“Building Trust – Albania’s Path to the EU through Transparent Governance” was the event held today as part of Integrity Week, where the “Transparent Albania” platform was presented. This platform serves as a unique gateway for quick and easy access to information, with a focus on prioritizing budget transparency.

Adea Pirdeni, the Minister of State for Public Administration and Anti-Corruption, explained that “The platform aims to be a valuable tool for every citizen who wants to know, at any time and with utmost accuracy, without excessive bureaucracy, where their money is going, how policies are made on their behalf, and how public institutions are engaged for both the present and future of Albania. Simply put, ‘Transparent Albania’ strives to guarantee a state that is accessible through your phone.”

Prime Minister Rama described the transparency platform as “a new bridge between the government and citizens, ensuring much greater speed and broader access to information on the government’s daily activities.”

***

Allow me the pleasure of sharing some very good news that we have just received: Albania has been nominated to host the World Law Congress, a global forum with exceptional reputation and prestige. The selection of the host country is undoubtedly not only about having adequate infrastructure for hosting, but also about what the host country represents in the substantive context of this forum. Albania’s candidacy for hosting the World Law Congress is undeniably tied to the completely new image of the country and the globally acknowledged recognition of everything Albania has accomplished over the past decade in strengthening the rule of law.

I am very hopeful that we are not just a candidate, but that we will indeed be the host country of the World Law Congress next year.

Today, we are here to share another important step in the journey towards Albania 2030, a step that is also connected to the commitments Albania has made under the new European Union growth plan. This is not just about adding a new page or more information on the internet for the public; it is about a new tool, a new platform, and a new bridge linking the government and citizens, ensuring much greater speed and wider access to information on the government’s daily activities.

This platform is unquestionably aligned with our ambition to make Albania a truly European country in terms of the standards of a rule of law state. At the same time, it offers a new opportunity to create a much broader base of real-time information, not only for citizens but also for all information professionals, meaning the media.

The platform will allow everyone to track the Albanian government’s expenditures in real-time, meaning they will know how much revenue is being spent and for what purposes, as it happens. Another key innovation and challenge of this platform is its real-time updates. While, as the Commissioner mentioned, significant progress has been made in this area, the administration still lacks the instinct for speed in this regard.

A further important innovation of the platform is its interactivity. This means that if, until now, a citizen or a media representative contacts a specific institution and does not receive a timely response, they can escalate the matter to the Commissioner, who will then directly address the institution.

In 70% of cases, responses are provided within seconds, meaning the delays are entirely unrelated to any intentional cause. Instead, they are linked to what I mentioned earlier—the underestimation or lack of the administrative habit of responding in real-time and meeting deadlines. The remaining 30% of unanswered cases are somewhat more complex. I believe this transparency element, which involves processing every request within the governance system, will help increase accountability and create a greater sense of duty to respond, ensuring that public officials are not faced with a situation where their ability or motivation to perform their duties is questioned, which could ultimately lead to sanctions under public administration law.

Another aspect of the platform we have discussed at length—and something Adea briefly touched upon—is that the publication of this platform is intended for consultation. It is not a final platform or an undisputed mechanism. We want to gather feedback, suggestions, and ideas from anyone interested in helping improve the platform. The element I am referring to is not yet included in the platform, but I believe it is both useful and, for me, essential. It relates to current issues that occupy a significant place in public debate—issues such as expenditures, procurement, public-private partnerships, or how one institution or another approaches certain activities that raise doubts or cause concern.

I believe that, given the high level of digitalization in governance we have achieved, along with what we have done so far with the co-governance system and the work done by the Office of the Commissioner, we now have more than enough of a foundation to claim that “Transparent Albania” will become a meaningful and tangible reflection of an Albania that fully deserves EU membership. I am confident that it will require extra work, particularly in the minds of all those who have the institutional and governmental duty to bring this platform to life every day. I am certain there will be lessons to learn, gaps to fill, or shortcomings to correct along the way, but I have no doubt that once the platform is fully launched into public life—after this consultation phase is completed, and when the teams behind the scenes are fully prepared to address all the windows the final platform will offer—we will be at a completely new level of transparency, a new level of accountability, and a new level of quality in the relationship between the state and the public, as well as between institutions and citizens. I truly believe that this new level, in this regard, will create new energy and serve as a fresh impetus to improve the performance of all institutions.

I would like to especially thank Adea, who, as the EU Ambassador rightly states, is a guarantee for us. I also want to express my gratitude to the entire team that has worked on this very important innovation for our country, from my perspective. I would like to thank the Commissioner and his office, which, with a small team and insufficient financial support from the government, has achieved work that, according to the European Commission itself, is highly regarded. My impression is that precisely because they are a small team with limited resources, their work is so effective that I fear if they had more people and funding, their vigilance might decrease, and the blame game might begin. As it stands, they are so few that there is no one to blame, and they deliver excellent results.

So, thank you very much and congratulations to the director who has been selected as one of the top ten at the Council of Europe. This is another very positive development for the Albanian administration, as we are now seeing, with great satisfaction, that the Albanian administration, through its worthy representatives, is gaining recognition beyond Albania’s borders. And of course, I want to thank everyone else present here who patiently endured yet another long speech of mine.

Thank you, EU! A special thank you to the Ambassador of France, who supports us in all our activities and brings us great joy. And, of course, a sincere thank you to the most important person in this room, whose name alone explains why — the Ombudsperson, who is here today, dressed in red, and helps guide us toward a completely blue horizon.

Thank you very much!