The European Commission against racism and intolerance (ECRI) of the Council of Europe published its seventh monitoring cycle report on Albania today, prepared following a visit to the country from 16 to 20 June 2025.
The report acknowledges several positive steps taken by the authorities, including the active role of the Commissioner for protection from discrimination (CPD) in addressing hate speech against Roma and Egyptians, and against LGBTI persons, the work of the Alliance against hate speech, and the extensive training on hate crime provided to police officers and criminal-justice professionals.
In education, ECRI notes the adoption of the National Action Plan against violence and bullying 2025-28, increased support staff in schools, and measures such as free textbooks, transport and scholarships for Roma and Egyptian pupils. Positive examples of integrated schooling and improved healthcare access for Roma and Egyptian mothers are also noted, alongside progress towards a medical protocol for transgender persons.
Hate speech remains a problem in online spaces
However, ECRI finds that racist and LGBTI-phobic hate speech, particularly online and on social media, remains a serious issue, while hate crime continues to be underreported. It also points to the need for further training of law enforcement officials and judicial actors, while anti-bullying policies still fail to adequately address the specific vulnerabilities of Roma, Egyptian and LGBTI children.
ECRI further notes that school-completion rates among Roma and Egyptian children remain significantly lower than national averages and that de facto school segregation persists in some areas. It also highlights ongoing problems related to poor housing conditions affecting Roma communities, barriers faced by Roma and Egyptians in accessing the "E-Albania" digital public services platform, and reports of discrimination against LGBTI persons in healthcare.
ECRI makes a number of recommendations to the Albanian authorities and identifies two recommendations for priority implementation. First, it calls on the authorities to provide police and prosecution services with the necessary human, technical and financial resources to effectively investigate and prosecute racist and anti-LGBTI hate crimes, including through intensified training and capacity-building activities in cooperation with national and international partners.
Secondly, ECRI calls on the authorities to increase pre-school and school enrolment and attendance among Roma and Egyptian children, reduce drop-out rates and improve secondary-school completion, notably by substantially increasing the number of Roma and Egyptian education mediators and conducting awareness-raising activities with families and schools.
ECRI requests that these two recommendations be implemented within 18 months of the publication of the report. An interim follow-up process will subsequently be carried out to assess the measures taken by the authorities.
ECRI is a unique Council of Europe human rights monitoring body made up of independent experts, which specialises in questions relating to the fight against racism, discrimination (on grounds of "race", ethnic/national origin, colour, citizenship, religion, language, sexual orientation and gender identity), xenophobia, antisemitism and intolerance in Europe; it prepares reports and issues recommendations to member states.
