SME Policy Index for Western Balkans and Türkiye 2026 – Economy Profile for Albania

1. Assessment findings by policy dimension

Abstract

This chapter assesses policy performance across 13 dimensions key to SME growth and competitiveness as part of the SME Policy Index 2026 assessment cycle. For each dimension, scores are benchmarked against the 2022 assessment to track progress over time, situated within the regional distribution of results and contextualised relative to economy’s own performance profile across dimensions. Results are disaggregated by sub-dimension and thematic block, with comparisons drawn to regional averages throughout. The analytical sections identify recent achievements and persistent gaps underpinning score changes, while implementation reviews for each sub-dimension document key developments recorded during the assessment period against recommendations issued in the previous cycle.

The chapter is intended as a practical reference for policymakers, offering a structured overview of areas where measurable progress has been achieved and areas where challenges remain. It is to be read in conjunction with the cluster section of the economy profile, which sets out forward-looking recommendations to support continued reform efforts.

Dimension 1: Entrepreneurial learning and women’s entrepreneurship in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 1

Albania received an overall score of 3.39 for Dimension 1 (Figure 1.1), representing one of the largest improvements observed in this dimension across the Western Balkans and Türkiye region since the previous assessment cycle (up from 2.96). Despite this progress, Albania remains only the fifth-highest performer in the region and continues to score below the regional average of 3.72. Accordingly, Dimension 1 is one of the economy’s mid-performing areas, indicating scope for further improvement.

Figure 1.1. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 1 and evolution since 2019

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The rise in Albania’s overall score since 2022 reflects progress in both entrepreneurial learning and women’s entrepreneurship. Yet, in both sub-dimensions, persistent challenges remain in complementing strategic frameworks and support measures with systematic monitoring and evaluation to assess effectiveness and inform evidence-based policy making. These shortcomings have been further amplified by recent methodological adjustments that place greater weight on monitoring and evaluation, the area where Albania performs the weakest.

Sub-dimension 1.1: Entrepreneurial learning

Albania’s performance in this sub-dimension has improved, as demonstrated by the substantial increase from 2.44 in 2022 to 3.08 in 2026. Progress can be observed across all three thematic blocks, largely reflecting this cycle’s stronger focus on work-based learning and dual vocational education and training (VET) – areas where Albania performs well – as well as piecemeal advances in expanding teacher training.

Albania has made initial policy steps to support entrepreneurial learning by including it in key national strategies. However, the absence of a national partnership to co-ordinate and guide implementation, compounded by a lack of co-ordination between the two ministries with primary responsibility for mainstreaming entrepreneurship across levels of education – the Ministry of Education and Sports and the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation – can hinder coherence and alignment. In practice, entrepreneurship continues to be delivered mainly through stand-alone courses rather than integrated as a cross-curricular key competence in alignment with the European Union’s Entrepreneurial Competence Framework framework. In addition, while guidance has not yet been developed to help primary and secondary education teachers deliver entrepreneurship as a cross-cutting competence, steps are being taken to expand more targeted training in vocational and higher education (Table 1.1).

Nevertheless, Albania has made tangible progress in strengthening implementation, primarily through expanding students’ access to practical entrepreneurial experiences. The Junior Achievement programme is the most widespread initiative, having achieved full coverage across the pre-university education system—the first Junior Achievement branch globally to reach 100% national coverage (Junior Achievement of Albania, 2023[1]). However, student participation is elective rather than compulsory, meaning that access depends on school-level decisions and individual student uptake. In parallel, Albania has expanded dual VET pathways which, while not explicitly entrepreneurial, provide students with practical skills and work-based experience relevant to the transition into employment; this expansion was enabled by a recent Decision of the Council of Ministers establishing the legal basis for dual VET, now operational across 6 occupational profiles in 10 public vocational schools, and involving 206 students and 120 businesses.

Monitoring and evaluation remains notably underdeveloped, with assessments of entrepreneurial learning largely confined to the VET system. Some incremental progress is nevertheless observable, as graduate tracking mechanisms, again primarily focused on VET, have continued to expand, gradually strengthening the available evidence base.

Table 1.1. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 1, Sub-dimension 1.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Establish a national partnership for entrepreneurial learning or identify a relevant multi-stakeholder partnership body to take lead responsibility and co-ordinate and guide implementation and monitoring and evaluation of entrepreneurial learning	No efforts have been made to establish a national, multi-stakeholder partnership (either by creating a new body or leveraging existing structures such as the inter-ministerial Integrated Policy Management Group) to co-ordinate, implement and monitor entrepreneurial learning.	None	See Cluster 4: “Fostering entrepreneurial skills and mindsets through education”
Prioritise the harmonisation of university teacher training programmes with training content	Efforts to raise teachers’ awareness and understanding are evident through a European Union-funded initiative, “EntrAL”. The training module, “Entrepreneurship for University Teachers”, was developed as part of the project in alignment with the European Union’s Entrepreneurial Competence Framework. The pilot course was delivered in December 2022 and trained 32 academic staff. However, the initiative has not yet translated into broader, systematic integration across higher education.	Limited	See Cluster 4: “Fostering entrepreneurial skills and mindsets through education”
Create national teacher guidance on how to integrate the development of entrepreneurship as a cross-curricular key competence into all curriculum areas	In 2022, the National Agency for Vocational Education, Training and Qualifications (NAVETQ) introduced an annual 30-day “Basics of Didactics in VET” course for teachers, which includes entrepreneurial skills as a key competence. However, beyond this initiative, teacher guidance on entrepreneurship remains largely confined to standalone subjects (e.g. “Basics of Entrepreneurship”), with no national guidance in place to support a cross-curricular approach.	Limited	See Cluster 4: “Fostering entrepreneurial skills and mindsets through education”

Sub-dimension 1.2: Women’s entrepreneurship

Albania scored 3.85 on Sub-dimension 1.2 on women’s entrepreneurship, up from 3.75 in 2022. This improvement reflects advances in planning and design and implementation, supported by reinforced legal and strategic commitments and greater efforts to operationalise these through co-ordinated and measurable action.

Recent developments point to a more consolidated institutional and policy architecture for women’s entrepreneurship, with clearer strategic direction and strengthened governance arrangements. The Strategy of Innovative Entrepreneurship Development 2025-2030 introduces a dedicated measure to support girls and women, backed by a state-financed allocation of ALL 45 million (EUR 461 000), building on the Business and Investment Development Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027, which incorporates gender-related objectives and targets for women’s participation in entrepreneurship support schemes. These strategic commitments are reinforced by Law No. 64/2025 “On Gender Equality”, which embeds binding obligations for gender mainstreaming and introduces measures to enhance women’s access to finance, labour market participation and entrepreneurial opportunities. In parallel, the establishment of the Consultative Council of Enterprises in 2024 reflects efforts to institutionalise policy dialogue (Table 1.2). Collectively, these developments indicate growing policy coherence and formalisation.

Nonetheless, a range of practical measures delivered by public and non-governmental actors support implementation. This includes training, mentorship, legal assistance and access to finance. Such initiatives aim to facilitate women’s participation in specialised programmes, improve access to dedicated start-up funding and enable women entrepreneurs to benefit from preferential criteria in grant evaluations. As policy priorities increasingly shift towards green and digital entrepreneurship, equal access to these emerging areas becomes particularly important. Participation patterns, however, point to persistent gaps: while women account for 58% of participants in state-financed SME training programmes overall, their representation declines markedly in green and digital-related courses.1 For instance, women represented only 41% of participants in a subsidised IT course offered in 2024. These disparities suggest structural barriers to women’s full participation in high-growth sectors, likely linked in part to their continued underrepresentation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields (Figure 1.2).

Performance in monitoring and evaluation is weaker than the other two thematic blocks, with reporting primarily based on annual monitoring updates of the BIDS 2021-27. Monitoring remains largely implementation-oriented and does not systematically capture outcome and impact-level indicators, such as firm survival, growth performance, or women’s entry into higher-value and growth-oriented sectors (Table 1.2). These limitations reflect the absence of a comprehensive indicator framework for the systematic collection and analysis of gender-disaggregated data in line with international standards, resulting in persistent gaps in assessing the effectiveness, reach and longer-term impact of entrepreneurship support measures for women.

Figure 1.2. Key statistic for Sub-dimension 1.2. on women’s entrepreneurship, Albania, 2019-2024

Sources: Eurostat (2025[2]); additional data provided by the Albanian Institute of Statistics.

Table 1.2. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 1, Sub-dimension 1.2

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Identify a relevant multi-stakeholder partnership body to take lead responsibility and co-ordinate and guide implementation and monitoring and evaluation of women’s entrepreneurship	No progress has been made in expanding the membership of the Integrated Policy Management Group to include key non‑governmental stakeholders.	Moderate	See Cluster 4: “Improving talent availability by empowering women entrepreneurs”
	The Consultative Council of Enterprises was formally launched in December 2024, marking an important step in fostering public-private dialogue. Its legal basis (Law No. 43/2022, “on the Development of MSMEs”) explicitly recognises support for women entrepreneurs as a policy objective, embedding gender considerations within its mandate.
Strengthen transparency and visibility on the progress and support of actions for women’s entrepreneurship through annual progress and impact reports	Monitoring and evaluation of women’s entrepreneurship support are primarily carried out within the Business and Investment Development Strategy (BIDS) 2021‑2027 framework, with the most recent monitoring report finalised and made publicly available in 2025. However, no comprehensive impact assessments have been conducted to date.	Limited	See Cluster 4: “Improving talent availability by empowering women entrepreneurs”

Dimension 2: Bankruptcy and second chance for SMEs in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 2

Albania scored 2.77 on Dimension 2 (Figure 1.3), which is a slight decrease from 2.98 in the previous cycle. It is below the regional average of 2.97, which also dropped from an overall score of 3.03. As in previous cycles, Dimension 2 remains among the economy’s weakest areas, underscoring the need for more targeted policy action.

Figure 1.3. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 2 and evolution since 2019

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Since 2022, Albania’s score reflects limited progress in strategic planning to improve bankruptcy procedures pre- and post-insolvency. While design and implementation have improved on average across sub-dimensions, performance, monitoring and evaluation decreased, highlighting persistent weaknesses in policy follow-through and effectiveness assessment.

Sub-dimension 2.1: Preventive measures

Albania scored 2.86 on Sub-dimension 2.1 on preventive measures, down from 3.10 in 2022. Overall planning and design saw only minor improvement; progress on targeted policy action was limited; and monitoring and evaluation, which were weighted more heavily in this cycle, remain limited.

Albania’s policies targeted at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including the Business and Investment Development Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027, align with the EU Small Business Act principle of supporting entrepreneurs through bankruptcy. However, they still lack dedicated objectives or measures for insolvency prevention.

Preventive actions are implicitly embedded in general access-to-finance programmes, reflecting a broader emphasis on financial support rather than targeted early intervention. International donors and local institutions, such as the Albanian Investment Development Agency, offer support services, but none focus specifically on preventive insolvency resolution. In addition, SMEs must proactively seek assistance in the absence of a formal early warning system (EWS) (see Table 1.3). Additionally, the impact of awareness raising and outreach by such institutions and international organisations remains limited.

Table 1.3. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 2, Sub-dimension 2.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Develop insolvency prevention policy measures, including a fully-fledged early warning system	Albania’s SME-focused strategies, including BIDS 2021-2027, do not currently include insolvency prevention measures. While recent EBRD-funded initiatives, such as the 2025 SME Reboot Programme and the Youth in Business Programme, provide loans, grants and technical assistance, offering potential insights for shaping preventive policies, there have been no concerted government efforts to develop preventive bankruptcy procedures for SMEs or a fully-fledged early warning system. High-level buy-in exists, as reflected in the Investment Council’s focus on improving general SME access to finance,1 which could support the future prioritisation of preventive measures and the early warning system, but such measures remain absent.	No progress	See Cluster 2: “Fostering SME sustainability and resilience”
Further amend the regulation on accelerated extrajudicial reorganisation agreements	Albania has made no progress on preventive restructuring for SMEs. Current “one-size-fits-all” criteria, such as the requirement of imminent insolvency in the expedited reorganisation, might be overly restrictive and discourage early intervention. Many SMEs lack the resources or expertise to meet these formal requirements, delaying or preventing restructuring. No simplified preventive process is available for cases likely to face financial difficulty, nor are there incentives to encourage the extrajudicial voluntary agreement option for reorganisation, thereby further limiting early-resolution opportunities.	No progress	See Cluster 2: “Fostering SME sustainability and resilience”

Notes: BIDS: Business and Investment Development Strategy; EBRD: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

1. During the 12 November 2024 meeting, the Investment Council noted challenges with overdue loans becoming a concern for banks alongside persistent challenges in SME access to finance. Based on these assessments, the Council (2024[3]) recommended targeted measures to improve financing conditions, including better credit information systems, broader use of guarantees, and stronger co-operation between banks, government and business associations to make funding more inclusive and accessible.

While SMEs can access a fast-tracked out-of-court reorganisation procedure for imminent bankruptcy2, including moratoria on secured creditors, provisions for securing new financing are lacking. Uptake of the simplified procedure is also estimated to be low, likely due to debtor-only initiation, and its use is not systematically monitored, hampering policy evaluation and underscoring the need for targeted measures and legislative refinement (see Table 1.3).

Sub-dimension 2.2: Survival and bankruptcy procedures

Albania scored 2.93 on Sub-dimension 2.2 on survival and bankruptcy procedures, down from 3.24 in 2022. The decline reflects ongoing gaps in the performance of streamlined insolvency procedures, as well as the continued absence of systematic monitoring and evaluation.

Albania’s legal bankruptcy framework is comparatively advanced among the Western Balkan and Türkiye economies, incorporating cross-border and cross-class cramdowns, fast-tracked procedures, and strict creditor filing deadlines that can support SME survival and deter fraudulent claims. Recent reforms, although not SME-centred, such as strengthening licensing criteria for bankruptcy administrators, enhance procedural professionalism and trust.3 However, safeguards against repeated reorganisation plan submissions remain request-triggered rather than automatic, which could still undermine procedural efficiency in practice (see Table 1.4).

Table 1.4. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 2, Sub-dimension 2.2

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Streamline liquidation processes by introducing digital tools	There has been no progress since 2022 in streamlining liquidation processes, and digital tools have not yet been introduced. Procedures remain largely manual, limiting efficiency and transparency in insolvency resolution, which could obstruct access for smaller businesses and reduce usability for creditors.	No progress	See Cluster 2: “Fostering SME sustainability and resilience”
Improve formal bankruptcy reorganisation proceedings	Formal bankruptcy reorganisation proceedings continue to permit multiple submissions of reorganisation plans, although the law includes a request-triggered safeguard against repeated submissions. As this safeguard does not operate automatically, risks of prolonged proceedings and procedural misuse may persist. These legal shortcomings have not been addressed, leaving procedural inefficiencies unmitigated.	No progress	See Cluster 2: “Fostering SME sustainability and resilience”

Despite structural strengths, targeted SME bankruptcy measures and digitalisation initiatives are absent (see Table 1.4). Implementation evidence indicates partial effectiveness: non-performing loans declined to a record low but remain high compared to other WBT economies (see Figure 1.4); credit recovery remains low at 13% vs. around 40% on average in the European Union (CEPR, 2023[4]); and SME debt-service burdens eased slightly (Bank of Albania, 2025[5]).4 These trends suggest some progress, but they are not systematically linked to policy interventions, especially as SME-disaggregated data are not available.

Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms are patchy. Although the Bankruptcy Agency maintains an operational website and publishes annual statistics, these reports primarily provide caseload data (e.g. new, pending and completed cases by court). Key performance indicators, including bankruptcy procedure duration, are no longer publicly reported beyond 2022.5 The absence of comprehensive, SME-specific statistics constrains the ability to identify gaps, evaluate policy impact and guide strategic reforms.

Figure 1.4. Key statistics for Sub-dimension 2.2 on survival and bankruptcy procedures, Albania and other WBT economies, 2013-2023

Bank non-performing loans to total gross loans (%)

Note: No data available for Serbia.

Source: World Bank (2025[6]).

Sub-dimension 2.3: Promoting second chance

Albania scored 2.20 on Sub-dimension 2.3 on promoting second chance for SMEs, up from 2.00 in 2022. The increase reflects implementation of donor-supported second-chance programmes, despite ongoing delays in policy planning and design. No government-led monitoring or evaluation mechanisms are yet operational.

Second-chance policies remain underdeveloped within Albania’s SME support framework. Existing legal and administrative barriers can place undue burdens on debtors, limiting opportunities for a fresh start and reinforcing cultural stigma around business failure (see Table 1.5). While Law No. 110/2016 establishes a discharge mechanism for natural-person debtors, including a five-year custodianship period, and specifies grounds for refusing or revoking discharge in cases of fraud and other misconduct, it does not extend to corporate debtors (Government of Albania, 2016[7]). As a result, incorporated SMEs cannot benefit from the discharge mechanism, limiting opportunities for business recovery and entrepreneurial restart.

Table 1.5. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 2, Sub-dimension 2.3

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Promote second chance to honest entrepreneurs	Existing legal and administrative barriers, including court-imposed civil, economic, and privacy-related restrictions on debtors, though temporal and proportional, remain unaddressed in a way tailored to SMEs, potentially reinforcing stigma around business failure and placing undue burdens on smaller enterprises. Despite international evidence showing targeted second-chance programmes can be effective, Albania’s policies still lack a strategic focus on SME recovery and restart after insolvency.	Limited	See Cluster 2: “Fostering SME sustainability and resilience”

Still, progress has been made in implementation between 2022 and 2024. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Economy Recovery and Resilience programme supported 165 SMEs in post-crisis recovery and operational upgrades.6 The government also reports its potential capacity to support second-chance initiatives in the coming period.

However, without a formal strategic framework, it will remain challenging to establish systematic monitoring and evaluation to assess SME needs, guide policy adaptation and ensure effective design and delivery of second-chance measures.

Dimension 3: Institutional and regulatory framework for SME policymaking in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 3

Albania scored 3.87 on Dimension 3 (Figure 1.5), virtually unchanged from 3.89 in the previous cycle. Its performance remains above the regional average of 3.77, placing Albania third among Western Balkan and Türkiye economies. Despite stagnating performance since the last assessment, Dimension 3 remains one of Albania’s structurally stronger policy areas.

Figure 1.5. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 3 and evolution since 2019

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Albania’s overall performance has remained stable, though advances since the 2022 assessment (OECD, 2022[7]) have been modest across the three sub-dimensions. Notable developments include the adoption of new legislation on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups and the establishment of Startup Albania, which have contributed to a more business-friendly framework. However, weak regulatory simplification efforts, limited use of evidence-based policymaking tools, persistent informality and gaps in SME data continue to undermine the effectiveness of reforms.

Sub-dimension 3.1: Institutional framework

Performance in this sub-dimension has remained stable, with a score of 4.09 in 2026 compared with 4.21 in 2022. While some progress has been made in policy planning and the implementation of business development legislation, the regulatory framework still lacks sufficient measures to address informality and ensure a level playing field.

Since the previous cycle, some progress has been made in strengthening the regulatory environment. In 2022, Albania adopted two major legislative acts to support entrepreneurship, focussing on SMEs and the promotion and development of start-ups. These introduced new targeted financing instruments, measures to strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem, and dedicated services and institutions. The SME definition was also updated to better align with EU standards. The vision for SME development policy is included in the Business and Investment Development Strategy 2021-2027.

In 2025, the government produced a mid-term monitoring report indicating an overall implementation rate of approximately 72% of the 36 actions planned for 2021-2024, with 21 completed on time and 5 ongoing. The report also informed revisions to the strategy, which was amended in the fields of economic diplomacy, start-up integration, access to EU programmes, and co-operation between vocational education and training institutions and businesses. Nonetheless, the strategy still lacks specific measures to address informality. In December 2023, the government established Startup Albania, a new state agency under the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Business Climate, which has attracted more than 2 000 members.

Improvements have also been observed in the judiciary, particularly through the implementation of justice reforms and their contribution to anti-corruption efforts. Survey responses from the Balkan Barometer 2024 indicate that Albanian businesses view government anti-corruption efforts as relatively effective compared to peers, yet still perceive corruption as a greater obstacle to doing business and competition than in most other regional economies (RCC, 2024[8]).

Despite these efforts, the capacity to assess the real impact of SME policies remains limited. Persistent limitations in SME-related data collection (Table 1.6), coupled with insufficient inter-institutional co‑ordination, continue to hinder systematic policy monitoring and evaluation, leaving the overall framework fragmented.

Table 1.6. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 3, Sub-dimension 3.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Expand and streamline SME data collection	Although Albania’s statistical institute (INSTAT) has somewhat expanded the range of available indicators compared to the previous cycle, these indicators are not publicly accessible beyond the scope of this assessment. There is no evidence of strengthened inter-institutional co-ordination, especially with regard to SME data on innovation, public procurement, greening and the informal economy, which are collected by several different bodies without a common registry or standardisation process.	Limited	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”

Sub-dimension 3.2: Legislative simplification and regulatory impact assessment

Albania scores 3.28 on Sub-dimension 3.2, virtually unchanged from 3.29 in 2022, indicating performance stagnation. The score reflects a well-developed formal framework for evidence-based policymaking tools, but it is only partially implemented, while the architecture for legislative simplification remains underdeveloped, lacking coherent structures and instruments. Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms remain institutionally weak and unevenly applied in practice.

In Albania, regulatory impact assessment (RIA) has been mandatory for primary legislation since 2019 and expected to be implemented by 2020. For secondary legislation, despite a formal RIA requirement was introduced in the Council of Ministers Rules of Procedure in 2020, no impact assessment is currently conducted, and the government announced that it will not be enforced before 2030. Working discussions held with OECD/SIGMA experts in 2025 explored a phased approach for gradually extending RIA to selected categories of Council of Ministers Decisions, although the effective implementation of such plans remains to be demonstrated. As this type of legislation often represents the main source of administrative burdens for businesses, delays in enforcing evidence-based policymaking in this area may complicate government efforts on simplification. Methodological guidance to support the RIA process is provided to civil servants and publicly available on the Prime Minister’s website, with 85% of respondents to the Survey of Public Servants considering the guidelines to be adequate and sufficient (OECD, 2025[9]; Office of the Prime Minister of Albania, 2018[10]).

Despite the RIA framework and methodology for business-related draft laws were notably updated and expanded during the previous cycle, its provisions have not been consistently implemented. According to OECD monitoring activity, only 61% of laws were accompanied by an RIA as of 2023, while there is no available data on the share of assessed or simplified legislative acts that affect the private sector (OECD, 2025[9]). Recent administrative data suggest that the RIA Unit within the Prime Minister’s Office reviewed 47 RIA reports submitted by line ministries in 2025, issuing comments and recommendations during the quality control process, 88% of which appear to have been incorporated in the final versions. This would suggest constructive engagement by line ministries and growing practical influence of the Unit’s feedback, despite its advisory nature. Yet, the share of RIAs returned for revision remains relatively limited (7 out of the 47 reviewed), with most reports being approved by the Unit at the initial stage. Capacity-building efforts have also continued, including successful training activities organised in cooperation with the Albanian School of Public Administration aimed at improving analytical and drafting skills among public officials involved in preparing RIAs.

Despite the solid legal and methodological RIA framework, Albania’s performance remains constrained by rather weak enforcement and quality control mechanisms (Table 1.7). RIA continues to be applied largely as a formal requirement rather than as a tool to enhance the quality of legislation, with further efforts also needed to ensure effective stakeholder involvement. This is reflected, among other factors, in the relatively high share of legislative acts (11%) that need to be amended within one year of adoption.

Table 1.7. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 3, Sub-dimension 3.2

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Develop a programme for legislative simplification and reducing administrative burdens	Despite the strategic intention to reduce administrative burdens set out in the 2021-2025 Government Programme, no concrete reporting on achieved reductions or a comprehensive mapping of parafiscal fees was provided or documented in publicly available sources.	Limited	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”
Enhance quality control and evaluation of regulatory impact analysis	The feedback on regulatory impact assessment (RIA) provided by the RIA Unit within the Council of Ministers continues to be advisory and not binding. Line ministries are not required to justify their decision to disregard the RIA Unit’s comments, which undermines the unit’s ability to ensure consistent quality control. The government does not publish regular reports on the use of RIA or on compliance with quality standards, thereby limiting transparency and the ability to hold line ministries accountable.	No progress	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”

Sub-dimension 3.3: Public-private consultations

Albania scored 4.10 on Sub-dimension 3.3 on public-private consultations (PPCs), relatively unchanged from 4.07 in 2022. The assessment documents progress in the frequency of consultations and confirms the strength of the monitoring and reporting mechanisms established in the previous cycle. However, persistent weaknesses remain, notably in the extensive use of legal exemptions and in the limited consistency and depth of private-sector engagement.

Albania has made notable progress in further aligning consultation practice with its regulatory framework, as set out in Law No. 146/2014. Implementation is supported by the guidelines adopted in January 2021, issued by the Secretary General of the Council of Ministers. These guidelines mandate the publication of annual and semi-annual ministerial reports, as well as an overarching report prepared by the council that assesses the conduct and performance of public consultations. Procedural requirements remain largely unchanged since the previous assessment, including a minimum consultation period of 20 working days for stakeholder feedback, with the possibility of extending it up to 40 days for complex regulations.

The primary channel for consultations remains the centralised Electronic Register for Public Notices and Consultations (RENJKP), publishing 44 out of 45 consulted acts in 2025, and providing accessibility for stakeholders to all relevant documents, including consultation notices, draft laws, and ministerial reports. According to the official annual reports, the consultation frequency index reached 97.5% of the legal acts requiring consultation in 2024, the highest rate recorded to date, and stood at 96% in 2025. However, despite high formal compliance, the share of all draft acts undergoing public scrutiny remains substantially lower than for other regional economies, as approximately 66% of all legislative acts under the general legislative programme and 92.8% of strategic acts were exempted from public consultations in 2024. Although engaging non-institutional stakeholders remains a key challenge, moderate improvements have been observed in both the submission of comments and their reflection in final acts, with 2025 recording the highest rates to date for Albania on both indicators. In addition to e-consultations, Albania continues to organise public meetings in around half of the cases, although the use of virtual formats remains largely untapped.

In line with the 2021 guidelines, line ministries prepare annual and semi-annual PPC reports, which the RIA Unit consolidates into single centre-of-government performance reports. While these include a broad set of quantitative indicators to support monitoring and evaluation, they do not provide qualitative indicators nor data on the involvement of the private sector or its subcategories, such as SMEs. Moreover, as these reports are drafted by individual ministries responsible for implementation, the uniformity and impartiality of the review process remain constrained (Table 1.8).

Table 1.8. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 3, Sub-dimension 3.3

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Strengthen inter-institutional co-ordination for effective use of public-private consultations	Each ministry has appointed a public-private consultation (PPC) co-ordinator responsible for ensuring regular updates and the consistent use of government PPC portals for its legal acts. However, co-ordination across ministries remains weak, with limited central oversight and no mechanisms to ensure consistency or share practices across institutions.	Limited	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”

Dimension 4: Operational environment for SMEs in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 4

Albania scored 4.27 on Dimension 4 (Figure 1.6), remaining virtually unchanged from 4.32 in the previous cycle. Despite limited policy progress since the last assessment, Albania retains its leading position among Western Balkans and Türkiye economies in the operational environment for SMEs, performing considerably above the regional average of 3.75. Dimension 4 consequently remains one of Albania’s strongest-performing policy dimension.

Figure 1.6. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 4 and evolution since 2019

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Albania’s strong performance on Dimension 4 builds on an already advanced baseline established in the previous assessment, with further progress in improving user experience on e‑government portals and expanding the range of available online services. However, despite the high level of digitalisation, further improvement in ratings remains constrained by limited monitoring arrangements, insufficient collection of data specific to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and weak integration of SME feedback into policy design and implementation.

Sub-dimension 4.1: Digital government services for SMEs

Albania scored 4.25 on Sub-dimension 4.1 on digital government services, up slightly from 4.12 in 2022, primarily driven by the continued expansion of digital services for businesses via the e-Albania portal and the strengthening of the open data ecosystem.

On the policy planning and design side, the Digital Agenda 2022-2026 establishes an overarching framework for expanding digital government, with reforms aimed at integrating intelligent processes, advanced solutions, and a digital-by-default approach across public platforms. These strategic orientations are further operationalised through the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Action Plan 2023-2025, which includes commitments aimed at strengthening the Open Data Portal and enhancing transparency, as well as commitments focused on improving life-event-based services and user experience through the e-Albania portal. Together, these instruments provide a coherent enabling framework that advances both open data transparency and citizen-centric digital public service delivery.

Some progress has also been made in implementation, largely through the expansion of online services and open data access. The e-Albania platform has expanded steadily, growing from 1 225 services in 2022 to 1 237 in 2023, 1 247 in 2024 and 1 271 as of January 2026 (e-Albania, 2026[11]), with most services being fully digital and applying the once-only principle. In parallel, the Open Data Portal is operational, providing access to an expanding range of datasets, among which six are specifically tailored to SME needs (Government of Albania, 2025[12]), contributing to greater transparency and data-driven decision making. Further advances in digital service delivery have been supported by Diella, Albania’s virtual assistant, launched at the end of 2023, which processed over 1 million queries in its first year. However, while service coverage has improved, it remains unclear whether processes are equally intuitive and efficient for all SMEs, or if disparities persist in user experience and service quality.

As for monitoring and evaluation, efforts to establish new mechanisms and improve existing feedback mechanisms and data collection practices have been observed, although no major developments have taken place since the previous assessment cycle (Table 1.9). E-Albania allows users to rate individual e‑services and submit comments during the online service process. However, monitoring is not yet systematically used to inform service improvement. In particular, little disaggregated evidence is available on the uptake and performance of business-facing services, including data by business size. There is no regular reporting on the extent to which SMEs use digital public services, the frequency of service disruptions or delays affecting business users, or the functioning of feedback loops tailored to enterprises. Moreover, no public evaluations have been identified that assess usability, transactional completion rates for business services or the cost and time savings generated for SMEs.

Table 1.9. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 4, Sub-dimension 4.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Promote the use of e-signature by SMEs	Albania has made moderate progress in promoting the use of e-signatures among SMEs in recent years. Since 2020, the National Agency for Information Society (AKSHI) has modernised its qualified trust services, integrating e-signatures into 38 information systems and enabling remote use without prior platform login. This upgrade reduced service costs – from ALL 6 400 (Albanian leks) to ALL 4 800 per year (approximately EUR 61 to EUR 45) – and significantly expanded uptake, with the number of private sector users rising from 8 900 before 2020 to 34 800 in 2025. The SQSign app, developed by AKSHI and available on iOS (iPhone operating system) and Android, further facilitates access for employees of private entities.	Strong	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”
Introduce SME-specific monitoring and evaluation of the performance of digital services	There is no regular or institutionalised mechanism in place to measure SME satisfaction with public support services in Albania. While the Albanian Investment Development Agency occasionally collects informal feedback through events, consultations and project-level evaluations, these efforts remain ad hoc and lack a systematic approach. No national framework, such as periodic surveys, structured focus groups, or co-ordinated data collection, exists to assess how effectively support programmes meet SME needs.	Limited	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”
Promote the reuse of open government data by SMEs	The Right to Information Law and the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Action Plan 2023-2025 constitute the primary frameworks for transparency, openness and civic participation. Civil society has played a role in shaping the priorities of the current action plan, contributing to a more inclusive policy design process. However, while transparency mechanisms are improving, their practical impact on SME engagement and evidence-based policymaking remains limited, as feedback loops between open data initiatives and business users are not yet fully institutionalised.	Moderate	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”

Sub-dimension 4.2: Company registration

Albania continues to perform among the strongest in the WBT region on company registration indicators, with a score of 4.36, a moderate decrease from the 4.78 achieved in the previous cycle. While policy design and implementation remain at the highest level, the decline is primarily attributable to weaker policy monitoring, particularly the absence of performance monitoring and reporting mechanisms at the local level.

Since the 2020 reform, all services provided by the National Business Center (NBC), which functions as a one-stop-shop for business registration, have been delivered exclusively online via the government’s e-Albania portal. In 2024, further legislative amendments were introduced, in line with the reform, to complete the digitalisation of the application process as well, eliminating the remaining physical service counters. From a procedural standpoint, no major changes have been recorded since the previous assessment in terms of time, costs or the number of steps required to register a business in Albania, all of which are already broadly aligned with EU and OECD standards. A company registration certificate is issued within 24 hours, while the overall process takes 4.5 days and comprises five administrative steps. The cost of obtaining a registration certificate is limited to a symbolic ALL 100 (~EUR 1) application fee, which the government expects to remove under the forthcoming legal amendments.

As the responsible body, the NBC collects business requests and suggestions through official letters, online forms or phone channels. However, there is no evidence of a structured mechanism to monitor the implementation of these inputs or to report on follow-up actions.

Sub-dimension 4.3: Business licensing

Albania scored 4.23 on Sub-dimension 4.3 on business licensing, showing a slight decrease from 4.46 in 2022. While licensing procedures continue to perform at a consistently high level, the overall decline reflects weaker performance in monitoring and in the streamlining of licensing systems.

The NBC, acting as the central co-ordinating authority for business licensing, maintains a centralised online registry (the National Register of Licenses, Authorizations and Permits) that serves as a single entry point for licences and permits. To further streamline procedures, the NBC is also mandated to directly decide on the issuance of Group 1 and Group 2 licences.7 In 2024, the NBC launched a review of the legal framework for business licensing in line with the broader deregulation reform, with the objective of identifying procedures and documentation requirements that could be further simplified (Table 1.10). Among the proposed changes is a reduction in the review time for Group 1 licences from 48 to 24 hours. At the time of writing, the legislative package is being revised to incorporate feedback from line ministries. Like all other users, SMEs can provide feedback on the process and their satisfaction, which is collected by AKSHI. However, there is no evidence that this feedback is systematically incorporated into policy design or implementation, nor is there a mechanism to proactively solicit input from SMEs.

Table 1.10. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index 2022’s recommendations for Dimension 4, Sub-dimension 4.3

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Streamline the process of electronic licensing	Albania’s progress in streamlining business licensing procedures is closely tied to the ongoing deregulation reform. In this context, the NBC is an active participant in the Inter-Institutional Group for Deregulation Reform and is engaged in identifying documents and procedures that could be further simplified. Nevertheless, the process is still ongoing across all line ministries. Some progress was observed in the transition of services and procedural guidelines to online platforms, namely for licences and permits related to tourism and rural development sectors.	Limited	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”

Sub-dimension 4.4: Tax compliance procedures for SMEs

In 2024, Albania implemented a comprehensive reform of its income tax framework by enacting Law No. 29/2023, “On Income Tax”, which introduced significant changes to tax compliance for SMEs (Table 1.11). Corporate income tax (CIT) is set at a standard rate of 15%, while a 0% profit tax rate applies until 31 December 2029 for businesses with annual turnover up to ALL 14 million. Above this threshold, a system of sector-specific reduced rates and exemptions applies, including a 5% income tax rate for software development (until 31 December 2025), the automotive industry (until 31 December 2029), and for agricultural co-operatives, agritourism and certified hospitality activities (until 31 December 2029), as well as a ten-year CIT exemption for accommodation structures classified as “4- and 5-star hotel/resort with special status” holding an internationally recognised brand. In 2025, this measure was complemented by the introduction of the Mountain Package, a strategic initiative promoting investment in rural and mountainous areas, with targeted tax incentives for SME-intensive sectors such as agritourism, accommodation and agricultural supply chains, with the potential to mobilise investment by the Albanian diaspora (Behlula, 2025[13]).

For sole entrepreneurs and unincorporated SMEs, the 2024 reform integrated business income taxation into the personal income tax (PIT) system, replacing previous simplified local collection arrangements (KPMG, 2023[14]). Tax filing and reporting are now fully digitalised through the e-Albania portal and e-Filing system. The taxable base for individuals engaged in business activity has been broadened to include additional income streams linked to economic activity, including digital services, asset disposals and digitally mediated transactions. Business income of natural persons is subject to progressive PIT, with a transitional 0% PIT rate until 31 December 2029 for self-employed individuals with gross income below ALL 14 million. Natural persons with annual turnover up to ALL 10 million (approximately EUR 100 000) may apply a presumed expense deduction as a fixed percentage of gross income, simplifying income determination and reducing accounting and reporting burdens for micro-enterprises. The value-added tax (VAT) registration threshold is aligned at ALL 10 million, while enterprises with turnover up to ALL 5 million continue to benefit from simplified documentation requirements.

Table 1.11. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 4, Sub-dimension 4.4

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Evaluate the tax burdens faced by SMEs, especially the simplified CIT regime	Under the new 2024 law, businesses with annual revenue up to ALL 14 million are exempt from corporate income tax (CIT) until 31 December 2029. After that, they will pay 15%. Businesses with revenue above ALL 14 million are taxed at 15% on profits. There are also transitory regimes for certain industries (software, agritourism, etc.) with preferential CIT/exemptions continuing for longer. Albania has not yet done the empirical evaluation (business returns, bunching effects), and the risk of distortions remains.	Limited	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”
Monitor the tax burden for young and innovative SMEs, especially a longer right to carry forward losses	The longer carry forward of five years introduced in 2024 (Law No. 29/2023) applies only under certain investment thresholds (i.e. large investments) or specific cases. For most SMEs, the default is still three years.	Limited	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”
Develop a strategy to ease tax administration procedures for SMEs by assessing hurdles for SMEs, especially for VAT purposes, for instance, through business surveys	The tax filing process was fully digitalised through the e-Albania portal in 2022, guided by the cross-cutting Digital Agenda Strategy 2015–2020. The Economic Reform Programme for 2024-2026 is currently working to automate the pre-filling of value-added tax (VAT) declarations and to expand services via the e-Albania portal. There is no evidence of SME-specific surveys conducted in Albania since the last cycle.	Moderate	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”

Mandatory social security and health contributions for the self-employed remain unchanged: a 23% social security contribution levied on the minimum wage and a 3.4% health contribution levied on twice that amount, both calculated on fixed statutory bases rather than actual income. This structure results in lump-sum contribution obligations, with implications for formalisation incentives and participation of low-income self-employed workers in the formal system.

Dimension 5a: Business support services for SMEs in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 5a

Albania scored 3.95 on Dimension 5a on business support services (BSS), representing broadly stable performance compared to its score of 4.05 in the previous assessment cycle (Figure 1.7). Albania’s score remains closely aligned with the Western Balkans and Türkiye regional average of 4.07, making Dimension 5a one of Albania’s more strongly performing dimensions.

Figure 1.7. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 5a and evolution since 2019

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This score reflects offsetting developments across sub-dimensions. Performance has improved in publicly provided BSS, due to an increasingly structured approach to BSS, underpinned by strategic revisions and new initiatives targeting digitalisation, youth entrepreneurship and rural development while enhanced or newly introduced digital tools have partly streamlined application procedures. By contrast, performance has declined for government initiatives to stimulate private BSS provision, as implementation challenges, underutilised budgets, limited co-financing and urban concentration of beneficiaries have constrained the effective scaling of private service markets. As a result, previously identified gaps – most notably the absence of a searchable database of non‑financial services, budget execution delays, urban concentration of beneficiaries and non-operational co‑financing mechanisms – continue to limit the reach and effectiveness of both public and private BSS, despite complementary support from donor-funded programmes (OECD, 2022[15]).

Sub-dimension 5a.1: Business support services provided by the government

Albania’s performance on Sub-dimension 5a.1 has improved modestly, with the weighted score increasing from 3.86 in 2022 to 3.98 in 2026. This improvement was driven primarily by stronger planning and design, supported by institutional consolidation and clearer strategic anchoring of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) support, alongside incremental gains in implementation and monitoring and evaluation.

Strategic coherence has improved following the amendments to the Business Development and Investment Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027, which consolidated SME support under one single framework. The revised strategy moved beyond promotion and facilitation toward regulation and accountability; codifying consultation procedures; linking budgets to performance indicators; and embedding SME support within national agendas for digitalisation, innovation, green transition and EU accession.8 The framework for SME support was reinforced by the continued role of the Albanian Investment Development Agency (AIDA), alongside the creation of the Startup Albania Agency (Box 1.1) and the Consultative Council for Enterprises. In addition, new laws modernised the rules for start-ups and SMEs.9

Implementation of BSS has also expanded since the last assessment, with a broader mix of programmes and delivery tools being introduced. New initiatives in areas such as digitalisation, youth entrepreneurship and rural development, including projects on e-commerce readiness, youth enterprise and digital agriculture, aim to provide a more tailored response to persistent gaps in SME support.10 AIDA has also broadened its delivery channels through the Access to Finance platform, which brings state and donor schemes together in one place, and the e-Albania portal, which expanded enterprise services with a virtual assistant and streamlined procedures.11 Donor initiatives, including EU4Innovation and the Enterprise Europe Network, further complemented these efforts by supporting innovation and opening cross-border opportunities. Despite this ambition, funding allocations amounted to ALL 151.8 million (EUR 1.47 million) in 2024 and ALL 131.8 million (EUR 1.28 million) in 2025, reflecting a limited scale of direct state support compared to the large role of donor‑funded programmes. In addition, implementation was further constrained by verification delays, reimbursement bottlenecks, co-financing requirements, and persistent challenges such as low SME awareness and limited outreach beyond the urban centres (Table 1.12).

Monitoring and evaluation of BSS are more transparent through the use of annual reports, beneficiary lists, surveys and post-grant forms co-ordinated by AIDA and the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation, with key performance indicators mainly tracking participation and short-term employment effects. While these practices have become more regular, there are still gaps in regional coverage, resources and the systematic use of SME feedback, with no independent reviews and limited integration of donor-led assessments.

Box 1.1. Spotlight: Startup Albania Agency: Building the Foundations of a National Startup Ecosystem

Startup Albania Agency was established in 2023 through Council of Ministers Decision No. 467, following the adoption of Law No. 25/2022 “on the Support and Development of Startups”. The law created the first dedicated legal framework for start-ups and innovation service organisations in Albania, introducing one stop shop services and targeted grant schemes for innovative, youth-, women- and sustainability-led projects. The agency was placed under the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation and presented as part of the official government entrepreneurship portal.

Startup Albania Agency serves as the implementing body for national start-up policies. Its responsibilities include managing start-up grant agreements, maintaining a national register of start-ups and facilitators, administering the start-up passport system, and simplifying administrative procedures through a one-stop shop platform. It also supports ecosystem promotion, both domestically and internationally, and facilitates co operation among public institutions, academia and the private sector.

Since its establishment, the agency has launched several funding calls, including the 2025 start-up grant calls offering mentoring and financial support to early-stage ventures and innovation enablers. These initiatives mark the first operational rollout of the new legal framework for start-ups in Albania. As a newly established institution, evidence of its impact remains limited. However, Startup Albania Agency represents a key step in formalising and consolidating the economy’s innovation support infrastructure, laying the groundwork for a more coherent and sustainable start-up ecosystem.

Sources: Albanian Ministry for Entrepreneurship and Business Climate (2024[16]).

Table 1.12. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 5a, Sub‑dimension 5a.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Further streamline and upgrade the procedures for applying for business support services	Albania has taken steps to simplify access to support services through the Access to Finance platform and the e-Albania portal, which now provide centralised information, a virtual assistant and more user-friendly online procedures. The Albanian Investment and Development Agency (AIDA) has also complemented these tools with awareness campaigns, workshops and digital communication to guide small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) more effectively through available schemes. However, application and reimbursement procedures remain constrained by verification delays, co-financing requirements and administrative bottlenecks, which continue to weigh most heavily on micro-enterprises and firms outside Tirana.	Moderate	See Cluster 1: Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs
Establish a searchable database of training and support available to SMEs and their employees on the AIDA website and signpost to wider support and training programmes from governmental and non-governmental sources	While AIDA’s website and the Access to Finance platform provide information on funding opportunities, they do not include a searchable database of training or non-financial support programmes, nor tools for online registration or self-diagnosis. Information on training remains scattered and static, meaning SMEs still lack an integrated one-stop portal for identifying relevant advisory and capacity-building services.	Limited	See Cluster 1: Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs

Sub-dimension 5a.2: Government initiatives to stimulate private business support services

Albania’s performance in this sub-dimension has declined moderately, with the weighted score falling from 4.24 in 2022 to 3.92 in 2026. This decline was primarily driven by a significant deterioration in planning and design, reflecting gaps between expanded strategic ambitions and enforceable design features, alongside a moderate weakening in implementation performance linked to partial budget sufficiency, underutilisation of funds and limited co-financing structures. Monitoring and evaluation arrangements have also edged downward, as procedural transparency has not translated into systematic outcome tracking or learning. Overall, the results point to a widening gap between an ambitious policy framework and its effective operationalisation and scaling on the ground.

Since the 2022 assessment, the strategic framework has been revised through the adoption of the National Strategy for Innovative Entrepreneurship (2024-2030)12 and the National Strategy for Scientific Research, Technology and Innovation (2023-2030). While these documents articulate a forward-looking agenda for start‑ups, digitalisation and green transformation and formally recognise the role of private consultants, accelerators and service organisations in SME support, this strategic expansion has not translated into a more robust or enforceable design framework for private BSS provision. In particular, the absence of a national accreditation or quality assurance system, coupled with non-binding provisions on market-shaping instruments and funding predictability, has weakened strategic coherence and reduced the operational credibility of the framework. As a result, despite broader policy coverage, the planning and design block reflects a significant deterioration, signalling a shift from a previously more consolidated framework toward a more fragmented and less enforceable strategic setup.

A broader menu of instruments has been deployed to connect SMEs with private providers. While financial schemes such as Go Digital and Youth in Business, alongside initiatives such as the SME Summer Academy13 and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s advisory programmes have sustained advisory markets in areas including digitalisation, youth entrepreneurship, export readiness and financial management, their impact has been uneven and constrained in practice. At the same time, platforms such as the Digital Innovation Unit and plans for a national tech park underline efforts to embed private BSS within Albania’s broader innovation ecosystem. Despite these advancements, progress has been constrained by underutilised budgets,14 limited co-financing and uptake concentrated in urban centres, leaving rural and micro-SMEs underserved despite the broader menu of programmes now available.

Monitoring and quality assurance arrangements have weakened moderately, despite the continued use of procedural controls. Annual audits, publication of beneficiary lists and independent evaluations continue to support basic accountability, while eligibility requirements and sector initiatives such as the United Nations Industrial Development Organization’s (UNIDO) quality programme15 have introduced a degree of oversight. Yet the absence of a national accreditation framework, fragmented data collection and limited tracking of outcomes continue to constrain the effectiveness and scale of private BSS, leaving Albania reliant on donor initiatives to support its BSS sector.

Dimension 5b: Public procurement in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 5b

Albania scored 4.37 on Dimension 5b16 (Figure 1.8), remaining broadly stable with its score of 4.39 in the previous cycle. This places Albania above the Western Balkans and Türkiye average of 4.05, and confirms its position as the strongest performer in the region for this dimension.

Figure 1.8. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 5b and evolution since 2019

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The stability in the overall score reflects offsetting developments across thematic blocks. While performance in planning and design remained broadly stable and implementation declined, this was balanced by substantial progress in monitoring and evaluation, underpinned by strengthened data collection and analysis. Dimension 5b remains one of Albania’s higher-scoring policy areas, reflecting the maturity and consistency of its strategic and legal framework. At the same time, the variation in scoring outcomes can be partly attributed to methodological revisions, such as the reallocation of weights across thematic blocks and the inclusion of additional assessment elements (see Methodology).

Developments since 2022

Developments in the reporting period indicate notable shifts in the size and structure of the public procurement market. The market has expanded significantly, growing from 9.4% of gross domestic product in 2022 to 16.5% in 2024 (Public Procurement Agency, 2022-2024[17]). There has also been progress in the use of competitive procedures, with negotiated procedures without prior publication declining to 2.3% of cases in 2024, compared to 3.3% in 2022 (Public Procurement Agency, 2022-2024[17]). The average number of bids per procedure increased to 3.5 in 2024 from 2.5 in 2022. However, 25% of tenders in 2024 still received only a single bid (Public Procurement Agency, 2022-2024[17]).

Survey responses from the OECD Support for Improvement in Governance and Management (SIGMA) 2024 Assessment revealed that many economic operators declined to participate in public procurement over the past three years due to perceptions that procedures were tailor-made for specific bidders (OECD, 2025[18]). There has been a decline in the share of procedures using the best price-quality ratio, falling to 4.8% in 2024 compared to 7.2% in 2022. However, the value of contracts awarded based on this criterion remains high, accounting for 41% of the total value of awarded contracts in 2024 (up from 33.9% in 2022) (Public Procurement Agency, 2022-2024[17]). This suggests that the best price-quality ratio is predominantly applied in high-value procurement procedures.

Despite these challenges, participation by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has increased significantly. In 2024, they secured 94.6% of contracts by number and 86.4% by value, compared to 71.4% by number and 50.3% by value in 2022 (Public Procurement Agency, 2022-2024[17]) (Figure 1.9). The growing share of SMEs in public procurement appears to reflect the cumulative effect of targeted improvements across all assessed areas.

Figure 1.9. Public procurement market and competition levels in Albania and WBT economies, 2024

Source: Public Procurement Agency (2022-2024[17]).

Albania’s performance in planning and design remained broadly stable at 4.47 from 4.56 in 2022, reflecting the continued strength and consistency of the strategic and legal framework. The national Public Procurement Strategy 2024-2030 and its action plan include clear goals and measures to support SME participation in public procurement (Council of Ministers, 2024[19]). It continues the definition of strategic goals for SMEs set out in the previous Public Procurement Strategy 2020-2023. The Public Procurement Law (PPL) was amended in 2024 and remains highly aligned with the EU 2014 Directives (Table 1.13) (Box 1.2). However, the latest amendment permits the Council of Ministers, within three years of its entry into force, to authorise central-level public bodies to negotiate directly consultancy contracts with international entities in strategic areas such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, critical infrastructure, and combatting organised crime and corruption. This introduces an additional ground for direct contracting not foreseen under the EU public procurement rules (OECD, 2025[18]).

Box 1.2. Spotlight: Simplifying public procurement procedures

In Albania, the Public Procurement Strategy 2020-2023 and the Public Procurement Strategy 2024 2030 have, among other priorities, focused on promoting and encouraging SME participation in public procurement. Simplifying procedures is an important means of achieving this goal, as simplified public procurement processes reduce administrative burdens for SMEs, making it easier for them to participate in competitive tenders.

Several legislative provisions aim to streamline procedures, particularly for low-value procurements of particular interest to SMEs. The legislation permits the conduct of small-value procedures for contracts valued at up to ALL 1 million (Albanian leks) (approximately EUR 10 000). These procedures are typically reserved for SMEs, and economic operators are not required to submit supporting documentation. Such procedures are published and conducted on the Electronic Procurement System, ensuring transparency. Contracting authorities are not obliged to request bid securities in these cases. A trend toward simplification is also evident in other procurement procedures. For instance, self-declarations are used to minimise documentation requirements, and in Simplified Open Procedures, less stringent criteria apply (e.g. lower turnover thresholds).

Given the ongoing increase in the share of SMEs in public procurement, it may be concluded that the strategic approach, supported by legal provisions and implementation measures, is producing the expected results.

Source: Public Procurement Agency (2020[20]).

The Electronic Procurement System continues to play a vital role in the procurement process, serving as the core instrument for transparency and e-procurement (Public Procurement Agency, 2025[21]). Legal protection for economic operators is ensured by the Public Procurement Commission (PPC), in accordance with the PPL. The average duration of decisions made by the PPC has remained stable, with an average of 12 days in 2024, the same as in 2022 (Public Procurement Commission, 2022-2024[22]).

Albania’s performance in implementation declined moderately between 2022 and 2026, from 4.72 to 4.32, reflecting gaps in systematic stakeholder engagement despite continued implementation efforts by the Public Procurement Agency (PPA). Solid implementation capacity has been consistently demonstrated, with the PPA continuing to support contracting authorities and economic operators, including SMEs, through practical implementation tools and training programmes. The PPA has the competence to provide training for economic operators; however, such training activities are not held regularly or systematically, particularly those tailored to the specific needs of SMEs within procurement processes. The private sector actively participates in broad consultations on the development of strategic and legal frameworks. Nevertheless, further improvement is needed in engaging stakeholders during the preparation of more targeted policy instruments, such as training curricula and implementation guidelines (Public Procurement Agency, 2025[23]).

Albania has demonstrated substantial progress in monitoring and evaluation, with the score significantly increasing to 4.36 in 2026 from 3.32 in 2022, reflecting strengthened data collection and reporting practices across the public procurement system. Notably, Albania is the only economy in the WBT region that systematically collects and periodically publishes data on late payments in public procurement. The PPA regularly collects and analyses data on public procurement procedures; however, further efforts are needed to obtain and provide data on the use of sustainable criteria. While the PPA gathers comprehensive data on the obstacles faced by economic operators across various activities, there is no analytical overview specifically addressing the challenges SMEs encounter in accessing public procurement procedures (Table 1.13).

Table 1.13. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 5b

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Prepare and adopt provisions to harmonise the Public Procurement Law with the EU 2014 Procurement Directives	The amendment to the Public Procurement Law (PPL), adopted in February 2024, further aligned provisions in public procurement with the EU acquis by deleting several provisions, particularly those related to the consultancy services procedure.	Strong	Continue full alignment of the PPL with the acquis
Monitor SME participation in public procurement procedures	Overall data on obstacles for economic operators are collected through various assistance tools. However, no analysis of the obstacles SMEs face in accessing public procurement procedures is provided in annual reports or similar documents. Although the share of contracts awarded to SMEs is very high, there is a need to continuously monitor their participation in public procurement to identify specific obstacles in a timely manner and maintain the current positive trend.	Moderate	Introduce a mechanism to monitor SME participation in procurement procedures and to identify obstacles

Dimension 6: Access to finance for SMEs in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 6

Albania scored 3.13 for Dimension 617 (Figure 1.10), which is slight increase from its score in the previous assessment cycle (3.05),18 making Albania’s performance broadly in line with the regional average of 3.21. However, Dimension 6 is one of the economy’s comparatively lower-scoring areas, highlighting room for further progress in strengthening small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SME’s) access to finance.

Figure 1.10. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 6 and evolution since 2019

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Albania’s score has improved slightly since 2022, reflecting steps to strengthen the legal and institutional framework for alternative sources of finance particularly through capital-market development and progress in leasing and factoring, supported by a more developed microfinance sector and a new strategic framework for financial literacy. However, access to bank finance remains constrained by structural bottlenecks, notably in asset registration and credit information systems, while several non-bank instruments, including crowdfunding and private equity, still lack dedicated legal frameworks.

Sub-dimension 6.1: Bank finance

Performance in the bank finance sub-dimension declined from 3.7019 in 2022 to 3.20 in 2026. Despite the development of policies facilitating access to credit for SMEs through the launch of two sectoral credit guarantee schemes (CGSs) that replaced the nationwide COVID-19 schemes, this outcome reflects persistent structural weaknesses in the credit infrastructure and asset registration systems, alongside a greater emphasis on monitoring and evaluation in the scoring process.

Albania’s credit information infrastructure is characterised by gaps, which constrain SME access to finance. The Credit Registry managed by the Bank of Albania does not include data from retail or utility providers. Moreover, the lack of a legal framework to establish a private credit bureau undermines the completeness of credit information in the economy and contributes to banks’ cautious lending behaviour.

Albania’s asset registration systems continue to penalise SMEs’ access to bank finance. Regarding security pledges, securities must be registered with the Albanian Securities Register in accordance with the Law on Capital Markets. However, challenges persist in the agricultural sector, where no institution systematically records ownership of livestock, agricultural assets, or greenhouse equipment across all regions (OECD, 2024[24]). Similar registration gaps affect certain motorised vehicles, including agricultural machinery, where debtors frequently lack formal ownership documentation. Positively, the State Cadastre Agency provides nationwide coverage and offers property information through the e-Albania platform. In line with the Reform Agenda and the Growth Facility for the Western Balkans, full digitalisation of cadastre records is expected by 2026, supported through the European Union for Property Rights project, implemented by the United Nations Office for Project Services in cooperation with the State Cadastre Agency (Table 1.14).

The limited increase in Albania’s score also reflects the discontinuation of major programmes that facilitated access to credit for SMEs, which had been operational during the previous cycle. In particular, the temporary Sovereign Guarantee Schemes I and II, launched in May 2020, were not made permanent. While two sectoral CGS were introduced during the current cycle, the Manufacturing Sector Guarantee Scheme (2024–2028) and the Sovereign Guarantee Scheme for Agricultural Lending (2025), and are complemented by international programmes taking the form of CGSs and credit lines, Albania still lacks an operational, scalable and permanent policy instrument capable of structurally improving SMEs’ access to bank finance. The discontinuation of temporary CGS has contributed to a decline in SME access to bank credit, with their share in total outstanding commercial bank loans falling from 29.9% in 2019 to 26.9% in 2024 (IMF, 2025[25]), well below the Western Balkans and Türkiye average figure of 35.5% in 2024. Against this backdrop, the adoption of Law No. 23/2025 “On the Albanian Development Bank” in March 2025 provides the basis for establishing a National Development Bank, which could become a key instrument for strengthening SME access to finance.

Table 1.14. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 6, Sub-dimension 6.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Strengthen capacity to guarantee creditor securities	There has been no progress in strengthening the legal framework to protect creditor securities, including bankruptcy procedures. However, Albania has made some progress in the digitalisation of cadastre data, with full digitalisation expected to be completed by 2026, thereby clarifying property rights and improving collateral enforcement.	Limited	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”
Increase financial support schemes for SMEs	Despite the introduction of two sectoral credit guarantee schemes in the previous assessment cycle and the presence of several international initiatives supporting SMEs’ access to bank finance, Albania still lacks an operational, scalable, nationwide policy instrument to facilitate SME access to credit. In this context, the adoption of Law No. 23/2025 “On the Albanian Development Bank” is an important milestone, as it establishes the legal basis for a permanent development finance institution expected to support SMEs through long-term investment financing and risk-sharing instruments.	Moderate	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”

Sub-dimension 6.2: Non-bank finance

Albania scored 2.89 on Sub-dimension 6.2, substantially higher than its score in the 2022 assessment cycle (2.11).20 Overall, the score improvement reflects steps taken to strengthen the legal frameworks for capital markets, leasing and factoring; however, dedicated legal frameworks for private equity, venture capital, and crowdfunding remain absent.

Capital markets in Albania remain underdeveloped, though initiatives are underway to support their development. The Albanian Securities Exchange currently focuses mainly on government securities trading, as the equity and corporate bond markets remain largely inactive. A notable exception occurred in June 2023, when the microfinance institution Noa issued the first Albanian corporate bonds, valued at ALL 500 million (Albanian leks) (approximately EUR 4.95 million), marking an important first step toward developing the corporate bond market. Earlier that year, in April 2023, the Council of Ministers approved the policy document Creation of an Enabling Environment for the Development of Capital Markets in Albania (2023-2027), prepared by the Albanian Financial Supervisory Authority in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Albania. As a result of this initiative, implementation has focused on operationalising the capital-market framework through secondary regulation and strengthened supervision: Albania’s capital-market development has been supported by the enactment of Law No. 62/2020 On Capital Markets and the adoption of a substantial set of implementing regulations (including rules on prospectus requirements, transparency for issuers, licensing and operational requirements for intermediaries, and market-abuse provisions), alongside upgrades to market surveillance and supervisory tools.

The legal framework for private equity and venture capital funds remains absent in Albania. Nevertheless, several international programmes, including the Western Balkans Enterprise Development and Innovation Facility, the Albanian Reconstruction Equity Fund, and Fondi BESA, provide blended finance instruments, such as equity financing, to foster the development of private equity and venture capital activity. In addition, initiatives such as EU4 Innovation and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)’s Star Venture and SME support programmes offer complementary business development services alongside financing. However, results remain limited: total private investment reached only USD 30 000 in 2024 (Dealroom, 2025[26]), suggesting that substantial room remains for further development. Business angel networks (BANs) in Albania are also at a nascent stage, with Angels Albania currently the only operational network. International programmes such as EU for Innovation, the Swiss Entrepreneurship Programme, and the WB6 Startup Academy support the development of BANs through capacity-building activities for angel investors, pitch events, and investor-startup matchmaking initiatives.

Albania currently lacks a legal framework for crowdfunding, but steps are being taken to address this regulatory gap. At the time of writing, the Ministry of Economy and Innovation, with support from the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs and implemented through the World Bank, has advanced preparatory work on new legislation, including a gap analysis and initial drafting. A focal point has been appointed within the ministry, and an initial coordination meeting has been held to establish a working group bringing together key stakeholders, including the Financial Supervisory Authority and the Bank of Albania. While the process experienced delays linked to institutional reorganisation and changes in ministerial responsibilities, the legislation is currently planned for approval under the 2026 legislative programme.

The legal framework for factoring and leasing has been strengthened since the previous assessment cycle, but these financing avenues remain underdeveloped in Albania. In March 2023, Albania reinforced the regulatory framework governing factoring and leasing activities by amending the Regulation on Risk Management in the Activity of Non-bank Financial Institutions. The revisions aim to enhance the financial soundness of these institutions by introducing measures such as mandatory reserve funds to cover potential losses arising from unpaid contracts. Subsequently, in August 2024, the Bank of Albania amended the Regulation on the Licensing and Operations of Non-bank Financial Institutions, including factoring and leasing operators, requiring them to convert from limited liability companies to joint-stock companies, thereby strengthening transparency, corporate governance and supervisory oversight. Despite efforts to harmonise the legal frameworks with the EU acquis, leasing and factoring volumes remain modest. Leasing volumes reached EUR 58 million (0.23% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2023,21 a level ten times lower than the EU average of 2.05% in 2023 (Leaseurope, 2024[27]). Factoring remains marginal, with a market size of EUR 4.1 million in 2023, comparable to 2019 (EUR 4 million). With the exception of a few international programmes providing leasing finance such as the EBRD’s SME Reboot Programme, Go Digital and Youth in Business, the absence of active policy measures, such as tax incentives, promotion programmes, and dedicated training opportunities, constrain further development of factoring and leasing, possibly reflecting the lack of initiatives encouraging businesses to use these financing instruments, and ongoing challenges in financial literacy.22

Sub-dimension 6.3: Financial inclusion

Albania scored 3.76 on Sub-dimension 6.3, up from 3.5123 in 2022, reflecting an increasingly developed microfinance sector and a new strategic framework for financial literacy, despite persistent gaps in policies that promote financial inclusion.

To address the existing structural gaps in financial literacy, the Bank of Albania approved the National Strategy for Financial Education and Inclusion 2024–2026 in January 2024 (Table 1.15). The strategy introduces 23 actions and corresponding key indicators to monitor progress in financial education and inclusion. However, the strategy does not set quantitative targets and provides no specific information on the funding allocated to each action, which may hinder effective implementation and progress monitoring. Moreover, existing initiatives lack the scale to fill the economy’s low financial penetration, with only 46.1% of the adult population owning a bank account in 2025, while 73.2% for the WBT average (World Bank, 2025[28]). The Bank of Albania carries out several initiatives to raise financial awareness among primary and secondary school students and the public, but their scale remains limited. For example, in October 2024, the pilot Youth School financial education programme was launched for approximately 60 high-school students from Tirana, Durrës, and Elbasan. Private actors also offer training for underserved groups, including the Sparkasse Foundation, which focuses on rural areas, and the Albanian-American Development Foundation, which targets youth.24 Despite these efforts, activities remain largely uncoordinated, resulting in a fragmented landscape of financial education in Albania.

Small businesses in Albania are gradually gaining better access to microfinance, supported by a robust legal framework and active policies promoting its development. Recent policy initiatives have built on this foundation to modernise the microfinance sector by introducing digital solutions, improving operational efficiency, and extending the reach of financial services. Regulation No. 29/2022, aligned with the European Union’s Payment Services Directive (PSD2), facilitates electronic identification, open banking, and interoperability among financial service providers, thereby laying the groundwork for digital microfinance solutions (Bank of Albania, 2022[29]; 2024[30]). Also, building on interest rate caps on consumer loans, the sector has continued to expand, with loans provided by microfinance institutions reaching 0.65% of GDP in 2024, twice the level of 2019 (0.37%) (IMF, 2025[25]).

Table 1.15. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 6, Sub-dimension 6.3

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status
Swiftly complete the Strategy for Financial Education and develop an action plan for implementing it	Albania has adopted the National Strategy for Financial Education and Inclusion 2024-2026; however, the action plan lacks quantitative targets, and the individual actions lack information on dedicated funding.	Moderate
Increase awareness about non-bank financial instruments to support their uptake as an integral part of the Strategy for Financial Education	The National Strategy for Financial Education and Inclusion 2024-2026 does not explicitly address non-bank financial instruments and remains general in its approach to financial literacy.	Limited

Dimension 7: Standards and technical regulations in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 7

Albania received an overall score of 4.34 on Dimension 7 (Figure 1.11), an improvement compared to its score of 4.02 in 2022 and placing it above the Western Balkans and Türkiye regional average of 3.97, one of the stronger performers in the region. Dimension 7 remains one of Albania’s higher scoring policy areas, reflecting continued strengthening of its quality infrastructure (QI) system and sustained progress in aligning with key elements of the European Union (EU) acquis. Albania’s performance reflects a QI system that has advanced in institutional co-ordination and in small and medium-sized enterprise (SME)-targeted support, supported by continued legislative alignment. The improvement in the overall score is determined by positive developments across the three sub-dimensions. Overall co-ordination and general measures (Sub-dimension 7.1) have moderately strengthened, harmonisation with the acquis (Sub-dimension 7.2) has remained broadly stable, and SMEs’ access to standardisation (Sub‑dimension 7.3) has substantially improved over the assessment period.

Figure 1.11. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 7 and evolution since 2019

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Sub-dimension 7.1: Overall co-ordination and general measures

Albania’s performance on Sub-dimension 7.1 moderately improved between assessment cycles, increasing from 3.89 in 2022 to 4.18 in 2026. This is marginally above the WBT regional average of 3.86. This increase reflects incremental consolidation within an already relatively mature framework for co‑ordination and general measures related to the free movement of goods rather than a structural shift in policy approach or maturity. Targeted improvements can be observed, notably through the Ministry of Economy’s update of the Roadmap for Alignment of the Acquis in the Area of Free Movement of Goods. This planning and monitoring tool identifies gaps between national and EU legislation, assigns institutional responsibilities and timelines, and serves as the main reference for ongoing harmonisation efforts. The roadmap constitutes an emerging good practice, as it supports the sequencing of reforms and enhances transparency on forthcoming alignment measures.

Several online platforms provide information to firms on export procedures and access to the EU market, including the Investment and Development Agency portal and the Export Albania website, which consolidate guidance on certification, customs procedures and support programmes. However, these tools are general in scope and do not yet address the specific information needs of SMEs, such as tailored checklists or simplified guidance on product compliance (See Table 1.16).

All institutions within Albania’s QI system, covering standardisation, accreditation, metrology and market surveillance, operate under clear legal mandates that define their competences. Nevertheless, beyond this legislative framework, no publicly available co-ordination mechanism describes how these bodies co‑operate in practice. The absence of formal joint work plans or reporting arrangements limits coherence and institutional visibility. For SMEs, this results in higher information and compliance costs, as responsibilities across QI institutions remain dispersed.

Table 1.16. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendation for Dimension 7, Sub‑dimension 7.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status
Provide information about quality infrastructure regulation and support on a single website and improve interlinkages between institutions	Several institutional websites provide partial information, such as the General Directorate of Standardization, the General Directorate of Accreditation, the State Inspectorate of Market Surveillance, the Investment and Development Agency and Export Albania. A new Intersectoral Strategy on Consumer Protection and Market Surveillance 2024-2030 foresees stronger institutional co‑ordination, but no consolidated single portal or SME-tailored platform has been developed.	Limited

Sub-dimension 7.2: Harmonisation with the EU acquis

Albania’s performance in harmonisation with the acquis slightly improved between assessment cycles, increasing from 4.17 in 2022 to 4.37 in 2026. This is above the WBT regional average of 4.02. This slight increase outlines a context where most thematic blocks saw little to no change, with the exception of standardisation and market surveillance, which greatly improved, and metrology, which slightly declined.

Performance has modestly improved in technical regulations, supported by the adoption of important measures earlier in the assessment cycle and the preparation of several legislative amendments. Training activities targeting SMEs have also expanded, including through broader dissemination of information via an official website, which has increased overall reach. Nevertheless, the absence of a fully systematic and SME-targeted update mechanism, together with delays in revising certain regulatory areas, continues to affect predictability and coherence, even if these gaps have only partially constrained the impact of the progress achieved.

Standardisation has seen substantial progress since the previous assessment, supported by continued progress in the adoption of EU standards and marked improvements in digital and institutional frameworks. The General Directorate of Standardization (DPS) has maintained a strong pace of alignment, with over 90% of the EU standards corpus now transposed, reinforcing convergence with EU requirements, supporting SMEs by ensuring that domestic standards largely mirror those applied in the EU market. The adoption of an Action Plan for the Digitalisation of National Standardisation Activities in 2024 has significantly reinforced digitalisation processes in the field, enabling real-time access to standards and allowing SMEs to read, comment on and purchase standards online. Furthermore, legislation on standardisation is regularly evaluated every three years, and the overall system has received positive assessments from CEN and CENELEC peer evaluators, confirming compliance with European standardisation principles and the WTO TBT Agreement. Nonetheless, continued monitoring remains important to sustain the progress achieved.

Accreditation performance has remained broadly stable since the previous assessment, mainly due to lack of a systematic evaluation of accreditation legislation, combined with limited digitalisation and ongoing capacity constraints, continues to affect transparency and procedural efficiency (Table 1.17). However, the legislative framework has improved since the previous assessment through the amendment in 2023 of the Law on Accreditation, further aligning it with EU regulations. The number of accredited conformity assessment bodies rose to 116 by 2025, up from 97 in 2022, strengthening sectoral coverage and reinforcing the accreditation system’s role in supporting regulatory alignment. For SMEs, this expansion contributes to improved availability of accredited services and greater potential access to certification pathways aligned with EU requirements.

Conformity assessment has slightly improved since the previous assessment, reflecting present but limited progress in strengthening implementation and SME-facing support mechanisms. The basic legislative framework for conformity assessment bodies remains in place and is largely aligned with the acquis; however, no substantive changes have been introduced during the assessment period, and a revised draft is still under public consultation. While the introduction of a Digital Product Passport is foreseen, concrete timelines and implementation arrangements remain unclear. Although a dedicated body oversees conformity assessment bodies and a website provides general information on them, the information is not tailored to SMEs and offers limited practical guidance on certification pathways.

Metrology performance in Albania remains strong and at a high level of development, despite a slightly lower score since the previous assessment. Important steps have been taken to modernise the framework, including ongoing efforts to update metrology legislation and strengthen alignment with the acquis. In this context, the Ministry of Economy, in co-operation with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, launched a comprehensive review of the Metrology Law in 2025 and adopted targeted amendments, laying the groundwork for more effective implementation going forward. Technical assistance provided under the Global Quality and Standards Programme continues to support improvements in measurement accuracy and traceability, reinforcing the credibility of the national metrology system. Ongoing technical support under the Global Quality and Standards Programme seeks to strengthen measurement accuracy and traceability; however, limited digital tools and uneven follow-up continue to undermine the reliability and accessibility of metrology services used by domestic firms.

The market-surveillance framework has improved through the adoption of the Intersectoral Strategy for Consumer Protection and Market Surveillance 2024-2030 (Decision No. 326). This strategy introduces a long-term vision for product safety and includes an action plan to reinforce inspection capacity and institutional co-ordination. Furthermore, amendments to the legal framework governing market surveillance of non-food products are under preparation, with adoption expected in 2026. For businesses, this implies more consistent enforcement of product-safety rules and, over time, greater confidence in compliance procedures, though practical implementation is still at an early stage. The 35% increase in inspection activity from 2 569 inspections in 2022 to 2 983 in 2025 by the market surveillance authority, the State Inspectorate of Market Surveillance, and the rollout of standardised inspection protocols, reflect stronger operational capacity.

Table 1.17. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendation for Dimension 7, Sub‑dimension 7.2

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status
Extend the scope of European co-operation for Accreditation’s multilateral agreements	Albania amended its accreditation legislation through Law No. 92/2023, fully harmonising with EU Regulation (EC) 765/2008. The General Directorate of Accreditation remains a full EA and IAF member and is an EA-MLA signatory in testing labs, inspection, management system certification and certification of persons. Peer evaluations were successfully completed in 2021 and 2025. However, no new MLA scopes have been added since 2020, and certain areas (calibration, medical labs) remain outside MLA recognition.	Moderate

Sub-dimension 7.3: SMEs’ access to standardisation

Albania’s performance on Sub-dimension 7.3 improved between assessment cycles, increasing from 3.49 in 2022 to 4.15 in 2026, placing the economy well above the regional average of 3.81. This substantial improvement reflects strengthened efforts to raise awareness of standardisation among enterprises and improve financial support for certification following the introduction of grant schemes.

In the area of awareness-raising and information, the DPS has intensified its outreach through regular publications and events. Its quarterly Standards Bulletin provides updates on adopted, withdrawn and draft standards, while ten workshops and training sessions have focused on the practical use of ISO 9001 and sector-specific standards, including those for food processing and agricultural products. Events such as the National Forum on Quality and Standards further promote awareness of the benefits of standardisation among enterprises. SMEs have free online access to information via the DPS website, including guides and opportunities to comment on draft standards.

In terms of participation, SMEs are represented in more than 60 technical committees and may contribute to standardisation processes without fees, benefiting also from reduced prices for purchasing standards. However, there is limited monitoring of SME participation and public consultations rarely result in written feedback.

Financial support for certification has slightly improved following the reactivation of the Investment and Development Agency’s grant scheme in 2024, with 101 SMEs receiving funding that year and 86 more in 2025. These were supported by state budget allocations of approximately EUR 1.57 million in 2024 and EUR 1.27 million in 2025. While the scheme covers consultancy and certification costs, there is no systematic tracking of beneficiaries’ outcomes, such as the number of certifications achieved or subsequent export performance, reducing the transparency and evaluative value of the programme.

Dimension 8a: Enterprise skills in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 8a

Albania received an overall score of 3.44 on Dimension 8a (Figure 1.12). This represents no significant change compared with the previous assessment cycle (3.49) and places Albania as the fifth-best performer in the Western Balkans and Türkiye region, in line with the regional average of 3.44. Accordingly, Dimension 8a remains one of the economy’s mid-performing areas, highlighting room for expanded efforts.

Figure 1.12. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 8a and evolution since 2019

Statlink

The relative stability of Albania’s overall score since 2022 reflects the influence of several intersecting factors. While significant progress has been made in planning and design, supported by advancements in the skills intelligence framework and tools, this was offset by decreases in both implementation and monitoring and evaluation performance. This decline does not indicate regression per se but rather reflects the increased emphasis in this assessment cycle on the social economy, an area where Albania remains underdeveloped. The overall score was further affected by a reduced methodological weight assigned to the planning and design block, Albania’s strongest area of performance.

Developments since 2022

The score for planning and design has substantially increased, reflecting Albania’s progress in delivering on commitments outlined in both existing and newly adopted strategies. The new National Employment and Skills Strategy 2023-2030, in particular, places a stronger emphasis on skills intelligence, which has contributed to the development and implementation of several skills assessment and anticipation tools. These include skills needs analyses for the green and digital transitions in four key sectors (agriculture, construction, energy and tourism) as well as regional labour market analyses. Building on this foundation, a more comprehensive medium-term Skills Needs Analysis is being developed with support from the United Nations Development Programme; at the time of writing, the processing and analysis of data had been completed. Once finalised, this tool will extend the scope of analysis beyond individual sectors or skill areas, providing a more holistic assessment of market dynamics and workforce trends. In parallel, work has advanced on establishing a Labour Market Observatory, which, once operational, should enable better integration of administrative and labour market data and support a more forward-looking skills intelligence system covering short-, medium- and long-term needs.

Despite these achievements, progress towards establishing a systematic, co-ordinated national skills intelligence framework remains limited. While the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation leads the current co-ordination efforts, no steps have been taken to set up a dedicated co-ordination body within the Albanian Investment Development Agency, as foreseen in 2022.

The implementation score, by contrast, has declined, reflecting the thematic block’s stronger emphasis on the social economy, an area which is still in a nascent stage in Albania. Despite recognition as a policy priority, support for social enterprises has not advanced, with no dedicated programmes for social enterprises or social entrepreneurs. Non-governmental actors have largely stepped in to assist through capacity-building and mentoring, but their interventions remain limited in scale and sustainability.

Nevertheless, training provision for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has continued to be refined to better align with labour market needs. Two sector skills committees were established and now play a key role in strengthening co-ordination between training providers and employers (Box 1.3). Skills development efforts linked to the twin transitions have also advanced. The National Agency for Employment and Skills (NAES) expanded digital training opportunities across both basic and advanced levels, with notable uptake: its “Digital Skills” programme, launched in 2023, attracted 2 400 participants in its first year, while its coding programme reached 1 268 participants (ETF, 2025[31]). Initiatives seeking to cultivate skills for the green transition are likewise gaining momentum, particularly in sectors such as energy and tourism. Nonetheless, more efforts are needed to mainstream such skills across all industries, given the cross-cutting nature of the green transition. Moreover, the overall impact of these initiatives remains constrained by persistently low adult participation in training (Figure 1.13).

Box 1.3. Spotlight: The establishment of sector skills committees in Albania

Albania sought to address persistently high youth not in employment, education or training rates, exacerbated by outdated curricula and limited co operation between the education system and employers, through the establishment of sector skills committees. In line with recommendations from the OECD SME Policy Index 2022, Albania successfully set up two such committees in key sectors: ICT (established in 2022) and Hospitality and Tourism (established in 2023).

Although recently created, both committees have already proven their value by conducting sector specific skills needs analyses, which are crucial for identifying critical gaps in knowledge, training and skills development. This evidence-based approach has informed the review and modernisation of training standards. For example, in 2023, the ICT Committee validated new standards for two emerging profiles (software engineering technician, cybersecurity specialist) while the Hospitality and Tourism Committee validated qualifications for the chef and kitchen-pastry professions.

This model serves as a valuable example for other economies in the Western Balkans and Türkiye region yet to establish such committees, demonstrating how sectoral engagement can improve the relevance and quality of training systems by involving the private sector more closely, ultimately helping to reduce skills mismatches in priority industries.

Sources: Drishti (2025[32]); information provided by Albania’s government during the assessment period.

Figure 1.13. Key statistic for Dimension 8a, Albania, 2015-2024

Participation in adult learning

Sources: Eurostat (2024[33]); OECD (2025[34]); Albanian Institute of Statistics (2025[35]).

Monitoring and evaluation capacities are in place; however, limited progress has led to a decline in the score as the gap with good practice has widened. The NAES conducts annual reviews of training programmes, offering a valuable source of evidence on programme effectiveness. In some cases, findings from skills needs assessments, such as those carried out in the ICT and hospitality/tourism sectors, have informed updates to training offers, reflecting an emerging, if still ad hoc, link between skills intelligence and programme design. However, a lack of systematic monitoring mechanisms continues to constrain policy impact. Notably, Albania still lacks a centralised and publicly accessible database on in-demand skills, skills shortages and gaps, particularly among SMEs. This limits the capacity to track evolving labour market needs or systematically assess whether training provision is well aligned. In parallel, data challenges also persist in the social enterprise sector, where the official register remains inaccessible to the public and is not integrated with national business registers, further hampering transparency, monitoring and evidence-based policymaking.

Table 1.18. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 8a

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Design and implement a comprehensive approach to SME skills intelligence	Progress has been made in implementing policy commitments, particularly in skills anticipation led by the National Agency for Employment and Skills. However, co-ordination remains limited, as a dedicated co-ordination body within the Albanian Investment Development Agency has yet to be established, with no observable progress on this front.	Moderate	See Cluster 4: “Understanding and anticipating skills needs”
Prioritise efforts to establish sector skills committees	Two sectoral committees have been established since the last assessment cycle and are now operational: one in ICT and the other in Hospitality and Tourism. A third committee in the Energy sector, supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, is under development.	Strong	See Cluster 4: “Understanding and anticipating skills needs”

Dimension 8b: Innovation policy for SMEs in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 8b

Albania received an overall score of 2.97 on Dimension 8b (Figure 1.14) an improvement from its score in the previous assessment cycle (2.58), but placing it below the Western Balkans and Türkiye regional average of 3.27. Dimension 8b remains one of Albania’s comparatively lower scoring areas, highlighting room for further progress in strengthening small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) innovation policies.

Figure 1.14. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 8b and evolution since 2019

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The increase in Albania’s score since 2022 mainly reflects progress in strengthening the innovation policy framework and in government financial support for innovative SMEs, notably through the gradual introduction of grant schemes supporting SME innovation. However, significant gaps remain in institutional support services, as technology extension services infrastructure for established SMEs remain non-operational, and in co-ordinating the overall policy framework for innovation. Moreover, despite the establishment of Albania’s first technology park, the infrastructure enabling collaboration between research institutions and SMEs remains underdeveloped.

Sub-dimension 8b.1: Policy framework for innovation

Performance in the policy framework for innovation has improved, substantially rising from 2.94 in 2022 to 3.49 in 2026. This result reflects improvements in monitoring innovation policy outcomes, whereas challenges in co-ordination between implementing institutions persist.

The National Strategy on Scientific Research and Innovation (2023-2030) is Albania’s overarching policy framework for innovation. It envisages increasing annual public funding to 1% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030, but public research and development (R&D) funding remains low (0.06% of GDP in 2025), indicating persistent challenges in implementing the gradual increase. The policy framework is complemented by the Business Development and Investment Strategy (2021-2027), which places strong emphasis on SME innovation and links between industry and academia to spur economic growth, and the National Strategy for the Development of Innovative Entrepreneurship (2024-2030) which places a strong emphasis on start-ups, with the goal to raise start-up density by 60% from 2024 to 203025. In December 2024, Albania has also adopted the Smart Specialisation Strategy (2025-2030) and its accompanying action plan, making research and innovation a horizontal priority to sustainably develop the agriculture and tourism sectors, alongside renewable energies. Finally, the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation is drafting a new Law on the Promotion of Innovation to boost innovation in key sectors such as ICT, green energy, and the digital economy through fiscal incentives, technology transfer, and the creation of an electronic innovation register to track innovative projects. However, no timeline has been communicated for further adoption.

Co-ordination of the innovation policy framework remains a significant obstacle to effective implementation, as it involves 15 institutions,26 and no interinstitutional working group has been established yet (Table 1.19). Since the last cycle, Albania has further expanded its institutional framework for innovation with the creation of three new agencies: Startup Albania, established in March 2022, is responsible for supporting the development of startups and the national innovation ecosystem; the Security and Defence Innovation Center, created in July 2023, supports innovation in the defence sector; and the Agency for Innovation and Excellence, established in November 2023, promotes innovation and technological advancement in the public administration. While this expansion signals the government’s commitment to innovation across sectors, the direct contribution of these bodies to SME innovation is uneven: notably, the Agency for Innovation and Excellence operates without a dedicated R&D funding envelope and is not SME-facing. As a result, the growing institutional base increases co-ordination needs and risks fragmentation, particularly in the absence of a horizontal co-ordination mechanism. Overall, clearer mandates and stronger operational linkages with SME support instruments would help improve policy coherence and implementation effectiveness.

Regarding monitoring and evaluation, Albania has not yet established a dedicated national set of key performance indicators (KPIs) for SME innovation, and regular monitoring of outcomes is not yet institutionalised. At the same time, the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) has strengthened the production of innovation and science statistics in line with Eurostat standards, including participation in the European Innovation Scoreboard (EIS) since 2022.27 These improvements are a step forward, but remaining gaps still constrain evidence-based SME innovation policymaking and monitoring (Table 1.19).

Table 1.19. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 8b, Sub-dimension 8b.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status
Complete steps to strengthen the strategic framework for innovation	Despite co-ordination being one of the main weaknesses of the 2017-2022 Strategy for Scientific Research, Technology and Innovation, the interinstitutional working group has not yet been established, underscoring the need for stronger governance and clearer institutional responsibilities in implementing innovation policy.	Limited
Further strengthen data collection to support evidence-based policy making	Since the last assessment cycle, Albania has strengthened business innovation data collection, most notably through participation in the European Innovation Scoreboard since 2022. Despite progress, gaps in data quality and granularity, particularly regarding SMEs’ research and development spending, still constrain evidence-based policymaking.	Moderate

Sub-dimension 8b.2: Government institutional support-services for innovative SMEs

Albania achieved a score of 2.50 on Sub-dimension 8b.2, up from 2.16 in 2022. This progress reflects the continuous development of incubation and acceleration services, despite the absence of technology extension services for SMEs.

Albanian innovative SMEs can access a growing range of programmes supporting early innovation and their acceleration phase. While initial efforts mainly focused on business incubation, Albania’s start-up ecosystem has become more diversified, now comprising 12 incubators and 11 accelerators (Albania Tech, 2025[36]), most of which are privately managed and concentrated in Tirana and nearby municipalities. Access to these incubation and acceleration programmes is facilitated by AlbaniaTech’s platform, launched in 2021, which provides one-stop access to information on start-ups, investors, support organisations, and programmes in the Albanian ecosystem for innovation. The Law on the Support and Development of Start-ups, adopted in 2022, has further supported the expansion of incubation and acceleration programmes by introducing a dedicated annual budget of EUR 3 million in 2025. While more detailed information will be provided in the first monitoring report in March 2026, the government grant is estimated to have already supported around 175 start-ups, including 89 expected to benefit in 2025 alone. Looking ahead, it should be noted that the agency Start-up Albania also plans to further strengthen incubation through the 2026 grant call, including dedicated support for incubators to enhance financing, capacity building, and investment-readiness services for start-ups. Finally, as in the previous assessment cycle, there are no technology extension services in Albania, leaving a gap in the institutional support services available to SMEs.

Sub-dimension 8b.3: Government financial support for innovative SMEs

Albania scored 3.29 on Sub-dimension 8b.3, substantially up from 2.57 in the previous assessment, reflecting stronger direct financial support for SMEs engaged in innovation activities, particularly start-ups, although schemes for indirect financial support remain very limited.

Albania has launched two new government-backed programmes supporting start-ups, enabling the scaling up of financial support for SMEs’ innovation efforts (Table 1.20). After being suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Innovation Fund resumed grant provision in 2024, despite a modest total budget of ALL 15 million (EUR 155 000), thereby continuing its role in supporting small-scale innovation efforts among Albanian SMEs. Introduced in 2024, the Support Program for Startups and Startup Facilitators provides grants to start-ups operating in priority areas of the National Smart Specialisation Strategy 2025-2030,28 with a focus on green and digital innovation (Albania Tech, 2025[37]), for a total allocation of ALL 300 million (EUR 3.1 million) from the state budget. Launched in 2025 with a substantial financial envelope of EUR 7 million, the Empowering the Next Generation of Innovators Programme offers grants specifically to start-ups developing digital innovations (NomadTech, 2025[38]), constituting a powerful financial tool to support digital innovation in Albania. However, despite these recent domestic initiatives, the bulk of existing support for SME innovation efforts continues to be provided by donor-funded instruments, mainly from the European Union.

As in the previous cycle, indirect financial support for innovation in Albania remains limited. The Albanian tax regime provides a reduced corporate income tax rate of 5% for qualifying companies engaged in software production, applicable until 31 December 2025. In addition, specific incentives target start-ups operating in the newly established Durana Tech Park. Under Law No. 58/2022 On Technological and Scientific Parks, companies located within the park benefit from a 15-year exemption from corporate income tax, a 10-year personal income tax exemption for employees engaged in R&D, and a value-added tax exemption on goods, services, and equipment used for innovative product development.

Table 1.20. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 8b, Sub-dimension 8b.3

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status
Boost financial support to encourage investments in innovation and research	Despite their limited financial size, Albania has made notable progress in boosting direct financial support for SME innovation, with the launch of several new government-backed programmes and the resuming of the Innovation Fund’s grants.	Moderate

Sub-dimension 8b.4: SME and research institution collaboration and technology transfer

Albania scored 2.09 in Sub-dimension 8b.4, a slight decrease from the 2022 assessment (2.29). Despite the launch of the economy’s first technology park and efforts to strengthen the implementation of intellectual property rights, the decline reflects the limited development of collaboration mechanisms between research institutions and SMEs, as well as the absence of a dedicated national innovation voucher scheme beyond participation in the regional pilot programme under Horizon Europe.

The EU Horizon Europe Innovation Vouchers pilot programme was launched in June 2024 across the Western Balkan economies. With a limited total budget of EUR 260 000, it provides financial support covering up to 80% of service costs (up to EUR 8 000) for start-ups collaborating with public research institutions in other economies of the region (Western Balkans Info Hub, 2024[39]).

Albania marked a significant step forward in fostering collaboration between research institutions and SMEs with the launch of the Durana Technology Park in September 2025 (Table 1.21). The park has a strong digital orientation, focusing on software development and maintenance, cybersecurity, communication systems, data migration, and data analysis. Beyond this milestone, co-operation between academia and business remains limited and primarily channelled through the National Agency for Scientific Research and Innovation (NASRI), which manages two grant programmes29 with a combined budget of ALL 100 million (EUR 840 000) in 2025. NASRI’s University–Business Co-operation Programme, first launched as a pilot in 2023, has since been renewed for 2024 and 2025. In parallel, NASRI has issued the 2025 call for proposals under the Eureka LinkUp – Connecting Regions for Innovation Programme, which supports the creation of research and innovation consortia across Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, and Türkiye. However, Albania still lacks key infrastructure to support business–academia collaboration, such as technology institutes, technology transfer offices, and competence centres. The co-financing model applied under NASRI’s programmes (70% public grant and 30% enterprise contribution) represents a positive step towards risk-sharing and stronger business engagement. However, scaling up the programme and broadening participation beyond a limited pool of actors would further enhance its systemic impact.

The National Industrial Property Strategy (2022–2025) provides the main framework for Albania’s intellectual property rights policy. In line with this strategy, several awareness-raising and outreach initiatives have been carried out in partnership with the Albanian Chamber of Commerce and various universities. The General Directorate of Industrial Property is also collaborating with experts from the World Intellectual Property Organisation to establish the economy’s first technology transfer office. Overall, patenting activity in Albania remains very limited: resident patent applications totalled 11 in 2024, suggesting that recent policy efforts have yet to translate into broader uptake (Eurostat, 2025[40]). Persistent gaps in the legal framework, particularly regarding the ownership of intellectual property resulting from publicly funded research, combined with the lack of a fully operational network of technology transfer offices within universities, continue to constrain the effective commercialisation of innovation and business-academia collaboration.

Table 1.21. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 8b, Sub-dimension 8b.4

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status
Continue building momentum to create an ecosystem conducive to innovation	Albania has made progress in creating an ecosystem conducive to innovation, notably through the launch of the Durana Technology Park and several incubation and accelerator programmes. However, despite these advances, mechanisms for co-operation between research institutions and small and medium-sized enterprises have remained scarce.	Moderate

Dimension 9: SMEs in a green economy in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 9

Albania scored 2.69 on Dimension 9 (Figure 1.15), significantly up from 2.07 in the previous cycle but still lagging behind the regional average of 3.16. The progress reflects stable strategic prioritisation of greening policies focussed on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and improved implementation thereof. Yet, Dimension 9 remains Albania’s weakest scoring policy area.

Figure 1.15. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 9 and evolution since 2019

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The improved score for Albania since 2022 reflects a move from strategic planning to more effective implementation. While the planning and design score remains relatively consistent in sub-dimension 9.1, it rose in sub-dimension 9.2. Main improvements stem from stronger implementation of greening measures and the upgrading of monitoring and evaluation processes for SME greening incentives and instruments.

Sub-dimension 9.1: Framework for greening policies targeting SMEs

Performance in this sub-dimension has increased, from 2.50 in 2022 to 2.99 in 2026. While planning and design remains stable, implementation improved considerably, but monitoring and evaluation performance decreased.

While Albania has several strategies addressing greening policies in general, SME-targeted measures remain prominent in areas such as energy efficiency and green innovation included primarily in the National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) and the Business and Investment Development Strategy (BIDS) 2021-27. Development is still underway for others, such as the Long-Term Low Emission Development Strategy currently under discussion. Sector-specific greening strategies such as the Integrated Waste Management Strategy 2020-2035 sets more transparent targets for increased waste recovery and recycling to provide businesses a basis for moving to a circular economy, and the Circular Economy Roadmap, developed with the OECD in 2024, is gradually being translated into concrete policies, such as through a planned revision of the Action Plan for the Integrated Waste Management Strategy by 2027.

On implementation, the launch of the Enterprise Consultative Council in 2024 marks progress, providing a dialogue platform chaired by the Ministry of Economy and Innovation (see Table 1.22). Compared to the previous BIDS period (2014-2020), there is evidence of action with 12 SMEs having benefitted from green-focussed activities included in the strategy.30 Implementation of SME-targeted NECP measures, such as SME renewable energy pilots and training programmes planned for 2025,31 remains unverified. Yet, donor supported projects such as the EU4 Circular Economy and Green Growth programme have supported legal alignment of market standards with standards in the European Union, implementation capacity and development of circular business models for SMEs.

Persistent monitoring and evaluation gaps hinder the assessment of policy impact in greening SMEs, limiting the ability to identify shortcomings and adjust measures effectively, though steps to improving environmental data collection are being taken by the Ministry of Tourism and Environment (see Table 1.22). This could help systematic data collection and evidence-based revisions of policies in the upcoming period.

Table 1.22. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 9, Sub-dimension 9.1

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Ensure the effective implementation and monitoring of SME greening measures through cross-sectoral co-ordination	The Ministry of Economy and Innovation is now leading in the newly established Enterprise Consultative Council, intended as a co-ordination platform between the public and private sectors. The council’s launch marked a notable step toward improving conditions for doing business and supporting SMEs, though its consideration of greening-specific concerns has yet to be demonstrated in practice. Implementation, though improved since 2022, remains moderate in scale, as reflected in the 2021-2024 Business and Investment Development Strategy monitoring report, which notes that only a few SMEs have benefitted from the strategy’s support measures. However, an EU supported programme is boosting awareness of and access to greening support for SMEs. The Albanian Investment Development Agency continues to conduct annual needs assessment questionnaires with 100-150 SMEs to gather information on training requirements; however, these findings are not publicly available, and co-ordination with other institutions to inform programme delivery has not been documented. Regarding monitoring, the Ministry of Tourism and Environment has launched the Integrated Environmental System, a unified digital platform for managing environmental data from economic operators, representing a concrete step towards service digitalisation and improved environmental reporting.	Moderate	See Cluster 2: “Fostering SME sustainability and resilience”

Sub-dimension 9.2: Incentives and instruments for SME sustainability

Albania scored 2.44 on Sub-dimension 9.2 on incentives and instruments for SME sustainability, improving compared to a score of 1.72 in 2022. The strong progress reflects improvements across prioritisation of support tools in national strategies since 2022, their implementation, and strengthening of monitoring and evaluation systems.

Policy development has progressed through the NECP,32 outlining financial and regulatory incentives aimed at improving SME business conditions for the green transition. Notably, such provisions are still absent from the BIDS 2021-2027, the country’s key SME support strategy. Since 2022, there also has been no reported use of regulatory instruments, such as minimum requirements or performance standards related to sustainability, nor any targeted efforts to ease regulatory or administrative burdens for SMEs in this area.

Still, recent adoption of legislation on renewable energy and circular-economy development is a positive step,33 establishing clearer sustainability standards and a more predictable basis for green investment. In practice, implementation of greening instruments has been driven by grant schemes from the Ministry of Economy and Innovation and Albania’s Investment Development Agency, which have played a central role in supporting SME greening (see Table 1.23).

Further progress is seen in the integration of sustainable and innovative procurement objectives in the revised National Strategy of Public Procurement 2024-2030, which emphasises SME participation in green public procurement. While new tax incentives have also been introduced for SMEs in priority sectors such as tourism, these are not green-focussed. Some co-ordination efforts have been undertaken with the central bank and commercial banks, notably through the Albanian Association of Banks, to expand green financing for SMEs, but concrete results remain pending (see Table 1.23).

Table 1.23. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 9, Sub-dimension 9.2

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Enhance financial support for SME greening	The government has made moderate progress in expanding financial support for SME greening. During 2024, the Ministry of Economy and Innovation andGIZ/ProSEED 2.0 launched a call under the "Smart & Green Future" Grant Scheme that included mandatory green criteria for selection, benefitting a total of 75 SMEs with up to EUR 7 000 per project. Since 2022, AIDA’s Certification Grant Scheme also provides support for certification under the standards ISO 14001:2015 for Environmental management systems and ISO 50001 for Energy management. Co-ordination with the Albanian Association of Banks continues as a public–private partnership to promote green financing and environmental, social and governance initiatives in the banking sector, which would also benefit SME clients. Beyond this, the National Energy and Climate Plan includes tax relief for SMEs innovating in the energy sector, but there is no reporting yet on their uptake or impact.	Moderate	See Cluster 2: “Fostering SME sustainability and resilience”
Consider introducing regulatory instruments into the SME greening policy mix	Since 2022, there has been no evidence of government action to integrate regulatory instruments into the SME greening policy mix. SME-specific performance standards are not in place but requirements for material recycling, and solid waste management regulations have been introduced through the Law on Integrated Waste Management adopted in 2025. Finally, SMEs can benefit from simplified administrative and compliance procedures through horizontal regulatory reforms rather than SME-exclusive environmental exemptions. For example, low-environmental-risk installations, most of which concern SMEs, can obtain simplified licensing or benefit from declarative regimes instead of full permitting processes with many services digitised on the e-Albania platform. Notably in this regard, Albania plans to align with the EU Strategic Environmental Assessment and Environmental Impact Assessment Directives by 2026-2027 and to adopt an action plan ensuring full compliance, coordination, and effective environmental impact assessment.	Moderate	See Cluster 2: “Fostering SME sustainability and resilience”

Aside from the 12 companies that received support through the BIDS greening activities and 75 companies that received financial support through the Smart & Green Future Grant Scheme of the Ministry of Economy and Innovation, available data on SME green support remains limited to renewable energy bank loan statistics for all businesses between 2020 and 2022 (see Figure 1.16). While this marks an improvement compared to the last cycle, systematic monitoring and evaluation, are still not scaled to provide evidence on the effectiveness of incentives or support instruments for SMEs in the green transition. This lack of insight constrains the ability to assess impact and improve the business environment for SMEs in the emerging green economy.

Figure 1.16. Key statistics for Sub-dimension 9.2 on incentives and instruments for SME sustainability, Albania, 2020-2022

Total number (left y-axis) and worth in ALL billions (right y-axis) of renewable energy loans to businesses

Notes: Data are total from the banking sector. Additionally, in 2022, 1 299 green loans worth ALL 3 billion (Albanian leks) were issued.

Source: Information provided by the Albanian government during the assessment period.

Dimension 10: Internationalisation of SMEs in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 10

Albania obtained a score of 3.68 on Dimension 10, compared with 3.80 in the previous assessment (Figure 1.17) pointing to a slight drop in performance in this area, with results continuing to align closely with the Western Balkans and Türkiye regional average of 3.76. Within Albania’s overall small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) policy framework, Dimension 10 is in the mid-range compared to other dimensions.

Figure 1.17. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 10 and evolution since 2019

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Albania’s performance in SME internationalisation shows mixed progress since 2022. Export promotion has advanced through stronger institutional co-ordination, enhanced digital tools, and the gradual implementation of the Business Development and Investment Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027. However, SMEs’ integration into global value chains (GVCs) and the uptake of e-commerce have weakened, reflecting gaps in financial instruments, targeted support and monitoring frameworks. Overall, while the policy and institutional basis for SME internationalisation has improved, results remain uneven across sub-dimensions and tangible competitiveness gains are yet to materialise.

Sub-dimension 10.1: Export promotion

Albania’s performance in this sub-dimension has remained broadly stable, with the score increasing from 4.09 in 2022 to 4.19 in 2026. This reflects offsetting developments across assessment blocks, whereby lower scores in planning and design are counterbalanced by modest improvements in implementation and monitoring and evaluation. While delivery and reporting arrangements have continued to evolve incrementally, these changes have not altered the overall performance of export promotion in a material way.

Performance in planning and design has declined moderately, reflecting a shift from a previously more comprehensive and structured design framework toward a set of incremental amendments with weaker strategic specificity. The 2025 amendments to the Business Development and Investment Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027 mark a step towards strengthening Albania’s export promotion system, aligning it with the European Union’s (EU) Growth Plan 2024-2027 and equipping exporters with enhanced support mechanisms, ranging from training and finance to digital and sector-specific tools.34 These measures are underpinned by formal, multiannual budget commitments and an institutionalised financing framework established by the Council of Ministers.35 However, the amendments primarily extend existing instruments rather than strengthening the strategic architecture of export promotion. They do not introduce quantified export performance targets, clear prioritisation of beneficiary segments or resilience-oriented design features, such as risk diversification or shock‑response mechanisms. In parallel, the adoption of the Export Promotion and Facilitation Programme 2026–203036 in 2025 provides a more structured and coherent framework with defined pillars, detailed measures and alignment with national and EU strategic documents. However, it similarly does not introduce fully fledged performance targets, a hierarchy of priorities, or mechanisms to manage external risks. While these developments represent steps towards improving overall coherence and systematisation, further efforts are needed to establish a more fully articulated, target-driven and strategically prioritised design.

Since 2022, implementation of export promotion measures has broadened and become more structured under the strengthened leadership of the Albania Investment Development Agency (AIDA). Financial schemes, technical assistance and trade promotion activities have been reinforced,37 with a particular emphasis on increasing SME participation in international fairs, business to business (B2B) forums and promotional campaigns as well as with sectoral targeting.38 The launch of the Export Albania platform (Box 1.4) was a step toward digital sophistication and enhanced the visibility of domestic products, alongside the relaunch of the Made in Albania campaign (Government of Albania, 2024[41]).39 Participation in international fairs has remained a cornerstone, with AIDA reporting EUR 9.5 million in expected export opportunities for supported SMEs in 2023 (AIDA, 2023[42]). Donor-supported initiatives such as the EcoSystem Builders programme,40 and the co-ordination of the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) since 2024, have further diversified the toolbox by facilitating matchmaking, EU market access and sustainability alignment (Government of Albania, 2024[41]). Despite these advances, digital instruments specifically aimed at attracting export-oriented foreign direct investment (FDI) or fostering structured SME-multinational enterprise (MNE) linkages remain underdeveloped (Table 1.24). In parallel, some of the foreseen financial instruments, such as export credit or guarantee schemes, are not yet operational, leaving grants and fair participation subsidies as the dominant forms of support (Government of Albania, 2024[41]) while outreach to microenterprises, rural exporters and youth-led firms is still limited, narrowing inclusiveness. Moreover, export patterns since 2021 underscore challenges in scale: while the share of SMEs in total exports rose from 63.6% in 2021 to 69.3% in 2024, the average export value per SME has shown a modest decline, from EUR 758 599 in 2022 to EUR 695 730 (Government of Albania, 2024[41]) in 2024, pointing to difficulties in moving beyond entry-level internationalisation.

Monitoring frameworks for export promotion have expanded, with AIDA collecting indicators on SME participation in fairs and B2B events, co-operation agreements established, and beneficiary satisfaction reported annually through AIDA’s reports and the BIDS monitoring framework. These mechanisms strengthen transparency and accountability, but remain largely output-oriented, focusing on activity levels rather than assessing whether support has translated into sustained export growth, market diversification or productivity gains. The absence of systematic outcome evaluation means that, despite higher SME participation, the depth of competitiveness improvements remains uncertain (Table 1.24).

Box 1.4. Spotlight: Digitalising export promotion: The launch of the Export Albania platform

The launch of Export Albania in 2023 under the Albanian Investment and Development Agency (AIDA) marked a milestone in the digitalisation of Albania’s export promotion ecosystem. Developed within the framework of the Business Development and Investment Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027, the platform was designed to consolidate export-related services, facilitate access to international markets, and provide a unified interface for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) seeking to enhance their global visibility. It forms part of the government’s broader agenda to streamline trade facilitation, promote national branding through the Made in Albania initiative, and align support measures with European Union (EU) market requirements and digitalisation priorities.

Export Albania functions as an integrated online portal offering information, registration and matchmaking tools for exporters. By 2023, more than 1 192 SMEs had been profiled on its business to business section, which features searchable business directories and sector showcases in agro-food, textiles and footwear, ICT, and renewable energy. The platform also provides access to export-readiness training, guidance on certification and standards, and opportunities for participation in international trade fairs. Developed and maintained by AIDA, it complements other digital infrastructure – notably the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) Albania launched in 2024 – to ensure SMEs benefit from EU-level market intelligence, sustainability guidance and partnership opportunities.

The platform has quickly become a flagship digital instrument for export promotion, enhancing transparency, matchmaking and visibility for Albanian exporters, particularly SMEs at the early stages of internationalisation. Looking ahead, further integration with the EEN and the EU Single Market Programme is envisaged to deepen interoperability, facilitate certification and compliance processes, and expand digital trade services to align Albania’s export ecosystem with EU standards and Single Market access mechanisms.

Sources: Government of Albania (2024[41]); AIDA (2023[43]).

Sub-dimension 10.2: Integration of SMEs into global value chains

Albania’s performance in this sub-dimension has declined moderately since the last assessment, from 3.65 in 2022 to 3.38 in 2026, reflecting offsetting developments across assessment blocks. While Albania has broadened its policy and institutional framework for SME integration into GVCs, tangible supplier upgrading and linkage creation remains limited.

The 2025 BIDS amendments aligned with the EU Growth Plan 2024-2027 reinforce national priorities on diversification, regionalisation and industrial value chain partnerships.41 Implementation of the Supplier Development Program in 2023, which targets the integration of 150 SMEs with 30 foreign investors and aims to generate EUR 75 million in subcontracting by 2027, provides a more structured approach to supplier upgrading. However, the design framework remains constrained by the absence of a dedicated budget for GVC integration and available financing continues to fall under broader SME internationalisation and export promotion schemes (Government of Albania, 2024[44]). As a result, while strategic intent and programme structuring have improved, the overall design remains only moderately strengthened, explaining the limited increase in score.

Implementation performance has declined markedly since 2022, reflecting persistent gaps between policy intent and the effective delivery of instruments supporting SMEs’ integration into GVCs. Institutional co-ordination has improved since 2022 through AIDA’s streamlined grant procedures and sector-specific outreach42 to inform the design of the forthcoming Supplier Development Program (AIDA, 2023[42]). Complementary efforts on standards, marketing and supply chain requirements have also expanded alongside international promotion campaigns aiming to expand visibility for Albanian producers in key markets.43 The launch of EEN Albania in 2024 (Box 1.5) represents a major step toward embedding Albanian SMEs in EU partnership structures, offering diagnostics, matchmaking tools and sustainability guidance aligned with EU Green Deal principles. However, supplier-specific financial instruments, such as credit guarantees, tax incentives or dedicated upgrading funds, remain absent and cluster initiatives are still embryonic, with proto-clusters emerging through fairs and collective pavilions but no institutionalised structures with governance or shared research and development services. Digital instruments specifically aimed at attracting export-oriented FDI or fostering structured SME-MNE linkages also remain underdeveloped, leaving scope for further progress in investment facilitation. Despite Albania’s strong FDI performance, averaging around 7% of gross domestic product in 2020‑2023 (OECD, 2025[45]), evidence of systematic SME-MNE co-operation remains scarce, and the share of SMEs formally integrated into GVCs has stagnated at about 1.3-1.4% since 2019 (Government of Albania, 2024[41]).

Monitoring frameworks have improved with the introduction of the NEXTEEN platform under EEN Albania, which has improved diagnostics and data collection through standardised SME surveys on SME innovation, digitalisation and EU market alignment. These represent an advance compared to the past, but the monitoring system still focuses largely on activity counts, such as the number of SMEs trained or events held, rather than on long-term outcomes such as sustained supplier contracts, spillovers from foreign investors or cluster formation. Independent evaluations are lacking, and there is no clear measurement of efficiency or cost‑effectiveness. As a result, Albania’s framework for SME integration into GVCs is more coherent and institutionally mature, but the depth and impact of integration remain modest.

Box 1.5. Spotlight: Enterprise Europe Network Albania: Strengthening SME internationalisation and innovation support

The establishment of the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) Albania in 2024 marked a significant step in embedding Albanian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within the European Union’s (EU) innovation and business co-operation ecosystem. Hosted by the Albanian Investment and Development Agency (AIDA), the EEN extends national export promotion beyond market visibility to structured EU market integration, providing a bridge for SMEs seeking to access EU supply chains and innovation partnerships. It complements the Business Development and Investment Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027 by reinforcing objectives on internationalisation, sustainability and digitalisation.

EEN Albania functions through AIDA’s co-ordination, supported by EU-funded technical assistance, and operates via the NEXTEEN digital platform, a diagnostics and matchmaking tool that collects SME data on innovation capacity, EU compliance and export readiness. Services include tailored advisory support, partner search and brokerage events (e.g. Match-Maker Albania 2025), and technical guidance on alignment with the EU Green Deal and Single Market standards. This model integrates with AIDA’s broader export facilitation tools, linking beneficiaries of national grant schemes and trade fairs to EU-level networks and buyers.

Since its launch, EEN Albania has strengthened the analytical and monitoring base for SME internationalisation by introducing systematic diagnostic surveys and impact tracking. It has facilitated multiple brokerage events and partnership leads with EU counterparts, enhancing SME visibility in sectors such as agro-food, ICT and renewable energy. However, while early results demonstrate progress in capacity-building and cross-border matchmaking, there is limited evidence so far of sustained supplier linkages or technology transfer, as outcome evaluation remains at an early stage. Future integration of EEN data into BIDS monitoring could further strengthen Albania’s evidence base on SME competitiveness and internationalisation outcomes.

Sources: Government of Albania (2024[41]); Enterprise Europe Network (2025[46]).

Table 1.24. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendations for Dimension 10, Sub‑dimensions 10.1 and 10.2

2022 recommendation	Main developments during the assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Improve the digital infrastructure for export promotion and to attract export-oriented foreign direct investment	Since 2022, Albania has made clear progress in improving the digital infrastructure for export promotion. Initiatives include the launch of the Export Albania portal in 2023 and the co-ordination of the Enterprise Europe Network Albania since 2024. However, while these initiatives strengthen small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) export promotion, digital instruments specifically aimed at attracting export-oriented foreign direct investment or fostering structured SME-multinational enterprise linkages remain underdeveloped, leaving scope for further progress in investment facilitation.	Moderate	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”
Ensure effective implementation of the Business Development and Investment Strategy (2021-2027) in the context of the internationalisation of SMEs through proper monitoring and evaluation	Since 2022, Albania has strengthened the implementation of the Business Development and Investment Strategy (BIDS) 2021-2027 through regular monitoring and reporting. The 2021-2024 monitoring report shows a 72.7% implementation rate of planned activities, including targeted outreach campaigns and the preparation of a new export promotion programme. While outcome-level data on SME export growth are limited, the monitoring framework now ensures that internationalisation measures are actively tracked and adjusted.	Moderate	See Cluster 1: “Creating an enabling environment for SMEs and entrepreneurs”

Sub-dimension 10.3: Promoting the use of e-commerce

Since 2022, Albania’s performance on Sub-dimension 10.3 has declined, falling from 3.33 in 2022 to 2.93 in 2026. This decrease reflects some continued efforts in policy design but also limited development of SME‑targeted e-commerce initiatives and weak monitoring and evaluation practices. While the legal and strategic framework remain broadly aligned with EU standards, the slow translation of these commitments into concrete, SME-focused actions has constrained their impact and contributed to the observed decline.

Looking at policy planning and design, the adoption of the Action Plan on E-Commerce 2024-2027 marks the first policy framework dedicated to fostering online business growth. It aims to enhance readiness for e‑commerce through digital skills development, improved logistics and payment systems, and better access to online marketplaces. Albania’s legal environment is also well-harmonised with that of the European Union, particularly through the Law on Payment Services transposing the EU Revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2), the Law on Electronic Documents and Trust Services aligned with the eIDAS Regulation, and amendments to the Law on E-Commerce reflecting the EU e-Commerce Directive and the Regulation on Cross-Border Parcel Delivery. The adoption of qualified e‑signatures and the gradual rollout of e-invoicing further strengthen the foundations for secure digital transactions. However, alignment with the EU Regulation on platform fairness and transparency is still pending, and enforcement and usability challenges persist, particularly for firms with low digital capacity or informal business practices (Table 1.25).

Implementation efforts have remained largely stable over time but continue to be driven mainly by donor-supported initiatives. A multi-donor programme co-funded by the European Union, Germany (BMZ) and Sweden (Sida) worth approximately ALL 1.1 billion (EUR 11.7 million), supports digital capacity building for start-ups and tech-oriented SMEs. Additional support is provided through initiatives such as the World Bank’s Digital Trade programme, training delivered by the Albanian E-Commerce Association and regional platforms such as CEFTA’s E-commerce for All. In the context of these efforts, AIDA led a dedicated working group in collaboration with the World Bank that developed practical tools for SMEs, including an e-commerce guide, a self-assessment questionnaire and targeted training sessions, though comprehensive data on the number of SMEs reached have not been systematically reported. More recently, the EU-funded Digital Valley Albania initiative and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development-EU credit lines have expanded support for SME digitalisation and online market participation. The government has identified agriculture, tourism, retail and ICT as priority sectors under the Digital Agenda 2022-2026, with tools such as e-procurement and the EEN facilitating cross-border trade. AIDA also provides targeted training on e-commerce readiness, digital marketing and B2B matchmaking. Nevertheless, most initiatives operate on a pilot basis, remain externally financed and are not systematically embedded in national policy delivery, limiting their scale and long-term impact on SME e-commerce uptake.

Albania’s progress in monitoring and evaluation remains underdeveloped. There is no formal national key performance indicator framework to monitor SME engagement in e-commerce, nor a systematic process for evaluating the impact of related initiatives. Feedback mechanisms exist through agencies such as the National Business Center and the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation, but their use in policy adjustment remains ad hoc. While the Institute of Statistics collects some ICT-related data, e-commerce indicators are not SME‑specific and are only captured through broader surveys. As a result, the current evidence base remains fragmented, highlighting the need for further development of SME-specific e-commerce indicators to support more systematic policy evaluation.

Table 1.25. Albania’s implementation of the SME Policy Index’s 2022 recommendation for Dimension 10, Sub‑dimension 10.3

2022 recommendation	Main developments during assessment period	Progress status	Way forward
Create a conducive business environment for SME digitalisation and e-commerce uptake	The regulatory and fiscal framework aims to align with EU standards, notably through the implementation of the Law on Payment Services, which transposes the EU Revised Payment Services Directive and supports the integration of Albania into the SEPA area for secure electronic payments. However, tax legislation and enforcement procedures have not yet been fully clarified regarding the treatment of online sellers and marketplaces, limiting regulatory certainty for small and medium-sized enterprises operating in digital trade. The launch of the Action Plan on E-Commerce 2024-2027 marks a step forward, setting a clearer roadmap for e-commerce development, while platforms such as e-Albania and the Open Data Portal have expanded digital access and transparency. Despite these advancements, no dedicated mechanisms have been established to strengthen trust in e-commerce or systematically monitor the law’s implementation and impact. Ongoing reforms under the Digital Agenda and the gradual alignment with EU digital single market standards could provide a platform for strengthening implementation in the coming years.	Limited	See Cluster 3: “Digital Transformation of SMEs”

Dimension 11: Digital transformation of SMEs in Albania

Overview of Albania’s performance on Dimension 11

Albania received an overall score of 2.93 on the new Dimension 11 (Figure 1.18) placing it right below the Western Balkans and Türkiye regional average of 3.00 and pointing to remaining gaps in the digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Performance across the three sub-dimensions is uneven. Results are comparatively stronger in Sub-dimension 11.1 on digital policy foundations, reflecting the expansion of strategic frameworks, closer alignment with European Union (EU) standards and some implementation efforts. By contrast, Sub-dimension 11.2 on digital safety remains less developed: while the legal framework is broadly aligned, SME-oriented support measures and operational tools are still limited. Performance is the weakest in Sub-dimension 11.3 on the use of advanced technologies, where policy design, delivery instruments and monitoring mechanisms remain at an early stage. Overall, Dimension 11 ranks among Albania’s lower-performing policy areas in this assessment, underscoring the need for sustained and more targeted policy efforts in this domain.

Figure 1.18. Overview of Albania’s score on Dimension 11, 2026

Statlink

Sub-dimension 11.1: Digital policy foundations

Albania achieved a score of 3.20 on Sub-dimension 11.1, pointing to a moderately developed strategic framework for SME digital transformation. This performance reflects the presence of multiple policy frameworks that recognise digitalisation and innovation as drivers of SME competitiveness, but also the absence of a unified and operational pathway to translate these priorities into large-scale, SME-focused support.

Policy planning and design for SME digital transformation are anchored in several complementary strategies. The Strategy for the Development of Innovative Entrepreneurship 2024-2030 links SME development with digitalisation and innovation, with objectives related to technology transfer, digital finance and mentoring programmes. The Digital Agenda 2022-2026 focuses primarily on digital governance, infrastructure and skills, but its Objective 2 also seeks to foster technology start-ups and improve the business environment for digital entrepreneurs. While the two strategies are broadly complementary, they do not yet provide a coherent pathway to accelerate SME digital transformation across sectors and levels of digital maturity. Other frameworks, including the Strategy for Scientific Research, Technology and Innovation 2023-2030 and the National Employment and Skills Strategy 2023-2030, further reinforce digitalisation as a competitiveness and human-capital priority, but mainly treat it as a cross-cutting enabler rather than as a dedicated SME transformation agenda. Institutional responsibilities for SME digitalisation are shared across several ministries and agencies. While the Consultative Council for Enterprises (CCE) provides an advisory platform for business support policies, its role remains limited, and no dedicated coordination body for SME digital transformation has been established to date.

Implementation of SME digitalisation initiatives is progressing but is mainly supported by donor-funded programmes. Government financial support is channelled through the Albanian Investment Development Agency's annual SME grant schemes (Box 1.6). In 2024, total public funding allocated to SME support through AIDA amounted to approximately ALL 151.8 million, rising to ALL 131.8 million in 2025, supporting SMEs across manufacturing, tourism, agribusiness and ICT-related services. Within this envelope, digitalisation-related measures specifically accounted for approximately ALL 2.5 million (approx. EUR 25 000) in 2025 adoption (AlbaniaTech, 2025[47]), targeting digital marketing, e-commerce development, website creation and related ICT adoption; in 2024, more than 100 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises benefited from similar grant programmes (Albanian Daily News, 2024[48]). In parallel, the EBRD's Go Digital in Albania and the Youth in Business Programme provide accessible entry points for SMEs seeking to adopt digital tools and build digital capabilities (EBRD, 2023[49]; WBIF, 2025[50]). Albania's European Digital Innovation Hub, the EDIH DIU Hub, plays a central role in operationalising the Digital Europe Programme 2021-2027, delivering training, awareness-raising and technology adoption support for SMEs. The initiative is supported by a total budget of EUR 1.8 million over four years, of which approximately ALL 26.8 million (EUR 250 000) corresponds to the Digital Europe Programme envelope. These instruments demonstrate a growing commitment to supporting SME digital adoption at firm level. At the same time, further scaling up of targeted financial instruments such as digital vouchers, tax incentives or tailored co-financing schemes would strengthen the breadth and depth of SME uptake beyond basic digital tools.

Box 1.6. Spotlight: AIDA’s annual SME Grant Scheme

Access to finance remains one of the main barriers for Albanian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) seeking to digitalise and innovate. Many firms, especially outside Tirana, lack resources to invest in new technologies, upgrade business processes, or adopt sustainable digital solutions. The SME Grant Scheme 2025, managed by the Albanian Investment Development Agency (AIDA), provides direct financial support to enterprises, helping them modernise operations, improve competitiveness, increase the use of advanced technologies, and accelerate digital transformation.

The 2025 call for proposals under AIDA’s SME Grant Scheme prioritised investment in digitalisation, innovation, and green transition. SMEs could apply for co-financing to support technology adoption (e.g. software, digital platforms, cloud solutions), process innovation, or sustainable equipment.

The funding of the grant was determined by the stages of development of the applying projects:

• Phase 1 – Initial phase: A maximum amount of ALL1.5 million (approximately EUR 13 000). The grant can cover up to 100% of the total project costs.

• Phase 2 – Validation phase: A maximum amount of ALL 4.5 million (approximately EUR 40 000). The grant can cover up to 85% of the total budget costs of the approved project.

• Phase 3 – Growth (and internationalisation) phase: A maximum amount of ALL 9 million (approximately EUR 80 000). The grant can cover up to 75% of the total budget costs of the approved project.

The grant is accompanied by outreach activities, including information sessions in regional business centres, and technical support during the application stage.

Source: Dua Partner Invest (2024[51]).

Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for SME digital transformation policies are gradually being developed. Under the Digital Agenda 2022-2026, the National Agency for Information Society (NAIS), in collaboration with line ministries and implementing agencies, produces monitoring reports every six months tracking progress against the Action Plan, which are publicly accessible on the NAIS website; a positive practice that provides regular visibility into implementation. However, these reports are primarily oriented toward tracking the completion of Action Plan measures rather than assessing outcomes at the SME level, limiting their utility as a tool for evidence-based SME policy design. Financial incentives for SME digitalisation are not always subject to dedicated monitoring frameworks, making it difficult to assess their effectiveness or cost-efficiency. Some progress is expected under the forthcoming DIU Hub monitoring framework, which aims to introduce more structured performance tracking, but this remains at an early stage. In parallel, the Institute of Statistics conducts annual surveys on ICT usage among enterprises, providing a useful evidence base, although data coverage and analytical depth remain limited.

Sub-dimension 11.2: Digital safety

Albania has aligned parts of its digital safety framework with EU standards, which is reflected in its score of 3.05 on Sub-dimension 11.2. However, the limited adaptation of these frameworks to SME needs constrains their effectiveness in practice. While legal alignment with EU requirements has strengthened, gaps remain in SME-oriented policy design, operational support and evidence-based monitoring.

Policy planning and design for digital safety are anchored in a strengthened legislative and strategic framework. On the legislative side, the new Law on Personal Data Protection (2024) fully aligns with the EU General Data Protection Regulation, introducing updated provisions on consent, data processing and data-subject rights, while the Law on Cybersecurity (2024) strengthens alignment with the updated Network and Information Security Directive by extending obligations to private operators in key sectors. At the strategic level, the newly adopted Cyber Security Strategy 2025-2030 marks a significant step forward, introducing for the first time SME-specific objectives with concrete measures including tailored cybersecurity guidelines, dedicated training programmes for SME employees, and education initiatives focused on identifying and mitigating common risks such as online fraud - though the concrete instruments needed to deliver these commitments are still being developed. Strategic direction on data protection is provided by the Institutional Strategy 2022-2025 of the Commissioner for the Right to Information and Protection of Personal Data, although it does not define explicit measures tailored to SMEs. Some SME-relevant instruments have been designed into the framework: the Commissioner for the Right to Information and Protection of Personal Data has issued instructions specifically addressing smaller processing entities, and AKSK is actively developing the technical specifications needed to operationalise the 2025-2030 Strategy's SME commitments. Translating these design commitments into a structured and proportionate support framework accessible to smaller firms remains the key challenge ahead.

Implementation efforts in digital safety have expanded but remain fragmented with little SME-orientation. AKSK has developed baseline technical standards for cybersecurity incident management that are applicable to private operators including SMEs, and the Commissioner has issued guidance on data protection certification and security seals. However, practical compliance tools such as standardised checklists and sector-specific toolkits remain scarce, and SMEs rarely have access to affordable audits or digital risk assessments, with no centralised platform providing user-friendly advisory services tailored to enterprise needs. No dedicated financial instruments exist to help SMEs absorb compliance costs under the new Law on Personal Data Protection. EU- and donor-supported initiatives, including the Cybersecurity Capacity Building in the Western Balkans Project, the CyberSEE initiative and the Critical Infrastructure Digitalisation and Resilience programme, strengthen institutional capacity and awareness but remain largely project-based and limited in their reach to SMEs (eGa, 2026[52]; COE, 2026[53]; DAI, 2026[54]). While the Cyber Security Strategy emphasises stakeholder engagement, there is little evidence on how cooperation is operationalised in practice. Links between cybersecurity institutions, including the Authority for Electronic Certification and Cyber Security and business support organisations, require further development.

Monitoring and evaluation of digital safety policies in Albania is at an early stage. The Commissioner collects administrative data on reported breaches and complaints, but these data are not yet systematically analysed or linked to structured policy-learning processes. Annual public reports provide only high-level statistics, with no disaggregation for SMEs or sectoral exposure. While the former National Cyber Security Strategy 2020-2025 and its Action Plan defined measurable objectives, public reporting on implementation progress was limited. Whether the newly adopted National Cyber Security Strategy 2025-2030 will bring a more structured approach to monitoring remains to be seen, as the implementation framework and associated reporting mechanisms are still being developed. Institutional data collection is fragmented, with the Authority for Electronic Certification and Cyber Security, NAIS and the Commissioner for the Right to Information and Protection of Personal Data operating separate monitoring frameworks without shared indicators or an integrated reporting system. As a result, Albania currently lacks a comprehensive overview of digital safety outcomes for SMEs, constraining the authorities' ability to assess policy effectiveness and strengthen SME compliance in a systematic manner.

Sub-dimension 11.3: Use of advanced technologies

Albania’s policy framework for the adoption of advanced and emerging technologies remains at a very early stage of development, reflected in its score of 2.05 on Sub-dimension 11.3. This performance reflects limited strategic prioritisation of advanced technologies for SMEs, slow translation of policy objectives into operational instruments, and the absence of an integrated approach linking digitalisation with sustainability.

Policy planning and design for ethical and sustainable use of advanced technologies remain nascent. The now outdated Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation 2017-2022 and the Digital Agenda 2022-2026 recognise digitalisation and innovation as drivers of economic transformation, but do not define concrete, SME-focused measures or measurable targets for the uptake of frontier technologies. Strategic objectives in these frameworks remain broad and lack delivery mechanisms that would enable SMEs to experiment with or adopt tools such as artificial intelligence (AI), automation or data analytics. Financial and technical instruments to support technology diffusion, such as innovation vouchers, pilot projects or demonstration facilities, are largely absent. A more targeted orientation is envisaged under the the draft Strategy for Artificial Intelligence 2025-2030, which has undergone public consultation but which has not yet been adopted. Albania’s approach to the digital-green nexus also remains fragmented: while key strategic documents such as the Digital Agenda 2022-2026, the Business and Innovation Development Strategy (BIDS), and the Climate Change Strategy 2020-2030 refer to both digital and environmental priorities, the absence of joint implementation mechanisms means that these agendas are pursued largely in parallel.

The implementation of AI and other emerging technologies remains limited, reflecting the absence of a comprehensive institutional framework and dedicated policy support for their adoption across the SME sector. At the government level, support is primarily channelled through Startup Albania, an agency under the Ministry of Economy and Innovation with a formal mandate to develop the national start-up ecosystem, though its reach does not yet systematically extend to the broader SME population space (Startup Albania, 2026[55]). Donor-funded initiatives play a more prominent role: the EU4Innovation programme supports early-stage firms in experimenting with automation and data tools (EU4Innovation, 2026[56]), while innovation hubs and accelerators including TechSpace Incubator Tirana, OFICINA Hub, Protik Innovation Center and Plug and Play provide training and mentoring on AI, the Internet of Things and automation concepts, but remain mostly project-based (TechSpace, 2026[57]; OFICINA, 2026[58]; Protik, 2026[59]; Plug and Play, 2026[60]).The forthcoming AI4DigiT Hub, Albania's first AI-focused European Digital Innovation Hub, is expected to further strengthen this ecosystem by offering SMEs access to AI expertise, test-before-invest facilities and tailored advisory services (European Commission, 2025[61]). The Digital Agriculture and Rural Transformation (DART) Programme links digitalisation and sustainability in the agri-food sector but operates independently of government (ILO, 2024[62]), while other schemes, such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s Go Digital programme and GIZ's Smart & Green Future Grant Scheme under ProSEED, support energy-efficient equipment and digital environmental management systems (GIZ, 2023[63]; Dua Partner Invest, 2024[64]). There is also limited evidence of government-led public-private partnerships to provide SMEs with access to emerging technology resources, such as cloud services or research infrastructure, or to facilitate structured collaboration between SMEs, universities and research institutions for applied emerging technology uptake.

Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for the adoption of advanced and sustainably used digital technologies remain largely absent. There is no evidence that the government has defined indicators to track SME engagement with AI, the Internet of Things or other emerging technologies or to assess their productivity or environmental effects. While a Monitoring Report 2019-2021 for the Climate Change Strategy exists, it does not cover SMEs or the role of digital technologies in sustainability. Existing statistical tools, including the Institute of Statistics’ ICT usage surveys, do not capture advanced technology uptake or the sustainable use of digital tools, limiting the authorities’ ability to assess policy effectiveness and design targeted interventions.

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Notes

← 1.  Information provided by the government of Albania during the assessment period.

← 2.  Albania adopted the Regulation on out-of-court agreement for accelerated reorganisation (Decision No. 65) in 2021 (Council of Ministers, 2021[65]).

← 3.  During its meeting on 17 May 2023, the Council of Ministers (2023[66]) adopted the “Decision on determining the criteria and rules for submitting requests to act as an administrator in bankruptcy procedures, as well as the procedure for granting and revoking the license”.

← 4.  In 2024, the Bank of Albania (2025[5]) reported a reduction in debt-service burdens for SMEs, with fewer enterprises indicating that loan costs exceed 20% of their income, both on a semi-annual and annual basis, compared to the second half of 2023.

← 5.  According to the European Commission (2022[67]) the outcomes of insolvency procedures vary significantly across Member States, with average recovery times ranging from 0.6 to 7 years as of 2022. As of 2024, liquidation procedures in Bosnia and Herzegovina last on average 12 months, while reorganisations take 18 months. In Montenegro, both procedures last an average of 24 months, and in North Macedonia, liquidations take an average of 30 months, while reorganisations average at 20 months (World Bank, 2024[68]).

← 6.  The three-year programme (2021-2023, extended to 2024), funded by the governments of the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, aimed to support SMEs through two approaches: 1) In Motion, enhancing productivity, market reach and business innovation for micro and small enterprises; and 2) the Supplier Development Programme, strengthening local value chains and supplier capacities. Some outcomes include at least 45 local business consultants trained and certified in both methodologies, and innovative policies and tools put in place to support economic recovery and resilience (UNDP, 2025[69]).

← 7.  Group 1 and Group 2 licences refer to two regulatory categories of business authorisations differentiated by risk profile, regulatory complexity and supervisory requirements. In Albania, Group 1 licences are granted based only on the applicant’s self-declaration and are processed by the NBC within two working days, while Group 2 licences require both self-declarations and supporting documents, with decisions issued within four working days.

← 8.  The amendments foresee support services that focus on connecting SMEs with start-ups, enabling access to European Union business programmes, and engaging businesses in vocational education reforms. Full documentation of the draft amendments are available at: https://konsultimipublik.gov.al/Konsultime/Detaje/843.

← 9.  Institutional changes include the Startup Albania Agency (2023) for start-up registration and funding and the Consultative Council for Enterprises (2024) for structured public-private dialogue. Legal reforms include Law No. 25/2022 “on Startups”, introducing grants; one-stop shop services; and support schemes for innovation, youth, women and green projects; and Law No. 43/2022 “on MSMEs”, which modernised SME definitions, replaced the 2002 SME Law and created the Enterprise Development Fund under AIDA.

← 10.  Projects introduced since 2022 included support for e-commerce readiness (Digitally Fit for E-Commerce), youth enterprise (Youth in Business) and rural development (DART), though most were donor-supported and regional in scope.

← 11.  By April 2023, the Access to Finance platform had recorded 44 700 visits and 8 000 interactions, though it remains limited to basic funding information and lacks advanced tools such as searchable databases, e-learning or diagnostics. The e‑Albania portal, the national e-government platform, has recently added a virtual assistant and simplified online access to enterprise services.

← 12.  The full strategy is available at: https://natlex.ilo.org/dyn/natlex2/natlex2/files/download/118169/ALB-118169.pdf.

← 13.  The SME Summer Academy is a six-day long programme that provides SMEs with the theoretical base and practical grasp needed to react to today’s rapidly changing society. See: https://www.sme.al/sme-academy.

← 14.  Albania faced persistent challenges in using allocated funds for stimulating private BSS. In 2024, only about 78% of the planned annual budget had been executed by the end of November, leaving nearly a quarter of resources to be spent in the final month of the year. This underutilisation reflects delays in verification and disbursement procedures and highlights the structural bottlenecks that continue to limit the timely roll-out of BSS measures. Information provided by the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation of Albania for the 2026 assessment cycle.

← 15.  The Global Quality and Standards Programme, funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs and implemented by UNIDO since 2022, supports Albania in strengthening its quality infrastructure and compliance with international standards, particularly in the agribusiness sector. The programme provides capacity-building for laboratories and consultants while helping SMEs adopt certifications to improve competitiveness and export readiness. See: https://downloads.unido.org/ot/28/87/28875231/220007_ProDoc-GQSP%202.pdf.

← 16.  Dimension 6 has undergone significant structural and methodological changes to reflect the emergence of new policy instruments supporting access to bank finance, the diversification of financing instruments available to firms, and the increasing policy emphasis on monitoring, evaluation and effective implementation. These changes were also introduced to ensure closer alignment with the latest OECD and EU standards and good practices in assessing access-to-finance policies.

← 17.  Dimension 6 has undergone significant structural and methodological changes to reflect the emergence of new policy instruments supporting access to bank finance, the diversification of financing instruments available to firms, and the increasing policy emphasis on monitoring, evaluation and effective implementation. These changes were also introduced to ensure closer alignment with the latest OECD and EU standards and good practices in assessing access-to-finance policies.

As a result of these changes, scores from the 2022 and 2026 assessment cycles are not directly comparable. However, to preserve the benchmarking nature of the exercise and ensure analytical continuity, the 2022 scores for Dimension 6 and its sub-dimensions were recalculated using the 2026 assessment framework and structure. This enables an illustrative assessment of score evolution between the two cycles and allows the 2026 scores to serve as benchmarks, subject to limitations arising from the revised structure and methodology of the dimension.

← 18.  The original 2022-Dimension 6 score calculated using the previous methodology was 3.43.

← 19.  The original 2022 bank finance score, calculated using the previous methodology and comprising the 2022 bank finance thematic blocks, was 3.86.

← 20.  The original 2022 non-bank finance score, calculated using the previous methodology and comprising the 2022 non-bank finance thematic blocks, was 2.92.

← 21.  Information provided by the Government of Albania during the assessment process.

← 22.  Only 30% of Albanian adults reached the minimum financial literacy benchmark, while 38.9% in the OECD Member countries did (2023[70]).

← 23.  The thematic blocks “Financial literacy” and “Microfinance institutions” were part of different sub-dimensions in 2022. Their underlying scores remained unchanged; they were simply recalculated using the methodology of the 2026 edition.

← 24.  It can also be mentioned that 25 women entrepreneurs received targeted training under programmes organised by the Albanian Association of Banks, the Albanian Investment Development Agency, and the Women’s Economic Chamber as part of the Global Entrepreneurship Week (Albanian Associations of Banks, 2024[71]).

← 25.  Under Specific Objective 1.2, SME development, entrepreneurship and innovation, the strategy aims to increase the density of startups from 88 to 132 per million inhabitants.

← 26.  Implementing institutions of innovation policy in Albania include the Ministry of Education and Sports; the National Agency for Scientific Research and Innovation; higher education institutions and their affiliated research institutes; the National Agency for Financing Higher Education; the Inter-institutional Center “Albanian Academic Network”; the Quality Assurance Agency in Higher Education; the Academy of Sciences of Albania; the Minister of State for Entrepreneurship Protection; the National Agency for Information Society; the Albanian Investment Development Agency; the Agency for Innovation and Excellence; the Security and Defense Innovation Center; the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation; the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy; and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

← 27.  Innovation indicators for 2018–2022 are now available by sector and enterprise size, enabling more granular analysis. In addition, INSTAT is preparing data on R&D expenditure for 2023–2024 and on Government Budget Allocations for R&D for 2025, with publication planned by the end of 2026. For more details, see (INSTAT, 2025[72]).

← 28.  Albania’s Smart Specialisation Strategy prioritises three sectors with strong growth and innovation potential: (1) renewable energy and natural resources, focusing on expanding renewable energy production and sustainable resource management; (2) sustainable and diverse tourism, centred on cultural heritage, health and wellness, and nature-based tourism; and (3) a healthy and sustainable food chain, promoting organic agriculture, agri-food processing, and high-value products such as fisheries and medicinal plants. For more details, see (Government of Albania, 2025[73]).

← 29.  NASRI’s competitive grants apply a co-financing model under which enterprises contribute 30% of eligible costs, supporting risk-sharing and encouraging business participation.

← 30.  Under the BIDS 2021-27 Monitoring Report for 2021-24, concerning Activity 1.2.2.2: EU for Innovation Project, the government reports that 12 Circular City Lab - Tirana SME/start-ups are working to provide some green/digital solutions to the challenges of Albanian municipalities (Tirana city) with the involvement of at least three Quadruple Helix actors (Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation, 2025[74]).

← 31.  NECP measures directly relevant for SMEs include R-E9: Supporting the formation of renewable energy communities; R-I1: Supporting the deployment of small-scale renewable energy applications in the non-food industrial sector; EE-E2: Energy management systems for SMEs; and RIC-E5: Supporting innovative SMEs by means of tax relief.

← 32.  Albania’s NECP includes several incentive measures that are relevant for SMEs. These include training programmes to strengthen SME capacities within local supply chains and service markets for the demonstration of renewable energy technologies; the development of participatory platforms to promote awareness; the development and implementation of small-scale renewable energy applications; information sharing with local financial institutions on renewable energy opportunities; training in energy management; the development of a practical manual for energy auditing; and pilot initiatives supporting industrial SMEs in implementing energy management systems in line with ISO 50001.

← 33.  These laws include the Law No. 24/2023 on the Promotion of renewable energy sources, Law No. 57/2025 on Integrated waste Management, and the Law No. 74/2025 on Extended Producer Responsibility.

← 34.  Since 2022, the policy mix has broadened, moving beyond trade fair participation to include a dedicated Export Strategy measure (2022, EUR 120 000), digital trade and e-commerce support (2022-2024, EUR 47.8 million, targeting +15% export growth for 300 SMEs), economic diplomacy reform (2025-2027, EUR 34.9 million), and access to EU programmes (2025‑2027, budget EUR 36.4 million, aiming to increase successful SME applications from 2 in 2024 to 5 in 2027).

← 35.  Council of Ministers Decision No. 539 (29 July 2022) institutionalised multi-year financing of ALL 326.6 million (EUR 3.26 million) across 2024-2025: ALL 151.8 million (EUR 1.52 million) in 2024 and ALL 131.8 million (EUR 1.32 million) in 2025, plus ALL 40 million (EUR 0.40 million) ring-fenced for international trade fairs in 2023-2025.

← 36.  Order No. 180; Official Gazette No. 247.

← 37.  Existing financial schemes such as the Competitiveness Fund and Innovation Fund have been reinforced, expanding eligibility for certification, digital marketing and participation in international fairs. In line with the 2024 BIDS amendments, an Export Promotion and Facilitation Programme was under preparation for approval in December 2025 to consolidate these instruments into a unified framework.

← 38.  With sectoral targeting in textiles, agro-food, ICT and renewable energy.

← 39.  The Made in Albania campaign was relaunched by AIDA in 2023 as part of efforts to strengthen the international visibility of Albanian products and promote national branding under the BIDS 2021-2027 framework. The campaign integrates digital promotion through the Export Albania platform and co-ordinated participation in international fairs, showcasing priority sectors such as agro-food, textiles, ICT and renewable energy. According to AIDA’s 2023 Annual Report, the initiative has reinforced Albania’s export image and expanded outreach to new markets by linking brand promotion with trade facilitation instruments. See: https://exportalbania.al/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Broshura_FInal_Macfruit_compressed.pdf.

← 40.  The Ecosystem Builders-Boosting Support for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Albania programme, launched in November 2023 by enpact e.V. in partnership with GIZ Albania under the ProSEED 2.0 project, works to strengthen Albania’s entrepreneurial ecosystem by empowering local business support organisations. Through intensive capacity building and mentoring, the initiative has helped these organisations design and pilot 12 new services focused on digitalisation, export readiness and sustainability. By mid-2025, the programme had directly supported 137 MSMEs across Albania, improving their capacity to innovate, grow and compete in regional and European markets. https://enpact.org/ecosystem-builders-boosting-support-for-msmes-in-albania.

← 41.  BIDS identifies textiles and footwear, agro-food, ICT, renewable energy, and light manufacturing as priority sectors for supplier integration.

← 42.  In 2023, AIDA organised four sectoral roundtables in textiles and footwear, agro-food, medicinal plants, and light manufacturing to assess supplier capacities and export readiness. The events, held between June and December 2023 with more than 240 SME participants, identified certification and financing gaps and informed the design of the Supplier Development Programme.

← 43.  AIDA also conducted three international outreach campaigns targeting Türkiye (agro-food), Germany (manufacturing), and Spain (tourism and creative industries), generating multiple trade and co-operation leads. In 2025, AIDA expanded these efforts through a fourth campaign focused on ICT and business services, aimed at attracting investment in the ICT/BPO sector.