Context
Accession to the European Union (EU) is a declared objective of the Government of Kosovo. For its part, the EU has reiterated that Kosovo has a clear European perspective. In October 2013 EU negotiations were initiated for a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA). The negotiations continued until May 2014 and the agreement was initialled in July 2014.
In recent years, the Kosovar Government has developed resources to coordinate and implement reforms geared to EU integration. The key actor and project partner is the Ministry of European Integration (MEI), which was set up in 2010. The MEI is charged with coordinating, managing and monitoring the EU pre-accession process.
To manage the process of EU convergence the Government of Kosovo has not only set up a specific ministry but has also created departments for European integration and policy coordination in all sectoral ministries. These were formally established in 2013 but are not as yet adequately involved in the EU integration process. Offices were set up in all municipalities as contact centres for the EU integration process to ensure the desired participation at local level. The Kosovar parliament established an EU Committee in 2008.
However, in general the performance capacity and roles of the new entities have not yet evolved sufficiently to facilitate sustainable and long-term coordination and monitoring of the EU integration process.
Objective
The Ministry of European Integration is capable of steering the EU pre-accession process – in particular, implementation of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement – and implementing the necessary reforms. In doing so, it involves other key stakeholders such as other sectoral ministries, local community groups and the parliamentary EU Committee.
Approach
By providing advisory services on procedural and organisational issues, GIZ supports Kosovo in building up its own know-how with a view to managing the processes involved in EU pre-accession and implementing the necessary reforms. A key element entails strengthening the capacity of participating actors to cooperate and coordinate their activities. In addition, the project fosters the involvement of civil society groups, thereby reinforcing the participatory nature of the EU pre-accession process in Kosovo.
Results
Analyses have been conducted of the structural and institutional resources for EU convergence, the legal conditions for EU integration and the current status of the EU pre-accession process in Kosovo. These form the basis for intensive process consulting and organisational development. GIZ helped to develop and consolidate the central coordination structures and processes in Kosovo necessary for managing EU convergence and to provide further training for core actors in their tasks.
The Ministry of European Integration completed its internal reorganisation in late 2012, adapting its structures to the requirements of the EU pre-accession process. In March 2012, the President of Kosovo convened a national council and a working party on European integration. GIZ supported the ministry with setting up this council and coordinating activities of the working party. By involving representatives from the government, parliament, municipalities, the academic community, donor groups, civil society and the private sector, a broad national consensus was established regarding Kosovo’s goals for EU integration. In a participatory process, the actors involved devised a national strategy on EU pre-accession. In December 2013 the President of Kosovo presented this national strategy for European integration to the media and the general public.
The GIZ contribution has helped lay important foundations in core processes of the country’s EU harmonisation efforts. In order to support the convergence process between Kosovo’s legal system and EU legislation, for example, GIZ helped create the necessary structures and processes and trained trainers in the various ministries.
The project also helped to develop the necessary conditions and structures for visa liberalisation at both the political and technical level; these are now in operation.