Albanian ombudsman raises questions over post-earthquake reconstruction

Almost four years after the earthquake that claimed the lives of 51 people and left thousands homeless in November 2019, the Albanian Ombudsman has raised concerns over many still struggling with housing issues.

The 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit Durres county in the early hours of 19 November with several large aftershocks and some 2000 smaller quakes in the days after. It immediately flattened a number of buildings in the coastal city of Durres and smaller inland towns.

Many more buildings throughout the county and in the capital of Tirana were damaged, leading to many demolitions.

In the 2022 Albanian Ombudsman report, it was noted that many families continued to struggle following the disaster, including due to expropriation and slow progress in reconstruction. Specifically, the report notes that institutions have not been completely transparent regarding housing in terms of those affected by the reconstruction process and those a part of housing programmes.

“In our requests, we have constantly asked for information regarding the duration of the administrative process…The answers received for these cases have not been exhaustive, and in some cases, we have found a non-transparent attitude from the responsible institutions.” the report notes.

For many families, particularly those with minimal income, this leads to the deterioration of their economic situation in conditions where the necessity of providing additional income is necessary to enable a safe dwelling with a normal standard of living.

“This situation is also significantly reflected in the residents of rural areas who continue to live in difficult living conditions due to the impossibility of leaving residential areas, in emergency conditions, as they have to take care of their agricultural economy and living things as the only means of livelihood.”

Following the quake, many rural residents were offered alternative accommodation miles away from their homes. This meant they could not tend to livestock or agricultural land, a main source of income and sustenance for them. As a result, many remained living in temporary accommodations next to their damaged homes, such as tents or containers, or even in the damaged structures themselves.

The report points out that the issue of expropriation for public interest and specifically that of the development of new areas in Tirana in Kombinat and “5 Maji” carries concern about how it has been implemented and that the legal framework should be looked at carefully in order not to violate rights of individuals who have been affected.

In January 2022, residents of the 5 Maji neighbourhood clashed with police over the forced eviction and demolition of some 400 homes the municipality said were irreparably damaged by the earthquake. However, plans to develop the area date back to 2018, the year before the quake.

Citizens clash with police over forced evictions in Tirana

Residents of the “5 Maji” neighbourhood in Tirana clashed with the police on Wednesday as the National Inspectorate began its demolition of their homes.

The Municipality of Tirana plans to demolish some 400 homes in the Kombinat area of the capital, …

EU and international donors pledged some €1.15 billion to aid Albania in its reconstruction process. The EU delegation in Tirana and various UN agencies are distributing funds and overseeing multiple reconstruction projects, including rebuilding multiple schools.

At the end of 2022, the International Monetary Fund, in the last statement of the Board of Directors, called on the Albanian authorities to publish the public procurement contracts related to the pandemic and earthquake recovery expenses, the names of the companies that won the contracts and their beneficial owners.

Since the earthquake and then the pandemic, the International Monetary Fund has asked the Albanian government in all missions to make funds for these two events transparent but reported that it had not yet happened.

(Alice Taylor | Exit.al)