Albania is Europe’s main marijuana source, according to the Italian Antimafia division’s 2019 report. It is also ranked among the top countries of origin for marijuana globally.
Additionally, the report notes that Albania has become a key transit point for heroin coming in from Afghanistan and Central Asia. Albanian criminal groups act as middlemen and import large amounts of cocaine from Colombia to the European market.
The activities of Albanian criminal groups primarily consist in drug, arms, and human trafficking, as well as prostitution rings usually run in cooperation with other criminal groups.
The report found that income generated by these illegal activities is often invested strategically in Albania, in the construction and the tourism industries.
The Apulian coast remains the main Italian entry point used by drug traffickers coming from Albania.
