Territorial Reform / PS sends the draft law to municipalities

While protests against the new territorial reform have started in several cities across the country, the Socialist Party has taken the next step by sending the draft law on the new administrative division of local government units to all municipalities.

In the official letter, municipalities are requested for their mayors and municipal councils to express their position on the draft law, providing arguments for any objections or proposing concrete alternatives.

The draft law also stipulates that each municipality must hold public hearings with citizens within 60 days of receiving the request, with the aim of informing and consulting them about the proposed changes.

According to the draft law, Albania will be organized into 46 municipalities and 12 counties, following the “municipality–city” model. Under this scheme, municipalities will consist of cities, while cities will include administrative units and villages, functioning as units for planning, representation, and service organization.

The new structure includes a total of 71 cities and 387 administrative units, while 20 municipalities will have more than one city. Two of the consolidations will be three-way: the Municipality of Berat will include Berat, Dimal, and Poliçan, while the Municipality of Elbasan will merge Elbasan, Cërrik, and Belsh.

The organization of counties will also change. Vlora is expected to become the county with the largest number of municipalities, six in total, followed by Korça with five municipalities. The counties of Elbasan, Gjirokastër, Shkodër, and Tirana will each have four municipalities, while Berat, Dibër, Durrës, Kukës, and Lezhë will consist of three municipalities each.

According to the Socialist Party, the new territorial division has been drafted based on three main indicators: the functionality of municipalities, economic performance, and urban scale. These criteria are also expected to serve as the basis for the opinions that municipalities and municipal councils will submit during the consultation process.

The majority’s objective is for the 2027 local elections to be held based on this new administrative division.

“KORÇA BOOM”