Growth that is not being shared equally

Two reports on Tuesday, read separately, describe two different countries. The World Bank forecasts Albania's economy will grow 3.4% this year and 3.6% in 2027, with public debt below 50% of GDP, unemployment at a record low and poverty falling. Eurostat, on the same day, showed income inequality rising to 30.4 Gini points, from 29.8 a year earlier.

The contrast is sharper when compared with Europe. The EU average fell from 29.4 to 29.2, meaning the gap between the richest and the poorest narrowed slightly there, while here it widened. The INSTAT survey shows the same direction, with a Gini of 30.37%, even though disposable income per person rose 10.5%. There was growth, but it did not reach everyone to the same degree.

The World Bank report also offers a possible explanation. Growth still relies mainly on high-volume seasonal tourism with low added value, while the export base remains narrow and many export relationships are short-lived. Inflation was driven by food, fuel and high rents linked to tourism, precisely the costs that weigh most on low-income families.

It would be unfair to deny the achievements: falling debt, higher reserves and record-low unemployment are facts. But celebrating the average is not enough either. An economy that grows on the summer season and on ever more expensive rents can produce good numbers and at the same time leave part of society behind.

Our proposal is simple. The government should publish a list of the domestic regulatory and administrative barriers that the World Bank estimates are two to five times higher than tariffs, with deadlines for removing each one, because they limit the exports that create year-round jobs. And whenever INSTAT publishes growth figures, it should also publish how that growth was distributed across income groups.