Alarm bell about school violence in Albania – 528 incidents in 4 months and students with weapons

Schools in Albania remain unsafe, according to the audit of the Supreme State Audit Court (KLSH) carried out from September 2021 to 2024.

The four-year monitoring of the work of security officers and the operation of school units concluded that the process is not effective, due to lack of institutional coordination. From the budget of the Ministry of Education, just 0.4% to 0.6% available for security purposes.

The report states that the most common form of problems is physical violence, with 892 incidents. Followed by psychological/verbal violence with 333 incidents and the intimidation with 186 reports. Also recorded are threats, blackmail and harassment (178 incidents), as well as substance use such as drugs, cigarettes or alcohol (133 incidents).

In the first four months of the 2024-2025 school year, it was observed significant deterioration of safety indicators, with 528 incidents, mainly of physical violence, while eight students were found armedThe lack of security officers in all schools exacerbates the situation, while where they exist, control of students and premises remains insufficient.

The report notes that in areas such as Koukes and Gjirokastra, one security officer covers up to 25 schools, while in Tirana it corresponds to one for every 3-4 schools.

Another problem is that security officers have no legal obligation to report of incidents. Even when reported, the data are not processed or analyzed by the National Service for Pre-University Education.

During the inspection it was also found that pressure on security officials to register incidents in the relevant service's database without stating the school to avoid defamation. From 2021 to 2024, only 182 cases of prevention, a number that shows that the reports are partial and not complete. Many reported that they were pressured by the management not to record incidents, so that the school is not labeled "problematic".

This results in an incomplete and inaccurate picture about the real situation in schools, negatively affecting the taking of substantive measures. The KLSH proposes the creation of by 2026 special problem reporting structure and calls on the Ministry of Education to establish functional legal mechanism for the collection and recording of incidents, with the aim of enhancing safety and reliability in the school environment.