Distinguished ladies and gentlemen,

Allow me to begin by thanking my colleague, member of the Parliament and dean of the Mediterranean University, Anastas Angjeli, who offered me the opportunity to share with you some thoughts on the regional economic integration challenges of South East Europe.

A quarter of a century after the fall of the Berlin Wall we are, once again, in search of a new international order. We live in a time when powers of different nature, with their actions, have put into question the principles and practices considered universally accepted, after the fall of the communist empire-

The European project, Europe, and its eastern and southern neighbors are being shaken by security, energy, and human rights challenges.

In addition to that, rhetorics on Europe are also changing, including: enlargement fatigue, Grexit, Brexit and divisions between south and north. Meanwhile Euroscepticism is spreading, slowly but surely, and anti – European platforms are gaining terrain.

But, despite the growing Euroscepticism in EU member states and the effects of the Euro crisis, citizens of the Western Balkans still identify with the European project. They believe in the principles of the EU and consider EU integration to be the only process that guarantees democratic transformation and socio – economic development.

This is naturally good news, amongst the insecurity and anxiety felt across Europe.

Integration of  the Western Balkans countries is of strategic importance for the EU, because this way it secures its southeast, where important energy roads are being built. It is also important in economic terms, because these energy arteries will further  improve EU security, thus guaranteeing the diversification of suppliers and energy corridors.

Let’s not forget that the EU started as an energy community. Today it is the biggest energy importer in the world, spending roughly 400 bln euros/year. The common energy market is still under construction, while markets such as the one in southeast Europe still suffer the lack of interconnectivity.
Distinguished guests,

Since the Thessaloniki Summit in 2003, when the EU committed to a European future for the countries of the Western Balkans, the economic gap between developed countries and the less developed Western Balkans has deepened. On one side there is Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia and on the other Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia.

I will illustrate this with three different indicators for the period 2003-2011, which is considered to be a period of economic growth, when the euro crisis had still to hit our region:

• GDP per capita
• Growth of gross income per capita
• Yearly exports of goods and services per capita

First: the per capita GDP of SEE countries clearly shows the direct link between EU membership and the economic development of a country. The less developed a country is, the slower it has advanced towards Europe. On the other hand, the slower it has advanced towards Europe, the less advanced it is.

Let’s agree that the average GDP of EU member countries is 100, than Kosovo has a coefficient of 18, Albania and Bosnia of 30, Serbia of 35, whereas Bulgaria has a coefficient of 46, Romania of 49, Croatia of61 and Greece 79.

Second: the growth of gross general income per capita in EU member countries is greater in comparison with that of countries still out of the EU.

For example, Romania has registered a growth of roughly +8200 USD, Bulgaria +6000 USD, Croatia +5800 USD, whereas Macedonia has registered a growth of +5000 USD, Serbia +4700 USD, Albania +4400 USD, B-H +3500 USD, and Kosovo +1700 USD.

Third: yearly exports of goods and services in countries such as Bulgaria has almost tripled, compared with the yearly export of Albania.

The above mentioned indicators, which coincide with a period of economic growth, reinforce the idea that the economic gap between EU and non EU countries is deepening. As long as this gap will deepen Southeast Europe can not be called a region.

Ladies and gentlemen,

EU integration of the WB countries and regional cooperation can only be successful if our region is transformed into a true region, in political, economic and security terms.

The Berlin Conference and other regional initiatives, such as SEECP, boost cooperation and good neighborly relations between our countries by aiming at the improvement of interconnectivity in different fields, such as infrastructure, energy, tourism and business climate.

This year, the Berlin process will be crowned with another conference in Vienna,to be held in August 2015.  In this context, Albania is actively involved in the process of the selection of projects to be presented to the European Commission and EU member states for support.

But for these projects to produce sustainable economic growth, the countries of the region must adapt their legal and institutional framework, with special attention given to:

• Agreement on Transport Community, which we should aim to finalize within 2015;
• Reviving of the Regional Energy Treaty, which is more than 10 years old and, for this reason, does not reflect the needs of today or the potential that comes with new project.

The Berlin Process is an opportunity to revive the project of European integration, so that it becomes a tool for the transformation of the Western Balkans in a region is economically more advanced
I would be glad to talk to you about a common regional market, but indicators are stubborn. I will show you a last indicator that illustrates the lack of regional economic connectivity, from the Albanian standpoint.

In 2013 the volume of commerce with the region represented a mere 9% of the general commercial volume of Albania. This shows that we are still far from regional priority in our commercial relations.
Ladies and gentlemen,

The crisis in Ukraine and the importance of safe energy roads for the economy of the EU underline the importance of strategic energy projects, such as TAP and ITS Ionian branch IAP.

These two pipelines are in line with the EU Energy Security Strategy and will play an important role not only for energy efficiency and the diversification of energy resources, but also for the creation of a regional integrated market, which functions in compliance with the rules and standards of the EU.

Ensuring energy supply and developing the economy of the region is more and more dependent on the development of energy networks and regional infrastructure.

The weaknesses in interconnectivity and regional commerce continue to limit the potential of growth for the region. A better integrated region would accelerate and all inclusive growth and narrow the gap between the countries that are more advanced in the EU integration process and those who are behind.

Regional interconnectivity can help release the growth potential that comes with geographical proximity.

Reducing distances and integrating markets will help subregions with lower income to achieve levels of income that they could not achieve alone, especially the subregions that don’t have access to the sea.

Peace and democratic stability in our region can be transformed into a narrative of social wellbeing and economic success only through new instruments that the region is seeking from the EU.

It is important that our region, with a past rich in conflicts, continue its path towards progress, so that the interests of third actors in the region are complementary, not competitive and not exclusive.

Thank you for your attention.