Experts demand that the Ministry of Integration not merge into foreign affairs

The winning parties stemming from the 6 October elections, which aim to form Kosovo's new government, have declared they will reduce the number of ministries to 12. According to them, there will be a union of several ministries, among other things, the merger of the European Integrity Ministry in Foreign Affairs.

Integration experts view this as wrong and warn it will be a failed process. According to the EPIK Institute, the Ministry of Integrations should melt into the prime minister's office, not the MPJ, since it has nothing in common with the European integration process, which as such is the process of internal reforms.

Last week, at the meeting of the Self-Determination and Democratic League of Kosovo work groups was discussed in the format of the new government and the number of ministries. They are aiming to be only 12 ministries, and therefore to make the fusion of some of them.

Lumir Abdixhiku of the LDK, after the working group meeting last week, said they talked about the fusion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Integrations and Diaspora, at the Ministry of European Affairs and Integrations.

“For the union of ministries, for example, we have done fusion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Integrations and Diaspores, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration”, has declared Abdixhiku after the meeting of the working groups Vetevendosje Movement and the Democratic League of Kosovo last week.

But that's not what integration experts are agreeing to.

The executive director of the Epic Institute, Demush Shasha, explains about Kosova Prees, the reasons why they value a decision that would unite the Ministry of Integration with that of Foreign Affairs.

According to him, integrations should join the prime minister's office, since the latter has been the country's official reformer.

Shasha: European integration issues are internal reforms

“Reforms in the integration agenda or integration process is the most important process our country faces, 93% of Kosovo's citizens are pro-EU membership, meaning such a huge political burden, such a large civic burden, cannot be attributed to a parallel ministerial dictatorship, but must be carried by the government carrier or prime minister. European integration issues are internal reforms, not external affairs, internal reforms dealing with reforms that take place in Prizren, Mitrovica, in Pristina, the prime minister, subsequently, as the bearer of responsibility he has delegated to the sovereign representative, must bear responsibility for implementing these” reforms, he says.

He further points out that when there are many institutions to coordinate, there must be a hierarchy.

Shasha: Homologist cannot give orders to the counterpart

The European integration process has a big share of responsibility and its role in co-ordination and therefore, when you have many institutions to coordinate, there must be a hierarchy, there must be someone who says that and is done in this form and that point. And within the government for nature there is only one person who does this, and he is the prime minister, not any minister who should give the order is counterpart, counterpart counterpart can't give orders”, he says.

He says the integration process for its nature is the process, which requires reform, commands and implementation of those in punctuality, and even reporting.

Shasha: With integration with the foreign ministry, responsibility leaves the prime minister

“If this idea goes forward, with the creation of the distance that will cause between the prime minister and the integration process will cause consequences in the entire integration process because integration process with the foreign ministry is joining this unjustly, it drops responsibility from Prime Minister”, he says.

Such a practice, the unification of foreign affairs integrations, has been applied by the government in Albania and Montenegro, which according to the director of the Epic Institute, has turned out to be a successful process.

According to him, the move, politicians have as a quick solution where integration and Europe have something in common with foreign affairs, which they think is so unstable so it will still come out of existence.