New bill: Domestic investments will be protected the same as foreign ones

Domestic investments will be protected the same as foreign investments. This is the essence of a new bill “On investments” that the government has drafted. This bill aims at “attracting” as many investments as possible from domestic companies and not only from foreign companies. According to the bill in question, one of the difficulties in attracting investments so far has been the lack of a unified law for both of these types of these investments. “But the approval of a new bill is a guarantee for domestic and foreign investors alike that every investment that they make in Albania will receive an equal treatment in line with the best international practices”, government experts say. According to them, this bill will now address the differences in treatment that used to exist between these two categories of investors and offers them the same protection. This situation has been caused by the law in force. According to government experts, the current law does not address this issue. “The current law does not address the rights, obligations and it does not offer protection for investors in the country”, sponsors of this bill say.

But how will this be achieved?

First of all, the government says that a new unified scheme will be introduced to attract domestic and foreign investments alike. Secondly, an efficient mechanism will be put in place to settle disputes in the area of investments as quickly as possible and in the most equitable way possible.

“Long court cases and extra costs have been the main reason why many investors have withdrawn their investments. The aim of the bill is to reduce cost and the amount of time needed to settle disputes for these two types of investments. It’s very important that businesses settle their disputes with public institutions as quick as possible and by incurring as fewer costs as possible”, government experts say.

IMF’s criticism over business climate, government: This bill will improve it

The International Monetary Fund two days ago issued a statement where it criticized the Albanian government about the current business climate, while demanding reforms. Meanwhile, it looks like this bill will serve this purpose. “The approval of the investment bill creates a favourable climate of investments in the country, by bringing positive effects on the economy”, experts explain.

Experts: Political instability hinders investments

Political instability is the first one experts list in terms of the risks that an investment could face, domestic or foreign. Another obstacle relates to the fact that public institutions do not apply the law correctly. The countries of the region are also among the risks. Experts say that these countries could deter investors from investing money to Albania.