The Archaeological Museum of Durrës, a space of pride for both the city and the entire country, reopened today more beautiful, stronger, and more enriched, following the devastating earthquake of several years ago. Its reconstruction was made possible through the EU4CULTURE programme, which to date has supported the rebuilding from the ground up of 23 Cultural Heritage sites.
The museum offers a rich and engaging experience for both local and foreign visitors, featuring over 3,200 artefacts and an extensive museum narrative.
Prime Minister Edi Rama attended the reopening ceremony alongside the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sports, Blendi Gonxhja, the European Union Ambassador to Albania, Silvio Gonzato, the UNOPS Manager in Albania, Sabine Kania, and other invited guests.
UNOPS Manager Sabine Kania highlighted the importance of international partnership in delivering the project:
“The ‘EU for Culture’ programme is a testament to multilateral partnership and cooperation. It is especially important that we are here today in these unpredictable times. The EU and the UN stand together, and culture and art have long been part of this shared journey.”
EU Ambassador Silvio Gonzato underlined that this investment goes beyond physical restoration:
“It is a pleasure to be here today at the reopening of the Archaeological Museum, fully restored thanks to the ‘EU for Culture’ programme. Solidarity is a fundamental principle of the EU. This programme is not only about restoring monuments important to Albania’s cultural heritage, but also about revitalising the country’s cultural landscape after the devastating 2019 earthquake. I believe the results we have achieved together have been remarkable. Across the country, we have restored and reopened sites, revitalised tourist destinations, and, most importantly, engaged local communities and supported artists. These will be spaces of creativity. It is no coincidence that this year’s Europe Week carries the motto ‘Open Spaces’, spaces for creative innovation, dialogue, and for people from different backgrounds to meet.”
Minister Blendi Gonxhja emphasised that:“The new Archaeological Museum of Durrës will not be a silent, passive building, but an inviting, active institution. A museum that helps society understand itself in the present, not only the distant past. A storytelling laboratory through educational activities for young people and children—not a storage of the past, but an innovative and creative instrument to interpret it. For this reason, we have restructured and increased the staff of the Durrës Museum Centre by 17, bringing the total to 33, including essential professions such as restorers, archaeologists, and guides. These will meet new demands for discovery and hospitality, while promoting cultural heritage and generating employment opportunities, as well as cooperation programmes with universities, academics, researchers, and the wider community.”
Prime Minister Rama stressed that this reconstruction was made possible through solidarity and close cooperation with the European Union:
“Coming here after standing under the sun through not-so-short speeches, I believe it is only right that I speak briefly, as there is little to add to what has already been rightly said about the major reconstruction of many cultural heritage sites after the devastating earthquake. This recovery was made possible thanks to the solidarity and close cooperation with the European Union, which made the ‘EU4CULTURE’ programme available to us. We did everything within our responsibility, with the right projects and the right determination, to move forward, and we will continue to do so, as some sites are still under process. This is a transformative effort that speaks for itself, just as this museum does at first glance, and even more so inside, where it has been fully reimagined and elevated to a new level.`
This was also our goal for families affected by the earthquake, those who lost their homes in seconds, as well as for institutions and cultural heritage sites: to turn that tragedy into a new opportunity to build better, more beautifully, and more resiliently. Wherever the earthquake struck, what has been rebuilt speaks for itself.
I would also like to emphasise the importance of the ‘EU4CULTURE’ programme and, more broadly, investment in culture for Albania. Not only because Albania is a tourist destination, but also because it is approaching EU membership, and has every reason to showcase its history as fully and effectively as possible,a history of a small yet deeply and fundamentally European country, with tangible evidence across its entire territory.
I would like to thank everyone who contributed to this project. It was a challenge in itself, but now it is a challenge successfully met. I would also like to extend my thanks to the Mayor of Durrës, who is currently on an official visit abroad, to the Municipality of Durrës, and to the Deputy Speaker of the Albanian Parliament present here, along with all those who supported and stood by these projects and their implementation.
Thank you once again. And yes, it is true, Europe is not always without a heart. It has one, but it lies deep, and it requires patience and determination to reach it and feel its pulse. But that heart does beat, and becoming part of its circulation is our national mission- one rooted in a long history, of which this museum stands as a witness. Thank you very much.”
