Interview with the Socialist Party MP and member of the Parliamentary Committee for Economy and Finance, Ervin Bushati

Interview with the Socialist Party MP and member of the Parliamentary Committee for Economy and Finance, Ervin Bushati
Interview with the Socialist Party MP and member of the Parliamentary Committee for Economy and Finance, Ervin Bushati: “We must not be so skeptic about the investments being made”

 “The 1 billion euro program: Not every investment being made must scare people”

 Interviewed for Albanian Free Press by Eglantina Nasi

Mr. Bushati, how do you predict the country’s economic performance for 2018?

The Albanian economy continues to perform well and it has never performed as well as it does today. Today, the economy is better than four years ago and even better than a year ago. We’re predicting unemployment to decline, although statistics are indicating a positive trend never seen before. Today, I can easily say that the economy has grown, budget deficit is 2-3 times smaller than it used to be and this gives us the chance to reduce national debt. But, what I would like to stress once again is the reform in justice. The accurate functioning of the law has a direct impact on the country’s economy. More security means better functioning of the economy. Economic growth is predicted to be 4% and I am convinced for this, because it’s a growth based on the growth of investments on one side and investment opportunities on the other. These investments will be in infrastructure, healthcare, education and agriculture, which are the main sectors in need for intervention.

Now that TAP pipeline or the Hydro Power Plant of Devoll have been completed, do you think that there will be a positive growth of foreign direct investments this year?

As a majority, we have done all our homework concerning the economy. There have been structural reforms and macro-economic indicators have been kept under control. This has yielded results. Deficit is low, debt is under control, and we’re undertaking numerous structural reforms, such as reform in the public finances and the most important one, reform in justice.  This is the most important one, because once there’s a democratic state where everyone is equal in front of the law, where economy functions better, foreign investments will also increase. We’re determined for the business sector to receive the attention it deserves. In our projects, the business sector has had priorities and many bills have been drafted to assist the business sector.

2018 marks the start of the implementation of the “1 billion euro for construction” government program. Do you think that it will make budget grow, while international institutions have warned the government on this?

 This program is an invitation for enterprises and banks to be involved in a process of partnership with the government in order to deliver a significant number of projects, which, in the financial aspect, ensures a contractual financing of each project by the state budget. This program focuses on three important sectors such as healthcare, education and infrastructure, three domains where investments are not enough. Besides enabling the country to benefit 1 billion euros worth of investments, this project also helps us to reduce debt and keep deficit under control. I would like to stress once again that this program will not change the country’s economic indicators; on the contrary, it will have positive effects even on employment in the country. Not every investment that is made should scare people. The opposition makes investments look like a scary thing, but people should not always listen to the opposition. We must not be so skeptic about the investments that are made.

 

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