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Vasili: RTSH needs modernization, insufficient funding hinders development

2026-06-05 14:16:03Aktualitet SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Vasili: RTSH needs modernization, insufficient funding hinders development
Eni Vasili

The General Director of Radio Television of Albania, Eni Vasili, during her report to the Committee on Public Information, praised the institution's work during 2025, emphasizing that RTSH has managed to fulfill its mission as a public broadcaster and guarantee coverage of the most important events in the country.

In her speech, Vasili stated that despite financial and organizational challenges, RTSH has continued to provide quality public service and fulfill its obligations to citizens.

"RTSH managed to maintain its public mission function. During 2025, over 3,500 hours of television production were produced, while over 200 broadcasts were conducted with mobile studios, guaranteeing the presence of the public broadcaster at important events throughout the country," emphasized Vasili.

The Director General said that RTSH has provided extensive technical and editorial support for a number of activities of national and international importance.

Vasili further emphasized that RTSH has managed to significantly reduce its debt level over the past few months.

"From 442 million lekë on June 30, 2025, at the end of May the debt has decreased to 321 million lekë, or 27% less. This has been our main priority, through reducing expenses and treating financial obligations with great rigor. These measures have yielded the first concrete results in improving the financial situation of the institution," Vasili declared.

The Director General announced that a series of internal reforms were undertaken during 2025.

"During 2025, measures were taken to strengthen internal governance. Internal control mechanisms were strengthened, planning and monitoring procedures were improved, and concrete steps were taken to increase institutional transparency and accountability," she said.

Speaking about the organizational changes undertaken at RTSH, Vasili emphasized that a partial restructuring of the institution has been carried out, with the aim of clarifying the chain of responsibilities and improving coordination between departments.

"A partial restructuring has been carried out, which aimed to reorganize the dependencies of the departments that over the years had been stuck in a fragmented and inefficient structure, where clarity of dependencies and coordination between different units was often lacking. The aim was to create a more functional and effective structure in fulfilling the objectives of the institution", emphasized the Director General of RTSH.

Vasili also announced that in cooperation with the EBU, an independent assessment of the state and prospects of the Albanian public broadcaster has been carried out.

Vasili: RTSH needs modernization, insufficient funding hinders development
Eni Vasili, during the report to the Committee on Public Information Means

According to Vasili, the report highlighted the need for a structured transformation process and formulated a series of strategies for the long-term development of RTSH.

As part of the reform and modernization process, during the period October-December 2025, EBU experts analyzed the situation of the institution and identified priority reforms that need to be undertaken in the coming years.

"In terms of editorial and public trust, the EBU assesses that RTSH still enjoys trust and an important role in public media, but emphasizes the need to strengthen digitalization, increase youth- and diaspora-oriented content, as well as greater use of audience data in editorial and strategic decision-making processes. The report also raises concerns about the need for further modernization of public media, so that it better meets the demands of the public and the challenges of the changing media environment," she said.

Meanwhile, the head of the RTSH Steering Council, Fatjon Hoxhalli, during RTSH's annual report for 2025, emphasized the process of digitizing the archive, describing it as a fundamental public obligation for preserving the national audiovisual memory.

"We consider the digitization of the archive as a fundamental public obligation for the preservation of the national audiovisual memory. Any delay increases the risk of irreversible degradation of the materials, which are in analog formats. Although we have argued and requested a special fund of 200 million lek, this fund was not reflected in the budget allocations. The digitization of the archive should be treated as a national project of special importance and not simply as an isolated technical investment of our institution," said Hoxhalli.

The Deputy Chairman of the RTSH Steering Council, Petrit Beci, stated that the situation at the public broadcaster remains complicated and affected by a long structural and financial crisis.

According to Beci, one of the factors that has brought positive movement in limiting expenses and in relations with the EBU is related to the climate created between the Governing Council and the institution's management.

"One of the reasons that there is a positive movement in limiting expenses and in relations with the EBU has to do with the climate created between the Governing Council and the institution's management, as this impasse has deepened the crisis that this institution has, which has been going on for over 10 years. We identify the problem, but no one is providing a solution. RTSH itself cannot provide a solution other than reducing expenses to the maximum possible limits. At the end of 2026, it is expected to reach the maximum possible limit for reducing expenses. The only thing that RTSH has in its hands, according to the EBU plan, is a reduction in the number of employees, which will be done step by step. The EBU report itself is long-term," said Beci.

The Co-Chair of the Committee on Public Information Means, Iris Luarasi, after hearing the Director General of RTSH on the institution's 2025 annual report, stated that the reform launched during 2025 has created the necessary framework.

It presented a series of recommendations for 2026, emphasizing the need to improve the efficiency, transparency and financial sustainability of the public broadcaster.

Luarasi also called for strengthening institutional and editorial independence, including procedures for selecting members of the Steering Council.

"RTSH Kuvend should be resized with a stable editorial structure in the function of public consultation and citizen education on the legislative process. Institutional and editorial independence should be strengthened, including the procedures for selecting the Steering Council," Luarasi emphasized.

Regarding the financial aspect, the co-chair recommended reviewing the RTSH financial model, including the television set fee and the share held by OSHEE, to guarantee the long-term sustainability of the public broadcaster.


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