Corruption in Albania is a problem.[1] According to Global Corruption Barometer 2013, 66% of respondents indicated that level of corruption has increased in Albania.[2]
Transparency International's 2017 Corruption Perception Index ranks the country 91st place out of 180 countries with score 38. (39 in 2016, 36 in 2015, 33 in 2014 and 31 in 2013).[3]
Corruption is still considered one of the most problematic factors for establishing business in Albania.[4] Even though anti-corruption legal framework of Albania is moderate, its enforcement is weak and corruption conviction rates are still very low.[4]
Corruption and Human Development in Albania[]
After 1990, Albania has passed from a centralized economy to a liberal one. Liberalization has brought both positive and negative effects to the politics, economy and other social aspects. There are two main components that measure a country's progress toward success. Firstly, the economic growth is the most used and discussed indicator of the progress. During the last two decades the economists have been more interested in the economic development, consisting of the aggregate of health, education level and income rather than economic growth. Secondly, the corruption level is found to be a significant component of progress. Different researches have founded out a negative relationship between corruption level and countries’ progress. Empirical research of Hysa (2011) reveals that there is a statistically significant negative relationship between corruption indexes and human development. Empirical evidence of the study, comparing Albania with the EU member countries, suggests that more corrupted countries tend to have lower levels of human development. In the Albanian case, the relationship between corruption and human development is found to be much stronger than in the EU countries.[5]
