Manastirliu: 55 winning projects of the academic diaspora with our universities announced

2025-06-09 13:12:00, Aktualitet CNA

Manastirliu: 55 winning projects of the academic diaspora with our universities

The 55 winning projects of the first call for joint projects between Albanian researchers and the academic diaspora, supported by the READ program, a joint initiative of the National Agency for Scientific Research and Innovation (AKKSHI) and the Albanian-American Development Foundation (AADF), have been announced.

477 researchers from 15 countries around the world, including the USA, the UK, Germany, Italy, France, Switzerland, Sweden, Canada, and others, applied to this call. The 55 selected projects represent high-priority fields such as medical sciences, technology, environment, energy, tourism, economics, and agriculture, connecting diaspora researchers with academics from 13 public and private universities in Albania.

In her speech during the presentation ceremony of the winning projects, the Minister of Education and Sports, Ogerta Manastirliu, emphasized the importance of this cooperation for the development of scientific research and the internationalization of higher education:

"Today we crown one of the sustainable programs, which independently arose and developed until they came together, to become one and to continue the journey together in an effort to increase the quality of higher education and scientific research in Albania, to raise academic excellence to a new level, to make it possible for international development to be reflected in domestic development, to achieve another important indicator that only through our academic diaspora, only through cooperation and through internationalization can we achieve the much-needed feasibility of our teachers, our scholars, our researchers, our academics at global levels", said Minister Manastirliu, emphasizing that cooperation between the diaspora and local researchers is a guarantee for increasing the quality of research and service to society.

The READ program is one of two programs that the Ministry of Education and AADF are implementing to strengthen research capacities and promote the absorption of international funds. Minister Manastirliu emphasized:

"There are two programs dedicated to scientific research and increasing the capacities of public universities, which we are implementing in collaboration with AADF, which is the Read program and the newest Bridge program, which will support universities to build their capacities to absorb funds through international projects, where undoubtedly your contribution from the academic diaspora is more than welcome."

Minister Manastirliu also spoke about the role of Albanian academics and researchers in this program:

"There are more than 250 contributors to 55 projects, 200 of whom are research professors from our public and private universities, and 55 academics from the diaspora, so it is you who will contribute through these projects to studies, research, publications, articles, and are already engaged in important and strategically important areas for the country, such as those related to technological development, innovation, the environment, health, or social areas, so that we can have real contributions that are worth the social, economic, and technological improvement of the country."

The READ program is part of a broader research support scheme where a total of 181 winning projects have been announced for 2025, including 126 national projects announced a few days ago. With a 15% increase in funding compared to last year, Albania continues to build a sustainable and internationalized research ecosystem./ CNA