Kosovo
Kosovo adopted its first National Action Plan (NAP) in 2014 for the period 2013-2015. The NAP was developed by the Agency on Gender Equality in the Office of the Prime Minister in cooperation with the working group, which consisted of central governmental entities and civil society members, and with the support of UN Women and OHCHR. The NAP identifies its main objectives as the promotion and protection of women’s human rights as well as the recognition of the victims of the Kosovo War. Additionally, the NAP identifies three outcomes: increased participation of women in decision-making and peacekeeping and building processes; integrated gender perspectives in security affairs and increased women’s participation in the security structures; and improved access to protection, justice, rehabilitation, and reintegration for survivors of sexual violence, torture, and other forms of violence associated with conflict/war. Each outcome has a set of indicators, as well as a corresponding budget line for estimated costs, but the NAP does not specify how monitoring and evaluation will be carried out.
Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, although the international recognition of its sovereignty remains contentious. The most recent armed conflict in Kosovo’s history was the Kosovo War, which lasted from 1998 until 1999 and took place between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) and the Kosovo Liberation Army. Marking the end of a NATO intervention in Kosovo in 1999, the United Nations Security Council authorized the establishment of an international civil presence in Kosovo–United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). The International Court of Justice ruled that the declaration of independence was in line with international law, and peace talks between Kosovo and Serbia began in 2011 where the EU acted as a mediator. Despite the war’s disproportionate gendered impacts, women in Kosovo continue to be underrepresented in high-level decision-making spaces related to peace and security.
CEDAW
NOT RATIFIED
Global Gender Gap Index 2020
UNRANKED
Arms Trade Treaty Ratified
2014
Military expenditure (2019)
$65.7 MILLION USD
Explore Kosovo's National Action Plan
- Actors
- Timeframe
- Objectives
- Actions/Activities
- Indicators
- M&E
- Budget
- Disarmament
NAP Development
The NAP was drafted through a multi-sectoral and all-inclusive approach which included the participation of government representatives, representatives of judicial institutions and civil society as members of a working group responsible for the development of the NAP. The members of the working group drafting the NAP worked alongside, and were supported by, UN Women and OHCHR.
WILPF does not have a country section in Kosovo and was therefore not involved in the development of the NAP.
The government of Kosovo started drafting the NAP in 2012 where the Agency on Gender Equality in the Office of the Prime Minister created a working group which started working on the draft. The working group entailed 28 members and drafted the NAP through a ‘multi-sectoral and all-inclusive approach ensured by the participation of the central institutions of the Republic of Kosovo with senior officials and representatives of the judicial institutions and civil society’. The process was supported by UN Women and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
NAP Implementation
The NAP is meant to be a flexible and dynamic document to adapted in line with national economic and social changes. The Kosovo Government institutions are the primary actors responsible for its implementation but civil society organisations, including women's groups, are noted as actors who work in a coordinated manner at both a central and a local level where they have made gender issues a priority issue in government policies and programs.
The NAP highlights the Kosovo Women's Network (KWN) consisting of 87 organizations representing women of all ethnic groups and communities in Kosovo. The KWN works on gender-based violence and providing advocacy groups and legal support.
The Working group establishes that the implementation of the NAP requires the coordination of governmental and non-governmental bodies. However, primary responsibility for implementing the NAP does lie with the Kosovo Government institutions.
The NAP was developed following the Kosovo Program for Gender Equality (KPGE) which was a strategic document defining goals, objectives, policies and actors responsible for implementing gender equality in all fields of social and economic life in Kosovo from 2008 to 2013. The plan included strategic objectives and budgetary costs. The objectives included ‘increased participation of women in decision-making and in processes of building and preserving peace’.
The NAP also notes the role of ‘Gender equality officials’ which are appointed to all ministries and municipalities where they are responsible for drafting and implementation policies and activities promoting gender equality. They furthermore oversee the implementation of the Law on Gender Equality and strategic policies for gender equality, such as the KPGE, the Program against domestic violence, the Working Plan for economic empowerment etc.
NAP Monitoring and Evaluation
The NAP will change over the years as a result of lessons learned and challenges during the implementation process which will be set out in evaluation and monitoring reports.
A coordination and monitoring unit for the implementation of the NAP was set up by Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo, Ms. Mimoza Kusari-Lila when the Agency for Gender Equality was defined as the institution responsible for monitoring the implementation. How the monitoring will take place is not concretely stated in the NAP.
The role of civil society is noted as ‘Civil society organizations have a strong commitment to promoting and monitoring the implementation of Resolution 1325 in Kosovo’. How civil society will assist in the monitoring of the NAP is however not described in detail in the NAP.
A coordination and monitoring unit for the implementation of the NAP was set up by Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo, Ms. Mimoza Kusari-Lila when the Agency for Gender Equality was defined as the institution responsible for monitoring the implementation. How the monitoring will take place is not concretely stated in the NAP.
The timeframe of the Kosovo NAP is 2013-2015. Most activities listed have the same timeframe as the NAP itself. However, some have a specific year in which they are to be completed, for instance activity 1.1.2 'training women and girls in political party forums and youth forums on the inclusion of a gender perspective into their political programms' is to be completed in 2013 and 2014.
The main objectives of the NAP is to ‘promote the protection of women’s human rights, women in decision-making and the support that the Government will give Kosovo’s citizens, especially women and men who are victims of the war'.
There are also set 3 outcomes which all have individual outputs, activities and indicators assigned to them. For example, Outcome 1, ‘Increased participation of women in decision making and peacekeeping and building processes’ has the following indicator:
- Indicator 1a: percentage of women and girls in leadership and mangerial positions at central and local level.
- Baseline: 13.1%
- Target: 20%
The three outcomes are listed as the following:
Outcome 1: ‘‘Increased participation of women in decision making and peacekeeping and building processes’
Outcome 2: ‘Integrated gender perspectives in security affairs and increased women's participation in the security structures’
Outcome 3: ‘Survivors of sexual violence, torture, and other forms of violence associated with conflict/war have improved access to protection, access to justice, rehabilitation and reintegration.
For each of the three outcomes of the NAP, there are a separate set of indicators and individual outputs which have a set of activities and indicators as well as individual timeframes, implementation actors and budget estimation.
Pertaining to outcome 1, the first output (1.1) is on enhancing the capacities to implement UNSCR 1325 of national and local institutions in terms of gender mainstreaming in policy development and budgeting processes, there are several activities:
- 1.1.1. Carrying out research on women's participation in central and local institutions, in political parties and the gender responsiveness of policy development, implementation and budgeting
- 1.1.2 Training women and girls in political party forums and youth forums on the inclusion of a gender perspective into their political programs.
For each of the three outcomes of the NAP, there are a separate set of indicators and individual outputs which have a set of activities and indicators as well as individual timeframes, implementation actors and budget estimation.
The indicator for output (1.1) on enhancing the capacities to implement UNSCR 1325 of national and local institutions in terms of gender mainstreaming in policy development and budgeting processes, is listed as the following:
- Number of draft policy documents with specific gender objectives and indicators
- Baseline: 7 strategic documents have gender objectives
- Target: all new drafts for government strategies and action plans have gender objectives and indicators
A coordination and monitoring unit for the implementation of the NAP was set up by Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo, Ms. Mimoza Kusari-Lila when the Agency for Gender Equality was defined as the institution responsible for monitoring the implementation. How the monitoring will take place is not concretely stated in the NAP.
The NAP will be budgeted based on the annual and medium-term Kosovo budget and the assistance plan from donors in and outside Kosovo while taking into consideration the priorities set in discussions of the working group.
The NAP is also described as a mechanism for fund raising which can increase the commitment of international donors and partners to promoting the issue of women, peace and security in Kosovo.
The NAP states the budget as having the total cost of 1.667.260 euros and uncommitted costs as 830.327 euros. Every output also has a specific budget listed as an estimate. For instance, the cost of the first output (1.1) is on enhancing the capacities to implement UNSCR 1325 of national and local institutions in terms of gender mainstreaming in policy development and budgeting processes, is estimated at 22.980 euros with committed costs being 9697 euros and uncommitted costs at 13373 euros.
The Kosovo NAP does not include any language on disarmament or the links between militarisation and gender based violence.