70 employees handling over 2,000 cases per year, in addition to monitoring protests, providing opinions on legislation, and issuing opinions for the Constitutional Court.

From January to October 2026, the Ombudsman registered 1,786 new cases. At this rate, the year is expected to conclude with a 35% increase compared to the previous year.

“The figures show that citizens are placing more trust in us,” stated the Ombudsman, Endrit Shabani, today before the Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights.

Case files represent only one part of the workload. Throughout this year, the institution has monitored civic protests for six months and produced over 50 opinions and reports—covering legislative amendments, matters concerning international organizations, and issues related to the Constitutional Court.

To be more accessible to citizens, the institution has also opened two new regional offices outside the capital, by reallocating existing staff.

“The workload has increased by more than a third, while the staff and budget have remained the same. Citizens deserve timely responses,” said Shabani. For this reason, the Ombudsman has requested 20 new positions in the 2027 budget, which will be used for on-site verification of the implementation of recommendations and for strengthening regional offices.

The need for additional resources was acknowledged by the Assembly itself in its resolution for 2025. The European Commission reaches the same conclusion in its 2026 Progress Report, calling for the strengthening of independent institutions that protect human rights—starting with the Ombudsman.