Businesses in big trouble with non-combat competition

As a result of the many complaints of businesses in Kosovo and the major councils facing businesses, Kosovo's Afarism Oda has recorded and addressed 14 market-related problems that were presented today at the discusing table “non-playual competition on the market”.

OAK Executive Director Ismet Mulaj has said that among the biggest problems facing honest businesses, is tax evasion, non-paying taxes, keeping workers in black, public procurement, CEFTA, and counterfeit shares for consumer fraud. All of these, according to Mulayt, present non-combat competition at the market.

“I have listed almost 14 problems related to non-combat competition on the market or non-feral competition in the market. From what is a very big problem, it's tax evasion caused by various forms, due to no paying different taxes. Another challenge, or a major problem, is that it's related to business is not declaring employees. Today this challenge creates huge inequality in the market, where we have ongoing business complaints, where it says: I have all the employees registered, I pay taxes for them, I pay the state taxes for them, and the company that's close to all the workers keeps them in black, and that naturally makes them uneven in relation to regular businesses”, Mulaj stressed.

He has added that even non-Fistimism remains another challenge, where 40 per cent of Kosovo businesses are said to be still unregistered, including oilmen.

Mulaj, among other things, asked to treat local investors equally with foreign ones, and Kosovo should create an equal market for any business, because according to him, the country is not an isolated island.

Fatime Haziri, a member of the Kosovo Competition Commission Board, said that in order to ensure sustainable development in Kosovo's market economy, halting actions that limit, print and disrupt competition in the country, the Competition Law acts to ensure free and effective competition in the market.

Haziri said they are investigating thirteen different sectors operating on the Kosovo market and will soon come up with the final report.

We've been researching the market for monopolies, the telecommunications market, the energy market, the insurance market, the oil imports market, pharmaceutical products, the road and rail transport market and air. Also, the media market and cinematic productions, financial and banking markets”, Haziri stressed.

She has added that they are also investigating the fortune game market, the mining and minerals market, the fiscal equipment market, the water supply market, and the waste market.

Kosovo Customs Director Bahri Berisha stressed that there is corruption in private and public institutions, as well as inadequate fiscal policies, which make competition fair in the market, all of this probably according to him, because rule of law is not at the right level. He has added that Kosovo has not yet defined all borders, even with Kosovo's two neighbouring countries -- Montenegro and Serbia -- which on daily basis Dogana, border police and other institutions occupy illegal crossings of goods and false statements.

The rule of law is not at the level we want, we don't have a state culture, because we still see the state or institution as foreigners. We have a beautiful high unemployment that is one of the main contributors to non-formal economic and smuggling issues that connect together. Corruption present in private and public institutions, as well as inadequate fiscal policy, when we say this we see that fighting the informal economy is not only done by one institution or one mechanization, but first we must have sound fiscal policies that make the economy less formal at the country level, but also at regional level”, Berisha stressed.

Company owner “Meka”, Burim Piraj, said he is pleased that there is a co-ordination today on this table to improve the state of business. He said that as an industry, the biggest problem is to export their products to Switzerland and Macedonia because of various non-tariphorus barriers.

We, for the moment, have the biggest export problem from Kosovo, facing various non-tariforest barriers that are presented to us by CEFTA countries, but also by the European Union. The demand for experts has been added and we have only started exporting to Albania, we have made some money contracts for Switzerland, but even though Switzerland accepts animal-born products from Kosovo transit can't afford the European Union, and we can't export, we will only store products that are of non-living access to the Swiss market. What needs to isolate is non-tariforous barriers, which we are placed by neighbouring countries such as Macedonia that we have problems”, Piraj stressed.

While Shaban Muja, the producer of allimenium, who stressed that he is exporter and competitive in Western states, but in Kosovo he fails to compete for which he said he is unable by Kosovo authorities. Muja, added that there are 50 employees in the factory, but shows that if there were fair market in Kosovo, it would increase the number of employees by 200. He has added that with the wrong policies from Customs, the Competition Authority and the MTI are also forcing him to think about closing the factory in Kosovo.

I'm an exporter to Yemen, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Italy, Hungary, but in Kosovo I can't compete, it's impossible, thanks to Dogan, the Ministry of Commerce and the Authority of Competition, because they don't let us do business. Here I tell you straight, because it doesn't turn out to tell you any business openly. Two years I've been looking for a meeting with Customs, two years with the Ministry, no one has answered me”, Muja stressed.

Trade Department Director under the Ministry of Trade and Industry Symtrime Dervisolli said that without wanting to start negative for CEFTA, this has been a bad advance coming, when Kosovo authorities have not had much competence.

Dervisolli said there are various examples where currently some measures are in place, primarily towards the state of Serbia, have also been to Slovenia for various products.

She added that they've done research on the egg sector, the construction block, and it's working on this. According to her, the Department of Commerce addressed trade barriers not only in relation to other countries but also with barriers that businesses may have in relation to other local institutions that recently have an added number.

Safet Hoxha from the Public Procuration Regulatory Commission stressed that public institutions' approach to business must be changed to see a strategic partner in this country.

He said he is very aware of the position of heavy businesses on the market, of problems related to informality, fiscal invasion, as well as problems I have with public procurement.

However, in the sense of discipline, Hoxha said that they have tried to put in each step in these procedures for spending citizens' taxes on legal norms.

Valdet Djindovci, head of AUV, stressed that problems posed both in import and export of products, in co-operation with the MTI will try to give answers and be offered what is required and that is a legal and institutional obligation on the part of the Food and Veterina Agency.

Their concerns for the Kosovo market at this table have presented other business representatives, who sought to take action with relevant authorities