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DECS/CULT/POL/book
(99) 8
The Book Sector
in
Albania Report prepared
by
Electronic publishing, Books and Archives
The report is based on a visit to Albania (or, more precisely, to Tirana) in mid-March 1999 and on information obtained at that time through meetings in Albanian institutions, conversations and interviews with publishers, distributors, booksellers and diplomatic-cultural representatives from other countries (Italy, France) as well as private foundations operating in the country. This information is supported by any documentation which it has been possible to gather. The purpose of the visit was to verify the current situation with regard to books inside the country. It was carried out on behalf of institutions concerned with defending the role of books as a fundamental tool of cultural development and social cohesion and on behalf of producers and distributors who over the last decade have faced the risks and problems connected with the creation of a publishing market in a country with scarce resources, a weak infrastructure, a high level of urban migration, impoverishment of rural and outlying areas and, above all, acute emigration. At the end of March, the war made its presence felt along the northern borders of the country and the emigration was accompanied by massive immigration, with a flood of refugees pushed out of Kosovo into Albania and Macedonia and, inevitably, exacerbating the already existing social and economic problems. The direct consequences of this, as far as the subject of this report is concerned, can be seen in the shape of present, and future, changes in the numerical and territorial distribution of the Albanian speaking population, the actual and potential market in question. Problems of book distribution will certainly be aggravated, particularly with regard to school books, while there may well be further obstacles to the development of a publishing market which is based on the principles of transparency and the real possibility of competition. The gravity of the situation, however, makes it all the more necessary to reaffirm the principles of what the policy on books should be: public support for culture and education (in the library system as well as in schools and universities) together with legislative, administrative and fiscal measures to sustain the existence of independent publishers and the survival of professions linked to the book trade, such as authors, translators and editorial staff. Publishing is a strategic form of production and must be considered as such, removing legal uncertainties and contradictions (such as the state production and distribution of school books) which are an impediment to freedom of thought and cultural expression and which, above all, represent a form of unfair competition and a significant reduction of a market which is already limited enough.
According to the Human Development Report Albania 1998, the Human Development Indicator (a synthesis of three basic components of human development: longevity, knowledge and standard of living) places Albania 105th among 175 countries. Albania’s unenviable situation, in the general context of south-eastern Europe, is a result of a half century of isolation not only from western Europe but from neighbouring countries as well. It is also a result of the grave crisis during the transition period. In the early months of 1997, anarchy swept through the country following the collapse of pyramid investment schemes and the democratic system - set up in March 1991 - ran a terrible risk of collapsing into chaos. On the other hand it is also true that Albania’s GDP growth, declining inflation and control of the budget deficit were progressing positively from 1991 until 1996. Experts in international financial institutions had considered the course of the transition a success until this moment. At the same time, these real successes in Albania’s transition were not accompanied by serious institutional and economic reforms such as a new tax system, an efficient banking system and the creation and regulation of a free market through new legislation and institutions. However, according to the above report, it was, above all, the inertia of the long-standing, restrictive policy of stabilization - and especially the severe restrictions on credit - which created unfavorable conditions for rapid market development. Aggregate demand was artificially increased compared to actual production growth in consumption. Public investment remained especially low, lingering at 5.9% of 1996 GDP. In that year the economic growth rate declined to 9.1%, down from 13.35% in 1995. The decline was even worse in 1997: -7.5%; in that year the deficit reached approximately 270 million US$, equal to the sum of the previous five yearly deficits. The domestic currency depreciated by more than 30% in the first three months of 1997. The degeneration of the economic situation was the terrible consequence of the collapse of the pyramid investment scheme. This destroyed deposits with a nominal value equal to 1.2 billion US$ (equivalent to one half of Albania’s GDP for 1996) and reversed almost every macroeconomic indicator. Above all it created the conditions for social disorder and civil war. The new governement and Parliament - elected in June 1997 - had to solve enormous problems: the budget deficit (the 1998 deficit was probably close to the 1993 level, 13.7%-13.8% of GDP), high inflation, the further devaluation of the domestic currency and, especially, a crisis of labour and production. The recently introduced practice of drafting three-year plans for public investment will certainly help in drawing up the annual budget and in identifying priorities; hopefully, these will be not only economic priorities but also social and cultural ones and will thus have an impact on the development of a civil society.
In order to increase state finances the primary objective to achieve is, obviously, the introduction of a coherent tax system capable of combatting tax evasion (calculated at 50%). However this is an objective which presupposes a condition of public order and a relationship of trust between the citizen and the state. This relationship has been made more difficult over the last two years by the chain reaction effects of the pyramid financing collapse on savings and investment and consequently on gross domestic product and tax revenue. Since September 1997 the new government has set up a new tax system, introducing indirect taxes (on alcohol, tobacco and fuel) and entrusting a special office with the collection of taxes from the 200 major contributors in the country. At the same time a new tax rate has been introduced for businesses with an annual turnover of less than 2 million lek (average 1998 exchange rate: 1 US$ = 134 lek; March 1999 1 US$ = 160 lek). Income tax is set at 30%. With these measures the forecast for 1998 was to bring total tax revenue up to 22% of GDP, of which 14% would be in the form of direct taxes. The rationalization of the tax system and the struggle against evasion are clearly necessary and inevitable measures. However the application of a single VAT rate, raised from 12.5% to 20% since September 1997, appears to be more debatable, especially from the point of view of the book market. While it is true that in January 1998 VAT was paid practically only by those businesses with a turnover of 5 billion lek or above, it is also the case that the tax is excessively onerous on small publishing companies. According to the Association of Albanian Publishers, only 5 or 6 publishing houses regularly pay VAT and this evasion is an indirect form of unfair competition affecting decisions on book prices. Duty on paper and other imported materials is also set at 20%. The impact on cover prices of the cost of paper (and of production costs in general) appears to be proportionately much higher than the European average. In the case of school books the impact seems particularly distorted, amounting to as much as 70% of total production costs. Albania has still not signed the Florence Accord, which stipulates that imports of cultural products should be tax exempt.
The state’s public investment budget is largely based on foreign financing. From 1991 to 1994, funds from foreign sources were fourteen times greater than domestic financing. From then until 1996 the gap was reduced by a steady increase from internal sources and the reduction of foreign funding. The ratio shifted again in 1997 as the crisis reduced internal financing by half, while foreign disbursement also fell below the average of previous years. The total of all internal financing for the period 1991-1997 was 28 million US$. During the same period, 1.27 billion US$ was spent by foreign institutions compared to the 1.8 billion which had been pledged. The main multilateral donors to Albania are the European Union and the World Bank, while the largest bilatelateral donors have been (until 1998): Italy, 14%; USA, 10% and Germany, 10%. Twenty-two percent of all foreign assistance has consisted of humanitarian and food aid, sent in response to the urgent needs of the population during the first two years of transition when domestic production had stopped completeley. The most successful projects have involved investment in the country’s road infrastructure, while the least successful have been investments to provide credit for private sector projects - especially in the agricultural sector.
The process of privatization of state enterprises, started in 1991 and applied on a large scale in 1995, has not only significantly increased GDP but has also directly and indirectly permitted the birth of a sector of private production by abolishing the state monopoly of production. About 62,000 enterprises (public and private), employing 214,000 people, were registered with the Tax Office at the end of 1997. In the private sector one-man businesses predominate (85%) while only 3% employ more than 10 workers. According to the Albanian Institute of Statistics, 19% of these businesses had closed down definitively by January 1998. In 60% of cases these were service-oriented businesses and in 38% productive firms. An analysis of business locations reveals that 78% are located in urban areas (Tirana, 27%); urban areas also claim 86% of people employed in both the private and public sector. In March of the same year, 16% of industries were totally destroyed during the disorders. To a large extent these were joint-ventures with Italian partners. The recovery of productive activity, once there is a politically more stable situation within Albania, will also require more flexible and better organized legislation governing business. It was not until early 1999 that legislation (derived from Italian commercial law) was introduced dealing with the principal forms of company structure: personal ownership, limited companies etc. The exact legal definition of certain productive categories also remains uncertain: for example, in the field with which this report is concerned, the description of a publisher as a provider of services needs to be replaced by that of entrepreneur, which is particularly important from the point of view of access to credit and financing.
About 3.5 million Albanians live in Albania. Until 1998 a further 2 million approximately (90% of the population) lived in Kosovo; 500,000-600,000 Albanians lived in Macedonia (23% of the population, although this figure is disputed by the Albanian minority in the country); about 50,000 Albanians were in Montenegro, 6% of the population. These statistics indicate a total figure of about 6 million Albanian speaking people in the Balkans. Under normal circumstances this situation would have rapidly led to bilateral agreements for exports of publishing products, if not free circulation, among the three countries. This has not been possible up to March 1999. Indeed it has been deliberately impeded, even during trade fairs such as that in Skopje in Macedonia. Nevertheless, in theory at least, the potential market is twice as large as the existing one in Albania, although the forced immigration in recent months of Kosovars fleeing ethnic cleansing has altered the picture. About one million Albanian Kosovars have left Kosovo; 500,000 have entered Albania, 250,000 Macedonia and a further 250,000 are spread around a variety of other host countries. At the moment it is difficult to forecast the impact of the population increase in Albania and its explosive potential for the overall situation in the country. It has to be borne in mind that the return of the expelled population to their home towns and villages is extremely problematic, even with the optimistic hypothesis of a resumption of political normality. The experience of the uprooting of Serb, Croat and Bosnian populations during the conflict in Bosnia and after the Dayton agreement shows that a return is almost impossible, and in any case not in the short term. This does not take away from the fact that there is urgency now for forecasts about educational needs, the trend in the school population, the preparation of facilities and the supply of text books beginning with the next school year. The forced immigration is a mass phenomenon which began in May 1998 (although there were signs of it much earlier, especially after 1989, when Kosovo’s state of autonomy was revoked) and has turned into a flood over the last few months, with the daily arrival in the refugee camps of women, children and small numbers of men. It is calculated that this flood has led to an increase of 15% in Albania’s population. It has ended up balancing out the effects of another phenomenon which was equally massive and demographically decisive: the wave of emigration, which has been constant since 1990, although with moments of greater or lesser intensity. According to Albanian statistics, about 16% of the population has emigrated - but the proportion of emigrants aged between 19 and 40 years is 40% (over 450,000 people). The consequences of this can easily be imagined: on demographic increase, on the population of working age (especially males, the majority of the emigrants) and on the structure of the family.The mass of refugees now present in the country has therefore nullified the compensatory effects which the parallel emigration had created in the precarious and weak labour market, which was seriously compromised by the events of 1997. The main destination points are Greece (about 400,000 emigrants up to 1998, especially men) and Italy (about 150,000), with a sharp imbalance between legal and clandestine emigration, which represents about 80% of the total. Emigration to other countries is much less significant, involving mainly, in order of numbers of emigrants, the USA, Germany, Belgium, France, Turkey, Canada and Switzerland. Money sent home by emigrants (obtained through legal or illegal activities, either on the basis of emigration contracts or on the black market) has been an economic resource for the country in recent years, even though it has often been handled irrationally, as for example in the participation in the disastrous pyramid investment speculations. Whether emigrants have become successfully integrated abroad or not, there is little incentive to return, particularly as a result of the difficult political and social situation in recent years, but also because of the lack of any national strategy directed towards this end. Some attempts have been made, however, to stimulate repatriation. One example is a German programme for providing start-up credit to emigrants wanting to return to Albania and open small businesses. Although the numbers are limited, it is worth pointing out the relatively high rate of intellectual emigration. Figures vary but a good estimate would indicate 4000-5000 Albanian university students at present abroad (in Tirana there are about 7000), with a fairly low rate of return. The statistics are two-sided; they can be seen in a positive light in the case of those who return since the student will have acquired skills and experience which it would have been more difficult to attain at home. However the figures are also negative in the case of those who do not return because the impoverishment of intellectual resources compromises the creation of a new social and political class and the availability of professional figures indispensable for the development of the country. To achieve precisely these objectives there must be encouragement for independent cultural production, of which publishing is a fundamental and integral part, because both directly and indirectly it favours the existence and development of a new intellectual class, with positive effects on the development of society as a whole. At the cultural level a second revolution is taking place within the social fabric, quite distinct from that caused by the previously mentioned migratory movements (whether of emigration or immigration) but equally important. This is the internal migration which is shifting significant population groups from rural areas (villages) in the north and south of the country into urban areas (cities) and from small towns to larger cities, especially Tirana and Durres. The capital Tirana, with perhaps 600,000 inhabitants and an annual growth rate of 30% since 1990, included about 20% (or 25%) of the total population of the country, before the war in Kosovo. In effect, urbanization and overpopulation represent a continual source of social problems and a dangerous risk for public order, especially because of the disproportion between the booming population growth in the main cities and the slow pace of infrastructure development. However, despite all the possible risks, it should be borne in mind that urbanization could also prove beneficial to the development of Albanian society in certain ways, provided that its more threatening aspects can be brought under control and that there is an acceleration of infrastructure development through international help. The country, which has remained for almost half a century isolated and frozen under a patriarchal-communist system, needs a civil and urban culture, of places to meet and exchange ideas, capable of extending its positive influence over the entire country. The exercising of democratic citizenship represents values which are in contradiction to corruption and illegality but it also involves confrontation between different mentalities and cultures, mediation and the overcoming of differences. The existence of a cultural industry (however limited it may be), open to experiences which are more advanced or more useful for the country, can be a tool for collective cohesion and for the elimination not of identity but of backwardness.
Theatrical, musical and cinema performances have been practically reduced to zero in recent years and need specific government help. As a result the main tools for the dissemination of information and culture are radio, television, books and magazines. A striking feature for the visitor to Tirana is the large number of satellite dishes spread around the city, making television appear to be by far the leading medium. The audience is more interested in foreign channels (especially Italian ones) than the Albanian Radio an Television (RTHS) and satellite dishes are even more useful outside the capital in mountain regions where the signals are weak. It has not been possible to gather reliable figures on readership but some indication can be given by comparing the circulation of newspapers and magazines. In early 1998, thirteen daily newspapers were published in Tirana and their individual circulation ranged from 1,000 to 30,000 copies. The main reasons for the low total circulation, currently stable (1998) at about 85,000 copies per day, are high production and sales costs and the low average income of the readership. Particularly in rural areas, a newspaper subscription can amount to over 20% of an individual’s income. At the same time, weak market development prevents newspapers from lowering their prices and the poor condition of infrastructure continues to hamper the distribution network outside the main cities. According to the Media Institute, 29.68% of people in Albania read a daily newspaper (28.8% often, 34% rarely and 7.47% never). 27.4% buy a daily newspaper (24.32% often, 33.66% rarely). The low readership is certainly influenced by economic factors, but it may also be the result of the negative influence of the past. Many people state that the news is still dominated by extensive reporting of government activities or, in general, that the Albanian press is an extension of the political debate and reflects political conflicts more than public opinion. The situation with regard to book reading is little different. Readership figures are generally low and even the leading bestsellers sell fewer than 2000 copies over a two-three year period (according to publishers’ statements). Various interviews on this subject
produced the following responses:
All the interviewees emphasized that until the 1990s reading was the predominant cultural activity and had no competition from other media. This explains both the age range and the preferences of dedicated readers. Nowadays the purchase of books is held back for economic reasons, even for this readership group, while, at the same time, public access to books is hampered by the terrible state of the libraries around the country, many of which were damaged during the disorders of 1997. As a general indication of taste, the following titles were the main bestsellers in 1998: U. Eco, The Name of the Rose; P. Merimé?, Carmen; A. Pushkin, The Captain’s Daughter. Other bestsellers included a biography of Enver Hoxha, written by his son, and a volume of poems by Hoxha’s brother.
The Ministry’s activities include providing support for publishing and Albanian culture, although no funds were allocated for this in 1997 because of the difficult political and economic situation. There is a Book Department with various responsibilities and priorities which are listed below. Publishing incentives The intention is to provide support
through special incentives for the publication of:
Literary prizes Since 1995 five national prizes
(1000 US$) have been established in the following categories:
The prizes have been awarded by the minister based on the opinion of a committee of five members, made up of representatives from the Ministry, the National Library and the professional associations. There is also a prize for children’s
literature providing recognition to authors/creators of:
The selection is carried out through a similar committee, which also includes a psychologist and a painter. The institution of a prize for booksellers is planned for 1999.
A network of bookshops still exists for the distribution in the country of art and science books (AQTLASH) but there is a widely held opinion that it is disorganized and functions badly. The plan to privatize it therefore seems worthwhile if it serves to widen the book distribution network and, especially, if the new legal-administrative structure allows the entry of publishers and distributors (of books and magazines) as well as independent booksellers. The privatization project would be carried out in parallel with that affecting the school book distribution network (Ndëmarria e Librit Shkollor o NLS - see below), incorporating a plan for the rationalization of infrastructure use so that the whole country could be served by the book distribution network. It would therefore be advisable for a joint committee - between the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Education and Science and the Ministry for the Economy and Privatizations - to draw up a specific plan as soon as possible. The problem of distribution is a crucial question for the development of the entire publishing system and it has, appropriately, also been considered by the Open Society Foundation in its 1997 programme. We have not been able to examine at first hand the conclusions reached by the study, nor their degree of feasability, but it is clear that the problem must be given priority by the Ministry of Culture. On the other hand, it may be useful for the Ministry to retain a quota of the shares in the international bookshop which is to open in the Tirana Palace of Culture. This is a welcome initiative since there is a demand for it. The projects for the opening of commercial bookshops in museums are also desirable. This type of bookshop may help to stimulate the production of publications aimed at cultural tourism. The restructuring of the existing bookshop in the National History Museum in Tirana is part of the same trend.
Since 1998 the Ministry of Culture has financed participation in international fairs through joint stands. It has provided 50% of the funds for stands at the Children’s Book Fair in Bologna and the Geneva Book Fair and it has paid for all the costs of participation at the Frankfurt Book Fair. The Ministry also intends to finance projects for individual participation in fairs.
Western European countries tend to follow one of two predominant models in the public financing of culture, and of publishing in particular. One model, orientated towards writing, is typical of Latin countries while the second model, orientated towards reading, is found in the English-speaking countries. The model followed dictates spending policy. A large part of the public funding budget in the UK, for example, is directed at the public libraries, in other words public reading, whereas, in the Mediterranean area, much of the intervention is in support of authors and translators through various prizes and incentives. It is a matter of choice but, in a situation where the structure of cultural communication is weak, it is perhaps more important to put greater effort into the building up of reading, with the library system as the cornerstone. This decision would not be damaging for publishers and authors because production is based on low print runs (1000-2000 copies) and therefore library purchases would guarantee a certain sales base of at least a few hundred copies. Publishers do not always realize the importance of library purchases, especially when their distribution takes place as part of general bookshop sales so that their overall effect is rendered invisible. However, in places where the institution of the library is strong, publishers have learned to value its real influence. An example of this occurred when Mrs Thatcher cut library purchases from 12-15% of the total library budget to 10%. The loudest protests came from British publishers and especially from non-fiction publishers, a sector which is traditionally more restricted than that of fiction.
According to official sources there were 366 public libraries in 1998. However their ability to function has been damaged by the events of 1997 and the scarcity of the means at their disposal. The public libraries are under the control of the municipalities of their respective districts and their existence is guaranteed by law. They are financed by local and state government. Their collections of foreign books were built up under a centralized system until 1989 through the Ministry of Culture, which acquired these books for the district public libraries through the book trade agency. But, since that year, the libraries have not received any more hard currency from the state. Thus, over recent years, they have had to carry out acquisitions of this kind of literature either through book donations or with the financial support of various sponsors. In practice, libraries in many cases have not even been able to purchase the products of Albanian publishing. In 1998 the OSF did however intervene with a fund of 50,000 US$ to enable them to supplement their collections. The same foundation has allocated 100,000 US$ for an intervention plan in 1999. To this should be added 200,000 US$ from the UNDP and a contribution of 25,000 US$ from the Ministry. There is a library in the Children’s Cultural Centre, founded in Tirana in 1947, which serves all the children of the capital and is the only one of its kind in the country. There are also over 100 special libraries in Albania, most of them in Tirana; some of these - especially the libraries of the state administration - are gradually developing into information and documentation centres, extending their services to other institutions and ministries. A draft law regarding libraries is due to bring the entire system under review and also make provisions for Albania to sign all international treaties affecting public libraries.
The National Library in Tirana was opened on 10th December 1920, but bibliographical activity only began in 1950. The creation of the Department of Bibliography at that time together with the beginning of publication of a National Bibliography of Albanian Books in 1959 consolidated the NL’s position as a national bibliographic agency. Today the National Library is the centre of library science, bibliographic studies and professional qualification for librarians in Albania and, obviously, the principal library in the country. One of its main tasks is the professional training and qualification of librarians through the publication of library methodological materials, classification tables and working manuals for various kinds of libraries, and, in particular, through the organization of workshops and seminars for the on-going training of librarians throughout the country. It is a consulting centre, giving concrete assistance to raise the level of efficiency in various libraries. The two-year qualification course for librarians, initiated in 1969, is the only means of studying library and information science in Albania. Since 1998 the Library has been the ISBN agency in Albania.
By decision of Parliament (no.7491: “On principal constitutional dispositions”), the local public libraries have been entitled since 1992 to receive five copies of each publication, printed in their districts. However, despite the existence of this law, up until now, they have not received all such publications in the form of legal deposit copies. Five additional copies of all works printed in the country are to be sent to the National Library. The existence of legal deposit and the setting up in 1998 of the ISBN agency should make it possible to build up, rapidly and systematically, not only the National Bibliography but also a catalogue of books on sale.
The events of 1997 seriously damaged the structure and operation of many local public libraries. The Ministry of Culture has launched a reconstruction plan for 6 libraries in 1999, which should be the first stage in a long-term plan for intervention and investment. However the entire system for supplying and expanding collections, training staff and managing the catalogue needs to be reviewed. The National Library must be the driving force behind this process. The public libraries have not so far been automated. With the help of the OSF, most of them have now been equipped with a computer and a CD/ISIS program, given free of charge by UNESCO, to set up their data base. The computerization of the catalogue, according to international standards, should provide the basis for the transfer of books over the entire library system, avoiding overlaps and unnecessary additional expenses. Digital technology is proving to be the
best investment for developing countries, especially in the cultural
field. Initial investment for reconstruction and modernization should
therefore take the form of linking the entire library system via Internet
so that collaboration between the centre (the National Library) and
the outlying terminals can achieve a variety of goals:
In many cases even library lending has been suspended over the last two years. The service is now recovering, as is inter-library lending and international loans. Before 1990 the latter service was limited to the country’s main libraries whereas now local libraries are free to link up with institutions abroad. Lending is free but, given the present situation, perhaps it would be advisable to introduce some form of payment (obviously reduced) either for loans or for library enrolment in order to gather funds for acquisitions or replacements for damaged materials.
The application of the new legislation should regulate and bring into line as far as possible all the different types of libraries, including university and school libraries. These come under the Ministry of Education, not Culture, but even if there is a wish to keep this distinction it would be advantageous to have an agreement between the two ministries so that school libraries could be open to the public, at least in places where there is no public library. The problem is, naturally, one of space and staffing, since the service is run by the teachers in all compulsory schools (grades I - VIII) and most upper-secondary schools. It is rare to find a librarian in a secondary school. The library training programme run by the National Library should include special courses for school librarians and teacher-librarians, in line with the most advanced practices in the west, where the principal didactic objective appears to be the acquisition of autonomous research skills, according to a formula which can be described as “learning to learn”. This is a necessary tool for participating in the information society with a view to permanent on-going training.
The Albanian Library Association was set up in 1993, as an independent non-government organization. It is legally recognized by the government and it is the only such association in the country. As a professional organization, it is interested in developing library and information science, raising the professional level of librarians and defending their professional interests. The association has 350 members, librarians from all libraries in the country. 40% of its members are librarians of the National Library, 30% librarians of public libraries, 20% are librarians of university libraries, 10% come from the Library of the Academy of Sciences, while the remainder come from various special libraries throughout the country. It has been a member of the International
Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) since 1994.
Since 1995 it has also been a member of the European Bureau of Library
Associations (EBLIDA) and of the Forum of Non-government Organizations,
an umbrella organization for all associations having activities in Albania.
The opening of independent publishing houses was permitted in 1991. Until then there were three state publishers which controlled the entire book market. In a similar way to what happened in other countries of central and eastern Europe, and for reasons which can easily be understood, the new publishing houses were set up by people who were already active in the state industry, either as editors and translators or as printers. At the beginning of 1999 there were nominally 100 publishers but less than half (40-45) regularly publish nine titles per year and perhaps only 12 have a printed catalogue. Included among these are two state publishers which control, respectively, school and academic production. From the legal perspective, the publisher is regarded as a provider of services and not an entrepreneur. This is a definition which needs to be changed, partly to allow easier access to business credit. Publishers have difficulty in financing their business and do not have access to bank credit. The cost of money transfer is also quite high, at 2% (20 US$ per 1000 US$), although the rate goes down for higher amounts.
The number of titles published per publisher varies from 5 to 100 per year; the average company produces 10-30 titles. The total number of titles published since 1990 and still available for sale is around 2000. Titles which reach sales of 2000 copies are considered bestsellers. Total annual production is calculated at about 700 titles of all types (excluding school books). A fairly new phenomenon is the publication of works by contemporary authors in the children’s books sector. Prices are fixed by the publishers. The average sale price of 400 lek is equivalent to an average day’s pay. However, according to the Association of Albanian Publishers, there is also an illegal parallel market, made up of ghost publishers who produce and sell (especially in the street) without paying rights or taxes. Greater public control is needed to introduce
sanctions against:
There are no official statistics for books and the ISBN Agency, assigned by the Ministry of Culture to the National Library of Tirana in 1998, has only recently come into operation. This is an essential tool not only to identify the operators in the legal and regular market but also to enable the regular publication of a catalogue of books on sale, which can help to provide better distribution.The catalogue should be available not only on paper but also in digital form and accessible through the National Library website.
Drawing together all the data gathered, it appears that the total value of the market is about 6.4 million dollars. This figure can be broken down into 4.2 million dollars for miscellaneous books, 1.75 million dollars for school books and 450,000 dollars for book imports. According to a statement by Toena, the largest publishing company, its turnover in 1998 came to 200,000 US$. Dituria, with a catalogue of 200 titles, has a turnover of 50,000 US$. Expenditure on school books, however, refers to the purchase of books at the nominal cover price. This is far less than the real price since it represents only about one-third of the cost of production alone, leaving aside other costs such as royalties, design and typesetting as well as a margin for profit. The other two thirds of the cost are covered by the state. While taking into account that the imposed price does not represent the market value of the school book (in terms of real costs/quality/ price ratio), it is clear that, if school book production were liberalized, the global market value calculated at cover prices would significantly increase. It is evident and obviously the independent publishers favour printing a full commercial cover price on each book and subsiding purchase in some way and my attitude to this problem is the same. This approach is in fact in line with the strategy of privatisation and market liberalisation but it implies radical changes in the way textbooks are financed and paid for. And we must not forget that it is very difficult to determine the true cost of any of the currently published textbooks. As the consultant of the World Bank wrote: «The time limit, which everyone knows, offers tremendous negotiating power to printers because it creates a scarcity, in this case a scarcity of production time. Prevarication about accepting printers’ prices would create delay, a shortened period in which to produce the books and hence a justification for an even higher price». In this situation, to calculate the real value of the book market in Albania, we cannot simply triple the estimated value of the textbooks market (1.75 million dollars), considering that the cost of production represents (see the following “Printing and Production”) one-third - 30-40% - of the cover price of general books, but it is probably right to think that the global market could arrive at about 10 million dollars if school production were liberalized on the one hand and if illegal production of many publishing firms were encouraged, on the other hand, to entry in the legal market reducing the rate of VAT (see following “Tax rates, customs and VAT). According to the publishers interviewed, the market for general books is also inflated by titles published at the author’s own expense, mostly children’books or books by former political prisoners. In conclusion, there are a real market (without counting the illegal market) and a potential market, but we should not undervalue the importance to set up a policy for the book sector which could ensure the infrastructural conditions to develope a free market for books or for the culture of Albania.
Only a few publishers (about ten) have their own printing works and, by their own admission, they are mostly equipped with old machinery. According to other sources, technologically advanced equipment is also available but what is lacking is a professional training structure within the graphical-publishing sector capable of improving the overall quality of the books on sale. The printworks (about 100, with 40 active in the school sector) are also contracted to print school books. However the practice of subcontracting is quite common and this has the effect of inflating the costs and preventing proper control over the various phases in the production of school books financed out of public funds. According to some sources, subcontracting sometimes results in the printing being carried out abroad, especially in Greece (and in certain cases in Puglia, in southern Italy). The cost of production, estimated at 30-40% by the publishers interviewed, represents a very high proportion of the cover price in comparison to the European average (about half of this figure). The most expensive element appears to be paper and imported materials, on which customs duty is payable in addition to VAT.
VAT increased in 1997 from 12% to 20%. It is included in the cover price of a book and everyone in the book sector has little doubt that the total or partial removal of VAT would do much to alleviate the problems of the industry and create more jobs. In particular, by reducing the rate to zero or 4% (as in many European countries), the government would make it possible for publishers to give more discounts to booksellers and still retain more capital in their businesses. “Don’t tax reading”, the famous slogan of Umberto Eco at the Frankfurt Fair in 1990 - an appeal for the reduction or elimination of VAT on books - could certainly be adopted by Albanian publishers, although the Minister of Finance has stated that this rate was imposed by the World Bank. In practice very few publishers actually pay VAT regularly. The level of evasion in this sector, as in all sectors of the economy (over 50%), represents a form of unfair competition for the few dozen publishers who follow the law. It would therefore make more sense to lower the rate to 4% to encourage non-evasion and contribute indirectly to a reduction of costs and prices. The publishers interviewed stressed that the full legalization of many publishing firms is closely linked to a reduction in VAT. If the rate were lowered, the number of firms legally registered would increase. A bill for the reduction of VAT on medicine and books has been presented in Parliament. This initiative should be supported so that it can be approved as quickly as possible. As far as the customs are concerned, we have already pointed out that Albania has not signed the Florence Accord. The import duty is considered very high, ranging from 7% of the cover price of educational books to 15-20% on works of fiction and 25% on magazines. One way of getting around the problem is to import by air, since in this case duty is calculated by weight (10 kg = 6 US$). The same system is used for exporting books to emigrant Albanian communities (in the USA, Italy and Germany). The maximum consignment is of 30 kg, costing 60 US$. The profits of limited companies are taxed at a rate of 30%. Interest payable on loans is not tax-deductible if the loan amounts to four times the company’s nominal capital. Promotion and representation expenses are not tax-deductible either.
On several occasions in meetings, publishers emphasized their need for professional training. There are specific needs in various fields, especially in the area of economics-finance. They would like to have courses in: budget definition; definition of the publishing plan; management control; marketing. Albania has only recently signed the Berne Convention and it has no established tradition for publishing contracts or translation, an essential factor for the development of a market following internationally acceptable rules. In the area of distribution too the systems in use are inadequate, both because of the still-dominant presence of state-controlled structures and the weakness of the bookshop sales channel. There is, therefore, a general need for study and reform of all aspects of the publishing profession and its relationship with its partners in the book trade (distributors, wholesalers, booksellers). The Open Society Foundation (OSF, see below) has taken an interest in the problem, but several publishers have specifically asked for training courses similar to those developed by the Italian Publishers Association (in view of the widespread knowledge of Italian). It is possible to imagine some form of consortium between the Council of Europe, the OSF and ISDD (Italian Special Diplomatic Delegation) to finance a series of courses in Tirana.
The Association was created in 1992 and organized on a voluntary basis, on the initiative of twelve private publishing houses. Currently it consists of 45 publishing houses; two of them, the Dukagjini Publishing House and Flakia e vëllazërimit are (or were) respectively in Kosovo and Skopje, Macedonia. The Association publishes a review, «Universi Shqiptar I Librit». The head office of the Association and its review are at the premises of the leading Albanian publisher, Toena. It has an e-mail address. With financial help from the Ministry of Culture, it organized a stand at the Frankfurt Fair in 1998.
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