UNMIK on air
Let’s Talk – Economy
By Gezim Kasapolli
SLUG: Economic legislation, proper statistical data,
privatization, education and anti-corruption were the points discussed on the
sixth edition of “Let’s Talk”.
Economic legislation, proper statistical data, privatization, education and anti-corruption were the points discussed on the sixth edition of “Let’s Talk”.
Hello
and welcome. This is UNMIK on air,
Over the past six weeks “Let’s talk” programs have aimed to make the issue of Standards and their significance clearer to the citizens of Kosovo, and for the producers of the program, the hope is that “Let’s talk” will also make it easier for Kosovars to understand how to achieve these standards.
In the cafes and sidewalks all over Kosovo, one thing that people definitely recognize is the importance of the economy, and many will not hesitate to say that the economy is one area that needs to improve in Kosovo - as soon as possible.
Nonetheless, a unified approach as to how to go about achieving this economic change is not so obvious.
Walking down Mother Theresa Street in Pristina, Avni a local 30-year old economist talked to UNMIK on air after the ‘LET’S TALK’ Program on the economy.
Avni says that the issue of economy needs to be tackled differently especially when one considers its importance.
Avni: “I watch
this show when I have time and I think that the issue of economy was not
properly addressed and I think that those discussions are a waste. I think that
the issue of economics should be addressed from the core because this is a very
obvious problem in Kosovo.”
Ali Sadriu, Minister of
Finance and Economy, is very well aware of the problems and the difficulties
that Kosovars like the 30-year-old Avni are facing.
During the “Let’s Talk”
Program about Kosovo’s Economy, Sadriu said that the government of Kosovo is
working together with UNMIK to improve the current economic situation.
Sandriu also added that
certain priorities needed to be identified before Kosovo’s economy could improve.
Sandriu: “The creation
of a legal infrastructure, its treatment, as well as the preparation of the
staff to manage that legislation - clarifying these aspects of the process are
the preconditions for fulfilling Standard like the Economy Standard. The core
of this entire process is to maintain and to advance the Kosovo’s budget.”
Besim Beqaj, Coordinator
of the Stability Pact, was also one of the panelists on the “Let’s Talk”
Economy program. Beqaj considers the issue of statistical development as a key
to proper economic development.
One of the most important
issues says Beqaj is to plan economic development, create jobs and offer better
public services, which is impossible to do without proper data.
Besim Beqaj: “In order for us to know the inflation and the actual gross domestic product, we need statistical data. This problem is a result of a lack of a proper cooperation between UNMIK and Kosovo’s government in order to address these issues properly and not postpone them. At certain moments we have the postponement of an issue, which we later deal with in an ad-hoc manner. We want to postpone everything for a later stage, which will only be more problematic as the issue drags on.”
Another major issue being debated in Kosovo is the state of privatization. Providing a non-governmental voice to the equation, Ibrahim Rexhepi, economic analyst for Koha Ditore daily newspaper, spoke on the “Let’s Talk” Economy Panel.
Rexhepi says that the privatization process will put Kosovo back on the map for investors.
Ibrahim Rexhepi: “The issue of privatization will define clearly the ownership of enterprises, will define the right of KTA or UNMIK to sell those enterprises and will bring to an end the debates that are mostly political about the ownership of the enterprises in Kosovo. The process of privatization will define Kosovo as a stable market, as a possible market for the foreign investors about which we are talking so much in Kosovo. And currently, they are nowhere to be seen. The problem with the privatization is that it is more a political then an economic issue.”
Isa Mustafa:” We should work more on the quality of the education, orienting the education based on the job market in order to comply with the demands of the world market and integrating the education process in Kosovo with the European education system in order to create conditions for a horizontal movement of the youth. Those that are unemployed here should be able to find a job in other countries.”
Jetmir Balaj: “The problem is not that Kosovars don’t know what corruption is; the problem is not that Kosovars do not denounce cases of corruption; the problem is that when these cases of corruption are denounced the responsible bodies do nothing about them. I said that the strategy against corruption defines it as “violation of the duty of the officials”. When you go to the municipality you have to wait 3 weeks to get a birth certificate and that is corruption. If that person does not do his job that means that he is corrupt and he does not belong there.”
Lamsdorf: “We have to do two things and when I say we
I mean UNMIK and the government of Kosovo, the two governments. One is the
Kosovo Trust Agency must continue privatization and has to modernize the public
utilities electricity, water, telecommunication. Without it you cannot develop
an economy. And on the other side we have two main sectors of the Kosovo
economy, We need to do more on agriculture and we need to and we can do a lot
more to develop the mining industry in Kosovo. We at the moment at Pillar IV
currently have 60 applications for mining licenses which effect up to 35.000
jobs and 1,6 billion-euro investment and that is a lot for Kosovo economy.”
That is all for this edition of UNMIK on air. Thanks for listening and stay tuned.