About Us

Abkons was founded in 2006, as a relatively small consulting firm that focused mostly on legal and financial consultancy. Since then, Abkons has managed to expand its core services and base of operations, now offering expertise in more than 50 fields in 6 countries, including Albania, Kosovo, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and North Macedonia.

Local knowledge, global standards:

We serve our clients by combining the deepest level of local knowledge with the highest global standards of business. We strive to always provide high-quality resources to meet our clients’ needs, whenever and wherever they arise.

Exceeding expectations:

We are in a constant state of improvement, striving to refine our services and processes to go beyond our customers’ requirements. Our aim is to become a trusted partner to our clients: delivering distinguishable, top-quality service that exceeds expectations every time.

Supporting our community:

We derive our strength from our partnerships and team ethos which underpin our ability to deliver excellent client service and create a working environment where talented people can succeed. We understand that client satisfaction and company performance cannot succeed without cooperation and support from the community at large.

Thinking ahead:

Being an effective leader requires foresight, an innovative approach, and the willingness to have a strong voice on important issues. We have the confidence to challenge existing thoughts and push boundaries.

Years of experience

Consultants

Projects Completed

Areas Of Expertise

Our Executive Team

Redi Basha

Josif Gjani

As the CEO of Abkons, Redi ensures the delivery of solutions to complex problems – on time, on budget, and with the highest standards of ethics and compliance. He is versed in thinking globally & regionally and acting locally. Mr. Basha has led and managed a growing portfolio of projects with a wide range of international clients delivering across the Western Balkans. He was instrumental in enabling major infrastructure projects in Albania and the Western Balkans, such as the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, by managing secure land access and permitting procedures, and he is also one of the co-authors of Energy Strategy 2030 which outlines solutions for improving the energy sector policies and the development of regional energy markets.

Redi Basha

CEO

Josif is a senior public management consultant with intensive experience in policy formulation, analysis & monitoring, budgeting & costing, and Public Medium-Term Budget Planning. His broad expertise is backed up by an impressive resume that includes 6 years as a Policy Coordinator at the Prime Minister’s office, contributing in important reforms as part of the Department of Development and Programming, Finance, and Foreign Assistance, and his experience as a consultant in the preparation and implementation of various governmental and local policies and programs. During his 7 years at Abkons, Josif has been carrying executive positions for major projects with sizeable impact, with clients such as Trans Adriatic Pipeline, Government of Albania/ Ministry of Environment; Word Bank; EBRD; Municipality of Tirana; etc.

Josif Gjani

COO

Our Managers

Bendis Boçari

Tender and Proposal Manager

Bio

Ms. Bendis Boçari obtained her Masters Degree in Law (LLM) from Tulane University, School of Law, USA, and has several qualifications related to the management of procurement, project cycle management, contract management from IDLO (former IDLI), ILO, World Bank, Adam Smith Institute (UK), Copenhagen Business School and others related to procurement. She has more than 18 years of experience working in the management of procurement, project management in many development projects, related to environment protection, energy, protected areas, solid waste management, integrated water resource management (IWRM), and river basin management, environmental services, ecosystem-based adaptation intervention projects.

Redion Biba

Head of Environmental, Social and Cultural Heritage

Bio

Mr. Redion Biba is a Senior Environmental Expert with MSc Degree in Environmental Engineering with 20 years of professional working experience in Albania and Kosovo in various areas and municipalities related to the improvement of environmental aspects. He has long-term experience as a Project Manager and ESIA expert for numerous projects in Albanian and Kosovo, including residential and public buildings. Mr. Biba has long-standing experiences working with Albanian environmental institutions at the local, regional and national level, engaged closely in the preparation and implementation of environmental policies, and legislation in the fields of waste management and energy efficiency transposing EU environmental policies and EU environmental Acquis (e.g. member of National Advisory Groups supporting National institutions).

Scott Mayled

Head of Engineering Department and Energy Sector

Bio

Mr. Scott Mayled is a Cost and Project Manager with a strong record in the successful management and delivery of large capital investment projects. Among his most noteworthy projects, it’s the Trans Adriatic Pipeline. He has good experience in the pre and post-contract management and administration of a number of different contract forms, in the development of cost estimates from basic principles and utilising proprietary and in-house software systems. Scott has significant experience in the post contract management of a number of construction projects across a varied range of sectors.

Atila Gjuladin

Head of Industry, Water and Wastewater

Bio

Anxhelo Mullai

Head of Land Management and Cadaster

Bio

Mr. Anxhelo Mullai obtained his Master in Geodetic Engineering (MSc) from the Polytechnic University of Tirana while also having achieved several qualifications from international organizations including University of Strathclyde Glasgow, CMC-Global Institute, BCN Drone Center. Mr. Mullai has been the project manager/resettlement expert for some of the most significant infrastructure and energy investments carried out in Albania and the Western Balkans in the areas of land management, resettlement, land acquisition, cadaster, and rural development for numerous international organizations and businesses.

Florian Ravoniku

Head of Architecture & Urban Planning Department

Bio

Mr. Ravoniku, as an experienced architect, has been in charge of coordination of design tasks with technical staff which included Schematic Design, Zoning Analysis, Building Program, Project Budgeting, Project Schedule based on client requirements etc. He has extensive experience in review of Architectural designs and has assisted in the Preparation of applications for Development and Construction Permits on numerous projects. As a lead architect Mr. Ravoniku has created architectural designs for various civil projects.

Blerina Kurti

Head of Management Consulting

Bio

Blerina joined ABKONS two years ago as a Project Manager, taking over the lead of the Management Consulting Business Area during the last year. She has more than 15 years of experience in the field of international development, project management, and consultancy, working in the region with various donors such as USAID, World Bank, Norwegian Mapping Authority etc. Ms. Kurti holds a BSc degree in Computer Programming from the University of Natural Sciences in Tirana, as well as a Master of Science from the University of London. Also, she attended the Supervisory Seminars and Data analysis interpretation Courses, organized by the Management Concept Institution in Washington DC.

Johan Shyti

Country Coordinator for Abkons in Kosovo

Bio

Mr. Johan Shyti is a Water, Waste, and Environmental Consultant with over 10 years of experience in the Albanian and Kosovo markets. Johan started his early career in the construction industry, working as an Environmental Engineer at the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP-AG) Project in Albania. He has been part of Abkons for more than 5 years, covering various positions within the company. Johan’s core expertise and skills include business development and tender bidding, management consulting, environmental management systems, environmental and social impact assessment, waste management, water resources management, and wastewater treatment. His experience lies in a vast range of small-medium and large-scale projects related to engineering consultancy, construction & supervision, and waste-water-energy sectors, funded by IFIs such as USAID, MCC, EBRD, IFC, EU, WB, JICA, SDC, KfW and others.

Goran Svilanović

Country Manager for Abkons in Serbia

Bio

Goran Svilanović has had a very distinguished career in politics and international organizations. He has also held very important positions internationally, having served as Secretary-General of the Regional Cooperation Council, Coordinator of the OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities 2008-2012, and Chairman of Working Table I (democratization and human rights) of the Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe.

Who we are

Our Mission

Our Vision

Our Value

International Advisory Board

John Hughes

Anton Mifsud-Bonnici

Besnik Leskaj

Goran Svilanović

Oliver Kumric

John Hughes is an experienced Non-Executive Director specializing in non-technical risk mitigation and successful management of strategy & governance internationally. He chairs numerous Boards and a range of Committees, including Audit and Strategic Risk, and leads Board interventions to create new systems for strategic risk management. John had a lengthy career at BP where he became an expert in the management of political and non-technical risk & external affairs, including strategic problem-solving, the provision of independent advice to executives and the development of international teams.

John Hughes

CHAIRMAN

Anton Mifsud-Bonnici is a 25-year plus public and private sector professional, focusing on societal, political, and non-linear risks. He specializes in constructing corporate messages, and project-manages campaigns ensuring alignment between business and public affairs strategies.

Anton Mifsud-Bonnici

BOARD MEMBER

Besnik Leskaj is a co-founder and first CEO of Abkons. Under his leadership the company grew into one the most successful multi-disciplinary consultancies in the Western Balkans with offices in Albania and offices in Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Montenegro. While assisting in the implementation of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, Besnik was personally responsible for creating the framework for the first-ever Land Compensation Study in large infrastructure project in Albania and the region. He is an active investor in venture projects in the energy, infrastructure, ICT, finance and tourism sectors and offers his expertise to national and international businesses and sustainable development initiatives and speaks frequently at regional conferences.

Besnik Leskaj

BOARD MEMBER

Goran Svilanović has had a very distinguished career in politics and international organizations. He has also held very important positions internationally, having served as Secretary-General of the Regional Cooperation Council, Coordinator of the OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities 2008-2012, and Chairman of Working Table I (democratization and human rights) of the Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe.

Goran Svilanović

BOARD MEMBER

Oliver is a true professional with international experience in construction, infrastructure and real estate industry. Through his career he has managed complex projects and organisations in public and private sector, as well as in international development bank. Among others, he held the position of an Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transportation of the Republic of Croatia, he served as a business development consultant in IFC / World Bank Group and most recently he was President of the Management Board of the Institute IGH (The Institute of Construction in Croatia). Currently, he runs a business consultancy and project development firm, in addition to being an entrepreneur and investor in several companies and start-ups.

Oliver Kumric

BOARD MEMBER