The Democratic Party accuses Prime Minister Edi Rama of using dialogue with students to cover up a cut in education funding relative to the country’s economy. Lili Sula, head of the Education Department of the DP, stated that the 2027 budget foresees less funding relative to Gross Domestic Product for basic, preschool and vocational education.
Students and teachers have continued protests for a month. The prime minister has called for dialogue with them, the editor writes. According to her, the share of education funding relative to the economy falls from 3.26% this year to 3.19% next year.
This happens even though the amount planned for education increases in absolute terms. “Although university students and teachers have been protesting for a month, and Edi Rama calls for dialogue, with his acts he proves that he has turned dialogue into a trap and a deception,” Sula stated. She responded to the prime minister’s calls for talks with the protesters.
She highlighted basic and preschool education, for which the draft budget foresees 1.29% of GDP in 2027, down from 1.35% this year. She also raised concerns about vocational education, where funding, according to the figures she presented, falls from 0.178% to 0.173% of GDP. The DP representative also said that no funds have been foreseen for the digitalisation of vocational education next year.
For higher education, Sula acknowledged that the draft budget foresees a slight increase, from 0.47% to 0.48% of GDP. She argued that support remains insufficient, taking into account also the fees students pay. “Edi Rama talks about the internationalisation of universities, but he finances them like abandoned construction sites,” she said.
The DP’s criticism comes at a time when students and teachers continue their protests. The prime minister has called for dialogue. The 2027 draft budget is the document the government has presented for discussion and is expected to move through the approval procedures in Parliament.