TIRANA, Aug 21 /ATA/ – The Minister of State for Public Administration and Anti-Corruption has put forward for public consultation a draft law introducing amendments to the 2012 legislation on the organisation of the state administration, aiming to bring its structure and performance closer to European Union standards.
The draft law seeks to improve efficiency, accountability and institutional clarity across government bodies under the authority of the Council of Ministers. Officials said the proposals respond both to existing structural issues and to recommendations from the OECD/SIGMA programme, which in February published an extensive report on Albania’s public administration.
The OECD/SIGMA report noted Albania’s progress in public finance management, civil service reform and policy coordination, but called for a clearer typology of central government bodies, stricter rules on avoiding overlapping functions, and more transparent work planning by line ministries.
Unified oversight and performance evaluation
The new law would establish a modern, uniform oversight and accountability system for all agencies reporting to the prime minister or ministers. Institutions would be assessed annually against measurable objectives, with performance plans, self-evaluations and external monitoring aimed at ensuring results-driven management.
Criteria for creating new institutions
Under the proposal, subordinate institutions could only be created if they meet minimum staffing thresholds to justify their existence. Directly subordinate bodies to the Prime Minister would be limited to those serving constitutional functions or providing cross-cutting services that cannot be handled by line ministries. New institutions in priority policy areas would be permitted only for as long as those priorities remain in force.
Reorganisation of non-ministerial bodies
The draft law would simplify the current landscape of executive agencies, consolidating them into two categories – subordinate institutions and autonomous agencies – in line with OECD/SIGMA recommendations. The report criticised the large number of administrative entities reporting to parliament, warning that excessive distance from the executive could undermine institutional accountability.
Redefining roles and responsibilities
The legislation would delegate routine decision-making to mid-level managers rather than concentrating authority solely with ministers or secretary-generals. While senior officials would retain supervisory roles, content-related and operational decisions would largely rest at middle management level unless the law requires higher-level authorisation.
The draft has been published on Albania’s public consultation portal for comments from stakeholders before being sent to parliament for approval. Officials say the reform is intended to reduce bureaucracy, avoid temporary fixes that fragment responsibility, and ensure state institutions operate under a coherent legal and organisational framework as Albania advances in its EU accession process.
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