This Mid-Term Report has been drafted by the Office for Good Governance/Office of the Prime Minister (OGG OPM) for the implementation of the Strategy for the Advancement of the Rights of Roma and Ashkali Communities in the Republic of Kosovo for the years 2022– 2026 and the Action Plan for the years 2022–2024, and includes the implementation period for 2022–2024.
The Office for Good Governance/Office of the Prime Minister, according to its mandate, plays an important role in coordinating the implementation and monitoring of the Action Plan. The drafting of this report was supported by the project “Roma Integration III,” funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe.
For the first time, an annual report on the implementation of the Strategy for the Advancement of the Rights of Roma and Ashkali Communities 2022–2026 and the Action Plan 2022–2024 was drafted for the year 2022, followed by the same in 2023. This Mid-Term Report covers the implementation years of the Action Plan over three (3) years, namely 2022, 2023 and 2024. The Report presents the situation of the Roma and Ashkali communities in Kosovar society through the assessment of the implementation of the activities of the Action Plan for the Advancement of the Rights of Roma and Ashkali Communities 2022–2026 and the improvement of their educational, socio-economic, cultural and health situation.
On 20 July 2022, the Government of the Republic of Kosovo, in its 89th meeting, approved the Strategy for the Advancement of the Rights of Roma and Ashkali Communities in the Republic of Kosovo for the
years 2022–2026 and the Action Plan for the years 2022–2024.
The Strategy aims to effectively increase the provision of opportunity, equal access and participation in
inclusive quality education; increase equal access to sustainable employment and reduce poverty; improve health and increase equal access to quality health services; increase equal access to sustainable housing, essential services and public infrastructure; and prevent and combat discrimination, racism, hate speech, hate crimes, segregation, prejudice, stereotypes and bullying against the Roma and Ashkali communities. Among other objectives, the Strategy and the Action Plan aim to implement the commitments stemming from the Poznań Declaration, with the purpose of integrating Roma within the framework of the EU enlargement process.
The Strategy and the action plan are also drafted based on the EU Framework for Roma Integration, and
five areas of action are defined and addressed in the Strategy: education, employment, social welfare,
health, housing and discrimination. Monitoring the implementation of the Action Plan is a
key issue to ensure an overview of the situation of the Roma and Ashkali communities and their relationship with Kosovo institutions in the five defined areas. All governmental institutions, both central and local, in accordance with their responsibilities and legal mandate, are obligated to undertake the necessary measures for the implementation of the obligations defined in the Strategy for the advancement of the Rights of Roma and Ashkali Communities for the years 2022–2026, and consequently also of the Action Plan 2022–2024.
An important part of monitoring the implementation is also the monitoring of the implementation of the Local Action Plans (LAPs). The budget is one of the important aspects of the implementation
for the Advancement of the Rights of Roma and Ashkali Communities in the Republic of Kosovo for
the years 2022–2026 and the Action Plan for the years 2022–2024. By approving the Action Plan, Kosovo institutions have committed to allocating a budget based on the provisions of the Action Plan.
The Mid-Term Report on the implementation of the Strategy for the Advancement of the Rights of the Roma and Ashkali Communities 2022–2026 and the Action Plan 2022–2024, through the reporting of data from the competent institutions, reflects the situation and the manner in which the Strategy and the Action Plan have been implemented, and the extent to which their implementation has had an effect on advancing the rights of these communities in the years 2022, 2023 and 2024.
The purpose of this Report is also to highlight the activities that have been undertaken and continue to be undertaken toward achieving the objectives set out in the five areas of the Strategy for the advancement of the Rights of Roma and Ashkali Communities in the Republic of Kosovo for the years 2022–2026 and the Action Plan for the years 2022–2024: education, employment and social welfare, health, housing and combating discrimination. In addition, the aim of this Report, besides the evaluation made in the five sectors based on the objectives of the Action Plan, also relates to the identification of problems and challenges in the implementation of the activities included in the Action Plan.
The fulfillment of the purpose of this Report, as well as the issues identified in it and in previous reports, may serve as a guide for identifying key aspects related to the advancement of the rights of the Roma and Ashkali communities in the Republic of Kosovo. The purpose of this Report is also realized in light of
the commitments of the Poznań Declaration and aims to highlight the work of Kosovo institutions toward
fulfilling the commitments arising from the Poznań Declaration.
