Outcome 3—Economic Growth, Labour and Agriculture

Efficient and innovative digitalised customs operations are leading to better regional and international trade integration and increased trade opportunities for Albanian entrepreneurs with concomitant generation of incomes. The Albanian Customs Administration benefitted from an Automated System for Customs Data (UNCTAD ASYCUDA), including a new combined nomenclature to be introduced in 2022 with a focus on integration of new Foreign Trade Agreements and enhancement of the Albania–Kosovo Common Transit system and capacity development to become more competitive.

The ITU Office for Europe developed the Digital Development Country Profile for Albania to build a reference for discussions on digital development at the country level. The office is carrying out a regional macro-assessment of the national approaches for digital skills development in nine countries, including Albania, and has conducted a fully-fledged national digital skills assessment, which will lead to the elaboration of a national strategy on digital skills development in the country.

The joint UN – Government of Albania efforts in 2021 contributed to progress in achieving SDG targets: 1.1, 4.4, 8.3, 11.3, 11.4, 11.6, 11.b, 11.c, 12.a, 17.14

Policy, legal and institutional changes in the employment and skills sector have progressed steadily, including through UN contributions, leading to reductions in unemployment and, particularly, youth unemployment. Systemic change is enabled through the ongoing consolidation of the Out-of-Court Labour Dispute Resolution System, use of the Participatory Inclusive Assessment of the active labour market measures by the National Employment Service, which reached out to the most vulnerable groups, with the value chain skills anticipation as a standard methodology to be used by the sector skills committees established by NAVEQ to feed into their decisions on the skills and curricula to be introduced in the VET schools and centres, addressing the labour market demand and offer mismatch. This change has been also supported by the legal framework of VET, including some crucial by-laws adopted, approval of the criteria, standards, and procedures for accreditation of the public and private VET provider, the law on Employment Promotion (2019) and secondary legislation, Mid-Term Review of the National Strategy of Employment and Skills and annual reports, upgrading of the National Employment Agency to the National Agency for Employment and Skills, implementation of the third round of self-assessment, supported by the recently launched self-assessment online platform www.scvet.al, a crucial dimension of quality assurance, among others. The Albanian Qualifications Framework was referenced to the European Qualifications Framework (EQF) on 27 October 2021 and represents a milestone for the entire education system reform in Albania, including the VET system, that allows all qualifications acquired in Albania to carry a reference to the corresponding EQF level, valid and understood in all EU member states.

The joint UN – Government of Albania efforts in 2021 contributed to progress in achieving SDG targets: 2.3, 2.4, 4.1, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.7, 4.b, 4.c, 5.5, 5.b, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 8.5, 8.6, 8.7, 8.8, 8.9, 9.3, 9.b, 9.c, 10.1, 10.2, 16.3, 16.6, 16.7, 16.b, 17.3, 17.8

Government was supported with the design of an integrated service to farmers, leading to a more inclusive and efficient government financial support programme. Smallholders were supported for diversification of their economic activities and local governments in delivering promotion and training activities on safety and quality standards, geographic indications, and organic and traditional products to more than 200 farmers and agro-processors, along with extension of the service to several municipalities in Albania. Some 45 representatives and teachers from vocational schools, agricultural extension offices and the Agriculture University built knowledge on developing online learning modules in agriculture, uploaded onto www.mesovet.com, for easy access for users, while around 100 livestock farmers increased their knowledge on the use of digital skills in their daily work and the use of the ABA platform.

Women were economically empowered, and their role strengthened, in rural development. FAO contributed to improvement of the nutritional status of schoolchildren and developed food safety and quality capacities of small-scale dairy farmers through linking smallholder dairy producers to a sustainable school food and nutrition pilot programme. Engendering of the new Strategy of Agriculture and Rural Development 2021–2027 is ongoing and will benefit significantly rural women through greater access to rural services and increased ownership of productive assets, identified as a major bottleneck for achieving gender equality in SDG 5.a.

The joint UN – Government of Albania efforts in 2021 contributed to progress in achieving SDG targets: 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 2.1, 2.3, 2.4, 5.a, 8.2, 8.3, 8.5, 8.6, 12.1, 12.2

UN’s work in culture has ensured multiple effects and benefits for the community at the local level, regional level, and the national level. Efforts made by government and supported by UNESCO ensured further enhancement of capacities of responsible institutions to monitor more adequately, safeguard, preserve, restore and protect the country’s rich cultural heritage as a means for promoting sustainable development and economic growth, and further promote the sector as a driver of development. The recent inscription of the natural and cultural heritage of Ohrid Region to the World Heritage list of UNESCO creates benefits for the communities concerned and at the national level.

The culture sector also benefitted from digitisation of the archive of the National Institute for Cultural Heritage and the establishment of a protocol for emergency evacuation of the archive, resulting in the safeguarding of a rich collection for future generations, comprising 4,100 technical dossiers of various monuments and sites, 47,700 film and microfilm negatives, 256,000 photographs in colour and in black and white, and 28,500 materials in various formats, in colour and in black and white. Meanwhile, completion of culture development indicators (CDIs) are providing valuable inputs into new policies and strategies, as the results and data collected are directly contributing to advancement of the SDG agenda.

The joint UN – Government of Albania efforts in 2021 contributed to progress in achieving SDG targets: 11.4, 13.3, 14.2, 14.5, 15.9, 16.6, 17.7