Genti Gazheli, the director of the Albanian Customs Administration, conducted a meeting in Rome with Roberto Alesse, the head of the Italian Customs and Monopolies Agency, and Andrea De Gennaro, the Commander-in-Chief of the Financial Police.

As per the General Directorate of Customs (DPD), the meeting concluded with an agreement on the necessity to enhance cooperation between the two countries.

“With the foundation laid by activities initiated long ago, including mutual assistance, information exchange, and administrative cooperation agreements signed in 1998, 2003, and 2022 respectively, along with the excellent bilateral relations, the three customs authorities have collectively decided to further intensify joint efforts. This aims to ensure legality and security in cross-border commercial activities,” as communicated by the DPD.

According to the DPD, the initial undertaking will focus on assessing any required updates to existing agreements. The objective is to align the approach of Albanian customs with European standards in fraud prevention and customs controls. Simultaneously, it aims to enhance trade security by regularly convening the joint commission established for coordinating cooperation activities.

The administrations have also agreed that in the forthcoming months, programs for the exchange of experiences, training activities—including on-the-job training—and the sharing of best practices will be initiated. This initiative will particularly focus on fostering collaboration between the Italian ports of Ancona, Bari, and Brindisi and the Albanian ports of Durrës and Vlora.

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