The paper will be based on evidence offered by survey data collected through a structured questionnaire in a long range survey launched in July 2012 by the Steering Group of ASE Forum. The aim of the study was to reveal the trend, status, profile, features and the role of potentials enterprises in Albania in supporting welfare and wellbeing in synergy with the local authorities. After an appropriate methodological introduction, the paper will report main statistical evidence concerning the Third sector in Albania and the direct survey outcomes about the features and the activity of the organizations interviewed. Conclusions will be driven by data analysis and will be focused on the needs, limits and obstacles to the development of the potential social enterprises in the country, in order to identify the best institutional and financial measures suitable to support the development of social entrepreneurship. Policy implications. Suggestions for further debate In order to improve its impact capacity on the social and economic conditions of individuals, communities and territories, every organization requires some direct or indirect Governmental support. At the same time, every Government is expected to maximize the social and economic effects of its action. Under this respect, our survey suggests that favourable conditions for development can be clearly boosted by some dedicated governmental initiatives: ' firstly, an effective legislative framework is required: social enterprises need legitimation; they need to be given appropriate legal status and force; ' secondly, social enterprises need a special financial scheme, providing no general incentives or subsidies, but specific grants, suitably differentiated by typology and by beneficiary (according to sector and/or enterprise dimension or localization); ' thirdly, fair, transparent and non discriminatory market regulations have to be set up and implemented to ensure a level playing field for competition to all the social enterprises involved in market production; ' finally, Government and Public Administration can play a major role in supplying non financial services: networking, facilitating network or technology transfer/services and qualified administrative assistance are very often low-cost and easily available, efficiency in public action is essential to productivity and welfare. All these initiatives require time consistency and coordination and have the ultimate goal of enforcing trust, which is the central asset of an accomplished democracy.
