WMF Roadshow came from Italy to Albania before taking its stage to many other European cities. The Ministry for the Protection of Entrepreneurship was its main collaborator in Albania and this is how Edona Bilali, Minister for the Protection of Entrepreneurship in Albania welcomed everyone.
“One year ago this date we had just passed the first dedicated law on startups. After a decade of efforts from the private sector,diaspora and international donors’ community the government decided to give the startup ecosystem a proper support adding a budget of 10 ml euros to be distributed in four years. We created the startup passport, an electronic document that can be received within 48 hours that provides access to finance and free 24 months one stop shop advisory service for startups from more than 14 institutions.
During the past year we have supported 29 startups, and I am glad to see that some of them are also here today.
We have supported 7 municipalities to create infrastructure dedicated for young innovators.
4 universities, as one the main pillars that drives innovation.
A vocational high school that generated some fantastic idea stage startups to confirm that creative thinking and innovationstarts from adolescence and maybe earlier.
We have supported 15 incubation and acceleration programs that made possible for more than 20 startups to be presented internationally, raise funds, create partnerships and increase their success chances worldwide.
As an expert that was involved with startups for more than 11 years I stand here today, happy and full of hope. Happy with what we have achieved and hopeful for what awaits the Albanian ecosystem in the very near future.
It is not news anymore that in each Forbes ‘thirty under thirty’ listing we have at least one young talented Albanian, nor it is news that we are everywhere where a new revolutionary technology is being developed like: the talented Kevin Sekniqifrom Shkodra co funder of Ava Labs with their product Avalanche, a high-speed blockchain that counts over three million users, or Mira Murati the mastermind behind Chat GPT who is changing the world as we know it.
The future is at the door and it has the digital and tech look all over it and we as government have decided to fully embrace it.
This the reason why 95% of the services that are provided from the government for our citizens are online.
This is why we have a fiscal incentive for the IT companies that operate in Albania, a lower profit tax of only 5%.
This is also why we have launched a dedicated coding programwith the government paying 50% of the tuition fee and we expect the first 1,000 coders within next year.
This is why we are teaching coding to our first graders so they become familiar with what the future will look like.
The pandemic taught us that jobs wont never be the same again, this is why we are passing this week a new regulation for digital nomads and we will be offering the best relocation package not only in the region but way beyond it.
And last but not least this is why we decided to board along with 49 other countries the train of the largest digital innovation festival international worldwide event with more than 36,000 attendees and 1,000 startups.
I feel very happy to be among these energetic people today and to have a sneak peek of their journey of empowerment on June in Rimini at the International Festival and Roadshow for the Technological and Digital Innovation.
Thank you to WMF, Albania Economia, Money Magazine and the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Albania. A special thanks to the most updated and innovative ambassador, Fabrizio Bucciand to Erion who has transformed Tirana into an amazing digital hub that is internationally recognized.
Grazie a tutti e in bocca al lupo.”
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