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Four years without funds for Albanian farmers, while SPAK keeps the OLAF file on the abuse of 183 million euros of IPARD II in a drawer. The EU warns that there will be no funds even in 2026...
The European Commission is finally convinced that Prime Minister Edi Rama is not interested in uncovering abuses of EU funds for agriculture and is defending the former director of AZHBR, Frida Krifca, accused of abusing 183 million euros from the IPARD II program during the years 2017–2021.
The Commission's official position has been clear: until the government punishes the abusers and justice is served, IPARD III funds for Albania remain blocked. Since 2020, Albanian farmers have not benefited from a single euro of European Union grants, and according to the latest announcement from Brussels, they will not receive any in 2026 either.
A week ago, the European Commission reiterated that it is ready to support the Albanian agri-food sector, but on condition that the funds are protected and not misused. Brussels demands that Albania take concrete measures to punish those responsible for the IPARD II scandal.
However, Prime Minister Edi Rama has not only not taken any steps, but has publicly defended Frida Krifca, who was criminally charged by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF). The Prime Minister even rewarded her with the position of Minister of Agriculture, and then as an advisor to the Prime Minister for EU funds.
In 2022, although OLAF had submitted the file with a full investigation on Krifca, Edi Rama gave her the authorization to sign the IPARD III agreement with the EU, an act that Brussels rejected as unacceptable.
The responsibility now does not only lie with the government. Even the head of SPAK, Altin Dumani, has been blocking the OLAF criminal report for four years, which contains contracts, film evidence, names of fictitious beneficiaries and official documents signed by Frida Krifca.
Dumani has stated several times that "the case is under investigation," but the facts so far show the opposite: no criminal proceedings have been registered and the BKH has not been tasked with the investigation, even though all the evidence is ready.
The OLAF investigation does not require a new investigation. What is required is a simple decision to register the case and prosecute those responsible. But this does not happen, because the blockade line is coordinated.
And while SPAK and the government turn a blind eye to a file worth 183 million euros, Albanian farmers remain without funds, agriculture without development and Albania without credibility in the eyes of the European Union./ Pamphlet
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