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Study/ High tendency of citizens to leave Albania

2023-11-21 20:13:00, Aktualitet CNA

Study/ High tendency of citizens to leave Albania

Andi Balla, the author of the study on emigration

In Albania, the most recent study again brought out high figures on the willingness of citizens to emigrate.

A large part of the respondents express skepticism about the future, while listing as the main difficulties in Albania the few opportunities for a good life, unemployment, weak governance, corruption, as well as the few political alternatives.

Experts claim that the main feature of Albanian immigrants is their good education.

The study just published by the Albanian Institute for International Studies in a regional conference on depopulation, migration and instability, confirms again the high figures of the desire for young Albanians to emigrate, as has happened in recent years.

This study is based on data from a national public opinion survey across the territory on perceptions, trends and expectations about migration flows.

The author of the study, Andi Balla, says that "the most important finding is that 13% of the population of university and working age in Albania today has a high probability of leaving temporarily or permanently in the next 5 years, if quick measures are not taken to improve the economy, wages and policy-making".

The researcher claims that Albania, as a country with high emigration for several decades, is experiencing a rapid increase in the average age, and this shows, according to them, a long-term trend that requires a solution.

"The figures remain high in measuring the desire to emigrate, in measuring medium-term or long-term plans to emigrate, as well as when thinking about the future of the next generation, which is often seen outside Albania. All these are worrying for a society that still has a lot of immigration, as in the past, today and it seems that it will be in the future as well", says the researcher Balla.

In the study, it is emphasized that among the main causes of emigration are economic factors, educational factors and children's education, as well as political and social factors, which make up the view of the future that potential Albanian immigrants see in their country.

The phenomenon of emigration has affected all the countries of the Western Balkans and in the last decade it has had a very high intensity, says the head of the Center for Economic and Social Studies, the well-known expert Ilir Gëdeshi, but Albania is more affected both in quantity and in the quality of people leaving.

"Of all the countries of the Western Balkans, Albania has the highest intensity of emigration. It should be emphasized here that the quality of migratory flows from Albania is much higher than from other countries of the Western Balkans. This is because more and more people with higher education and professions leave Albania, which impoverishes the country. The study that was presented today is of great importance because it also shows the future trends of Albanian immigration" , said Mr. Gëdeshi.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Internal Affairs Taulant Balla stated today at the Consultation Table of the National Migration Strategy with action plan 2024-2030, that the challenges in coping with this phenomenon are complex, while Albania is engaged and is aligning the laws with the European Union for achieving the standards of good administration in this field.

"We have a significant decrease in the flows of irregular immigration and asylum-seeking by Albanian citizens in the countries of the European Union. Even towards the United Kingdom this is drastic: 90 percent less than a year ago," said Minister Balla.

In the last decade and currently, the Albanian public surveyed by various centers expresses a strong desire to leave the country temporarily or permanently, for a better life, for studies and for the future of the children.

In surveys, a large part of the citizens say that the most frequent problems they face in Albania are the few opportunities for a good life, unemployment, bad governance, corruption, the low quality of education and health, as well as the few political alternatives, which are offered, so they are not optimistic about their and their family's future./ VOA