SPAK
Albania’s SPAK agency is under intense scrutiny as it takes on elite corruption cases. For Albania’s EU ambitions, SPAK’s success…
The collapse of Novi Sad’s railway station canopy in Serbia this November, which killed 15 people, ignited the largest student protests that country has seen since the fall of Slobodan Milošević. Just across the border in Albania, where evidence of systemic corruption runs even deeper, the streets remain conspicuously quiet.
The contrast between these neighboring Balkan states illuminates a critical question: Why has Serbia’s youth mobilized while Albania’s remains largely passive in the face of documented corruption?
The facts paint a stark picture. Albania’s state auditors have identified serious irregularities in the €430 million waste incinerator project, a scandal that has already led to several arrests but left the highest levels of government untouched. Recent U.S. court documents revealed how Charles McGonigal, the FBI’s former head of counterintelligence in New York, received $225,000 in payments while maintaining undisclosed relationships with Albanian officials and power brokers.
The construction sector in Tirana, Albania’s capital, exemplifies this systemic corruption. According to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, between 2017 and 2019, approximately €1.6 billion in suspect funds flowed through Albania’s real estate market. Despite the country losing more than 450,000 citizens to emigration in recent years, construction continues at a fevered pace, with tens of thousands of apartments sitting empty.
Meanwhile, in Serbia, students have maintained continuous protests for three months. They’ve occupied university buildings, organized road blockades, and developed a sophisticated system of democratic decision-making through faculty plenums. Their demands focus on systemic change rather than party politics, an approach that ultimately forced the resignation of Prime Minister Miloš Vučević.
The divergence between these neighboring countries is particularly striking, given Albania’s documented pattern of high-level corruption. The U.S. State Department’s 2023 Investment Climate Statement noted “endemic corruption” in Albania, while the European Commission’s progress report highlighted “serious concerns” about public procurement and political interference in institutions.
These international assessments are supported by concrete evidence. The Albanian Supreme State Audit’s investigation of the waste incinerator project revealed contracts awarded without competition, payments made for unfinished work, and a complex web of shell companies. Despite these findings and the arrest of several former officials, including a minister, the full scope of political involvement remains uninvestigated.
In contrast, Serbia’s student movement has achieved tangible results. Beyond forcing the prime minister’s resignation, they’ve secured the release of internal documents related to the Novi Sad railway station collapse and prompted criminal investigations into the construction project’s procurement process. Their success offers a stark counterpoint to Albania’s anti-corruption efforts, where major investigations often stall before reaching the highest levels of power.
The economic impact of Albania’s corruption is measurable. World Bank data shows that foreign direct investment remains significantly lower than regional averages despite the country’s strategic location and EU candidate status. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development reports that 27% of Albanian youth are neither employed nor in education, contributing to the ongoing exodus of young professionals.
This brain drain has accelerated. According to Eurostat figures, more than 700,000 Albanians have left the country since 2008 — a staggering figure for a nation of less than 3 million. Many cite corruption and lack of economic opportunity as primary reasons for their departure.
Yet while Serbia’s youth have transformed tragedy into action, Albania’s systemic corruption has primarily produced resignation. The recent FBI McGonigal scandal exemplifies this dynamic. Court documents revealed how a senior U.S. law enforcement official received payments while maintaining undisclosed relationships with Albanian officials, yet the revelations prompted little public response in Tirana.
The international community’s approach to Albania may partially explain this inaction. Despite documented corruption, Albania continues to receive significant support from Western partners. While noting serious concerns about corruption, the European Union’s latest progress report maintained Albania’s status as a candidate for membership. U.S. State Department reports consistently criticize corruption while praising Albania’s strategic partnership.
The contrasting responses to corruption in Serbia and Albania reflect deeper institutional differences. While Serbia’s student protesters have maintained their independence from political parties and foreign organizations, Albania’s anti-corruption efforts remain largely confined to institutional frameworks created with international support.
The Special Anti-Corruption Structure (SPAK), Albania’s flagship anti-corruption body, illustrates these limitations. Despite high-profile arrests of lower-level officials, SPAK’s major investigations have yet to result in convictions of senior political figures. The European Commission’s 2024 progress report noted that while corruption investigations have increased, conviction rates for high-level corruption remain low.
Albania’s construction sector further demonstrates how corruption has become entrenched in the economy. The Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime’s investigation found that between 2017 and 2019, cash transactions for luxury apartments in Tirana frequently exceeded legitimate market activity. Despite regulations requiring documentation of funds’ origins, enforcement remains weak.
The recent waste incinerator scandal reveals how this system operates. Court documents show that a single concessionaire received €430 million in public funds while major portions of the promised infrastructure remained unbuilt. When arrests finally came, they targeted former officials rather than current power brokers.
Meanwhile, Serbia’s student movement has shown how sustained pressure can crack seemingly impenetrable systems. Their protests have remained explicitly non-partisan, focusing instead on institutional reform. When masked men attacked student protesters in Novi Sad, the movement responded not with violence but with larger, more organized demonstrations.
What explains Albania’s different trajectory? The answer may lie in the nature of its post-communist transition. While Serbia experienced a clean break with the Milošević regime in 2000, Albania’s transition produced a political class that has maintained power through shifting alliances. The result is a system where opposition parties are often compromised by their own corruption histories, leaving citizens without credible alternatives.
This dynamic helps explain why revelations like the McGonigal scandal, which exposed direct connections between American law enforcement and Albanian political figures, produced more headlines abroad than protests at home. The court documents revealed not just corruption but the sophisticated ways Albanian officials have learned to manage their international image while maintaining domestic control.
As Serbia’s protests enter their fourth month, they offer a powerful reminder that citizen action can force accountability even in systems long considered impervious to change. Yet for Albania, where corruption has become more sophisticated and deeply rooted, the path to reform remains unclear. The question is no longer whether corruption exists but whether citizens will find ways to challenge a system that has mastered the art of surviving scandal.
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