Module 6, School for Consumer Protection and EU Integration, “Transport and the Passenger’s Rights”, 16-17 September 2022

On 16- 17 September Module VI “Transport and the Passenger’s Rights” of the “School for Consumer Protection and Europian Integration” in the framework of the project: “From information to action– Strengthening organisations in Albania on consumer protection “. This project is being conducted from the European Movement Albania in cooperation with the Academy of Political Studies and ALERT Centre, with the financial support from the European Union in the framework of the IPA 2017 funds.

The first session was held from Zana Josa, Expert of European Integration at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy. She started with the introduction of Chapter 14 of the EU Acquis, the obligations that should be fulfilled and the expectations. Besides the differentiations, Mrs. Josa mentioned the similarities of the Albanian legislations with the one of the EU, due to Stabilization- Associations Agreement signed in 2009. For a more complete unification, the lecturer emphasized the objectives of the transportation politics, she shared with the participants her personal experience from the initial meetings when the process of implementing the acquis legislation began. The session was concluded with the description of the Transport Sectoral Strategy and how this strategy will be implemented in the most efficient way.

The second session was conducted by Mr. Arben Gjata, Associate Lecturer at “Aleksandër Xhuvani” University. The session started with the presentation of EU legislation on transport, with a focus on air transport. The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, among other treaties and conventions, received greater attention along with the new concept of the terminology “consumer-passenger”. The lecturer also focused on the internal Albanian legislation, about its problems and how the Albanian law protects the passenger.

The third session was addressed by Mrs. Enkela Hajderi, Head of the Passenger Rights Sector at the Civil Aviation Authority. Hajderi began by introducing the structure responsible for the conduct of civil aviation in Albania. It focused on the respective tasks of each instance by creating a detailed aviation plan. Mrs. Hajderi returned to the history of aviation in Albania, its significant years and achievements until today. It continued with the aviation legislation in Albania, how it is regulated and compared it with the legislation of the EU countries. Hajderi dwelled especially on the rights of passengers, how the Albanian law protects them and closed the session with the recent campaigns that have been undertaken in Albania.

The fourth session was continued by Mr. Tonin Gjinaj, Secretary General of the Federation of Transport and Telecommunications at KSSH, with a focus on road and rail transport. Gjinaj discussed the issue of the transport seen from the non- governmental organizations point of view, how can they influence and what legal presence do they have. He showed the current situation of road and rail transport in Albania and what approach should be taken. Mr. Gjinaj discussed on the sharing the information regarding the importance of roads, implementing it in the pre-university system and concluded it with the phenomenon of accidents, how some statistics have been neglected.

The fifth session was led by Mr. Osman Metalla, Lecturer at “Aleksandër Moisiu” University in Durres. This session focused on maritime transport, how is in Albania and in the region. Metalla started with some facts and statistics on maritime transport in the world and its importance, especially for the transportation of goods. He shared with the participants the history of this transport and how the capacity has increased over the years. Mr. Osman dealt with the structure of the port, which type would suit Albania’s economy, how ports are managed in Albania and investment strategies for them. Metalla mentioned some facts about the ports in Albania and the importance they have in comparison with the ports in the region.

The last session was held by Mr. Driton Musolli, Founder and CEO of Cargo Flag, addressed the industry of the logistics. Musolli started with the history of logistics, and what benefits are brought from this industry. He dealt with the problems of this industry in Albania and shared the experience of how other countries have overcome these difficulties. He showed in details from his personal experience how this industry can be managed, and how the innovation has been brought in this field through the implementation of AL and algorithms. Musolli had a discussion with the participants and concluded the session by encouraging critical thinking on how this industry can be even better in Albania.