Western Balkans Competitiveness Outlook 2024: Albania

Acronyms and abbreviations

AFOLU	Agriculture, forestry and other land use
5G	Fifth-generation technology standard for cellular networks
AADF	Albanian-American Development Foundation
AAES	Albanian Association of Electricity Suppliers
AATSF	Albania Agribusiness and Tourism Support Facility
ACAA	Albanian Civil Aviation Authority
ACN	Anti-corruption Network
ADF	Albanian Development Fund
ADM	Excise Customs and Monopolies Agency of Italy
AECA	Albanian E-Commerce Association
AEOI	Automatic Exchange of Information
AFD	French Development Agency
AFSA	Albanian Financial Supervisory Authority
AIDA	Albanian Investment Development Agency
AIMS	Albania, Italy, Montenegro, and Serbia
AKCESK	National Authority for Electronic Certification and Cyber Security
AKEP	Albanian Electronic and Postal Communications Authority
AKPA	National Employment and Skills Agency
AL-CIRT	National Cybersecurity Incident Response Team
ALFIS	Albanian Forest Information System
ALKOGAP	Albania-Kosovo Gas Pipeline
ALL	Albanian lek
ALMPs	Active labour market programmes
ALPEX	Albanian Power Exchange
ALREG	Albanian Securities Register
ALSE	Albanian Securities Exchange
AMIS	Agriculture Market Information System
AMLD5	Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive
AMP	Asset Management Plan
ANQEP	National Agency for Qualification and Vocational Education and Training, Portugal
ANTOCC	Albanian National Traffic Operation and Control Centre
ANTP	Albanian National Transport Plan
APIs	Application programming interfaces
AQF	Albanian Qualifications Framework
ARA	Albanian Road Authority
ATTC	Agricultural Technology Transfer Centres
B2B	Business-to-business
B2C	Business-to-consumer
BAN	Business Angel Network
BEPS	Base erosion and profit shifting
BIDS	Business Investment and Development Strategy
BIRN	Balkan Investigative Reporting Network
BIT	Bilateral Investment Treaty
BPO	Business process outsourcing
CAP	Common Agricultural Policy
CBA	Cost-benefit analysis
CBAM	Carbon border adjustment mechanism
CbC	Country-by-Country
CBD	Convention on Biological Diversity
CCD	United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
CE	Circular economy
CEFTA	Central European Free Trade Agreement
CEO	Chief Executive Officer
CfDs	Contract for differences
CIIs	Critical information infrastructures
CIT	Corporate income tax
CMO	Common market organisation
CO	Competitiveness Outlook
COSME	Competitiveness of enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises
COST	European Cooperation in Science and Technology
CRM	Common Regional Market
CRSA	Credit risk standardised approach
CSCC	Cross-Sectoral Coordination Centre, Latvia
CVA	Credit Valuation Assessment
DCM	Decision of the Council of Ministers
DLT	Distributed ledger technology
DMOs	Destination Management Organisations
DPA	Directorate of Accreditation
DSO	Distribution system operator
EASI	European Union Programme for Employment and Social Innovation
EBA	European Banking Authority
EbA	Ecosystem-based adaptation measures
EBRD	European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
ECE	Early childhood education
EDGAR	Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research
EDGI	E-Government Development Index
EDP	Entrepreneurial Discovery Process
EECC	European Electronic Communications Code
EFAS	European Flood Awareness System
EFSA	European Food Safety Authority
EFSRI	European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures
EFTA	European Free Trade Association
e-ID	Electronic identification
eIDAS	Electronic Identification, Authentication and Trust Services
EIMMS	Environmental Information Management and Monitoring System
EITI	Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative
EMD2	Second Electronic Money Directive
EnC	Energy Community
ENISA	European Union Agency for Cybersecurity
ENTSO-E	European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity
EPO	European Patent Office
EPR	Extended producer responsibility
EQF	European qualifications framework
ERA	European research area
ERE	Energy Regulatory Entity
ESAP	Employment and Social Affairs Platform
ESG	Environmental, social and governance
ESJS	European Skills and Jobs Survey
ESPN	European Social Policy Network
ETS	Emissions trading system
EU	European Union
EU NIS/NIS2	Network and Information Security Directive
EUR	Euro
EUSIWM	EU support to integrated water management
FADN	Farm Accountancy Data Network
FAO	Food and Agriculture Organisation
FDI	Foreign direct investment
FSHU	Furnizuesi I Shërbimit Universal (Universal Service Supplier)
FTAs	Free trade agreements
FTL	Furnizuesi I Tregut të Lirë (Free Market Supplier)
FTTP	Fibre to the premises
Gbps	Gigabits per second
GCF	Green Climate Fund
GDAC	General Directorate of Anti-Corruption
GDIP	General Directorate of Industrial Property, Albania
GDP	Gross domestic product
GDPR	General Data Protection Regulation
GDT	General Directorate of Taxation
GEF	Global Environment Facility
GERD	Gross domestic expenditure on research and development
GG	Government Gateway
GHG	Greenhouse gas
GI	Geographical indications
GIS	Geographical Information System
GIZ	Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (German Development Cooperation)
GloBE	Global anti-base erosion
GMO	Genetically modified organism
GRECO	Groupe d'États contre la corruption
GST	Goods and services tax
GTD	General Tax Directorate
GVA	Gross value added
Ha	Hectares
HEI	Higher education institution
HIDAACI	High Inspectorate for the Declaration and Audit of Assets and Conflicts of Interest
HPC	High Prosecutorial Council
HS	Harmonized commodity description and coding system
HSH	National Rail Company
IACS	Integrated administration and control system
IAPR	Independent Authority for Public Revenue
ICILS	International Computer and Information Literacy Study
ICO	Initial coin offering
ICT	Information and communications technology
IDP	Albanian Information and Data Protection Commissioner Office
IEA	International Energy Agency
IFC	International Finance Corporation
IFRS	International Financial Reporting Standards
IMF	International Monetary Fund
INSTAT	Albania Institute of Statistics
IRB	Internal ratings-based
IRENA	International Renewable Energy Agency
ISACS	Inter-Sectoral Anti-Corruption Strategy
ISCED	International Standard Classification of Education
ISP	Imbalance Settlement Period
ITE	Initial teacher education
ITS	Intelligent Transport Systems
JBCP	Joint border crossing point
JRC	Joint Research Centre
JSI	(WTO) Joint Statement Initiative
KESH	Albanian power corporation
KFW	Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (Credit Institute for Reconstruction), Germany]
KPA	Special Appeals College
KPIs	Key performance indicators
KPK	Independent Qualification Commission
LAG	Local Action Group
LEADER	Liaison entre actions de développement de l'économie rurale (Links between actions for the development of the rural economy)
LNG	Liquified natural gas
LPIS	Land parcel identification system
LULUCF	Land use, land use change and forestry
M&E	Monitoring and evaluation
MARD	Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
MED	The Mediterranean Sea Programme
MFE	Ministry of Finance and Economy
MIE	Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy
MNE	Multinational enterprises
MoESY	Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth
MOFE	Ministry of Finance and Economy
MoJ	Ministry of Justice
MoU	Memorandum of understanding
MR	Minimum requirements for market risk
MRL	Maximum residue levels
MSCA	Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action
MSMEs	Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises
MTBP	Medium-term budget planning
MTE	Ministry of Tourism and Environment
MW	Megawatts
MWh	Megawatt-hours
NACC	National Anti-Corruption Co-ordinator
NAES	National Agency for Employment and Skills
NAIS	Albanian National Agency of Information Society
NAP	National adaptation planning
NASRI	National Agency for Scientific Research and Innovation
NAVETQ	National Agency of Vocational Education, Training and Qualifications
NBC	National Business Centre
NBI	National Bureau of Investigation
NBP	Albanian National Broadband Plan
NCTS	New Computerised Transit System
NDC	Nationally Determined Contributions
NEA	National Environment Agency
NECP	National Energy and Climate Plan
NEET	Not in education, employment or training
NEMO	Nominated Electricity Market Operator
ACCs	Network of Anti-Corruption Co-ordinators
NFA	National Food Authority
NI4OS Europe	National Initiatives for Open Science in Europe
NIB	National Investigating Body
NSA	National Safety Authority
NSIP	National Strategy for Intellectual Property
NSIWRM	National Strategy for Integrated Water Resources Management
NSPP	National Single Project Pipeline
NSW	National single window
NTA	National Tourism Agency
NTFC	National Trade Facilitation Committee
NTO	National Tourism Organisation, Montenegro
NTS	National Transport Strategy
NYS	National Youth Strategy
OeAD,	Agency for Education and Internationalisation, Austria
OECD	Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
OF	Output floor
OGP	Open Government Partnership
OHS	Occupational health and safety
OIE	World Organisation for Animal Health
OR	Operational risk
ÖREK	Österreichische Raumordnungskonferenz (Austrian Conference on Spatial Planning)
OSCE	Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe
OSHEE	Albanian electricity distribution company (Operatori i Shpërndarjes së Energjisë Elektrike)
OST	Operatori I Sistemit te Transmetimit (Albanian Transmission System Operator)
OTP	Országos Takarékpénztár (Hungarian private bank)
PDP	Albanian Law on Personal Data Protection
PEM	Pan-Euro-Mediterranean
PES	Public employment service
Ph.D.	Doctor of Philosophy
PIM	Public investment management
PISA	Programme for international student assessment
PIT	Personal income tax
PPP	Public-private partnership
ProSEED	Sustainable Economic and Regional Development, Employment Promotion and Vocational Education and Training in Albania
PSD2	Second Payment Services Directive
PSO	Public service obligation
PV	Photovoltaic
QDMTT	Qualified domestic minimum top-up tax
R&D	Research and development
R&I	Research and innovation
RAI	Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative
RAMS	Road Asset Management System
RASH	Academic Network of Albania
RBC	Risk-based capital requirements
RCC	Regional Cooperation Council
RCGF	Rural Credit Guarantee Fund
REACH	Registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals
READ	Research Expertise from the Academic Diaspora
REMIT	Regulation on wholesale energy market integrity and transparency
RES	Renewable energy sources
RESEAL	Resilience Strengthening in Albania
RITTD	Research, innovation, technology transfer and digitalisation
RRA	Renewables readiness assessment
S3	Smart Specialisation Strategy
SAA	Stabilization and Association Agreement
SANE	Supporting Albanian Negotiations in Environment
SARDF	Strategy for agriculture, rural development and fishery
SDAC	Single day-ahead coupling
SDGs	Sustainable Development Goals
SECO	Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs
SEE CAO	South East Europe Capacity Allocation Office
SEPA	Single Euro Payments Area
SES	Single European Sky
SEZ	Special Economic Zones
SHSSH	State Social Service
Sida	Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency
SIMS	State Inspectorate for Market Surveillance
SIS	Special Investigation Service, Lithuania
SILSS	State Inspectorate of Labour and Social Services
SME	Small and medium-sized enterprises
SMIAL	Higher Education Information Management System
SMIP	Pre-university Information Management System
SNV	Stichting Nederlandse Vrijwilligers (Netherlands Development Organisation)
SOE	State-owned enterprise
SPAK	Special anti-corruption structure
SPO	Special Prosecutor's Office
SPS	Sanitary and phytosanitary
SRC	Share Registration Centre of Albania
SREP	Supervisory review and evaluation process
SSC	Social security contributions
SSCs	Sectoral Skills Committees
SSPP	Single sector project pipeline
SST	Sectorial Strategy of Transport
ST	Switzerland Tourism
STC	Swiss Tourism Council
STI	Science, technology and innovation
STIP Compass	Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Compass
STM	Switzerland Travel Mart
STO	Security Token Offering
STP	Science and technology park
TAB	Tabbed navigation
TAP	Trans Adriatic Pipeline
TCT	Transport community treaty
TE	Tax expenditure
TEDA	Technology and Economic Development Area
TEU	Twenty-foot equivalent unit
TFA	Trade Facilitation Agreement
TFI	Trade Facilitation Indicators
TPPs	Third-party payment services providers
TPP	Thermal power plant
TSAs	Tourism Satellite Accounts
TSE	Tirana Stock Exchange
TSO	Transmission system operator
TTO	Technology Transfer Centre
UBA	Environment Agency Austria
UIS	UNESCO Institute for Statistics
UNDP	United Nations Development Programme
UNECE	United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
UNFCCC	United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
UNCITRAL	United Nations Commission on International Trade Law
UNWTO	United Nations World Tourism Organization
USS	Universal service supply
VANAF	Assessment of Primary Education Pupils' Achievement
VAT	Value added tax
VET	Vocational education and training
WB6	Western Balkan economies
WBL	Work-based learning
WHO	World Health Organization
WIWW	Vienna Institute for Comparative Economic Studies
WTO	World Trade Organization
WTTC	World Travel & Tourism Council
YIC	Youth Innovation Centres