7. Financing and support
Albania
Last update: January, 2022
Public funding
Budgets from the Albanian Ministry of Culture181 including donations from mainly international organisations and programs:
Ministry of Culture, Total Budget for Ongoing Expenses and Capital Investments
Indicators
The Ministry of Culture182 in 2014 initiated participation in international programmes such as Creative Europe and Traduki183. TRADUKI is a European network that connects Southeast European countries with each other and with the German-speaking world through the means of literature, namely books, translations, festivals, workshops and residency programmes for authors and translators, enabling independent operators and dependent institutions to apply with projects on the same platforms as their counterparts in western states. The total funds absorbed in the last 5 years by independent operators from these two programmes, is € 1,618,425.
The European Commission, based on the Albania- EU agreement, decided in 2014 that Albania’s artists, culture and creative organisations could participate in the Creative Europe programme, Culture and Media subprogrammes. Since 2015, the Albanian Ministry of Culture has paid its yearly membership of 55,000 Euros for the Culture subprogramme and 95,000 euros for the Media subprogramme. The EU has reimbursed this amount by giving 80% of the annual fees until 2020, and for the European Cooperative projects a total of 940,000 euros by supporting 12 literary translation projects with 660,000 euros, and another 280,000 euros to 1 project leader and 3 partners 184
Last update: January, 2022
Expenditure on government level
Table 6. Public cultural expenditure by level of government in 2020
| Level of government | Total expenditure in national currency in 1000 Leke | Total expenditure in EUR* | % share of total government budget for 2020 (4.5 billion euro) |
| Based on Law nr. 88 18.12.2019 For the Budget of 2020, Ministry of Finance: Expenses on the functions of the Government for Arts, Culture and Religious Affairs (Total budget: 549,374,174,000 leke, about 4.5 billion euro) | 3,419,124185 | 28 million | 6.2% |
| Ministry of Culture | 1,488,881186 | 12.2 million | 2.7% |
| Tirana Municipality (total budget 24,464,470) | |||
| Investments from the state’s budget: Programme for Culture Heritage, Arts Activities, Events | 33,495187 | 274,525 | 0.13% of the total Municipal budget |
| Expenses according to programmes from all sources of financing: Programme for Culture Heritage, Arts Activities, Events | 446,282 | 3.6 million | 1.82% of the total Municipal budget |
Last update: January, 2022
Expenditure per sector
Table 7: Direct state cultural expenditure and transfers (central level)*: by sector in 2020, in 1000 of national currency
Based on Law nr. 88 18.12.2019, On the Budget of 2020, the Albanian Ministry of Finance on Table 5188, expenses according to institutions are:
| Culture expenses for government institutions in 2020 | in 1000 in Albanian leke | in Euro | % of Total Government Budget in 2020 4.5 billion Euro (549,374,174,000 leke) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Culture Heritage and Museums | 511,641 | 4.2 million | 0.93 |
| Arts and Culture | 1,321,191 | 10.8 million | 2.4 |
| International film or artistic activities | 60,000 | 491,760 | 0.1 |
| Symphony Orchestra of Albanian Radio Television and Cinematography | 54,000 | 442,584 | 0.9 |
| Project 100 Villages | 200,000 | 1.6 million | 0.36 |
| Support to Cinematography Activities | 157,120 | 1.3 million | 0.28 |
| Support for religions | 131,400 | 1.1 million | 0.24 |
Ministry of Culture, detailed budget for 2020189:
| Institution/ Activity | Budget in 1000 Leke | in Euro | % of total budget of Ministry of Culture 2020 1,488,881,000 Leke (12.2 million euro) |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Opera and Ballet | 295,398 | 2.4 million | 19.84 |
| Regional Directories for Cultural Heritage, Tirana, Durres, Gjirokaster, Korce, Shkoder, Vlore | 175,786 | 1.44 million | 11.8 |
| Approved legal acts | 115,276 | 944,802 | 7.74 |
| National Library | 98,608 | 6.5 million | 6.62 |
| National Theatre | 96,454 | 790,536 | 6.47 |
| National Institute of Cultural Heritage | 85,950 | 704,446 | 5.77 |
| Project and programmes in support of civil society, independent | 78,231 | 641,181 | 5.25 |
| Activities for intangible heritage | 70,517 | 577,957 | 4.73 |
| National History Museum | 59,052 | 483,990 | 3.96 |
| Staff training | 49,724 | 407,537 | 3.33 |
| National Circus | 45,800 | 375,376 | 3 |
| National Cultural Centre for Children | 41,450 | 339,724 | 2.78 |
| National Art Gallery | 40,047 | 328, 225 | 2.68 |
| National Experimental Theatre | 32,450 | 265,960 | 2.17 |
| National Book and Reading Centre | 25,050 | 205,309 | 1.68 |
| Administration of Archaeological Parks, Apollonia and Bylis | 25,044 | 205,260 | 1.68 |
| Iconography Museum Onufri and Ethnographic Museum Berat | 19,530 | 160,067 | 1.31 |
| Museum Centre Durres | 19,396 | 158,969 | 1.3 |
| National Photography Museum Marubi | 17,993 | 147,470 | 1.2 |
| National Museum of Medieval Arts | 17,450 | 143,020 | 1.17 |
| National Museum Gjergj Kastrioti Skanderbeg and Ethnographic Museum Kruje | 16,254 | 133,217 | 1.09 |
| Central Film Archive | 14,512 | 118,940 | 0.97 |
| Surveillance Museum House of Leaves | 13,123 | 107,556 | 0.88 |
| National Centre of Folklore Activities | 11,160 | 91,467 | 0.74 |
| Administration Office Butrint | 10,403 | 85,262 | 0.69 |
| National Centre for Registration of Culture Heritage | 9,846 | 80,697 | 0.66 |
| National Museum of Independence | 4,376 | 35,865 | 0.29 |
| Total | 1,488,881 | 12.2 million | 100% |
The budget of the Ministry of Culture including operational and capital expenses:
The National Institute of Cultural Heritage 2020 Budget from the Annual Report 2020190:
Total: 271,353,764 lekë, 12.2 million euro
18% for wages and insurance, 7% for operative funds, funds for IPA projects, membership and support, 5% restoration and project implementation, 70% for project drafting.
During the period 2014 - 2018, over 68 million leke, about 1.6 million euro, have been invested in the preservation and restoration of 689 monuments as well as the revitalization of historic centres191.
Last update: January, 2022
Strategies, programmes and other forms of support
Albania has participated in the “Culture programme 2000 – 2006”, “Culture programme 2007-2013”, and “Creative Europe 2014-2020”.
The Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) to the EU replaced a series of European Union programmes and financial instruments for candidate countries or potential candidate countries, namely PHARE, PHARE CBC, ISPA, SAPARD, and CARDS192, funding various cross-border themes, the environment, tourism, culture heritage, accessibility, etc.
IPA I (2007- 2013) included the Greece-Albania IPA Cross-border Co-operation Programme 2007-2013 (The total budget of the Programme for the period 2007-2011 was approximately € 18.8 million, with Community assistance amounting to some €15 million. Community assistance was supplemented by about € 3.8 million of national funding from the two participating countries) and the Adriatic IPA Cross-border Co-operation Programme 2007-2013 (Total value EUR 298million).
IPA II ( 2014-2020) included the IPA Cross-border Co-operation Programme Greece - Albania (about € 45 million) and the IPA Cross-border Co-operation Programme Italy – Albania - Montenegro (Total €25 million for Tourism and Culture Heritage).
In IPA III (2021–2027), 14.2 billion euro of pre-accession financial assistance in favour of the Republic of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, the Republic of North Macedonia, the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Turkey will be allocated to support the conducting of necessary political, institutional, legal, administrative, social and economic reforms in order to comply with EU values and to progressively align themselves with EU rules, standards, policies and practices193. Starting retroactively from 1 January 2021, support will be divided according to thematic priorities rather than into country envelopes.
In 2020, following a devastating earthquake months earlier, The European Union hosted in Brussels the donors’ conference Together4Albania with a record pledge of EUR 1.15 billion. The European Commission donated 115 million euros in direct grants divided between EU4Culture with 40 million euros for rehabilitating culture and heritage as well as EU4Schools with 75 million euros for the repair and reconstruction of schools over the next four years in coordination and collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and other stakeholders.
The Ministry of Culture in cooperation with Albanian American Development Foundation undertook and finalized the project in 2019 for e-ticketing at 107 cultural heritage institutions in Albania and the platform for their promotion and online ticket sales. The AADF has actively financed and supported other cultural-economic projects as well.
Last update: January, 2022
Artist’s funds
For more information see:
- Ministry of Culture http://kultura.gov.al
- National Opera and Ballet, Folk Ensemble http://tkob.gov.al/?lang=en
- Leviz Albania Swiss Cultural Fund https://levizalbania.al/en https://swissculturalfund.al/mission/
- Italian Institute of Culture in Albania https://iictirana.esteri.it/iic_tirana/it/
- German Cooperation https://www.giz.de/en/worldwide/294.html
- Swiss Cooperation https://www.eda.admin.ch/countries/albania/en/home/international-cooperation/strategy.html
- Goethe Institut https://www.goethe.al/sq/
- British Council Albania https://www.britishcouncil.al/en
- Institut Français https://www.institutfrancais.com/en
Last update: January, 2022
Grants, awards, scholarships
For more information see:
- Western Balkan Fund http://westernbalkansfund.org/
- European Funding Instruments/ Interreg- IPA, CBC https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/funding/
- Creative Europe for Culture and Media https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/creative-europe/about_en
- Marubi Film and MultiMedia Academy https://afmm.edu.al/
- Erasmus+, K2 https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/about_en
- Erasmus 2020 https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/what-horizon-2020
- UNDP Albania https://www.al.undp.org/
- Albanian American Foundation http://aadf.org/
- USAID Albania https://www.usaid.gov/albania
- Open Doors NGO http://www.opendoors-albania.org/
- Tirana Art Lab http://www.tiranaartlab.org/en
- ArtKontakt NGO http://www.artkontakt.al/en/
- Argjiro NGO https://argjiro.org/
- Gjirokastra Foundation https://www.gjirokastra.org/gjirokastra-foundation/?page_id=2249
- APR- Parks and Recreation Agency https://aprtirana.al/rreth-nesh/
- Anna Lindh Foundation https://www.annalindhfoundation.org
- UNESCO International Fund for Culture Diversity https://en.unesco.org/creativity/ifcd
- Alliance Française de Tirana https://www.facebook.com/AleancaFrancezeETiranes/
Last update: January, 2022
Support to professional artists’
- National Center of Mediterranean Theatre https://butrinti2000.com/2016/04/29/the-national-center-mediterranean-theatre/
- National Experimental Theatre https://www.facebook.com/tkeksperimental/
- Metropol Theatre & Culture Centre Tirana http://teatrimetropol.al/
- Albanian Dance Theatre Company https://www.dancealbfest.com/sponsor.htm
- EDS Foundation https://www.eds-foundation.org/en/about-us/history/
- Association “Culture, Media, Arts” http://operafestalbania.com/association-culture-media-arts
Last update: January, 2022
Private funding
- Albanian American Development Foundation https://www.aadf.org
- American Bank of Investments https://www.abi.al/eng/c/90/sponsorship-application
- Raiffeisen Bank Albania https://www.raiffeisen.al/alb/about/pages/art-dhe-kulture/
Sources and links
- Ministry of Culture http://kultura.gov.al
- Albanian Investment Development Agency (AIDA) https://www.aida.gov.al/en/
- Albanian American Development Foundation https://www.aadf.org
- UNESCO International Fund for Cultural Diversity https://en.unesco.org/creativity/ifcd
- Western Balkan Fund http://westernbalkansfund.org/
- European Funding Instruments/ Interreg- IPA, CBC https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/funding/
- Leviz Albania Swiss Cultural Fund https://levizalbania.al/en
- National Institute of Statistics http://www.instat.gov.al
- Local Portal, Albania https://portavendore.al/
- The Economic Bulletin https://www.buletiniekonomik.com
- Public Arts Tirana, Artistic Expressions of Past and Present, Blerina Berberi & Kevin Tummers, 2018 https://www.academia.edu/38120149/Public_Arts_Tirana_Artistic_Expressions_of_Past_and_Present
- ShtetiWeb, Albania https://shtetiweb.org
- United Nations Development Programme http://www.undp.org
- The Prime Ministry, Albania, https://kryeministria.al/en/
- Regional Cooperation Council https://www.rcc.in
- Creative Europe https://ec.europa.eu/culture/creative-europe
- Council of Europe https://pjp-eu.coe.int/documents, https://www.coe.int/en
- Institut Français https://www.institutfrancais.com/en
- Berlin Process https://berlinprocess.info
- Observatory of Regional Integration- ORI https://cdinstitute.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ORI_Factsheet.pdf
- RYCO Regional Youth Cooperation Office https://www.rycowb.org/?page_id=152
- Ministry of Albanian Diaspora https://diaspora.gov.al
- Prime Ministry of Albania https://kryeministria.al/
- National Institute of Cultural Heritage http://iktk.gov.al/
- Balkan Insight https://balkaninsight.com
- Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe https://www.osce.org
- Reporters without Borders. https://rsf.org/en/albania
- UNWomen https://www2.unwomen.org
- Authority of Audiovisual Media, Albania http://ama.gov.al
- Centre of Official Publications, Albania https://qbz.gov.al/search
- National Library, Tirana, Albania https://www.bksh.al/
- Albanian National Film Archive http://www.aqshf.gov.al/kontakte.html
- Europa Nostra https://www.europanostra.org
- National Chamber of Handicrafts, https://dhkz.org.al
- European Commission https://ec.europa.eu/
- Ministry of Tourism and Environment http://turizmi.gov.al
- Constitutional Court of the Republic of Albania, http://www.gjk.gov.al/
- Social Insurance Institute, Albania, http://www.issh.gov.al
- Ministry of Finance, Albania https://www.financa.gov.al
- National Book and Reading Centre https://qkll.gov.al/
- Ombudsman (Advocate of the People) https://www.avokatipopullit.gov.al/
- Ministry of Education and Sport, Albania https://ascap.edu.al/ _
- Open Data Tirana, Albania https://opendata.tirana.al/
- Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA), Council of Europe, https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/funding/ipa/
- Traduki Network, https://traduki.eu
- Agency for the Support of Civil Society (AMSHC), Albania http://www.amshc.gov.al/
- National Council for Civil Society Albania http://www.amshc.gov.al/kkshc/
- Independent Culture Scene Albania https://www.spk.al/
- National Theatre of Opera, Ballet and Folk Ensemble: www.tkob.gov.al
- National Theatre www.teatrikombetar.gov.al
- National Experimental Theatre “Kujtim Spahivogli” www.tkeks.gov.al
- National Art Gallery www.galeriakombetare.gov.al (Pursuant to the new law nr. 27/2018 For Cultural Heritage and Museums is named the "National Museum of Fine Arts" )
- National Library www.bksh.al
- National Culture Centre for Children www.qkkf.gov.al
- National State Film Archive www.aqshf.gov.al
- National Circus www.cirkukombetar.gov.al
- National Centre for Books and Reading https://qkll.gov.al
- National Centre of Cinematography http://nationalfilmcenter.gov.al/
- National History Museum www.mhk.gov.al
- National Museum of Surveillance “House of Leaves” www.muzeugjethi.gov.al
- National Institute of Culture Heritage (IKTK) www.iktk.gov.al
- National Park of Butrint www.butrint.al
- National Museum “Skënderbeu” and Ethnographic Museum, Krujë www.muzeumetkruje.gov.al
- National Iconography and Ethnography Museum, Berat www.muzeumetberat.gov.al
- National Museum of Medieval Art www.muzeumesjetar.gov.al
- National Photography Museum “Marubi” – Shkodër www.marubi.gov.al
- Independence Museum Vlore www.muzeupavaresia.gov.al
- Institute for the Registration of Cultural Heritage www.qkipk.gov.al
- National Centre of Folklore Activities (QKVF) www.qkvfolk.gov.al
- Regional Directory of Cultural Heritage Tiranë www.drkkdurres.gov.al
- Regional Directory of Cultural Heritage Vlorë www.drkkvlore.gov.al
- Regional Directory of Cultural Heritage Korcë www.drkkkorce.gov.al