AITA

Albanian Information Technology
Association (AITA)
Prepared by: Dritan Mezini, MBA, MPM
Board Chairman

8th SEEITA – 7th SEE ICT Forum Board Meeting & 7th MASIT Open Days Conference
14th -15th October, 2010, Ohrid, www.seeita.org

AITA, IT and

Business Development challenges

Albanian Information Technology Association – AITA

Dritan Mezini, Board Chairman

4

Presentation Outline

• Country profile
• IT/ICT Sector and Market
• AITA
• Key Activities in support to Business development
Questions


Geography

Location surrounded by Macedonia, Monte Negro,
Kosova, Greece and Italy (sea border).
Area total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km
water: 1,350 sq km
Land total: 717 km
boundaries border countries: Greece 282 km, Macedonia
151 km, Montenegro 172 km, Kosovo 112 km
Coastline Total :362 km


People
Population 3,619,778 (July 2008 est.)

Age structure 0-14 years: 23.6%
15-64 years: 66.9%
65 years and over: 9.5% (2008
est.)

Median Age total: 29.5 years
male: 28.9 years
female: 30.2 years (2008 est.)
Ethnic groups Albanian 95%, Greek 3%, other 2% (Vlach, Roma
(Gypsy), Serb, Macedonian, Bulgarian) (1989 est.)


Economy
GDP real growth rate 6% (2007 est.)
GDP composition sector agriculture: 21.2%
industry: 20.1%
services: 58.7% (2007 est.)
Labor Force 1.09 million (not including 352,000 emigrant
workers) (September 2006 est.)
Unemployment Rate 13% official rate, but may exceed 30% due to
preponderance of near-subsistence farming
(2007 est.)
Industries food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber,
oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals,
hydropower


International membership
• June 12 2006, Albania signed the Association and
Stabilization Agreement
• April 4th, 2008 Albania became NATO member


Visa liberalization
• European Parliament already voted pro the visa
liberalization for Albania/BiH
• End of December free to move


11

Presentation Outline

• Country Profile
• AITA
Questions


Private sector and SME
• Private sector contributes an estimated 80% of GDP.
• Main industry sectors:
▫ Banking, Insurance, Telecommunication, Construction,
Education,
• SME – main contributors
• Total 83,000 SME where 78,000 are small less than
60,000 Euro turnover/year.


Business Climate
Registration process

• Simplified system registration procedure from 47
days into 1 (one), and at a cost of 1 Euro.


Economic Framework

It is expected fair solid economic growth (WB source, 2008)

Albanian IT Market

• IT Market Size 2007: ca. $89,34 mi.
2008 $ 117.25 mill
growth 31.3%
• Expected IT Market Size 2013: ca. $136.4 mi.

•  Dynamic Market
•  Opened Market
•  Big Potential

Source: IDC 2007, 2008

Sectors

2007 2008
• Hardware 71.40% 73.82%
• Packaged IT 15.70% 10.87%
• IT Services 12.90% 15.31%

Source: IDC 2008


Main IT Sectors
2008 (overall increase)
• IT services increased by 70% to $ 17.95 mill
• Spending on license and maintenance fees for
packaged software increased 73% up to $12.75 mill
• Hardware – increase over last year

Source: IDC 2008


Albania IT Market benchmarking (IDC)


Forecast
• Growth in any area of IT sector, where the growth in
services will be much higher.
• Country/Industry still have so much room to grow
and develop.


Innovation and Technology
• Considered within two perspectives
▫ SME
▫ Academic sector
• Lack of “hard and soft infrastructure” that
encourages innovation and takes it down to the SME.
• Global Competitiveness Report ranks Albania in the
lowest levels.


Technology
• The Reports 9th Pillar, Technological Readiness found
that in the
▫ availability of the latest technologies
Albania ranked as 104 out of 134,
▫ enterprise technology absorption 110th,
▫ broadband Internet connection 117th, and
▫ personal computer usage at 92nd.

24
Table of contents

• Country profile
• AITA
• Questions


AITA – general info
• Founded in January 8th, 2007
• Current number of members: about 30 – key
companies
• Membership structure (companies + NGO +
universities)
• Web-site http://www.aita-al.org
• Industry: Information technologies (hardware,
software, IT services)


Objectives/Challenges

• Become the main hub of IT sector in Albania
• Be the strong voice of the sector to the government
• Recognize and identify the weakness/barriers
• Development and strengthening of IT industry in the country
• Promote the IT sector countrywide
• Develop the export services
• Become leader of promoting professional services in the
country
• Partnership with other associations


AITA - partners
• Open Regional Fond for Foreign Trade Promotion / IT
Component-GTZ Project.
• USAID – Rritje Albania
• SEE ICT Forum
• STIKK – Memorandum of understanding
• MASIT – special working relationship
• Norway Government - CRIMSON Capital
• USAID - RCI


28
Table of contents

• Country profile
• AITA
• Key activities in Support to Business Development
• Questions


Current business climate
• Strong support by the Government
• Strong support by international organizations
supporting ICT activities
• Support by local group of interests


Institutional changes
• Ministry for Innovation and Technology
• Agency for Innovation support
• National Information Society


Key Activities to Business
Development
• Initiate the meeting with Prime Minister (April 2010)
Main Requirements and promisses
▫ VAT reduction – Currently 20% - it was promissed 10%
▫ Set-up of an agency for soft loans towards ICT sector
▫ Technological Village
▫ Prioritize the software and services development
▫ Create the National Forum of Digital Albania


continued
• Connection in between University and the ICT
market
• The ICT week organization in the country
• Introduction of ICT standards
• ICT budget planning and directions in order to shape
the trends
• Making manadatory the inclusion of local ICT
companies into international tenders

Activities
• Participation of AITA in the National Curricula Group
for ICT courses for vocational schools
• B2B organized by STIKK and AITA

Recognition of AITA as the representaive of IT private
business and as the business solution providers.


Large country initiatives
There are large countries projects going on in
procurement, taxes, customs, health and so on,
supported by Government, USAID, World Bank, EBRD,
EU and so on.


National Forum for Digital Albania
• Is a product of AITA and Ministry for Innovation and
Technology.

The main goal of the Forum is the initiation of projects
by the Governemnt and private sector in support of
ICT and business development.

AITA works very close with all the stakeholders for the promoter
and solution provider for IT industry.

36
Table of contents

• Country profile
• AITA
• Key activities in Support to Business Development
• Questions


AITA Now and on
• STIKK-Crimson Capital – Norway Foreign Support
support AITA with seed money for the next two
years.


It will enable to shift from volunteer work to hiring an executive
staff. This support will strengthen AITA, its role in the country, in
the sector, region and it will provide also a future sustainable
model.

AITA is product of IT and business market and it will be
there for challenging the barriers and develop the market, and
ensure the future of IT in the country.


Thank you for your attention!

www.aita-al.org
dmezini@aita-al.org

AITA

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