In a video message on Friday, Moreira de Sousa said it was an honour to serve in Albania at an important stage of the country’s European integration process.

“Together with my team at the EU Delegation, I am here to support every step that Albanians take towards integration into the European Union,” she said.

During her four-year mandate, she said she would work closely with EU member states, partners and other stakeholders towards Albania’s shared objective of European integration.

“You can count on my full commitment over the next four years in this beautiful and welcoming country to work together to build the European future of Albanians,” Moreira de Sousa said.

The ambassador also praised Albania’s hospitality and said she looked forward to travelling across the country and getting to know its people and regions.

“I have heard a lot about the hospitality of the Albanian people and I cannot wait to travel across the country and experience it myself,” she said.

“Mirupafshim!” she added in Albanian, underscoring her commitment to strengthening cooperation and supporting Albania’s continued progress towards EU membership.

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As this year’s Official Host Country, Albania will launch into its role with a grand opening line up of events.

The government head highlighted Albania’s tourism and natural beauties via a video message on the social media, with PM Rama speaking several languages using the artificial intelligence to describe the country’s main attractions, from crystal clear waters and untouched coastline to wild mountains and hospitality.

In his AI-generated video message, PM Rama underlines that number of foreign tourists visiting Albania has seen tenfold increase in the last ten years and explains the reasons why the country is experiencing tourism boom.

“Do you want to know why the number of foreign tourists to Albania has seen tenfold increase in the last 10 years? Let me show you. It starts with beaches like this, crystal clear waters, untouched coastline and sunsets you would never forget. Then the raw, wild and perfect mountains for the adventure seekers and nature lovers. Our history is life in every stone, from the ancient castles to the UNESCO World Heritage sites,” Rama said.

Albania will showcase its potential as year-round tourist destination among 5600 exhibitors and 1,300 business representatives at ITB Berlin.

Albania will showcase agritourism, culinary, traditional drinks, tradition in clothing and music, Albanian culture as an attractive and year-round tourist destination. The fair will also feature adventure tourism through Albania’s scenic landscape and picturesque trails.

As this year’s Official Host Country, Albania will be captivating ITB Berlin 2025 visitors with its unique offering of breathtaking landscapes and rich cultural heritage under the theme “Albania All Senses.”

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Today, after going through all the legal steps, I signed a total of 15 construction confiscation procedures, where the legal limits of the permits were exceeded or in some cases they were built without a due construction permit at all. The confiscated buildings will be used for the public interest. The seized spaces will be transferred to the state, which, as appropriate, will use them for office premises for the public administration, social housing, or social services.

This law enforcement operation, which has been expanded outside Tirana too, in a domain where – as everyone knows quite well – has been marred by so many problems over the last 30 years, and where we have been narrowing the scope of violations, will also put an end to this story, since I believe there will be no more mad people to embark on an adventure with a forewarned end.

We came across of all allegations and nothing was spared to poison the public opinion when we launched this operation.

“It is just a show devised to divert attention!” But this was not true.

“It is horse-trading with the oligarchs for them to obtain the illegally constructed floors legalized!”  This turned out untrue too.

“It is an amnesty to save them from legal punishment! This also turned out to be a big lie, because the government is not entitled the legal power to pardon anyone, even if it would wish to do so, and the confiscations provide nobody with immunity to justice.

The truth is that the reports and the documents about all of these rest for a long time now at the district prosecutor’s offices.

Unfortunately, we are living through times of indecent moral and dwindling ethical norms, with the information sources being the most flagrant examples of disinformation and with half-truths, which are also the biggest lies, relentlessly filling the communication channels. Anyway, I’ll keep saying what I do and doing what I say to the end!

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As we have already announced, an 800 kW electricity consumption limit over the government subsidized rate for the household consumers was planned to enter into force as of October 1, or tomorrow. This power consumption cap primarily aims to ensure continued protection for 96% of the households, which do not exceed the consumption cap of 800 kW during winter.

On the other hand, the threshold aims for 4% of the subscribers that exceed this cap and consume nearly 20% of the entire amount of electricity, to pay the real price for every kW unit above 800 kW.

This is not our invention, but a practice applied by many countries to promote energy efficiency and saving during such a gloomy era worldwide due to war -driven inflation, as well as to avoid paying from everyone’s taxes the protection of the subsidized rate for the high consumption of a minority of people.

Saving energy is the main weapon to get over this winter without power outages.

It is not me telling this, but the logic arising from the global crisis caused by the war between two of the world’s most important suppliers of energy, wheat and corn and endorsed by all European governments

Some among us here in Albania claim that our country has nothing to do with the energy crisis, because it is rich in hydro sources and has many hydropower plants, but neither the first nor the second latter are true.

Water resources rely on rainfall, but even if this year could be unlike the last three years, which have seen negative precipitation records, our electricity generation system through the hydropower plants at their maximum quotas meets only 75% of the domestic demand.

As you have already witnessed, we are working on delivering on the target to meet 100% of the needs with domestic energy generation within this 10-year period, and make Albania an energy sovereign country, as well as a net exporter of energy.

Just because we cannot meet all the domestic demand for now, we need to turn to the international market, where all European countries are hit by sky-rocketing energy prices in this time of war.

However, his government and I are here, not only to ensure protection and unchanged energy prices for the household and business consumers and their continued power supply, but also to do utmost efforts to relieve as much as possible the actual burden and psychological effects of this war, and of the inflation it has triggered.

I have positive news after a long discussion we had until late at night.

On September 1, when we set the 800 kW consumption limit, the demand for energy from Power Corporation (KESH) was about 17,000 Kwh, today it is about 11,000 Kwh.”

On September 1, when we launched the limit above 800 Kwh, demand was significantly higher than it is today, and this significant decrease is attributed to the weather conditions but also the marked shift in the approach of household consumers to save energy.

On the other hand, in the last few days, we have seen an improvement in the water level in Fierza dam, which is the main source of energy, and we expect that the forecasts for precipitation will materialize at the end of the first ten days of October

Therefore, under these conditions, based on a much more detailed analysis of all technical indicators and projections, as well as given the full commitment to use every opportunity and space to somehow relieve the current burden and psychological effects of this situation on all families, although it was not caused by the government, although the government has the burden of its management as best as possible, we decided that the 800 Kw consumption cap will not take effect in October.

And while everyone should show utmost care and save as much electricity as possible, no one should doubt that I and this government will do the best.

Inflation was triggered by the war and not by the government, but the government will be up for the task to make sure that just like we did well in dealing with the earthquake and the pandemic aftermath, we will also succeed in coping with this fresh disaster that has gripped the world, and Europe where we live in particular.

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I am convinced that we Albanians have the potential to move forward a lot faster by listening to one another and thinking about one another.

Day by day, you are gradually coming across the latest government initiative, namely the National Consultation for Albania initiative. Through a questionnaire on its way to your homes, I would like to launch and invigorate a country-wide public debate and consideration, with everyone’s opinion on issues of strategic importance for the country, economy, family, justice, and our democratic coexistence.

Every Albanian household will receive via mail a questionnaire as part of the National Consultation initiative. Older people can fill the questionnaire and resend it to us by mail and no payment is needed. Others can express their opinion via the National Consultation online site on our co-government platform. Everyone will also be able to use the National Consultation offices due to open at each municipality.

It is time to draw all our lessons over the last three decades of democratic efforts and prevent party trenches or fights for personal interests from taking our future hostage in the name of the past, in the name of the old “rightist and leftist” clichés, in the name of loyalty to one or the other. It is time to talk more as Albanians, as citizens, as people, rather than trench fighters, lashing anger, resentment against each other. It is time to listen to each other’s thoughts and ideas about our common home, Albania, and to consult together on important decisions for the Albanian family.

Let us listen to each other by turning our back to the party trenches, but with the eyes of the imagination towards Albania’s bright future!

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