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"Protests a great achievement"/ Rama: Albania first in the region for environmental performance, 46th in the world

2026-07-20 13:13:00, Politikë CNA

"Protests a great achievement"/ Rama: Albania first in the region for

Prime Minister Edi Rama, in a post on social networks, announced that the global environmental performance index has ranked Albania first in the Western Balkans, 46th out of 177 countries in the world, with the greatest progress in the region over the last 10 years.

Rama says that for weeks the impression was created that Albania had become the enemy of its own nature, while adding that the reality is completely different. He further announces that in terms of climate change mitigation, Albania ranks 21st in the world.

The head of government says that Albania, from a country that had neither the instruments nor the culture to protect nature, has today turned into a country that holds major protests for the environment. According to him, these protests are a great achievement of society.

"This is our obligation to Albania and this is my word after a report that makes me sincerely proud of everything we have done, but on the other hand it convinces me that the promised reflection on what the Flamingo Boulevard mirror put before us is not only necessary, but indispensable and you will soon have that," Rama said, among other things, in his post.

Full speech:

For weeks, the impression was created that Albania had become the enemy of its own nature. Much was said, much more was written, millions of images, accusations, judgments, and shallow beliefs were shared, and for a moment it seemed that the noise triumphed over reality. But reality speaks.

The "Environmental Performance Index 2026", the most prestigious global index for environmental performance, has just ranked Albania first in the Western Balkans, 46th out of 177 countries in the world, with the greatest progress in the region over the last 10 years.

Meanwhile, for climate change mitigation, Albania ranks 21st in the world. And these are not the assessments that we have made to ourselves, far from it, but are the conclusions of international and academic institutions, which for a quarter of a century have been measuring with global consensus, with the same methodology, the environmental performance of countries around the world.

But honestly, what I personally enjoy more than the ranking is the fact that this ranking shows the path we have taken. Not many years have passed since Albania was the land of barbaric deforestation, of wild hunting, of the criminal extermination of many species, of rivers turned into garbage dumps, and of a state that often had neither the opportunity, nor the instruments, nor the culture to protect nature, but above all, attention.

Today we are a completely different country in this respect as well. We have even gone so far as to hold major protests for the environment. And this, despite any exaggeration, manipulation or political instrumentalization that accompanies those protests, is in itself a great achievement for society. Because the presence of so many people who are concerned about flamingos, lagoons, forests or biodiversity shows that along with Albania that has changed, Albanian society has also changed. This is a victory for citizenship.

A society that debates about nature is much, much further ahead than a society that silently watches its destruction, as was the society of 10 years ago. That is why I have never seen enemies in those who sincerely love nature, even when I do not share the same opinion with them. On the contrary. They remind me and should remind us that development can never be an excuse to forget what has been entrusted to us by the past and that we should better hand over to the generations that belong to the future.

Does this mean that we have done everything right, as long as the index raises us so high? Of course not. Of course not, because whoever works makes mistakes. Whoever builds also makes difficult choices, including wrong choices. Whoever governs cannot claim to be always right and no longer to be always right. We too have made mistakes, we too have a lot to learn, we too still have a lot to improve. Therefore, this report is not a medal to be complacent about or to slap in the face those who think differently from me, but it is a very big responsibility and a reminder that we must listen more, correct more quickly when necessary and defend with even greater determination the balance between development and nature, but never forgetting the facts.

Because European Albania is not built by choosing between economy and environment, nor by choosing between noise and facts. It is built by making them walk together: economy, environment and facts. And if today the world tells us that we have come such a long way, for the better, the wise response is not simply pride in the path taken, but the humility to accept that we still have a long way to go and also the determination to do it much better. This is our obligation to Albania and this is my word after a report that makes me sincerely proud of everything we have done, but on the other hand convinces me that the promised reflection on what the mirror of the flamingo boulevard put before us is not only necessary, but indispensable and you will soon have it. /CNA