Minister of Infrastructure and Energy, Albania

Mrs. Belinda Balluku is the Minister of Infrastructure and Energy of the Republic of Albania since January 2019. In the national elections of 2021, Mrs. Balluku was elected Member of the Parliament in the Region of Tirana. Prior to her appointment as Minister of Infrastructure and Energy, she held the position of General Director of ALBCONTROL, the National Air Navigation Services Provider of Albania.

She is a graduate of the Executive Program “Economic Development” from Harvard Kennedy School, as well as an honorary degree from IATA (International Air Transport Association) for the Management of Air Navigation Services (Air Navigation Services Management).

Mrs. Balluku has several qualifications in the areas of Air Safety, Telecommunication, Human Resources, Local Governance Management and Social Institutions Management. She was honored by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) with a diploma in Air Navigation Services Management (with honors). She has also successfully received the General Management Diploma (with honors) from the International Air Transport Association, Miami, USA. She holds a Law Degree and in 1999 she graduated from the University of Athens in Business Administration.

During her time as Director General at ALBCONTROL, Mrs. Balluku was selected as one of the 12 members of the Air Navigation Agency Board at EUROCONTROL. This board represents all stakeholders in air traffic management and their integration into the management and decision-making structures of EUROCONTROL in supporting the Single European Sky (SES).

Mrs. Balluku’s contribution in the field of aviation in Albania has been continuously valued by international partners, and she has fostered excellent cooperation with neighboring agencies to the integration of ALBCONTROL into European organizations. Furthermore, she has enabled the realization of major changes in ALBCONTROL aiming at raising and aligning standards with the European Community, including the realization of pan European objectives such as FRA and MLAT.

Municipality of Tirana, initially as Public Relations Adviser and later as the Head of the Mayor’s Cabinet. During this period, she has led the development of communication strategies with the public and the media. She has been active in creating the web portal on the people’s reception and has successfully managed the coordination between the Mayor and the executive directorates of the Municipality of Tirana.