EU calls for repeal, government paves way for privatization of protected areas

While the European Union is urgently demanding that the Albanian government repeal the law on strategic investments and the law on protected areas, even conditioning the country's membership in the EU with these two legal interventions, Edi Rama seems to have made up his mind to proceed in the opposite direction.

Through two special decisions approved the day before, the government has accelerated the alienation of public property through the infamous strategic investment law, expressly providing for the privatization of protected areas.

Government decision

"When state assets are included in priority areas for tourism development or in environmentally protected areas, the proposal of a contract with a symbolic fee of 1 euro/contract, to the Council of Ministers, is made by co-proposal between the institution that exercises the right of representative of the owner of state property and the institution that exercises state activity responsible for these areas, in accordance with the legislation in force," states the government decision approved the day before.

Protected areas towards privatization

But after receiving the protected areas through a symbolic 1 euro lease, strategic investors will now have the right to purchase them in full through an expedited procedure, almost immediately upon signing the lease contract.

"In lease or emphyteusis contracts, concluded for assets with a land area of ​​over 500 (five hundred) m², when the lessee or emphyteusis recipient has made investments, in accordance with the business plan and in the amount of over 150 percent of the value of the land... it has the right to notify the ministry responsible for the economy, accompanied by an evaluation report from an independent legal expert and auditor. If the fulfillment of the investment level in the amount of over 150 percent of the value of the land is confirmed and the lessee/emphyteusis recipient has respected all the conditions of the contract, it has the right to enter into the privatization procedure with the right of pre-emption of the object of the lease/emphyteusis contract," the decision of the previous day states.

But for those who have made investments in excess of 750 percent of the property value, the right to privatization arises immediately.

In lease or emphyteusis contracts concluded for assets with a land area of ​​over 500 m2, in cases where the lessee or emphyteusis recipient has made investments in accordance with the business plan, to the extent of over 750 percent of the value of the land, as well as when the subject has respected all the conditions of the contract, the right arises to notify the ministry responsible for the economy, accompanied by an evaluation report from an independent legal expert and auditor, even before the 3 (three) year term of the contract has been met," the VKM states.

Right of pre-emption

Recent changes in government decisions that determine the criteria and procedures for the privatization or leasing of state properties, in addition to accelerating the privatization process and expanding the categories of public properties that are alienated, confirm that the government does not intend to withdraw from the law on protected areas.

These changes come precisely in the conditions where citizens have been protesting in the streets for almost two months, precisely against the plundering of public property and at a time when the European Union has conditioned the country's EU membership on the repeal of these two laws./ Kapitali.al