Albania is failing its commitments to increase educational skills among adults aged 25-64. In 2024, only 1.6% of this age group participated in training and skilling programs, far short of the European Union target of 47% for 2025.

This progress in adult education in our country was given in the latest report of the European Training Foundation (ETF) for the year 2026.

The report highlighted a series of shortcomings that hinder human capital development. Although the strategic framework has been enriched with documents such as the National Strategy for Employment and Skills 2023–2030, their implementation faces numerous obstacles. Currently, Albania does not have a dedicated law on adult education, which leads to a fragmentation of responsibilities between ministries and institutions, creating delays in the coordination of national policies, the ETF noted.

One of the most critical points remains the extremely low rate of adult participation in learning processes, where the figure of 1.6% indicates an alarming distance from the average and objectives of the European Union.

According to the report, this non-participation stems from the lack of a genuine culture of lifelong learning, but also from financial barriers and the limited time of individuals of working age. Equally concerning are digital skills, as over 50% of the adult population does not possess minimal technological knowledge, a deficiency that leaves the workforce unprepared for the challenges of the modern economy and the automation of processes.

The vocational education system, although at the center of reforms, suffers from an uneven geographical distribution, with training centers concentrated almost entirely in Tirana and Durrës. This organization, according to the ETF, neglects rural areas and small towns, where unemployment is often higher and retraining opportunities are almost non-existent.

Furthermore, the current training infrastructure is outdated and does not respond to the specific demands of growing industries, such as green energy or advanced IT services, creating a large gap between what is offered and what the market requires.

In financial terms, the system is unstable and largely dependent on foreign funding and donor projects, without a consolidated state budget line that guarantees continuity.

ETF points out that municipalities, although responsible for education at the local level, rarely allocate specific funds for adult education, leaving this sector on the periphery of local priorities. There are also many shortcomings in the certification of skills acquired informally, which penalizes experienced workers for not having diplomas.

The continuous emigration of young people and the progressive aging of the population create a double pressure for lifelong learning. On the one hand, the brain drain and on the other, the need to keep older people employed through retraining.

However, current programmes are not adapted to the specific needs of older people or marginalised groups, who face additional barriers to access. The ETF notes that the quality monitoring and evaluation system is also weak, with fragmented data that does not allow for a proper analysis of the impact of training on employment.

According to the ETF, the lack of fiscal incentives for businesses that invest in training their employees is another shortcoming that discourages the private sector from becoming an active part of the solution.

Without a radical intervention that includes unifying the legal framework, increasing public investment, digitizing curricula, and expanding career guidance services to every municipality, Albania risks being left with an unskilled workforce, the ETF analysis highlights. This not only slows economic growth, but also calls into question the country's ability to meet the EU membership criteria, which are based precisely on knowledge and skills./Monitor