The Jews of Vlora, a model of coexistence
“Culture in 1 Minute” – Episode 30.
Tag: Amfora.al
The European Union Awards prizes for Investigative Journalists in Albania
The European Union awarded three prizes to journalists for the best investigative stories in Albania during 2023. Third place went to journalists Geri Emiri, Aida Ciro, and Aleksandar Dimitrievski from Amfora.al for their article that exposed the challenges faced by Balkan farmers in accessing EU funds through the IPARD Program.
IPARD file returns to SPAK, ‘Nisma Thurje’ seeks the investigation of state officials
Representatives of the ‘Nisma Thurje’ (Hashtag Initiative) have filed criminal charges to SPAK against officials of the Agency of Agriculture (AZHBR) and the former Minister of Agriculture Frida Krifca over suspicion of abuse of office and corruption. This is the second time that the IPARD program officially goes to SPAK, which previously claimed it was incompetent to investigate the case.
The “Exclusive IPARD Club”: Who “farms” the EU funds in Albania and North Macedonia?!
The temporary suspension of the IPARD II agriculture programme in Albania, after EU suspicions of corruption, is only the tip of the iceberg of the 94.6 million euros grant package. The program was transformed into an “exclusive club” for big companies and companies tied to politics and crime. Meanwhile, in North Macedonia, the program exposed similar ties, however, they were more sporadic and more minimal compared to Albania.
Suspicions of corruption with EU funds, Minister of Agriculture hides behind farmers
The Minister of Agriculture, Frida Krifca, defended at the Parliament the IPARD II Program, which she had led when she was the director of the agency which manages EU funds for agriculture, and told the opposition that accusations were an attack against the entire sector. Her reaction came as a result of the extreme measure taken by the EU to temporarily suspend reimbursement on corruption suspicions.
Price Hikes Crisis: The Second Blow for the Masters in Albania
In Albania, it results that there are at least 500 artisans who have been voluntarily registered into the National Chamber of Crafts and hundreds more who are unregistered and are experiencing a difficult time in their businesses due to the price hikes crises and are yet to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic consequences.