PRESS RELEASE
Governor Sejko receives the Deutsche Bundensbank delegation headed by Mr Burkhard Balz, Member of the Executive Board

The Governor of the Bank of Albania, Mr Gent Sejko, received today a delegation from the Deutsche Bundensbank, headed by Mr Burkhard Balz, Member of the Executive Board of Deutsche Bundesbank.

This meeting took place in the framework of the ''Programme for Strengthening the Central Bank Capacities in the We stern Balkans with a view to the integration to the European System of Central Banks'’ and the so far cooperation of the Bank of Albania (BoA) with Deutsche Bundesbank in regard to this programme.

The purpose of this visit is meeting the institutions that are part of this programme, assessing the benefits received, and defining the needs for the future.

Governor Sejko thanked Mr Balz for the meeting, evaluating this cooperation as very fruitful, in the framework of the Programme, which aims to strengthen the capacities of beneficiary institutions, mainly through the further improvement of their analytical and political instruments; the acquisition of the highest international and European standards into their national practices. The program is supported by the European Union (EU), through its Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA III).

Mr Sejko stated that around 80 employees of the Bank of Albania were trained throughout the implementation of the first phase of the program. Also, 24 employees have been trained so far, during the implementation of the second phase, and a bilateral cooperation has been established between the staff of the Bank of Albania and the Banco de España. Meanwhile, in the second component at national level, 6 bilateral cooperation and 3 internships, 10-days each, are projected to take place, from which will benefit around 70 employees of the Bank of Albania.

The activities of the two components – regional and domestic– focus on specific topics related to the duties of the central bank and financial supervision. These topics are addressed at an advanced level and include: accounting; AML/CFT; extraordinary intervention; banking supervision; currency management; communication; EU integration; Consumer Financial Protection, financial inclusion and financial education; governance issues including strategic management, crisis management and operational sustainability; green and sustainable finance; internal audit; IT; implementation of monetary policy; payment systems; research on monetary and financial stability and statistics.

Mr Balz commended the authorities for the progress made in both expertise and institutional view. This progress has underpinned Albania on its path toward economic and social development. Also, he said that the Deutsche Bundensbank is keen on helping Albania in the European integration process.

In this meeting, the importance of international technical cooperation was reconfirmed as an instrument for institutional dialogue, as well as the further development of sharing experiences on topics such as banking supervision, payment systems, cybersecurity, etc.

The Deutsche Bundensbank leads and implements the "Programme for strengthening the Central Banks Capacities in the Western Balkans with a view to the integration to the European System of Central Banks". It also leads the Steering Committee of the programme and has prepared the Cooperation Agreements on behalf of the 19 central banks of the beneficiary countries and the European Central Bank.