Second Day of
11/03/2015The conference “Austrian-Kosovar Days 2015,” moderated by Gunther Fehlinger, President of the Austrian-Kosovar Association, continued with debates on the topic “Together in Europe — 20 Years of Austria in EU and Austria-Kosovo Relations During This Period.”
A number of Kosovar and Austrian panelists spoke about the experiences and results of the Kosovo-Austria cooperation. Gunther Fehliger, President of the Austrian-Kosovar Association, spoke about the new government of Kosovo and the e-governance, including the new approach of the citizens will have which will lead to an increase in the citizens’ trust in the Kosovo Government.
Eva Michlits: Asylum-Seeking, Not a Means for Economic Development
Austrian Council to Kosovo Eva Michlits said among others that migration is not a way for developing Kosovo, nor it helps cooperation between Kosovo and Austria. “It is a pleasure to speak to you about the stability and the common future of the southeast Europe. Austria and Kosovo are very close allies and friends. Austria has done a lot in supporting Kosovo after the war, in its bid for independence, and n the European integration processes,” she said.
She also commented on the new wave of the Kosovar illegal asylum seekers in Austria and other European Union countries which according to her was an unexpected and surprising development. “Asylum-seeking is not a means for economic development. We know that much more needs to be done here in Kosovo but this approach gives a bad image to Kosovo, therefore, we need to work together to develop Kosovo and not to look at the possibility of exercising the right of asylum in Austria. Austria has started a huge campaign which has produced results,” she said.
Michlits noted that better cooperation between Kosovo and Austria could help avoiding this occurrence. “Austria has done a lot to support Kosovo through technical assistance and in the field of culture, and we continue to support a European future for Kosovo. We need to be more ambitious and to focus on what has been achieved and what can be achieved in the future. Vienna has facilitated the dialogue in the Southeastern Europe through projects and at this stage we are implementing software on good governance. We have also developed a framework of development and cooperation in education and with the small and medium sized enterprises. We have helped Kosovo to succeed in the social and economic fields as well,” said among others Austrian Consul to Kosovo Eva Michlits.
Busek: You Need Clearer Vision To Develop And To Become Best
Dr. Erhard Busek, President of the Institute for the Region of Danube and Central Europe and former Education Minister of Austria, made a comprehensive presentation of the history of relations between Austria and Albania, Kosovo, and the southeast European region, from the last century and up to now. He listed the challenges that Austria went through during important periods of history as well as the approach that many generations of the citizens held in coping with the challenges of the time and developing the state.
Commenting on 20-years of Austria in the European Union, Busek said it was a big achievement which could serve as model to other countries, in this case Kosovo as well. He spoke about the presence of the Raiffeisen Bank and powerful Austrian companies in Kosovo and in the region, noting that Austria’s economic might was also based on the fact that enterprises from his state extended businesses outside the country.
Mr. Busek noted that the Southeastern Europe should be part of the European Union. “I have not heard anyone saying that this should not be the case. With all due respect for your country, Bosnia and Herzegovina is in a worst position than Kosovo. However, you should not use this and say that you are better off than Bosnia. You need to have a clearer vision in order to develop and become the best. This is a big challenge,” Busek said among others.
Ramadan Ilazi, Deputy Minister of European Integrations, also addressed the conference. Speaking on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Kosovo, he thanked Busek for his engagement on Kosovo. He also spoke about the work of the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo in meeting the criteria for the country’s integration into the Euro-Atlantic institutions and especially the government’s commitment in meeting all the required criteria.
Mr. Ilazi also listed a number of challenges the country faces, including the negative occurrences that the state and the society in general are going through, huge unemployment, and illegal migration, which as he said, need to be solved through cooperation with the international institutions.
Christian Rupp, coordinator of the Austrian Government for the e-governance, spoke about the experiences of the e-governance in Albania and Macedonia. “We have spoken about the importance of this kind of governance, which offers opportunities to improve transparency and trust, as it was the case in many other countries, and this also generates new jobs. This can be a huge opportunity, especially for this institute because this can serve as a good model in the sense of how can you work with multimedia which is a perspective for our future,” said among others Mr. Rupp.
“We in the UBT would have not been able to exist without this concept of cooperation between Austria and Kosovo. Austria was the only country that opened its doors to help us. I remember since the beginning the feeling in favor a partnership to helps us and the huge funds that were invested to such an end. In Germany they said Kosovo is a small country, and so did hey in Britain. But in the case of Austria, there were institutions and experts who helped us,” said UBT Rector Dr. Edmond Hajrizi, who commented on the Kosovo-Austria relations, more specifically the cooperation of the university he leads with the Austrian institutions and experts from different fields whose experiences were brought to Kosovo.
Bajrami: We Will Create Better Conditions for the Local Businesses, Incentives for Foreign Investors
Mrs. Hykmete Bajrami, Minister of Trade and Industry in the Kosovo Government, also addressed the conference. She presented data on the cooperation between Kosovo and Austria as well as the efforts of the Kosovo institutions to deepen this cooperation and to boost the country’s development in general.
Mrs. Bajrami noted that the government was working in the direction of creating new jobs and perspectives for the citizens. In this context, she said the government was also working for ensuring a visa-free movement for the Kosovo citizens. She noted that the Kosovo economy depends mainly on the import taxes and remittances, while the government was seeking to change this situation. According to her, the policies would change in order to help the production sector and there will be support for the private business.
Minister Bajrami also spoke in favor of furthering the cooperation with the Austrian businesses. “The Kosovo Government is working to create better conditions for the businesses in Kosovo. We have the support from donors, including those from Austria. Yesterday I returned from Austria where the Kosovo-Austria Committee organized a fair at which over 50 Austrian businesses were presented. Some of them have experience in the region and in Kosovo. We are proud of their successes here and the success of the Kosovar businesses in Austria, but I am not happy with the investments that have been made,” Minister Bajrami said.
“The Kosovo Government is aware of the obstacles and difficulties, but we are doing our best to overcome this situation. We are combating corruption and we are trying to make sure that the businesses can have an environment of working and being able to develop. We want to create a system that does not presuppose who is the prime minister, a minister, a director, or who holds whichever position. We are among the top reformers according to the World Bank. The private sector is strengthening and the legal framework is being established. We have started with the e-registration in the Agency of Business Registration and this can be done online now. We will soon start with the program of e-procurement, which will avoid corruption and in this respect it is very important to include all institutions,” Minister Hykmete Bajrami said.
Wright: There Are 450 Hotels in Kosovo But Little Tourism
Robert Wright, Executive Director of the Raiffeisen Bank in Kosovo, said a considerable number of Austrian businesses are operating in Kosovo. “As many as 109 Austrian companies operate in Kosovo. The situation is not the best one but there is room for improvement. What is the reason for someone to invest here? I do not believe saying you have the youth is the best answer which will make the foreigners invest here. We give loans but returning it is quite difficult. We have 450 hotels in Kosovo but how much tourism do we have here? Not at all, I can say. We have 1,000 petrol stations, while you can drive from Prishtina to Tirana without having to refill your car at all,” he said.
Vjosa Huruglica from the Austrian Chamber of Businesses noted that businessmen from Austria were not very satisfied with the situation in Kosovo, although Austria is among the main investors in Kosovo. “Mr. Wright mentioned 109 Austrian businesses in Kosovo, which I consider to be quite a big figure and businesses from Austria make the biggest figure in Kosovo,” she said.
Mrs. Huruglica spoke about a poll carried out with the Austrian businesses. According to her, 50% of the respondents have said the situation in Kosovo is not good, while around 25% were optimistic. Some 31% said that the situation with their businesses had improved somewhat in the three first months of 2015.
“The Austrian businesses are planning to invest more in Kosovo and to increase the number of employees,” said Mrs. Huruglica, noting that the Austrian Chamber of Businesses in Kosovo and Austrian businessmen were expecting from the new government to protect the investments, to see an end to corruption and to have political security.
Dr. Erhard Busek asked Minister Hykmete Bajrami to do more in attracting partners, to reach agreements, and create a genuine market. “The exceptionally big number of unemployed people requires fundamental ideas, and the solution is in the education and economy. Kosovo is not part of the economic strategic initiatives of the region, but the thing I see more disturbing is the lack of cooperation with the neighbor countries, every country working for itself. The most negative thing is that there are funds but there are no projects. You need to specify what you need. If you do not have trained people then the Infrastructure projects serve nothing,” said Busek.
During the afternoon session of the conference, the discussions focused on the topic “E-governance and cooperation between Austria and Kosovo.” At the margins of the conference, representatives of the Kosovar and Austrian businesses discussed the cooperation between them. Many representatives of the businesses also followed the conference and were able to be acquainted closely with the existing cooperation but also with prospects for cooperation in the future. Representatives of the businesses from both countries discussed a number of issues of interest, and the two-day conference was a very good experience for them.