Young people are leaving, but those who remain have nowhere to work, youth unemployment rises 16%

Albania is losing population, particularly young people, but the contraction of this age group is not being accompanied by an easing of the labor market.

On the contrary, the latest data from INSTAT show that the number of unemployed people aged 15-29 increased at a double-digit rate during the second quarter of 2026, while their employment fell.

On January 1, 2026, Albania’s resident population fell to 2,335,930, around 27.4 thousand fewer residents than on January 1, 2025.

The contraction is more evident among younger age groups, with the number of young people aged 15-29 shrinking by 62 thousand, or 13.4%, between 2022 and January 2026.

But while the number of young people is falling, the number of those looking for work and unable to find it is increasing.

According to INSTAT data, there were 36.7 thousand unemployed people aged 15-29 in the second quarter of 2026, compared with 31.6 thousand in the same period of 2025. In one year, the number of unemployed young people increased by more than 5 thousand, or 16.1%.

At the same time, the number of employed young people fell from 177.4 thousand to 170.3 thousand, a decrease of around 7 thousand employed people, or 4%. The 15-29 age group’s labor force, which includes both employed and unemployed people, declined slightly from 209 thousand to 207 thousand.

Calculations based on INSTAT data show that the youth unemployment rate rose to around 17.7% in the second quarter of 2026, from 15.1% a year earlier, a deterioration of around 2.6 percentage points.

The trend among young people contrasts with the rest of the labor market. The overall number of unemployed people in the country fell by 4.2% in one year, to 104.6 thousand.

Among those aged 30-64, the number of unemployed people fell by 12.1%, or around 9.2 thousand people. Only among young people was the trend moving in the opposite direction.

As a result, young people account for an increasingly large share of the country’s unemployed. In the second quarter of 2025, those aged 15-29 accounted for around 29% of all unemployed people, but one year later their share had risen to around 35%.

The labor market in our country has not historically been attractive to young people, but conditions have recently become even more difficult. The education system does not appear to be producing the profiles currently sought by businesses.

There is an oversupply of graduates in traditional fields and a marked shortage of specialists in technical fields, technology, and specialized trades sought by the private sector.

The mass departure of young people, particularly those with higher education or strong skills, is creating instability in the market. Meanwhile, many young people who remain either are waiting to leave or are in a transitional phase, looking for better jobs but without long-term success./ Monitor