Change of the Law on Economic Zones Dispossess Easy for Business

He says this law has had no effect and no progress in economic areas.

“The government has started with changing the Law on Economic Zones, with the reasonableness that the current law does not provide legal clarity in terms of competencies and there is non-recognition, which is absurd because since 2009 there is a law, even though it has been completely changed in 2013, but the primary legal basis has not changed what it means since that year, and so far we have had laws and practice creating free economic zones and where institutions have not been clear what procedures are asking for such law. And it is not surprising that this law has hardly had an effect as far as the goals were promoted by law such as attracting investments, increasing employment, economic development”, Demi said.

Demi points out that according to the number of economic zones and businesses located there, it should be the number of larger businesses, and the establishment of these different nature businesses has produced many obstacles later.

“On the basis of the Ministry of Commerce are about 10 economic areas, which are managed by this ministry and there is no information about how many businesses are in all these areas, but in those areas that are only the public are 76 businesses located in different economic areas, but the number has to be greater because the ministry of trade for some of them has not published any data, and there are some over 420 hectares of space in all municipalities of Kosovo, what has been identified with the bill and with a commercial ministry concept for the reasons for changing economic law is that there are no longer areas of economic activity, and that's got different business barriers, but that's got no business change, so it's got no business change.

Economic areas are very necessary, and he says, because business facilities are created but that as a result of procrastinating many of the businesses are away from those areas.

Economic “Zons are needed because, as originally conceived by law, even as all countries in the region, particularly Macedonia, have done. With economic zones, some conveniences are created to businesses among them: the most favourable rent and other conditions that are water supply, current, infrastructure. What has happened in the past years is that the construction of economic zones has lasted for years, there are many cases where businesses, even though they have signed contracts to establish economic areas, have been removed because the work has stalled, even though there are three economic areas built on government decisions, and there is still no clarity and concrete action to create tax facilities for these businesses”, Demi said.

He estimates that with the new law and its changes there will be no favour or tax releases for those businesses, and this removes the initiative that has existed so far.

The new <x0 law or changes promoted by the government in December last year completely remove this free economic zone, which means from now on whether the new law is passed in the Assembly, nor by law will there be benefits or tax releases for those businesses that are located in the economic area, and this also removes that initiative that has existed so far, because there are many businesses why they are stabilised in different parts of Kosovo, and they don't need to be placed in economic areas if they don't have an additional benefit to move them to areas. On the other hand, economic areas have not been successful in attracting foreign direct investment, there are no cases when a business has come to Kosovo to invest because it is behind good economic favours or conditions”, he said.

Demi said most economic areas are located in parts of municipalities where parties are willing to win more votes.

And we in our report that we published several days ago said that even the changes to the government's economic areas in December are not enough initiatives and there's nothing to change as far as the motivation of businesses is going to be placed in these economic areas, and that there's a generation of jobs and economic development, and there needs to be a radical change of law on economic areas, the law is necessary, but it needs to create other favors, and it's not going to leave customs facilities because it creates other problems for those businesses to establish in these economic areas. And most economic areas are located in those parts of municipalities where parties have wanted to win more votes or have had direct benefits from expropriations”.

On the other hand, economics connoisseur Mustafe Kadriy in an interview for Online Economy, says that even though Kosovo claims to be like developed states, it should be aware that the local market cannot absorb these economic areas.

The “This is clear that Kosovo claims to be in the market economy and to be part of the states which function this way, so Kosovo is inevitably functioning through economic zones. But we need to have an explanation for the opinion, that the economic areas given that Kosovo is a small country cannot absorb this market, so these only economic role that can affect growth economic growth is through distribution, in the countries of the region and beyond, creating them as points of production or reference for trade that function throughout the world, in this direction is good, but we need to be sure that the local market cannot absorb this power of the economic areas that are thus claimed in many cities of Kosovo that is something good, but that Kosovo cannot absorb this whole of the one, Kaj said.

He also says that little has been done in this direction, but certainly without denying the fact that Kosovo as a small state, and the cost required by the Economic Areas makes the process difficult, and the impact of changing governments completes all this difficulty in the process.

The “is natural that has been done a little, but we have to have one thing that Kosovo has been working for a few years as a country of its own right, and it's natural because it can be created and given legal access to economic areas, but it has to live by us economics that require the cost of simply looking at urbanism, technical infrastructure that costs, but I know that there are many areas that are being prepared but we need to know that Kosovo has not been extended to a full mandate, and that they have had a problem in governance, and now we expect the government to re-state these economic areas, he says.

Special emphasis on the focus of political parties and the interests they have in these economic areas, and according to him, the main essence should be on economic rather than personal interest.

The “should be clear not to become economic areas for political interests or different parties, but the economic interest and development of local businesses and their support, and from now on I urge the incoming government to have the goal to halt the influx of Kosovo youth that have the interest of getting out of the country and perhaps these economic areas could affect ta”, Kadrijaj stressed.

“However, policymaking is done through political parties and pluralism have and interests differing leaders and political parties in a kind of way in different backgrounds, but wherever those economic areas are located still have their economic interest that they may have an interest in themselves, but the main one is economic interest”, he concluded.