TIRANA, April 10 /ATA/ – Prime Minister Edi Rama on Friday said the government has designed a budget-backed plan to gradually increase pensions, aiming for a fivefold rise by 2030.
Speaking during a meeting with pensioners in the southern city of Berat as part of his “Projects of Albania” tour, Rama said the long-term plan marks a shift from years of limited fiscal capacity toward a more sustainable pension growth model.
The government head said pension increases had historically been constrained by structural weaknesses in the social security system and past economic challenges.
“From the very beginning, pensioners have been a priority for me and for us, but raising pensions has always been the most difficult task,” Rama said.
He added that previous fiscal constraints and accumulated debt had limited the government’s ability to deliver higher pensions without risking economic stability.
Rama said that wage increases in the public sector also contribute to pension growth through higher social security contributions.
“Every wage increase means higher contributions, and those contributions go directly to pensions,” he said.
Addressing criticism over public sector pay rises, including for lawmakers, Rama said such increases had a limited impact on overall pension levels.
He said Albania had spent years dealing with inherited debt and multiple crises, including the 2019 earthquake, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the energy price shock triggered by Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Despite these challenges, he said fiscal stabilisation and increased investment had created conditions for a structured pension reform plan.
“We now have a fully budget-backed system for pension increases,” Rama said.
He added that pensions would continue to rise annually, with the plan foreseeing a doubling in 2027, tripling in 2028, quadrupling in 2029 and reaching a fivefold increase by 2030.
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