NGOs can be either grassroots organizations or professional ones, national or local. Local NGOs are sometimes registered branches of national organizations. These activities focus on students and teachers, and are also related to the dissemination of environmental information. Financial Status Most Albanian NGOs are very poor and operate under very unstable financial conditions. Legislation allowing government support does not yet apply, so national funding is not yet a significant source of NGO support.
Foreign donors are the main source of funding.
The main problems facing the environmental movement in Albania are inexperienced management and members, lack of expertise on specific topics, and lack of financial and material resources. Relationships between NGOs, both at the local and national levels, are based on personal contacts, while contacts with international groups are based on information exchange. There are a few cases where international NGOs have provided Albanian NGOs with human resources or a small amount of financial support, but this doesn't occur on a regular basis. There have been attempts to create a coordination center for environmental NGOs, and some successful campaigns involving NGO cooperation have already been conducted, such as cleaning the beach at Golem-Kavaja and raising public awareness about the need to protect Ohrid Lake. Experience with the Regional Environmental Center REC remains one of the biggest supporters of Albanian NGOs.