Annex A. Stakeholder engagement in developing the Circular Economy Roadmap of Albania
Transitioning to a circular economy is a long-term process requiring broad societal consensus. This roadmap was developed through a multi-step process involving a wide range of stakeholders in a continuous dialogue spanning several months. This annex describes how the roadmap was designed.
As part of the inception phase of the “Supporting Green Transition through Circular Economy Roadmaps”, the OECD contacted its existing contacts in respective ministries responsible for the green economy, inviting them to identify a circular economy (CE) co-ordinator.
The OECD held meetings with the newly nominated CE co-ordinator and his team. During the discussions, the Ministry of Tourism and Environment and the OECD agreed to form a CE working group and to maintain a broader CE stakeholder platform to steer the roadmap design process and ensure that all parts of society were involved in the CE transition (Table A.1). To support the establishment of the working group and the CE platform, the OECD provided an initial list of relevant stakeholders from all parts of society to ensure an inclusive process: government institutions, international organisations (locally present and those working on the circular economy in Albania), academia, civil society and the private sector. Additional members suggested by the co-ordinating ministry completed the list and became members of the working group and the CE stakeholder platform.
In addition to the Albania-specific CE platform, the OECD established a Regional Circular Economy Peer Dialogue platform at the regional kick-off event in Istanbul, consisting of the CE co-ordinators from all six Western Balkan economies and representatives from their respective CE working groups, supported by the OECD/EU member countries (e.g. Hungary, Italy and Türkiye). Participants endorsed the regional platform, whose objective is to facilitate bilateral and multilateral exchange, peer learning, and policy dialogue on circular economy transition efforts in the Western Balkans and beyond. Members of the platform contributed to the development of the Circular Economy Roadmap of Albania by sharing their feedback and lessons learnt in the design of their respective CE roadmaps in different phases of the development process (e.g. prioritisation exercise, drafting).
After the establishment of the CE co-ordination mechanism, in collaboration with the CE co-ordinator, the OECD facilitated several stakeholder meetings to officially establish the CE platform and gather initial takeaways on the circular economy. The main objectives of these meetings were to clarify the roles of members of the platform, collect data and information on the development of strategic circular economy documents and activities, and consult stakeholders on economy-specific aspects to be considered during the drafting of the roadmap. During these meetings, the OECD presented the main pillars, objectives and timeline for the project while outlining the steps to be taken to support the design and implementation of the roadmap. The CE co-ordinator informed participants about CE government initiatives and priorities and moderated the discussion with the CE stakeholders. The OECD also liaised with locally present international actors (e.g. UNDP, GIZ) working on CE-related projects to create synergies and avoid any duplication of efforts in driving Albania’s circular economy transition.
Further to the stakeholders’ meetings, the CE co-ordinator established the CE working group of Albania, made up of representatives of the key CE-related government and non-governmental institutions.
The first step in designing Albania’s Circular Economy Roadmap was identifying the state-of-play of the circular economy in the country. The diagnostic built on the latest findings of the OECD Competitiveness Outlook 2021 (“Environmental policy” chapter) and the OECD SME Policy Index 2022 (“SMEs in a green economy” chapter) and was complemented by extensive research. In particular, the OECD conducted a literature review of relevant policies, strategies and laws in Albania; desk research on OECD and other renowned institutions’ reports covering circular economy trends in Albania; an analysis of circular economy strategic documents and roadmaps in other OECD countries; and compiled statistical data. The diagnostic was further enriched with the feedback obtained during the stakeholders’ meetings.
The diagnostic maps all CE-relevant policy and regulatory frameworks in Albania and outlines key economic features, recent circular economy and environmental trends, ongoing initiatives and projects, critical sectors, and horizontal policy areas for addressing the barriers to a circular economy.
Throughout the drafting process, CE working group members provided written comments, feedback and any additional information that would enhance the analytical depth and comprehensiveness of the mapping documents. In addition, the OECD held a virtual meeting with the Albanian CE working group to discuss the draft document and fill in remaining data gaps on the status quo of the circular economy in Albania.
The OECD presented a total of ten pre-selected priority areas to the Albanian working group at a prioritisation meeting in September 2023 in Tirana, explaining the rationale and providing a set of preliminary recommendations set over the short, medium and long term. Lively discussions revealed a tentative preview of priorities and were enriched further by first-hand insights from experiences presented by experts from OECD countries – members of the Regional Circular Economy Peer Dialogue platform (namely Hungary and Italy).
Based on this, in a follow up meeting, the working group members selected three areas for the Circular Economy Roadmap of Albania.
The OECD developed detailed policy recommendations for each of the priority areas selected by the working group, which were accompanied by good practice examples. The OECD shared the draft roadmap with all members of the working group for review and comment. The draft was also sent for consultations to a wider group of stakeholders, including international community representatives, the European Commission and the members of the Regional CE Peer Dialogue platform. Before its publication in Q1 2024, the roadmap was validated by the Editorial Board of the OECD Global Relations and Co-operation Directorate.