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Voices of Kosovo’s Youth 2010

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20 October 2010

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Copyright © UNICEF

The Author of this report is Kosovar Stability Intiative (IKS)

ISBN 978-9951-600-00-2

Unleashing Change
Voices of Kosovo’s Youth 2010

20 October 2010

This report was produced with generous support from UNICEF, and with funds from
Luxemburg Government

The views and opinions expressed in this study do not necessarily reflect those of
UNICEF.

CONTENTS

FOREWORD ............................................................................................................................................. 2
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS .................................................................................................. 3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................................................... 5
INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 7
RECOMMENDATIONS........................................................................................................................... 9
METHODOLOGY .................................................................................................................................. 11
EDUCATING KOSOVO’S YOUTH: ANOTHER LOST GENERATION? ..................................... 13
THE LEGACY OF THE 1990S .................................................................................................................... 14
YOUTH SATISFACTION WITH EDUCATION IN KOSOVO ............................................................................ 16
LEARNING WITHOUT BOOKS OR COMPUTERS ......................................................................................... 17
LACKING THE BASICS ............................................................................................................................ 22
ATTITUDES TOWARDS EDUCATION: TO CONTINUE OR NOT CONTINUE ................................................... 27
BRIDGE TO THE FUTURE OR A STUMBLING BLOCK? ................................................................................ 30
NO JOBS, NO PERSPECTIVE.............................................................................................................. 33
UNEMPLOYMENT: YOUTHS’ GREATEST CONCERN ................................................................................ 34
EDUCATION DOES NOT PREPARE ONE FOR WORK ................................................................................... 38
PEOPLE I KNOW ..................................................................................................................................... 42
THE GOVERNMENT’S RESPONSE? ........................................................................................................... 44
TO LEAVE OR NOT TO LEAVE! ................................................................................................................ 45
ENCOURAGING YOUTH PARTICIPATION .................................................................................... 47
DEVELOPING A NEW GENERATION OF ACTIVE CITIZENS: PARTICIPATION IN THE FAMILY ....................... 47
YOUTHS’ EAGERNESS TO PARTICIPATE IN DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES .............................................. 49
TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE!?........................................................................................................................ 52
YOUTHS’ STRUGGLE TO MAKE THEIR VOICES HEARD ............................................................................. 54
TURNING PROMISES TO PRACTICES ........................................................................................................ 57
KOSOVAN YOUTH FACE THEIR FUTURE..................................................................................... 59
MY FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT? .................................................................................................................. 59
KOSOVO THROUGH MY EYES .................................................................................................................. 61
MIGRATION: YOUTHS’ SAFETY VALVE................................................................................................... 62
‘KOSOVO: THE YOUNG EUROPEANS’..................................................................................................... 65
AREAS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH ................................................................................................. 69
ANNEX I. ADDITIONAL GRAPHS RESULTING FROM THE KOSOVO-WIDE SURVEY ...... 70
ANNEX II. QUESTIONNAIRE FOR YOUTH AGES 10-14 .............................................................. 81
ANNEX III. QUESTIONNAIRE FOR YOUTH AGES 15-24 ............................................................. 96
ANNEX IV. FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDE........................................................................ 109
ANNEX V. EU-FUNDED PROJECTS ................................................................................................ 112
TABLE 4. SUPPORTING THE EDUCATION SECTOR IN KOSOVO 2004-2009 ............................................ 112

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FOREWORD

About one-fourth of the world's population comprises of young people between the ages
10 to 24. With 50% of its population under the age of 25 Kosovo is known for having
the youngest population in Europe. However, young people's participation in the
decision making processes in all areas remains a major challenge. The fact that the
young largely feel excluded from public debates has prompted UNICEF to address their
participation by engaging different stakeholders and ministries in conceiving and
implementing better social inclusion policies, giving priority to young persons. The
participation of youth in decision making processes and the associated societal shifts
can form an integral part of shaping Kosovo's future prospective. Yet, at central or local
levels, young people's voices fade prior to reaching the right ear. Their mobilization and
empowerment has to become a priority for Kosovan institutions, civil society and
stakeholders to realise the full potential that a young population represents in Europe
and beyond.

The Voice of Kosovo Youth study you have in your hands reveals the views and
experiences of young people in Kosovo. The study explores young people's challenges
and hopes about the educational system, employment opportunities, future prospects
and the Kosovan society in general, highlighting the circumstances that impede their
participation in public life. Youth expressed their frustration about future prospects with
regards to poor education and associated unemployment, including the unavailability of
study materials, unqualified teaching staff or the lack of up to date methodologies.
However, they express their desire to be given the opportunities to contribute more
actively and shape Kosovo's presence and future.

UNICEF will continue to monitor and advocate for the rights of children and youth in
all countries. The recommendations deduced from the empirical findings in the report
should guide stakeholders and policy makers as they engage in the fight to build and
make an inclusive and vibrant society and in providing a better present and future for all
young people in Kosovo.

Johannes Wedenig
UNICEF Kosovo Head of Office,
Prishtina, October 2010

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ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS

ADA Austrian Development Agency
ALMP Active Labour Market Program
AUK American University in Kosovo
CIDA Canadian International Development Agency
CYAC Central Youth Action Council
EC European Commission
ESOMAR European Society for Opinion and Market Research
ETF European Training Foundation
EU European Union
FSDEK Finish Support to the Education Sector in Kosovo FSDEK
GDP Gross Domestic Product
GTZ German Technical Cooperation
IKS Kosovar Stability Initiative (Iniciativa Kosovare per Stabilitet)
ILO International Labour Office
KEC Kosovo Education Centre
KEDP Kosovo Education Development Plan
KYEAP Kosovo Youth Employment Action Plan
KYN Kosovo Youth Network
LYAC Local Youth Action Council
MEST Ministry for Education, Science and Technology
MCYS Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports
MLSW Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare
NGO Non-Governmental Organisation
OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
PEC Public Employment Centre
PES Public Employment Services
SDC Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
SIDA Swedish International Development Agency
SOK Statistical Office of Kosovo
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation
UNDP United National Development Programme

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UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund
USAID United States Agency for International Development
USG United States Government
VET Vocational Education Training

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Approximately half of Kosovo’s population is under age 25. Kosovo is thus the
youngest state in Europe both in terms of age and its newborn statehood. Educating,
empowering and employing Kosovan youth remain key challenges for Kosovo in its
quest towards European integration. In 2001, UNICEF carried out a Young Voices
Opinion Poll to promote the participation of children and young people. It gave them
the opportunity to have their opinions and concerns heard and widely shared with their
families, the government and public at large. The present report seeks to identify the
problems and issues that young people consider priorities.

Kosovan youths’ concerns and hopes have changed little since UNICEF’s first Young
Voices Opinion Poll in 2001. Nearly a decade ago, 43 percent of youth believed that
Kosovo would become a better place to live. They liked their country, and 87 percent
wanted to continue living in Kosovo. They hoped for an improved standard of living,
fewer social problems and a better political situation.

In 2010, neither international assistance nor the declaration of independence has
brightened future prospects for Kosovan youth. Kosovo must invest more in its young
people towards becoming a competitive economy within the larger European market.
Investment must begin in the education sector. The legacy of the 1990s, outdated
teaching methodologies and poor infrastructure have left youth disenfranchised with
Kosovo’s education sector. The positive relationship between education and
employment mean that a strong education sector is crucial for reducing unemployment
and poverty towards greater social stability.

Kosovo remains the poorest economy in South East Europe. Youth under age 25 have
been among the most affected, with an estimated unemployment rate of 73 percent. In a
labour market in which labour demand is already very low, 95.5 percent of youth have
no prior work experience. This affects long-term unemployment among youth; 81.8
percent have been seeking a job for more than 12 months. Informalities and nepotism in
hiring practices further disadvantage the unemployed. With such bleak prospects, some
consider migration the best way to improve their lives.

Youth still have limited impact on decision-making processes for two reasons:
institutions rarely feel obliged to respect youths’ right to participate, and young people
do not consider participation a civic responsibility. Failing to involve youth in decision-
making processes may easily contribute to future instability.

In the eyes of young people, economic and social conditions serve as a yardstick for
measuring quality of life in Kosovo. Like previously surveyed youth, respondents hoped
for a better economic situation and standard of living in Kosovo. Kosovan Serb youth
tended to be more uncertain about their futures than other youths.

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INTRODUCTION
Given the high levels of youth unemployment, education is a key priority for Kosovo.1
With approximately half the population under age 25,2 Kosovo is the youngest state in
Europe both in terms of age and its newborn statehood. Together with natural resources,
the newborn country’s youth have been identified as one of its two strengths.3 Kosovo’s
young labour force can be an asset amidst Europe’s aging population and is a crucial
factor in Kosovo’s hopes for European integration. Indeed, the European Commission
has emphasised the importance of youth employment and empowerment in progress
reports, as have the World Bank and USAID.

Yet, despite Kosovan leaders’ vocal commitment to European integration, minimal
attention has been given to youth. For example, in the Government’s 55-page strategy
reflecting national priorities for 2008 thru 2011, youth are mentioned only eight times.4
As the United Nations Development Programme noted in its 2006 Human Development
Report, Kosovo youth had little impact on decision-making institutions for two reasons:
first, institutions do not feel obliged to respect the rights of youth to participate, and
second, young people do not consider their participation a civic responsibility.

In 2001, UNICEF carried out a Young Voices Opinion Poll to promote the opinions,
views and concerns of children and young people. The survey was conducted with 400
children and young people between nine and seventeen years old. In 2004, UNICEF
carried out another youth opinion poll that focused on health education, employment,
development, protection and participation in civil society. The survey was conducted
with 600 young people between nine and twenty-five years old. It also involved a series
of focus group with youth.

This present report seeks to assess opinions, views and concerns of young people and
share them with the government, key stakeholders and the public at large. It makes
comparisons with the prior surveys on youth, where relevant. The data and findings
presented in this report will be used by UNICEF to establish baseline and progress
indicators in order to inform the development of a comprehensive situation analysis of
young people; to monitor the impact of UNICEF programme interventions; and to
strengthen the monitoring and evaluation of the Kosovo Youth Action Plan.

The 2010 Young Voices Opinion Poll, funded by UNICEF and carried out by the IKS
team involved mixed research methods, including a Kosovo-wide survey of 1,300
respondents; in-depth interviews with youth across Kosovo; and 10 focus groups with
youth of diverse education levels, ethnicities and geographic areas. In-depth interviews
were also conducted with policy makers, practitioners, donors and other relevant
stakeholders.

In this resulting report, the first chapter deals with youths’ opinions and satisfaction
with Kosovo’s education system. Chapter two examines youths’ opinions regarding

1
European Commission (EC), Kosovo-Fulfilling its European Perspective, Brussels, October 2009.
2
U.S. Census Bureau, International Data Base, Population Pyramid Kosovo 2010. Kosovo’s total population is estimated to be
1,815,048, out of which 864,170 (47.6 percent) are under age 24. At http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/country.php.
3
Republic of Kosovo, Medium Term Expenditure Framework 2009-2011, June 12, 2008. Prishtinë/Priština, p. 6.
4
Government of Kosovo, Program of the Government of Republic of Kosovo 2008-2011, Prishtinë/Priština, April 2008.

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employment opportunities in Kosovo; their readiness for the labour market; and links
between education and employment. Chapter three looks into youth participation in
decision-making processes and the institutional provisions for youth involvement in
decision-making. The fourth chapter focuses on youth perceptions of life in Kosovo and
their satisfaction with life in general; measures their willingness to migrate; and
presents the views of Kosovan youth in relation to their future and European
integration.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

Education

 A comprehensive approach and efforts to the education system are
evident. This, nonetheless, requires extensive investment over a
considerable period of time. Current efforts must be complemented by
strong leadership, including strategic government commitment and
increased budget allocation for education sector.
 Inter-ministerial coordination is crucial for synchronizing labour
market demands with opportunities for the education sector to supply
labour, particularly vocational training. MLSW should make
identifying skills required by the labour market a priority.
Subsequently, such needs should be reflected in MEST’s sector-wide
strategic approach.
 Promoting foreign exchange for private and public tertiary students and
lecturers would accelerate education reform by introducing new
methods employed in other countries of the region and Europe.
Additionally, skills and knowledge gained during a semester abroad
would contribute to furthering the quality of current teaching at the
university level.

Employment

 The infusion of a young labour force is essential for filling the jobs left
open by Europe’s ageing population. The Government of Kosovo can
enter into bilateral agreements with interested EU countries in order to
identify labour market demands and establish programs for providing
labour. Short-term migration can be coordinated, controlled and
regulated bilaterally. MLSW should take the lead in establishing such a
program on behalf of the Government of Kosovo. The MSLW project
was pioneering in this regard.
 Compulsory internships, mandated as part of University level curricula
could better prepare graduates for the labour market. AUK is an
exceptional example in this regard. Opportunities for youth to intern with
international organisations in Kosovo should be examined. MEST should
explore additional opportunities for initiating internship agreements
between universities in Kosovo and the region.
 Web-portals where youth can upload their CVs and employers can
announce vacancies can marry labour market demands with existing
skills. This is a widely used, successful practice in other countries. It can
help reduce informalities during selection and recruitment processes.
Such a website could be accessible by youngsters throughout Kosovo.
MLSW in close cooperation with businesses could initiate such a project.

Participation

 For the Prime Minister of Kosovo and the Government to prove their
commitment to Kosovo’s ‘Young Europeans,’ the year 2011 should be

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declared a ‘Year for Youth.’ This should be translated into actions,
including increasing budget lines towards facilitating youth participation
and stimulating their activism. Such a national level decision should
trickle down to affect the municipal level.
 School principals should identify avenues for encouraging students’
participation and activism. They could identify youths’ interests and
opinions regarding their future, via computer-based social networks,
which are very popular among youth.

Future Perspective

 Initiatives for opening more EU information and cultural centres in other
places outside of Prishtinë/Priština should be encouraged. As a matter of
fact, both EU and Government of Kosovo should utilize this momentum
of the positive attitudes of young Kosovans towards EU. In addition, to
more centres, the government and EU could support draft the curricula
and organize compulsory classes of EU integration (institutions and
values) for the secondary school attendees, as part of the relevant subject
of the social sciences.

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METHODOLOGY
The findings presented here draw from mixed research methods involving both
quantitative and qualitative data. An initial literature review illustrated the dearth of
accurate and current data available in order to respond to the research objectives, that of
assessing opinions, views and concerns of young people and share them with the
government, key stakeholders and the public at large. Therefore, IKS decided to use
multiple methods, data sources and researchers for triangulation, towards enhancing the
reliability and validity of the research findings.

A primary data source was the Kosovo-wide survey of 1,300 youth ages 10 to 24.
Disproportionate, multi-stage random sampling was employed. The sample was
stratified by municipality, age and ethnicity. UBO Consulting was commissioned to
carry out the structured face-to-face interviews, which took place between March 29th
and April 7th 2010. Two different surveys were employed to assess the views and
concerns of young people ages 10 to 14 and 15 to 24 years old, respectively. The
interviews were administered in line with the ‘guidelines on Interviewing Children and
Young People’ issued by the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research
(ESOMAR)5 in 1999. According to these guidelines, all children were interviewed in
their own language and in their homes with permission from their parents or guardians.
Though, the interviewer and child were alone during the interview to encourage the
child to answer all questions freely and candidly. All field researchers attended a one-
day training led by a specialized psychologist.

As Figure 1 illustrates, 900 Kosovo Albanians, 200 Kosovo Serbs, and 200 respondents
of other ethnicities including Turks, Gorani, Bosnians, Roma, Ashkali and Egyptians
took part. UBO Consulting controlled the data through 35 percent back-checking;
entered the data into SPSS; and performed consistency controls. The data analysis
involved both descriptive statistics and regression with a 95 percent confidence interval.
Particular attention was paid to variables such as age, gender, region and ethnicity.

The quantitative survey data was supplemented by in-depth interviews with young
people and ten focus group discussions with high school students, university students,
job-seekers and employed youth. The focus groups were held in Prishtinë/Priština,
Prizren, Gjakovë/Đakovica, Dragash/Dragaš, Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša, Gračanica/
Graçanicë and Mitrovicë/Mitrovica. In-depth interviews with youth as key informants
were a defining feature of the research methodology, as illustrated by the use of
quotations and anecdotes. The report was further enriched by interviews with more than
50 policy-makers, international donors, youth organisations and youth centres. These
interviews assessed existing initiatives and programs targeting youth towards
empowerment, education, employment opportunities and participation in decision-
making processes.

Triangulation was used to identify converging themes and seemingly contradictory
findings were investigated. IKS team analysed the quantitative and qualitative data and
compiled the findings in a report according to four chapters. IKS shared the preliminary

5
The European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR) is the world organisation for enabling better research into
markets, consumers and societies. ESOMAR promotes the value of market and opinion research in illuminating real issues and
bringing about effective decision-making on a global level. ESOMAR’s mission is to promote the highest standards in market
research for improving decision-making in the public and private sectors. For more information, see: www.esomar.org.

www.iksweb.org 11

findings in a workshop with key stakeholders in areas of education, employment and
participation in decision-making and incorporated amendments and suggestions in this
report.

Figure 1. Sample Demographics

Total sample size: n = 1300

Unit Percentage Frequencies
Gender Male 50.7% 658
Female 49.3% 642

Age 10-14 years 34% 444
15-24 years 66% 856

Ethnicity Albanian 69.6% 900
Serb 15.5% 200
Other* 14.9% 200

Region Prishtinë/Priština 24% 313
Pejë/Peč 14% 182
Prizren 18% 230
Gjilan/Gnjilane 12% 167
Gjakovë/Đakovica 5% 61
Mitrovicë/Mitrovica 16% 208
Ferizaj/Uroševac 11% 139

* ‘Other’ includes Roma, Ashkali, Egyptians, Gorani, Bosnians and Turks.

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EDUCATING KOSOVO’S YOUTH: ANOTHER LOST
GENERATION?

‘Education is their bridge to the world.’
- Alyssa Milano, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador

Children from Kosovo painted this picture for the UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador,
Alyssa Milano, who visited on Children’s Day in 2010. The open book represents the
foundation of education and knowledge, from which the red flowers (Kosovo’s
children) grow into the world. The painters, Kosovan youth, were born after 1999 and
have no memory of the conflict. They look towards a better future, eager to change
Kosovo. For this, education is their ‘bridge to the world.’

In 2010, approximately half of Kosovo’s population was under age 25, and around 54
percent of them were enrolled in the education system.6 High hopes were placed on
education as the backbone of economic development and progress but problems
remained.7 As the European Commission Progress report noted, Kosovo’s education
system continued to be affected by resource constraints, inadequate facilities (including
basic sanitary services and potable water), poor quality teaching and low enrolment
(lower than the regional average). The implementation of the Law on Education at the
municipal level had been hampered by inadequate financial and administrative
capacities in municipal education directories.8 Faced with all these challenges, will
Kosovo’s Young Europeans9 be able to realise their dreams and be catalysts for social
and economic change?
This chapter first observes how the legacy of the 1990s affected the quality of education
in Kosovo. Following an overview of youth satisfaction with the education sector,
issues with learning materials, teachers and classroom infrastructure are discussed.
Finally, recommendations for improving the education sector are made.

6
IKS calculation using data from the Statistical Office of Kosovo on total school enrolment (469,631 students) at all levels and the
estimated number of youth under age 25 in Kosovo (865,170), according to the U.S. Census Bureau, International Data Base,
Population Pyramid Kosovo 2010, http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/country.php. The last census in Kosovo was held in 1981,
so accurate population data is unavailable.
7
Government of Kosovo, Program of the Government of Republic of Kosovo 2008-2011, Prishtinë/Priština, April 2008.
8
European Commission, Kosovo under UNSCR 1244/99 2009 Progress Report, Brussels, October 2009.
9
‘Kosovo: The Young Europeans’ is the slogan of a government-sponsored promotional campaign for Kosovo launched on 26
October 2009. The campaign aired on six stations in Europe and the United States, including CNN, BBC, Euronews, Bloomberg
and Eurosport, aiming at branding Kosovo as a new nation, focusing strongly on the power of young people.

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The legacy of the 1990s

In 2008, the Government of Kosovo identified education as one of ‘the 4 E’s,’ the
priority sectors towards Kosovo’s development: Economy, Energy, Education and
Europe. Nonetheless, the education system has remained one of Kosovo’s greatest
weaknesses. For nearly twenty years Kosovo’s education system has been in a state of
emergency, providing only basic necessities. ‘Even nowadays we can’t talk about
reforms,’ said Lida Kita, a European Training Foundation (ETF) expert on Kosovo’s
education system. ‘We still talk about priorities.’10 Insufficient education among
teachers, outdated teaching methodologies, lack of space, overcrowded schools, reduced
class hours and low salaries have hampered the quality of the education provided.

Such problems have been due in part to the legacy left by decades of discrimination and
the destruction of schools during the conflict. About half a million young Kosovan
Albanians were forced by the Serb authorities to leave the formal education system after
Kosovo’s decision-making autonomy over education was abolished in 1989. This led to
the creation of an Albanian parallel education system.11 In 1991, secondary education
moved almost entirely underground as only 6,000 official seats were made available for
36,000 Albanian students finishing primary education.12 By 1992 Albanian students
were entirely excluded from schools in Kosovo. Hundreds of Albanian head-teachers
were dismissed. All of the teachers at the University of Prishtinë/Priština who refused to
teach according to the newly introduced curriculum, with Serbian as the sole language
of instruction, were ‘deemed to have resigned.’13 Most Kosovan Albanian staff and
students were removed from the University of Prishtinë/Priština.14

From 1989 to 1999 the Albanian parallel education system struggled to survive. In 1995
386,511 students were enrolled15 in this system that suffered from dire limitations.
Lessons were held in improvised classrooms in private houses and garages. Textbook
production was prohibited in Kosovo so some materials were smuggled from Albania.
Other books were produced illegally in Kosovo, but could not reflect new developments
in science and technology.16 Dated curricula were applied by unqualified volunteer
teachers. Insufficient infrastructure and Serb harassment meant that the number of
students attending school halved by 1996.17 Then, the 1998-1999 conflict destroyed half
of the schools; damaged about 17 percent of schools; and left most without running
water and sanitary equipment.

Although 110 schools had been rebuilt by 2010,18 many children still attended school in
overcrowded classrooms in morning, afternoon and sometimes even evening shifts.
Initially adopted as a necessity after the conflict, about 70 schools still taught three
10
IKS interview with Lida Kita, European Training Foundation, 1 July 2010.
11
In March 1990 Belgrade enacted ‘Temporary Measures’ which included ‘The Programme for the Attainment of Peace, Freedom
and Prosperity in the Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo’, and the ‘Law on the Activities of Organs of the Republic in
Exceptional Circumstances’. The Temporary Measures led to the suspension of the Provincial Parliament, the removal of Kosovo’s
autonomous control over education and the introduction of Serbian as the only official language of education (Sommers
Buckland, Parallel Worlds: Rebuilding the Education System in Kosovo: UNESCO, 2004, p. 42).
12
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Thematic Review of National Policies for Education –
Kosovo, June 2001.
13
Alva et al., 2002, in Sommers Buckland, 2004.
14
Bellamy, A., ‘Human Wrongs in Kosovo: 1974-99’, The International Journal of Human Rights, 2000, 4 (3), pp. 105-126.
15
Bache, J. Taylor, A. ‘The Politics of Policy Resistance: Reconstruction Higher Education in Kosovo.’ Journal of Public Policy,
2003, 23 (3), pp. 279-300.
16
Sommers Buckland, Parallel Worlds: Rebuilding the Education System in Kosovo: UNESCO, 2004, p. 42.
17
OECD, Thematic Review of National Policies for Education – Kosovo, June 2001.
18
Data on MEST investments in school infrastructure from 2004 to 2010 were taken from the Department of Infrastructure and
Technical Services, MEST, September 2010.

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‘shifts’ per day in 2007. Most others had two.19 Schools teaching in three shifts were
forced to shorten class hours to only 35 to 40 minutes per class, instead of 45 minutes.
This has had consequences for the quality of education that youth receive. Milot a 22-
year-old student recalled:

We were a lot of students in high school. It was impossible for the teacher to
deal with each of us individually. We could not do any presentations; write
essays and learn many other things that are crucial to know in the modern
world.20

The number of schools with three shifts was reduced to 20 in 2010.21 Even so, others
continued to have two shifts. Shortened classes thus remained a reality in many Kosovo
schools. Lack of space, an issue that continues to hinder the quality of education in the
most crowded faculties of Prishtinë/Priština University, remains a problem.

Since the end of 2001 and in accordance with the New Curriculum Framework,22 the
Kosovo education system has undergone reforms that introduced nine years of
compulsory education as according to Bologna Process:23 five years of primary school
followed by four years of lower secondary education. In addition to the first nine years,
it includes either general secondary education that lasts four years and prepares students
for university, or vocational secondary education that typically lasts three years. Starting
in 2011, higher secondary education also is expected to become mandatory. It’s crucial
to mention as well, that the New Curriculum outlines a significant change in how the
education and schooling is viewed, the shift from a content focus to a more learning
oriented and competency based approach is emphasised and its implementation is
pushed by in particular by the current Ministry of Education, Science and Technology
(MEST) Minister.

The post-independence legislation has been favourable for further reforms in education.
It included a new structure for the education system; mainly a new institutional set up
and further curriculum development. UNMIK has fully transferred all competencies in
the education sector to the Government of Kosovo. Further, the basis for transferring
responsibilities from national to municipal government authorities was established by
the 2008 Law on Education in Municipalities of the Republic of Kosovo24 and the Law
on Local Governance,25 in practical terms it means that the Directorate of Education
within municipality undertakes the selection of school directors and administrative staff.

Nevertheless, for some of the observers of the education system this is clearly not
enough. As one of the education experts put it, poor leadership at the national level has
meant a lack of inter-ministerial coordination in pushing forward reforms: ‘The

19
Lida Kita, HDR Country Analysis - Kosovo, ETF working paper, May 2008.
20
IKS interview with Milot Rexhepi, student of political sciences, Prishtinë/Priština, 9 April 2010.
21
MEST data and CHF International fieldwork. IKS email correspondence with Valbona Dushi, Partner Relations Manager, CHF
International, 17 September 2010.
22
UNMIK Department of Education and Science (DES), ‘The New Kosovo Curriculum Framework – Discussion white paper,’
Prishtinë/Priština, September 2001.
23
The Bologna Process is a European reform process aiming at establishing a European Higher Education Area (EHEA) by 2010.
The Bologna Declaration of June 1999 has put in motion a series of reforms needed to make European Higher Education more
compatible and comparable, more competitive and more attractive for Europeans and for students and scholars from other
continents. http://www.ehea.info
24
Law on Education in the Municipalities, Law No. 03/L-068; Republic of Kosovo. 2008, Article 4.
25
Law on Local Self Government, Law No. 03/L-040, Republic of Kosovo. 2008.

www.iksweb.org 15

government needs to coordinate, and the inter-ministerial coordination should be a
single voice. There is a lot to be done in this respect.’26

In 2008 and 2009, donors demonstrated an interest in supporting the development of the
education system. The education sector-wide approach project (SWAP) was launched in
May 2010 by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST) and
European Commission Liaison Office (ECLO). The three million euro, EU-funded
project aimed to contribute to enhancing the management and quality of the education
system. The project planned ‘to support the curriculum development and teacher
training development in Kosovo.’ It also sought to support MEST and Municipal
Education Departments across Kosovo ‘to improve the systems of planning,
implementation and evaluation in education at all levels of government.’27

With financial support from the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA)
through the Capacity Building and Education Reform Project (CBERP), MEST was
undertaking donor mapping at the time of writing this report ‘in order to feed this
information into MEST Strategic Planning.’28

Numerous other donors have financed Kosovo’s education sector to date. The World
Bank (WB) is the longest standing supporter of Kosovo’s education sector, financing
the sector since 1999. EU-funded projects totalled 76.6 million euros for 2004 thru
2009.29 The United States Government (USG) funded projects in education and the
youth sector roughly amounting to 19 million USD between 2000 and 2008. Further, the
USG has set aside an estimated 13 million USD for the fiscal year 2011 (October 1,
2010 to September 30, 2011) for education and youth projects and school
construction.30 The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Danish
Danida, Austrian Development Agency (ADA), German GTZ, Swiss Agency for
Development and Cooperation (SDC), Norwegian Government, UNICEF and other
United Nations agencies also have contributed substantially, primarily in the form of
grants.

It now seems hopeful that donor coordination, which has been an issue until recently,
will help in avoiding overlapping of projects by different donors. MEST, supported by
SIDA will harmonize donors’ initiatives and will accommodate the financial and human
resources according to the needs and demands in the ground. Still, more needs to be
done in this aspect as many donors have pointed out the weak capacities of MEST and
limited number of staff.

Youth satisfaction with education in Kosovo

Most Kosovan youth recognised the value of education. The reasons 15- to 24-year-old
respondents to IKS’s survey most commonly cited for getting an education were to

26
IKS interview with Dukagjin Pupovci, Director of Kosovo Education Center (KEC), 3 June 2010.
27
ECLO Press Release, EU support measures to promote quality education in Kosovo, 27 May 2010,
http://www.delprn.ec.europa.eu/?cid=2,103,873.
28
IKS interview with Lovisa Ericson, SIDA Education Programme Officer, 17 June 2010; IKS e-mail correspondence with Lovisa
Ericson, SIDA Education Programme Officer, 18 August, 2010.
29
IKS interview with Sophie Beaumont, ECLO Education Program Manger, 9 June 2010; IKS e-mail correspondence with Sophie
Beaumont, 24 August 2010. For details see Table 4 in Annex V.
30
IKS e-mail correspondence with Inez Andrews, USAID Senior Education and Youth Advisor, 30 July 2010.

16 www.iksweb.org

‘develop themselves’ and to make their families proud (84.2 percent agreed with each
statement, respectively).

When asked about their overall satisfaction with the quality of education, most
respondents to the Kosovo-wide survey replied that they were ‘satisfied’: 89.4 percent
of 10- to 14-year-olds, 74 percent of 15- to 19-year-olds, and 61.1 percent of 20- to 24-
year-olds. As Graph 1.1 illustrates, overall satisfaction thus seemed to decrease with age
and the corresponding education levels of primary, secondary and tertiary education.

Graph 1.1 Youths’ overall satisfaction with the quality of education, by age

A statistically significant relationship existed between ethnicity and overall satisfaction
with the quality of education.31 On average, Kosovo Albanians were more satisfied than
other ethnic groups. More specifically, Kosovo Serb respondents tended to be less
satisfied than other youth with desks, chairs, and classroom equipment; hygiene; and
heating.32

Despite surveyed youths’ general satisfaction with the quality of education, more
specific survey questions and in-depth interviews indicated dissatisfaction with
elements of the education system, as the following sections detail.

Learning without books or computers

The current Kosovan Curriculum Framework, dating from 2001, promotes a school
curriculum that remains subject-based rather than skills-based.33 Thus the education
system has taught few if any skills that would assist youth in transitioning from
education to employment, such as problem-solving or teamwork. Indeed, more than half
(52.8 percent) of the 15- to 24-year-old survey respondents considered school curricula
old and without practical application. Similarly, 63.7 percent felt that school was very

31
It was statistically significant at the 5 percent level of significance (p 0.001).
32
A statistically significant relationship existed at the 5 percent level of significance (p 0.001).
33
UNMIK Department of Education and Science (DES), ‘The New Kosovo Curriculum Framework – Discussion white paper,’
Prishtinë/Priština, September 2001.

www.iksweb.org 17

theoretical and had little practical orientation. For example, Bert, a knowledge-hungry
10-year-old from Prishtinë/Priština, explained:

I can hardly wait to go to school. [But] sometimes I fall asleep during the
classes because I already know what the teacher is explaining. The teacher then
calls my mom and tells her that I am dreaming during the class hour. I can
hardly wait to go to the fifth grade to learn physics. My father finds websites on
the internet where I read about gravity and a lot of other things.34

The outdated curriculum could be viewed in stark contrast to some of Kosovo’s
technologically advanced youth. Milan, a 21-year-old student of Art at the University of
Mitrovicë/Mitrovica, said attending classes was not enough:

I study graphic design, which is a recent thing and highly related to technology.
My professors are old and their programs for this faculty most probably date
from the ‘90s. I am lucky that I have internet, and I can do my own research. I
am planning to go to Belgrade after graduation to attend some main courses that
I could not do here.35

For Bert and his classmates, a group of lively 10-year-olds, Kosovo’s education system
could hardly keep up with their desire to learn. Seventy percent of their cohort used a
computer with internet at home.36 However, few schools seemed to utilize modern
learning methodologies.

Although many schools were equipped with computer labs, not all students had the
opportunity to use them. Drilon, a 17-year-old gymnasium student in Gjakovë/
Đakovica, explained that his school was recently equipped with new computers: ‘Before
we had Pentium 1, the weakest computers ever. We could hardly learn the easiest
programs such as Word, let alone go further. We don’t have internet yet, even though it
is necessary.’37 Gentiana, an 18-year-old student of the Technical High School in
Prizren, complained that the one computer in her school was shared by 30 students.38

Teachers also lacked materials and aids towards more inclusive and varied teaching
methodologies. For example, teachers were encouraged during trainings organized by
Kosovo Education Centre (KEC), to use listening comprehension exercises. However,
an English teacher explained that he did not have a tape recorder or any audio-visual
aids to apply the modern teaching techniques he had learned.39

Without textbooks at secondary vocational schools, students said that teachers
continued to dictate lessons. They rarely taught critical thinking skills or assigned
exercises to solve. ‘We learn only theory; there is no practice at all,’ complained Dona,
an 18-year-old student. Her friend Burak agreed, ‘Instead of solving exercises we are

34
IKS interview with Bert, Prishtinë/Priština, 9 April, 2010.
35
IKS Focus Group with Kosovo Serb youth in Gračanica/Graçanicë, 12 May, 2010.
36
IKS Young Voices Opinion Poll - Kosovo 2010.
37
IKS Focus Group with students from gymnasium and professional schools in Gjakovë/Đakovica, 29 April, 2010.
38
IKS Focus Group with Students from gymnasium and Professional Schools in Prizren, 28 April, 2010.
39
USAID, Assessment of Basic Education/Pre-University Education in Kosovo, July 2009, p. 25.

18 www.iksweb.org

dictated lessons; there are no books.’40 An 18-year-old girl from the Technical High
School in Prizren explained further:

We don’t have books. We are divided in two groups because we are 29 students
in the class and 15 students have a lesson for one hour and the other 14 hold a
lesson the second hour. Architecture as a branch needs space. We are not at all
satisfied with the teaching methods; the professor talks and we write.41

The same concerns were shared by other students attending professional schools in
Prizren. A senior student at the Economy and Law High School complained that
students’ appeals for books had been ignored:

In my branch we have books for only half of the courses. In the other half we
use the notes that teachers dictate. We have had this problem for four years. We
complained, but nothing has happened. One professor has drafted his own book,
which has been licensed by the Ministry of Education, whereas the others don’t
even care. They take notes from the internet or God knows where.42

The situation with books seemed worse for minorities. The medicine branch at Ataturk
High School in Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša opened four years ago, but of the 14
courses, only two had books, a student said. His friend who studied science at the same
high school agreed, ‘It is the same situation for us. The teachers dictate and we write.
This is the situation for most of our courses. We have no books. We have books only for
Turkish and English courses.’43

In April 2009 the National Council for Curriculum and Textbooks was established to
review and approve a new Curriculum Framework. The curriculum was to align Kosovo
with European education standards. The revised curriculum aimed to promote a
balanced approach in teaching and learning ‘with regard to providing students with
valid and updated knowledge while also helping them develop valuable skills.’44 Still,
as students comments indicate the extent to which these reforms will be implemented
remains to be seen. According to Dukagjin Pupovci, Director of KEC, ‘Preparing
teachers is the key; if teachers are not prepared to implement the new methods, the
curricula serve no purpose.’45

Teachers educated before the 1990s only received two and sometimes three years of
education at what used to be the Higher Pedagogical Institute. About 70 percent of the
teachers presently in primary schools had two years of this pre-service training.46
Further teacher training has been divided into pre-service and in-service training to
reach both new generations of teachers and those currently serving. From 2001 to 2009
approximately 11,000 of the 24,824 active teachers in Kosovo attended teacher training
programs.47 MEST officials are fully aware of the need for massive teacher training in
order to ensure teachers have capacities for implementing the new curricula. In addition,

40
IKS Focus Group with Turkish students from Ataturk High School in Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša, 6 May, 2010.
41
IKS Focus Group with students from gymnasium and professional schools in Prizren, 28 April, 2010.
42
Ibid.
43
IKS Focus Group with students of Ataturk High School in Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša, 6 May, 2010.
44
MEST,‘Curriculum Framework for pre-school, primary, secondary and post-secondary education’ Second Draft,
Prishtinë/Priština, April 2010, p. 12.
45
IKS interview with Dukagjin Pupovci, Director of Kosovo Education Center (KEC), 3 June, 2010.
46
IKS interview and email correspondence with Ardita Hima, KEC, Prishtinë/Priština, August 2010.
47
IKS email correspondence with Nehat Mustafa, Political Advisor to the Minister of MEST, 23 July, 2010.

www.iksweb.org 19

MEST in close cooperation with University of Prishtinë/Priština have taken necessary
arrangements to start re-training all teachers who have a former 2 years of Higher
Pedagogical Institute pre-service training enabling them to upgrade their qualification to
a four year degree. The program is scheduled to start by the end of October 2010 given
that University has made all necessary preparations.

The Canadian Agency for International Development (CIDA) was the first to invest in
teacher training programs in Kosovo. Other donors followed, such as UNICEF, Kosovo
Education Development Fund (KEDP), Finish Support to the Education Sector in
Kosovo (FSDEK), KEC and MEST itself. KEC alone has trained more than 10,000
teachers to date in in-service teacher training. Pre-Service teacher training is provided
by Faculty of Education in the University of Prishtinë/Priština, in-service teacher
training was offered by many different organizations to date, and has not been regulated
by law. MEST is in the process of completing the legislation regarding teacher training,
which entails that only MEST accredited institutions can provide teacher training in
Kosovo.

Despite efforts by both MEST and international donors to improve teachers’ knowledge
and methodology, problems remained. While 80.8 percent of 10- to 14-year-olds and
64.8 percent of 15- to 24-year-olds were generally content with their teachers, more
specific survey questions, interviews and focus groups revealed areas of dissatisfaction.

More than 66 percent of 10- to 14-year-olds and 62.5 percent of 15- to 24-year-olds
considered teachers’ behaviour towards students overly authoritative and strict. Thus
only marginally fewer students seemed more satisfied with teachers than in the 2004
UNICEF Kosovo-wide survey, when 72 percent of respondents said teachers had very
authoritative behaviour.48

During interviews, students detailed their experiences with poor teaching at all levels.
An 18-year-old explained, ‘in case you ask the wrong question, the teachers tell us to
“shut up” and “sit down.”’ University students described similar experiences. A 22-
year-old from the Faculty of Architecture commented:

I am not at all satisfied with the quality of education. The profession I have
chosen needs a lot of work and dedication and requires the professor to be very
prepared and up to date. Unfortunately in my faculty the professors are
communists, come drunk to classes and harass girls.49

Similarly, Drin, a lively 16-year-old, said:

Teachers are very conservative and not professional in their work. They are not
at all close to students; sometimes they have even beaten us. Due to the low
salaries they have, teaching has been a second job for them. I remember teachers
not coming to classes because they were working somewhere else privately.50

Deniza, a young woman from Gjakovë/Đakovica, summarized her experienced: ‘The
teacher enters the classroom, explains what he/she has to explain, asks whether we
48
UNICEF, Youth in Kosovo, June 2004, p. 27.
49
IKS interview with a 22-year-old student of Architecture in Univeristy of Prishtinë/Priština, Prishtinë/Priština, 5 April, 2010.
50
IKS interview with Drin, student, Prishtinë/Priština, 7 April, 2010.

20 www.iksweb.org

understood and leaves the classroom. Nothing interesting.’51 Overall, more than 15
percent of the 10- to 14-year-olds and 19 percent of 15- to 24-year-olds said they were
‘undecided’ as to whether their teachers were qualified to teach their subjects. Another
youth reflected:

One thing that concerns me regarding the education system in Kosovo is the
mixture of new methods with old ones. Most of the old teachers pretend to be
teaching us according to the new reforms, but what they really do is confuse us.
I felt so ashamed when I came to the faculty. [W]hen I was asked to write an
essay or do a presentation, I had no idea of what an essay was, let alone writing
one. Recently, new, young staff is coming in, and I hope that things will
improve. We had the opportunity to learn from the new staff who were educated
abroad and who try to prepare us for the labour market.52

The difference between ‘younger’ and ‘older’53 teachers’ approaches was a common
theme among youth. As a law student at Prishtinë/Priština University commented, ‘The
young professors are enthusiastic and try to make the class hour attractive. Their
knowledge and approach is modern. Whereas the old professors are very conservative
and work with outdated methods, regardless of their attempts to reform.’54

Young Kosovo Serbs in Gračanica/Graçanicë also complained about the teaching
methodologies employed.55 ‘There are still old professors, and it is hard to tell the
professor to use new technology’ said Miloš, a student of English literature at the
University of Mitrovicë/Mitrovica.56 Kosovo Serb youth said that the Bologna process
was functional on paper, but that its implementation remained an issue. Teachers either
continued with their old methods or improvised something in between. Ivana, a student
of medicine at the University of Mitrovicë/Mitrovica explained:

There are cases when a professor has understood the Bologna system and the
way it functions. What happens then is that in one faculty you have one course
being lectured according to the Bologna system and other courses continuing
with the old methods.57

While such problems may reflect ongoing transitions as part of the current educational
reform process, the quality of teachers’ lessons and approach must be tackled at their
root.

The Faculty of Education at the University of Prishtinë/Priština, where future
generations of teachers are schooled, was established in 2002 by MEST and the
University of Prishtinë/Priština. However, it struggles to recruit and adequately prepare
new teachers. Teachers’ salaries remain low, despite the 30 to 40 percent increase in

51
IKS Focus Group with students from the gymnasium and professional schools in Gjakovë/Đakovica, 29 April, 2010.
52
IKS interview with Milot Rexhepi, student of political sciences, Prishtinë/Priština, 9 April, 2010.
53
Answers are based on students’ perceptions of ‘old’ and ‘young.’ They likely based definitions on age and the time period in
which teachers were educated.
54
IKS interview with Hereza Sefaj, student of Law at Prishtinë/Priština University, Prishtinë/Priština, 6 April, 2010.
55
The schools in Serb communities are under the authority of the Ministry of Education in Belgrade. Kosovo Serb students are
educated according to the curricula of Republic of Serbia and do not receive any instruction in the Albanian language. See: OSCE,
Kosovo Non-Majority communities within the Primary and Secondary Educational Systems, April 2009.
56
IKS Focus Group with Kosovo Serb youth in Gračanica/Graçanicë, 12 May, 2010.
57
Ibid.

www.iksweb.org 21

2009. With salaries ranging from 230 to 260 Euros per month,58 teachers are underpaid
compared to other professions. Thus, a profession that was prestigious during the years
of the parallel system has become less attractive.

Students still choosing to attend the Faculty of Education were not satisfied with the
education they received. ‘A teacher who was supposed to lecture once a week, lectured
only once a month and nobody would hold him responsible,’ explained Valdet, a 24-
year-old student who left the Faculty of Education to register in Banking and Finance at
a private university. ‘Professors do as they like, without taking into account students’
needs. Recently, we had to wait six hours to enter the exam,’ complained Edona, a 20-
year-old student at the Faculty of Education who planned to transfer into the Economics
Faculty. Students complained that some of the teachers had been teaching for more than
30 years and were too old to adapt to new methods.59

Students were not the only ones disappointed in the Faculty of Education. According to
the President of the Board of the Kosovo Accreditation Agency, Ferdije Zhushi Etemi:

The Faculty of Education is not preferred for good or excellent students. The
whole concept of the Faculty of Education is wrong. There are too few and
unqualified staff. There are teachers who are 72 years old. The concept of
education is not implemented at all. There is a lack of methodology, strategy and
didactics. Only two people in the administration have educational backgrounds;
the others come from other disciplines.60

Similar concerns were voiced by MEST. Kushtrim Bajrami, Director of the Department
for International Cooperation, Coordination of Development and European Integration,
agreed, ‘The academic staff of the Education Faulty needs to be better.’61

Lacking the Basics

In addition to teachers, ‘The reform process depends substantially on the physical space
of schools,’ according to MEST.62 Despite investments made by MEST and
international donors, school infrastructure has remained a problem. Although MEST is
charged with policy development and monitoring the system, it has noted that ‘the
school infrastructure for the successful implementation of [new teaching] programs is
still lacking.’63 Insufficient infrastructure can impact the quality of education.

In IKS’s Kosovo-wide survey, school infrastructure was among the issues with which
young people were least satisfied.

58
ETF, Mapping Policies and Practices for the Preparation of Teachers for Inclusive Education in Contexts of Social and Cultural
Diversity, Country Report for Kosovo (under UNSCR 1244/99) working document, 2010.
59
IKS Focus Group with university and college students in Prizren, 28 April, 2010.
60
IKS Interview with Ferdije Zhushi Etemi, President of the Board of the Kosovo Accreditation Agency, Prishtinë/Priština, 22 June,
2010.
61
IKS interview with Kushtrim Bajrami, Director of the Department for International Cooperation, Coordination of Development
and European Integration, MEST, Prishtinë/Priština, 9 June, 2010.
62
MEST, Infrastruktura e Objekteve Arsimore [Infrastructure of School Buildings], at http://www.masht-gov.net/advCms/#id=57.
63
MEST, Department for Development of Pre-University Education, second round of workshops with teachers in pre-university
education, held in six municipalities (Podujevë/Podujevo, Mitrovicë/Mitrovica, Ferizaj/Uroševac, Suharekë/Suva Reka,
Kaçanik/Kačanik and Skenderaj/Srbica), 16 July, 2010.

22 www.iksweb.org

Graph 1.2 Percentage of surveyed youth dissatisfied with school infrastructure64

As Graph 1.2 illustrates, approximately 25 percent of the respondents said they were
dissatisfied with the classrooms, labs, and sports equipment in their schools. About 16
percent were dissatisfied with hygiene and about 15 percent with classroom equipment.
About 12 percent were dissatisfied with their schools’ heating systems. Youth from
Ferizaj/Uroševac and Gjilan/Gnjilane were more likely to express concern regarding
infrastructure issues than students from other regions.

According to survey respondents, many schools also lacked basic equipment and
services, such as laboratories, libraries, sport facilities, computers and healthcare. Some
laboratories had been transformed into classrooms to hold other classes for the
multitude of students.65 Libraries were poorly equipped and sports facilities consisted
mainly of cement squares outdoors with little to no sports equipment. They could not be
used during the winter. As Dona, an 18-year-old student from Mamuşa/
Mamushë/Mamuša, commented, ‘There are no laboratories for chemistry, physics, etc.
There is no gym for physical education. When it’s raining we can’t go outside.’66

64
For youth age 15-24-year-old, only the answers of respondents who were attending school have been calculated.
65
Kosovar Stability Initiative - IKS, Mitrovicë/Mitrovica: One City, Two Realities, December 2009.
66
IKS Focus Group with Turkish students, Ataturk High School in Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša, 6 May, 2010.

www.iksweb.org 23

Graph 1.3 Availability of school facilities for youth ages 10-14

As Graph 1.3 illustrates, 38 percent of surveyed 10- to 14-year-olds had no healthcare at
school, 33.2 percent had no laboratories, 20.5 percent had no internet, 13 percent had no
sport facilities, 11.6 percent had no library and 7.9 percent had no computers. Compared
to other regions, Ferizaj/Uroševac and Gjilan/Gnjilane seemed to have the least
adequate school facilities. The regions where the most students said their schools lacked
healthcare were Ferizaj/Uroševac and Prizren.

Graph 1.4 Availability of school facilities for youth ages 15-24 attending school

The survey suggested that 15- to 24-year-old respondents had less access than 10- to 14-
year-olds to laboratories, computers, internet and libraries. As Graph 1.4 illustrates,
more than 36 percent of the 15- to 24-year-old respondents attending school said there
were no laboratories in their school, 18.9 percent had no computers and 28.8 percent
had no internet. Further, 26.8 percent had no healthcare at school, 12.8 percent had no
library and 9.7 percent did not have sports facilities.

24 www.iksweb.org

More Albanian respondents said they attended schools without healthcare (41.7 percent)
than Serb (30.9 percent) or other respondents (25 percent). More Albanian (36.2
percent) and other respondents (30.4 percent) lacked laboratories compared to Serb
(19.1 percent) respondents. However, more Serb respondents did not have internet (26.5
percent) than Albanians (20.4 percent) and other ethnic groups (14.3 percent). Slightly
more Serb respondents were without libraries (14.7 percent) than Albanians (12.5
percent) or other minorities (1.8 percent). Nine percent of Albanian respondents did not
have computers at school, whereas 4.4 percent of Serb and 5.4 percent of youth of other
ethnicities did.

Youth attending schools in particular regions seemed to have less access to laboratories
than others, as Graph 1.5 illustrates. About 57 percent of 15- to 24-year-old respondents
in Ferizaj/Uroševac, 41.8 percent in Pejë/Peć and 36.2 percent in Gjilan/Gnjilane said
they did not have laboratories in their secondary schools.

Graph 1.5 Percentage of 15-24-year-olds without laboratories in at school, by region

More than 61 percent of 15- to 24-year-old respondents in Ferizaj/Uroševac, 50.7
percent in Gjilan/Gnjilane and 43.7 percent in Prizren said they did not have healthcare
at school. Overall, the regions of Ferizaj/Uroševac and Gjilan/Gnjilane seemed to have
the least adequate infrastructure in schools.67

In addition, classroom space has been a serious issue for youth. More than 58 percent of
the 10- to 14-year-old respondents and 50.3 percent of the 15- to 24-year-olds stated
that there were too many students in their classrooms. Again, differences appeared to
exist by region, as illustrated by Graph 1.6. In Ferizaj/Uroševac, Pejë/Peć and Prizren,
67
In Ferizaj/Uroševac, 38.6 percent of respondents did not have computers at school; 47.7 percent did not have internet; 29.5
percent had no library and 29.9 had not sports facilities. In Gjilan/Gnjilane, 40.6 percent had no internet; 17.4 percent had no library
at school; and 37.7 percent had no sports facilities.

www.iksweb.org 25

the lack of classroom space was noted by similarly high percentages of respondents in
each age group. In Gjakovë/Đakovica and Mitrovicë/Mitrovica, nevertheless,
differences in classroom sizes seemed to exist between the two age groups. The region
of Gjakovë/Đakovica had the highest number of respondents ages 10 to 14 stating that
classrooms were over-crowded (89.5 percent).

Graph 1.6 Percentage of youth who said their classroom was over-crowded,
by region and age

A statistically significant relationship existed at the five percent significance level
between ethnicity and whether youth felt schools were overcrowded.68 On average,
Kosovo Albanians of all ages were more likely than Kosovo Serb youth to feel that their
schools were overcrowded.

In 2008/2009, the average number of students per classroom was 23 for primary and 30
for secondary schools.69 This is considerably higher than in other countries in the region
such as Slovenia (18.5 and 20.4, respectively), Hungary (21.1 and 22.6) and the OECD
average (21.6 and 23.7).70 Rural-urban migration has decreased classroom sizes in some
rural schools. However, the number of students per class in some schools remained
high. The number of overcrowded classrooms exceeded the number of under-crowded
classrooms.

68
p 0.001
69
Statistical Office of Kosovo, Educational Statistics 2008/09, July 2010.
70
OECD, Education at a Glance 2010: OECD Indicators for 2008, 2010.

26 www.iksweb.org

As a senior student from Prizren Medical High School explained: ‘We are about 45
students in one class; it has been very difficult these four years to learn in such a
crowded environment.’ Another student from Prizren Economics and Law High School
explained: ‘The maximum number of students in my class was supposed to be 32, but
we were 46. We could not find chairs to sit. Every day we had to fight over chairs. Now
we are 35, as some [students] left school; they had enough.’71

MEST has sought to provide additional educational space. While 800 damaged and 61
destroyed schools have mostly been repaired and rebuilt, the pre-war total of 1,220
schools has not been reached.72 In any case, considering Kosovo’s large youth
population and the expansion of mandatory schooling to 13 years in 2010,73 the space
required has grown faster than MEST’s construction efforts. With a total of 985 primary
and 108 secondary schools in 2010, Kosovo still faced severe shortages in classroom
space.74

Despite the aforementioned infrastructural deficiencies, MEST’s budget was reduced
significantly from 56.5 million in 2008 to 36 million in 2010. This affected the budget
for capital outlays; the Ministry’s budget for school construction declined from 38.5
million in 2008 to 24.5 million in 2010. Despite the increase in teachers’ salaries, the
operational budget from which teachers’ salaries and school maintenance are paid
decreased from 17.6 million in 2008 to 6 million in 2009. While the budget increased to
11.5 million in 2010, it remained less than in 2008. Budget cuts call into question the
government’s dedication to improving education in Kosovo. They dually place at risk
youths’ opportunities for the future.75

Attitudes towards education: To continue or not continue

Many youth recognized the value of education, as evidenced by both the Kosovo-wide
survey and in-depth interviews. ‘My future depends on the education I receive. I will
continue my studies until the last grade even though I still have not decided what to
study,’ said Drin, a 16-year-old high school student from Prishtinë/Priština.76 For 18-
year-old Gentiana, ‘School is everything; without school one has no job security, and
does not know what to expect in the future.’77 Nineteen-year-old Hana agreed, ‘School
is a necessity, like bread.’78 Tellingly, youth of Kosovo is aware where their priorities
lie.

While the number of youth enrolled in mandatory primary and lower secondary
education has fluctuated slightly from year to year, the number of students enrolled in
upper secondary education has increased steadily, as illustrated in Table 1.1.

71
72
European Commission Damage Assessment Kosovo, Building Assessment Kosovo, International Management Group, April 2004.
73
MEST, ‘Curriculum Framework for pre-school, primary, secondary and post-secondary education,’ Second Draft,
Prishtinë/Priština, April 2010.
74
MEST, Educational Statistics 2009/10.
75
Ministry of Economics and Finance, Central Budget Tables for 2008 and 2009, Budget of the Republic of Kosova for 2010,
January 2010.
76
IKS interview with Drin, student, Prishtinë/Priština, 7 April, 2010.
77
78
IKS Focus Group with high school students in Dragash/Dragaš , 5 May, 2010.

www.iksweb.org 27

Table 1. Number of Kosovan students enrolled in education, 2004 to 2010

School year 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10

Primary lower secondary 327,207 322,180 324,618 326,911 322,975 311,744

Upper secondary 60,760 74,781 88,691 90,207 96,172 104,053
Source: MEST Education Statistics, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010.

Students attending upper secondary education choose between the traditional
gymnasium and vocational school. In the 2008/09 academic year, 41,692 students
attended gymnasia, the majority of them girls. The same year, 55,073 students were
enrolled in vocational schools with the majority being male.79 Traditionally, gymnasia
have been a pre-requisite for university.80 Although more students have enrolled in
vocational education training (VET), it has been considered an option for low
performing students. Many students not accepted into their gymnasium of choice attend
vocational school instead.81 Apart from a bad image, there are additional problems with
VET education in Kosovo.

Vocational schools have been meant to prepare students for the labour market, in
contrast to gymnasiums that offered more theoretical education. VET’s are supposed to
have a more practical approach to education, as well as offer business internships. In
Kosovo, arguably, vocational schools have not been aligned with labour market
demands. Few such institutions partnered with businesses, and this undermined the
purpose of vocational education. Students completing vocational education could not
attend post-secondary vocational education, as it did not exist in Kosovo.82 Thus
students had to either enter the job market or transfer to the university. More practical
tertiary vocational education like a technical college or university could offer many
youth additional opportunities.

Increased rates of enrolment in higher education have been influenced by shifting
gender roles. Traditionally, the transition rate from obligatory lower secondary school to
optional upper secondary education has been higher for boys than girls. However, girls’
rates of continuing education have increased in recent years. While 75.6 percent of girls
transitioned to higher education in the 2004/05 academic year, 80.4 percent continued
on in 2008/09.

In some areas of Kosovo, girls remained disadvantaged in accessing upper secondary
education. More girls abandoned elementary school in Ferizaj/Uroševac, Malishevë/
83
Mališevo and Dragash/Dragaš than in other municipalities. For example, Anjeza
attended primary school in her village in Dragash/Dragaš. Though, only four of the
twelve girls from her class continued on to secondary school. ‘The other girls stay at
home because of their families’ mentalities,’ she said. The lack of public transport from
Dragash/Dragaš’s villages to the high school caused concern for some parents who

79
Statistical Office of Kosovo, Educational Statistics 2008/09, July 2010, pp. 52-53.
80
UNICEF – IKS stakeholders’ workshop, Prishtinë/Priština, 13 July, 2010.
81
European Training Foundation, ETF Country Plan- Kosovo 2009, p. 5.
82
MEST, ‘Curriculum Framework for pre-school, primary, secondary and post-secondary education’ Second Draft,
Prishtinë/Priština, April 2010.
83
Statistical Office of Kosovo, Educational Statistics 2008/09, July 2010, pp. 38, 64-65.

28 www.iksweb.org

worried whether their children, particularly girls, would be safe travelling to and from
school.84

Other youth agreed that poor transportation inhibited many girls from continuing their
education after primary school, particularly young woman in villages. Hana, an 18-year-
old student in Gjakovë/Đakovica explained, ‘Girls from villages decide not to continue
secondary school when they are in the ninth grade mainly because there is no
transportation during the wintertime or evening. Parents are afraid to send their girls to
school.85

In Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša, some girls did not want to further their education. For
example, Ahmet explained how her older sister had finished elementary education, but
did not want to attend high school.86 Some of Ahmet’s friends and acquaintances in
Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša said their parents took them out of school. Still, after one
year they had convinced their parents to permit them to continue. Seda explained, ‘My
dad did not allow me to come to school. He said, “What will you be if you go to school?
Stay at home.”’ Her friend Sibel had a similar experience: ‘My mother did not allow me
to go to school. She said that girls don’t go to school. Later my friend came and
convinced my mother to send me to school. My father did not say anything. He wanted
me to continue.’87 The focus group participants explained that starting a family was
very important for girls in Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša. Staying at home and not
attending school was considered a sign that girls were prepared for marriage. ‘The year
that I stayed at home people came to ask me to marry, but I did not want to,’ Seda
continued. ‘My mother wanted me to get married, but I always refused and told her that
I wanted to go to school. Now that I am in school nobody mentions marriage
anymore.’88

Attitudes towards education are slowly changing in Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša. This is
due in part to the fact that education has become more accessible. Ali explained, ‘When
there was no high school in Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša people had to go to Prizren.
Even the number of boys who attended school was not very high. Only five to six boys
would attend school in Prizren.’ His friend Burak agreed: ‘With the opening of the high
school many things changed; the mentality of people changed. More girls go to school
nowadays.’89

In addition to geographical location and access, ethnicity also appeared to be a
determining factor influencing whether youth continued their education after primary
school. Roma and Romani girls in particular faced challenges in continuing their
education. According to SOK, Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian (RAE) girls have the lowest
level of education in Kosovo.

84
IKS Focus Group with high school students in Dragash/Dragaš , 5 May, 2010.
85
IKS Focus Group with students from gymnasium and professional schools in Gjakovë/Đakovica, 29 April, 2010.
86
IKS Focus Group with students of Ataturk High School in Mamuşa/Mamushë/Mamuša, 6 May, 2010.
87
Ibid.
88
Ibid.
89
Ibid.

www.iksweb.org 29

Table 2. Number of Kosovan students enrolled in education by ethnicity, 2008/2009

Primary Lower
Upper secondary
Ethnicity secondary
Total Female Total Female
Albanian 306,427 147,191 94,572 42,456
Bosnian 3312 1641 1025 419
Roma 1519 685 75 25
Ashkali 3412 1554 203 43
Egyptian 1670 750 89 23
Turk 1618 808 746 348
Goran 960 444 41 6
Source: SOK Education Statistics, 2008/2009

Only two of the four girls participating in IKS’s focus group in a Roma neighbourhood
of Mitrovicë/Mitrovica had completed elementary education. One girl had dropped out
at various stages. One girl had never attended school; she relied on her friend to write
her name on the participants’ list. The girls explained that they quit schooling because
their families felt girls did not need to be educated and because many Roma girls marry
at an early age.

Adelina did not want to tell her age. She had always wanted to go to school and had
attended upper secondary school after finishing lower secondary school in the Serb
language. However, she quit after only three months because she was the only Roma
child in her class. Roma boys tended to drop out of school because they had to work to
help support their large families.90

Clearly, improved free public transportation for youth to and from school could enable
more young women and men to continue their education. Awareness-raising campaigns
may help address conservative attitudes and encourage youth in general to continue
their education.

Bridge to the future or a stumbling block?

In order for education to be a ‘bridge to the world’ for Kosovo’s youth, an effective
educational system that enables graduates to continue their studies further or smoothly
transition into the labour market is required. Yet, more than a decade after the conflict,
institutions barely provided basic educational infrastructure and continued to face a host
of quality and infrastructural challenges. While educational reforms pertaining to
curricula development and teacher training were underway, much work remained for the
effects to be felt by the average student. Needless to say, education reforms are
measured in generations and not in individual academic years. This has been
particularly true considering the challenging task of rebuilding post-war Kosovo’s
devastated education sector. Despite the understandably extensive financial and
temporal commitments required to reconstruct this sector, its present state does not bode
well for the future of Kosovo’s youth. Kosovo’s education sector may well be described
more as a stumbling block than a bridge to the world.

90
IKS Focus Group with Roma youth community in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica, 21 May, 2010.

30 www.iksweb.org

While some of the challenges identified through IKS’s research have already begun to
be addressed, the education reform process is still far from producing the desired
results. Reform efforts have been stretched thin in an expansive sector that requires
ongoing investment over a considerable period of time. Current efforts must be
complemented by serious and strategic government commitment, demonstrated to
increasing budget allocation.

Additionally, inter-ministerial coordination is crucial. Labour supply, particularly in
vocational education training, must be synchronized with labour market demands.
MLSW should make identifying skills needed in the labour market a priority and
subsequently liaise with MEST to ensure that these needs are reflected in the
education sector.

Finally, as it will be elaborated in the next chapter, promoting foreign educational
exchange for private and public tertiary students and lecturers would accelerate
education reforms by introducing new methods employed in other countries of the
region and Europe. Additionally, skills and knowledge gained during a semester
abroad would contribute to furthering the quality of current teaching at the university
level.

www.iksweb.org 31

NO JOBS, NO PERSPECTIVE

‘I think it is very difficult for a young
person to find a job, regardless of how qualified
he or she is. In Kosovo nothing works without
knowing the right people.’
- Drin, 16-year-old student from Gjakovë/Đakovica

Unemployment is a structural problem with a long history in Kosovo. Even during the
height of Kosovo’s industrialization in the late 1980s, unemployment wavered around
36 percent.91 It steeply increased as the Serbian authorities dismissed en masse Albanian
workers from the state-run factories in the early 1990s.92 The factories fell into disrepair
and many suffered further destruction during the war. The sluggish post-conflict
privatisation process has since resulted in few new jobs, far from enough to
accommodate the increasing population.

In 2009, unemployment continued to plague 45.4 percent of Kosovo’s population.
Youth have been among the most affected. The young, working population aged 15 to
24 comprised 20 percent of Kosovo’s labour force (48.1 percent) and 73 percent of
them were unemployed. Such high unemployment rates are unsustainable. Not only is
high youth unemployment positively related to social instability and higher crime rates,
but it also means that youth lack reasons for remaining in Kosovo. As the World Bank
has concluded, ‘Kosovo’s difficult labour market conditions have been especially severe
for youth, with obvious implications for social stability.93

‘Unemployment in Kosovo is destroying youth,’ said Milot, a 22-year-old student
attending a private university in Prishtinë/Priština.94 His concern was echoed widely by
young people throughout Kosovo. While youth ages 15 to 24 comprised nearly 20
percent of Kosovo’s labour force, they represented 40 percent of the country’s
unemployed.95 With a youth unemployment rate of approximately 73 percent, higher
among young women (81.8 percent), Kosovo possessed both the highest unemployment
rate and the highest youth unemployment rate in the region.

Finding employment has been particularly difficult for youth because 95.5 percent of
them have no prior work experience. In a labour market in which labour demand has
been very low, insufficient work experience has been a key factor influencing long-term
unemployment among youth.96 Long-term unemployment, seeking a job for more than
12 months, affected 81.7 percent of Kosovo’s youth in 2009.97

Kosovo’s economic growth spurted double-digits after the conflict due to international
aid and remittances.98 Though, it has decreased to less than five percent since 2005,
91
World Bank, Kosovo, Unlocking Growth Potential: Strategies, Policies, Actions, April 2010, p. 12.
92
Malcolm, N., Kosovo: A Short History, 1998, p. 429.
93
World Bank, Interim Strategy Note for Republic of Kosovo for the period FY10-11, December 2009, p.14.
94
IKS interview with Milot Rexhepi, student of political sciences, Prishtinë/Priština, 9 April, 2010.
95
World Bank, Kosovo, Youth in Jeopardy: Being Young Unemployed, and Poor in Kosovo, September, 2008, p. iv.
96
Ibid, p. 12.
97
Statistical Office of Kosovo (SOK), Series 5: Social Statistics, Results of the Labour Force Survey 2009, Prishtinë/Priština, July
2010, p.5.
98
World Bank, Kosovo, Unlocking Growth Potential: Strategies, Policies, Action, April 2010, p. v.

www.iksweb.org 33

further aggravating the labour market. In addition, Kosovo’s economic growth has not
been reflected in the labour market, which has been characterized by low labour demand
and stagnation. With a per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of €1,760, Kosovo has
remained the poorest state in the Western Balkans. In 2010, micro-businesses in low-
skilled occupations and low value-added sectors still comprised 90 percent of the weak
private sector.99 They could neither absorb the backlog of unemployed persons nor
employ the steady stream of 25,000 to 40,000 new graduates entering the labour market
every year.100 In order to decrease the unemployed rate, real GDP growth would have to
be more than six percent for at least a decade, not the 0.9 percent average that existed
between 2002 and 2007.101

This chapter aims at placing youth unemployment at the heart of debate about the future
of Kosovo. It analyses young people’s preoccupation with unemployment and the ways
they find to adapt to it. Further, it considers the impact education has on employment
and the challenges young people face in transiting from education into the labour
market. The chapter also evaluates youth career strategies and the government response
to high rates of unemployment among youth. At the heart of this chapter lies the core
thesis that young people are as much preoccupied with unemployment as adults.

Unemployment: Youths’ Greatest Concern

Among the new entrants to the labour market was Selda, a 21-year-old Turkish student
who was lucky to have found a job as a translator. ‘Unemployment is a big concern in
Kosovo,’ she said. ‘All these youth wander up and down the streets; I think that no
incentive to work has remained in them.’102 The bleak economic situation has taken its
toll on both youth and their adult counterparts. For years, young people had watched
their parents and family members struggle to make ends meet. They were sensitized to
unemployment at an early age. Ten-year-old Bert already understood the value of
planning ahead: ‘Of course school is good for my future, without school I will be on the
street.’103

Like Bert, most surveyed youth ages 10 to 14 identified unemployment (47.3 percent of
respondents) and poverty (28.2 percent) as the greatest threats facing Kosovo. In
comparison, few youth mentioned other potential threats like corruption (7.4 percent),
drug abuse (6.1 percent), organised crime (5.4 percent) and environmental pollution (5.6
percent).

99
Ibid, p. ix.
100
Medium Term Expenditure Framework 2009-2011, 12 June 2008, p.6.
101
World Bank, Kosovo, Youth in Jeopardy: Being Young Unemployed, and Poor in Kosovo, September, 2008, p. 2.
102
IKS interview with Selda Sylejmani, student, Prishtinë/Priština, 8 April, 2010.
103
IKS interview with Bert, Prishtinë/Priština, 9 April, 2010.

34 www.iksweb.org

Graph 2.1 Greatest threats facing Kosovo for surveyed 10-14-year-olds

Youth ages 15 to 24 felt similarly; 47.8 percent of respondents named unemployment as
the main threat to Kosovo and 24.5 percent identified poverty. Indeed unemployment
and poverty are related; unemployed people in Kosovo face a higher risk of poverty or
extreme poverty.104

The risk of being unemployed and extremely poor was particularly high for Roma in
Kosovo. ‘I started working when I was 13 years old,’ said 22-year-old Armend, who
lived in the newly-built Roma Mahalla in south Mitrovicë/Mitrovica.105 ‘First I worked
as a loader, and then I did whatever job was out there. Now I dig trenches. I would like
to have a permanent job, maybe as an auto mechanic.’ Armend’s friends and neighbours
faced similar issues. Senad, who dropped out of school after the fifth grade, believed
that ‘poverty and unemployment are the main problems. We need to make our own
living, and we work wherever we can.’106 His friend Artan explained that dropping out
of school to work is typical for Roma boys: ‘Difficult conditions and poverty oblige
Roma children to work. Senad, for example, works as a taxi driver. It is difficult to
maintain his family, so he had to drop out of school and start to work. Poverty forces
young people to drop out of school.’107

Regardless of whether youth were still enrolled in school, already working or seeking
work, they were concerned by unemployment. As Graph 2.1 illustrates, 56.3 percent of
surveyed youth ages 15 to 24 said they were ‘very preoccupied’ with unemployment,
while 31.1 percent were ‘preoccupied.’

104
World Bank, Kosovo, Youth in Jeopardy: Being Young Unemployed, and Poor in Kosovo, September, 2008, p. vii.
105
IKS Focus Group with Roma youth in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica, 21 May, 2010.
106
Ibid.
107
Ibid.

www.iksweb.org 35

Graph 2.2 Extent to which 15-24-year-olds were preoccupied with unemployment

A statistically significant relationship existed between ethnicity and preoccupation with
unemployment. Albanian youth and youth from other minorities tended to be more
preoccupied with unemployment than their Serbian counterparts.108 Whereas 60.2
percent of Albanian respondents and 72.4 percent of other minorities stated that they
were ‘very preoccupied’ with unemployment, only 23.3 percent of the Serbian youth
stated the same.

Even so, in a focus group held with Serb youth in Gračanica/Graçanicë, unemployment
surfaced as a great concern. Alexander, a student at the University of Mitrovicë/
Mitrovica explained: ‘Many generations have been educated in the last ten years, but
they have worked nowhere. They have looked for jobs and they have found nothing.’
His colleague Bujana argued that a reason for not finding a job is because they don’t
look for one, especially in Prishtinë/Priština: ‘We have to keep in mind that when young
people graduate they do not even think about applying for jobs in Prishtinë/Priština,
mainly because, the Serb community is not fully integrated in the larger Kosovo
society.’ Ivan, a 24 year old graduate from the University of Mitrovicë/Mitrovica argued
that ‘youth who have a university degree would not look for jobs in any Kosovan
institution because the salaries are very low,’ compared to what the Serbian government
offers. According to a recent study on local reforms in Kosovo, public employees in the
Serb parallel system receive relatively high salaries: the gross monthly income of €892
is much above the typical Serbian salaries of €508.109 When asked if they would want to
go work in Serbia, the participants replied that the same situation would await them
there.

108
Albanian youth (p = 0.001), Serb (p = 0.01), other minorities (p = 0.011).
109
Most of the public employees are financed by three agencies of the Serbian government: Ministry of Education, the Health
Insurance Fund and the Ministry of Kosovo and Metohija. György Hajnal and Gábor Péteri, Local reform in Kosovo: final report/
Forum 2015 (ed.) Prishtinë/Priština, Forum 2015, 2010, pp.77-78.

36 www.iksweb.org

A statistically significant relationship also existed between geographic region and
preoccupation with unemployment. On average youth in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica,
Gjakovë/Đakovica and Gjilan/Gnjilane tended to be slightly less preoccupied with
unemployment than youth in Prishtinë/Priština.110 For example, in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica
only 23.9 percent stated they were ‘very preoccupied’ with unemployment compared to
67.3 percent of respondents in Prishtinë/Priština. This was surprising as Mitrovicë/
Mitrovica had the highest rate of youth unemployment in the country. The data may
illustrate young people’s acquiescence to being jobless in Mitrovicë/Mitrovica.111

Acknowledging the pervasiveness of unemployment, some youth have found ways to
adapt. For example, Agon, a 17-year-old student at Hajdar Dushi Gymnasium in
Gjakovë/Đakovica, planned to study physiotherapy:

There are not a lot of physiotherapists in Gjakovë/Đakovica and they will be
needed in the future. It is a profession that provides a better financial situation
even though it takes longer to finish the studies. I am more interested in knowing
where I am going to work; it is not that I really want this profession, but I know
that it offers a better future. And if I work hard I can gain a reputation.112

Whether one’s preferred profession will pay the bills is a question youth everywhere
face. However, due to the limited and underdeveloped labour market, such choices have
been much more constrained for Kosovo’s youth. Many have forfeited their dreams at
an early age for what they perceive to be better future prospects. For example, 22-year-
old Rona was studying architecture at the University of Prishtinë/Priština, but she was
having second thoughts: ‘I am thinking of registering at a private college or university
[to] study banking and finance as I think that will help me find a job in the future. I love
architecture but I do not see a good future as an architect.’113

Without reliable information on labour market demands, students chose occupations
based on perceptions rather than market needs. Insufficient communication between
educational institutions and businesses has made it difficult for students to make
informed choices regarding their studies; they have lacked information about
businesses’ needs. Despite young peoples’ common perception that a tertiary education
degree would offer the best chances of employment, employers actually prefer
vocational education mixed with work experience. In the USAID survey, 69.7 percent
of employers stated that they preferred vocational education for manual jobs and still
45.4 percent preferred vocational education for professional positions. This shows a
clear mismatch between the perceptions of students and the preferences of employers
for the educational background of applicants.

On the other hand, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has found that poor
evaluation frameworks for qualifications have meant that employers use university

110
(p ≤ 0.01).
111
Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, Labour and Employment 2007, p. 12.
112
IKS Focus Group with students from the gymnasium and professional schools in Gjakovë/Đakovica, 29 April, 2010.
113
IKS interview with Rona Binakaj, student, Prishtinë/Priština, 5 April, 2010.

www.iksweb.org 37

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