The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights today concluded its review of the fourth periodic report of Albania, with Committee Experts welcoming the State's efforts to promote the employment of the Roma and Egyptian national minorities, while raising questions on labour conditions and the education of Roma and Egyptian children.
Nadir Adilov, Committee Expert and Cluster Leader, said the Committee welcomed the State party's initiatives to develop incentive and support policies for the Roma and Egyptian national minorities to promote their employment, as well as qualifications, training and integration into the labour market.
Mr. Adilov asked how the State party was protecting the right to work of informal workers in sectors such as agriculture, wholesale and retail trade, and construction? What measures were being taken to improve labour productivity?
Laura-Maria Craciunean-Tatu, Committee Chair and Cluster Leader, said according to available data, 60 per cent of school aged pupils from Roma and Egyptian minorities were out of school, with girls facing a particular challenge. Also, school segregation seemed to be a systematic problem across Albania, with 90 per cent of Roma students attending segregated education institutions. What measures were in place to address school segregation in a coordinated and systemic manner? Could information be provided on the learning of minority languages throughout the country?
Vasilika Hysi, Permanent Representative of Albania to the United Nations Office at Geneva and head of the delegation, presenting the report, said that in line with the approach and recommendations of the Committee at the last review, Albania had adopted several laws and strategies for the implementation of Covenant rights. The Albanian Government was committed to guaranteeing inclusive education for Roma and Egyptian minorities through the National Strategy on Education 2022-2026 and the National Action Plan for Equality, Inclusion, and Participation 2021-2025. The amendments to the law on employment promotion, approved in 2023, included provisions for vulnerable groups such as Roma and Egyptians.
The delegation said the Labour Inspectorate performed around 10,000 inspections on an annual basis. These could be triggered by a request or an accident. Around 800 complaints were received on an annual basis. In 2023, 184 accidents in the workplace were registered. In the last two years, with significant effort and the support of International Labour Organization, Albania had developed two platforms, one of which guided the labour inspectors in knowledge, and the other was a risk assessment system. In 2023, 1,100 inspections had been performed in the construction sector, which was considered high risk and therefore was a key focus.
The delegation said after the approval of the law on national minorities, four by-laws were approved, which served to equip students with free textbooks and ensured the development of classes for national minorities, among other requirements. Following the recommendation of the Committee of National Minorities, the Bosnian language had been incorporated in the area where members of this group were concentrated. At the University of Tirana, there was a department for the Greek language.
In concluding remarks, Preeti Saran, Committee Expert and Taskforce Coordinator for Albania, thanked the delegation from Albania for participating in the constructive dialogue. The responses had provided a better understanding of the challenges which Albania faced in the fulfilment of the provisions of the Covenant.
In her concluding remarks, Ms. Hysi expressed appreciation for the open and constructive dialogue with the Committee. The Albanian Government was committed to improving its policies and would take necessary measures to strengthen its legislative framework on the Covenant.
The delegation of Albania consisted of representatives from the Ministry of Justice; the Ministry of Education and Sport; the Ministry of Finance; the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs; the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation; the Ministry of Health and Social Protection; the Ministry of Interior; the Ministry of Tourism and Environment; the State Labour and Social Services Inspectorate; the Institute of Statistics; the Committee for National Minorities; and the Permanent Mission of Albania to the United Nations Office at Geneva.
All the documents relating to the Committee's work, including reports submitted by States parties, can be found on the session's webpage. Webcasts of the meetings of the session can be found here, and meetings summaries can be found here.
The Committee will next meet in public at 3 p.m. this afternoon, Tuesday 17 September, to begin its consideration of the seventh periodic report of Cyprus (E/C.12/CYP/7).
Report
The Committee has before it the fourth periodic report of Albania (E/C.12/ALB/4).
Presentation of Report
VASILIKA HYSI, Permanent Representative of Albania to the United Nations Office at Geneva and head of the delegation, said that in line with the approach and recommendations of the Committee at the last review, Albania had adopted several laws and strategies for the implementation of Covenant rights. The access to legal aid guaranteed by the State was significantly improved. There were 20 operational centres, 15 non-profit organizations, and 12 law clinics at higher education institutions offering primary legal aid. In 2023 the number of beneficiaries of primary legal aid was 7,008 persons, compared to 21 people in 2019. On climate change, the Albanian Government had developed an action plan for increasing the generation capacity of renewable energy sources by installing new capacities of solar and wind power plants.
Progress had been made relating to the implementation of the recommendations issued by the Commissioner for the Protection from Discrimination and the People's Advocate. Both independent authorities had effective collaboration. The National Action Plan for the Equality, Inclusion, and Participation of Roma and Egyptians (2021-2025) targeted education, justice, employment, social housing, health, social services, and societal participation. The Albanian Government was committed to guaranteeing inclusive education for Roma and Egyptian minorities through the National Strategy on Education 2022-2026 and the National Action Plan for Equality, Inclusion, and Participation 2021-2025. The amendments to the law on employment promotion, approved in 2023, included provisions for vulnerable groups such as Roma and Egyptians.
In 2021, the National Action Plan on Disability 2021-2025 was approved. The training and professional development of assistant teachers was enhanced to support inclusive and quality education for children with disabilities. In 2021, the new National Strategy for Gender Equality 2021-2030 was approved. In 2022, Albania ratified the International Labour Organization Convention No. 190 on violence and harassment. The State Police had upgraded its data processing system for domestic and gender-based violence statistics, and implemented a risk assessment analysis for handling all domestic violence cases.
The law on asylum outlined the process for family reunification for refugees and individuals with complementary protection. The National Agenda for Children's Rights 2021-2026 aimed to promote comprehensive services and protection for children, including efforts to eliminate violence against children, especially those in street situations or economically exploited.
The National Health Strategy 2021-2030 aimed to increase public health funding, improve service quality, and expand health programmes. Key initiatives included safe vaccinations, population-based screening for non-communicable diseases, and the rehabilitation of over 400 primary health centres by 2025. Universal health coverage was a central goal, guiding efforts to strengthen the health system, improve emergency response, and enhance digital health. The Government was expanding health packages to enhance access to medical treatment, especially for vulnerable groups.
In 2022, two new guidelines were introduced that defined subjects taught in both Albanian and minority languages in basic education and outlined the teaching plans specifically for national minorities in basic education. Support in education of children from national minority groups included legal guarantees for students from national minorities to learn the Albanian language, as well as their own language, history, and culture. Schools with minority students promoted their language, culture, and traditions. Ms. Hysi concluded by stating that the Albanian delegation looked forward to a constructive dialogue with the Committee.
Questions by a Committee Expert
PREETI SARAN, Committee Expert and Taskforce Coordinator for Albania, asked for specific examples of cases in which Covenant rights had been invoked or applied by the courts. How was the direct applicability and enforceability of the Covenant ensured in domestic courts? Had special education and training programmes been undertaken for members of the judiciary? Albania was a potential candidate country for membership of the European Union. What challenges had the State party faced in dealing with the accession process? Did Albania have a timeframe for ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Covenant?
Had sufficient funds been allocated to make the free legal aid system accessible and available to those in a difficult economic situation, especially children and marginalised and disadvantaged groups? What steps had been taken to create awareness and information about this system, especially for women and girls located in rural areas? Had sufficient human, technical and financial resources been provided to national human rights institutions? The Committee had seen reports that the level of cooperation by the local public administration, including the provision of information to the People's Advocate, was low. What steps had been taken to address the recommendations of the People's Advocate and to ensure it could effectively and independently discharge its mandate in full compliance with the Paris Principles?
What steps had been taken to increase transparency of media financing and improve the working conditions for journalists? What had been done to prevent intimidation and ensure effective judicial follow-up in cases of attacks against journalists? There was a low level of funding allocated to essential public services, such as education, healthcare, and social protection. What steps were proposed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of public spending? What steps had Albania taken to address regional disparities, especially for the development of remote and rural communities which were lagging behind? Main concerns related to access to public services such as adequate health care, education and social protection for the vulnerable sectors of the communities. What steps had been taken to address these concerns? What steps had the State party taken to address the growing gap in economic and social inequality for those most affected by risk of poverty?
As a disaster-prone region, Albania remained vulnerable to natural disasters. What measures had the State party taken to update its national strategy on climate change, and to prepare for reducing natural disaster related risks? How had Albania addressed the key challenges of water and air pollution, land degradation, biodiversity loss, and waste management? How was it ensured that women were included within these policies and strategies? What concrete measures had Albania taken to minimise the discrimination affecting the Roma and Egyptian minorities?
Albania's population growth moved from being one of the highest in Europe to negative growth in the last 30 years. Albania continued to face significant migration trends, with a considerable portion of its population seeking opportunities abroad. What steps had the State party taken to meet these human resource challenges? Albania had experienced an influx of migrants and asylum seekers, primarily from neighbouring regions and conflict-affected countries. What steps had the State party taken to integrate immigrants into society and to address the migration challenges, especially the protection and integration of unaccompanied minors and survivors of trafficking?
Albania's gender pay gap was the result of women's lower participation in the labour market. According to the World Bank, men and women had a 14.9 percentage point gap in labour force participation (2023). Legislative amendments from 2018 established the joint registration of marital property. However, men still formally owned most of the private land in the country and according to the World Bank, 90 per cent of women did not own any land registered under their name (2018). What steps had been taken to ensure the equal rights of men and women in this regard?
Responses by the Delegation
The delegation said there had been 22 cases of discrimination reported in 2022. International treaties which had been ratified sat at an equal level to the Albanian Constitution. In 2022, an agreement had been drawn out which mandated the training of judges, prosecutors and police officers. Training was also carried out on the Covenant and on discrimination against women, including on the Istanbul Convention and the Convention on the Elimination on Discrimination against Women. The budget for legal aid had been significantly increased in recent years, from around 200,000 euros to over one million euros.
The People's Advocate independently carried out its duties and had its own budget. The Commissioner had a separate budget. The scope of the People's Advocate was only the public sector, while the Commissioner covered both the public and private sectors. There had been issues with registration for non-governmental organizations. For this reason, a reform had been undertaken in 2021 to simplify the process. In July 2023, the process for an electronic registration system had been initiated and this was ongoing.
This year, a detailed bulletin was published, outlining the ownership structure of the different media operators in the country, as a first step to ensure proper transparency of financing. In 2023 and 2024, there were 26 inspections undertaken of media entities. The inspections had come about due to complaints from journalists on violations of their labour rights. In 2024, seven complaints had been received. Roundtables had been organised in cooperation with the media authorities, emphasising the importance of working conditions and the rights derived from the Labour Code.
For the period 2024-2026, a slight increase was planned for expenditure in health, education and social protection. In 2023, 17 houses were renovated for Roma and Egyptian minorities. Social rents were offered by the Government for this group, with up to 80 per cent of rent paid. Three projects had been financed to promote the values of Roma and Egyptian cultures and traditions.
Albania recognised the risks posed by climate change and its vulnerability to natural disasters, leading to key updates in national climate legislation. Albania had developed a national action plan which focused on measures addressing agriculture and tourism. So far, eight municipalities had drafted and improved their adaptation plans. In response to frequent national disasters, including floods and earthquakes, Albania had strengthened its disaster risk reduction framework, aligning it with the climate change strategy. This included investing in risk assessment and contingency planning. Efforts had been made to diversify energy sources in the country. New capacities of solar and wind power plants had been installed.
Questions by Committee Experts
A Committee Expert asked what measures had been taken by the State to ensure that the recommendations handed down by the treaty bodies were implemented?
PREETI SARAN, Committee Expert and Taskforce Coordinator for Albania, asked what challenges Albania had faced in trying to harmonise its domestic legislation to the high standards of the European Union? There had been discriminatory hate speech in the media on the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, particularly online. Had efforts been made to ensure this was done away with? What had been done to track discrimination against all marginalised groups. The Committee believed transgender people faced significant barriers to their economic, social and cultural rights. What steps had been taken to address this, including by providing gender-affirming care?
A Committee Expert asked what Albania's position was on the Optional Protocol to the Covenant? The Optional Protocol provided an option for international appeal. What discussions had been held in this regard? Could a lawyer come before a national judge and directly invoke provisions of the Covenant? Could the provisions enshrined within the Covenant be invoked in domestic courts?
Responses by the Delegation
The delegation said the Albanian Government was committed to curbing and controlling irregular migration, and a document had been drafted in this regard, with the contribution of many ministries and independent institutions. Both Italy and Albania had committed to a migration policy through a protocol. Under the protocol, the Albanian State provided two separate areas for usage by the Italian side.
A new law paid great attention to hate speech in broadcasts. The new Broadcasting Code approved in July 2023 was enriched with new principles highlighting the need for alignment regarding best international practice in regard to hate speech. There had been a successful collaboration with TikTok which consisted of deleting videos containing hate speech, discrimination and sexism. A module for education against hate speech was included in the modules for education.
Victims of human trafficking were provided with educational facilities in primary and secondary school and also to attend university education. A programme had been implemented for learning in the workplace for job-seeking, vulnerable persons. Roma and Egyptians constituted the target group to benefit from vocational training, and benefitted from pre-employment programmes. The vocational training law contained a key focus of social inclusion. There were vocational training centres for Roma and Egyptian students, who benefited from free books and scholarships. These were also provided to all marginalised groups.
Questions by a Committee Expert
NADIR ADILOV, Committee Expert and Cluster Leader, said the Committee welcomed the State party's initiatives to develop incentive and support policies for the Roma and Egyptian national minorities to promote their employment, as well as qualifications, training and integration into the labour market. According to the Committee's information, young people still found it difficult to enter the labour market. What measures was the State party taking to match education with labour market requirements? How was the State party protecting the right to work of informal workers in sectors such as agriculture, wholesale and retail trade, and construction? What measures were being taken to improve labour productivity?
