The first Co-ordination Roundtable focusing on the treatment of property rights among public administrative institutions was held at the premises of Europe House, in Tirana, on 26 June. This activity was held in the framework of the European Union and the Council of Europe continuous assistance to the public authorities in Albania aimed to bring together various administrative institutions to jointly discuss and co-ordinate efforts to further align legislation and enforcement in the field of property rights with European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) standards.

This platform was critical to ascertain the status quo and progress made by the Agency on the Treatment of Property (ATP) in handling more than 7,000 pending recognition of property compensation claims within the legal deadline of December 2024, following a four-month suspension of the Law by the Constitutional Court of Albania. It aimed to facilitate co-operation and communication between ATP and institutions working in the field of property rights to streamline the compensation process and identify existing bottlenecks or delays in the process. An effective and uniform application of the legal framework on property rights ensures justice and fairness for formerly expropriated owners in Albania, in strict adherence to relevant ECtHR case law.

The roundtable involved senior officials from the Agency on the Treatment of Property, the State Cadastre Agency, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Finance, State Minister for Local Government, National Inspectorate on the Protection of Territory, National Agency on Planning of Territory, State Agency on Expropriation, Ombudsman’s Office, as well as legal experts who shared best practices, challenges, and strategies for protecting and ensuring effective implementation mechanisms.

The participants were encouraged to exchange views and experiences among themselves, and especially with the Agency on the Treatment of Property, on the progress of implementation of the process of recognition and evaluation of property compensation within the timeframe established in the law. To this end, the participants provided suggestions on the preparation of an Institutional Action Plan by ATP, as a concrete measure to effectively tackle the backlog.

Another practical topic addressed at the Roundtable pertained to developing tailored solutions to impediments on inter-institutional co-operation between the Agency on the Treatment of Property and the State Cadastre Agency. Provided the importance and urgency of moving forward with the process of property compensation, the two authorities jointly agreed to waive the application of financial fees in case of co-ordinated work processes. This approach constitutes a constructive step forward and positively impacts the acceleration of compensation file processing deadlines and service delivery for citizens.

Overall, discussions among all participants highlighted the need for stronger and better implementation practices to the legislation in force to safeguard citizens' property rights and related services and contributing to a more efficient and equitable process for the stakeholders involved.

This activity is organised in the framework of the action “Improving the protection of the right to property and facilitating the execution of ECtHR judgments in Albania (D-REX III)”, under the European Union and the Council of Europe joint programme, the "Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye".