The Special Prosecution against Corruption (SPAK) has launched an investigation into a €400,000 tender by the Albanian Development Fund (ADF). The investigation follows accusations that the project was awarded to a company with ties to ADF’s head, Dritan Agolli.
The tender concerns ADF’s “100 villages” project which seeks to collect traditional Albanian recipes from 100 villages and prepare authentic and annotated menus for the villages’ culinary institutions.
The project also foresees the production of a hybrid travel guide/cookbook, as well as a 12-episode documentary on the subject.
ADF awarded the project to the highest offer, submitted by the Albanian company Mascarpone sh.p.k. This latter is partially owned by Alfio Rrotani who is a chef at a restaurant belonging to Dritan Agolli’s son, Flladi Agolli.
The fund released a public statement on the investigation where it denies the accusation of corruption and provides a breakdown of the project and its various components.
