TIRANA, Sept 15 /ATA/ The Office of the Commissioner for the Right to Information and Protection of Personal Data organised the meeting “Transparency and Integrity in Lobbying Activities”, focusing on Albania’s new legal framework on lobbying and the package of secondary legislation designed to ensure its implementation.
The event was addressed by Commissioner for the Right to Information and Protection of Personal Data Besnik Dervishi, Minister of State for Public Administration and Anti‑Corruption Adea Pirdeni, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Tirana Giulia Re, and Swiss Ambassador to Albania Siri Walt. Representatives of public institutions, international partners and civil society also took part.
Commissioner Besnik Dervishi underlined that Albania’s new lobbying framework aims to enhance transparency over how different interests and stakeholders interact with public decision‑making.
Commissioner Dervishi remarked that lobbying is often perceived as taking place “in a dark corridor, perhaps behind heavy closed curtains.” He said the new legal framework — and the objective of his office — is to shed light on this environment and establish an institutionalised relationship.
Dervishi noted that in a democratic system it is natural for decision‑makers to hear the expertise and interests of different groups. The problem, he stressed, arises when influence remains invisible or when access to decision‑makers is perceived as a privilege reserved for a limited number of stakeholders.
Commissioner Besnik Dervishi stated that in a democratic system, interests naturally knock on the door of decision‑making. However, he stressed that the public must know who knocked, on whose behalf, and for what purpose.
Law No. 12/2026 on lobbying assigns the Commissioner’s Office responsibility for overseeing the new framework and drafting secondary legislation. Commissioner Besnik Dervishi stressed that this new mandate is directly linked to the institution’s long‑standing role as guarantor of the right to information, connecting transparency, access to information and accountability of public institutions. He explained that while the right to information allows the public to know decisions and documents, transparency in lobbying makes visible the influences preceding those decisions — both serving a more open and accountable public authority.
At the event, a package of eight draft secondary acts was unveiled, prepared with the expertise of the Council of Europe and financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. The acts provide detailed rules on the functioning and administration of the Lobbying Register, registration procedures, disclosure of lobbying activities, identification and management of conflicts of interest, verification and updating of data, documentation management, and standards of conduct.
Commissioner Dervishi described lobbying regulation as an institutional and regulatory challenge, noting that there is no universal model applicable everywhere. He emphasised that Albania should learn from countries with established systems while creating a mechanism adapted to its own legal framework and national context.
The meeting continued with discussions on lobbying transparency and integrity in decision‑making from the perspective of public policy, European standards and practices for effective implementation of the legal framework, and civil society’s view on transparency, participation and integrity. Panel contributions came from representatives of the Directorate‑General for Anti‑Corruption, the Council of Europe, and the European Movement in Albania.
The event concluded with an open discussion where participants presented questions, comments and recommendations on the draft secondary acts and the functioning of the new lobbying system. Contributions from public institutions, experts, civil society, the business community and other stakeholders were highlighted as essential to building a mechanism that is functional, transparent and applicable in practice.
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