Authors

Laurena Kalaja¹;  ¹ Active Learning Lab, Albania

Discussion

This paper presents a comparative analysis of intergovernmental coordination between Germany and Albania, examining how their respective federal and unitary governance structures influence bilateral cooperation within broader European governance frameworks. Against the backdrop of Albania’s EU accession process and Germany’s leadership in European affairs, the research explores the political, institutional, and strategic dimensions of collaboration, drawing on qualitative evidence, including 13 expert interviews and extensive document analysis.
Germany’s federal model and Albania’s unitary system produce distinctive approaches to intergovernmental coordination, with important implications for policy alignment, institutional reform, and external cooperation. Germany’s multi-layered governance — spanning national, subnational (Länder), and supranational levels — allows for decentralized and flexible cooperation with partners such as Albania. This is exemplified in the Bavaria-Albania Joint Commission for Economic and Political Relations and broader engagement under the Berlin Process. In contrast, Albania’s centralized governance structure centralizes decision-making, which shapes the modalities of its engagement with Germany and other EU actors.
The findings highlight that Germany–Albania cooperation operates across multiple dimensions — political, economic, environmental, and public health — and at multiple governance levels. The Berlin Process emerges as a particularly significant supranational framework, fostering regional cooperation and aligning Albania’s governance with EU standards. Germany’s support spans judicial reform, infrastructure development, environmental governance, vocational training, and pandemic response, illustrating how intergovernmental coordination transcends technical cooperation to embody strategic political partnership.
A comparative perspective reveals that the German model offers valuable lessons for Albania’s governance reform and EU integration. Germany’s decentralized approach enables tailored regional cooperation, promotes subnational agency in foreign relations, and strengthens the legitimacy of intergovernmental partnerships. For Albania, adapting such models could enhance institutional capacity, vertical coordination, and policy coherence, thereby accelerating its European integration process.
This paper contributes to debates on the politics of intergovernmental cooperation, demonstrating how governance structures condition the effectiveness of bilateral relations and integration strategies. By situating German–Albanian relations within the evolving dynamics of European governance, the study offers both theoretical insights and practical policy implications for states navigating complex intergovernmental landscapes.
The findings draw on a comparative framework that integrates qualitative interview data, policy documents, and existing scholarship on feder