go to the original language article
The European Union Delegation in Tirana launched the EU4Education campaign with the presentation of the first EIT Community Center in Albania.
The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union, in partnership with the “EU for Innovation” project, establishes the first EIT Community Center in Albania. This initiative aims to strengthen the innovation ecosystem in the region and connect innovators, entrepreneurs, and local talents with the largest innovation network in Europe.
During the event, the Head of Cooperation in the European Union Delegation in Albania, Hubert Perr, assessed that Albania is becoming part of various EU networks and systems before being a member state, and according to him, “this is an example of accelerated integration into the EU.”
Perr announced that the EU will launch a 7-week campaign, focusing on education and the importance of education for a country like Albania.
In terms of innovation, Perr noted that thanks to EU programs supporting startups over the past 5 years, tangible results are being observed in Albania.
Perr also spoke about the 7-week campaign launched by the EU for education, while mentioning the programs the EU is implementing in this field in Albania. Perr emphasized that the EU has a growth plan and reform agenda as an entirely new instrument for which human capital and reforms are considered the most essential.
“We want to address this issue in partnership with the government, but beyond that we have many programs like ‘EU for Schools’, through which we are transforming the school infrastructure in Albania by restoring 64 schools that were damaged by the 2019 earthquake,” he said.
Perr also highlighted another regional initiative in cooperation with German partners such as the “Super Schools” program, or the EU’s program for youth.
“We also have the Youth Guarantee and programs related to various professional trainings. We have a series of programs that make it possible for Albania to benefit from these EU programs, such as the ‘Erasmus’ program or the College of Europe, which opened its eighth campus in Albania, where there are students from various European countries,” noted Perr.
The EIT Community Center will serve as a one-stop hub for local entrepreneurs and innovators to access a wide range of opportunities in education, business development, and research collaboration.
This major project is part of the EIT Regional Innovation Scheme (EIT RIS) program, which works to accelerate Europe’s innovation agenda and engage local talents in high-value opportunities. (February 11)