On Friday, the Administrative Court overruled the government decision to strip the University of Tirana ownership of the Botanical Garden and transfer it to the Municipality of Tirana.
Spiro Drushku, the Dean of Faculty of Natural Sciences attended the court session today and confirmed the news for BalkanWeb.
The government decided in 2019 to transfer the 150,000 m² garden to the municipality to use it “for the exercise of its functions”.
It was followed by protests from Tirana University, who then took the case to the court, deeming the transfer illegal.
“The government decision undermines autonomy and academic freedom, it violates the Law on Higher Education, and renders it impossible for the garden to function” Dean Drushku stated back then.
Tirana’s Botanical Garden of Tirana was built in 1971 and occupies an area of 15 hectares of greenery near the lake. It is home to over 2,000 plant species, and has always been owned by the university.
