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Dr. Kvint with mayor of Vlora Niko Veizai (left), Mr.
Dritan Celaj and Lady Hazel Rose.
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Economist Vladimir Kvint's Fulbright project took him to the
Albanian city of Vlora, a strategically important seaport in a
country struggling with high unemployment, widespread corruption
and a totalitarian past. Pedestrians, motorists, donkeys and cows
converged on the same busy arteries, and museums closed on weekends.
But at the Vlora Technological University, where Kvint lectured
and met with the country's top government officials, central bankers
and journalists, he had an opportunity that most educators can
only dream of-to as he put it, "consult, and be useful."
Asked to recommend ways of improving Albania's standard of living
and business climate, Kvint studied its emerging markets and shaky
infrastructure and proposed, among other things: micro-credit
loans of up to $4,000 to promote entrepreneurship; a law requiring
companies run their payrolls through banks to make the cash-based
economy more transparent; direct appeals for foreign investment;
and economic amnesty for Albanian businesses with bank accounts
in other countries. "There is too much Albanian money sitting
in foreign banks," he explains. "When a country doesn't
have the money to create jobs, unemployment increases and instability
appears."
President Rexhep Mejdani responded by endorsing economic amnesty,
which has helped to restore billions of dollars to the economies
of Italy, Argentina and Kazakhstan. Micro-credit loans are also
being made and Kvint's other proposals are being studied in Albania's
parliament and vigorously debated in the media.
Ironically, Albania wasn't Kvint's first choice. The Russian-born
Fordham University management and international business professor
had applied for a Fulbright grant to teach and study privatization
in Bulgaria, which he had visited as a consultant to King Simeon
II. But he warmed to Albania, growing to admire the beauty of
its Adriatic and Ionic coasts and its "entrepreneurial spirit;"
its economy is growing at the rate of 7.5 percent-the highest,
he notes, in all of Europe.
Kvint also studied the coal and bitumen mines of Selenica, acquired
material for a book about emerging markets in the Balkan countries,
and learned enough phrases to make himself understood in restaurants
and hotels. But his proudest accomplishment may have been summed
up in a testimonial letter by Dr. Bilal Shkurtaj, rector of his
host institution. "His suggestions make us feel optimistic
for the future of our town and our country," Shkurtaj wrote.
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