Albania is the country with the lowest support in terms of financial aid distribution for families in need. A report by the World Bank and the Vienna Institute analyzes the types of financial aid for six Western Balkan countries, which results in Albania being last with only an average of Euro 70 monthly payment.

For other countries, the total monthly benefits are as follows: Federation of BiH (304 euros), Serbia (282 euros), Montenegro (267 euros), North Macedonia (207 euros) and Kosovo (191 euros),” the report states.

In a specific table, the report summarizes which schemes the region mainly applies in terms of financial aid support.

Thus, the main types of social benefits applied are: general poverty alleviation schemes (aimed at providing minimum living expenses), child benefits (to financially support families with children) and energy benefits (designed to alleviate high energy costs for low-income families, especially during the cold months).

Another point that the report analyzes is the process of discontinuing aid, where despite the low value, Albania seems to have somewhat higher flexibility when one of the members is employed.

“The threshold at which these benefits cease varies considerably, but a common pattern is that most poverty-related benefits are lost as soon as formal employment begins, even at minimum income levels.

Serbia and Albania are the only exceptions. In Serbia, financial social assistance (FSA) gradually decreases with income growth and is lost completely only when net income from work reaches Euro 210.

In Albania, economic aid is not automatically terminated when a family member starts work, but the program uses a means test (PMT) formula to determine eligibility.

This formula, which is recalculated every 12 months, gives a certain weight to formal employment and, if the value calculated by the formula exceeds the threshold for receiving economic aid, the family no longer benefits," the report states.