Issuance of annual student cards, a process finalized under the Pact on University, kicked off today at the Faculty of Economics, University of Tirana. The student cards entitle their holders to as many as 62 various public services and certain discounts on public transportation, telecommunications, supermarkets, banks, theatre, cinema and museum entrance fees and other services that will be provided by 40 private companies operating in the country. Prime Minister Edi Rama met today a group of Faculty of Economics students, many of whom have joined the staff tasked with finalizing this process.

Mayor of Tirana Erion Veliaj made a presentation of the application process, production and the student cards issuance process, due to be also active in the electronic version in a near future.

“Each of student will have a mirror monitor, so our employee can check the whole activity. Much of the staff we have employed for finalization of the student cards process are students. The process begins with an empty card and its bar code is first scanned. This bar code can be used in every store and other services. The card is then printed with all the student personal data and each student, while providing personal information, may decide on the times he or she wishes to be informed about various offers. In addition to over 62 public services, mainly delivered by the local and central government, the Ministry of Culture, some 40 private companies, including main mobile phone companies, which will make available various offers to students, commercial banks, sporting companies, clothing and electronic devices stores, libraries etc. So, more private than public services will be delivered to the student card holders by next week.

The process started here at the Faculty of Economics and it will further extend to the Faculty of Law and Foreign Languages Faculty. This office will serve similarly to the company providing distribution of the ID cards. Once the initial large influx declines, the office providing student cards will reduce number of operators. Once 90 percent of students are provided the student card and someone might have been unable to apply for such a card for various reasons, a permanent office will be opened to produce and issue such cards. Two operators will be positioned at each faculty of each university. Around 100 000 cards will be made available to some 80 000 students. So we expect most of students to be equipped with the annual student card. Every student will also be made available an electronic version of their cards, which will become active starting from Monday. The system is much more important than the piece of plastic itself. A database including every e-mail address and phone number will be created so that each student can decide on the number of times he or she wishes to be informed on various offers and every announcement made by the University, the Ministry of Education or the Municipality in the future. The first year students will be provided a three-year valid card, while the validity of the card of the second year students will be two years. Starting from today, each office providing this service should put up a poster: “Applications for student cards can be submitted here.”

The application process for the student card lasts four minutes only and the entire issuance process is set to complete by first week of July. “The application lasts 4 minutes. Each of the distribution office has a capacity production and issuance capacity of 100 cards. So this means we will be ready to complete the process for some 86 000 students in Tirana by early July,” Deputy Mayor of Tirana Arbër Mazniku.

On his part, PM Edi Rama said it is important to expand the range of various services the student card holders are entitled to.

“Thank you all for not protesting because of the long queue. This is a significant patience sign. Of course, producing over 80 000 student cards takes time and patience because the estimated completion time by early July, but I believe that a system will be in place in collaboration with the faculties and universities with applicant groups applying according a certain order so that long queues and large influx are avoided. What is more important in my view is that while basis is laid through a fruitful cooperation – not only with the municipalities, but the private sector too – to ensure an effective functioning of the student cards, which means that student card holders will be entitled to benefit not only reduced fees and fares when visiting museums, or other public spaces and services, including the public transportation too, but also other benefits under the agreements with private companies that provide various services, which, I believe, will keep expanding. Some 40 private companies have joined the initiative for the time being and they offer a wide range of services and goods, including the sports companies, banks and mobile phone operators. In other words, it is a process that will further enrich the range of services that will be delivered to the student card holders. One might ask, while it took so long for the student cards to be issued? Indeed, it is a somehow complex story, because, normally, according to the higher education law the universities themselves should have launched such a process, with the university administrative staff having to work and reach agreements with the local government authorities, other central government institutions and the private sector. Yet this has not taken place and instead of keeping calling on university authorities to embark on this process, we decided, also thanks to the impetus you gave us and it is no longer important who does it, but how the process is finalized. So, today it is a fact that the student card production is now already underway and other municipalities will follow the suit to ensure issuance of the student cards based on the model and work done by Tirana Municipality. The experience and the system is now available to other municipalities and it takes just work to start the process. We will urge them, but if they refuse to heed our calls, then we will beg you to stage another protest in front of that particular municipality building and call for the student cards to be issued.

I would like to thank each and every of you and everyone else not participating this event today, but still are part of this very positive development, because such a card would have not been produced if it was not for the student protests. After all, this is the beauty of the system we have chosen, this is democracy where the government is not supposed to know everything and should not be either left alone in order to do things the way it knows to do them, but where the citizens are supposed not only when they cast their vote, but also make their voice be heard and have their say during the governance process and lucky those who have a government that listens them just like we are doing constantly. Thank you very much!