Message from FIAA and Premier Berisha wishing a successful business year 2010 to the foreign business community

Wednesday, 27 January 2010 00:00

Premier Berisha: 2010, a new era for investments

The Premier Berisha greeted in the meeting of the Foreign Investors of Albania at the occasion of the beginning of activities for year 2010.

Premier Berisha by thanking members of FIAA for their engagement and contribution to the country’s economy stated that Albania concluded 2009 as the only country with economic growth in Europe and considered 2010 as a new era for investments.

“Together we have many reasons to be grateful to 2009. We left behind the stormy year of world finances, but I think that you did better than investors elsewhere. Albania owes to you, to your kindness, engagements and foreign investments for the fact of concluding year 2009 as the only country with economic growth in Europe” stated the Premier.

In this aspect, the Premier highlighted that in a time of world tsunami private banks in Albaniademonstrated their power, they had and have liquidities and are upstanding and with very good performance.

In his speech, Premier Berisha mainly stressed two big reforms of the government, with the aim of creating an ever favorable climate for investments, evaluating this as a complex but vital process forAlbania: the reform on foreign direct investments and the other on the inspectorates’ system.

“Related to foreign direct investments- said the Premier – we are restructuring Albinvest, the Agency of Foreign Direct Investments and we are trying to transform it in a One Stop Shop. But your association is the best Albinvest in some aspects. Therefore, I solicit your assistance, engagement and support to promote Albanian potentials in your respective countries and show your partners your success stories and some of you are the most successful in Europe. For instance I recall the Albanian American Enterprise Fund. This fund was established from the White House in all the East ex-communist countries, but no country had greater success than Albania. “

As per the second important reform, the Premier appreciates the reform of inspectorates. “Together with World Bank we are working on a new system of the inspectorates that controls law in the most legal way. I regret seeing how many days it requires and none has more valuable and expensive working days than you. This practice will end in the months coming. We have employed the best experts from Europe and the world. We will implement a new inspectorate system and facilitate the burden on business”

Premier Berisha informed that except these reforms during this year each Albanian citizen as in all other countries will have the integral declaration of incomes. “This will make Albania a transparent country, it will make business breath deeper and easier”- hightlighted the Premier.

Premier Berisha expressed as well the maximal evaluation and encouraged the idea of FIAA to syntonize their projects with efforts and endeavors of the Albanian government. In this context, the Premier invited undertaking new efforts to bring in the country “the Digital Era”. Recalling the Estonian example, the Premier highlighted that the new product of this result: an excellent business climate and the first benefiting from this it is the business. The government has increased the budget for the internet age 5 times this year, but has no comparison with your contribution and efforts, inviting to cooperate with the government for this prior project ” the Albanian Digital Era”

The great lesson of this crisis is to overcome it with reforms. So we did, therefore let’s work together headway and make the 2010 the best year Albania has ever had” - expressed the Premier Berisha.