Ilir Gedeshi

• Doctor of Business Administration
• Managing Director at Center for Economic and Social Studies, Tirana, Albania

Across many countries of Central and Eastern Europe the emigration of skilled professionals since 1990 has become a serious problem of the loss of specialised human capital. This paper on Albanian doctors is one of the first to study in depth an example of this broader phenomenon of brain drain from the CEE region. There is a global demand for medi...

This paper reports the results of empirical research into the characteristics of the Kosovan scientific diaspora. We define ‘scientific diaspora’ as persons holding a PhD or studying for one who are currently living and working abroad. This export of highly qualified talent is a major issue across the Western Balkan countries, and seems to be parti...

Taking the case of Albania, in this paper we present data on the brain drain of medical doctors and what can be done to prevent it. Globally, the demand for doctors and other healthcare professionals is rising fast due to ageing populations and also, in Europe especially, the ageing of the population of doctors. Like other Western Balkan countries,...

Taking the case of Albania, in this paper we present data on the brain drain of medical doctors and what can be done to prevent it. Globally, the demand for doctors and other healthcare professionals is rising fast due to ageing populations and also, in Europe especially, the ageing of the population of doctors. Like other Western Balkan countries,...

Using the innovative concept of cognitive remittances, this paper looks at the transformation of the self-perception and positionality of Roma returned asylum-seekers. The empirical evidence, in the form of interview narratives and focus group quotes, is drawn from two research projects based in Albania and Kosovo and the wider Western Balkan regio...

Using unique survey data collected from respondents attending university in North Macedonia (N=423), this paper investigates students’ decisions on intended emigration. The study is set within the regional context of high youth migration from the Western Balkans and involves comparisons with an earlier, similar study on Albania. Results for North M...

During the so-called ‘refugee and migration crisis’ of 2015–2016 and the opening of the Balkan route between Turkey and the EU, Albania played a marginal role. Instead, the mass emigration from Albania which had been continuous since the early 1990s, mainly directed towards Greece and Italy, suddenly developed a new outlet: the movement of tens of...

Since the early 1990s, international migration and its economic, political and social impact remains a fundamental issue in Albania. Albania is among the top countries in the world for the scale and intensity of international migration. Meanwhile, asylum seeking is a relatively new phenomenon for the country. Between 2010 and September 2019, around...

Albania has one of the highest rates of emigration in recent decades in the world, part of which includes a substantial scientific diaspora, defined here as PhD-holders and PhD students currently living and working abroad. This article seeks answers to two sets of questions. First, what are the characteristics of this diaspora in terms of size, loc...

Since the end of communist rule in 1991, Albania has seen, proportionately, one of the largest outflows of its people of any country in the world – an emigrant stock in 2013 equivalent to 44% of its resident population. This article addresses two issues related to the future trend of Albanian migration. First, a migration module of 23 questions des...

A recurring symptom of many small and relatively poor countries is the loss of their most talented and highly educated individuals, in what is commonly termed ‘brain drain’. Albania, in the Western Balkans and on the southeastern periphery of Europe, is a case in point and is the subject of this report. Through literature review and a range of surv...

This paper analyses the impact of the entrepreneur's social networks on the growth of 265 Albanian small firms. A self-declared and categorized sales rate of growth is explained by the strong ties. The latter includes the nuclear family, the kinship atom and extended family. The weak ties are represented by the friendship and the business networks....

http://www.errc.org/article/roma-rights-1-2014-going-nowhere-western-balkan-roma-and-eu-visa-liberalisation/4325/8

This study was conducted to better understand the implementation of the Roma Decade Action Plan and the situation of the Roma community in Albania only 3 years prior to the formal completion of this intergovernmental commitment. By combining qualitative and quantitative methods, this study examines deeply and extends widthwise to better understand...

Emigrants' remittances are an important source of income for Albanian households and a source of employment for many Albanians. This article uses surveys of emigrants and other data to analyze the role of emigration in the Albanian economy. Characteristics of emigrants and their motivation for emigrating and for sending remittances back to Albania...

This qualitative assessment of poverty in Albania seeks to deepen the understanding of poverty in the country, first, by involving poor Albanians in a process of exploring the causes, nature, extent of poverty, and how it affects their livelihoods. Second, it is intended to support the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP). Third, it s...

Overcoming Isolation: Strategies of Development and Policies of Cross-border Cooperation in Southeastern Europe

Jean-Guillaume Ditter & Ilir Gedeshi, «Dix ans de transition économique albanaise : de l'autarcie à l'extraversion», pp 121-139. A l'issue d'une décennie de réformes incomplètes jalonnées de chocs d'origine externe et interne violents, l'économie albanaise a subi une mutation rapide qui l'a menée d'une situation d'autarcie presque complète à une dé...

La fuite des élites albanaises est un processus social et économique qui n'a pas eu que des effets négatifs. Cependant pour enrayer cet exode et encourager les émigrés au retour, l'Albanie doit définir une politique scientifique et éducative claire, étroitement liée à une politique industrielle à long terme avec l'aide des programmes européens déve...