“Aleksandër Moisiu” University in Durrës, one of the most prestigious and dynamic higher education institutions in Albania, stands today at a pivotal moment in its development. Conceived with a contemporary vision and an organizational model distinct within the national education landscape, the university has become an important center of academic and professional formation for thousands of youth across the country.
As Albania accelerates its path toward European integration and the adoption of international standards across all sectors, higher education remains a cornerstone of this transformation. “Aleksandër Moisiu” University aspires to set a new standard for Albania’s public universities: integrated, inclusive, international, and innovative. This call for the creation of the expanded campus masterplan and the design of its required infrastructures marks the beginning of an ambitious modernization process that transcends the physical infrastructure. The University’s administration seeks to envision a new way of learning, co-living, and collaboration within an academic space. By structuring a design program that incorporates environments for study, research, housing, recreation, sports, and community coexistence, the university intends to create a vibrant ecosystem of knowledge and innovation. The campus should go beyond academics to become an integral part of the city’s identity and future.
This ecosystem will also be characterized by functional and economic self-sufficiency, with spaces and services that not only support campus life but also generate income, create jobs, and offer open programs and functions for the community, strengthening the campus’s long-term sustainability.
The University’s expanded infrastructure will support the development of the university’s educational and research capacities, positioning it not only as a center of learning but also as a driver of economic, technological, and urban development for the city of Durrës. The campus provides a new framework for student life, ensuring a contemporary university experience for all students, local and international.
This is the vision of a university that belongs not only to the present, but also to the decades to come—a university that reflects the aspirations of a society that believes in knowledge as the only path to sustainable development, in integration and inclusion as the foundation of progress, and in transparency as the guarantee of academic quality. This is now an invitation to imagine a future that begins today, on the campus of “Aleksandër Moisiu” University, in the center of a growing Durrës, a city that will continue to play a vital role for Albania’s future.
The expansion of the “Aleksandër Moisiu” University campus and the development of a new masterplan are not merely infrastructural needs. They represent a visionary project responding to the dynamic evolution of the city of Durrës and to national development goals. This masterplan is expected to encompass not only modern educational and research facilities but also spaces for business incubators, innovation labs, international cooperation hubs, and transitional zones that blur the line between the university and the city. In this way the University becomes an integrated part of the technology and innovation ecosystem of Albania, interconnected with the Durana Tech Park Innovation Hub.
At the same time, the program will integrate a host of complementary functions, such as multifunctional centers, cultural and sports facilities, student residences, and commerce, ensuring the long-term viability of the campus and its role not just as an urban node but as a city within a city. In doing so, the university becomes an integral part of the national and regional innovation ecosystem, contributing to the emergence of a new Durrës—a university city, vibrant and capable of attracting talent, investment, knowledge, and sustainable partnerships. The deep historical and cultural roots of Durrës, as Albania’s main coastal gateway and a long-standing urban center, combined with the university’s new role as a hub of knowledge and innovation, place the city in a unique position to lead Albania’s next wave of development.
