Sida's work in Kosovo
Around a fifth of Kosovo's population lives in poverty, making the country one of the poorest in Europe. Sidas development cooperation strengthens human rights, democracy and sustainable development to create the conditions for the young country to move closer to the EU.
Sida’s support in Kosovo 2023
Why do Sida work in Kosovo?
Serious deficiencies stand in the way of EU membership
There is strong popular support and political will to join the EU and Kosovo has applied for membership. But human rights violations, environmental issues and widespread corruption are obstacles to the country’s development and to moving closer to the EU.
Discrimination leads to poverty
People from minority groups: Roma, Ashkali and Egyptians are socially excluded and discriminated against, for example in the labour market, with most of them living below the national poverty line.1 Women are also discriminated against in the labour market in terms of hiring, promotion, parental leave and are subject to sexual harassment.2 People with disabilities often live in difficult conditions and the LGBTI community is a particularly vulnerable group in society.
Tensions remain between Kosovo and Serbia
Although Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, Serbia has not yet recognised Kosovo as an independent state. This hinders the country’s development and EU membership. Since 2018, Kosovo fulfills all membership requirements, but the tension between the two countries is an obstacle for both, as the EU requires good relations between the member states.
Environmental work neglected despite major environmental challenges
Kosovo faces major environmental problems. Almost all electricity is produced in coal-fuelled power plants and forests are illegally deforested. The management of waste and wastewater is inadequate. Environmental legislation is neglected and the country has a weak environmental management system. The country’s environmental organisations are small and have difficulty being heard, whilst environmental issues remain a low priority both politically and among the public.
Examples of what Sida has contributed to
Kosovo closer to EU membership
Sida contributes to carrying out improvements and developing the country’s authorities, which is an important prerequisite for membership. The work is carried out, among other things, through cooperation between authorities in Kosovo and Sweden. Cooperation between the Swedish Agency for Nature Conservation and Kosovo’s equivalent, for example, helps to fulfill the EU criteria in the area of the environment.Increasing understanding between different ethnic groups and contributing to reconciliation
Increasing understanding between different ethnic groups and contributing to reconciliation
Sida helps to ensure that people living in vulnerable situations have increased opportunities for work with decent conditions. Through supporting training in language, communication, administration or development of their own agriculture, especially women and young people have entered the Labour market where they otherwise are discriminated against. Thousands of young people have received training in conflict management, and Sida has contributed to increased access to health care and legal support through cooperation with municipalities.
Increasing biodiversity and protecting the environment
The aid strengthens the protection and use of national parks with a particular focus on preserving biodiversity and restoring ecosystems. Illegal deforestation is a major environmental problem in Kosovo. Sida contributes to prevent this. Support is also directed to public nurseries to plant forests.
Sida's development cooperation in Kosovo
Cyprus, Greece, Romania, Slovakia and Spain together with two countries in the region: Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina are refusing to recognise Kosovo as an independent state. This complicates EU membership.
In Kosovo, there is strong popular support and political will to join the EU and several important steps have been taken. Extensive reforms are to be implemented according to the action plan adopted by the government and approved by the EU.
Sidas development cooperation supports and contributes to this work.
This is done, for example, through cooperation with authorities, for effective and transparent institutions. Sida supports projects and programmes that strengthen human rights, reduce discrimination against the country’s minorities, increase gender equality, people’s ability to earn a living with decent conditions and the country’s democratic development.
Violations of human rights are an obstacle to the country’s development and EU approximation. Women’s rights have improved, although progress is slow. Domestic violence has long been a problem and the number of reported cases has increased by 147 per cent in the last decade.3 Kosovo has a female president and 40 per cent women in parliament. This has a positive impact on national politics, but women’s participation in local politics and the labour market remains low. Less than 13 per cent of women are in paid employment.
Discrimination against the country’s minorities – Kosovo Serbs, Roma, Ashkali, Balkan Egyptians, Turks, Bosniaks, Gorani, Croats and Montenegrins – is also a problem. These groups are often socially excluded from education, employment, health services and housing. Discrimination against LGBTI people and people with disabilities is also common. The country struggles with corruption problems which stand in the way of EU membership but is making progress.4
In Kosovo, Sida contributes to strengthening democracy, increasing respect for human rights and strengthening gender equality. Here are examples of projects that Sida supports:
Sida supports the Kosovo Women’s Network, which, among other things, pursues the matter of changing the legislation on the right to marry whoever you want. Last year, 48 women received support in legal cases, such as in courts regarding domestic violence, sexual harassment or gender-based violence. The Women’s Network has also reviewed 72 cases of how courts dealt with cases of gender-based violence.
About Kosovo Women’s Network on their website
Civil society organisations and their visibility have improved in recent years. There is a focus on raising the human rights situation of the country’s minorities. Sida cooperates with, among others, the Community Development Fund (CDF), which supports 14 civil society organisations in the field of human rights, but also in education and environmental rights.
Support to the Kosovar Civil Society Foundation (KCSF) has increased civil society participation in political decisions. Through the coordination of 35 organisations, among others, civil legislation and the rights of children with disabilities and their families have improved.
Through the United Nations Development Fund (UNDP), Sida is contributing to strengthening the anti-corruption framework, including the disclosure of assets and financing of political bodies. The digital platform Kallxo has been developed through Sida’s support as a clear entry point for whistleblowers and the number of reported cases is steadily increasing. In the first six months of 2023, the platform received 5766 reports from citizens – of which 3 657 have been verified. Out of 774 letters written to responsible institutions, 602 of these have become public legal cases. The cases received by Kallxo are often covered by the media, raising awareness of corruption. The programme also supports the Government of Kosovo in the development of a new anti-corruption strategy which will be effective from 2024.
Sida supports the GAP think tank, which promotes good governance, conducts research and offers policy recommendations to bring Kosovo closer to the EU. Through the DEMOS programme, Kosovo’s municipalities can strengthen their democratic governance, increase transparency in politics and give citizens more opportunities to influence local development.
Despite that it’s been more than 20 years since the war in the Balkans, Kosovo still suffers from the effects of the war. The infected relationship with Serbia is an obstacle to reconciliation and to an inclusive society.
In autumn 2022 and spring and summer 2023, the conflict between Kosovo and Serbia escalated. The NATO peacekeeping force in Kosovo (KFOR) and the presence of EU observers act as a guarantor for maintaining peace and public security.
The government’s attempts to resolve the conflict have overshadowed other development issues, as well as the freezing of EU funds, for example for major environmental projects.
It also hinders efforts to address gender-based violence, the informal economy, patriarchal values and discrimination against the country’s minority groups.
Sida supports projects that contribute to better understanding between different ethnic groups and reconciliation. Here are some examples:
Many people went missing during the war in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s. In Bosnia and Kosovo, 1 700 people are missing as a result of the war. Through the International Commission for Missing Persons (ICMP), Sida supports efforts to identify missing persons.
The work to find and identify missing persons is difficult but important to ensure the right to truth and justice for the relatives. ICMP works with Kosovo Albanian and Serbian families to promote understanding of the history and reconciliation between the communities.
Increasing understanding between different ethnic groups and contributing to reconciliation
Sida supports Cultural Heritage without Borders – Kosovo, which works to ensure that people in minority groups become more involved in society. This is done, among other things, through increased knowledge of history in order to contribute to reconciliation. Inhabitants of municipalities are also involved in restoring cultural heritage that has historical ties to many different ethnic groups… In cooperation with the organisation Balkan SunFlowers, students from three municipalities where Roma, Egyptians and Ashkali live were invited to talk about their history to create an understanding of the present.
About Cultural Heritage without Borders Kosovo on Openaid
About Balkan SunFlowers on the organisation’s website
Sida contributes to reconciliation and increased understanding between people from different ethnic groups in the north, including by supporting the EJA programme through the Kosovo Civil Society Foundation (KSCF) and the Danish Refugee Center, which aims to stimulate increased income and employment, but also increase knowledge about conflict resolution in the Mitrovica region.
About EJA Kosovo on Kosovar Civil Society Foundation (KCSF) website
Kosovo | DRC Danish Refugee Council
Sida supports UN-Habitat, which together with civil society organisations, the government and seven municipalities in the north is working on urban planning for integration and conflict resolution. All seven municipalities have produced urban plans, developed an investment fund for infrastructure projects, as well as plans and guidelines for citizen participation and gender mainstreaming. Currently, however, the results are overshadowed by the ongoing conflict between Kosovo and Serbia – with four non-functioning municipalities.
Environmental and climate issues have long been neglected politically and by the population. Kosovo’s environmental legislation and administration needs to be strengthened. While progress has been made in recent years in the field of environment and climate change, the country still faces major environmental problems. Almost all electricity is produced in coal-based power plants and forests are illegally harvested. The management of waste and wastewater is poor. As Kosovo is not a member of the UN, it is not part of international initiatives to reduce climate change and environmental problems.
Sida supports projects to improve the country’s many environmental challenges and adapt Kosovo’s environmental legislation in line with EU directives. The support also contributes to increase the protection of biodiversity and improve the management of natural areas. Here are some examples of projects Sida supports:
In Kosovo, illegal deforestation is a major environmental problem. Through the organisation Connecting Natural Values with People (CNVP), Sida supports local forestry associations that organises rural people for sustainable and decentralised forestry.
A collaboration between the Kosovo and Swedish Environmental Protection Agency is helping to strengthen the protection and use of national parks. The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency has an expert on site in Kosovo to work specifically on this with their Kosovar colleagues.
About the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency’s work in Kosovo on the Agency’s website
In a cooperation between Sweden and Kosovo’s Environmental Protection Agency, Sida is helping to strengthen civil society organisations working on environmental issues. The aid also supports another collaboration between the Environmental Protection Agency via Save the Children Sweden, which strengthens the children’s rights perspective in environmental issues.
Through cooperation with authorities, for efficient and transparent institutions, Sida also contributes to improved conditions for Kosovo to approach the EU. A cooperation between the Swedish and Kosovan nature conservation agency, for example, improves the country’s fulfilment of EU criteria in the field of environment. This includes increased attention to biodiversity and ecosystem restoration. The cooperation also improves the reporting and communication on environmental data, for the purpose of reporting to the EU and improving documentation.
About the Environmental Protection Agency’s work in Kosovo on the Agency’s website
Sida supports the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which works with civil society organisations to promote sustainable forest management. Within the project, regulations on sustainable forest management and training programmes have been developed for local and central institutions working on forest issues. The FAO has also strengthened the monitoring and reporting of illegal logging. Public tree nurseries and the production of suitable seedlings for afforestation have also been developed.
About FAO’s work on the Openaid website
In recent years, unemployment in Kosovo has decreased somewhat, but remains high.5
Many groups, including women, people with disabilities and the country’s minorities are discriminated against and are largely outside the Labour market.
Sida supports projects that create jobs with decent working conditions, improve working conditions and increase the position of women on the Labour market. Here are some examples of projects Sida supports:
Together with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and other local organisations, Sida works to improve people’s working conditions and make work safer. For example, employers and employees can take courses in safety and also in Labour law to increase security and the ability to influence their workplace.
About the ILO’s work in Kosovo on the organisation’s website
Sida supports the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Occupational Safety and Health project, which aims to strengthen workers’ rights. Through a training centre, participants learn about their rights to the proper tools and clothing. It also trains different parties in social dialogue, which focuses on strengthening dialogue between employers, workers and government. Within this programme, gender equality has a special place, and a gender perspective must permeate all training provided.
About the Occupational Safety and Health project on the ILO website
In cooperation with the Kosovo Credit Guarantee Fund (KCGF), Sida has designed a new guarantee to enable loans to small and medium-sized enterprises with a focus on women entrepreneurs and green energy supply.
Kosovo recovered relatively quickly from the negative effects of the pandemic.6 This was due, among other things, to large financial support measures from the government to businesses and households, as well as measures such as child and maternity allowances for the most vulnerable. Sida cooperates with the organisations Swisscontact and Connecting Natural Values with People, which support micro, small and medium-sized enterprises that primarily employ women and young people in the textile, wood and health food industries.
- On the situation of the country’s minorities in 2022 on the Human Right Watch (HRW) website
- Report on discrimination against women in Kosovo on the Kosovo Women’s Network website
- Report on violence against women in Kosovo on the European Journal of Social Sciences website
- Corruption Index Kosovo, 2022, on the Transparency International website
- Unemployment statistics in Kosovo on the World Bank website
Updated: October 25, 2023