Tirana Connectivity Forum is organized, coordinated, and administered by Cooperation and Development Institute (CDI) – a European Think Tank based in Tirana, Albania. Established in 2000, CDI is a politically independent, not for profit and non-governmental organization. Its mission is to improve the quality of public policy with open and fact-based research, impact-oriented analysis and recommendations, inclusive debate, and targeted outreach directed to policy-makers.

CDI work is organized around the pillars of Good Governance, EU Enlargement, Regional Cooperation, and Connectivity in the Western Balkans. Beyond TCF, its main outcomes take the form of regular publications promoted and stored in permanent and publicly accessible web-based platforms of “Connecting Youth”, “ShtetiWeb”, “Observatory of Regional Cooperation” and “Connect with EU”.

Since 2015, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Hanns Seidel Stiftung are the traditional partners of TCF.

Since 2015, Tirana Connectivity Forum has become the annual benchmark for experts, researchers, academicians, CSO, WB Summit coordinators and other policymakers involved in EU Enlargement in SEE6, in Regional Cooperation, and Connectivity dynamics (transport, energy, people 2 people, etc.).

During the period 2015-2020, more than 170 very high-profile senior decision-makers including heads of state, government members, leading representatives of international and non-governmental organizations, high-ranking representatives of industry(ies), media, academia, and civil society have presented, debated and engaged in intensive discussions, so creating a critical mass of knowledge at the service of applied research and tailored to the needs of policy-makers.

Since 2015, more than 1,580 participants have attended a total of 44 different sessions of six TCF, while more than 2,795 online individual contributions and interactions have further enriched the debate. We broadcast most of TCF debates and disseminate its results via annual reports, interviews, and social media.

Tirana Connectivity Forum aims to create a critical mass of knowledge on the means, resources, mechanisms and impact that Connectivity has on growth, development, reforms, regional cooperation and on the convergence of SEE6 with EU. The political will impetus that the Berlin Process has injected by focusing on regional cooperation and connectivity provide us with the necessary anchor point to leverage our findings and embed them into policy-making.

Tirana Connectivity Forum embraces an innovative and comprehensive definition of connectivity, which goes beyond the traditional cross-border infrastructure, but also includes – among others – the people2people, business2business, institution2institution, Digital Connectivity, etc., and the way they interact amongst them. Considering “connectivity” a multi-layered phenomenon has allowed us to create the methodological framework that links the space, institutions and people in a single comprehensive model of development.