym, a library and other service premises, this school will be among the first to be ready to open doors to its students, the Minister of State for Reconstruction Arben Ahmetaj said.
While inspecting the ongoing construction works, accompanied by the Mayor of Durres, Emiriana Sako, Prime Minister Rama said “this is the case to tell those who complain about reconstruction process in Durres that we are about to kick off work to construct the apartment buildings, while project on the new residential neighbourhood is being finalized. We are finalizing the procedures, because now it is the turn of the part that will be covered by our United Arab Emirate friends, who will apply their own procedures. Many refuse to realize this is also a matter of procedures and documents and it is a matter of agreements. If we are to consider the speed in launching the reconstruction projects, one ought to see that the European Union, which will build a number of schools, has yet to complete the required procedures. We carried out the procedures very quickly and the reconstruction process would have progressed a lot more if everything was not to be halted down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which hampered the procedures.”
With the construction of new schools and the individual homes already underway in Durres, work will begin to construct the apartment buildings within October 15 as part of the post-earthquake recovery and reconstruction programme.