Ermal Dredha is an experienced Albanian diplomat and politician. He has served as Director of State Protocol, Italian Consul in Bari and in recent years as Ambassador of Albania to the United Arab Emirates. With postgraduate qualifications in various countries around the world, he is fluent in English and Italian. In April 2023, he was selected as the Socialist Party of Albania’s candidate for mayor of the Municipality of Vlora. Ermal comes from a family of intellectuals from Vlora, is married and the father of two daughters.

Life and education

Ermal Dredha was born on October 15, 1977 in Albania. He pursued higher education at the University of Tirana, Albania, where he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Italian/English from the Faculty of Foreign Languages ​​between 1996 and 2000. In 2000, he also received a certificate from the Institute of Information Technology in Tirana, Albania. Dredha continued to develop his language skills and professional expertise through a professional English language course in Toronto, Canada in 2003, as well as a diploma from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Osaka, Japan, with a focus on Japanese language, history and culture in 2004-2005. He also attended a special course on Major Event Management from the European School of Economics in London, United Kingdom, in 2006-2007.

Career

Ermal Dredha began his professional career in 1999 as a translator for Italian journalists in Tirana, Albania during the Kosovo crisis. In 2000, he took on the role of assistant and general manager of the computer archive at the Italian Cooperation in Tirana, where he was responsible for the implementation of water supply infrastructure projects in Albania.

Dredha joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tirana in 2002, serving as personal assistant to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs until 2003.

He then became Head of the Sector in the Department of Information Technology, MFA in 2004, and later in the Department of State Protocol in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) from September 2004.

In December 2010, he was appointed as Head of the Ceremonial Section (State Protocol) in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Dredha continued to advance in his diplomatic career, becoming Director of State Protocol in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from February 2011 to November 2013. In November 2013 to November 2016 he served as Consul General of the Embassy of Albania in Bari, Italy.

From May 2016 to March 2023, he served as Ambassador of the Republic of Albania to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.