E-Governance and the Political Participation of Ethnic Minorities: The Case of Albania and its Diaspora in the UK

This article explains how e-governance initiatives, particularly the e-Albania platform, can integrate the Albanian diaspora as a stakeholder in its home country. With its significant presence globally and in the UK, the Albanian diaspora has long sought greater involvement and political participation in Albania. However, bureaucratic hurdles and politicised institutions have hindered meaningful engagement. The emergence of e-governance provides a potential pathway for overcoming these barriers, offering the diaspora an avenue for interaction and political participation regardless of location. Based on 40 in-depth interviews in 2023 with members of the Albanian political elite and the Albanian diaspora in the UK, this paper presents a systematic and nuanced thematic analysis of the impact of e-governance on diaspora engagement. This research finds that, while Albania’s government views e-government platforms primarily as tools for harnessing the diaspora’s financial contributions, UK diaspora members see these platforms as opportunities to assert political agency and advocate for representation in their home country. Focusing on the intersection of digital governance, political participation, and diaspora representation, the article introduces new insights by applying stakeholder theory to diaspora studies. This approach underlines how administrative digital engagement can become politically consequential through claims-making, consultative participation, and pressures for institutional reform.