Freedom Party MP Tedi Blushi has filed an official request for interpellation with the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Andi Salla, regarding the measures taken to unblock IPARD funds, which for the third consecutive year risk being denied to Albanian farmers.

In the request addressed to the Speaker of Parliament, Niko Peleshi, Blushi emphasizes that IPARD funds are a financial instrument of the European Union for rural development and are not discretionary government funds, but conditioned by strict rules of transparency, control and accountability.

According to the MP, the failure of the management and control mechanisms by the Ministry of Agriculture has brought serious financial consequences for farmers, with around 112 million euros in aid blocked per year, as well as administrative and reputational consequences for the Albanian state. Blushi cites public data, audit reports and recent developments that, according to him, speak of serious irregularities in the selection, contracting and verification of IPARD projects, including fictitious projects, conflicts of interest, lack of on-site verifications and significant weaknesses in internal control.

REQUEST
Subject: Request for interpellation with the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Andi Salla
Addressed to: The President of the Assembly
Mr. Niko Peleshi

Dear Speaker of the Assembly,
Based on Article 80, point 1 of the Constitution and Article 96 of the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly, I submit a request for interpellation with the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Andi Salla, regarding the measures taken to unblock IPARD funds, which for the third consecutive year are at risk of being denied to Albanian farmers.
IPARD funds are a financial instrument of the European Union, designed to support rural development and to prepare candidate countries for the correct administration of EU structural funds. They are not discretionary funds of the Government, but funds with strict rules, with high standards of transparency, control and accountability.
The request for interpellation stems from a serious concern regarding the failure of the management and control mechanisms of IPARD funds by the Ministry of Agriculture, a failure which has produced concrete financial consequences for Albanian farmers (112 million euros of aid blocked per year), as well as administrative and reputational consequences for the Albanian state.
Public data, audit reports and recently known developments speak of serious irregularities in the selection, contracting and verification phase of IPARD projects, fictitious projects, conflicts of interest, lack of verification on the ground and significant weaknesses in the internal administrative control system.
I want to emphasize clearly that the political responsibility for the construction, functioning and supervision of the system belongs to the Ministry of Agriculture. In any European standard of governance, the failure of the system is the responsibility of the political leader.
Mismanagement of IPARD funds is not a procedural issue. It has direct consequences:
-Exclusion of farmers from support schemes (112 million euros in aid per year),
-Distortion of competition in the agricultural sector,
-Endangering Albania's credibility towards the European Union institutions,

-And the real risk of suspension or limitation of funds for next year as well.

In this context, I request accurate and documented answers to the following issues:
-What was the management and control model of IPARD funds implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and who is responsible for deviations from EU manuals and guidelines?
-How many projects have been checked through on-site verifications before and after the disbursement of funds, and what were the main findings?
-What are the administrative or financial violations found by internal or external audits, and what disciplinary measures have been taken?
-What is the financial impact of the irregularities found and have there been requests for the return of funds from the European Union and in what financial amount?
-What structural measures has the ministry taken to ensure that future IPARD schemes will be fully compliant with the EU acquis?

The Ministry of Agriculture has the obligation to publicly clarify:
-where the system failed,
-who has held administrative responsibility,
-and what concrete reforms have been undertaken.

This interpellation is an exercise of parliamentary control and protection of the public interest. Transparency and accountability are not optional, but a constitutional obligation. I await the setting of the date for the interpellation, in accordance with the deadlines set in the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly.