Kosovo-Albania economic nationalism, just rhetoric

Thus says the chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Tirana, Nikolin Jaka, adding that the approach of Albanian and Kosovo businesses to a national economic integration is extremely important because there are many tariff and non-tariff barriers.

Jaka is unhappy with the current economic trends between the two countries and says Albania-Kosovo economic co-operation is lacking.

He has said trade exchanges between Albania and Kosovo are extremely low -- one with three in favour of Albania, even though there is a slight rise in recent years.

There are very rhetorical and very few projects and works... Today we are in numbers one by three, but we if we remove the fuel figures is very few real economies coming from the Albanian market. The difference is not as sensitive as the exports coming from Kosovo to Albania. Categorically not co-operation. So we're not only unhappy, but we're in the first place we know how to evaluate criticism of ourselves, because we're at extremely low levels of the flow of commercial economies between our countries. But, we would like to make a non-recognition to our governments, so that we can take into account the demands and proposals that make the Albanian and Kosovo odours and integrate and increase the circulation between our two countries”, Jaka claims.

The chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Albania declares that national economic integration should be priority and then integration into the Western Balkan region should occur.

“I cited regional integration, setting national economic integration as agenda and lead words. So, for us to integrate into the Western Balkan region, it is the necessity of citizens, entrepreneurs and Kosovo governments to integrate economically as a nation. We have a destiny that we have a nation and two states and we have to make the most of this, without violating the rules or conventions signed so that the economy of our two countries is nationally integrated and we have to intensify the regional economy of the Western Balkans”, he says.

He has also mentioned the barriers facing Kosovo and Albania businesses on both sides of the border at a high cost.

There are barriers that weigh the cost of circulation and make possible the introduction of products of both our countries. The weights that we have analysed and often come out that for a circulation or a cargo coming from Kosovo to Albania or from Albania to Kosovo amount to about 7 to 8 percent of the cost of the product that flows into our countries. If we have a container that has about 20 thousand euros, this figure is burdened with another circulation, ranging from 2 to 3 percent related to the fee of up to 250 euros... Such figures are for scans, for certificates of sanitation that have not yet begun to apply with mutual recognition. Such figures are also found in the customs container park. These are figures that, with the will and will of our governments, can be removed and increased commercial circulation between our two countries”, Jaka declares.

Finally, it says that it is also a huge burden to build trust in consumers, whether around or around the border, to buy products from both countries.

According to him, these two countries should also have clear strategies for economic co-operation and joint investment in Albania-Kosovo, so that these joint investments increase the level of co-operation and trade circulation.

Otherwise, Kosovo exports goods to Albania worth about 40m euros within the year, while goods are imported from Albania by around 120m euros.