The European Union and the Albanian Government, in collaboration with the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), have launched EU4Forests, a 16 million euro program aimed at strengthening sustainable forest management and climate resilience in Albania.
Forests—covering about 36% of Albania’s territory—are essential for water security, biodiversity, rural livelihoods, erosion control, and climate regulation. However, indiscriminate land use, deforestation, arson, overexploitation, lack of inspection and monitoring, and limited investment have led to a 32% reduction in forest volume over the past 20 years.
The EU4Forests program, primarily funded by the European Union (12.7 million euro), with contributions from Italy (3 million euro), will support reforestation, improve fire prevention, and strengthen the institutions responsible for forest management.
The EU Ambassador to Albania, Silvio Gonzato, stated: “Albania’s forests must be protected to ensure a sustainable future, and EU4Forests represents a concrete step in this direction. The Albanian forestry sector needs a decisive boost to align with EU environmental and climate standards and to reverse the effects of deforestation, fires, and climate change. The EU is here to help Albania achieve these standards and preserve the country’s green lungs.”
The Acting Director of AICS Tirana, Letizia Fischioni, reaffirmed “Italy’s commitment to supporting Albania in the forestry sector, with particular attention to wildfire prevention and civil protection, which are fundamental pillars for environmental resilience and risk management.”
Over five years, the project will provide technical and operational support to forest governance through 10 municipal forest management plans and a national afforestation and reforestation plan, along with concrete actions for ecosystem restoration and wildfire prevention.
Implementation will be carried out in close collaboration with the Ministry of the Environment, the National Forest Agency, and relevant public institutions, as well as municipalities, local communities, private sector actors—particularly SMEs in the wood-processing sector—academia, and civil society as key partners. The project promotes participatory approaches, public-private partnerships, and innovative tools, including GIS-based monitoring and AI-supported wildfire risk assessment.
EU4Forests reflects the strong, shared, and long-term commitment of Italian Cooperation and UNDP to collaborate in Albania in the fields of environment, protected areas, and disaster risk reduction.
