The new government scandal with the 'Smart City' project, 140 million dollars without competition and cost inflating

In a statement to the media, the Democratic Party's Anti-Corruption Spokesperson, Genta Vangjeli, denounced the $118 million loan received by the Albanian government from the Abu Dhabi Fund with a 15-year repayment period and 4% interest per year.

She emphasized that these funds are not going to the urgent needs of citizens, but to finance the “Smart City / Safe Nation” project. She said that the contract was awarded without a tender and without competition to the company Presight Al Ltd, affiliated with the G42 group from Abu Dhabi.

Vangjeli raised suspicions of inflated project costs, which amount to around $140 million including VAT. She stressed that the distribution of funds for licenses, equipment and maintenance raises serious questions about budget abuse.

According to her, the project also foresees an extensive camera and monitoring system that endangers the privacy of citizens. Vangjeli demanded full transparency, an independent audit and the publication of all contract documentation.

Statement:

In March 2025, the government sent to the Assembly for ratification a $118 million loan from the Abu Dhabi Fund, with a 15-year repayment period and 4 percent interest per year.

Instead of this money being invested in the urgent needs of Albanian citizens, it will be used to finance a gigantic contract that will be awarded without tender, without competition and without transparency to the company Presight Al Ltd, linked to the G42 group from Abu Dhabi.

The real value of the contract amounts to around $140 million including VAT, while the cost analysis raises serious doubts that the project has been artificially inflated to $80 million.

According to the official loan documents, the project is divided into:

USD 31.13 million for software licenses;

USD 62.4 million for hardware and infrastructure;

USD 7.84 million for professional services;

USD 17.13 million for four-year maintenance.

This means that over $48 million is spent on software and maintenance alone, not including cameras and physical equipment.

The project envisages the installation of 8,657 monitoring devices, including ANPR cameras, PTZ cameras and body cameras for the State Police.

However, the average cost results in about $13,688 for interest-free equipment and about $15,878 for equipment with accrued interest, levels that raise serious questions about the reasonableness of the expenses.

Comparisons with public market prices for modern video surveillance systems show that the cost of software and maintenance alone is about seven times higher than international references for similar systems. The unjustified difference amounts to over 41 million dollars in this component alone.

According to data from international companies specializing in security and monitoring technologies, a similar system for Albania, with a population of about 2.4 million, would cost between $50 and $90 million, much less than the $118.5 million of the proposed contract.

But the concern is not only related to costs.

The 'Smart City / Safe Nation' project aims to establish an advanced monitoring infrastructure with cameras, artificial intelligence and a centralized control center.

In the absence of transparency on how the system is used, data storage, access to information, independent auditing, and guarantees for privacy protection, serious concerns arise about the establishment of a mechanism for mass surveillance of citizens.

Albanians have the right to know why they are taking on a new debt of $118 million to finance a contract awarded without competition, while experts estimate that the same technology could be obtained for tens of millions of dollars less.

Without transparency, without tender, and without the publication of real costs, this project remains under the shadow of suspicions of misuse of public funds, favoritism of selected companies, and violation of citizens' fundamental freedoms.

We demand the immediate publication of a full analytical estimate, an independent international audit of costs, and clear legal guarantees for the protection of the personal data of every Albanian citizen.

No government can borrow hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of Albanians and spend them without competition, without accountability, and without transparency.