In Albania, early childhood education and care (ECEC) is provided for children aged 0–5 years. Nurseries (çerdhe) provide ECEC for children aged 0–3 years and kindergartens (kopshte) provide ECEC for children aged 3–5 years. Nurseries are under the responsibility of local governance units, whereas kindergartens fall under the responsibility of the Ministry of Education and Sports with regard to curricula and teachers.

Kindergartens and nurseries can be either public or private. Both public nurseries and private nurseries charge fees. Public nurseries’ fees are set by local governance units. Private nurseries’ fees are set by their owners. Public kindergartens can be full-day or half-day kindergartens. For full-day public kindergartens, fees are set at local governance level. Half-day public kindergartens are free of charge. It is not obligatory for children to attend nursery-or kindergarten-level education (i.e. ECEC) in Albania.