President of the Republic, Ilir Meta declared Saturday that International Day for the Eradication of Poverty finds Albania in a very difficult economic situation.

The Head of State emphasized that the escalation of the severe political and institutional crisis, especially after the brutal violation of the June 5 Consensus Agreement, and in the conditions of the pandemic, the situation is expected to worsen towards a national economic catastrophe, which must be prevented in time.

"International Day for the Eradication of Poverty finds Albania in a very difficult economic situation, according to reports by prestigious foreign organizations. The World Bank in its latest annual conclusions ranks our country with the highest recession in the region, with a major economic downturn projected from -8% to -9% for 2020. 

Even due to the COVID-19 pandemic, thousands of businesses have closed, while the unemployment rate compared to a year ago has reached 11.9% in the first six months of the year. 

Remittances from the diaspora have been significantly reduced, leading to a drastic decline in the income of the most needy households, which is reflected in the reduction of consumption. 

Shocking is the fact that the level of the population living on less than USD 5.5 / day has increased to 41.5%, from 35.6% compared to last year. The level of poverty in Albania is 2 times higher than in all countries in the region, where specifically this percentage results: in North Macedonia 23.3%; in Kosovo 22.9%; in Montenegro 20.4%; 
in Serbia 18.9%. 

With the escalation of the severe political and institutional crisis, especially after the brutal violation of the June 5 Consensus Agreement, and in the conditions of the pandemic, the situation is expected to worsen towards a national economic catastrophe, which must be prevented in time.

Poverty is a flagrant violation of human rights, so the fight to eradicate this phenomenon in the first place is a fight to guarantee the dignity of every citizen and social justice, so necessary, that a society like ours deserves to be developed according to European standards. 
Poverty is not solved either by propaganda, or by statistics from television, or by a sack of flour, or by the promotion of criminal phenomena such as cannabis, which is known for the extremely serious social damage and consequences they have caused. 

It is unacceptable that a handful of oligarchs and bandits, such as the incinerator mafia, get rich every day with millions of euros of Albanian taxpayers, while a needy citizen or a pensioner with children in emigration survives on USD 5.5 / day, in conditions of rampant price growth. 

Every poor person in Albania and every honest citizen needs his voice to be heard today, more than solidarity. So it is high time to act together to achieve the missing social justice. 

Albanians will take over sovereignty and I am convinced that their voice will not only be heard, but will sound so loud that it will escalate deafness even in the most lost office of the state. 

The voice of the people is the voice of the God! The time of facing is coming," President Meta stressed.