State of Culture in Albania 2025 · Municipal profiles · Artivista Center (Qendra Artivista)
This profile is based on information provided by the Municipality of Vlorë in reply to Artivista's request for information on culture (2026) and INSTAT's 2023 Population and Housing Census. Amounts are in Albanian lek.
At a glance
| Region (qark) | Vlorë, capital of the qark |
| Administrative units | 5: Vlorë, Orikum, Qendër Vlorë, Novoselë, Shushicë |
| Area | 616.85 km² |
| Population, 2023 Census | 83,683 (about 136 residents per km²); 20.2% fewer than in 2011 |
| Residents aged 65 and over | 24.9% (national average 19.7%) |
| Culture budget, approved | Cultural Centre 62.2 million lek, Teatri “Petro Marko” 53.6 million lek (2025) |
| Cultural institutions | Historical and Ethnographic Museum, Public Library “Shevqet Musaraj”, Art Gallery, Puppet Theatre and Public Cinema, under the Centre for Culture and Art |
| Staff, Directorate of Economic Development and Tourism | 2 (2022), 2 (2023), 5 (2024), 6 (2025) |
| Activities of the Tourism Directorate | None in 2020 - 2024, 17 in 2025 |
| Heritage works | Not given in the reply |
Summary
Vlorë, the capital of its qark, lost 20.2% of its population between the 2011 and 2023 censuses. Two bodies replied to the request: the Centre for Culture and Art and the Directorate of Economic Development and Tourism. Their replies describe a full programme of activities but give no budget, heritage or income figures. The municipality's annual budgets fill part of the gap: in 2025 the Cultural Centre had 62.2 million lek and the Teatri “Petro Marko” 53.6 million lek.
The Centre for Culture and Art runs the Historical and Ethnographic Museum, the Public Library “Shevqet Musaraj”, the Art Gallery, the Puppet Theatre and the Public Cinema. In 2025 it marked the 180th anniversary of Ismail Qemali's birth, opened a Ukrainian Book Corner at the library, staged new puppet shows and held the National Typological Folklore Festival of Iso-Polyphony.
The Directorate of Economic Development and Tourism organised no cultural activity in 2020 - 2024 and 17 cultural, artistic, sports and social activities in 2025. Its staff grew from 2 in 2022 to 6 in 2025. The reply does not cover strategy, consultations or a breakdown by administrative unit.
1. Governance and institutions
The Centre for Culture and Art promotes artistic and cultural life and heritage, and coordinates five institutions: the Historical and Ethnographic Museum, the Public Library “Shevqet Musaraj”, the Art Gallery, the Puppet Theatre and the Public Cinema. The Directorate of Economic Development and Tourism says it began working on culture only in 2025.
2. Funding
Neither body gave a culture budget in its reply, but the municipality's annual budgets do. The Cultural Centre, which runs the library, the museums, the gallery and the cinema, was budgeted at 40,946,000 lek in 2022, 47,613,000 lek in 2023 and 62,175,000 lek in 2025. The Teatri “Petro Marko” had 33,115,000 lek in 2022 and 53,590,000 lek in 2025. Cultural services as a whole were 71,061,000 lek in 2022 (2.97% of the budget) and 86,478,000 lek in 2023 (3.40%). The 2025 budget also sets 84,010,000 lek for cultural, artistic, sports, social and tourism activities, such as the Aulona Folk festival. These are approved budgets; spending figures were not available.
3. Cultural programme
In 2025 the museum built its programme around the 180th anniversary of Ismail Qemali's birth, with exhibitions on the Government of Vlorë and on crafts in cultural heritage, and events for Independence and Liberation Day. The library opened the Ukrainian Book Corner, reopened its Political Book Sector and held reading clubs and competitions such as “Ëndërrime”. The Puppet Theatre premiered “Princi Bretk” and “E bija e Hënës dhe e Diellit”. The Art Gallery held the Art Colony with painters from across Albania and an exhibition with young people from Ulcinj.
The Cultural Centre staged performances for Summer Day, took local groups to competitions in Romania and Spain and, in November and December, held the National Typological Folklore Festival of Iso-Polyphony, concerts on the Lungomare and the Christmas Market. The “Education through Culture” programme and “The Little Archaeologist” brought children closer to history and art. The programme continued from January to April 2026.
4. Heritage
Neither body reported funds used to restore heritage sites.
5. Staff
The Directorate of Economic Development and Tourism had 2 staff in 2022 and 2023, 5 in 2024 and 6 in 2025; it has no data for 2020 and 2021. The Centre for Culture and Art did not report its staff; the annual budgets plan wages for 26 Cultural Centre staff in 2022 and 30 in 2023 and 2025, and the Teatri “Petro Marko” had 28 staff in 2023.
6. Planning and public participation
The Tourism Directorate aligns its work with the National Tourism Strategy. Its plan for 2026 includes the Aulona Folk Festival, the Vlora Marathon, the “Mare Meum” classical music festival, Literature Month, the 15 October and 28 - 29 November celebrations, the Christmas Market and a warm-meal initiative for people in need. The reply does not mention consultations on culture.
7. Culture across the municipality
Festivals of the administrative units present local traditions, crafts and food, with concerts by local artists, but the reply gives no figures by unit. The most used venues are the “Petro Marko” Theatre, the Children's Cultural Centre, the Vlorë Cultural Centre, the square near the Flamurtari stadium, the Public Library, the square in front of the Naval School, Adem Jashari Square, the Lungomare and the area in front of the Independence Museum.
Conclusions
- The replies give no budget, heritage or income figures; the annual budgets show 62.2 million lek for the Cultural Centre and 53.6 million lek for the theatre in 2025.
- Five institutions under the Centre for Culture and Art held a busy programme in 2025 and early 2026, including the Iso-Polyphony festival.
- The Tourism Directorate began working on culture in 2025, with 17 activities and 6 staff.
- The Centre for Culture and Art did not report its staff in the reply.
- The two bodies replied separately, and the reply describes no coordination between them.
Recommendations
Report culture spending
Reporting planned and actual spending for culture each year would show what culture costs and how it is funded.
Report staff
Staff figures for the five institutions would show the capacity behind the programme.
Work together
A shared plan between the Centre for Culture and Art and the Tourism Directorate would avoid overlaps.
Show the spread
Figures by administrative unit would show how much reaches Orikum, Novoselë, Shushicë and Qendër Vlorë.
About the data
Population figures come from the INSTAT 2011 and 2023 censuses. Institutions, activities, staff and plans are as reported by the Municipality of Vlorë in its reply (2026), sent by the Centre for Culture and Art and the Directorate of Economic Development and Tourism. Budget figures come from the municipality's annual budgets for 2022, 2023 and 2025.
Every effort has been made to base this analysis on the data provided by the municipality, complemented with data from its Medium Term Budget Programmes (PBA) published online. For comments or questions, please contact artivista@arti-vista.org.
This article was prepared within the CulturAL project, with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the National Centre for Community Services and Artivista Center and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.
