The Electoral Assistance Project was signed between the Ministry of Local Government and UNDP in Tirana on 17 March. In order to contribute to a democratic and transparent election process in Albania, the project will provide various technical assistance, including the establishment of a national computerized database system for the compilation of voters’ lists, to be used for the upcoming 2000 Local Elections and future electoral processes.

The Albanian Government has approved the UNDP project "Building Capacities for the Social Insurance Institute in Albania". The project will focus on increasing the organizational and operational skills for improved management of pensions and social insurance schemes.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadako Ogata, ended a tour of the Balkan region with a two-day visit to Albania. In the meeting with the Albanian Prime Minister, Ogata expressed her appreciation of the great support given by the Albanian Government during the Kosovo crisis, and assured that UNHCR will continue to assist the 4,000 Kosovo refugees still remaining in Albania. Prime Minister Meta confirmed the commitment of the Albanian Government to continue its cooperation with and support of the UNHCR humanitarian operation in Kosovo.

The World Bank has approved a credit of 17.5 million US$ in the support of reforms in the public administration and judicial systems in Albania. The projects will provide required resources for technical assistance in training, equipment and incremental operation costs in order to implement the reforms.

WFP in Albania has begun implementing Work for Food public works projects in poor rural areas.

An Albanian delegation, led by Foreign Minister Paskal Milo, attended the Regional Financing Conference for the Stability Pact in Brussels, on 29-30 March. Albania will receive financing for seven priority projects within the next year. These first-phase projects concentrate on infrastructure, including the rehabilitation of the Port of Durres (the "gateway of Corridor 8"), and energy supply systems. Eleven other large-scale projects have received pledges of support to be financed and implemented in a second phase. Albania received total financing of 430 million EURO for 18 out of 28 projects presented at the conference. A special Parliamentary Commission has been created to guide the formulation and implementation of development initiatives in the framework of the Stability Pact.

The Foreign Ministers of Albania, Macedonia and Greece met early in the month in Korca (South-East Albania) to discuss inter-border cooperation, including allowing free movement of people within a range of 20 kilometers from the borders of the three countries.

The OSCE Office in Tirana is providing assistance to the working group of legal experts to review the draft of the Election Law. Regular meetings are being held to discuss various issues including the composition of the Central Elections Commission (CEC).

Javier Solana, EU Commissioner, ended a Balkan tour with a visit to Tirana in mid-March to confirm and extend good relations with Albania. Mr. Solana met with the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and President of the Republic.

Construction of the 910 km Trans-Balkan Oil Pipeline Burgas (Bulgaria) – Vlore (Albania), will be undertaken by AMBO Corporation with an investment of 850 million US$. Representatives of the American firm met with the Albanian Prime Minister to discuss related technical issues and to request the support of the Albanian Government.

The antique town of Butrint, designated a "World Cultural Asset" by UNESCO in 1993, was declared a National Park by the Albanian Government. A grant of 225,000 US$ was approved by the International Development Association (WB Group) for development and protection of the archeological tourist site.