In 2 and a half years, 64 foreign nationals have been prosecuted for prostitution. Albania has become a tourist attraction, increasing the number of girls exploited for sexual services. The police state that they come mainly from Latin America, Asia, Africa and Eastern Europe. The main hotbeds of prostitution are Tirana, Durrës, Vlora, Saranda, Elbasan and Shkodra. According to the Vatra Center, some of the girls come through employment agencies, to work as waitresses, dancers, or bartenders or even on a tourist visa and end up victims of trafficking.
By Sebi Alla
Xh.Sh's two months between Saranda and Vlora were not at all for tourism, as she and her friend from May 16 of this year until July 18 found themselves in two rooms of an apartment, where they often "hosted" different men to receive sexual services. A month after being detained by police structures, Xh.Sh. (note, for security and ethical reasons, the initials have been changed), shows trauma, fear, humility for the shelter and food she receives for free, but also the drama that torments her. In her story for Faktoje.al, amidst uncertainty and fear, she blames herself more than the as yet unidentified "tutor". "Because of a wrong choice and wrong trust in a person I went through this situation, these are all my decisions, so I have to bear the consequences" - says to Faktoje.al, 38-year-old Xh.Sh, who reveals with great difficulty that she has provided sexual services to up to five men a day. The 38-year-old has a minor son in China. This is her biggest worry. From the day she stepped foot in Rinas, her passport was taken by her guardian who is still unidentified.
"I cry more at night. I miss my son," she says, shaking hands repeatedly and giving very short answers when asked about the people who exploited her. Fear and caution as she still does not know her fate, although the police have referred the case to "prostitution" and she is recognized as a "victim of trafficking."
This is a slice of life of a Chinese woman who was found in Albania in the oasis of prostitution, which in the last three years has grown as much as tourism in our country.
From 4 continents
In recent years, due to the increase in the number of foreign tourists, well-organized criminal groups consider Albania a potential oasis to bring women to our country with the aim of exploiting prostitution. According to official sources of the State Police, Asia, Latin America, Africa, but also Eastern Europe are the four continents; which almost throughout the year and especially in the summer season come with tourist visas or work permits; girls who are at high risk of exploitation of prostitution. "Currently, we are identifying victims from different continents (Africa, Asia and Latin America), who are brought to Albania or transit through our territory. At the same time, we have cases where Albanian and foreign women play organizing roles in these networks, not simply as victims" - the State Police tells Faktoje.al.
"We are identifying girls coming from countries such as Ghana, the Philippines, China, Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, Ukraine, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Peru, etc." - emphasize the law enforcement structures. Also, the representative of the "Vatra" Center in Vlora, Entela Avduli, in a reaction to Faktoje.al, shows that cases of trafficking of foreign citizens who are used to offer sexual favors have been increasing.
"In 2024, from all centers, there are 39 cases treated, most of which are girls trafficked for prostitution purposes, mainly from Asia and Latin America. While this year alone in our center we have 22 women being treated," says Avduli.
Police figures: "Prostitution with foreigners on the rise"
"For the year 2023 - there are 70 cases recorded (police operations), with 161 perpetrators, (2 perpetrators, foreign citizens). For the year 2024, there are 76 cases recorded, with 133 perpetrators (27 perpetrators, foreign citizens) and for the period January - June 2025, there are 37 cases recorded, with 81 perpetrators (25, foreign citizens)" - official sources of the State Police told Faktoje.al when asked about the number of foreign citizens involved in trafficking and prostitution. The figures are for cases referred for "exploitation of prostitution", respectively Article 114 of the Criminal Code, while the number of persons prosecuted at large for prostitution is many times higher.
Prostitution: Dancers and bartenders with work permits.
Identification at the outset is quite difficult for the State Police structures. Girls arriving from Asian countries, Latin America, Africa and Eastern Europe come in two forms; with tourist visas or with work visas. "They came through employment agencies, to work as waitresses, dancers, bartenders, etc., but they also came with tourist visas. The cases we have dealt with have been genuine networks, which organize them in the prostitution trade. Someone found them work, then the recruiter, someone who found the premises, or even the clients" - says one of the directors of the Vatra center, Entela Avduli. This center specifically treats cases of trafficking and offers socio-social services, but also shelter and security for victims of trafficking. Cases that are discovered by the police structures are referred to the three "Vatra" centers throughout the country, but also to other NGOs that deal specifically with the shelter and integration of victims of trafficking, domestic and foreign.
"Elite" prostitution. Girls choose their clients.
"There are several online sites that, from our verifications, result in IPs registered in Ukraine that operate for the purpose of prostitution. Girls chat online with clients, Albanians or foreigners, show their age, photos, etc. and after determining the price and agreeing on the sexual services they offer, they arrange a meeting in a certain place, which could be an apartment taken without a rental contract, or a motel" - a police officer from the anti-trafficking sector tells Faktoje.al on condition of anonymity. This type of prostitution is also considered the most "elite", since it is the girls themselves who choose this form somewhat independently and those involved are mainly citizens from Eastern Europe and Latin America. The payment ranges from 100-300 euros.
Another form of cover for prostitution remains massage centers, but also aesthetic ones. "There are numerous massage centers, mainly those that employ foreigners who also offer sexual services for payment," says the officer, adding that they have succeeded in cracking down on the networks in several cases when the agents themselves have gone to these centers as infiltrators and then discovered women and girls who were practicing prostitution for payment.
Massage centers "Prostitution shelters"
"What often happens is that an older woman who has practiced or exploited women for sexual services, "de facto" manages these centers and the women employed where they set prices, create a kind of security for them, but in many cases they keep them isolated by taking their passports, or even threatening that if they leave or denounce there will be consequences," says the Anti-Trafficking officer, adding that they are mainly Asian citizens, who provide sexual services for payment through massage centers.
Another form is the exploitation of prostitution by individuals who either own or are connected to some of the owners or administrators of bars, nightclubs or various hotels. "In nightclubs or small hotels we have discovered cases where various foreign nationals, but also Albanians, apparently work as ballerinas or even waitresses and bartenders, but when various clients request sexual services, they are offered them," says the agent, while emphasizing that this is a more serious form of exploitation, as these women are often mistreated and considerable amounts of money are kept from them for sexual exploitation.
"Women" who exploit women - Recruitment scheme and exploitation network..
Although cases of exploitation of prostitution are increasing, where women are implicated, the number of convicted or detained for this criminal offense is low. Official data from the General Directorate of Prisons show that five women, one with a final sentence and four others in detention, have been prosecuted for exploitation of prostitution. However, the number of women prosecuted with security measures such as “house arrest”, “compulsion to appear” or “investigation while free”, a large part of whom are foreigners, is high, also due to the fact that the court takes into account the fact that they are women, leaving them with mild security measures.
"We have seen more and more cases where foreign organized groups are being implicated in exploitation for prostitution or other criminal acts," says the representative of the Vatra Center, Entela Avduli. "The cases have come recruited. They are found 'work', someone picks them up in Rinas, who is a taxi driver specifically designated only for these people, takes them to a hotel, or rented houses and then these women offer sexual services for payment," adds Avduli.
A fact that is also confirmed by police structures, which emphasize that in most of the cases discovered, the exploited women did not come willingly and were aware that they would be used for prostitution purposes, but over time they are put under pressure by these criminal networks who keep their passports, or even threaten them with relatives they have left behind in their homeland.
A blind eye to tourism?
While the number of cases of foreign women providing sexual services in Albania is increasing, law enforcement structures are somewhat unprepared, due to the fact that this type of prostitution does not have the elements of classic violence by groups that exploit women against their will. Many of them choose Albania to practice prostitution for payment, also due to the high number of foreign tourists in the country.
"It is almost like a 'demand-offer' for sexual services for payment and it is not by chance that during the tourist season women who provide sexual services for payment move to coastal areas" - claims a police source for Faktoje.al. Avduli also held the same position, referring to the cases handled by the Vatra center. The most problematic areas are Tirana, Durrës, Vlora, Saranda, Elbasan and Shkodra. "The State Police has drafted and is implementing a detailed plan of measures for the 2025 summer tourist season, with a special focus on tourist areas, to guarantee order, public safety and to prevent criminal activities, including trafficking for prostitution purposes" - the police officially say.
Trafficking victims: Let's leave as soon as possible!
Girls trafficked and processed for prostitution are sent to treatment centers and under the constant monitoring of the police and the Immigration and Asylum Office. “The majority are repatriated voluntarily. While another part stays here and we have found them secure jobs after they receive a special residence permit from the Immigration and Asylum Office,” says the representative of the Vatra Center, Entela Avduli, adding that they usually stay in the centers for up to three months, but there is another major difficulty related to the documentation part. Many of the women caught and processed for “prostitution” do not have passports because their guardians took them from them the first moment they set foot on Albanian soil. “For victims of trafficking in return, both foreigners and Albanians, what we identify is the tip of the iceberg, because trafficking is a process and phenomenon with networks and methods that take time to identify and destroy,” emphasizes Avduli. One of them is Xh.Sh, who in her story claims that her passport was taken by "someone I didn't know," but who had told her that a better life awaited her, shortly after arriving in Albania. "I came because someone told me that he would help me get a visa to Italy, where it is easy to go from here," says Xh.Sh, but what she found was two months of slavery and a drama that continues, without identity and with the worry about the son left in China, who she says is being cared for by an elderly man. "Maybe I won't tell my child, because I don't want my child to be ashamed of me..." concludes Xh.Sh, one of hundreds of foreign women who see Albania as an oasis where you can earn money if you offer sexual services./ Faktoje.al
Tags: Albania "oasis" for sexual servicesForeigners as "sex slaves"
