EDUCATION AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF DURRES DURING THE ALBANIAN PROCESS OF TRANSITION

The purpose of this paper is to describe some of the critical social-economic development transformations in Durrës as one of the most economically important cities of Albania. Since the fall of communism, Durrës is overcoming a critical economic situation, which has had an adverse impact on its social indicators. Actually, after two decades, the process of urbanization is still facing challenges all over the country. The quality of environmental development has improved recently but implementation leave much to be desired. Durrës underwent an uncontrolled urban development, where illegal buildings were constructed in previously green areas. In this paper the transition process will be analyze through a thorough overview of the sectors and the areas that are problematic. It will try to identify in which conditions are this sectors, which potential do they have, and which pose a threat and what kind of threat. A good starting point in understanding the actual development, is also the analyze of the hot areas of Durrës that might need intervention. It is very important to approach these issues and to establish a new strategy for an sustainable development, so that Durrës can place itself on the right way of becoming a competitive European center