The Mayor of Tirana, Erion Veliaj, accompanied by the Minister of State for Youth and Children, Bora Muzhaqi, and the CEO of Raiffeisen Bank for Albania, Christian Canacaris inaugurated the Youth Center in Petrelë. This is another promise kept by the Municipality of Tirana. Veliaj thanked Minister Muzhaqi, who through the call announced by AKR has supported 30% of the value of the construction of the Center, he also expressed his gratitude for the support of Raiffeisen Bank and CEO Canacaris, for the donation given for the modern furnishing of the center.
"Petrela has turned into an urban laboratory of Tirana, where two realities are mixed: the rural reality and the reality of residential areas. This is where the village meets the city, so I am proud that we had one of the Year of Youth spots here in Petrelë, to send a message that we are also investing in the suburbs with the same quality in infrastructure", said Veliaj.
He added that he wants this youth center to serve the local community as a multi-functional center.
"My ambition, as well as that of the minister and the friends of Raiffeisen, is that this is not only a youth center, but a multi-functional center. We must turn this space into a community office, where elders gather, where youth senators gather, civil society activists gather, where artists gather. Just as we have created another space for exhibitions and contemporary art in Petrelë. Therefore, my passion or desire would be for this center to roar, seethe with life. As for challenging cases with natural emergencies, as for joyous cases", he said.
The Minister of State for Youth and Children, Bora Muzhaqi, said that this Youth Center will be a very beautiful jewel for Petrela. "Every time we make such investments, it comes after a very good cooperation between the government, the municipality, but also with business, as in this case. The greatest pleasure is that we are here, even to give today a very beautiful gift to the youth of Petrela. I agree with Erion and I think that this is not only a gift to the young people that this area has, but above all it is a gift to the whole community. Once there was a dilapidated building here, which was not used by anyone, and now it has become a very beautiful jewel of this area", said Muzhaqi.
The CEO of Raiffeisen Bank for Albania, Christian Canacaris, said: "This is not only an investment for the youth, but also for the future of Albania. This Multifunctional Center gives young people the opportunity to read and study. The project is very nice and Raiffeisen will always support such initiatives. We have supported many projects with Erion and we will continue to support government projects as well, because we are getting old, but we must give a future to this new generation. All this commitment, as I mentioned many times, is not a cost, but an investment, which will be returned in the future by these young people, especially when it comes to an area a little further from the center of Tirana. These developments around the city give a good opportunity to the young generation to stay in this country and pursue studies here in the future as well. At Raiffeisen Bank, we are committed to supporting projects with a focus on youth, as they are the future of this country."
