Prime Minister Edi Rama announced at the PS Assembly that it is planned for families receiving economic assistance to be equipped with a card. According to him, they will use the card to buy food, based on a list that will be determined, to prevent abuses.
"Well, we did this. We have increased opportunities. Now, how is it that we increase opportunities and corruption has increased? Because these two do not go together. In a place where corruption increases, opportunities for redistribution do not increase. This does not happen. State budget revenues do not increase. The number of beneficiaries from public competitions does not increase. Wages do not increase, pensions do not increase as we are increasing them.
And as we have told you: in January the increase X started, next January it will be X (times 2), in January 2028 it will be X (times 3), in January 2029 it will be X (times 4) and in 2030 it will be X (times 5), and we will reach those pension levels that are reasonable, not sufficient, but reasonable for Albania. As for informality, you are very right, but here too many things have changed, which is why we also have more revenue, because otherwise... However, we will continue. We are doing a new project.
We have created a public company in cooperation with the United Arab Emirates called 'AlbTrace', which is for tracking and tracing products, but not only. And another program that I believe we will implement soon is a program that will ensure that, starting with families on economic assistance, we equip them with a card, which they will use to get food at any place that has a cash register.
And thus we guarantee that everything the state pays for economic assistance goes for basic food according to the list that will be made and does not go for raki, which some drunk husband might take, nor for bingo. This is only the first step and this is only the first category, because then we will have the possibility, with this system, that if a protective package needs to be made, to give it through the card.
With this system we will also do all the support for soldiers, for police employees, for others serving outside the city, etc. And this, regarding informality, will have an extraordinary impact. So, it is not a limited card. According to categories, the card is there, for example, for the entire salary," said Rama.