Shëngjin also served as a holding hub for Afghan refugees, particularly after the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021. Despite its role as a temporary shelter, many refugees remained stuck there for nearly two years, awaiting a green light to move to the United States.
Sandër Marashi, head of the port at Shëngjin, said although no migrants have arrived for weeks, “the entire Italian staff is still at the port and at the center, and they manage everything here.”
Locals in the resort town of Shëngjin say the police spend their days lounging at the five-star Rafaelo Resort, basking in the sun and feasting on seafood while their unmistakable Carabinieri police cars sit parked out front.
Albanian media report that the staff at Gjadër — marooned in a mountainside village with just a few hundred locals for company — are isolated, bored and increasingly resentful of their Shëngjin colleagues, who they claim are soaking up the good life.
According to a story published in the internal magazine of the Italian penitentiary police, with no refugees in sight, the local prison officers at Gjadër have taken to rescuing and entertaining the village’s stray dogs instead.
‘A very expensive waiting room’
In April, the Italian government allocated €65 million for the construction of the two centers and another €2.5 million for the expenses of the Italian staff in 2024. Overall, the government estimated it would spend around €680 million over the next five years on maintaining and running the centers.
