Edi Rama, Mayor of Tirana and World Mayor 2004 www.tirana.gov.al FRONT PAGE About us The 2010 results The 2010 project The 2010 finalists Code of Ethics The World Mayor Prize The 2008 results The 2008 project The 2008 finalists The World Mayor Award The 2006 results Methodology The 2006 finalists The World Mayor Award The 2005 results Contest methodology List of finalists The World Mayor Award Mayor of Athens Mayor of Guatemala City Mayor of Mississauga Mayor of San Fernando Mayor of San Francisco Mayor of Athens Mayor of Guatemala City Mayor of Mississauga Mayor of San Fernando Mayor of Vienna Comments on finalists from The Americas Comments on finalists from Europe Comments on finalists from Asia, Australia and Africa Comments on Addis Ababa Comments on Antananariva Comments on Athens Comments on Atlanta Comments on Belo Horizonte Comments on Bonn Comments on Guatemala City Comments on Karachi Comments on London Comments on Melbourne Comments on Mississauga Comments on Rio de Janeiro Comments on Rome Comments on San Fernando Comments on San Francisco Comments on Toronto Comments on Vancouver Comments on Vienna Mayor of Addis Ababa Mayor of Antananarivo Mayor of Athens Mayor of Belo Horizonte Mayor of Bonn Mayor of Ekaterinburg Mayor of Guatemala City Mayor of Innsbruck Mayor of Karachi Mayor of Kiev Mayor of Melbourne Mayor of Mississauga Mayor of Munich Mayor of Rhodes Mayor of Rome Mayor of Tshwane Mayor of Vienna The 2004 contest List of all 2004 finalists Edi Rama wins 2004 award People ask - Edi Rama replies Why we voted for the Mayor of Tirana Why we voted for the Mayor of Mexico City History of Tirana Front Page Site Search About City Mayors

Tirana today stands as a testament to the tremendous work done by Edi Rama Dear Editor Edi is arrogant, pushy, bossy, loud-mouthed, eccentric in dress and in ideas, formidable when angry in public, outspoken, rude, condescending, scathingly sarcastic and relentless.   I believe that in terms of, first of all, giving Tirana a quality of life, and then upgrading that quality, the above features were exactly what were required. Anything less in a Mayor would have either been bought, or would have failed due to the sheer weight and peril of the burden.   Physically very tall and broad shouldered, with a booming voice that carries a long way, he dwarfs the majority of both his political opponents and supporters on any public rostrom.   Edi has now entered his fourth year, or second term, of riding roughshod over party bureacracy and corruption at all levels. Yes, there are allegations that he is corrupt; but there is absolutely neither any indication, much less any evidence, that it is true.   We have no way of knowing whether Edi’s bravery is on the level of a war hero’s, but he has shown that he has the grit and courage to fight some of the most insidious cross-political spectrum pressure this country has ever produced. And that is saying something!   He has intelligence, and he has family roots of repute in the world of Fine Arts, the status of which, as part of the nomenclature of the past, is one that occupies a perspective acceptable to all political partizans and generations.   Edi has pushed, cajoled, shouted, banged his fists on tables, making microphones jump into the air, mocked and insulted politicians who have tried to sling mud at what he has done or the way he has done it.   Rama has those in-born traits of the communist mentality, the highly temperamental, arrogant way of imposing opinions, forcing through decisions in the name of "the greater public interest", many a time barely borderline in appropriateness of conduct. I don't doubt that he has broken the rules, but Tirana today stands as a testament to the tremendous work this Mayor has done.   Rama's buldozers have not only shifted tons of rubble of illegal buildings and fencing, allowing the long buried public parks and areas to breathe again; one of his biggest accomplishments is that he has shifted mentalities: tons of verbal and political refuse have been ploughed back into the soil, fertilising the rows of saplings begged and cajoled for out of foreign and local donors.   He has become the icon of Albanian youth, and of the pensioners of the city of Tirana.   Rama has helped make the youth feel a more "European" youth. Rama has reinstated feelings of dignity for our senior citizens – and for the ordinary man and woman, citizens of the capital of Albania, his visions, his brute force to make things change by sheer work and will, have raised hopes not just for the city, but that the ever-changing surroundings will change society. Understandably, this is a very gradual process, but it is already having an impact.   Edi has changed the face of Tirana, but his work is also making the public of Tirana feel one step closer to Europe; dignity and pride in their surroundings have been re-born. This is his greatest success.     Edi Rama loves his city: that message is etched on everything he accomplishes. No one doubts this, and when Edi Rama loves, he loves intensely, like he does everything in his life.   It is the sheer amount of work Rama has done, the changes he has physically rendered, the animating colour he has splashed across the canvas of a once deeply drab, to-the-heart-communist city, the bright pink pyjama striped facades of appartment blocs, the vision of a wonderful Tirana he has begun to build, it is the charisma of Mayor Rama and his steadfast resolve to fight the odds and win, that make me firmly believe he should be considered for this most prestigious award.   Thank you for this opportunity to share an opinion on one of the Makers of History of this tiny European nation, Mayor of its capital, Tirana, Mr. Edi Rama. Best regards, June

Introducing World Mayor 2006 The World Mayor project is now in its third year. As in 2004 and 2005, this year’s World Mayor will again be seeking out mayors who have the vision, passion and skills to make their cities amazing places to live in, work in and visit. The World Mayor project aims to show what outstanding mayors can achieve and raise their profiles. It honours those who have served their communities well and who have made contributions to the well-being of cities nationally and internationally. The most outstanding mayor of 2006 will be presented with the World Mayor award. In 2004, Edi Rama, Mayor of Tirana, won the Award. The 2005 winner was Dora Bakoyannis, Mayor of Athens and now Greek Foreign Minister. Between January and May each year, citizens from across the world are invited to nominate mayors for the World Mayor Award. They are also asked to provide reasons for their choice. After the close of the nomination stage, City Mayors, the organisers of the contest, prepare a shortlist of mayors who go forward to the second round of the World Mayor contest. In 2006, the list of finalists includes 50 mayors from North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australasia as well as Africa.