Speeches Shim
Building on long-standing USAID-funded technical assistance, the Kosovo Assembly’s Department for Research, Library and Archives (DRLA) created and successfully trained a Budgetary and Financial Analysis Unit. As its first independent action, the DRLA’s Budgetary and Financial Analysis Unit independently produced and distributed to all members of Parliament (MPs) an analysis of the Government’s 2020 budget. The analysis included capital cost reviews, comparative budgetary analyses, and a public debt assessment.
As part of a worldwide effort to assist those most affected by COVID-19, the United States has donated 50 brand-new, state-of-the-art ventilators to Kosovo. U.S. Ambassador Philip S. Kosnett, joined by USAID Mission Director Lisa Magno, handed over these life-saving medical devices to Kosovo’s Minister of Health on August 25. The donation comes at a crucial time for Kosovo. Throughout the summer, Kosovo has been at the top of charts in Europe in regards to the highest number of new infections per capita, and in the world in regards to death per capita due to COVID-19.
In an effort to make the Kosovo courts more accessible to citizens, the Kosovo Judicial Council launched a tool on their website that allows Kosovo citizens to estimate the cost of court fees and criminal fines from the convenience of home. Support for this innovation was an interagency effort, with contributions through USAID’s Justice System Strengthening Program (JSSP), the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development (OPDAT), and the U.S. Department of State’s International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).
The Advanced Women Leadership Academy equipped female political and civil society activists with the key digital skills needed for effective political engagement and advocacy. Violence against women in politics, often taking the form of online bullying and harassment, has discouraged women from taking roles in public life. Over the course of eight weeks, the USAID-funded online academy, implemented by the National Democratic Institute, equipped the 20 participants with the tools needed to fight back.
The pandemic has added additional strains on an already weak business environment in Kosovo. Some businesses have risen to the challenge, innovating and adapting their production to better meet the current needs of the market. One such company is Cicili, a local producer of clothing for babies and children, which employed six interns as part of USAID’s New Opportunities for Economy in North.
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