Prishtina, 03.29.2016 – Sustainable economic growth can only be achieved through quality education, professional human resources, rule of law, efficient management of public finance, market access and the availability of infrastructure, said Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Besa Zogaj-Gashi.

These comments were made by the Deputy Minister at the Kosovo’s Economic Perspective – Challenges and Opportunities” conference, organized by the Council for Development and Leadership, along with partnership and support of the British Embassy in Prishtina.

Attending this conference, alongside Deputy Minister Zogaj Gashi, were Deputy Minister of European Integration, Ramadan Ilazi; LGC Executive Director, Laura Kryeziu;  British Ambassador in Pristina, Ruairi O’Connell; Gazmend Abrashi – Entrepreneur and representative of the business community and civil society.

“Despite the fact that Kosovo’s economy recorded a modest GDP growth, this has not created enough jobs; the unemployment rate (35.3), the percentage of the population living in poverty is 29.9%, the negative trade balance (the ratio between exports and imports 12% and 46.5%), inadequate education of the labor force and other indicators point out that Kosovo is well behind the average of Southeast European countries and still faces many challenges in achieving the necessary dynamics for economic development” she said.

Underlining gender inclusion, Zogaj-Gashi said that according to the statistical data of the Statistics Agency of Kosovo for 2014, out of the unemployment rate in the country, the highest level is among women, at 41.6%, which is higher than the EU countries in the region.

According to her, in order to address these challenges, the Government of Kosovo has undertaken several measures and is focused on the implementation of specific recommendations: the launch of reforms in order to improve the business environment, SME development, for a sustainable and long-term development.

Deputy Minister Zogaj-Gashi highlighted the commitment of the MED for sustainable economic development through concrete initiatives, ranging from the fields of Energy, Energy Efficiency, Information Technology, Renewable’s, Mining and improving Corporate Governance.