Opportunities to develop agritourism in rural areas are increasingly encouraging people to return to their hometowns and invest in inherited properties.

Prime Minister Edi Rama presented three such success stories today on his “Flasim” podcast. The stories show how returning home, including after years abroad, can create successful businesses.

Entela and Kisi from Koman and Taulanti from Pogradec joined Rama on the podcast. They shared their experiences of returning home and investing in their local communities.

Entela and her husband, Sokoli, returned to Koman after several years in Tirana. They decided to invest in the family property and saw tourism as an opportunity to build their lives and business in their hometown.

Entela explained that they returned to her husband’s grandparents’ house in Koman after years in Tirana. “We never abandoned Koman for a single day,” she said. The family returned every weekend, even while living in Tirana.

The family had invested in the property for years. In 1998, they even built a swimming pool, without imagining that Koman would later become an important tourist destination.

Meanwhile, Entela said tourism has grown significantly in the area. “Koman is full of tourists. Koman is operating at full capacity,” she said.

Taulanti from Pogradec also shared his story of returning home from Italy. He had studied at La Sapienza University in Rome before deciding to return and expand his family’s dairy processing business.

“The company has grown. When I came back in 2014, we had eight employees. Today, we have 35 employees and work with more than 400 farmers,” Taulanti said.

He also changed the company’s technology and brought its production in line with European standards. “Today, we are on the market with European standards,” he said.

Taulanti also used a subsidized 2% interest loan through the Sovereign Guarantee provided by the state. The funding helped him expand the company’s product line.

“I want to focus on tourism because the future is tourism. We want to have an authentic Albanian product that we can also showcase to tourists,” he added.

Kisi also decided to return home after spending time in France. He returned to Koman and invested in a bar-café and campsite.

Meanwhile, Rama highlighted the role of improved road infrastructure in the development of tourist destinations. He stressed that protecting nature remains the main challenge.

“We must protect it and always think about what brings tourists there. It is nature,” Rama said.

The three stories highlight how investment in local properties, agriculture and tourism can create new economic opportunities in rural areas while encouraging people to return to their hometowns.

/a.c/