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The controversial "Strategic Investments" law ended its effects on December 31, 2023, but a proposal filed in the Assembly is expected to extend its deadline for the third time in a row.
The Minister of Economy and Finance, Ervin Mete, stated in a press conference with journalists on Friday that the government was aware of the proposal of a deputy, which also included the deadline of the law.
"Strategic investments, to my knowledge, there is a proposal by a deputy in parliament to make some changes related to the level of what are considered strategic investments, also with some operational aspects of the law, but also with the postponement of the deadline," said Mete.
The initiative mentioned by Mete has not been made public on the official website of the Assembly, but it comes at a time when the government has declared that it will review the investment legislation during 2024, also as a request of the European Union.
Adopted in 2015, the law "On Strategic Investments" was introduced as a temporary measure by the "Rama" government, initially with a deadline until 2018. But its deadline was postponed two more times in the Assembly.
The law has caused debates and criticism about the way of implementation as well as about the circle of beneficiaries. According to the opposition and economic experts, the scheme of strategic investors has favored a group of oligarchs and encroached on private property, fueling social conflicts.
The Socialists rejected several times the opposition's request for the establishment of a parliamentary investigative commission for the implementation of this law, after concerns that it had been used to favor businessmen close to the government.
One of the beneficiaries is Artan Gaçi, the husband of the socialist MP, Olta Xhaçka, who received the status for the construction of a hotel on the coast of Dhërmi, one of the most beautiful areas in the South of the country.
The law recognizes the strategic investor status in tourism to any project that invests more than 5 million euros and employs 80 workers. According to the decisions approved by the Strategic Investments Committee, headed by Prime Minister Edi Rama, the state has offered strategic investors hundreds of hectares of land through lease contracts for 1 euro, auxiliary infrastructure, such as supply and adaptation of the electrical network, supply of drinking water and other benefits. / BIRN
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