A new Swiss-Albanian cooperation program was launched on Tuesday, with a budget of CHF 58 million, aimed at strengthening democratic governance, economic development, and infrastructure services in Albania.

Switzerland and Albania launched a new phase of their bilateral cooperation program for 2026–2028, marking more than 30 years of continuous Swiss-Albanian partnership.

On behalf of the Albanian government, the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Elisa Spiropali, emphasized that, “in this new chapter, Albania’s priorities are clear. We will continue to keep our political dialogue active, to further strengthen the Bern-Tirana axis of cooperation.”

“Albanian-Swiss cooperation can be further strengthened in areas of common interest, such as innovation, cybersecurity, tourism, vocational education, and other sectors with high potential. I am convinced that this will be our common direction,” she said.

Didier Chassot, Director of the Europe and Middle East Division at the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), highlighted the depth of the cooperation and its transition towards consolidation.

“Switzerland remains committed to standing by Albania and supporting an inclusive and sustainable democracy. Our bilateral ties – technical dialogue, institutional twinning, people-to-people ties and economic cooperation – will continue beyond 2028, anchored in Albania’s progress and our shared European perspective,” he said.

Pietro Lazzeri, Director of Economic Cooperation and Development at the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), underlined Switzerland’s continued commitment to Albania’s economic future.

“Our objective is clear: a competitive, innovation-driven economy that creates quality jobs. Over the next three years and beyond, we will support macroeconomic stability, strengthen financial sector supervision, improve the business climate and export capacity, and align with EU standards. The new program builds on the achievements of the 2022–2025 cooperation and covers three priority areas: inclusive governance, economic development and employment, and urban development and climate change. A special feature of the new program will be institutional partnerships and twinning agreements between Albanian and Swiss institutions, including the federal offices of statistics, metrology, intellectual property, and MeteoSwiss,” he said.

Swiss Ambassador to Albania, Ruth Huber, welcomed the participants and delivered the closing remarks, highlighting the rapid changes taking place in the country and the focus on creating more connections.

“In the coming years, we will exploit something unique: direct institutional partnerships between Albanian authorities and Swiss federal centers of competence – in water science, energy, statistics, metrology, intellectual property, and more,” said Huber.

Switzerland is one of Albania’s leading bilateral development partners, with a track record of success spanning over three decades and a contribution of over 500 million Swiss francs in areas including democratic governance, local government reform, vocational education, macroeconomic support, and health. The cooperation is implemented jointly by two Swiss government agencies, SDC and SECO.