Integrated Cross-Sectorial Plan of Tirana-Durres Area

1.3 Coordination of
the plan
After the 1990s, Albania has performed
some important steps with regards to
decentralization, in terms of the political and
administrative context as well. This process is
considered as one of the first most important
reforms of the new democratic state. After the
political decentralization, which is considered
to have been successfully completed, the
following period coincides with the fiscal
decentralization. One of the most important
initiatives of this period is the Law no. 8652
“On the organization and functioning of local
government”, as amended, dated 31/07/2000,
which defined urban planning along with the
development control, as a function of the
municipalities and the communes themselves.
required to perform the harmonization of the
two levels. The drafting of ICSP Tirana-Durres
serves as a good practice, an example to be
followed in drafting other plans for planning
regions.
The Integrated Cross-sectorial Plan of the
economic area Tirana-Durres includes the
territory of the following municipalities: Tirana,
Durres, Kamza, Vora, Shijak and Kruja.
This plan, which shall serve as the basis for
the development of local plans, addresses
the strategic aspects that will facilitate intermunicipality
coordination. Municipalities need
to further detail the policies and obligations
deriving from the General National Plan and
the Integrated Cross-sectorial Plan of the area
Tirana-Durres.
Until July 2015, Albania was managed by
369 communes and municipalities, first level
LGUs and 12 regions, second level LGUs.
Many of the communes and municipalities,
due to the migration of the population and
the small number of their population failed
to create economies of scale in order to raise
the finances required for the good governance
of their territory. This, accompanied by the
unclear role of the region (qark), led to a
chaotic situation of the development of the
territory and to its monocentric development.
With the political changes of 2013, one of the
major reforms of the new government was
closely associated with the issue of good
governance of the territory or otherwise known
as the territorial reform. Territorial planning
is directly affected by this reform, not only
with regards to the administrative aspect, but
also in terms of the territorial approach of the
national and territorial plans.
Inherently, planning at national level is mostly
characterized by territorial development
policies, while the local one focuses more on
land use. The new layer of the cross-sectorial
plans for the economic area Tirana-Durres and
the coast has a more strategic approach to the
territory, thus offering the missing instrument
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