PRISTINA'S DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY OF 2013-2016: AN ANALYSIS OF THE SITUATION IN THE EDUCATIONAL, CULTURAL, YOUTH, AND SPORT SECTOR

Sustainable economic development is done through Development Strategy. Development strategies have some priorities which include encouraging other participants, stakeholders, and those that have impact on the investment to act in accordance with the vision. This is accomplished by working together to establish priorities in the correct way. Also, this is undoubtedly the key to success. Economic development is essential for the survival of all municipalities. Economic growth which is accomplished as a result of an economic development plan, promotes new capital in municipalities. Hence, this is becoming an integral part of the strategic process at the national level. This enables the creation of a better environment and economic competition locally. Local economic development is the process by which local communities (public, businesses, and non-governmental organizations) are working towards the achievement of sustainable economic development and provides an increased level of employment, welfare, and quality of life for all (World Bank, 2009). Local economic development is one of the most important areas to increase the quality of life of the citizens and create a favourable environment for business development (Riinvest, 2002). Development Strategy comes as a response to rapid changes, keeping containment conditions by which interest groups will have the constructive approach in evaluating the situation. Also, the position towards the strategy which takes the specific actions is placed into consideration. This therefore ensures that the changes in the city are not dramatic. Municipalities must learn how to compete and how to deploy themselves in order to ensure quality of life, jobs, and services, which then influences the attraction of investments. Strategy is often a prerequisite for financing municipal projects through government grants, FDI, banks, publicprivate partnerships, or EU funds. During this process, the municipality creates partnerships, both within and outside the municipality. The stronger these partnerships are, the greater the chances of a municipality to secure future development. The strategy in itself provides the opportunity for the community to continuously improve the investment climate. It is a general observation that development strategy should have no overarching plan. Furthermore, it must contain some strategic steps in order for it to increase the system as a whole. Thus, this is done through the mechanisms of different national levels such as changes in the status of the city, public and private investment, public-private initiatives etc

PRISTINA'S DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY OF 2013-2016: AN ANALYSIS OF THE SITUATION IN THE EDUCATIONAL, CULTURAL, YOUTH, AND SPORT SECTOR

Sustainable economic development is done through Development Strategy. Development strategies have some priorities which include encouraging other participants, stakeholders, and those that have impact on the investment to act in accordance with the vision. This is accomplished by working together to establish priorities in the correct way. Also, this is undoubtedly the key to success. Economic development is essential for the survival of all municipalities. Economic growth which is accomplished as a result of an economic development plan, promotes new capital in municipalities. Hence, this is becoming an integral part of the strategic process at the national level. This enables the creation of a better environment and economic competition locally. Local economic development is the process by which local communities (public, businesses, and non-governmental organizations) are working towards the achievement of sustainable economic development and provides an increased level of employment, welfare, and quality of life for all (World Bank, 2009). Local economic development is one of the most important areas to increase the quality of life of the citizens and create a favourable environment for business development (Riinvest, 2002). Development Strategy comes as a response to rapid changes, keeping containment conditions by which interest groups will have the constructive approach in evaluating the situation. Also, the position towards the strategy which takes the specific actions is placed into consideration. This therefore ensures that the changes in the city are not dramatic. Municipalities must learn how to compete and how to deploy themselves in order to ensure quality of life, jobs, and services, which then influences the attraction of investments. Strategy is often a prerequisite for financing municipal projects through government grants, FDI, banks, publicprivate partnerships, or EU funds. During this process, the municipality creates partnerships, both within and outside the municipality. The stronger these partnerships are, the greater the chances of a municipality to secure future development. The strategy in itself provides the opportunity for the community to continuously improve the investment climate. It is a general observation that development strategy should have no overarching plan. Furthermore, it must contain some strategic steps in order for it to increase the system as a whole. Thus, this is done through the mechanisms of different national levels such as changes in the status of the city, public and private investment, public-private initiatives etc

Management's perception of the determinants that influence SMEs performance: evidence from Kosovo

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are now unquestionable contributors to economic development on the one side and employment creation on the other. To promote sustained growth, SMEs must meet specific prerequisites, particularly the leadership structures of this segment. Therefore, this research aims to investigate and identify the determinants that affect SMEs performance. The research employs a qualitative technique, using questionnaires containing 52 questions. The study surveyed 336 SMEs owners or managers from March to April 2022. The Multinomial Logistic Regression (MLR) empirical technique explored the influence of education level, previous experience, training attendance, business plan, consultation services, and employees' insufficient competency in SMEs performance. The research has revealed that the level of education and consultancy services positively impact SMEs performance. In contrast, neglect of training and employees' insufficient competence harm SMEs performance. The study encourages SMEs owners and managers to take advantage of professional training opportunities and to invest in existing personnel through training to acquire acceptable competence, which will be reflected in management performance. From the perspective of the contribution, it provides the most recent evidence in the context of Kosovo's economy, employing the logistic regression analysis

Trade and Country Legislation as a Roadmap for Economic Integration: Focus on Balkan Countries

Purpose: This paper focuses on identifying the role of trade and legislation of a country for economic integration. Every Balkan country has claims to integrate into the large family of the European Union- EU. This context besides foreign trade legal infrastructure is one of the main determinants of this process. It is imperative that laws related to the process of economic integration should comply with EU legal directives. Design/Methodology/Approach: Data processing design (for legislation as a roadmap for economic integration) is in line with established international standards. It focuses on data published by the governing institutions of the relevant countries using deductive methods. It also compares data obtained from research in analytical and synthetic terms with direct access to literature, scientific journals, as well as official reports published locally and abroad. Findings: Today, economic integration has become a necessity of recent times. They are influenced by a large number of relevant factors and are received by political actors on the basis of whose political actions will bring about liberal or protectionist policies. Each state has its own legal acts and other legal provisions regulating the functioning of the country's legal system. Free trade and the implementation of economic integration are closely linked to "Fiscal Policy" as part of the overall economic system. Adoption of restrictive fiscal laws that impede the international movement of goods and services has detrimental effects on the development of international trade and impedes the development of good relations between sovereign states. Practical Implications: The elaboration of this paper is based on the legal analysis of contemporary economic integration as well as the economic aspects and modalities for the practical realization of regional integration. The paper presents data - on market performance and legislation that determines economic integration - which shows the current state of affairs of the Western Balkan countries in the context of such integration. Originality/Value: The data in the paper present the real state of commercial economic developments and legislation as determinant of economic integration in the Western Balkan countries. The focus is on the creation of adjacent legislative spaces of these countries, which enables accelerated integration with the ultimate aim of joining the EU

Fiscal policy and foreign trade as a determinant of economic development – focus Kosovo: Fiscal policy and foreign trade as a determinant of economic development – focus Kosovo

   The purpose of this paper is to identify the role of fiscal policy in Kosovo, comparing with the Western Balkan countries, in the trends of economic development, which are related to the international market, and how to achieve the objectives of the economy of Kosovo, penetrating the foreign market of local companies, using fiscal policy instruments. Data processing is performed using deductive-analytical methods, describing and comparing research findings by commercial companies, extracting data and comparing official reports of national and international institutions on the role of policies analyzed in the Western Balkan countries and in Kosovo, and the results of the research are based on these analyzes. Each sovereign state has its own fiscal policy operating within the financial system of that country, which also influences the development trends of international trade, the same applies to Kosovo and the Western Balkan countries, where this policy includes customs tax, VAT, tax in personal income, etc. The government of the country, through fiscal policy instruments, creates conditions for companies to be as present in the foreign market as possible with their products, which impacts on the overall economic development of the country. achieved. The paper provides insights into the state of the fiscal system in Kosovo, how fiscal policy affects the creation of conditions for foreign trade development, where is Kosovo's economy is in relation to the Western Balkan countries and what are the steps needed to improve it. The paper provides real data on the state of the fiscal system in Kosovo and its full role in the development of foreign trade in relation to the Western Balkan countries. &nbsp

The Prishtina strategy as a development strategy in competition with other capitals’ strategies in the South-Eastern Europe

Competitiveness is becoming more and more a regional issue-oriented to meet the needs of the economy and citizens, so economic development is essential for the survival of all cities. Economic growth, made because of an economic development plan, brings new capital to city governments by expanding the tax base to further develop as well as improve the quality of life in general. This paper aims to examine the advantages that the city of Prishtina may have in correlation with the capitals of other Southeast European countries to identify the possibilities of what different strategies and concepts have been developed and used to make a valuable crossroads and short-term and long-term effects from a cultural, economic, social and political point of view

Role of foreign direct investment in banking sector and their impact on employment: Kosovo case

The purpose is to identify the role and importance of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for the Kosovo economy, emphasizing FDI in the banking sector and their impact on employment growth - comparing FDI levels with countries of the Western Balkans. Data processing design is in line with a focus on data published by local and international organizations and institutions, using methods deductive, comparing research data synthetically and analytically with direct access to literature, scientific journals, official reports published domestically and abroad. Kosovo aims to regulate favorable legal infrastructure by attracting as much FDI as possible to other countries in the region. In this context, in Kosovo the economic field is regulated by legal provisions covering the area of FDI, which is very favorable compared to other Western Balkan countries. This paper provides sufficient data to show the current state of FDI in Kosovo compared to the countries of the Balkan region, as well as the extent to which FDI has affected employment growth in the Kosovo banking sector. The practical implication also relates to identifying the improvement of positive legal conditions for more FDI attraction. The data in the paper present the real situation of FDI in Kosovo and their role in economic development, emphasizing the country's banking sector and how Kosovo stands for FDI relative to the Western Balkan countries

Economic trends in times of pandemics: Kosovo case

This paper aims to address the effects of the pandemic on the economy and investments in the region - focus Kosovo, compared to the countries of the Western Balkans. CoVid-19 has caused economic shocks worldwide, where many people have lost their jobs, and this has created a negative chain effect on the economic structure in Kosovo as well. The economy consists of a structure in which participate many parties that are interconnected in a chain with each other such as state institutions, companies (manufacturing, trade, services, etc.), employees, suppliers, local and international financial institutions, potential customers, investors, etc., any disconnect in this chain causes a negative economic reaction which will have long-term implications for business recovery. Also, Foreign direct investment in Kosovo is one of the main determinants of the country's development, due to the pandemic many planned investments have been re-oriented in other directions. This study also aims to identify the economic situation and the level of investment decline for this pandemic period, aiming to identify - as proposals - measures to be taken in order to improve the situation and stimulate a debate on the economic situation in times of pandemic

MANAGEMENT’S PERCEPTION OF THE DETERMINANTS THAT INFLUENCE SMEs PERFORMANCE: EVIDENCE FROM KOSOVO

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are now unquestionable contributors to economic development on the one side and employment creation on the other. To promote sustained growth, SMEs must meet specific prerequisites, particularly the leadership structures of this segment. Therefore, this research aims to investigate and identify the determinants that affect SMEs performance. The research employs a qualitative technique, using questionnaires containing 52 questions. The study surveyed 336 SMEs owners or managers from March to April 2022. The Multinomial Logistic Regression (MLR) empirical technique explored the influence of education level, previous experience, training attendance, business plan, consultation services, and employees' insufficient competency in SMEs performance. The research has revealed that the level of education and consultancy services positively impact SMEs performance. In contrast, neglect of training and employees' insufficient competence harm SMEs performance. The study encourages SMEs owners and managers to take advantage of professional training opportunities and to invest in existing personnel through training to acquire acceptable competence, which will be reflected in management performance. From the perspective of the contribution, it provides the most recent evidence in the context of Kosovo's economy, employing the logistic regression analysis.

The Role and Impact of Salivary Zn Levels on Dental Caries

Introduction. Minimal attention has been given to the role of salivary microelements, the importance they have in reducing the intensity of caries, and the effect of caries prophylaxes. Aim. This research aimed to determine the concentration and quantity of Zn and its impact on the prevention and the reduction of the intensity of caries in schoolchildren aged 12-13 years with permanent dentition. Methods. For this research, we analyzed the stimulated and nonstimulated full saliva of 106 schoolchildren divided into three groups by mean decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) index. The control group consisted of 25 caries-free children, the second group had 47 children with mean DMFT index of 1 to 6, and the third group had 34 children with DMFT index of ≥ 6. Complete saliva was collected from all children in a sterile test tube. Results. The concentration of Zn in saliva before stimulation in caries-free children has variations of the order of 0.001+ to 0.01 mmol/l. The maximum concentration after stimulation is 6.72 mmol/l, while the maximum value is 64.38 mmol/l. Conclusion. The Zn concentration in the stimulated saliva showed a significant increase in the group of caries-free children and could be described as a positive value for the reduction of caries