Republic of Albania is located on the Balkan Peninsula in Southeast Europe (Figure 1). It is the 139th largest country in the world (28,748 km2 or 11,100 mi2) and has a population of 2.9 million. It held its first democratic multiparty elections in 1991 and is a potential candidate for European Union accession following the Thessaloniki European Council of 2003. While its economy is growing, the country remains one of the poorest in Europe, with a considerable informal economy and a lack of infrastructure.