The Prime Minister of Albania ( sq, Kryeministri i Shqipërisë), officially styled Prime Minister of the Republic of Albania ( sq, Kryeministri i Republikës së Shqipërisë), is the

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a ...

of the Republic of Albania and the most powerful and influential person in Albanian politics. The prime minister holds the executive power of the nation and represents the

Council of Ministers A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or ...

and chairs its meetings. The prime minister is appointed by the president of Albania after each general election and must have the confidence of the Parliament of Albania to stay in office. The Council is responsible for carrying out both foreign and domestic policies. It directs and controls the activities of the ministries and other state organs. The prime minister is elected on the basis of

universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political sta ...

, through a secret ballot, for a four-year term. The Constitution of Albania sets no limit as to office terms of the prime minister. The 33rd and current officeholder is

Edi Rama Edi Rama (born Edvin Kristaq Rama, 4 July 1964) is an Albanian politician, painter, writer, former university lecturer, publicist and former basketball player, who has served as the 33rd and current Prime Minister of Albania since 2013 and chairm ...

of the

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of ...

who was elected on 23 June 2013 and started his first four-year-term on 13 September 2013.

Powers, duties and responsibilities

The prime minister of the

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...

, officially styled Prime Minister of the Republic of Albania, is the most powerful and influential state officeholder in the Albanian system of government. One important role of the president is to designate a candidate for the office of prime minister who, in the opinion of the president, is best able to command a majority of the members of the Parliament. As

, the prime minister is charged with directing the internal policy of the country and leads the public administration. In this regard, the government cooperates with other interested social actors. If the prime minister is temporarily absent or incapable of exercising its executive power, the

deputy prime minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

takes over his functions, such as chairing the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

and the

council of ministers A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or ...

. The

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these pr ...

states that the prime minister represents the

and chairs its meetings, outlines and presents the principal general policies of the state and is responsible for them, assures the implementation of legislation and policies approved by the Council of Ministers, coordinates and supervises the work of the members of the Council of Ministers and other institutions of the central state administration, performs other duties contemplated in the Constitution and laws, resolves disagreements among ministers, and issues orders in the exercise of his powers. The prime minister can also initiate a proceeding of the Constitutional Court of Albania.

Oath

Before assuming duty, the prime minister-elect is required to take an oath of office before the President, swearing loyalty to the

. The text of the oath in its Albanian form is sensitive to gender and all nouns always retain a neutral form. The prime minister-elect takes the following oath of office, specified by the

Office and residence

The Prime Minister's Office () is the official office and residence of the prime minister. It provides secretarial assistance to the prime minister. The prime minister through his office coordinates with all ministers in the central union cabinet, minister of independent charges and governors and ministers of state government. Furthermore informal meetings between the prime minister and other government or foreign officials takes place in the Office. It also consists of the immediate staff of the prime minister of Albania, as well as multiple levels of support staff reporting to the prime minister. Since 1941, the building serves as the office and residence of the prime minister. The building is in the capital city of Tirana at the Dëshmorët e Kombit Boulevard, near the Mother Teresa Square. The building was planned by the Italian architects Florestano Di Fausto and

Gherardo Bosio Gherardo Bosio (19 March 1903 – 16 April 1941) was an Italian architect, engineer and urbanist, famed for his work in planning the centre of Tirana, the capital of Albania.http://www.shqiptariiitalise.com/shqiperi-itali/shqiperi-itali/shqiper ...

, and constructed together with the Dëshmorët e Kombit Boulevard, the Mother Teresa Square and all the buildings located on these squares, during the

Italian occupation of Albania Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional It ...

in 1939 to 1941, in a Rationalist style.

List of prime ministers (1912–present)

Notes

References