As part of visits undertaken to municipalities of Kosovo, aiming to get better information on overall situation in the field of economy, President of the Republic of Kosovo, Mrs. Atifete Jahjaga, visited today the municipality of Podujeva, where she was received by the Mayor of this municipality, Mr. Agim Veliu.
President Jahjaga was accompanied by the Chairman of the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Safet Gërxhaliu, Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Arian Zeka, and Executive Director of the German Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Albert Matoshi.
Mayor Veliu informed them on economic developments in the municipality of Podujeva and problems which local government and businesses face in this municipality.
Following are the statements issued after the meeting:
President Jahjaga:
We just concluded an exceptionally good meeting with the Mayor, at which we discussed in detail the points of our main agenda, the economic issues.
We spoke about the level of economic development, actual projects and forthcoming projects of Podujeva municipality. We also discussed problems and difficulties with which mayor and the municipality are facing.
The aims of these visits is to, together with the three chambers which operate in Kosovo, Kosovo Chamber of Commerce, American Chamber of Commerce and German Chamber of Commerce, identify all those challenges and problems of, so to speak, our internal system, weather legal, administrative of bureaucratic in nature, and to, as soon as possible, find an institutional solution for them, as well as to have a better level of communication between central and local governments.
It is by now known that economic development is more functional and more sustainable only when we have a better climate of investments, especially for investments, but also for investments within Kosovo.
Agim Veliu: We informed Madam President with the actual situation related to economic development, advantages offered by the municipality of Podujeva, and also with the difficulties encountered during our day to day work. Of course, we expect a greater engagement of the central institutions, in order to ease different procedures for doing business, and to allow municipalities to establish relations with those who are interested to invest their capital in these municipalities. After all, it is our responsibility to offer conditions to all those wanting to invest in Kosovo’s municipalities. We are facing many problems which are related to property. Properties are under the authority of the Privatization Agency and Forestry Agency of Kosovo. Changes are necessary in the actual laws in order to ease the procedures for investors, especially for foreign investors, as they have neither the time nor the patience to deal with procedures for a long period of time, in order to invest their capital, which is our interest for them to do so.
Arian Zeka: Now it is clear, after all the visits we have taken so far in different municipalities and meetings we have held with respective Mayors, that problems are similar, and this in a manner eases our lobbying, or our avocation, in the forthcoming stages, when we shall endeavour to, jointly with municipalities and three business association which have been part of this initiative, move ahead with the changes of actual practices and elimination of barriers with which mayors and municipalities are facing, and which keeps their hands tied in further enrichment of the offers to foreign investors. I have also said it earlier, no fiscal reform and no change of any other type made by central government will not make sense and will not bring positive results in attraction of foreign investments, if municipalities, the local aspect of economic development, keep facing such bureaucratic problems.