The Mayor of Tirana, Erion Veliaj, hosted his counterpart, the Mayor of Bologna, Matteo Lepore, with whom he talked about the exchange of experiences between the two cities. He underlined the fact that many Albanians who have chosen to live in Bologna already have a history of success there and have integrated quite well. 

"Bologna is a second home for many Albanians. I am glad that even the chairman of the group of councillors of Bologna, Ditjoni, is Albanian. We are at the stage where Albanians are integrated, and cities like Bologna not only welcome us with open doors, but also with open minds and hearts. They have made Albanians feel at home, produced success stories, some of them are employees, some of them entrepreneurs, some others are engaging in politics. The most ideal example of the integration of an immigrant community is Bologna, Italy, where the Albanians have really made progress, they have really become part of the staff of that community", said Veliaj. 

The Mayor gave the good news of increasing the number of direct flights, not only with Bologna, but with about 50 different Italian cities, due to the influx of Italian tourists to Albania and Tirana. "The addition of low cost lines will make communication between us simpler. Instead of the Adriatic separating us, it is a sea that unites us. Italy is very important to us. 35% of our economic balance is trade with Italy. It is a remarkable success story. But we want it to be the same at the state level as it is at the level of our two cities", said Veliaj. 

The Mayor of Bologna, Matteo Lepore, said that his city is interested in cooperating with Tirana in the field of education, tourism and urban transport. "Tirana and Bologna are two new cities, important for Europe and the Mediterranean. We have decided to work together on various issues. The oldest University of the West is located in Bologna and has welcomed many young Albanians. Based on this fact, we want to unleash all the energy we have, in terms of culture, entrepreneurship, green initiatives. We want to work together for public transport, the right to housing, for the promotion of sustainable tourism. So, we think that Bologna and Tirana can contribute a lot in these aspects", concluded Mayor Lepore.