Donations for employment

"Multi-Donor Trust Fund, which was established two years ago in the World Bank, is finally free. With 60 million euros collected from donors in this fund, in Kosovo for the following 3 years will be employed 12 thousand people.

To use this money, the Government of Kosovo split eight million euros to support sustainable employment project. This action made the Government on Thursday, by giving 1.5 million euros to Ministry of Commerce, and about 2.3 million to Ministry of Labor and about 4 million to Ministry of Education.

Deputy minister of Economy and Finance, Bedri Hamza, explained that for the first year the project has been funded from our budget, meanwhile the World Bank will allocate annually 20 million euros.

"There was a requirement of the World Bank to give 60 million euros for three years, and the Government to participate with a fund of eight million euros in 2010, has claimed Hamza.

Strategic Document for Sustainable Employment is expected to take effect in 2010 and last until 2012.

Drafters of this project, the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, during this period aimed to raise the capacities of public services in Kosovo, implementation of programs to increase safety and expand the active programs in labor market.

The World Bank has requested to develop a strategic document, which will mark the areas of policy where the money will go.

The fund "Multi-Donor Trust Fund, of World Bank, already have pledged to help nine donor countries. This fund enables donors to assist Kosovo in advancing the reform through budget support.

World Bank officials have announced that each transfer will occur after the Government implements several reforms designed to improve employment conditions for sustainable and transparent management of public finances.

The European Commission is the first that is attached to the Kosovo budget support program established by the World Bank, together with the UK, Sweden, Finland, Czech Republic, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, Italy and Switzerland.

However, donors are not required to bring money through World Bank fund. They can choose to directly give them the Government, or to directly manage their projects.

The unemployment rate in Kosovo, according to statistics published by international and local institutions, is alarming and according to this statistics currently has reached over 40 percent. In the employment offices in Kosovo were registered as unemployed for more than 300 thousand people, while it is estimated that this market each year increased from 35 thousand jobseekers, on the amount of 60 per cent of whom are unskilled.

Source:gazetaexpress.com/ 05.02.2010