2. Current cultural affairs
Albania
Last update: January, 2011
The most important reforms in the field of culture took place after 1997. For the past 5 years, the main emphasis has been on developing legislation. The Albanian parliament has approved some important laws on cinema, theatres and libraries. The latter has been considered a cornerstone of cultural communication in Albania and, therefore, greater emphasis has been placed on the promotion of reading.
In preparation for the Council of Europe National Cultural Policy Review, the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport organised a special seminar on decentralisation in Tirana in March 2000, a topic which has been neglected in the overall cultural policy strategy. Other recent debates have focussed on the legal, political and economic aspects of multicultural societies, creativity and networking. On 23 November 2005, the Albanian government approved the Integrated Planning System (IPS), which means a series of functional principles that guarantee an effective implementing process for public policies. It contains two important processes such as mid-term and long-term strategic planning, the so - called National Strategy for Development and Integration (NSDI) and the Mid-Term Budgeting Programme. On 16 March 2006, The Committee for Strategic Planning, the high level decision-making authority on the IPS, decided to include all the sectoral and intra-sectoral strategies of different ministries in the planning. These strategies have to meet the EU financial framework 2007-2013 period in order to facilitate the National Plan for SAA (Stabilisation and Association Agreement) that the Albanian government signed with the EU on 12 June 2006. The SAA has replaced the previous Trade and Cooperation Agreement of 14 May 1992 which established the institutional relationship between Albania and European Union. SAA is part of the Stabilisation and Association Process (SAP) that EU adapted for the Western Balkans countries during its own European Summit of 29 May 1999 in Köln. In this framework, the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth & Sports is involved in the design and drafting of a series of strategies which are related to its own policy areas such as tourism, culture, youth and sport.
The draft Sectoral Strategy for Culture (2007-2013) is being prepared by a working group appointed by the Minister and is currently available for public consultation with all the stakeholders and groups of interest related to the field of arts and culture.
This information will be published as soon as possible.
This information will be published as soon as possible.
Last update: January, 2011
In 2008, the Albanian Government announced the launch of "Albania in the Internet Age"; a strategy intended to push the country towards higher standards in new media and information technology. The then Vice-Prime Minister was appointed as Minister of Innovation, Information Technology and Information. Since then there has been significant progress in Internet services and mobile communications, an increase in the number of Internet users of both home and mobile devices, as well as a relative decrease in service prices.
There have been occasional projects, but no special programmes or policies to promote the use of new technologies for cultural purposes. Projects include the digitalisation of National Library entry databases (now accessible also via the Web), the production of some audio CDs with traditional music and the country's oldest stills archive, the Marubi Phototheque.
Another ambitious project is the digitalisation of the Albanian Film Archive, in collaboration with Italy's Istituto Luce. Yet, the only way to stream or download any footage of either feature, animated or documentary films for viewing purposes only, is to search online for private sources. Sadly, pirates offer for free what you cannot buy, even if you wanted to, from the legal owner.
Unfortunately, other important institutions, like national museums and art galleries, have not yet launched their web-pages and have no plans to start digitalising their bodies of work.
The situation is pretty similar with e-books. Albanian education or cultural institutions and publishers do not offer e-books in any format.
Last update: January, 2011
The Albanian government has no specific programmes to support cross-border intercultural dialogue and co-operation. The Ministry of Culture has signed bi-lateral agreements on cultural co-operation with its counterparts in Greece, FYROM and Kosovo. Except for Albania-Kosovo exchanges, these agreements have had a small impact.
In the third sector, there are some good examples of trans-national intercultural dialogue. The Albanian Centre of ITM (Mediterranean Institute of Theatre) organises an annual international drama festival in Butrint. The Albanian Section of ISCM (International Society of Contemporary Music) organises the annual New Chamber Music Festival and has recently launched its Centre for Balkan Music Documentation, the first project of this kind in Albania.
The annual International Tirana Film Festival of short films, animations and documentary films has a special focus on films from Albanian-speaking minorities in Kosovo, Macedonia and the Diaspora. The festival takes place every year in October and is organised by the Albanian Art Institute. All films receiving an award are screened on Albanian national TV. The web site of the Film Festival is available from: http://www.tiranafilmfest.com/.
Butrint 2000 is an annual theatre festival that takes place on a historic site in the South-Albanian town of Butrinti, on the shore of Lake Butrint. The festival started in 2000 and has presented works by Albanian artists, as well as more than 50 companies coming from Greece, Italy, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Serbia and Montenegro, Poland, Romania, the Netherlands, UK, USA, France, Russia, Sweden etc. It is also a measure to promote cultural tourism in Albania, as Butrinti is only a short ferry ride away from the island of Corfu.
Generally the Albania government support certain trans-national activities of young people or youth groups through the Directory of Youth Policy Coordination attached to the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Sport. Especially it provides fund for activities initiated by it according to the priorities defined at the National Youth Strategy and Plan of Action 2007-2013 approved by Albania government on 18 March 2007.
Intercultural dialogue is not yet an issue of cultural policies in Albania. The Central Government, the Ministry of Culture or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs do not have intercultural dialogue identified as part of their agendas.
The main actor in this field used to be the Open Society Institute for Albania - Soros Foundation, which was due to close down its activities at the end of 2006. Founded in 1992, the Open Society Foundation for Albania (OSFA) has now entered a new phase in its development. It is not more a programme-based and grant-giving foundation but worked out a new plan of action to contribute to the democratisation and further integration of the country with the EU. In this framework the grant-giving Art & Culture Programme which operated from 1993-2004 is now closed. OSFA interacts with the Network of Open Society for Albania (NOSA) representing the membership of eight non profit organisations and provides a part of the funding for their activity. The only programme of the Foundation which is expected to continue is the Roma Programme, dedicated to civil and social integration of Roma communities in Albania.
Other NGOs, like the so-called "Friendship" Associations, aimed at fostering bi-lateral relations, do not really focus on intercultural dialogue. Their primary target remains the promotion of cultural and social values of a given country in Albania e.g. French values promoted via the Albanian-French Friendship Association.
Last update: January, 2011
Intercultural education is a totally unknown concept in Albanian academic institutions. With the exception of some occasional joint-projects, involving guest artists and art educators from abroad, intercultural dialogue is missing in Albania's academic life.
Last update: January, 2011
The law forbids shareholders to acquire more than 10% of a terrestrial broadcaster or to acquire a share of other broadcasters. In other words, a physical or juridical person may control no more than one terrestrial broadcaster. Recently, there has been a debate on whether the same rule should apply for digital terrestrial and digital satellite broadcasters.
While there is no official data regarding the share of imported media programmes in the domestic market, some surveys show that the Albanian media is heavily dependent on imported programmes. Estimates show that they make up around 80% of terrestrial and 95% of digital broadcasts.
There are no specific training programmes for cultural journalists. Culture remains a less important issue in editorial policy and media structures. On the other hand, cultural journalists consider their job as an "obligatory service"; a stepping stone to promotion as a journalist covering other sectors, such as the economy or politics.
The most important development in the Albanian media has been to secure freedom of expression which is currently guaranteed by the Albanian Constitution.
A structural reform of the national broadcasting system has started and new national television channels, such as Klan, TVA, Top Channel, Vizion Plus have been created. A new challenging development was the introduction of digital terrestrial and digital satellite pay TV platforms.
In addition to the daily news, a cultural news report has been created. The most important magazine in the cultural field is Klan, Spekter. Some professional journals on culture are: the Albanian Universe of Books, Aleph, Mehr Licht.
Overall, Albania has made some progress on freedom of expression and media development which have been considered a key European Partnership priority for the Albanian government. Freedom of expression and of the press is constitutionally guaranteed in Albania, but many media outlets remain subject to political or economic interests. The 2006 Decision to widen the composition of the National Council for Radio and Television (NCRT) and the Steering Committee of Albania Radio and Television, to include experts proposed by the parliamentary opposition, has been implemented. The NCRT signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Competition Authority on cooperation in promoting free competition in the electronic media field. Albania agreed to an Action Plan to develop new broadcasting legislation which involves consultation with stakeholders and the international community. On the other side, the Labour Code was amended to improve the status of journalists. The government initially proposed a Draft Digital Broadcasting Act without the agreed consultation, as an urgent anti-piracy measure. Further consultation led to a new Law which largely takes into account European Commission and Council of Europe advice. Work on comprehensive new broadcasting legislation needs to continue and intensify, using the process agreed with the Commission and the Council of Europe.
Last update: January, 2011
According to the Constitution of the Republic of Albania, the official language is Albanian, an Indo-European language, a single branch in the Indo-European tree. The Gheg dialect is spoken in Northern Albania by approximately 1 300 000 people, in Kosovo by 1 750 000, and in Macedonia by 600 000. Tosk has been the basis for the official dialect of standard Albanian, recognised officially in 1972, and is spoken by 3 400 000 people. In recent years the Ghegs have also started to use standard Albanian.
Greek is the second major language, spoken by a Greek minority of 60 000 people in the South of Albania and is used in Greek schools. Macedonian is spoken by 30 000, Romanian in the Vlach dialect is spoken by 50 000 people.
There are currently no specific cultural policies or measures to support the use and promotion of minority languages through culture (e.g. publications, radio stations, support for films etc).
Last update: January, 2011
The State Committee on Equal Opportunities remains weak and the Gender Equality Act remains largely unimplemented. For that reason, further action is needed to facilitate the inclusion of women in the labour market and their participation in the decision - making process. Albania remains at an early stage in mainstreaming gender in employment as well as in other policies. There are no specific projects for women in the arts and media professions in Albania.
This information will be published as soon as possible.
Last update: January, 2011
Though the Constitution and other laws sanction the rights of ethnic and linguistic minorities, the Ministry of Culture (MTCYS) has not yet launched any initiative or programme to address specific minority groups. This also applies to other forms of positive discrimination. A reason for this could be also the lack of initiatives from minority groups.
Young people have received support through special programmes like the Festival of Young Theatre Directors and the Fund for Young Artists. The former is a series of drama productions involving directors less than 35 years of age and s significant presence of young actors and designers. The later is a support scheme for national institutions that employ young artists, especially newly graduates of the Academy of Arts.
Greeks, Macedonians, Vlachs and Roma are officially recognised cultural groups in Albania. Efforts are being made to add Muslim Bosnians to this list. Some media reports have stressed the fact that there is a growing community of Chinese immigrants.
However, there is no accurate data on their composition and size. The last census in Albania was in 1994, but matters like ethnicity, religion and language were not included.
Article 20 of the Albanian Constitution guarantees the rights of all ethnic minorities in Albania, including the right to preserve and develop their cultural, religious, ethnic and linguistic identity. However, the rights provided by the Albanian Constitution and several international agreements, have not yet translated into cultural policy issues. There is no specific law to support these minority groups, with regard to cultural identity.
Like all Albanian citizens, members of minority groups are free to acquire Albanian citizenship, to give it up or to hold dual citizenship.
Greeks have full minority status in South Albania, especially in the Gjirokastra and Saranda regions, where this community is concentrated. They have the right to education in their mother tongue, from elementary to high school level. The Greek community publish daily papers and have a share of programmes broadcast through public radio.
Since 1991, Greeks are represented in the Albanian Parliament, first by the Omonia Association and then by the Human Rights Union Party. The later has been a member of the left-wing coalition, led by the Socialist Party, in power until 2005, and is now a member of the right-wing coalition led by the Democratic Party (which came into power in 2005).
Many Greek politicians sit on city and county councils within the Gjirokastra and Saranda regions, as well as in the majority of local councils in most parts of the country.
To date, there are no arts programmes specifically targeted to cultural minorities living in Albania. While the Constitution guarantees their rights to, for example, publish literature in their mother tongues, there is no support systems to aid them to do so.
As regards cultural rights, Albania recognises three national minorities (Greek, Macedonian and Serbian-Montenegrin) and two ethno linguistic minorities (Aromanian and Roma). Generally, there prevails a climate of respect and tolerance regarding minority groups. The UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions has now entered into force. Albania is endeavouring, within its budgetary limitations, to fulfil its commitments under the Council of Europe Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. The government signed Memoranda of Understanding with local governments to promote the use of minority languages in relations with the administrative authorities and to display traditional place names in areas inhabited by persons belonging to national minorities. The Albanian Constitution provides that persons belonging to minorities have the right to be taught in their mother tongue in their curricula. Schools for members of the Greek and Macedonian minorities have significantly higher teacher-pupil ratios than the national average. On the other hand, the Ministry of Education and Science issued an instruction allowing Roma children to enrol in schools without being registered.
There are some radio and television operators that broadcast in minority languages, mainly Greek. Greek, Macedonian and Aromanian minorities have their own newspapers. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Sports supports the publication of a magazine focusing on the culture and social issues of the Roma and organises annual national festivals to promote the cultural heritage of all Albania's minorities. However it remains difficult to include subjects in some minority languages, particularly the Roma language in curricula. Albania has not signed the European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages. The number of Roma children in schools has not substantially increased and the literacy rate of the Roma population remains low. The National Strategy for the Improvement of the Roma Living Conditions, approved on 22 March 2005 by the Albanian government, is being implemented. However, Albania is not participating in the 2005-2015 Decade of Roma Inclusion and the implementation of the national Roma strategy is slow and fragmented. Overall, there has been some progress on cultural rights but further improvement is needed. Further actions are required to overcome barriers to minority education, particularly for the Roma minority.
Last update: January, 2011
Unfortunately, social cohesion is not yet an issue of cultural policies and there are no plans or signs that it will become an issue in the near future.
This information will be published as soon as possible.
Last update: January, 2011
The most important reforms in the field of culture have taken place since 1991. In particular, during the last five years, major emphasis has been placed on the development of legislation in the sector. The Albanian Parliament has approved several important laws on copyright, cinema, theatre and libraries. The Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, for the first time, organised a workshop on decentralisation in Tirana in March 2000, an issue that had been neglected within the general strategy of cultural policies. Recent debates have focussed on the legal, political and economic aspects of creativity, particularly in relation to theatre. However, all these developments have been sporadic, partial and sector-based. Albania has not yet had an open, public, multi-dimensional and all-embracing debate on culture.