Budget disapproval puts businesses in trouble

Kosovo entered 2020 without approved budget due to lack of formation of the new government, following the 6 October parliamentary elections, from which the process so far Kosovo's Assembly is only dedicated.

Representatives of businesses in Kosovo call not to create delays in the 2020 budget approval, as businesses are the ones that, according to them, are hurting the most.

The chairman of the Kosovo Economic Ode, Berat Rukiqi, tells Radio Free Europe that the projects planned by businesses and some already-left half are being damaged due to this year's lack of budget approval.

The “The applications are largely negative, not only because of budget disapproval, since all delays in institution creation are very disturbing for the climate of doing business in the country”, Rukiqi says.

Muharrem Shahini, spokesman at the Ministry of Finance, told Radio Free Europe that the 2020 fiscal budget continues to be implemented for two months (January, February) based on the Law on Public Finance Management and responsibilities.

In that case, according to him, in case of the 2020 budget failure of the Law, only the assembly by a decision could authorise the duration (resistance) of the Law on Last Year's Budget Breaks, which belongs last year in1/12 for this fiscal year.

“If length defined by law for the first two months or according to a three-month coalition decision expires and the new Law on Budget Divisions is not married, then no budgetary organisation or other public authority can authorize any expense or payment until the new Law on Budgetary secession is adopted. There are no public debt write-offs here, says Sahin.

Last year's budgetary division law, in no case, according to Kosovo Government officials, cannot continue to be implemented for longer than three months of next year's fiscal year. The fiscal year means the January 1st period of a year scheduled until December 31st of the same year.

Business damage from budget failure also highlights Kosovo government officials.

“The failure to adopt the budget damages businesses as it concerns the flow of money, are different projects in schools that cannot be realised, but above all are Kosovo citizens who are damaged by this”, says Muharrem Shahini, spokesman at the Ministry of Finance.

Agnes Haxhiu, Kosovo's Assembly work monitor from the Kosovo Democratic Institute (KDI), told Radio Free Europe that the 2020 budget failure is damaging citizens.

“All capital projects that have been previously developed cannot begin without a new law. If we come to the situation when even by the end of March we don't have a new law on budgetary division this year, then it means that no budget organisation can cost and means that public institutions cannot perform any function, since there is no budget, and those most damaged in this case are Kosovo citizens”, Haxhiu says.

Haxhiu adds that after the first two months of this year, in the absence of a decision by the assembly for an extension for another month, it would later make any payment and spending by any budgetary organisation illegal.

The incumbent government has only approved the medium-term cost framework, the document on which the annual budget for 2020 would have to be drafted.

Kosovo's 2020 budget, according to the medium-term framework, is projected to be around 2.4 billion euros, or 1m euros more than the 2019 budget.