Kosovo*: EIB Global provides €600 000 grant to strengthen education system

• EIB Global will help identify needs for improvement in Kosovo’s higher education.
• The technical assistance is the first step in the Bank’s wider activities to strengthen the Kosovo education sector.
• Since 2020, EIB Global has invested €70 million in Kosovo’s small businesses and environmental sector.

EIB Global, the arm of the EIB devoted to activities outside the European Union, is providing the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation of Kosovo with a €600 000 technical assistance grant. Taking stock of the situation in Kosovo’s higher education sector, the advisory support team will issue recommendations to improve the existing infrastructure and standards of public institutions of higher education. This assessment is the first step for the extension, renovation and rehabilitation of selected public universities, which is to result in the improvement of the quality and accessibility of higher education for people in Kosovo.

EIB Vice-President Lilyana Pavlova, responsible for the Bank’s activities in the Western Balkans, said: “Our development arm EIB Global has helped to step up technical support for new and sustainable projects in the region, in line with EU standards. The grant signed with our partners in Kosovo will help provide guidance to develop modern education processes and infrastructure for each institution involved in the project. In this way, it will contribute to overall economic growth through human empowerment and the development of skills that will better meet the demands of the job market.”

Hekuran Murati, Minister of Finance, Labour and Transfers of Kosovo, praised the good cooperation that Kosovo has with the EIB as one of the key development partners on the road to EU integration: “This agreement is very important to us. The higher education sector will benefit immensely from the expert recommendations, helping to prioritise much-needed future investments in higher education infrastructure.”

Arbërie Nagavci, Minister of Education, Science and Technology of Kosovo, said: “This agreement is a further testament to the commitment of EIB Global to support Kosovo, this time towards large-scale improvements in the education sector. The infrastructure and standards of higher education are two key pillars that determine the quality of education provided, and this grant is an excellent opportunity to enhance and advance our education system.”

In 2022, EIB Global provided two technical assistance grants to Kosovo amounting to €2.1 million. Since the start of the pandemic in 2020, the Bank has unlocked €70 million for Kosovo to support the faster recovery of small businesses and the construction of wastewater treatment plants. To date, the EIB has provided €170 million to the educational sector in the Western Balkans.