Albania: Associations and Unions

Union of Albanian Journalists

The Union of Albanian Journalists (UAJ) has approximately 800 members and is the most active syndicate in the country. It describes itself as a “non-political, non-religious and non-profit association”. Its stated mission is to protect the rights of journalists, including the journalists of written and electronic media. Membership can be requested upon individual applications to the Steering Board, one of the governing bodies of the union.

The League of Albanian Journalists and the Association of Professional Journalists in Albania are other professional associations active in the country. There also are other journalists’ associations divided geographically throughout the country.

Albanian Media Institute

The Albanian Media Institute (AMI) is one of the main civil society actors in Albania and one of the largest journalistic training institutions in the Balkan region. Every year, approximately 300 Albanian journalists participate in the training courses of AMI. The Institute has conducted several research studies such as “Media and Information Society in Albania” and contributes to “Mapping Digital Media” reports for Albania. AMI has published approximately 40 books in the fields of journalism and public relations. The Albanian Media Institute is a member of The South East European Network for Professionalization of the Media (SEENPM).