Prime Minister Edi Rama today held a meeting with students and lecturers at the Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic University, private higher education institution that opened its doors in 2004 in Tirana that has made a name over the years, with thousands of students educated in line with the most contemporary European programs.

The visit to the university campus took place after the government head toured the excellent hospital centre Our Lady of Good Counsel, set to open its doors next spring.

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I was informed that around 2000 Albanian students and 800 Italian students attend this university and I am convinced that the 2000 Albanian students speak Italian fluently, yet I don’t think that the 800 Italians speak Albania and that’s why in language I had to deliver this speech, but they insisted that I have to speak Albanian.

I was first told about this university by Professor Tritan Shehu. I used to serve as Mayor back then and I was just elected to the post when the professor came to my office and passionately told me about the project and, as far as I can remember, he asked for the municipality help so that the project was not hindered by bureaucracy and the university became operational shortly after.

I hadn’t visited this university previously, but better late than never, but the good name has spread and I am immensely happy to have been given the opportunity to be here today after having visited the new hospital centre earlier.

I recall that the professor told me this was actually the idea: to begin with the university and an excellence hospital centre would be built later.

Many years have passed since then, but the university has made an excellent biography now, so to say, and thousands upon thousands students have graduated from this university.

The hospital is slated to open its doors in April and it is actually another jewel in the crown of this initiative that keeps expanding and, as I was told, the ambition is for the centre to expand further.

I had the privilege to visit the Holy Father a few days ago and I would like to tell you that Our Lady of Good Counsel was the highlight of the conversation, either from his memory of the visit here, or the concern to ensure expansion of this fantastic infrastructure and the hospital.

I am also very glad to shake hands with the new archbishop today. I didn’t tell him, as because we haven’t met before, but I learned it, as a secret, from Pope Francis that Albania would have an Albanian Archbishop, whom he was to announce in the following days, but since he asked me not to tell him, I could not convey the good news to the Archbishop before he officially received it.

Likewise, conversation with Pope Francis always revolves around Mother Teresa, who is the source of this university’s drive and the testator for the hospital that will open soon.

I avail myself of this occasion to announce something that is yet to become public, together with the Holy See and during the conversation with Pope Francis, we agreed on building a reference point in the capital of Mother Teresa, a space dedicated to our saint and to all humanity, which will serve not only the Catholic faithful, and Albanians, but all those who have admired her all over the world and want to continue to admire her by visiting the soul of Mother Teresa in such a space.

There is another element which I am happy to mention here, because this university, though not specifically, has helped me in my work as well. When I was accompanied by the president of the Foundation, he told me that Viola, who serves as the protocol assistant at the Prime Minister’s office today, and who works to prepare my visits, has been his assistant for 3 years.

This is a reason why Viola is to be praised for her performance, because 3 years here is a very strong reason to respect all professional education. But it’s not just Viola. Albana has also contributed to this university and is now Deputy Minister of Education, which is specifically dedicated to higher education.

To go over the seemingly most problematic part of the visit and the conversation, Our Lady of Good Counsel University is one more reason to be highlighted in the eyes of everyone as actually a first experience in providing the opportunity to Albanian students, the best performing Albanian students to attend best universities in Albania, without having to leave the country, but gaining knowledge and an university degree in Albania, which is valid outside Albania.

This is of a special value to us in the conditions when we have already entered a new phase of our higher education policy, namely to support the internationalization of our public universities as much as possible and create as many spaces similar to this, where Albanian students are given the opportunity without having to leave the country in order to enrol in a more qualitative university than what our higher education system can offer them today, but instead to stay in Albania and attend joint programs with the highest level universities in Europe and in the world, and have their diplomas recognized everywhere around the world so that they can turn their investment in education in the future into a secure career path here or anywhere in the world.

On the other hand, this is an initiative about which, together with the European Union, we are doing our best  to make sure that while the whole process of European integration is what it is for all known reasons, the process of integration of the European university system with our university system, and not only with our education system, but all the countries in the Western Balkans, to be much faster; which means providing opportunities for our universities to join the network of European universities, which has ushered in a totally new phase for several years now, with a direct support from the European Union too, in creating synergies between universities, making sure that universities in a united Europe are no longer separate structures that create synergies with 2-3 other structures in other countries of the European Union and thus give students the opportunity while in a university, to make the experience of several universities at the same time and finally get a degree, which it is definitely the diploma of the parent university, but which comes as a result of a very intensive exchange of experience with an added value.

Accession of our universities to this system would represent a huge step forward.

In the meantime, the government has for the first time allocated a state budget fund, starting next year, to provide direct support to universities that will commit to taking concrete steps towards internationalization. Of course, this is a fund earmarked for our public universities, but at the same time, I believe this is a path already opened up by Our Lady of Good Counsel University and this is the path where non-public universities, a term about which I have been very skeptical, can embark on gradually. I have been skeptical, because I find it unjust and unfair to call a university like the Our Lady of Good Counsel a non-public university, since it is not funded by the government, but which is a non-profit higher education institution. So, this university reinvests all the income it generates and it is a public university, but not funded by the state, according to me, but this is a battle I have already lost not only against professor Tritan, but against his party too, and it remains to be seen what we can do in the future.

Meanwhile, there is another element about which I talked with the university rector and it is about a new element in the state budget for the education system, which can certainly include the non-public universities too, and it is about technology and scientific research. I am convinced that this university can consider opening another technology and research-dedicated faculty to contribute to our joint effort aimed at involving as many Albanian boys and girls as possible in a process of gaining proficiency and use of new technology, at the same time strengthening the scientific research in our universities.

I would like to draw your attention regarding the EU-funded “Horizon” programme, where this university too hasn’t excelled, and this is the case with other Albanian universities that lag behind other universities in the region in terms of absorbing the EU funds. We have adhered to the Horizon Europe programme and we regularly pay a membership fee for this programme, but it is regrettable that although both public and private universities needs more funding, especially the public higher education institutions, and they keep complaining and demanding more funding, their absorption capacity is at a minimum level although accessible funds have been made available to them.

So, it could be worth drawing attention to this issue in order for this university and other higher education institutions mobilize more forces and know-how in this regard, because I am convinced that Our Lady of Good Counsel University actually has all the capacities to absorb more funds under the Horizon Europe programme and also create synergies with the public universities.

So, a university should not necessarily apply on its own, but joint groups are established instead, set a certain target that could secure them additional funding for their universities. Finally – and this could be not the right thing to say since I have yet to discuss it with the Education Minister, but it could be a result of the positive energy here and it has to do with the idea about a change to the approach towards the so-called excellence fund, which, for years now, has been made available to best performing students enrolling leading international universities. But there is a problem with the fund provided by government for more than 10 years now and every administration has granted funds for Albanian students attending very prestigious universities and the idea was that such funding would be translated into an investment of these students for the country, but the truth is that it is not being returned into an investment for the country, because these best performing students are highly sought by the American market and other Western markets after they graduate from these leading universities and they prefer to lead their career there. The idea is that the excellence fund is provided to support students attending Albanian universities, including your students here, for the medicine students at Our Lady of Good Counsel University, and the new hospital that is going to become operational in the next few months.

Then, by making a selection in collaboration with the rector here of a number of students who are the best, we can fund those students, but with the agreement that the investment for their studies will be returned to service at the hospital here, or at other hospitals in our country. And so, the young doctors who come out of the “Lady of Good Counsel” and who are, as I hear, so good that they are in demand everywhere, not only here, can contribute here and this, not only for the Lady of the Good Council, but also for the faculty of public medicine, but also for some other professions, which are professions that the country needs, because I believe that it is of special value in terms of all the sermons of the Archbishop and the whole three quarters of those who are here dealing with spiritual therapies.

 I am concluding my remarks by congratulating the girl who opened this meeting, for her impressive Albanian and impressive communication. If she wishes to be involved in politics, Professor Tritan can provide her my address.