THE IMPACT OF FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS AND SERVICES ON THE FINANCIAL INCLUSION OF FARMERS AND THE SUSTAINABILITY OF AGRICULTURAL FARMS IN ALBANIA

Agriculture sector in Albania remains one of the most important sectors of the country economy because of its contribution in GDP (currently over 16%) and the total number of employed people in the sector (34.89% in 2023 according to the World Bank data).Since 2010, all European countries have started focusing on financial inclusion as a key determinant to economic growth.Financial inclusion of farmers in Albania is key to a sustainable development of the Agriculture Sector in Albania.Financial inclusion is related to the opportunities for Albanian farmers to access financial market, financial institutions and financial services and products.To assess the existence of specialized financial services for farmers in Albania and the attitude of financial institutions toward farmers, we conducted 60 interviews with staff of the financial institutions in Albania that are responsible to provide financial services for farmers.Results of this study show different attitudes of financial institutions toward farmers depending on the category of the financial institution.Banks appears to be very indifferent to farmers in Albania, on the other hand non-bank financial institutions and savings-credit institutions are being closer to farmers and are offering more specialized financial services to them.