Administrative divisions of Albania

Albania is divided into 12 administrative counties (Albanian: qark or prefekturë). Since June 2015, these counties are divided into 61 municipalities (Albanian: bashki). These counties were further divided in 36 districts (Albanian: rreth) which became defunct in 2000.^[1] There are overall 2980 villages/communities (Albanian: fshat) in all Albania, formerly known as localities (Albanian: lokalitete).

The government introduced a new administrative division to be implemented in 2015 whereby municipalities are reduced to 61 in total, while rural ones called komuna are abolished. The defunct municipalities will be known as Neighborhoods or Villages (Albanian: Lagje / Fshat).^[2][3]

Overview

Albanian	English	Quantity	Status	Note	Main article
prefekturë	prefecture	10	defunct	Introduced ca. 1925	Prefectures of Albania
qark	county	12	active	Listed in ISO 3166-2:AL	Counties of Albania
rrethe	district	36	defunct	Defunct since 2000. Listed in ISO 3166-2:AL	Districts of Albania
bashki	municipality	61	active	Active since 2015	Municipalities of Albania
komunë	commune	309	defunct	rural	Municipalities of Albania
qytet	city	72
fshat	village	2980
lokalitete	locality		defunct
njësi bashkiake, lagje or rajone	municipal unit

Administrative divisions valid until June 2015

Each county has its council which is composed of a number of municipalities. The municipalities are the first level of local governance, responsible for local needs and law enforcement.^[4]

	County	Capital	Districts	Municipalities	Cities	Villages
Central Albania
4	Elbasan	Elbasan	Elbasan Gramsh Librazhd Peqin	20 9 9 5	3 1 2 1	177 95 75 49
11	Tirana	Tirana	Kavajë Tirana	8 16	2 3	66 167
North Albania
2	Dibër	Peshkopi	Bulqizë Dibër Mat	7 14 10	1 1 2	63 141 76
3	Durrës	Durrës	Durrës Krujë	6 4	4 2	62 44
8	Kukës	Kukës	Has Kukës Tropojë	3 14 7	1 1 1	30 89 68
9	Lezhë	Lezhë	Kurbin Lezhë Mirditë	4 9 5	3 1 2	26 62 80
10	Shkodër	Shkodër	Malësi e Madhe Pukë Shkodër	5 8 15	1 2 2	56 75 141
South Albania
1	Berat	Berat	Berat Kuçovë Skrapar	10 2 8	2 1 2	122 18 105
5	Fier	Fier	Fier Lushnjë Mallakastër	14 14 8	3 2 1	117 121 40
6	Gjirokastër	Gjirokastër	Gjirokastër Përmet Tepelenë	11 7 8	2 2 2	96 98 77
7	Korçë	Korçë	Devoll Kolonjë Korçë Pogradec	4 6 14 7	1 2 2 1	44 76 153 72
12	Vlorë	Vlorë	Delvinë Sarandë Vlorë	3 7 9	1 2 4	38 62 99

Counties

Albania is divided into twelve counties (Albanian: qarku, sing. qark (official term); but often prefektura, sing. prefekturë, sometimes translated as prefecture). Each contained several districts (sometimes described as subprefectures). The current administration divisions were put into effect in 1938.

Counties of Albania Color County Capital Population (2011 census) Area (km²)[5] Density Districts NUTS region Notes Berat Berat 141,944 1,798 159 Berat Kuçovë Skrapar South Dibër Peshkopi 140,002 2,507 58 Bulqizë Dibër Mat North Durrës Durrës 262,785 766 367 Durrës Krujë North Elbasan Elbasan 295,827 3,199 105 Elbasan Gramsh Librazhd Peqin Central Fier Fier 310,331 1,890 198 Fier Lushnjë Mallakastër South Gjirokastër Gjirokastër 72,176 2,884 36 Gjirokastër Përmet Tepelenë South Korçë Korçë 220,357 3,711 69 Devoll Kolonjë Korçë Pogradec South Kukës Kukës 85,292 2,374 33 Has Kukës Tropojë North Lezhë Lezhë 134,027 1,620 100 Kurbin Lezhë Mirditë North Shkodër Shkodër 215,347 3,562 69 Malësi e Madhe Pukë Shkodër North Tirana Tirana 749,365 1,652 491 Kavajë Tirana Central Vlorë Vlorë 175,640 2,706 67 Delvinë Sarandë Vlorë South

See also

References

1. A Brief History of the Administrative-territorial Organization in Albania
2. http://www.top-channel.tv/lajme/artikull.php?id=292404
3. http://www.shekulli.com.al/web/p.php?id=38109&kat=88
4. "On the Organization and Functioning of the Local Government, Republic of Albania, 2000". Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 September 2010. Retrieved 27 August 2010.
5. Johan van der Heyden. GeoHive: Global Statistics

External links

• Administrative Reform Official Website
• Ministry of Local Affairs Official Website