Honorable Prof. Dr. Sali Berisha, Prime Minister of Albania

About:

Born on October 15, 1944 Sali Berisha graduated from the Medical Faculty of the University of Tirana in 1967 "with honors". He specialized in cardiology and was subsequently appointed as an assistant professor of medicine at the same university and as staff cardiologist at the Tirana General Hospital. During the '70s Mr. Berisha gained distinction as the leading researcher in the field of cardiology in Albania and became professor of cardiology at the University of Tirana. He was selected in 1986 as a member of the European Medical Research Committee of WHO. During this period he published a number of articles in prestigious European medical magazines and journals. In 1989 he was awarded the title Professor at the Tirana University.

1992-1997: President of Republic of Albania: Following his election as the President of Republic of Albania, Mr. Sali Berisha and the democratic government were engaged into a profound course of multifaceted reforms. He undertook a deep reform of private residential properties as well as that of small and medium state enterprises; He liberalized the markets, brought down the inflation and increased GDP to an average of 9 percent, 75% of which was generated by the private sector. Albania became a member of Council of Europe in 1995; signed the Partnership for Peace Agreement in 1993 and established a close cooperation with EU countries and USA.

2005- Present: Prime Minister of Albania: Following his appointment as Prime Minister of Albania, after several years as opposition leader, he has undertaken a vast number of reforms in all fields. Major infrastructure investment program has been carried out throughout the country with focus in roads and ICT infrastructure. His government has introduced digital technology in civil registry, citizen identification and integrated border control and management. He has simplified bureaucratic procedures, drastically improved the business climate, introduced a flat tax of 10 percent, developed a full electronic procurement system and modernized the custom system. He has doubled the state budget in four years and has drastically increased the revenues. During this period Albania signed and implemented the Stabilization Association Agreement, gained full NATO membership, applied for candidate status for European Union and was granted a visa - free travel regime for the Albanian citizens in the Schengen area. More information at: http://www.keshilliministrave.al/index.php?gj=gj2

Major Sustainability Achievements

Under his leadership his country Albania:

1. Ranked 4th from 132 countries by the trend of the 2012 Environmental Performance Index as announced at the World Economic Forum 2012 [1,2] while keeping a GDP growth of 5.1% in average from 2007 to 2011[3]
2. Ranked 15th from 132 countries by score in the 2012 Environmental Performance Index as announced at the World Economic Forum 2012 [1,2]. This is a considerable level increase from being completely out of the 30 top countries in 2006 to the 26th place in 2008, to the 23rd in 2010 and now in 15th place among top 30 countries in the world [2].
3. Produces more than 96 percent of the energy through renewable hydropower resources. Since only 35 percent of the energy potential is used, about 100 projects are undertaken for the construction of more hydropower plants which will have a total estimated capacity of around 1,400 megawatts/year. The plan is to build about 443 hydropower stations and private sector contracts have been signed for works to start in 2020, among them some of the largest projects in Europe [4]. Several eolic parks are also under construction of about a total 1500 Megawatts/year.
4. Has a very high penetration of mobiles, higher than the European average.[ 4]
5. Ranked 57 out of 100 countries at Newsweek The World's Best Countries 2010, [5]
6. Got 2nd Place Winner of 2010 United Nations Public Service Awards after Germany in the category of Improving transparency, accountability and responsiveness in the public service (Public Procurement Agency) [6]
7. Ranked 57 out of 179 countries on the 2012 Index of Economic Freedom according to The Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation: [7]

Hon. Sali Berisha, Receiving the Fray International Sustainability Award from Dr. Florian Kongoli at FLOGEN SIPS 2012

References

[1] Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy / Center for International Earth Science Information Network at Columbia University. "2010 EPI Rankings". Retrieved 2012-01-25
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_Performance_Index#cite_note-EPI2012-4
[3] World Bank: http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG
[4] China Daily 2012-01-09: http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/europe/2012-01/09/content_14404789.htm
[5] Newsweek: http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2010/08/15/interactive-infographic-of-the-worlds-best-countries.html
[6] United Nations Document: http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/un-dpadm/unpan039144.pdf
[7] http://www.heritage.org/index/ranking