Currently IKS team is working on the European Commission funded project, under European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR) grant titled “The Political Economies of Mitrovica and Gjakova:  Impacting Social and Political Stability.”
A decade after the war, the people of Kosovo have yet to return to a “normal” life. Nearly 2,000 people remain missing, and unemployment nears 44 percent, higher among women and Kosovo’s large youth population. Insufficient job opportunities are contributing to emigration, particularly away from the hard-hit rural economies and areas where the former giant socially-owned enterprises have yet to become operational.

         Among the worst affected by unemployment and migration is the Municipality of Gjakova, which once boasted the highest number of people employed in the entire former Yugoslavia - 27,500 employed in industry and services until the end of 1988. At present women heads of households struggle to feed their families and few have secured ownership rights to their properties. Approximately 65 kilometers northwest, the bridge over the Ibar River divides the Albanian majority in south from the Serbian majority in north in the municipality of Mitrovica. This city has become an international symbol of the ethnic divisions haunting Kosovo. Kosovo’s declaration of independence remains unrecognized in north, which still functions largely under political directions from Belgrade, and uses Serbian dinars as the currency of choice. Which legislation and authorities are responsible in north remains undecided to this day, property ownership battles remain unresolved as well.

         The main purpose of this project is to ensure democratic participation of diverse civil society actors in Kosovo’s social, economic, and political development toward a joint European future. Specifically inter-related project objectives include: a) Civil society involvement in democratic oversight of political-economic processes in Kosovo toward EU Accession enhanced; b) Policies toward political, economic, and social development in Kosovo strengthened in line with European standards; and 3) Consensus surrounding political, social, and economic policies furthered in the divided community of Mitrovica.