Albania seeks to develop tourism

Albanian Minister of Economic Development, Tourism, Trade and Entrepreneurship said Monday the country is working hard to develop tourism.

"We are in advanced negotiations to remove exclusivity from Tirana Rinas airport, which is the only airport in Albania and give the opportunity to Albania to have three other airports, two in the south and one in the north," Arben Ahmetaj said, during the presentation of the draft law on tourism in the Productive Activities Committee.

Ahmetaj admitted that Albania's coastline is not very clean and more people will be employed in the next four months to clean it.

"The coastline is dirty. Imagine that we are welcoming 25 percent more tourists. We have undertaken an initiative which will pass in the government, to give a chance to the Coastline Agency to employ more people during the next four months to clean the coastline," Ahmetaj said.

According to him, the Albanian coastline has maritime bombs, which hinders the travel of yachts and cruisers in the Albanian waters.

"Currently, Albania is in the maps of some insurance companies as a territory with maritime bombs. Yachts cannot stop in Albania. This is a 22-year-old misfortune. The Ministry has undertaken an initiative to clarify the situation, so that Albania is not in the list any longer for such bombs," Ahmetaj said.

In regards to the concern of lawmakers for the reduction of VAT in the new package for the law on tourism, Ahmetaj said that within two weeks a package will be presented which will include the reduction of VAT for tourism.