Prishtina, 01.11.2017 – We need to focus on foreign investments in production capacities, because they have a direct impact on unemployment and decrease imports and increase exports, said the Minister of Economic Development Valdrin Lluka in a round-table on “Issues hindering Kosovo development” organized by Forum 2015.

Head of MED said that half of the foreign investments in Kosovo, around 300 million euro, are in real estate and construction, which does not provide for sustainable employment, while only around 10 percent are invested in production, and this needs to change, therefore we should focus on further investments in production.

“In Kosovo, most of the foreign companies have come through government projects, such as the construction of highways. These companies do not have a positive impact on the economy. To me, positive effects are brought by investments that result in production and transfer of knowledge to us,” Lluka said.

Further, the Minister said that foreign companies will bring to the country other positive effects, such as knowledge transfer, and this is important considering that our educational programs are not in harmony with labour market requirements.

Alban Hashani, presenting the report on economy and healthcare, said that although Kosovo’s economy has enjoyed a systematic growth in the recent years, this has not resulted in sustainable development, which is based on private engagement and investments.

Luan Shllaku, from Forum 2015, said that they have chosen to speak on economy, education and healthcare in this round-table, as very important and vital sectors that are left aside, and whenever the state does not provide due care for these sectors – they find an alternative way to develop.

Besa Shahini presented her report on education in Kosovo. She said that the sector is in a deep crisis. According to her, there are three main factors for the sector’s non development: insufficient budgets, lack of planning and historic factors.