At the height of the tourist season, the chairwoman of the Parliamentary Committee for Tourism, Culture and Diaspora, Ina Zhupa, has denounced the water supply crisis in Saranda and Ksamil.

In a public statement, Zhupa describes the situation as "bottle tourism," emphasizing that residents, businesses, and tourists have been forced to turn to jerrycans and buckets due to the lack of drinking water. She emphasizes that, despite Saranda being surrounded by water sources, serious investment in water supply infrastructure has been lacking over the years, turning the water problem into a crisis that damages the destination's image, the local economy, and the quality of tourism.

Ina Zhupa's full reaction:

Water world tourism, Saranda and Ksamil, 2026!

This is the sight you see everywhere at the height of the season: water bodies that have invaded Saranda and Ksamil, because drinking water is lacking and this is the only solution left for residents, businesses, and tourists.

Saranda is a city surrounded by water sources, but even today it cannot guarantee a normal water supply. Because there has been a lack of will to seriously invest in water supply infrastructure and because it has been a promise of every local and central election.

This is not just a water crisis, it is a crisis of quality tourism. It is a blow to the image of Saranda and Ksamil, to the local economy and to the citizens. Instead of a modern tourist destination, we are offering tourism of bottles, cans and water jugs.