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IPARD III still blocked/ European Commission: We have no deadlines for their opening, misused funds must be returned

2026-09-14 11:28:00 / POLITIKË ALFA PRESS
IPARD III still blocked/ European Commission: We have no deadlines for their

"We are confident and hopeful that IPARD 3 will be opened in September," said Petrit Malaj on January 30, 2026.

"For IPARD funds, we are in the final phase of evaluation," Andis Salla told Report TV on July 8, 2026.

In mid-September, Brussels did not confirm a deadline for the opening of IPARD III. In a response to Report TV, it emphasized that they are still evaluating the request made by Albania in April 2026, for the opening of funds and for the assessment of the measures that Albanian institutions have taken to protect EU funds.

"In April 2026, the Albanian authorities submitted to the European Commission the request for the assessment of budgetary implementation tasks for the measures of the IPARD III 2021-2027 programme. The Commission services are assessing this request, taking into account, among others, the findings of OLAF, as well as the improvements made by the Albanian authorities in their management and control system for the implementation of IPARD III," the EC says.

Only after ensuring that Albania has fulfilled its obligations to guarantee the effective use of IPARD funds can it move on to the next phase, that of concluding an agreement with the European Commission to begin the implementation of the IPARD III program.

"Once the procedure is completed, the Government of Albania and the European Commission will need to conclude the Financing Agreement for the implementation of the IPARD III programme. This agreement will make EU funds available to Albania. It is currently not possible to say when the delegation may be approved and, consequently, the date of the start of the implementation of the IPARD III programme in Albania is not yet known," the response continues.

As for IPARD II funds, which are suspected of being abused, Brussels says in response that any irregular expenditure will be refunded, but without providing further details on the amount that is suspected of being misused.

"For the IPARD II 2014-2020 programme and the risk to EU funds related to irregularities, a bilateral procedure is currently underway between the European Commission and the Albanian authorities. Any amount found to have been irregularly or wrongly spent will have to be returned to the European Union budget. As this bilateral procedure is still ongoing, no further information can be provided at this time," the EC says.

At the end of the response, Brussels emphasizes that they are "ready to continue supporting Albanian farmers, provided that the EU's financial interests are properly protected."

IPARD III has 9 measures in total and the amount of money that Albanian farmers are expected to benefit from is 112 million euros from the European Union and 34 million euros from the state budget. This program will support areas such as rural infrastructure, construction of markets, Agro-processing or Agro-tourism, forestry, technical assistance and consulting.

The European Commission stopped supporting Albanian agriculture through IPARD funds in August 2023 because OLAF (European Anti-Fraud Office) found misuse of funds from the previous IPARD II program, following investigations that began with complaints from various citizens about corruption, favoritism and political interference. The case is currently being investigated by the Albanian judiciary.

 

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