Prishtina, 19 September 2012 – The Minister of Economic Development, Besim Beqaj, received today a delegation of the German Parliament, headed by the social-democrat member Rolf Hempelman, with which he discussed on the most recent developments in the sphere of economy in general and energy in specific.

The German Member of Parliament, Hempelman, was informed by Minister Beqaj on the state of Kosovo’s economy, and projects under development, especially in the sphere of energy and mining which is deemed of special significance for the country’s development.

At this occasion, Beqaj presented the engagements of the Government, respectively of MED towards developing new energy generation capacities, development of renewable sources, increasing energy efficiency and undertaking measures to mitigate environmental impacts and attract foreign investments.

MED head underscored that sectors that may attract potential investments include the metal processing, wood processing, food processing and telecommunications sector.

The Minister said that the Government is committed to improve the physical infrastructure, hence 40 percent of the budget is planned to be invested in capital investments. He also said that reforms are undertaken with the aim of improving the Publicly-Owned Enterprises’ performance and improving the level of services provided.

Minister Beqaj reemphasized MED’s commitment to fulfill obligations deriving from EU legislation and the Energy Community Treaty, while expressing his highest appreciation for Germany’s assistance to Kosovo in the energy sector.

Noteworthy, Rolf Hempelman is a member of the German Parliament since 1994. He is a member of the Economy and Technology Committee, and the Environment, Natural Protection and Nuclear Safety Committee.