Albanian Studies Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

The research work examines the situation in Albania along the period between 1992 and 1997, when the author acted as consultant of Priority Action Plan - Regional Activity Centre of UNEP, dealing with the preparation of the Albanian Coastal Zone Management Plan.
The political system in force in Albania till 1990 put the country into an extreme isolation, away from the stream of contemporary development. Moreover the crisis occurred after 1990-91 brought it into a very deep economic depression. But the acquired status of Parliamentary Republic pushed Albania toward a necessary modernization and economic reconstruction. The primary objective of the government was to convert the economy into that of free market type. Main potential areas of future development were individuated: natural resources exploitation, hydropower production and exportation, tourism implementation. Environmental protection and preservation was as well one of the statements stressed by the government and some legislation was enacted on the purpose. The most important body dealing with integrated development and environmental aspects was created: the Committee for Environmental Protection and Preservation (CEPP), also acting in the field of Integrated Coastal Management.
The Albanian reality was facing serious problems in several sectors: massive urbanization, industry collapse, obsolete energy supply, poorly developed transportation network, water shortage, untreated liquid and solid waste. Albanian coasts were affected by several threats: pollution, wrong irrigation methods in agriculture, altered phenomena of erosion and sedimentation, wetlands' and lagoons' eutrophication, over-exploitation of natural resources, landscape and cultural heritage degradation, institutional and legal insufficiency. Marine resources were still well preserved because of the limited fishing activity in the past. But several problems could harm these resources: the lack in legislation and in a strict control over the exploitation, the widespread poaching by foreign vessels, the non-declaration of the Economic Exploitation Zone by the Albanian government, the use of illegal fishing methods. This sector undoubtedly had the necessary potential to quickly restore its outputs, being apt for a fast privatization and an efficient management.
The advantage of Albanian coastal zone among all other Mediterranean countries is that, being the development process not completely started, the international knowledge in sustainable integrated planning and management could be applied at its outset. Aware of that, the Albanian government recognized the need of an Integrated Management Programme and therefore launched, with the international co-operation, several programmes in this sense. In 1993 the “ICAM Programme” (Integrated Coastal And Marine Areas Management Programme) started: a joint programme of the Albanian CEPP and the Priority Actions Programme - Regional Activity Centre (PAP/RAC) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP-MAP). In 1994 the “CZM Programme” (Coastal Zone Management Programme) started as co-operation between the government and the World Bank through the Mediterranean Technical Assistance Programme (METAP). Both programmes evolved into the “Coastal Zone Management Plan” (CZMP), an environmental protection strategy planned by the Albanian government for the National Environmental Action Plan (NEAP).
In these programmes some overall goals were identified: establishing limits for the resources use, rehabilitating damaged resources, use of transparency in decision-making, use of participatory approach, encouraging private-public partnerships. Some strategic objectives were delineated: conservation and protection of Albania's biodiversity and cultural heritage, promotion of eco-tourism, creation of investment opportunities, maximization of benefits for local people.
The achieved outputs from ICAM and CZM Programmes have been:
- the establishment of a computer-based Geographic Information System (GIS) , to collect, process and manage geographic and numeric data relevant to the coastal area;
- the Coastal Zone Management Plan: Central Coastal Region (The Durres-Vlore Region);
- the Albania Coastal Zone Management Plan: Northern and Southern Region;
- the proposal for the creation of a governmental organism called Albanian Coastal Development Agency to deal with and manage planning activities and investments in coastal development issues;
- the launching of the Donors' Conference (held in 1996 in Tirana) to present the results of CZMP and to attract international donors and foreign private investors interested in the future development of the Albanian coastal area.