Kosovo is a multi-ethnic country, with almost 2 million inhabitants, located in the heart of the Balkans, whose recent history has been marked by war and then independence. The community question has always been central since the country has several ethnic groups: the Albanians, the majority, the Serbs and other marginalized minorities including the Roma, the Ashkalis and the Egyptians. In this year of the twentieth anniversary of the NATO bombings and the end of the conflict between Kosovo and Serbia, the Reesah team decided to go there to meet local and international actors working on the (re )construction of this State. During this stay, the team met around thirty local and international actors.

 

Despite much progress since its independence in 2008, Kosovo still faces several challenges.

 

First of all, the country faces a real development problem since no policy is really thought out over the very long term or on the model of sustainable development. The country finds itself in a vicious circle: corruption due to nepotism prevents the development or enrichment of the State, which leads to the absence of a viable and sustainable public policy and therefore to a deterioration or stagnation of living conditions for everyone. (OSCE, Westminster Foundation for Democracy, Kosovo 2.0). Thus, education (Kosova Education Center, Roma Education Fund, Save the Children) is encountering budgetary difficulties as well as the integration of minorities and access to the most vulnerable. Finally, the environmental issue is rarely considered (Gaia).

 

In addition to this governance issue, there is a real challenge of identity construction. Indeed, the inhabitants of Kosovo refer to themselves by the name of the community to which they belong and are not called " kosovars ". Certain tensions between communities are still present and prevent the creation of a state that transcends religious and ethnic divisions. The communities live next to each other without mixing (UNHCR, Danish Refugees Council, Rrograek). Young people, having not experienced the war, are more likely to live together (Youth Initiative for Human Rights). The young actors of civil society that the Reesah team was able to meet have the will to overcome these divisions. Today's problem remains the attachment of older people to war heroes and the stories that have been told to them all their lives.

 

However, the hopes of young people come up against the obstacle of international recognition (UNMIK, Special Representative of the European Union). However, today, the question of the status of Kosovo is particularly sensitive and completely blocked. At UN level, Russia uses its veto in the Security Council. For its part, the European Union is trying to impose the normalization of relations with Kosovo on Serbia as a condition of entry (Ministry of European Integration). 

 

Today, the Kosovar state still does not exist for several reasons: community identity is stronger than national identity; the international organizations are still on the spot, leading to the mistrust of the local population or even the presence, in power, of the former heroes of the war. However, the various actors encountered work for a better functioning of this young State. 

 

*

 

Reesah would particularly like to thank the Solidarity and Development Fund for Student Initiatives of the University of Aix-Marseille as well as the Crous Aix-Marseille for their essential help in carrying out this project. It is thanks to their trust and support that the team was able to carry out its work.