The current protests reflect frustration with a clientelist system that rewards party loyalty over merit and uses the public administration to distribute privileges and resources to supporters.
Drini Imami
Albania has been experiencing large-scale protests for over three weeks. The immediate trigger was a controversial tourism development project in Zvernec associated with Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of Donald Trump.
But the demonstrations reflect a much deeper frustration with what many citizens perceive as a corrupt and clientelist system that serves a small political and economic elite rather than society as a whole.
Albania’s justice institutions, strengthened through internationally supported reforms, have intensified efforts to investigate and prosecute high-level corruption. These efforts have brought to light a series of corruption scandals involving several current and former ministers, as well as former deputy prime ministers. For many of the protesters, these scandals reflect a system in which political power is used to distribute privileges, resources and opportunities to loyal supporters.
A key pillar of this system is the public administration. Political and business elites often rely on state institutions to advance their interests, while parts of the public sector have become highly politicized. Public employment, in particular, has been used as a tool of political influence and electoral mobilization.
