Dizdari reveals the numbers/ How Mirela Kumbaro lied

2024-10-24 20:05:00, Politikë CNA

Dizdari reveals the numbers/ How Mirela Kumbaro lied

Member of the National Council of the DP, Fjoralba Dizdari

The member of the National Council of the DP, Fjoralba Dizdari, has revealed the propaganda of the Minister of Tourism, Mirela Kumbaro, with figures.

Kumbaro has stated that until August, Albania was visited by 8.5 million tourists, a figure for which Dizdari said that it does not match the data of INSTAT.

She stated that the statistics that are released today are a cross-section of different sources from INSTAT, Taxes, the Ministry of Finance or Municipalities, distorting public opinion with confusing numbers.

Full statement:

In a public appearance, the Ministry of Tourism, Mrs. Kumbaro stated that this year Albania was visited by 8.5 million foreign visitors until August, while according to INSTAT data, Albania was visited by 6.4 million foreigners for the period January - July this year, and only 1 .6 million of these foreigners have slept in accommodation structures, which means that very little has been spent on accommodation structures, hotels. https://www.instat.gov.al/al/temat/industria-tregtia-dhe-shërbimet/statistikat-e-turizmit/#tab2

In health tourism, the figures have decreased significantly. In 2022, about 2,300 foreign citizens entered Albania for this reason, while in 2023 this figure has been reduced by 60%, to 950 tourists, and from January to July of this year, the number of these tourists has decreased to 483 tourists. .

Why this government, which cares so much about tourism, has not yet set up the Statistics System dedicated to tourism, SAT (Satellite Account of Tourism), a platform where, through it, we will be able to have accurate data only for the sector of tourism, although it was promised that this platform will be ready for 2024, but we are still not seeing anything.

The statistics that are released today are a cross-section of different sources from Instat, Taxes, the Ministry of Finance or Municipalities, distorting public opinion with confusing numbers.

What was reflected this year on the country's beaches is precisely the failure of the Albanian Government in managing coastal tourism (sea and sun). Meanwhile, since this year, it also failed successfully in managing natural, mountain and intercity tourism, as a result of the lack of accommodation capacities and transport lines from city to city.

In these conditions, tourists were forced to take alternative means of transport, where the prices of both oil and tourist companies were high.

The Prime Minister claimed at the start of the year "that for 2024 there was an increase in bookings compared to 2023 in the country" and even bookings were closed for 2025, while only a few weeks ago he instructed the tourist operators in Volonia to reduce prices as the beaches were empty .

Until a few days ago, Albania did not have a Strategy for the development of the sustainable tourism sector 2024-2030, but a strategy until 2023. Although the Ministry of Tourism had promised it a month ago.

The Mediterranean will be visited by over 500 million tourists this year, and only two neighboring countries, Greece and Croatia, attract about 10% of these visitors, while Albania cannot even attract 1% of them.

According to the Minister of Tourism, the Albanian government was pleased that our compatriots, the Kosovar Albanians, had their visas liberalized, hoping anyway to visit our coast, while on the other hand, this government has fined the northern Albanians, who want to access the beaches, with two taxes of the country!

The Ministry of 800 tons of hazardous waste, declared that the polluted water filtration plants in Albania do not cope with the increased capacities of the cities. The first question that comes to mind is why not invest in this direction? But they endanger the health of children and vacationers who bathe on the beaches, putting Albania in the last place in the region and Europe, for the quality of sea waters.

This is confirmed by the report of the European Environment Agency (European Environment Agency) on the quality of marine waters, where out of 29 countries in the region and Europe, Albania is positioned in the 29th place, i.e. the last place. https://www.eea.europa.eu/.../european-bathing-water.../

For Albania to turn into a tourist attraction, more strategies and television promises are required. National feeling and the will to make Albania a country, not only livable, but with the standards of European countries, is required./ CNA