Creative Commons

The Thesis was written as part of the MSc in Sustainable Development at the In tern a- tiona l Hellenic University and deals with the Albanian integration into the European Union. The aim of the paper is to present an overview of the current situation in Alb a- nia as well as to determine the role of sustainability in the process of this integration. The main purpose is to analyze the progress of the country on the economic, societal and environmental level, and assess its deficiencies in the framework of European i n- tegration. Albania, as all Balkan countries in general, in the past 20 years faced a l ot of changes and since its application for EU membership in April of 2009 has encountered many challenges. Previous studies indicate that Albania has made significant progress in many aspects but not enough to guarantee its integration. The assessment of these aspects will most definitely shed some light and will help us understand how far away Albania is from becoming a member state of the European Union. This matter will be mostly studied in accordance with the three pillars of sustainability. Consistent ly, at the end of this paper we will have a complete perception of Albanian situation and how sustainability can help the country fulfill its goal of becoming the next member state of European Union