The municipalities of the Greek Minority in Albania are threatened with extinction

The government is promoting a new restructuring of Albania's administrative map, with the aim of reducing the number of municipalities before the 2027 municipal elections. According to the plan being developed by the government majority, the current 61 municipalities are expected to be reduced to fewer than 50 through mergers and redistribution of administrative boundaries.

The ruling Socialist Party appears determined to proceed with the reform even without the opposition's consent, if no political agreement is reached. In that case, the proposal is expected to be submitted for a vote in early October, taking advantage of its parliamentary majority.

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Municipal mergers in focus

The assessment by experts working on behalf of the government majority concludes that fourteen municipalities have the most characteristics for a possible merger. This assessment took into account economic data, demographic developments, the financial viability of the municipalities, and the effectiveness of the services they provide to citizens.

The largest interventions appear to concern areas in the prefectures of Gjirokastër, Berat, Elbasan, Shkodra and Fieri, while the case of Tirana remains on the table for discussion.

Questions for the municipalities of the Greek National Minority

Ιδιαίτερο προβληματισμό προκαλεί προσχέδιο χάρτη που έχει διαρρεύσει, καθώς αποτυπώνει ένα σενάριο στο οποίο οι δήμοι Χειμάρρας, Φοινικαίων και Δρόπολης παύουν να υφίστανται ως αυτοτελείς δήμοι και ενσωματώνονται στους ενιαίους Δήμους Αυλώνας και Αργυροκάστρου. Η εικόνα αυτή έρχεται σε αντίθεση με τις αναφορές της έκθεσης των εμπειρογνωμόνων περί ειδικής μεταχείρισης δήμων με μειονοτικό καθεστώς, γεγονός που αφήνει ανοιχτά ερωτήματα για το ποια εκδοχή του σχεδίου ανταποκρίνεται τελικά στις προθέσεις της κυβέρνησης.

The same report points out that not all local government problems can be solved by changes in administrative boundaries. One of the characteristic examples is Himara, where the difficulties are mainly attributed to long distances and the difficult access of residents to public services.

Possible changes in other municipalities

At the same time, information circulating in political circles, without having been officially confirmed so far, speaks of changes that may affect several municipalities. According to the same scenarios, the new administrative reform could lead to the abolition of approximately ten municipalities through mergers.

The opposition has until July 23 to decide whether to participate in the reform process. Otherwise, the government appears determined to proceed with the passage of the changes alone, paving the way for one of the most significant reshuffles of Albania's administrative map in recent years.