Local Environmental, Tourist and Economic Development Plan
The project “Cross-border cooperation for sustainable development and tourism, through the valorization of rural cultural heritage and conservation of natural assets of areas with ancient olive groves – OLIVO” contributed to the promotion of sustainable tourism activities and the conservation of natural resources in areas with ancient olive groves and in raising awareness among local populations on their cultural heritage related to the traditional olive culture, activating a process for establishing local development strategies. The Mediterranean landscape is characterized by the presence of ancient olive groves (AOOs), part of the ancient agricultural tradition and the social environment. This is clearly true for Albania and Montenegro as well as for Apulia and Molise, where AOOs play an important ecological role and are one of the important drivers of the Programme Areas’ economy, in terms of absolute value, Gross Value Added (GVA) and employment.
This report provides a detailed analysis of the historical background, environmental assets and local products of the areas of Preza, Marikaj and Ndroq, with a focus on the areas’ ancient olive groves, complete with a SWOT analysis of four thematic areas, specifically the environment, agriculture, handicrafts and tourism. The report concludes by defining action points in 5 key areas, which are Development and Investment, Infrastructure, Tourism, Awareness and Promotion, and Legal Organization. This report was prepared by the Agricultural University of Tirana (main project partner) and the Urban Research Institute (project partner).
