TIRANA, February 28 – The Governor of the Bank of Albania, Gent Sejko said that the banking sector in Albania is well capitalized and liquid, as well as its support for the private sector has been increasing.
The Governor said that at the meeting held in the framework of the cooperation of the World Bank with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for the preparation of the concept of a support project for the financing of agriculture.
Regarding access to finance, the Governor stated that in a broader picture, it is important to explore cross-sectoral solutions – including fintech, digitalization of financial services and innovative financial instruments – which would facilitate access to financial services.
In order to support market developments, the Bank of Albania is also working towards the improvement of payment systems for the introduction of new standards of communication and services, which help address infrastructure needs.
Specifically, in 2021, a level of use of electronic payments of 12.5 payments per capita was reached, exceeding the Strategy’s target of 10 payments by the end of 2023, while, in 2022, this figure is estimated to have reached the level of 16 payments per capita.
The Governor added that lending to the economy is supported by favorable financing conditions in the country. The banking sector has continued to offer favorable lending conditions and terms. Materialized with an increase of 14% during 2022. At the same time, the quality of the loan portfolio continues to remain healthy.
Focusing more specifically on the agribusiness sector, the Governor stated that it has great potential both in local and foreign markets, but continues to need the adoption of new technologies and production processes.
In his speech, the permanent representative of the WB Office in Albania, Emanuel Salinas, said that the purpose of this roundtable is to discuss the crediting problems of the agricultural sector in Albania and to present products/initiatives of the World Bank. /Argumentum.al
