 "exports, imports, trade")
Albania has robust transport linkages in place to the Northern Balkans and the Central European regions, Albanian Foreign Minister Igli Hasani told Business Standard on Thursday.
Hasani, who is in the national capital to attend the Raisina Dialogue, said the India Middle-East Economic Corridor (IMEC) has the potential to create more market opportunities.
“The opportunities that can come from Albania, and the region, are vast. There are possibilities connected to tourism, infrastructure and our need for a skilled work force that might shape these opportunities well together,” the minister said.
Albania's neighbour Greece is keen to join the IMEC and become India's gateway to the European market, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday.
Albania may need to choose between IMEC and an alternative route that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said his country is working on.
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“We are looking at all opportunities and possibilities that might usher in more prosperity for our people. These (corridors) are mechanisms that can only be seen from the perspective of national interest,” he elaborated.
Petroleum exports
While India's exports to the European nation have historically been minuscule, the diesel shipments to the country have shot up to nearly $989 million in the first nine months of FY24 (2023-24), up from $279.3 million in FY23.
The oil exports now represent almost the entire share of the $1.06 billion exports from India to the country situated on the western part of the Balkan Peninsula.
The country has close maritime supply chains in place in its immediate neighbourhood, the minister said.
“Covid created some restrictions that our two countries more readily adapted to. That created the opportunities to enhance trade and commerce. This was probably the reason. This created more opportunities for our business,” Hasani elaborated.
He said Indian companies are represented in the manufacturing sector in Albania, primarily in clothing.
Tourism remains a major driver of the country's economy.
It received over 10 million tourists in 2023, more than four times its national population. “Of this, Indian tourists constituted 50,000 visitors. We hope this number can rise,” he said.
While India currently has an honorary Consul General in Albania, it plans to upgrade to a full Embassy soon.
