Kosovo’s youth is the most vital part of society, both in terms of its participation in society, as well as in its strategic potential in the overall development of the country. In this line of thought, it is necessary for this youth potential to be provided with conditions and opportunities in order for them to be an active part that contributes in all areas of development in the country. How much is this likely to occur, however, if young people are not part of the country’s budget priorities? The category of social protection is the category with the largest participation in the budget of the Republic of Kosovo. This category goes beyond economic development. In this regard, the rapid expansion of Kosovo budget expenditures, with a particular focus on different social schemes and wages, is becoming a burden of pressure on Kosovo’s budget.
As a result, particular attention in this discussion was paid to the fact that the issue of social schemes and wages has begun to take extraordinary proportions, where in the budget allocation for 2019, it is foreseen that 60 percent of it will be spent on public sector wages and social schemes. Thus, it is thought that only 40 percent of the budget will remain for investment and development of the country. Overall, during the discussion it was agreed that the budget charged by the social schemes and wages prevents the activism and intensive development of the youth in the country, so in this regard, potential modifications were mentioned in Kosovo’s budget, with a recommendation that this budget has a specific focus on the youth.
The panel consisted of: Feim Hoxha, Director of Youth Department, Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports (MCYS); Arbëresha Loxha, Group for Legal and Political Studies (GLPS), as well as Muhamet Vokrri, Lecturer, University of Prishtina (UP).
The salon was moderated by Gersi Gashi, Research Program Manager, Democracy for Development Institute (D4D), whereas the editorial will be written by Doruntina Rexhaj, Jurist.
Tuesday Salon, with a focus on the topic: “How much will a budget focused on wages and social schemes hinder youth’s development?” was held on 19th of February 2019, in the Municipality of Prishtina.