In a meeting for the balances of the summer tourist season 2023, the Minister of Tourism and Environment Mirela Kumbaro, affirmed that tourism was the main word of the year and the business card that is accompanying Albania everywhere in the international, diplomatic and media arena. The meeting was attended by the Prime Minister Edi Rama, the Minister of Infrastructure and Energy and at the same time the Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku, the Minister of the Interior Taulant Balla as well as the mayors, tourism operators and other representatives of the sector.

The speech of the Minister of Tourism and Environment, Mirela Kumbaro in the analysis of the 2023 summer tourist season

Without a doubt, tourism was and continues to be the headline of the year in Albania, but it was and is also the business card that is accompanying our Albania everywhere in the international, diplomatic and media arena, either when talking about tourism, or when talking about politics, or when talking about economy, tourism is practically the word that accompanies them.

And I believe that what is happening, beyond the numbers, beyond the income, beyond the expenses, beyond the employment, is the greatest benefit for the Albanians and for our country, which in decades, if not in centuries, has suffered prejudices, negative perceptions, ignorance, or the harmful consequences of the events with which History had punished us with a capital “H” as well as the prolonged and difficult transition.

In this year, which deserves to be called the “tourist year” without fear, we were proud, as with Tirana, which has become a real tourist destination, which has never been before, as a kind of modern architectural laboratory, but also full of youthful energy , sports and culture, as well as agritourism in Tropoja, in Elbasan, Theth, Tepelën, Gjirokastër, Erseke and of course with the Vjosa river at the head, without mentioning here the praiseworthy epithets for our coast from foreign media or for the mountains. That being said, the challenge and responsibility becomes even greater because the expectations will be much higher for the coming year, therefore, this will be the next headline: the responsibility not to disappoint any tourist in 2024.

And now let’s go back to the numbers and the events of the summer season that is coming to an end. Although today we are in the middle of autumn, we continue to talk about the summer season, not only that the temperatures are favorable, but according to the reports of the private sector, and I speak here under the control of tour operators and hoteliers, September was fully booked and October follows with over 70-80% of hotels with guaranteed bookings.

I am sharing with you the latest data:
The month of September ended with 1.1 million foreign visitors, about 30% more than last year, while the 9-month January-September marked a full 8.3 million foreign visitors, or 1.9 million foreign visitors more than the 9-month of last year. As I recall here that in our strategic plans of 2019−2020 we had predicted to reach 10 million in 2030. I do not mention them to be proud, but to be aware that when our small country of 28 thousand square kilometers with 2.8 million inhabitants are traversed, lived, experimented, traveled, by almost 5 times the stable population, preparation, mobilization and attention, even alert, are and should be much higher.

It is the same as if in the house we have and where we live 4-5 people, we have to open it and serve 40 or 50 people and not just for a dinner or a wedding, but for whole months.

This year was the most challenging for the public and private sectors, because in tourism they are inseparable, we are inseparable to achieve the success desired by everyone, I believe we agree here, of Tourist Albania.

What directly confronts the visitors is the cleanliness in the place.
No doubt Albania is cleaner than 1 year ago, and much cleaner than years ago… but not where we should be if we start looking at everything like we look at our house inside the door.

The National Cleaning Plan has not stopped for a single day, the National Coastal Agency joined this year 6 coastal municipalities: Durrës, Kavajë, Rrogozhinë, Vlorë, Himarë, Sarandë to clean and maintain hygiene on the most frequented beaches by evacuating tons of waste generated by businesses, vacationers, travelers, over 93 linear km.

In the same way, with the staff of ARRSH, we have been and continue to be at war with criminals on the road, because there are individuals who fly individual waste from their cars or, worse, dump business waste under overpasses or in pockets of roads or where municipalities do not care regularly for the bins placed along the roads that cross their territory.

That, for example, although Lezha continues to be a model of cleanliness, both in the city, in the village and in the part of the beach, to get there, in Shengjin, in Rana e Hedhun, in Tale, one must pass through Fushë-Kruja and Milot where the municipality there is still much work to be done to improve the level of cleanliness.

I emphasize it because we cannot be proud of the sea and nature if st