Albania Discusses Partnership with Microsoft

08 February 2006

Minister Pollo

Last week, Genc Pollo, Albanian Minister of Education and Science, met with Bill Gates, the President of Microsoft Corporation, during his visit to Lisbon, Portugal. In the meeting, Gates reiterated that the improvement of quality of education globally remains one of the priorities of his company.

After the meeting, Pollo said that they discussed the possibility to establish strategic partnership between Microsoft and the Albanian Government.

The agreement will primarily serve the education sector, but also the establishment of e-Government systems in the country, in order to increase the transparency of public administration and facilitate the citizens' relations with it. The Government said that its priority for the coming period is to secure computer equipment and internet access for all schools in Albania.

In December 2005, Prime Minister Sali Berisha and Minister Pollo presented the Information and Communication Technology Master Plan (ICT) for schools, which aims to secure funds from both donor organizations and Albanian business community.