A delegation from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), led by Acting Director General Hanna Hellquist and accompanied by Board members, recently visited beneficiaries of the Local Economic Development (LED) Project in Malësia e Madhe to learn more about the medicinal and aromatic plants sector and meet some of the people behind its development.

The visit began at Salvia Nord, where rows of seedlings and medicinal plants tell a story that starts long before harvest season. Supported through the LED Project implemented by CNVP Foundation, the nursery has become an important source of indigenous seeds and seedlings for local farmers. It also serves as a genetic garden and a place where students, researchers and producers can learn more about Albania's rich diversity of medicinal and aromatic plants.

Walking through the nursery, owner Agim Rama explained how demand for local planting material has grown over the years. Today, around 300 farmers in the area cultivate sage, thyme, oregano, and other medicinal plants on more than 5,000 hectares. Access to quality seedlings adapted to local conditions has helped many farmers establish new plantations and expand existing ones.

The delegation then continued to LNL Herbs, where the focus shifted from cultivation to processing. Here, freshly harvested plants arrive from farmers across the region before being dried, sorted and prepared for market.

Through support from the LED Project, the company installed three biomass-powered drying facilities with a combined capacity of six tons. During the visit, representatives saw how the facilities help preserve product quality and create better opportunities for farmers to process their harvests.

The Sida representatives saw the drying and post-harvest handling processes and how these technical improvements directly minimize product loss and optimize quality. The practical impact of this investment is substantial: during the previous season alone, LNL Herbs successfully exported around 200 tons of processed MAPs, primarily sage, to international markets.

This field visit demonstrated that the support provided by CNVP Albania through the LED Project by applying the Market System Development (MSD) approach bridges the gap between rural smallholders and the market through collaboration of exporting companies, thus unlocking the local economic potential in these areas.