Partnerships have a long history in European social housing with a mixed degree of success. They are an emerging model in post-socialist countries driven by budgetary constraints, rapid privatisation of public housing, and pragmatic efforts to respond to a complex housing affordability crisis. This article evaluates the challenges and opportunities of a new partnership model implemented in Albania to provide social rental housing. The project, launched in 2009, involves a legally defined partnership between central and local governments, the private sector, and an international financial institution. It has doubled the amount of municipal rental housing, addressing the needs of low- and mid-income households in Albania through the construction of 1,138 rental apartments for 4,300 people in eight cities. The allocation process, although politically charged, has been targeted. The partnership has capitalised on efficiencies, sound fiscal management, and cost and quality control. Despite some construction delays and potential concerns related to future sustainability, we argue that the partnership model is effective and has an important learning and innovation role for the future provision of social housing in Albania as well as in other post-socialist countries in South-East Europe facing similar challenges.
Gyrodactylus orecchiae sp. n. (Monogenea, Gyrodactylidae) is described from the skin, fins, eyes and gills of juvenile Sparus aurata L. (gilthead seabream) following two outbreaks of gyrodactylosis amongst stocks held in inshore floating cages on the Adriatic coast of Albania and Croatia. Fish were heavily infected (1000+ gyrodactylids/fish) with G. orecchiae which reportedly resulted in ~2-10% mortality amongst the infected stock. Morphologically, the haptoral hooks of G. orecchiae most closely resemble those of Gyrodactylus arcuatus Bychowsky, 1933 in the approximate shape of the ventral bar with its pronounced ventral bar processes and marginal hook sickles which possess a square line to the inner edge of the sickle blade and large rounded heels. The marginal hooks are also morphologically similar to those of Gyrodactylus quadratidigitus Longshaw, Pursglove et Shinn, 2003 and Gyrodactylus colemanensis Mizelle et Kritsky, 1967, but G. orecchiae can be readily discriminated from all three species by the characteristic infolding of the hamuli roots and the shape of the marginal hook sickle. Molecular sequencing of the ITS1, 5.8S, ITS2 regions (513+157+404 bp, respectively) of G. orecchiae and alignment with other gyrodactylids for which these same genomic regions have been determined, suggests that this is a new species. No similarities were found when the ITS1 region of G. orecchiae was compared with 84 species of Gyrodactylus available on GenBank.