Alcohol consumption is a major health and social issue in many countries, including Albania. While Albanians rank among the top tobacco consumers, with a rate of almost 22% according to the World Bank, alcohol consumption appears to be relatively low, as indicated by official data from the World Health Organization (WHO).
The organization's most recent publication in 2024, entitled "The Global Report on the Status of Alcohol and Health and Treatment of Substance Use Disorders", extensively analyzes the average alcohol consumption by country. According to the report, per capita alcohol consumption in Albania is estimated at 5.1 liters per year. Data by gender show that a man consumes approximately 8.4 liters per year, while a woman consumes 1.9 liters. Forecasts for both this year and next remain at the same levels. It is noted that the recorded consumption is based on official statistics, such as taxes, production, exports and imports, as well as on surveys by the organization. Nevertheless, the low consumption in Albania compared to other countries is linked to the fact that the production of wine and especially raki is largely done using traditional and unrecorded methods.
In terms of comparison with the region, the data shows that Albania ranks second to last, leaving behind Skopje with 4.6 liters per capita per year. Montenegro ranks first with 10.3 liters, followed by Serbia with 7.9 liters and Bosnia and Herzegovina with 6.4 liters per capita.
In Europe, Romania holds the "leadership" in alcohol consumption, followed by Georgia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Bulgaria, the Baltic countries, Moldova and Russia.
The report is based on data collected by WHO from Member States and organized according to target 3.5 on health, as defined in the Sustainable Development Goals.folding.
