Serbian businessmen complain about economic conditions in Kosovo, Government warns jobs

While the Kosovo government warns new jobs for members of the Serb community, investments in infrastructure and other forms of support, with the aim of strengthening them economically, some Serbian businessmen express scepticism in this regard.

Vitomir Jakimovic from Leposaviqi and Dusko Gudzic from Gracanica tell Radio Free Europe that what the Kosovo government offers to Serbs is not enough.

According to them, the precondition for economic empowerment is the free circulation of goods and people.

In the middle of last year, the Kosovo government made the decision to ban imports of goods from Serbia for, as it said, security reasons. That happened after three Kosovo police officers were arrested by Serb forces. Although the police were released from custody to defend themselves in freedom, the stop remained in effect.

Commenting on the issue, Kosovo Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi said such a move has been taken because “has the risk of including goods being introduced to Kosovo”.

Otherwise, “Economic Development for Serbs in Kosovo” was the theme of a round table, which was organised this week by the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue in Pristina.

What does the Kosovo government do for Serbs?

At this table, Bislimi said the Kosovo government offers support to small companies or entrepreneurs through employee employment, either through subsidies for monthly wages.

He said that in the four majority Serb municipalities in northern Kosovo, northern Mitrovica, Leposaviq, Zvecan and Zubin Potok -- the Kosovo government will support two thousand new jobs in the private sector.

Up to 70 percent of the salary, or about 350 euros, will be subsidised for six months. The responses we received from the north are very good. Some 2,000 new jobs are needed, according to forecasts. If there is a need, this measure can expand by 2,000 more. It can also be applied in other Serb majority municipalities”, Bislim said.

In addition to the four municipalities in the north, there are six other Serb majority municipalities south of the Iber River -- Gracanica, Shtrpca, Ranillug, Partesh, Klokoti and Novoberda.

Bislimin said convinced that “the reformation of the economy” will also contribute to the economic development of Serbs, in the registration of businesses, in the fight against smuggling and in the government's budgetary means for realising infrastructure projects, respectively.

What do businesspeople say?

Jaqimovic from Leposaviqi says the position of Serbian businessmen is very bad and that everything becomes “for survival”.

The Kosovo Government's subsidies, according to him, are not enough because they are limited to employing workers.

“The work of one or two workers is not enough for economic activities. It must be resolved in another way, for the merchandise to enter and forth normally”, says this multi-year-old businessman, alluding to the Kosovo Government's decision to ban imports of goods from Serbia.

I don't see anyone involved in solving these problems. The Kosovo government can help if it changes its decisions, allowing circulation of goods. The goods from Serbia cannot come”, says Jakimovic for Radio Free Europe.

According to him, there will be no economic development “until policy interferes with the work of businessmen”.

Gudzic, businessman from Gracanica municipality territory, believes the Kosovo government does not sincerely want to help in the economic development of Serbs. According to him, this community is provided with the minimum é “just what is needed”.

It [Kosovo government] can do much, but does not. Simply, she doesn't want to help us”, he says.

Gujeq deals with the production of liquids and jams, which mainly sell on the Kosovo market.

Speaking of Radio Free Europe, it shows that business started some seven years ago, thanks to nongovernmental international organisations.

He says he has never received assistance from the Kosovo government.

But, according to him, Serbian businessmen are not even heard in Serbia's government.

Rasp: We've seen the employment of minority communities

The Minister for Communities and Return to the Government of Kosovo, Nenad Rassic, said last year, for the first time, an economic development programme has been realised through which about threem euros have been invested in the economy of areas where Serbs live.

He also cited the strategy for protecting minority communities' rights, which was adopted by the Government of Kosovo at the end of 2023.

According to him, this strategy will start implementing this year, and the planned budget is around 32m euros.

In the 32m euros I mentioned, there is also the economic programme. One of the most important points of this strategy is proportional representation of non-Albanians in public administration”, Rassic said.

Under Kosovo's laws, minority communities should make up at least 10 per cent of employees in the public sector.

So far, according to Rashiqi, no one has been sincerely concerned with this matter”.

Civil sector: The state of Serbian businessmen is <x0 caotic”

Aleksandar Stojanovic, from the Centre for Development of Local Communities, said the Kosovo government has no communication with the Serb community, that it makes decisions without consultations and that Serbs feel uncertainty because of it.

I have to say that even international organisations have invested very little in Serbian environments. We now need a little more serious [Kosovo government] programmes that will open businesses in Serbian environments. We need to change the long-term approach”, he said.

Gordana Djoriq, from the Association of Women Afarist, estimated that the unstable political situation causes the Albanian majority community to boycott the products of Serbian businessmen.

“Find me a bigger market where you can find Serbian products. There are boycotts of Serbian products. Our people have problems selling goods”, she said.

Joriq said the situation is “caotic”, because the Kosovo government “has not created conditions for the Serb community to develop economically”.

According to her, it is necessary, first of all, to build confidence between Kosovo institutions and Kosovo Serbs.

The actions of the current government are terrible. It promotes [the community's] departure and does not strengthen economic development. For me, it is understandable that the Government makes decisions, which harm the Serbian economy and community”, Joriq said.

In this context, it cited the ban on importing goods from Serbia and preventing the use of the Serbian dinar with a Kosovo Central Bank regulation.

All of this creates fear in people, they don't know what to expect. It doesn't build confidence in people”, Joriq said.

Bislimi responded by saying the ban on import of goods from Serbia is in force, for security and not economic reasons.

“Exporting goods has also been misused for import of weapons. Therefore, the measures are taken for security reasons from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, not the Ministry of Economy”, he said.

Several months after the ban on importing goods from Serbia, armed groups of Serbs attacked Kosovo police in the village of Banjska, killing a policeman.

A few days later, Kosovo police seized a large arms arsenal.

Official Pristina accused Belgrade of attacking September 24th, but he denied any involvement. / REL