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THE CITY OF SHKODRA

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

Shkodra is one of the most important Albanian cities economically, historically and culturally. Moreover, it is also the administrative center of one of the 12 counties and one of the 36 districts of Albania.

Founded in the IV century B.C, Shkodra is an ancient city with a very rich and complicated history. During the reign of King Gent of Labeats in 181, Shkodra was the capital of the Illyrian Kingdom. Later on, in the XIV century, Shkodra became the main center of the princedom of Bushatllinj. During the last 2000 years, Shkodra has been invaded by Romans, Byzantines, Slavs, Venetians, Ottomans, Austro-Hungarians, Montenegrins and Italians; therefore the city and its surrounds have a rich variety of architectural styles. Pg 1. Teuleda.org

Population

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The prefecture of Shkodra is home to 217, 375 inhabitants according to the 2011 Census Studies, out of which 108, 178 were males and 109,197 females. The largest part of the population, 121,047 inhabitants, was reported to be living in rural settings and the rest, 96,328 in urban settings.

As showed in Chart 1, most of the population is composed of the young and working groups. Despite the slight increase from 1995 to 2004, the mean age of Albania remains young, 31.4 years old from previously 28.8 years old. Unfortunately, similar age data is not available for the Shkodra municipality.

The number of registered inhabitants in the city of Shkodra is 113,300 in the surface area of 16.8 km2, which leads to a density of 6,744.0 people per km2. Between 2004 and 2008, Shkodra had an increase in population size of 3,668 (3.3%), from 109,632 to 113,300 inhabitants. The main reasons for this percentage increase are the large numbers of emigrants returning to the country to seek work and also internal migration from northern cities.Pg 9 Teuleda.Org ; Census 2011

Geography

Shkodra, the largest city of Albania with a surface of 16.5 km2, is located in the north western part of the country, close to the border with Montenegro. The city has a flat surface around 0 to 5 m above sea level. Its main natural features include the lake, the confluence of the rivers Buna, Drin and Kir, and also 3 main hills one of which is dominated by Rozafa Castle.

Chart 1.Population Composition

Retirement AgeWorking AgeYounger than 15 years old

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Noteworthy is Shkodra’s richness in hydrographical sources. The Lake of Shkodra, with a minimal surface of 368 km2 and a 5m level above sea, is the largest lake in the Balkan Peninsula. The River Drin, also the longest river in Albania, has a length of 285 km and a drainage basin of 14,173 km. The River Buna, that drains the Lake of Shkodra and slopes down to the Adriatic Sea, has a length of 44 km.

Due to its geographical position, Shkodra has a typically Mediterranean dominated weather, with the average yearly temperature of 14.8C. The average temperatures range from -2.7C to 5C in January, the coldest month of the year, and from 17-18C to 24.6C in July, the warmest month of the year. Being close to the sea and the lake augmented the amount of rainfall in Shkodra to the highest in Albania with an average yearly rainfall of 2000 mm. 

http://www.shkoder.net/en/district.htm

http://www.weatheronline.co.uk/reports/climate/Albania.htm

KEY BUSINESS ACTIVITIES:

Tourism and Trade

Since the transition of the country into a free market economy in 1990, Shkodra had to face underdeveloped infrastructure, electricity cut offs and the closing down of the biggest state run factories. Nonetheless at the present, the number of businesses in Shkodra has been steadily increasing and almost doubled

Shkodra’s geographical position makes Shkodra readily accessible by land, sea or air. It is 88 km from the country’s capital city, 98 km from its main port of Durrës, 45 km from the port of Shëngjin, and 82 km from Albania’s only international airport, at Rinas. It also lies close to Kosovo via the road to Kukës, 170 km away, and only 35 km from Montenegro via the Hani Hotit crossing and 13 km from that of Muriqan. Teuleda. Org

Picture that depicts the geography of the city

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between 2003 and 2006, as depicted in Figure 1. These statistics make Shkodra home to around fifty percent of all the businesses registered in the northern part of Albania and about five per cent of all the registered businesses in Albania.

Nearly 90 per cent of businesses in Shkodra are micro businesses, half of which is trade and services, whereas the other half is hospitality, agriculture, production and construction. The remaining ten percent of the businesses is macro businesses composed of 15 large industrial factories. The most evident trends in the economy are the sharp increase of trade which doubled since 2003 and the nearly 500% growth of the service sector. Both trade and services are concentrated in the city center and less in the suburbs, therefore they are reachable by walking and cycling.

Another important part of the Shkodra’s economy, is the enormous touristic potential of the city which is expected to keep developing. Due to the close vicinity of the Albanian Alps, the mountainous villages close to the city have developed winter tourism such a skiing and snowboarding. The pastoral shore of the Lake Shkodra and the panoramic views of the rivers passing through the city are home to a huge number of restaurants and bars.

The castle of Shkodra, Rozafa, still sits in the highest hill in the entrance of the city offering a famous museum, guided tours and traditional food and

Shkodra’s geographical position makes Shkodra readily accessible by land, sea or air. It is 88 km from the country’s capital city, 98 km from its main port of Durrës, 45 km from the port of Shëngjin, and 82 km from Albania’s only international airport, at Rinas. It also lies close to Kosovo via the road to Kukës, 170 km away, and only 35 km from Montenegro via the Hani Hotit crossing and 13 km from that of Muriqan. Teuleda. Org

Picture that depicts the geography of the city

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souvenirs. The castle is well-known for the great view of the city and the three rivers that meet below it. Other places of interest include the history museum, the bazaar, the English tower, the Lead Mosque and the city’s two cathedrals. There are good quality hotels in the city, as well as in the coast near Velipoja, close to the lake, and in remote touristic villages such as Thethi, Drishti Castle etc. Usually, tourists are accommodated in a range of different types of accommodation available in Shkodra, ranging from comfortable four star hotels to rooms in farmhouses in rural villages.

According to the Ministry of Tourism give, the number of tourists visiting Albania has been steadily increasing throughout the last years. These tourists usually enter the city via guide tour busses. Over the past four or five years, the numbers of tourists visiting Albania has increased, and many of them drive into the country from Montenegro; still, most land visitors to Shkodra come from other parts of Albania or Albanian speaking countries such as Kosovo and Macedonia.

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 20070

200000

400000

600000

800000

1000000

1200000

1400000

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Number of Tourists

Number of Tourists

Finally, it might be relevant to mention that Shkodra has a well-established tradition in handicrafts, tailoring, music and poetry, and it still grows wide range of organic traditional foods. The aspects of the economy have few or

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no impact at all in transportation; therefore they were not given much space in this description.

Environment

The air quality in the city of Shkodra is mainly influenced from car transport, waste combustion, bio originated discharges, industrial processes etc. Air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, mono and carbon dioxide, hydrocarbons, lead, soot, dust and acrogenic substances cause most of the of respiratory infection diseases in Shkodra. Before 1990s, industry and home warming were the main causes of air pollution. Nowadays that changed, making car discharges the main polluting factor in Shkodra. This shift can be explained by the constant increase in the number of cars in the city. In 1996, 8600 cars were registered in Shkodra. In 2003, the number had risen to 1300, with an average car age of over 10 years. (Hoxha.M. 2004)In other words, affordable old cars that are forbidden from European countries are imported into Shkodra, not only increasing the number of vehicles but also creating a critical situation for air pollution. A depicting example, would be the amount of soot released by cars that has reached levels of 50 microgram/m3, even higher than recommended levels of World Health Organization, WHO.

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The results of dust respired in Shkodra region ranged 70- 90 microgram/m3 on 2002 and 107 micrograms/m3 on 2005. The higher concentration is evidenced in the year 2009 with 110 micrograms/m3. Figure one depicts the actual dust amount in the city.

The results show that the urban air of Shkoder city is polluted. The parameters as total dust and inspired dust have higher values than the EU standards and can cause health disorders, especially respiratory diseases. From the health side the air pollution is a quite concerning problem which has a negative effect to the respiratory system, especially to the children and to the old people. This situation is characteristic for the summer when the bacterial level in air is higher and winter when air pressure is low and the air humidity increases

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URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND TRANSPORT SITUATION:

CITE: MOBALD

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Shkodra has a strategic location within the modernized South-East Europe road network that links Shkodra with all capitals in Southeast Europe that include: Montenegro, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Serbia. The city maintains mostly the same urban structure constructed during communism, with an inner radius of 1 km and an outside circle of 3 km (Figure 3). In other words, most of the city is reachable

via walking and cycling, making driving mostly unnecessary.

FIGURE. 2

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Figure. 3

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Shkodra has a remarkable modal split (Chart2) with a share of 72% pedestrians and daily cyclists with full gender equity (source: Shkodra MOBALB household travel survey 2011; 500 households). Taking other cities in Albania and Southeast Europe into consideration, in particular the car mad Balkan cities, the historic approach of transport in Shkodra deserves special attention. Once the transport modes of the poor, walking and cycling today is part of the culture of the city and is maintained due to the short distance in the city and the compact urban form of it. This cycling and walking culture can be used as a strategic asset in the urban development of Shkodra both for economic and environmental reasons. One peculiarity regarding Shkodra is that the city is a champion in privately owned on-street cycle racks per m² in Europe. These on-street racks are usually prevalent and affordable. Moreover, the streets in Shkodra are structured along boulevards where shared space is still the prevailing rule thanks to a dominant and proud cycling tradition.

44%

29%

24%

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Chart 2: Modal Split 2011Walking Cycling Driving Public Transport

The MOBALB Project run surveys to analyze the major transportation used from home to work. The most striking data is that 51 % of civil servants of the Municipality walk to work, while 30% cycle to work; whereas, in the

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shoe factory Berttoni resulted that 41% of the workers use the company bus, 38% cycle and 18% walk to work.

Unfortunately, the future does not seem promising for the walking and cycling culture of Shkodra. In 2020 is predicted a major shift of the modal split with a much larger share of car drivers (Chart3). The major reasons seem to be the difference in generations and an increase in the living standards of the city (Picture1.). Therefore, it is crucial to support and help maintain the existing modal split and mindset.

15%

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70%

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Chart 3: Modal Split in 2020Walking Cycling Driving Public Transport

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Strategies for the Future

The main project regarding the development of the urban strategies in Shkodra is the MOBALB Project – Urban Mobility Albania, supported by the municipality of the city. The main purposes of this project are to “to promote, reorganize and to develop urban transport systems and achieve a more efficient, reliable, safe and sustainable transportation” (quote mobalb). The main goals of this project are to prepare the staff of the municipality through a specific program of urban mobility management, composed of a combination of distributing information and literature and promotion and marketing campaign. http://www.mobalb.al/

The 2020 goals of the municipality regarding urban transportation include: road modernization, restoration of boulevards and sidewalks, parking management, traffic calming and speed restrictions and development of suburban transport network.

Picture 1.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY:

"Albanian Tourist Guide - Shkodra: General Info." Albanian Tourist Guide - Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. <http://www.united-albania.com/shkodra-general-info.html>.

"Balwois." BALWOIS Project Water Observation and Information System for Balkan Countries . N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012.

"Statistical Study about the Respiratory Diseases of Shkoder during 1984 – 2005. Balwois." BALWOIS Project Water Observation and

Information System for Balkan Countries . N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. <www.balwois.com/cms/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1>.

"Eltis - The urban mobility portal - Home." Eltis - The urban mobility portal - Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. <http://www.eltis.org/>.

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"Eltis - The urban mobility portal – Home: Shkodra,the cycling city of Albania and Southeast Europe ‘Great tradition - Bright future’." Eltis - The urban mobility portal - Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. <http://www.eltis.org/docs/studies/shkodra_jpg1.jpg.pdf>.

"Faqja Zyrtare e Bashkise Shkoder." Faqja Zyrtare e Bashkise Shkoder. Municipality of Shkodra, n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. <http://www.shkodra.gov.al/>.

"Invest in Shkodra - Strategic Documents." TEULEDA - Home. TEULEDA, n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. <http://www.teuleda.org.al/investinshkodra//index.php?faqe=documenti-strategici&hl=en_US>.

Shkoder Net. "Shkodra." Hyrje | Shkoder.net.... N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. <http://www.shkoder.net/en/district.htm>