Legislation and Disaster Risk Reduction at the Community Level: Albania Case Study
This case study summary, commissioned by the IFRC as part of a broader series examining how legislation can support or impede disaster risk reduction at the community level, provides a concise overview of Albania’s legislative framework for disaster management. It profiles Albania’s main natural and man-made hazard risks — including earthquakes, floods, forest fires, and industrial accidents — and analyzes how the country’s legal and policy environment shapes its capacity for disaster prevention, preparedness, and response.
The summary assesses Albania’s primary disaster legislation, the 2001 Civil Emergency Law, finding that its focus remains heavily oriented toward response and recovery rather than risk reduction and prevention. It highlights promising developments including the 2004 National Civil Emergency Plan and a draft Civil Protection Law pending adoption, both of which more explicitly incorporate disaster risk reduction principles. At the same time, it identifies significant gaps: highly centralized disaster management, underfunded local governments, weak enforcement of existing legislation, and limited legal provisions for community participation, public education, and community-based organization involvement in DRR.