cross border potentials to develop women entrepreneurship

CROSS BORDER POTENTIALS TO DEVELOP WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN TOURISM INDUSTRY


RECOMANDATION:

Establishing RCWTE represents a MUST; including advocacy; sensitizing and

educating key stakeholders; promotion of enterprise to

women; development of training programs and business support; sourcing of expert advice

and guidance; research; developing linkages in women’s enterprise

beyond Shkoder; establishing strong networks for women in business and developing new spin-off initiatives and

developing “third man” practice.


CROSS BORDER POTENTIALS TO DEVELOP WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN TOURISM INDUSTRY Tourism Industry The term “Tourism industry” first appeared in 1960. The idea of having an industrial form of tourism was difficult to determine because many retailer businesses serve both tourist and non-tourist clients. Therefore making the retailers part of two different industries. As a result “tourism industry” even today broadly signifies the collection of businesses, organizations and other resources that foster through providing services, the activity of tourists. Such as travel agencies, tour operators etc. (Jafari, 2003, pp. 305-306) The importance of tourism In this last century, we have witnessed an increasing interest of the population, directed towards finding ways to spend their free or leisure time. Therefore the tourism industry has been constantly growing hence taking an increasing importance in our lives. According to UNWTO: “Tourism is a social, cultural and economic phenomenon which entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business/professional purposes. These people are called visitors (which may be either tourists or excursionists; residents or non-residents) and tourism has to do with their activities, some which imply tourism expenditure.” (n.d.a) Tourism today is seen as one of the most vibrant and dynamically developing branches of economy in the majority of the world. Tourism industry plays an important role in the world economy. It constitutes quite an important part of the global transactions. On the other hand, Tourism is not just economy and cold data. It has its human and spiritual dimension. Tourism incites the human imagination. Tourism activities know no boundaries: they can be local or global. Tourism affects the economy and the environment in which it occurs, it influences the society that tries to benefit from it, but it also influences the tourist itself. Therefore, properly handling and managing it is of much concern not only to the individual businesses that profit from it, but also for governments and to the societies, which are involved in it. Page (2007), in his publication illustrates with the following list of factors, why tourism assumes such an important role, individually and globally. Tourism is a discretionary activity. This means that people do not have to participate in


tourism activities, differently from basic needs such as eating or drinking which can be considered as a must. Tourism is of growing economic significance. Many governments see tourism as offering new employment opportunities. Tourism is increasingly becoming associated with quality of life, because it creates the opportunity to escape from the everyday complexity and stress of life. Tourism is being seen as a basic right in the developed, Westernized industrialized countries. In some less developed countries, tourism is being advocated as a possible solution to poverty. Holidays are a defining feature of non-work for many workers. Global travel is becoming more accessible in the developed world for all classes of society. Consumer spending on discretionary items such as travel and tourism is being perceived as a less costly item in household budgets. Technology such as the internet has made booking travel-related products easy Tourism Dimensions Economic impact of tourism Tourism sector development most of the time is synonymous with an improvement of infrastructure, inflow of currency and lower unemployment. This is accomplished through influencing many different aspects and sectors of the economy. The world travel and tourism council WTTC (2013) recognizes that Travel & Tourism total contribution to the economy goes beyond the industry’s direct contribution, therefore adding to the total contribution of T&T factors like indirect contribution and induced contribution. (p.2) The table below shows the elements included in the three different factors creating the T&T total contribution to the economy.

Table 1: Elements of T&T contribution to the economy

Source: World Travel and Tourism Council-WTTC. Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2013 World. Retrieved from

http://www.wttc.org/, 2013, p.2)


According to the world travel and tourism, council (WTTC) (2013) based on 2012 prices: The direct contribution of the travel & tourism industry in 2012 to the world GDP amounts to US$ 2.1 trillion while at the same time creating 101 million jobs. Meanwhile the combined direct, indirect and induced impact of the Travel & Tourism industry total economic contribution in 2012 is estimated at US$ 6.6 trillion in GDP, based on 2012 prices. It also created 260 million jobs; US$ 760 billion in investment and at the same time US$ 1.2 trillion in exports. The overall contribution represents 9% of the total global GDP in 2012, one out of every eleven jobs was created from this industry, 5% of the overall global economy investment

and 5% of world exports. By 2023, Travel & Tourism’s contribution to the total economy is forecast to reach a level of US$ 10.5 trillion in GDP and have nearly 340 million jobs. While in 2013 the total contribution to the economy was at USD 6.8

trillion in GDP and 266 million jobs. (pp.1-7) Chart one and two graphically illustrates the progressive augmentation in the level of T&T industry contribution to the global GDP, starting with 2012, continuing with 2013 and finishing with the forecast for 2023.

Chart: Total contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP Source: World Travel and Tourism Council-WTTC. Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2013 World. Retrieved from

http://www.wttc.org/, (2013, p.3)


Chart: Total contribution of Travel & Tourism to employment Source: World Travel and Tourism Council-WTTC. Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2013 World. Retrieved from

http://www.wttc.org/, (2013, p.4)

The data mentioned above prove irrefutably the present and future importance of tourism for the global economy, making tourism a subject worth researching in depth. Social Impact of Tourism Tourism does not affect only the economy but it also can result in a significant social influence. According to United Nations Environment Program (2002, pp. 1-2) traveling can be a force for peace. Traveling brings a chance for people to interact between each other and therefore creating the bases for cultural and mutual understanding, which in return reduce the level of prejudice. The sympathies created during this social interaction contribute in lowering the tensions worldwide. In the first Global Summit on Peace through Tourism (Nov. 2000), 450 world leaders of the travel and tourism industry ratified the "Amman Declaration" recognizing T&T as a global peace industry. This shows how important tourism can be in building peace. Tourism also helps in strengthening communities. The development of tourism can contribute in revitalizing festivals and local events through an increasing demand brought in from tourists therefore rejuvenating and renewing the public, which normally would be only locals. Tourism can also help through lowering the level of emigration from rural areas by creating new job opportunities for the local population. (ibid) As mentioned earlier, it is difficult to determine tourism as an industry serving only one group of customers namely tourists, because it involves a wide range of products and services used from both locals and tourists as well. For this reason, facilities developed for tourism can serve at the same time also local communities. Cultural and traditions revaluation can be considered another social contribution of tourism. Tourism can boost the preservation and transmission of cultural and historical traditions through developing specific regional and cultural products. T&T industry also helps in raising local awareness in the financial value of natural and cultural sites therefore stimulating a feeling of pride in local and national heritage while increasing interest in its conservation. (ibid) Environmental impact of tourism The environment is a very important factor in tourism development, therefore protecting it is crucial for a prosperous tourism industry. However, tourism industry development may result in the depletion of the environment through road construction, infrastructure development, tourism facilities and mass tourism. The environmental deterioration occurs most of the time when the number of visitors is higher than the environment can handle. If conventional forms of tourism activities are developed in an uncontrolled way, these activities may result lead to soil erosion, higher levels of pollution, discharges of grey waters into the sea, etc. (Kruja, 2012, pp. 207-208 ) Best Practices in the Tourism and Travel Industry Nowadays almost every country in the world tries to compete in the growing T&T industry. The travel & tourism competitiveness index is key in assessing a country’s T&T sector attractiveness. This index is based on fourteen pillars, which are considered crucial for the competitiveness of the whole sector. The pillars are:


1. Policy rules and regulations; 2. Environmental sustainability; 3. Safety and security; 4. Health and hygiene; 5. Prioritization of Travel & Tourism; 6. Air transport infrastructure; 7. Ground transport infrastructure; 8.Tourism infrastructure; 9. ICT infrastructure; 10. Price competitiveness in the T&T industry; 11. Human resources; 12. Affinity for Travel & Tourism; 13. Natural resources; 14. Cultural resources (Blanke & Chiesa, 2013, p. 5) As you can see in Table below, the top ten countries in T&T sector competitiveness for 2013 are Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Spain, United Kingdom, United States, France, Canada, Sweden and Singapore.

Table: The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index 2013 and 2011 comparison Adopted from: Blanke, Jennifer. Chiesa, Thea. The travel & tourism competitiveness report

2013: Reducing barriers to economic growth and job creation. Retrieved from The World Economic Forum website: www.weforum.org/ttcr (2013, p.5)

While the top three positions for 2011 and 2013 are held from European flags, the difference is that for both years first and second place was held from Switzerland and Germany. Meanwhile in 2013 Austria went one place up from fourth position to the third taking France’s place which in 2013 fell in seventh position. Table 3 graphically shows the top three performing economies per pillar


Table 2: Top three performing economies per pillar Adopted from: Blanke, Jennifer. Chiesa, Thea. The travel & tourism competitiveness report 2013: Reducing

barriers to economic growth and job creation. Retrieved from The World Economic Forum website: www.weforum.org/ttcr (2013, p.13)

In table three, one can clearly see the rankings economies demonstrating the top three performances for the 14 pillars of the TTCI. Singapore, Hong Kong, and New Zealand are evaluated as the top three countries with the best policy rules and

regulations. These economies have the most attractive policies focused in developing the T&T sector including proactive policies in attracting foreign investments as well as a minimum of red tape required in starting new businesses. Sweden, Switzerland, and Finland hold the top three positions in the environmental sustainability pillar. These countries have a stringent and well enforced legislation with a specific focus on developing tourism in a sustainable way. These countries are also joined in the top ten list for good environmental protection policies from Germany, Denmark, Austria, Finland, Norway, and Ireland. European countries perform on a high level in the area of safety and security as well, with Finland and Switzerland leading at the top while several others follow in the top 10 list. These countries have some of the lowest levels of crime and violence, and at the same time


all of them benefit from an effective police force. Tourism Industry Components According to Kotler, Heider and Rein (1993) tourism is composed of a mix of components otherwise called the “four a’s” which include attractions, amenities, access and ancillary services. These are supposed to be the main pillars of the tourism product (p. 19). This product is then serviced from businesses participating in the tourism industry. The Tourism industry in itself is mainly oriented towards service and people. This industry is composed of businesses and organizations, which take part in many other industries and sectors because of the inter-sector nature of tourism. The interplay between these businesses ultimately creates the tourism product. (Blanke & Chiesa, 2013, p. 7) The tourism industry is composed of hospitality related businesses, like accommodation catering dining, the transportation system, attractions itself, Travel agents, Tour operators, Tourist information and guiding services. The components of the tourism industry are shown in Figure 4

Figure 1: Components of the tourism industry

Source: Travel Tourism & Hospitality. (n.d.). Decide with Confidence.

http://www.dnb.co.in/Travel_Tourism/Indian_Travel_and_Tourism_Industry.asp SMEs are the principal businesses exercising their activity in the tourism industry. Specialized travel service providers assist tourists with travel arrangements. These providers including travel agencies are businesses concerned with directly retailing the tourism product to the end buyer, which can be individuals or groups. Their focus is in providing consulting and information to the customer on different possible travel plans. On the other hand, their services include a range of other minor products associated with tourism such as insurance, car hire, and currency exchange. Business travel agencies have as their main business focus the arrangements of travel and accommodation for business travelers and at the same time, they promote conference trades.


Tour operators supply the market with already prepared packages for individuals while also providing basic services for travel and tourism relating activities. According to OECD.org (2001) “Tour operators are businesses that combine two or more travel services (e.g., transport, accommodation, meals, entertainment, sightseeing) and sell them through travel agencies or directly to final consumers as a single product (called a package tour) for a global price. One of the most important component of the travel and tourism industry can be considered ‘attractions’ because most of the time they are the reason for visiting a country. In this category can be included a range of attraction starting from natural continuing with educational and finishing with cultural. The tourist information and guidance offers a bright gamma of service providers such as those offering insurance, banking services; government agencies; tour guides, ticketing agent etc… (ibid) An Outlook into Albanian Tourism Industry Some facts about Albania Albania is a small country situated in the east across the Adriatic Sea from Italy. It borders with Montenegro and Kosovo on the north, Macedonia on the east, and Greece on the south. Albania has a population of approximately 2,8 million inhabitants, from which approximately 1,5 million live in the urban areas meanwhile the rest of the population lives in the countryside engaged principally in agricultural Activities. (INSTAT, 2013) The country’s total surface area is: 28,748 sq km, out of which 27,398 sq km are land and 1,350 sq km are water. The terrain is mostly, made up of mountains and hills but it also offers small plains along the coast. (Central intelligence Agency, n.d.) Albania offers a lot of natural beauty and resources, very high and majestic mountains, beautiful lakes and streams, more than 362 km of mesmerizing pristine white sand beaches, and important deposits of different kinds of minerals (oil, copper, nickel, chromium, coal, etc.) (Luthans & Lee, 1996).

Figure: Map of Albania Source Central Intelligence Agency. (n.d.). The World Factbook. Retrieved January 20, 2014, from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/al.html

A few interesting facts about Albania are: Albania hosts one of the largest lagoons in the Mediterranean called “Karavasta Lagoon”. The first printing house ever build in the Balkans was established in 1720 in Voskopoja, in eastern Albania. Mother Teresa was an ethnic Albanian and her given name was Gonxhe Bojaxhiu. There for nowadays the main airport of Albania, the main University and many squares are named after her.

The prestigious Lonely Planet ranked Albania as the number one recommended destination to visit on 2011. Albania Hosts three of the most important lakes of the Balkan Peninsula. Shkoder Lake, in northwestern part of Albania with an area of 370 km² is the largest lake in


the Balkan Peninsula. Ohrid Lake in the southeastern part of Albania with a maximum depth of nearly 300 m is the deepest lake in the entire Balkan Peninsula, while Prespa Lake is the highest tectonic lake in the Balkans with an altitude of 853 m. (National Tourism Agency, n.d.) A brief history of tourism in Albania The first signs of tourism in Albania can be observed during the end of 1920. It was the first time Albania was able to face itself with tourism as an independent country after being under the Ottoman Empire for a very long period of five centuries. Some of the main tourist attraction during this time where, the thermal baths of Durres and Pogradec while Korca, Thethi, and Kruja were attractive because of their climate and unspoiled environment. During this time, tourism was a privilege only for the rich elite. (Mecaj, 1999, p.14) In 1944 after the Second World War, the country entered into the communist era. During this time, the dictator of Albania was Enver Hoxha. Because of its communist style regime the country had relations manly or in some cases only with the communist east bloc, that is why most of the tourists were principally coming from the communist Eastern Europe. The main reason for allowing tourists in the country was propaganda and not the economical profit. The idea behind it was showing off the wonders of communism as a system. That is why tourists visiting the country while the dictatorship was on charge were not allowed to mingle with the locals because they did not want the tourists to see the reality behind the curtains. After Hoxha’s death in 1985 the tourism situation became more relaxed and the flow of tourism started growing. (Miha, 2004, pp.47-48) Tourism in Albania was managed and supervised from an Association called “Albtourist” for almost 40 years starting with year 1955. (Ministria e zhvillimit te territorit dhe turizmit, 2001, p.1) Meanwhile from 1998 and ongoing the institution in charge of the tourism industry is called “KZHT” (Comity of tourism development) (Ministria e Zhvillimit Urban dhe Turizmit, n.d). Tourism Industry Impact on the Albanian Economy Tourism industry in many countries is considered one of the top industries contributing in the growth of the economy; the same is true for Albania. This is why for the Albanian government tourism is a strategic sector. (Ministria e Zhvillimit Urban dhe Turizmit -Albania, n.d.) The importance of Tourism for the Albanian economy is backed up from statistical data.

Chart: Percentage in total contribution of Tourism to Albanian GDP Source: World Travel &

Tourism Council-Albania. (2013). Travel and Tourism Economic Impact Albania.

Meanwhile the total contribution of the Tourism industry to the employment in Albania was amounting at 183,500 jobs in 2011 which was making up for 19.8% of total employment, rising by 3.7% in 2012, which amounts for 190,000 jobs created or otherwise 20.0% of the total employment. By year 2022, Travel & Tourism forecast is to


create 242,000 jobs amounting for 22.5% of total employment as shown.

Chart: Direct Contribution of T&T to employment in Albania. Source: World Travel & Tourism Council-Albania.

(2013). Travel and Tourism Economic Impact Albania. Retrieved from htp://www.wttc.org/site_media/uploads/ downloads/albania2013.pdf, p. 3) Albania’s world ranking for 2011 was at 29th position concerning T&T total contribution to GDP with 21.8% contribution to GDP, well above the world average, which was at 14%. T&T total contribution to employment in Albania was ranked at 29th place in the world as well, hitting a 19.8% contribution to total employment while the world average is set at 13.6%.

(World Travel & Tourism Council, 2012, p. 8-9) The world ranking statistics shows one more time how important T&T industry is to the Albanian economy, making it an industry of special relevance to the economy worth researching and investing in. General Aspects of Tourism in Albania Situation of Tourism in Albania Albania has been experiencing a progressive increase in the number of tourists in recent years. The number of tourists visiting Albania as shown in table 3 has been constantly growing from roughly 1.1 million visitors in 2007, to 3.5 million visitors in 2012

Table: Number of visitors visiting Albania 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Years

1,126 1,419 1,856 2,418 2,932 3,514 Visitors in thousands

Source: INSTAT.b (2013). Hyrja në kufi e shtetasve të huaj sipas mënyrës së udhëtimit (1995 2012).Retrieved from INSTAT:

http://www.instat.gov.al/al/themes/turizmi.aspx?tab=tabs-5, p.1)

This is a sign showing one more time the importance that tourism has for Albania. Therefore, with a decision from the Council of Ministers (VKM) on June 21st, 2006 the government of Albania decided to base its tourism strategy on the development of natural and environmental tourism which is one of the main pillars of tourism market development in Albania. Because of this decision, an action plan was created, based on three main principles: The development of sustainable, tourism The sustainable growth and development of cultural tourism, as well as the undertaking of positive long-term plans, with the aim of increasing the number of tourists. The need of recognition and investment in the cultural tourism sites. (Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Sports, Albania, 2008, p. 1)


Main Types of Tourism in Albania The tourism market is composed of six different tourism products and two subcategories as shown in the figure below.

Figure: Types of tourism

Source: Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Sports, Albania. (2008). Sector strategy on tourism 2007 – 2013, p. 9) The following kinds of tourism are the main tourism products of Albania: Sun and beach tourism, special interest tourism, business and conference tourism Special interest tourism normally includes natural tourism, ecotourism and adventure tourism (ibid). This kind of tourism is considered as a niche market, which comprises different special interest travel forms, and it has become very famous over the years in the tourism industry. These niche markets are not limited, but some of them are considered main categories of special interest tourism because they have become sustainable over the years. The special tourism main categories can be considered as the following: Adventure tourism; Rural Tourism; Cultural tourism; Religious tourism; Ecotourism; Culinary tourism; Wildlife tourism; Heritage tourism; Medical tourism (Kruja & Gjyrezi, 2011, p.79-80). Vision and Guiding Principle of the Albanian Tourism Strategy The vision for tourism development in Albania for year 2013 according to the plan of action for the development of cultural and environmental tourism in Albania (2006) was the following: “Albania is a safe, high-value tourism destination featuring an unparalleled variety of world-class, natural and cultural attractions in a small geographic area, managed in an environmentally and socially responsible manner, easily accessible to European tourism markets.” (As cited in Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Sports, Albania, 2008, p. 17) The main guiding principle in achieving the vision and the strategic objectives for the development of tourism in Albania is the sustainable development of tourism in this country. Sustainable development is considered as essential to the development of tourism worldwide. The way in which natural, cultural and human resources will be developed is crucial to the long-term sustainable development of the tourism industry. Short-term benefits that have a negative impact on the environment should be avoided. The principle of sustainable development for the Albania industry is divided in three sub-principles: Ecological sustainability – is supposed to make sure that development of tourism should not harm or jeopardize the preservation of vital ecological processes, biological biodiversity and


biological resources. Social and cultural sustainability – means to take care that tourism development is in the same wavelength with the culture and values of the people hosting it, and at the same time it is supposed to preserve and strengthen community identity by increasing people’s control over their own life. Economic sustainability – means making sure firstly that the development is economically efficient and at the same time the sources are properly managed to create a bright future for the generations to come (ibid). Albanian Tourism related to its Neighboring Countries There are two levels of competition in tourism. The first one is competition between tourist destinations and the second one occurs among countries or regions. When considering countries as the level to be analyzed, it can be said, that recently, there has been a significant increase in the extent of competition between countries, created by factors such as the reduction of transportation costs and the ICT revolution. (Matias, Nijkamp, & Sarmento, 2011, p.31) According to the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Sports, Albania (2008), Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia are considered competitors of Albania in the tourism industry (p.7). Albania is the penultimate in the general index of T&T competitiveness compared to its neighboring countries, leaving behind only Serbia while Macedonia is very close, surpassing Albania only by 2 points in the general index (Table 4). It is clearly seen that the sub index in which Albania performs the poorest is the business environment and infrastructure index, which shows that Albania needs investments in infrastructure and improvements in business facilities. Croatia is the leader in this group of countries ranked 35 out of 140 countries worldwide.

Table: Travel and Tourism competitive index 2013 for Albania, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia

General Index Regulatory Framework

Business environment and infrastructure

Human, Cultural and natural Resources

Country Ranking Ranking Ranking Ranking

Albania 77 63 90 63

Macedonia 75 57 74 100

Serbia 89 74 81 109

Montenegro 40 34 50 47

Croatia 35 42 39 42 Adapted from: Blanke, Jennifer. Chiesa, Thea. (2013). The travel & tourism competitiveness report 2013: Reducing barriers to economic growth and job creation. Retrieved from The World Economic Forum website: www.weforum.org/ttcr, p. xviii)

S.W.O.T Analyses of Albanian Tourism Offer To have an in depth overview of the situation of tourism in Albania a SWOT analyses is needed. The SWOT analysis consists of two factors: The external environmental analysis and the internal environmental analysis. (Kotler, Bowen, & Makens, 1999, p.86-89) The Author has also made use of further sources that have already conducted such an analysis, so that the end result will involve many different perspectives and studies done on


the matter, in order to create a holistic view of the situation. Strengths: In this subchapter are expressed in bullet points all the strengths of the Albanian tourism industry that have been previously studied plus an input from the authors perspective. Strengths of the tourism industry in Albania could be considered the following: 3 World Heritage Sites – Butrint, Gjirokaster and Berat 8000 years of heritage with extensive range of remains from Illyrian, Roman, Byzantine, Venetian, Ottoman and Communist times Unique musical heritage – polyphony Distinctive, organic cuisine Emerging rural tourism product range Range of high quality museum collections – iconography, photography, etc. Strong and distinctive handicraft sector Distinctive traditional cuisine based on quality natural products Friendliness of the people Religious diversity and tolerance (UNDP-Albania, 2010, p. 24) Long, wide sandy beaches Rich flora and fauna High mountain zones, not yet explored Part of the Adriatic and Ionian Coast line Short flying distance from most of the biggest European capitals Access by boat Long sunny summers, Population has very god knowledge of foreign languages High level of education (Miha, 2004, p. 54) Competitive price range A traditional culture of hospitality The respect and appreciation for foreigners visiting the country by the local population. (Lacej, Arnil 2014) There are no visa requirements, which facilitates the foreigners entrance (Kruja, 2012, p. 211) Weaknesses: Increasingly peaked tourism season – 50% of visits in July / August Negative images – litter, pollution, poverty, etc. Poor inter-institutional collaboration Lack of skill, funding and continuity in destination marketing Majority of attractions poorly presented and interpreted Lack of consistency in tourism marketing – both in personnel and activity No licensing of tour guides Lack of legislation and/or weak implementation resulting in uncontrolled and inappropriate development No quality control of accommodation and restaurants due to lack of registration scheme.


(UNDP-Albania, 2010, p. 24) Poor transportation and road infrastructure Poor or lack of tourist information or points No secondary airports (no opportunity for low cost flights) Lack of large tourism resorts (Miha, 2004, p. 54 ) Poor health system Poor to negative perception of safety level in the country Unprofessional police force (compared to the EU standard) (Lacej, Arnil 2014) Insufficient dialogue within stakeholders for sustainable development of tourism sector Lack of investments by government, local institutions & businesses enterprises (Kruja, 2012, p. 212) Opportunities: Network of Albanian embassies abroad Influential Diaspora in main source markets Interest in Europe’s “unknown” country Improving visitor data collection system Foreign media keen to discover this little known country Location – the close proximity to Western European markets (UNDP-Albania, 2010, p. 24) Tourism development as an important tool for economic development Creation of a chain of high quality tourism product Development of rural tourism Nautical tourism Development of business tourism Use of online platforms Development of eco-tourism (Miha, 2004, p.57) Huge potential for developing Agro tourism A single tourism product package including: Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro Development of outdoor and adventure tourism Day trips to Albania from tourists visiting the neighboring countries (Lacej, Arnil 2014) Foreigners are curious to visit Albania, after the fall of half-century lasting communism (Kruja, 2012, p. 211). Threats: Illicit development Failure to introduce and enforce regulations – accommodation, heritage conservation, pollution, etc. Competition particularly from other Balkan Destinations


(Miha, 2004, p. 57) Lack of stability in the country High competitiveness from neighboring countries like Croatia, Montenegro and Greece Failure in creating higher safety standards Failure to train and retain highly qualified human resources in the sector. (Lacej, Arnil 2014) The internal environmental analysis The internal environmental factors analysis involves mainly strengths and weaknesses. Analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of a business or a certain branch of an Industry is what makes the deference between having the necessary competence to succeed in taking advantage of opportunities or fail in doing so. Therefore, each business or branch of the industry needs to analyze the strengths and weaknesses periodically. (Kotler, Bowen, & Makes, 1999, p.87-89) The internal environmental analysis can be performed from any manager or external consultant. The analysis includes sectors such as finance, management, infrastructure etc… Once the strengths and weaknesses have been defined, the business has to discern the opportunities and strengthen their position and in doing so they do not have to consider all the weaknesses. In the case of Albania, of crucial importance is the effective cooperation between businesses operating in the sector of tourism and with the governmental agencies specialized in the sector as well. The external environmental analysis Opportunities and threats are considered part of the external environmental analysis. An opportunity is defined as an area of need where the business can perform in a profitable way. These opportunities can be classified depending on attractiveness and the probability of success. Therefore, one of the most important functions of the external analysis is classifying these opportunities in terms of attractiveness and success probability. (ibid, p. 86-87) The probability of achieving success within the defined opportunities depends very much on whether the strengths of the business or in this case of an industry, match the success requirements also if these strengths exceed those of the competitors. Meanwhile threats represent factors in the external environment that might pose danger to the industry or the business. These threats can manifest themselves in unfavorable trends leading to defensive marketing tactics, which can jeopardize the profits of the company or industry. These threats must be categorized in accordance to their chance of occurrence or seriousness.


Tourism development in Shkoder Being one of the largest cities of Albania endowed with rich cultural and historical tradition, Shkoder is also a very important cultural center that attracts tourists. She is distinguished for the ancient castle and the cultural monuments such as churches and mosques with a unique architectural value. The Shkoder Library is one of the richest in the country regarding its extensive archive of books, while Marubi Phototheque preserves the negatives of the great photographers who worked in this profession since the photographic art was invented. Shkoder is the Albanian city where organized groups of tourists came for the first time. This happened on the eve of World War I, when tourists came from Trieste and landed in Buna River, Obot, or Tivar in the today Montenegro. Apart the many cultural monuments such as the many houses-turned-museums, there is also the characteristic oriental dwelling. The Shkoder Lake area has been proclaimed inter-boundary protected area by Albania and Montenegro to protect the lake and to make future investments secure. Shiroka village on the feet of Tarabosh Mountain and a few feet away from the lake shore, is one of the most attractive points not only for its inhabitants but also for tourists, who can enjoy the exceptional cooking of fish products. Velipoja beach offers a good choice of relax. An important component that helps tourism and is an integral part of an authentic touristic package is the traditional Shkoder handicraft, distinguished for their masterfully created artifacts. It's something to be admired that some of these traditions for creating artisan products have survived to these days. This admiration comes from local inhabitants but also from tourists who in many cases have no prior information and enter into contact with these products in a spontaneous way.

Handicraft and Tourism The interaction between tourist industries and creative industries, including crafts and design, up until now are seen often in simplified way. The common belief that tourism causes a certain degradation of crafts seems exaggerated. Though special unusual products are driven by the tourism demand, it has to be shown that often this development is accompanied by a change of traditional forms which not necessarily leads to degradation. Because handicraft is a kind of cultural inheritance, it has an important impact in the enrichment of the touristic package. (Frexha, 2009) Albanians, since ancient times have cooked with skillfully crafted utensils, have dressed with ornamental, embroidered dresses with a variety of rich motifs and interesting insignia, have fought with wonderfully crafted and full of symbols swords, shields and helmets. Women dresses have been equipped with jewels, necklaces, and accessories weighting several kilograms. All of these craft objects, since the era named after Pyrrhus of Epirus and Queen Teuta up to the present day, have been enriched with motifs which are handed down generation to generation. To say it briefly, every tool related to the Albanian man's and woman’s activity since birth to death, has been ornamented and skillfully crafted. Many excavated tombs in the Albanian lands bear witness to that.


Handicraft Handicraft product categories include ceramics, textiles, jewelry, metal works, carvings, basket making, furniture and home utility objects. Artisan products might serve to different kinds of purposes, which include utilitarian, ritualistic, or decorative ones. In many societies, handymen has very much to do with ethnic, local, regional, or national heritages. The coming of the handymen in contact with the cultural inheritance provides a platform for products to be seen as tourism objects, leading in a series of labels, ethnic and touristic art, as well as souvenirs. The handicraft production is related with global marketing as well as with globalization, development, gender, employment and tradition. The term handicraft often is substituted with the terms craft and handiwork. The first category includes objects produced following a local or regional orientation, while the production of touristic art is focused on the tourist or on a consumer. The study of craftsmanship and its relations to tourism includes a series of scientific disciplines, among them anthropology, art and design, business, cultural studies, environmental studies, international development, marketing, historical studies, sociology, textiles and clothes, as well as gender studies. On the other hand, foreigners who do not know the models of local production voice their concerns about the loss of artisan traditions when they notice any tourism-related change in production. The combination of artisan production with tourism is of vital importance. By affecting attraction of touristic activity and the artisan production acquires income for many people, including a large number of women and minority ethnic groups. Sami Frashëri, the renowned scholar, once said this: “There is a great tradition in producing different carpets, which are still done by hand according to tradition and with the motifs handed down from previous generations. In the handiworks, the Albanian maestro is no less able than in fighting and learning, he can achieve big things there also. He is a distinguished blacksmith, producing knives, scissors, weapons, etc. As soon as he lays his eyes on any European factory-produced rifle, his hands can make a replica with very few flaws.” Shkoder has had a rich tradition of silk, wool, leather, cotton, and linen and felt production, making Shkoder’s embroidery works extraordinary. There was weapons manufacturing, producing long rifles, revolvers and swords, which were widely used. The weapons of Shkoder were well-known. In the first half of the 19th century the first exports were done in provinces of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Italy, France and elsewhere. A great development was observed in leather processing, 37.213 kg of leather were exported abroad on 1855 with a net worth of 70.138 francs. Also the belts were a product widely used mainly from the women of Malësi e Madhe. Young women used the decorative wide belt, which came in two types: equipped with small shiny steel dots, and covered with copper plates and other ornaments lined one after the other and accompanied by a number of other similar necklaces resembling to the ancient fibula of this province of Illyria. Shkoder was the most important center for silk and its byproducts’ producing and processing in the Balkan during the early years of 19th century. Home manufacturing of silk products was made usually during winter while weaving was done during warmer seasons of the year. The looming of cotton and wool fabric was exported in Austria. On 1885, the production of national dresses which was developed through centuries was a well-


established craft and this was also reflected in the popular songs. The talented handymen fashioned works with high professional quality. Up to the middle of the 19th century there were over 100 families that earned their living through silver processing. Metal processing included also a series of important crafts, such as iron processing and the production of copper utensils. Shkoder was a provider of gun barrels to Serbia, of revolvers to Ioannina, and of luxury weapons to Tunisia, products that were exchanged with red hats, woolen and silk scarfs.

In the beginning of the 18th

century, Shkoder had a big marketplace situated between the city castle and the lake, with over one thousand shops, called the Old Bazaar. In this period the city was exporting many products, mainly wool, processed leather, wax, silk, cotton, etc... The first three products were the most successful to be traded. These products parted from Shkoder toward Venice. The Shkoder Bazaar in this period was living its most glorious moment, having been a very successful marketplace for almost a century by having had about 3.000 shops and warehouses, trading much sought articles by foreign countries, such as wool, the silk known as “Seta Scutarina”, and the processed leather in the factories alongside Drin river. During the course of history, Albania established a rich handicraft tradition, where its regions had, and still have, individuality, creativity, good taste and artistic feelings. This tradition reached its peak in the middle of the 18th century when the city bazaar called Bexhisteni counted about 3.000 shops. In the handicrafts quarter, the shops were aligned according to 80 different crafts and professions, where masters of the trade processed stone, iron, gold and many other materials with a variety of techniques. During the years, the artisans created in a very special way the unique characteristics of the products which carry also artistic and cultural value. An undeniable link exists between the handicraft sector and other sectors, such as:

Agro tourism – Territorial marketing

Family tourism

Development of city tourism – (establishing of main squares for exposing handicraft works)

The handicraft sector might serve as a valuable supplement to the activities of the above-mentioned sectors. In general, handicraft is one of the important links in the chain of touristic offer in the city of Shkoder and an effective way must be found to integrate it successfully in this chain, completing the complex touristic product. At the same time, handicrafts gains from this relationship in many forms and generates income, which provides for the product development (coherence, sustainability), marketing strategies, etc.

Enrichment of the touristic offer through handicraft Tourists are in a pursuit of original elements, which means those elements that distinguish one place from another. In this context, handicraft displays its great importance by fulfilling the tourists' expectations and by giving them a variety of elements and experiences according to different cultures and subcultures. A qualitative souvenir brought home by a tourist after a wonderful holiday experience acquires a continuous power generating good memories, and also arouses the interest of


others to visit that special destination. But the link between tourism and handicraft is yet to be explored, understood, and developed. Artisans not only preserve the cultural legacy, they also enrich and adjust this legacy to the contemporary needs of societies. The tourism, which links individuals and human communities, and through them cultures and civilizations, plays an important role in facilitating dialogue between different cultures. It also has the ability to help world citizens to better go along with each-other, hence contributes in building peace of mind of men and women, if we were to quote dhe UNESCO Constitution. Social and cultural impacts of tourism in host countries were so analyzed from the international community in the December 1976 World Bank – UNESCO workshop for policy-makers held in Washington.

What’s up? Each year Shkoder mask’s factory provides 30 thousand masks to the traditional Venice Carnival. This kind of Made in Albania are among the most wanted due to the artisan technique which has disappeared from the Venetian market of masks. This is a good example that how a component of the handicraft helps the tourism development, turning into a big attraction.

Establishing access in the tourism market (successful cases) As mentioned earlier there is a clear need for physical markets where artisans can display and sell their projects. These artisan markets is not supposed to be very small, bazaar-type, such as the Kruja one. They might be small and nice huts such as those of Butrint National park. Small fairs at Town Centers and massive tourism destinations, Shkoder and Velipoja being the case, offer a promising example to expand. 18,000 tourists visits annually the Gjirokastra Castle; 19,000 visited the Rozafa Castle in Shkoder. The tourists have spent their money in artisan products. There appears the need to establish specific markets/enhance specific markets, which might be managed by social capital associations or by the municipality. The most important thing is to find people with a vision. For municipalities situated on the seaside, an interesting project would be the establishment of an artisan shop in the city center or near the shore. Even in the gastronomic centers of touristic destinations, chefs and artisans must be invited to cooperate in order to provide for an authentic cultural experience for visitors. Usually artisans complain that gastronomes or hotel owners allow only the exposure of handicraft products but do not pay for this and do not care about sales. Establishing such a multipurpose center could start these joint ventures for cultural inheritance or social capital method might be applied to finance it in order to establish access for artisans in the touristic market.

Developing links between tourism and handicraft After discussing this issue in training groups and other gatherings with businesswoman we could resume that the process itself must consist on finding ways and possibilities to create new employment positions, increase income and possibly decrease poverty; acknowledging


the importance of locally made works in the development of tourism, and vice- versa, the importance of tourism as an agent of protection and preservation of traditional handicraft works, production methods, and indigenous culture; drafting strategies and finding practical means for NFPOs and local governments and the private sector to strengthen the links between artisan products and tourism, by identifying the role of government and relevant bodies, as well as understanding what would be the economic benefits from the tourism industry in micro and macro level.

Problems related to the current situation of handicraft in Shkoder

Scarce foreign markets, weak internal market, imported goods from Asia pose the risk of very cheap price attraction.

Today, the majority of artisans are focused only in production

Small capacities for product development

The ageing of artisans and the lack of training programs for the new generation

Low access for artisans in tourism market

Lack of handicraft products that attract tourists

Lack of governmental support for handicraft

No mark registration or copyright protection

Scarce cooperation between artisans themselves

Difficulties in production development, design

Lack of third man position trade partners

Outdated equipment, lack of financial means for investments or workshops' upgrades

It is noticed a relatively smaller weight of category “tourists” in the evaluation that bazaar's artisans have made to these clients. This makes us think that this market is not as yet explored as it should be and that the link between artisan sector and tourism currently must be improved. (Frexhaj 2010)

Tourists’ expenses in artisan products (Euro) As seen, roughly 90% of the artisans say that the greatest part of tourists are willing to spend up to 25 Euro each during a daily tour in the city. 7% believe they are willing to spend more, 25 to 40 Euro. A very small percentage say that tourists might be willing to spend more than 40 Euro. (Frexhaj 2010)

0 - 5 €21%

5 - 15 €22%

15 -25 €

30%

25 - 40 €

21%

40 - 60 €

5%

60 - 80 €

1%

WHO ARE THE CUSTOMERS?

0 - 5 €

5 - 15 €

15 -25 €

25 - 40 €

40 - 60 €

60 - 80 €

80 - 100 €

100 - 150 €


Evaluation of attracting destinations for tourists (vertical column, marks 1-10) . (1 less attractive – 10 more attractive) We see that the two most attractive destinations are Rozafat Castle and Oso Kuka House. So this valuable classification enables us to understand the place artisans' bazaar occupies in relationship with other attractions of the city. We also do understand that this bazaar is relatively important, being classified the sixth as regards importance in the graph. (Frexhaj 2010) Other comments related to the issue by the experts:

Aesthetic and cultural value Qualitative and original products Competing prices Works of silver, copper, wood, loom Legacy Special character of production of objects from artisans Competition, same objects produced by many artisans Rural handicraft products, Zadrimë, Postribë, etc. Wonderful leather products, not being produced for the moment Full costumes, city dresses worked out with original materials, hand-made Hand-made works remain the wonder of handicraft

The importance of cultural elements According to a survey carried out from graduates at “Luigj Gurakuqi” University demonstrates that local food is relatively the most important according to this classification, then come in equal share handicraft, photography, and theatre. It is logical, then, that touristic agencies pay more attention to meals during a tour in Shkoder without forgetting other complementary elements of the total touristic package. What is being presented to tourists by touristic agencies is related to city architecture, gastronomy, handicraft, Albanian people history, local mentality, traditions, rites, etc. The locations where souvenirs purchases were made until now: mainly in the bazaar or souvenir shops in the city. (Frexhaj 2010)


According to the same survey; here below the competitiveness of artisan products

(1-not competitive at all;2-little competitive;3-competitive;4-very competitive) Evaluations expressed as regards the competitiveness of artisan products according to each category. Originality remains one of the main components making the product more competitive.

Low capacities in product development Many small businesses in the sector are started by former employees of the state enterprises that continue their previous activity. The majority work in small workshops situated in their homes. Today artisans are busy with production, marketing and distribution issues, so they are not very capable of investing in product development. Local market in Shkoder in a certain sense has no pretenses about design. Due to the low purchasing power, price remains the main criteria of the market. Another groups of artisans are women of rural areas. They continue the traditional production of home textiles. The design of their products is simplified to lower costs, but in general their products preserve cultural authenticity. Rural handicraft is left behind as regards its economic potential. New products are rarely developed. Some rural population is inclined to remain faithful to. Artisans getting old There is no much time left to protect and revive handicraft in Shkoder. Many artisans are aging and only a few of them are handing over their craft to the new generation. Low access for artisans in the tourism market The low-level income makes the sector non-attractive for youth. Handicraft is not as attractive as a business. Private trainers or state vocational educational centers offer only courses on sewing and embroidery. The small artisan workshops that require manpower usually try to use family links to find young men and women to employ. Trainings for this sector in the official work programs are very rare. An example of a dying craft is straw. Outbound incursions needed to create new products and to open new markets Especially rural artisans need to be in touch with tourists in order to understand their needs. To develop such understanding requires investments. Sometimes they have to adjust only the size or the color of their production. Some other times they must create new products for tourists that require simply something to remind them of this trip. That's why artisans need support in product development, and maybe for somebody in an intermediary role. The majority of artisans even don't know that there are legal ways to protect their innovative products. A special Training addressed these needs within the project START.


Proposals and ideas It would be necessary to register a brand for artisan products so that it is possible

that artisans be more able to operate in the market through enriching the artisan offer.

Opening a center with old artisan products from different life activities (artisan tradition, old bazaar, Albanian history personalities, culinary specialties, home sheltering).

Training of new masters so that tradition is preserved, further development of products as regards quality and competitiveness.

Building a strong relationship between handicraft and tourism, between producers and the market.

Business Women and Tourism

Business Women are strongly family providers, it influences a lot the way in which they approach the phenomenon of entrepreneurship, how do they cooperate within family and with each-other. They are highly interested to provide more for their families, as well to have more supply orders and to develop their working capacities further. They affront so many difficulties, as the majority of them gets engaged in both fronts, family and home service & entrepreneurship duties. Markets are distant from their homes/working places and local governance does not provide info-services as well consulting for business development, meanwhile chamber of commerce and labor services do not focus at this kind of activities. The missing “third man” activity means a huge obstacle to developing further this branch of SME, where predominantly women work.

Women Entrepreneurship Situation in Shkoder

Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Labor are the main government stakeholders dealing with women entrepreneurship in Albania. Ministry of Tourism is active in promoting Women entrepreneurship (in further text: WE) through their participation in regional/local fairs and cooperation on joint programs, but there is not a special government body dealing with WE in Albania. Chambers of Commerce (membership not mandatory for small business), Employers associations and other business associations do not have women sections as

well. (Source: Leida Matja, PhD; 2014) Gender governmental actors are involved in WE according to Department for Equal Opportunities, through the gender focal points in the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Agriculture. There is no further specification regarding this question. These gender focal points in the ministries mentioned above are also part of the dialogue between the range of the key stakeholders and institutional support structures, in place to promote policies and measures for WE. According to INSTAT, at present women own 25.7% out of 106 477 business in the country.18% of private business managers are women. Furthermore, despite the fact that more than 50% of women in rural areas work in agriculture, they only own and manage 6% of farms. There are several reasons why the percentage of women who run a private business is so low. There are constrains in the tax system and there is a high level of

informality of women entrepreneurs. (Source: Leida Matja, PhD; 2014) World Economic Forum 2012, shows that Albania’ labor force participation stays 56/76


female/male. According to the global index for women’s economic opportunity 2012 Albania is ranked at 54th place with a score of 56.5. Little is done to remove barriers to women joining entrepreneurship and offer women equal opportunities, so they can obtain the needed skills, qualifications and support, with a view to ensuring that all existing resources are efficiently utilized, and that women skills and strengths are challenged to best effect. General considerations on THE ENVIRONMENT FOR WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN ALBANIA In 2013 SHGPAZ, financed by ILO, made an Assessment on the environment for woman entrepreneurship in Albania. “Albania does not have a specific policy framework for women’s enterprise development. There is a general reliance on the broader policy framework for women’s entrepreneurship in general, as: strategy for the Small and Medium Enterprise, National Strategy on Gender Equality, Reduction of Gender Based Violence and of Domestic Violence and its Action Plan, along with other policy and program instruments as detailed in the NSDI.” (Source: SHGPAZ 2013) SHGPAZ was born as a nonprofit initiative to meet the need for supporting and giving voice to women’s enterprises and to provide business support from the group itself. The association SHGPAZ (PBWHA) is one of the founders of BiznesAlbania, which is the largest business group in Albania and from February 2013 SHGPAZ is a member of BusinessEurope. SHGPAZ strongly suggests that Albanian women dominate the micro-enterprise sector, demonstrating their true potential as entrepreneurs, employers and economic actors. Promoting women entrepreneurs could prove the importance of women entrepreneurs in the economy, and their potential for further growth Enterprises owned or managed by women, operate mainly in services (34.1%) and trade (32.9%). The majority of female owned enterprises engages 1-4 employees. On the other hand, women entrepreneurs also operate in hotels, cafés, and restaurants (27.5% in 2011), and industry (19.5% in 2011).


For a long time, SHPGAZ studied, interpreted and defended woman entrepreneurship right as a tool for social growth and for a healthier society. Cooperative actions with Ministries, Agencies, International partners and especially business organizations have provided SHPGAZ with enough skills and capacities to be of good service to women development through institutionalized work, addressing both economic and social growth. SHGPAZ is involved in all regional initiatives that have a special focus on the business woman. SHGPAZ participated in several regional and European projects cooperating with development agencies AIDA, GIZ, EDEP, UNWOMEN, USAID etc. SHGPAZ could be very instrumental in future development targeting women entrepreneurship, employment and social growth. General and specific work related woman position in Shkoder district. (Source District Council Shkoder)

Population

Employment does not follow the same percentages.

Emigrants bring different skills and knowledge about standards and the way different occupations are exercised in EU. The pie below shows the professions emigrants exercise in the countries they emigrated in.

Meanwhile, the tourism economic activity does not find any big space into the whole panorama of economic activities in Shkoder Region, which means that there is a wild side of economy developing without proper management and regulation.


In Shkoder, there are approximately 340 women that produce handcrafts and traditional homemade products. Tourism development could bring the right customers to these traditional products. Also, agro tourism could be an alternative for female employment as women have the ability to prepare traditional dishes that could be marketed as a regional specialty to prospective tourists. Furthermore, Albanian hospitality has been proverbial for centuries and women have traditionally played the key role in this tradition. SHPGAZ ordered a mapping research related to women entrepreneurship and other economic development data for Shkoder region aiming to carry out a survey in the city of Shkoder (mainly suburbs) and three villages (Juban, VauiDejes, Zogaj), which are deemed of a great potential for cross border Tourism given the interest of women to be involved in secondary supporting Tourism activities.


We could consider from the survey results as follows:

Twenty five per cent of women do speak at least one foreign language. It is observed that women who does speak at least one foreign language are better settled with their businesses whereas women that does not have the opportunity to communicate with foreigners usually remain with the wish to undertake a business or usually have some skills which might want to use, but in general if not assisted by other members of the family their desire for business remains in embryonic steps. From the same survey it was find out:

The highest percentage of the companies are not yet registered. This means that 64 per cent of businesses where women operate or manage are not state tax payers and this yet means that they work in informality. This happens mainly with women engaged with embroidery, crochet work, carpet production etc. and less with companies that produce curtains, clothes, marble, wood etc. which might be easily detectable from state tax inspectors.

Sixty four per cent of the interviewers emphasized that their property is not registered, only 36 per cent claim that the property is registered. The reasons for registering or not he property are given below. Besides, there is another entanglement with the social situation of those women craft makers, usually they work alone, so there is no possibility to share and inherit the secrets of

No foreign Language

75%

One foreign Language

11%

Two or more foreign

languages14%

Foreign Languages

No foreign Language

One foreign Language

Two or more foreignlanguages

Registered36%

Non registered

64%

Is the company registered

Registered

Non registered

Yes36%

No64%

Is your property registered?

Yes

No


those professions. Husbants and children have other interests and/or engagements.

The same SHPGAZ study shows:

There are no master plans which proceed Tourism development in Shkoder areas and the facilities devoted to tourist are built in a very chaotic way and sometimes they don’t have the standards for a tourist accommodation facility. Lack of grants dedicated to women in entrepreneurship is among issues brought to attention by those interviewed. Sometimes, and especially in remote areas women should also be supported with some grant schemes since they really do not have any financial mean that will guarantee the repayment of a credit, nor have the propriety which might serve as collateral. Therefore either a guarantee scheme it is needed or a small start up grant which is of a great help especially for women that want to be engaged in crafts production. Such grant scheme is also very profitable even for women that have the facilities and want to open some bed and breakfast activities. Such grant might be useful to make some investments in visitors’ rooms and so on. Insufficient number of fairs or total lack of information on fairs – selected from 10 women

Yes20%

No 80%

Are you working with others from your family

Yes

No

Bed and breakfast

58%Culinary Tourism

23%

Eco - Tourism10%

Marketing of Tourism Products

9%

The skills interested to learn

Bed and breakfast

Culinary Tourism

Eco - Tourism

Marketing of TourismProducts


Sometimes women in rural areas do not have the necessary financial means to participate in regional Tourism fairs which might be very useful to them. There have been some projects, under which participants could have paid no fee, but these are sporadic and not on regular basis. Furthermore for a women that does not have a business but just the wish to enter a business there is a complete lack of information and support in this regard. Lack of specific trainings – selected from 10 women Sometimes women do not have the needed skills to compete in regional markets. For instance the quality of a crochet work might be quite embryonic till the moment that they have seen the quality of similar works requested by Montenegrin market. Therefore specific skills training are needed. Informality and unfair competition – selected from 10 women Informality and unfair competition which comes as consequence of informality weakens even more the fragile women businesses and sometimes make them go out of the market. High business tax rates – selected from 10 women Opportunities related to support activities for Tourism Despite difficulties women interviewed have clear ideas on the opportunities that exist in Shkoder region in relation to the activities that might contribute to the development of Tourism in Shkoder region either by diversifying the Tourism typologies (such as bed and breakfast) or by: Diversification of Tourism arrangements Combination of Tourism arrangements with crafts Development of agro-tourism Funds dedicated to Tourism mainly concerning fairs, trainings, cross border collaborations Creation on Bed and Breakfast facilities (including improvement of existing houses of villagers) Support to handcrafters in terms of technology, skills, marketing, PR, and finance Development of sport fishing Future Recommendations

New markets should be reached for handicrafts products Efforts should be paid to attract tourists that interested in Tourism that might

develop in Shkoder region The state should support development of crafts with funds for technology

improvement Greater governmental support for women in entrepreneurship Enhance and intensify touristic collaboration with neighboring countries especially

with Montenegro Specific skills’ trainings for women who wish undertake a tourism related business

directly or a tourism supporting business such as handicrafts Improvement of tourism infrastructure

There is a great interest from women to contribute with their products to further development of Tourism in Shkoder region with crafts. Fishery and traditional cuisine might also be an attractive activity in which women from rural areas can give their contributions. Some areas such as Zogaj, Juban and VauiDejes should also explore possibilities to open some bed and breakfast activities which not only can be profitable as a business activity but also a good opportunity to sell craft works to visitors interested in them and produced by


other women of the region. For this they should be supported with cross border fairs dedicated, exhibitions, grant schemes, trainings, or soft credits and loans. Experts involved in the project "Support to activate the tourism potential of rural women - START W" project implementation, in the border zone of Albania and Montenegro, working for the same goal with the project officers, implemented synchronized duties and synergized their designations in project implementation. The first step fulfilled successfully: businesswomen associated with cross-border tourism potential in rural areas were identified and it was prepared after research study on the ground / landscape mapping was completed and trainers were committed to increasing the capacity of businesswomen by providing advanced and specific knowledge in relevant interest groups. Shortly after, the second action was done: accessible project activities aiming to promote the principles of social entrepreneurship (the development of cooperatives and associations), offering joint cross-border rural tourism based on shared resources, indigenous, natural and cultural heritage and traditions of the region; Women cooperation, mutual promotion and marketing cross-border joint rural tourism destination. To increase the technical understanding and to make women entrepreneurs familiar with market mechanisms, trainings were organized. Trainings were based on evaluation of participants / beneficiaries; after choosing the best candidates for continuing with preparations for the fourth action. During those interactive trainings with specific groups two obstacles were identified: 1 small size of the manufacturer / product unit 2 substantial difficulties in the formalization of product in the form of registered business, registered trademark, support and promotion. During consultations and discussions with business women: involved in offering artisans production, culinary and hospitality it came out the opinion that we should aim at creating a common brand for the product of women in the field of rural tourism and the establishment of a social business contract that allows the formalization / registration of all businesses that aim it in a common registration number, in the form of a Centre of Women's tourist product. A product catalog was made. It shall serve the promotion and documentation of goods and services, hence influencing producers. The Mentorship methodology implemented, provided practical new deep discussions centered on the vision of the organization's operating form. Under the leadership of the SHPGAZ it was built the statutory document for a social entrepreneurship. Each Mentor led a group of women entrepreneurs, in particular during the consultation process for the creation of the joint brand, providing at the same time, the photographic and descriptive material for all products to be included in the joint catalog.


The trainees got very interested in Branding, as a new and promising practice to promote

better their products in the market. From first concepts on branding, supported by Mentors

and led through an interactive participatory process, business women asked for more support

to enter the process for brand registering. It could serve them a better developing future for

their business and social business.

This very first training of its kind offered EU standards for branding.

Experts guided and established a process for envisioning and a consultancy program for building a Business Service Center Advisory (BSCA) for women entrepreneurs. It will be introduced in the form of a designed further project within the same framework. The participants were trained on Fund "Creativity" and other microfinance loans. SHPGAZ provided leadership during applications. Mentors guided preparations to organize joint fairs in Shkoder and Montenegro by assembling and leading women entrepreneurs that participated in these fairs. Different Tourism Entrepreneurs were offered to participate. Development offices were informed. They were invited to cooperate. After consultations in both Podgoritza (MN) and Shkoder (ALB), it was decided together with Montenegrin Partners to organize together with women entrepreneurs from both sides of the boarder a general fair of their handicraft and other tourism related products. It took place at DELTA shopping center in Podgoritza. In the fairs, particular attention was paid to creating business links with partners across the border and successful businessmen who have interest to build and develop such cross-border businesses. Experts created personal and group connections. It was drafted a feasibility study of the Business Service Center Advisory for women entrepreneurs in the form of the Counseling Center for Women Entrepreneurs in Cross-border Tourism in Shkoder, mentors guided the curative debate over this study and approved it. Mentors became representatives of this group in the Media, providing increased project visibility and improving their entrepreneurial skills. A Parliamentary consultation among SHPGAZ’ project team, AIDA and the cohesive group of women parliamentarians, took place at Albanian Parliament’s facilities. A special attention was paid to findings and results from this process. Both sides pledged to accentuate cooperation. Another conference addressed the results of Project Implementation and draw the vision for a second stage.


Cross Border Cooperation aspects The value chains and the production systems for LED interest identified during action – research activities, carried out by ILSLEDA in the region of Shkoder from 08/06/10 to 30/11/10 in the frame of UNDP AGA2 Program, are listed in the following table 2. LED value chains and production systems identified in Shkoder Description 1 Bee value chain 2 Culture production system 3 Fish value chain 4 Forest production system 5 Fruit and Vegetables value chain 6 Handicraft production system 7 Herbs value chain 8 Industrial Plants value chain 9 Liquors value chain 10 Meat value chain 11 Milk value chain 12 Olive value chain 13 Tourism production system 14 Wine value chain The same value chains and production systems apply in Montenegro. One can just imagine how it could benefit all the entrepreneurs and managements if they worked together without restrictions on borderlines. In fact, after a long history of violent clashes and reciprocal hatred and mistrust, there are two decades now, people and managements from both sides of the boarder are increasing cooperation and transferring goods, services, ideas and business practices to each other. But, it has not reach the deflection point were only cooperation prevails, as there are more miles to go, more projects to be nurtured and more people to meet each-other in the realm of the practical life and the common ground of working together. There have been successful efforts to produce common Cross-Border approaches and solutions, where both sides worked together when consultancy and technical assistance was provided. Facts:

March 2007 – Shkoder Lake Concept on Cross-Border Development, a spatial perspective (GIZ-former GTZ)

o It provides the basis for economically and ecologically sustainable development of Lake Shkoder.

2013 – Tourist brochure 2012 Montenegro & Albania by hospitality and skilled crafts. (Delegation of EU in MN-Cris No.254 243)

2014 – Joint Tourist Brochure Montenegro-Albania. (Funded EU, ZanaPredaK MN, Montenegrin Hotel Association MN, Commune of Shkreli)


And now we have this effort to further advance cooperation by going to organize together a project directly involved with woman entrepreneurs, marketing together their product as a tourism related cross-border initiative, including the mobilization of private sector actors in the context of cross-border cooperation was also significant. Differences in language, customs and legal framework were crossed giving hope for further intensification of joint projects and initiatives. Recommendations: A special attention is to be paid to „People-to-people-projects“(small projects) which have proved to be successful instruments for sustainable regional development of cross-border areas that create added value. They strongly promote and facilitate important cooperation in legal and administrative questions as well as cooperation between institutions and citizens. They create the necessary conditions for the establishment of functional networks by stakeholders from both sides of the border, the exchange of knowledge and experiences, the elaboration of joint solutions to problems and in particular for the elaboration of real cross-border projects, particularly by private stakeholders. Accordingly, they prove to be an engine accelerating current and future cross-border cooperation in economic / infrastructural and socio-cultural field. In particular, through „people-to-people projects“ (small projects) European funding policy becomes visible and tangible for citizens: cross-border cooperation in daily life. (Source: http://www.aebr.eu/files/publications/130416_Argumente_Kleinprojekte_EN.pdf) The less worrier style approach, women provided, made it easier to have a joint project of these dimensions, where people from different cultures would promote together in togetherness the whole range of their products. The successful implementation of this project gives us hope and motivation to a second stage aiming to establish a sustainable developing cross-border practice among women entrepreneurs building social capital and successful entrepreneurship. It is up to EU Adriatic Euroregion program providers to consider supporting such a successful practice to a further level. CONSIDERATIONS:

It was a “learn by exercising together” cross-border joint practice of NGOs, Government agencies, Local Government Officers, Experts, Women Entrepreneurs which produced good results and product.

The project Increased Lawmakers awareness toward a specific category of woman entrepreneurs.

The project increased public awareness on potentials to further develop cultural products under the form of goods and services.

Woman factor’ visibility was enhanced by televised approaches. Cross Border get together increased the chances for a further, highly intensified

socio-economic cooperation. Knowledge and Findings offered a mixture of expertise and practitioners’’

contribution.


Ad hoc teams working together accentuated the importance of a common goal to compacting different actors’ involvement.

Data entries enriched rational perception on economic system’ instruments need for improvements.

Studies offered rational evaluation over socio-economic situation of small business women entrepreneurs and respective NGOs “call of duty”.

CONCLUSIONS

Tourism is of growing economic significance. Tourism does not affect only the economy but it also can result in a significant social influence. Tourism also helps in strengthening communities and building peace.

The main guiding principle in achieving the vision and the strategic objectives for the development of tourism in Albania is the sustainable development of tourism in this country. Sustainable development is considered as essential to the development of tourism worldwide.

Being one of the largest cities of Albania endowed with rich cultural and historical tradition, Shkoder is also a very important cultural center that attracts tourists.

Informality reigns the sector; there are no master plans which proceed Tourism development in Shkoder areas and the facilities devoted to tourist are built in a very chaotic way and sometimes they don’t have the standards for a tourist accommodation facility.

In general, handicraft is one of the important links in the chain of touristic offer in the city of Shkoder and an effective way must be found to integrate it successfully in this chain, completing the complex touristic product.

Developing links between tourism and handicraft must consist on finding ways and possibilities to create new employment positions, increase income and possibly decrease poverty; acknowledging the importance of locally made works in the development of tourism, and vice- versa

In Shkoder, there are approximately 340 women that produce handcrafts and traditional homemade products. Tourism development could bring the right customers to these traditional products. Also, agro tourism could be an alternative for female employment as women have the ability to prepare traditional dishes that could be marketed as a regional specialty to prospective tourists.

Business Women are strongly family providers, it influences a lot the way in which they approach the phenomenon of entrepreneurship, and handicrafts pertain mainly to them.

The women entrepreneurship is underdeveloped concerning managerial skills and financing support. There is employment disparity harming the position of women in the job market.

“Third Man” practice for promotion and marketing is missing. “Social Capital” still at the embryonic phase needs support and guidance. Cross-Border joint projects bring peace and well-being. There is a pressing need for reliable disaggregated information on women-owned

start-ups and existing businesses on a regional basis in Shkoder. Strong NFPO connections, in this instance represented by SHPGAZ directly influence

decision makers and policy makers.


RECOMANDATION:

Establishing RCWTE represents a MUST; including advocacy; sensitizing and educating key stakeholders; promotion of enterprise to women; development of training programs and business support; sourcing of expert advice and guidance; research; developing linkages in women’s enterprise beyond Shkoder; establishing strong networks for women in business and developing new spin-off initiatives and developing “third man” practice.

Everything handmade!


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cross border potentials to develop women entrepreneurship

Government & Nonprofit

importance of tourism

tourism expenditure

term tourism industry

tourism industry recomandation

result tourism industry

industrial form of tourism

women entrepreneurship

world economy