Lessons for Kosovo's Transition

As Kosovo celebrates its long-awaited independence day, Mercy Corps has proposed specific recommendations for securing peace and stability.

Mercy Corps — which has worked in Kosovo for more than 15 years, including emergency operations during the conflict that enveloped the region in the late 1990s — has prepared a report entitled Lessons for Kosovo's Next Transition. The report delineates how local officials, the diplomatic community and aid groups can use the lessons of the last decade to chart a peaceful, more prosperous course for Kosovo. Specifically, the report warns that progress in the province depends on renewed confidence-building measures between Serbs and Kosovar Albanians, as well as major investments in sound governance.

Mercy Corps' report is anchored by two key recommendations:

• Competence in governance, administration and social services is critical to the next phase of Kosovo's development, so that Kosovo's diverse population can experience the benefits of peace and a capable decentralized government.
• Local officials need to build confidence among citizens of all backgrounds to ensure that a diversity of interests will be represented and security guaranteed. Minority populations need to be reassured that they will not be marginalized under Kosovo's new status.

Since 1993, Mercy Corps has implemented more than 35 innovative programs, particularly focusing on cross-ethnic initiatives that are respectful of everyone's rights. Our vision is for an economically sustainable Kosovo where everyone has a voice in local decision-making processes.

As Kosovo enters its critical next stage, Mercy Corps stands prepared to help its many ethnic groups and social backgrounds to come together and meet their challenges.