Oxfam GB :: Where we work

What we do: Campaign for change; Emergency response; Development work; Why we do it

Issues we work on: Climate change; Conflict and natural disasters; Health; Education; Debt and aid; Gender equality; The right to be heard; Global Food Crisis; Trade; Private sector

Where we work: Countries we work in

The impact of our work: In words and pictures; On video

Special features: History of Oxfam; Oxfam myths exposed; Take the Oxfam Quiz; Reshaping our world

Albania

In Albania, Oxfam's focus is on livelihoods and increasing farmers' access to markets. We also campaign for fairer trade rules.

Building a better future

The last communist state to fall in Europe, Albania is still one of the region's poorest countries. Its transition to a market economy has been uneven and painful, with a divide opening up between rich and poor.

A quarter of Albanians currently live in poverty
Farmers in remote rural areas are particularly badly affected. Many are forced to emigrate to make a living

How Oxfam is helping

We help people make a sustainable living from their land so that they can work their way out of poverty. We are also working with groups of poor farmers to lobby the government to provide better support to the agricultural sector.

Pjeter Rroku, a member of the Kiri Herb Marketing Association. Photo: Crispin Hughes

Oxfam gave us the belief in working together, and now we co-operate with each other and get a better price for what we collect.

Pjeter, Kiri Herb Marketing Association

Learn more

Read more examples of our work in Albania:

Livelihoods: the key to success

In isolated rural areas, electricity, roads and transport are poor. Many people find it hard to make a living and are forced to emigrate for better jobs overseas.

My dream is to see the sons of my son live here and be able to make a living from the land.

Kol Kola, 94, Ukbibaj, northern Albania

How Oxfam is helping

We work with a network of 'key farmers' to develop new farming techniques. They then pass on what they learn to others. Women are specifically included to help strengthen their status in the community.

The beehives of the Oxfam supported cooperative in Ure e Shtrenjte. Photo: Oxfam

Before, women did not have specific jobs in the community. Now those who are involved in our project feel proud of their work and have a higher status in the family.

Lume, Ure-e-Shrtentje beekeeping co-operative

Other development work

Creating marketing opportunities for farmers' groups by hosting agricultural trade fairs
Developing disaster preparedness plans in case of floods, earthquakes, or heavy snows

Oxfam's work in Albania in depth

Making trade fair

50 per cent of Albanians rely on farming, livestock and forestry to make a living

Albanian farmers are struggling to compete with subsidised imports from EU countries. There is no protection for their fledgling industries.

How Oxfam is helping

Oxfam holds rural forums to help give Albanian farmers a voice.

Anila Vendresha, Albania programme manager, at a meeting to evaluate the impact of the Trade Fair and Trade Debate in Tirana. Photo: Crispin Hughes

The rural forums give poor farmers a chance to talk directly with decision makers. They give a voice to remote, isolated regions, which were previously completely ignored by the authorities

Anila Vendresha, Oxfam's Albania Programme Manager

We use what we learn from working with poor farmers to lobby for fairer trade rules and policies that favour local producers. As a result of Oxfam's lobbying:

Official development plans for Albania now specifically address the problems of poor mountain areas
The Albanian government is aware of the need to represent the interest of small farmers in international trade negotiations