Roming and customs dominate traditional Kosovo meeting

The European Union has urged all Western Balkan countries to lift this fee as a form of relief for communications among citizens.

Roming's tariff implies telecommunication and service that citizens use in another country by a mobile operator center. These fees are mostly twice as high as those used for telecommunications within a state.

The Kosovo and Albanian governments will gather on Monday, November 26th at the joint meeting, held in Pec.

For the removal of Romang tariffs in June, Kosovo's Assembly had adopted a special resolution.

Telecommunications field experts and representatives of the business community stress that the agreement on the removal of Roma in telecommunications between Kosovo and Albania benefits citizens and businesses.

Agron Dida, an expert on telecommunication issues, tells Radio Free Europe that it is time for the governments of the two countries to take such action.

The classic phone system is about to go, that we expect there to be nothing at all, because of new technologies in the communications market. So this is a good step and a benefit to the operators who will show a caution to their consumers. So, allow free communications”, Dida said.

Representatives of the business community, meanwhile, stress that the joint meeting of both governments is being held at the right time.

Agim Sahin, chairman of the Kosovo Business Alliance, says the agreements expected to be signed Monday should be implemented rather than signed for media marketing.

Citing the importance and need for the removal of Romang tariffs, Sahin says representatives of the two governments should also discuss the possibility of removing the road tax on the Nation's Road that Albania's authorities have imposed.

Until we talk about the removal of the Romaing between our two countries, let's not forget that long ago Albania imposed the road tax, this tax that has been valued by all unnecessary and cargo”, Sahin tells Radio Free Europe.

Kosovo Deputy Prime Minister Fatmir Limaj, meanwhile, has said that several important agreements will be signed Monday, which will deepen more co-operation in various areas between Kosovo and Albania.

Limaj at the recent meeting of the Government of Kosovo has indicated that in addition to lifting Roma tariffs, the agreement on the deployment of the Kosovo Republic customs point at the Durres point will also be signed, the joint declaration for the establishment of Albania's bilateral economic chambers. Also, signing the protocol for carrying out joint customs control activities and other agreements in various sectors will take place.

“Whatever it is, on November 26th we will take important steps for some concrete agreements that will help deepen co-operation between our two countries”, Deputy Prime Minister Limaj has said.

Kosovo, Albania to sign customs unification on 26 November
The combined meeting of two governments to be held in Pec also has financial costs. For this meeting the Kosovo government has approved the amount of 128 thousand euros, which according to economy experts is considered very high.

Otherwise, this will be the fifth joint meeting of both governments. The first time they held a joint meeting in Prizren in 2014, while a year later, the second meeting has been held in Tirana. The third meeting in Pristina, while last year it was held in the town of Korca in Albania.

At the four joint meetings of governments of the two countries -- Kosovo and Albania -- held over the years -- co-operation agreements have been signed, aimed at joint strategic governance with a Euro-Atlantic vision.

But not rarely have economic experts been criticised at times that signed agreements have remained only on paper, not noticing in practice.