Minister Koçiu in Vlora Highlights Clearance of Confiscated Vehicle Site and Transformation into Community Space

The national process of clearing and returning public spaces to citizens — areas that have been used as collection points for seized or confiscated vehicles for years — continued today in Vlora. Similar actions have already taken place in Shkodra and Laç, and work has now begun in the Narta area. These spaces will be transformed for community use.
Accompanied by representatives of central and local institutions, Minister of Interior Albana Koçiu inspected the ongoing cleanup and identification of vehicles that have been stored for years.
“As part of this surface-clearing operation, we are transforming these zones into clean areas that the local government can use to design development plans. We are turning them into community zones, playgrounds, and recreational areas for children. Public institutions can also use them for public purposes,” said Minister Koçiu.
In the Vlora district, there are eight collection points: five in Saranda, one in Delvina, one in Himara, and one in Vlora, which is the largest in the country. Of the 2,124 vehicles and motorcycles identified in the process, 1,400 will be scrapped, freeing up about 80% of the area. The remainder will be used by public institutions or kept as material evidence in cooperation with the General Prosecutor’s Office. The removal and processing of the vehicles is expected to take around five months.
Pirro Vengu, the Minister of Defense and MP for Vlora, emphasized the importance of this process, particularly in an area like Narta, which is near residential communities, tourist zones, and the new railway project connecting Vlora with the airport.
In cooperation with the Agency for the Administration of Seized and Confiscated Assets, the State Police, the Directorate of State Material Reserves, and local authorities, a nationwide cleanup campaign was launched in early September to clear blocked spaces and return them to public use. This campaign is part of a program that includes a total of 24 storage points previously used by the State Police for vehicle custody.