Speaking at a press conference, Ibrahimaj said the legislation was among the government’s most significant economic reforms and would introduce new measures aimed at increasing legal certainty for investors and encouraging investment in less-developed regions.

“We have committed to approving the new investment law within this year and are conducting a comprehensive review of the incentives offered by European Union member states to attract and support investment,” Ibrahimaj said.

Public consultations on the draft legislation are expected to begin during the summer, she added.

The Minister said the reform forms part of Albania’s wider efforts to strengthen competitiveness and boost both foreign direct investment and domestic private-sector growth as the country advances its EU accession process.

Alongside the investment law, the government is preparing a new industrial policy focused on the mining sector, an area Ibrahimaj said holds significant potential for integration into European supply and value chains.

“Albania possesses substantial mineral resources and we are working on policies that will support the development of the extractive industry in cooperation with European partners,” she said.

The Ministry of Economy and Innovation is also drafting a strategy for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), aimed at helping businesses meet EU standards and improve access to financing and export opportunities.

Commenting on the textile and garment industry, one of Albania’s largest export sectors, Ibrahimaj acknowledged that the industry has been facing slower activity in recent months, amid challenges linked largely to exchange-rate fluctuations.

She reiterated that the government does not intervene in determining the value of the national currency, describing the exchange rate as a market-driven mechanism governed by supply and demand.

She added that discussions with industry representatives are ongoing and expressed confidence that the sector could adapt by moving toward higher-value production and more integrated manufacturing processes.

Ibrahimaj also announced the upcoming launch of the government’s “Double Your Enterprise” initiative, which will provide a sovereign guarantee scheme designed to facilitate access to finance for businesses.

Implemented in cooperation with the Bank of Albania, the programme aims to help companies secure loans at interest rates of around 2%, supporting investment, expansion and productivity growth across the private sector.

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The reform initiative is part of Albania’s obligations as a Contracting Party of the Energy Community and its commitments under the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the European Union.

According to the ministry, the current legal framework does not adequately address the challenges of a developing energy sector. It lacks provisions for market-based investment in generation, energy storage, cross-border trading, and enhanced regional cooperation.

The draft law seeks to establish a fully integrated and competitive energy market, ensure affordable and stable prices, improve energy security, and support the transition to a low-carbon system. It promotes decentralized renewable energy production, energy storage technologies, electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and new business models that empower active consumer participation.

Special attention is given to protecting vulnerable consumers and small enterprises through regulated tariffs. The bill also introduces fair rules for cross-border exchanges to improve regional market integration.

The draft aligns with Albania’s National Energy Strategy 2018–2030 and the National Energy and Climate Plan 2021–2030, marking a key step toward building a more flexible, efficient, and sustainable energy system, and advancing Albania’s green transition.

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“A total of 40,236 citizens have expressed their opinion via the www.keshillimikombetar.al and over 2,500 people have returned to completed questionnaire by post,” PM Rama said, thanking every participant and ensuring them that their opinion will be heard.

“Thank you everyone and I would like to assure you all that your opinion will be heard with respect,” the government head said, inviting citizens to voice their opinion over issues of strategic importance for the country.

“Let’s hear one another as Albanians, as citizens, as people of this country by abandoning political trenches and unite and come together in the space of the debate for our own home, Albania,” Rama said.

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The public consultation held today in the premises of the “Ismail Qemali” school, comes in the light of a tour that will take place in all high schools throughout Albania, which aims to produce, in cooperation with young people, a working document and concrete commitments of the national and local institutions in order to empower the Albanian youth.

In his remarks, the Prime Minister Rama considered this hearing very encouraging to pay attention to even the small things, which can affect the everyday life of each student.

“Beyond the strategy, which is a document with a horizon of several years, this process is very valuable for us to address immediate issues, or other issues which can be addressed in the medium term,” the premier Rama said.

The Prime Minister Rama called for the involvement of as many students as possible in this process, in order to have a clearer sense of the key issues demanded by young people.

“Some of the points touched on are very sensitive and necessary to be addressed promptly, but with regard to some issues we have set our objectives included in the new government program. One of them is the necessity to completely transform the learning of informatics. I agree 100% that computer labs, even where they are with the tools, leave much to be desired, not only from the point of view of access to those tools, but also the quality of teaching,” the premier Rama said.

The Prime Minister Rama emphasized that, technology is advancing every day, while expressing confidence that the plan to completely digitalize the learning spaces of informatics will be efficient and implemented sooner than next year.

Also, the Prime Minister Rama underlined that, “many investments have been made in the school infrastructure, laboratories, but just like with the informatics classes, the first investment is made and then their continuity is not guaranteed”.

“The textbooks you receive are based on a different approach. Unlike in the past, textbooks are very much related to practice hours. If what is written in the books is not combined with the practice hours properly, with the same quality, the problem becomes serious,” the premier Rama said.

Regarding career counseling, the Prime Minister Rama said that, “the problem is very acute and we must find the right ways to make it as attractive as possible. So, not only to have career reference points in schools, but also to increase students’ interest in exploring themselves in relation to what they hear.”

“We have the idea of greatly empowering the arts and crafts program, but in a much broader point of view, not  just painting, drawing, music, theater, to create huge opportunities. This is to create some initial concepts to develop some initial knowledge about jobs and crafts, which in parallel with knowledge can create a clearer idea of what future career goals you will follow,” the premier Rama added.

“The same goes for sports. Creating a well-organized nucleus of an Olympic movement that starts from the bottom up is our goal, given that we have already restored physical education to schools, skipped for years,” he said.

“We are doing utmost to pave the way for bringing as many foreign universities to Albania, to join our universities and step by step to award equivalent diplomas so that you do not need to study abroa, but you can find here foreign public universities. This is a process that will take us to another level, but we need time and patience to accomplish it,” the Prime Minister Rama said. //a.i/