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Kosovo under UNSCR 1244 - Financial Assistance

 

 

The European Union's political and financial commitment to Kosovo is two-fold. The EU provides assistance to meet Kosovo's institution-building needs and socio-economic development, and it also provides a substantial contribution to the international presence in Kosovo.

Responding to the Council's request to use community instruments to promote Kosovo's economic and political development, the Commission organised a donors' conference in Brussels on 11 July 2008. The Kosovo authorities presented a Mid-Term Expenditure Framework 2009-11, which estimated a funding gap of some €1.1 billion for Kosovo's socio-economic development over the coming three years. A total of €1.2 billion was pledged by the international community, including some €100 million for a stabilisation fund for contingent liabilities. The EC pledged €508 million, consolidating Instrument for pre-accession assistance (IPA) and Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) allocations to be disbursed during this period. The EU Member States pledged a further €286 million from their bilateral assistance budgets.

In 2007, Kosovo received €62 million of financial aid under IPA. The allocation for 2008 totals €184.7 million. The programme covers 23 projects covering three major categories: political criteria, economic criteria, and European standards. The projects have been prepared in close cooperation with the authorities and beneficiaries in Kosovo and in close consultation with other donors.

Under political criteria, IPA assistance totals €57 million. This includes support in the areas of strengthening the rule of law inter alia by renovating and constructing of central municipal, district and Supreme Court buildings and prosecutorial offices, to complement EULEX initiatives (€38 million), preserving cultural heritage through the rehabilitation of some important monuments and the education of Kosovo youngsters on the importance of a common patrimony (€2.5 million), support to the Kosovo Media Institute and civil society organisations active in the fields of environment, equal opportunities and social services for vulnerable groups (€2.5 million). Civil society is also supported by other financial means such as the European Initiative for Democratisation and Human Rights. Assistance will also be provided to promote the sustainable return and reintegration of refugees and displaced people (€4 million).

IPA assistance within the framework of economic criteria amounts to over €104 million and includes the improvement of social and economic infrastructure in municipalities to improve notably schools and youth facilities, health services and roads to enhance service delivery to the population (€39 million), support to energy efficiency and transmission (€9.5 million), support to education and employment (€20 million) including through the contribution to a multi-donor trust fund, and improving the environment with specific focus on water treatment and waste management to improve public health (€18 million).

The category of European standards (€10.02 million) includes, for instance, the support to the development of a sector wide approach in health, civil aviation initiatives to safeguard safety and security of air operations and customs and taxation. Furthermore, Kosovo benefits from a specific assistance from the IPA multi-beneficiary programme in sectors such as higher education through the TEMPUS and Erasmus Mundus programmes and nuclear safety.

Further examples of EU-assisted projects can be found on the selected projects webpage

Annual programmes of the Instrument for Pre-accession are designed in accordance with the strategic Multi-Annual Programming Documents ( MIPDs). They are adopted by the Commission following consultation with the beneficiaries and a wide range of stakeholders. In the case of Kosovo, they are implemented by centralised management.

In the past, the EU has provided support to Kosovo under a variety of financial instruments, including Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation (CARDS), macro-financial support and humanitarian aid.

 

Browse through IPA Programmes per component

Last update: 09/02/2012 | Top