Albania is tasked with overseeing public procurement to eliminate corruption, a minister who served as a minister in the government, the world's first artificial intelligence system. Albanian Prime Minister Eddie Rama announced this week that the AI Minister has pledged Albania to become a country where public bids are 100% free from corruption.Diera, meaning “sun” in Albanian, manages all government contract decisions previously processed by human officials, ensuring full transparency in public spending. The AI Minister represents a fundamental shift from traditional governance, with Lama describing her as “the first cabinet member physically absent, but essentially created by AI.”
Digital assistants become government decision makers
Diella was originally launched in January as an AI-powered virtual assistant on the Albanian e-Albanian platform, helping citizens obtain government documents and services. Dressed in traditional Albanian attire, she has already processed 36,600 digital documents and offers nearly 1,000 services to users through voice commands and electronic stamps.The Minister of AI is currently responsible for evaluating and awarding all public bids, and decisions are transferred from human government officials in a “step-by-step” process. This represents a major shift in the way governments around the world use artificial intelligence for governance.
Albanians are skeptical about the success of AI Minister
Public procurement has long been plagued by the corruption scandal in Albania. Balkan national experts are described as the hub for international money laundering from drug and weapons trafficking. Graft reportedly reaches the highest level of government and complicates the country's European Union membership goals.The Lama aims to lead Albania to the EU by 2030 and make anti-corruption efforts crucial to membership eligibility. However, the government did not provide details regarding human surveillance mechanisms or protections against potential AI operations. A skeptical Facebook user commented, “Even Diera is corrupted in Albania,” and said, “The steal continues and Diera is being criticized.“The assembly is scheduled to vote for the fourth term of the Rama Cabinet, including the AI Minister, who will be convened on Friday. Rama won the May election for the fourth time in a row, and previously advocated AI as an anti-corruption tool to eliminate bribery, threats and conflicts of interest in government decision-making.
