U n NICEF: By 2030, Kosovo will have fewer children in schools

UNICEF's office in Kosovo and CSR Kosovo Network have held a roundtable discussion on identifying potential areas for co-operation between U NICEF and individual private sector organisations for realising children's and youth rights in Kosovo.

The chief of the UNICEF Office, Brandao Co, said all together could influence the improved lives of children and women in Kosovo. He added that W NICEF will continue to provide support with the aim of empowering young people, and at the same time urged businesses to help young people.

Co: Kosovo has new populations, exploit this option “As you know, Kosovo has the youngest population in Europe, but this will not continue to be the same forever. If we look at the population development dynamic, we see that other countries now offer great opportunities. But they too, are soon achieving this population growth dynamic, so it is the right time for Kosovo to use what I said. This possibility, this window won't last long and you're the one who has a very important role as an engine of economic development, and it's up to you to make this” successful, Co said.

Arian Zeka, deputy chairman of the CSR Network Board, has called on private businesses to increase the improvement of business practices, which, according to him, can affect children.

He also invited other businesses to become part of the CSR network and jointly co-ordinate such activities.

Zeka: Businesses will understand the importance of social responsibility “I see this worker actually as a good initiative to implement that memorandum, which would enable more and more businesses to understand the importance of corporate social responsibility, the responsibility of the CSR, which we briefly refer to in Kosovo. I know that many who are inside this room already do extremely much in terms of advancing children's rights in Kosovo and other social influences”, Zeka said.

While James Mugayu, deputy chairman of the UNICEF Office in Kosovo, made a presentation about Kosovo's demographic divide. He said Kosovo stands best in this respect because it has the newest population in Europe.

Mugayu: We're using the Global Initiative for the first time in Kosovo “NICEF in Kosovo we are using for the first time a global initiative that we have called “UNICEF Global Initiative” and Kosovo is one of the three global offices that is testing this for the first time. There's a strategy of change being implemented, and this partnership with CSR is part of that strategy, aiming to get the best out of business, to use the power of business and market for the sake of children, teenagers, young people”, Mugayu said.

Mugayu indicated that, according to an analysis of U NICEF, by 2030, Kosovo will have fewer children in elementary schools and more young people in higher education, while in 2050, according to their analysis, Kosovo will have a large share of the pension population. He urged businesses to seize this opportunity when Kosovo has a younger population and make investments.