Albania

E

Health and Welfare

The government provides retirement pensions, free, if limited, medical care, workers’ compensation, paid holidays, and other benefits for workers and their families. Steps have been taken, within current financial constraints, to correct the problem of insufficient medical personnel and facilities.

F

Defence

In 2004 Albania’s armed forces numbered about 21,500 people, including an army of 16,000; navy of 2,000; and air force of 3,500. Conscription is for a period of up to 15 months. The paramilitary force, including an internal security force of 5,000 and a people’s militia of 3,500, numbered 13,500 in 1995. Albania’s armed forces are currently being reorganized, a process planned to be completed by 2010. In 2003 total military expenditure was US$76 million, or US$24 per capita, which constituted 1.2 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

G

International Organizations

Albania is a member of the following organizations: the United Nations (UN); Black Sea Economic Cooperation Pact (BSEC); Central European Initiative (CEI); Council of Europe (CE); Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE); the Partnership for Peace (PFP); and the World Trade Organization.

VI

History

The Albanians are considered descendants of the Illyrians, an Indo-European people who settled the western part of the Balkan Peninsula at, or shortly after, the end of the Bronze Age (c. 1000 bc). The Illyrians established their own states during the 5th and the 3rd centuries bc.

A

Ancient Times

The Adrians Kingdom, founded in the 3rd century bc, was the most prominent of the ancient states. It extended from the Dalmatian coast to the coastal regions of present-day Albania and reached the peak of its power during King Agron’s reign (250-231 bc). The Adrians Kingdom became an important naval power, preying on Roman shipping and thus endangering the republic’s trade. In 168 bc Rome conquered the entire Illyrian Kingdom and thereafter ruled it for more than five centuries. In the beginning of the Roman occupation, Albania proper became an important centre, connecting Rome with Byzantium through the Via Egnatia.

The Illyrians played an important role in the Roman Empire. Several of the emperors were of Illyrian origin, namely Claudius II, Aurelian, Diocletian, and Probus in the 3rd century ad, Constantine the Great in the 4th century, and Justinian I in the 6th century.