The Quality of E-Government Management, Information Security and Quality

The purpose of the presented paper was to present the state of e-government services in the Republic of Kosovo within the management of electronic services and the role of ICT in data security and quality. E-government is an important sphere in Kosovo, which has been shown to have positively influenced the provision of services to all stakeholders, taking care of the security and quality of these services. This paper belongs to the qualitative and quantitative types, where a total of 115 subjects, experts, and users of e-government services participated and gave their opinions against these services. A literature review was used to process qualitative data, while a questionnaire was used to process quantitative data with experts and users of e-government services. From the results of the research, we understood that the level of use of e-government services in the Republic of Kosovo is high and that there is a high level of data security and quality of services, where the role of ICT in the management of e-data-government is essential and very important. It is recommended that, according to the results of this study, direct access to the management of these services should be considered and offered to ensure the sustainability of e-government services in the Republic of Kosovo. Doi: 10.28991/ESJ-2023-07-01-016 Full Text: PD

Guest blog by Hashim Thaci: Kosovo’s New Foreign Policy Roadmap

Kosovo’s former Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi has now taken up the role of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs. He writes exclusively for LSEE about how he envisions Kosovo’s future foreign policy, listing as its main goals: deeper regional and global engagement, stronger national security, the continuation of the dialogue with Serbia and the increase in economic growth driven by foreign investment

Restoration of Relations Between the Victim and The Perpetrator, A Reality or Utopia

Restorative justice theory and programs have emerged over the past 35 years as an increasingly influential opportunity worldwide to practice criminal justice, based on the principles of restorative justice that, Crime causes harm and justice seeks to repair that harm; People who have been harmed must be able to take part in resolving it; The responsibility of the state is to preserve society to build peace. The fact of committing a certain criminal offense presupposes the mobilization of various legal mechanisms which are undertaken by certain competent bodies which must prove the fact whether we are really dealing with a criminal offense, the victim, its perpetrator and other issues that are directly related within these legal mechanisms, which is the purpose of research or study of the problem. The possibility of reconstructing the relations between the victim and the perpetrator in this paper is treated in the mediation procedure, the procedure on admission of guilt and compensation in damages in post-criminal proceedings according to the hypothesis of what are the possibilities of reconstructing relations between the victim and the perpetrator as current at the national, regional and international level, in a plane with the historical method and the normative method and presents the basic design of the research (study). The hypothesis with the results of the research has been tested that the reconstruction of relations between the victim and the perpetrator in the mediation procedure reaches the highest possible level, as opposed to a decrease in the level of reconstruction of relations between the victim and the perpetrator in the agreement of guilty plea, as well as the decrease in the lower degree of the possibility of reconstruction of relations in the post-criminal phase. Finally, the possibility of reconstructing the relations between the victim and the perpetrator is higher in the minor criminal offenses because the damage caused is smaller and presents a real possibility, while in serious criminal offenses such as murder, the reconstruction of relations it is simply utopia

Economic growth in Kosovo and in other countries in terms of globalization of world economy

The global financial crisis causes, as among the greatest crises and consequences, reflected the world in continuously increase of unemployment, poverty and inequality. This crisis was reflected in both developed and developing countries including countries in transition. The fact cannot be denied that the effects of financial crisis are even felt in the Republic of Kosovo where during this period of time following consequences could be clearly noted: decrease of the real economy, poverty, reduction in remittances, decrease of external investments, contracting criteria for bank loans and other direct and indirect effects. However, the global economy did continue to recover during 2010 and 2011. Nevertheless, uncertainty regarding to the volatility of global economic recovery in this period is greater than in the previous period. This setting is mainly extracted from instability of financial market due to problems with public finances in several EU member States and entry of protective measures by some rapidly growing economies and developing countries, in response to large capital inflows. It is important to consider the fact that, despite the recent crisis, economic growth model, based on the deepening of EU integration process, in terms of finance, trade, labour markets and institutions, remains as best model for developing countries and Kosovo itself. Special treatment is given to achieved achievements and projections for the following years under policies compiled by the Government of the Republic of Kosovo to enable generic analysis for concrete situation of our national economy. Also, this paper shall explain the underlying factors which will influence on a more accelerated economic development

Educational means of students at school, especially means of obstruction

For the non-appearance of violence in schools by students, as well as by other adult persons,is not interested only the family and the school but also the scientists and the whole society. Early prevention of violence in schools is not only a need of practice, but an interest of science and of the free and democratic society as well, in the full sense of the word. Therefore, the purpose and interest of the society is to educate the youth about a future life and work in society and for society. Understandably, advanced societies have open doors of progress, and they have come to where they are today thanks to the education and the right institutional education, and not with pressure, oppression and violence. Therefore, society must do its utmost to prevent the spread of violence in schools with all the available mechanisms.The purpose of this research is to ascertain which are the educational means, in particular the means of prevention, that take most part at school, the ways of using these tools and their impact on the reduction and prevention of violent behavior of students at school. The main objective of this study and research is the use of educational tools, in particular the means of obstruction and their impact on the progress of the teaching work.In our work the main position will have: Literature Consultation,Questionnaire compilation and implementation, interpretation of results,Research methods: Method of theoretical analysis, methodology of pedagogical-social documentation, statistical, conversational, comparing data

The role of small and medium enterprises in economic development - The case of Kosovo

During the last fifteen years, significant SME sector was established in Kosovo. A greater dynamic regarding to the registration of new businesses can be encountered in the first three years of 1990’s and in the postwar period that can be considered as reflection of the changing business environment in the respective periods. Private enterprises in Kosovo are established since 1989. But the intensity of registration of SMEs grew separately after 1990 and continued until 1995.At this time companies were mainly organized in the form of households, the crafts, commercial enterprises, small shops, restaurants and agricultural enterprises.The establishment of these enterprises has not been the result of enabling business environment, but it came from the need to create jobs to people whose jobs were terminated form the social enterprises. In Kosovo during the last decade, a valuavle experience was achieved by increasing and development of of private enterprises, small and medium enterprises. Despite the achieved success, private enterprises constantly complain about the difficulties that they encounter when developing their business activities but as an example in Kosovo’s SME we do stil face with higher interest rates when taking loans.Likewise, these private enterprises in the country are still not well enough stimulated due to application of overwhelmed laws. Therefore it is needed a new inventory of legislative developments, but also should be requested the evaluation for the implementation of new legislation.This paper aims to reflect the role of small and medium enterprises in the post war Kosovo in economic development, increase of employment and alleviate poverty, obstacles that they encounter during their establishment and development which affect barrier not to develop entrepreneurship development innovation skills, etc, also some advantages that they assist their funcioning

Foreign Direct Investment and Economic Growth in the Republic of Kosovo—Empirical Evidence

Whether Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is beneficial to host country growth or not, it is a question debated since a long time (Acaravci & Ozturk, 2012). This paper will examine the flow of FDI and their impact on economic growth in the Republic of Kosovo. This correlation between FDI and economic growth will be studied through regression (Quantile Regression Median). The results of the study will be obtained using multiple regression to evaluate the effect of FDI on the economy, using secondary annual data from 2007 to 2017. In addition to the basic model to be used to assess the impact of FDI on total growth amount, we have also decomposed them into the second model: FDI in manufacturing and FDI in services as well as other FDI. The research results show that the impact of total FDI and FDI in manufacturing is negative and insignificant while the impact of FDI in services and other FDI is positive but insignificant to economic growth in Kosovo. Due to the importance of FDI, as an important source of capital in a transition country such as Kosovo, these results are informational for decision-makers to improve policies in order for the country to become more attractive in attracting FDI

History, Politics and the Complexity of Kosovo Albanian Identity

National identity remains one of the most challenging identities to research and define, due to lack of common agreement on linguistic and conceptual definitions, but also due to the ever-changing dynamics of identities. Research is further complicated as identities do not necessarily reveal what we are, but rather what we think we are. The national identity of Kosovo Albanians, especially after the declaration of independence in 2008, became a debatable issue revealing the competition between the new Kosovo state identity reinforced by legal and constitutional requirements, but also the new state symbols, versus the national Albanian identity, as a collective identity of all Albanians, rooted in history, symbols and common myths. Through Schils reproductive theory and comparative methods, the paper analyzes the complexity of the Kosovo Albanian identity from a linguistic, sociological and constitutional perspective, but also argues that the identity complexity is heavily attributed to historical and political circumstances leading to the independence of Albania and the independence of Kosovo, a century after. Selected survey results for PhD thesis purposes of the author are used to illustrate the identity sentiments of the Albanians in Kosovo. The importance of the paper is to generate further discussions and wider research on the Albanian identity, and optimally provide options in harmonizing the national and state identity

Assessment of Mathematics Textbooks Potential in Terms of Student’s Motivation and Comprehension

This paper discusses the role and influence of textbooks in mathematics teaching and learning in lower secondary school in the Republic of Kosovo. In particular, it focuses on their potential in enhancing student’s motivation and comprehension to engage in mathematical learning. Rivers matrix and Skovsmose’s learning milieus are two methods involved in analyzing the mathematics textbooks in current use in grades 6 – 9 of lower secondary school. Rivers matrix identifies key factors of the textbook content with direct impact on student motivation and comprehension. Subsequently their degree and quality of presence are examined. Using Skovsmose’s learning milieus, textbook tasks and examples are scrutinized according to the extent in which they are embedded in contexts that make connections to real life. Further on, the organizing structure of content and the range of used or proposed teaching and learning activities throughout the textbooks is discussed. The article is the first of its kind in Kosovo and it has provided valuable data regarding the functionality level of the above mentioned textbooks. Keywords: Comprehension, Mathematics textbooks, Motivation, Textbook analysi

The piano works of composer Tonin Harapi and her role in the development of Albanian piano music

Arnavutluk ve Kosova’da klasik müzik ekolü, 20.YY’lın ikinci yarısında Tonin Harapi, Çesk Zadeja ve Fehim İbrahimi gibi ilk kuşak profesyonel besteciler tarafından kurulmaya başlanmıştır. Besteci Tonin Harapi, sanat arkadaşlarıyla beraber, Arnavut müziğinin tanıtımı ve profesyonel müzisyenlerin gelişimi için büyük çaba göstermiştir. Özellikle Tonin Harapi genç müzisyenlerin yetiştirilmesinde ulusal müziğe temellenen eserlerin de kullanılabilmesi amacıyla çok sayıda eser de yazmıştır. Aynı zamanda Arnavut piyano müziğinin de en önemli kurucularından biri olan Tonın Harapi, kendi memleketinde “piyanonun şairi” ve “Arnavutluk’un Chopin’i” olarak anılmaktadır. Piyano minyatürleri, sonat, varyasyon, piyano ve orkestra için konçerto gibi türlerde ulusal piyano müziğine ait ilk örnekleri besteleyen Harapi, başlangıç aşamasından en üst teknik düzeye kadar, piyano eğitiminin tüm aşamalarında başvurulabilecek çok sayıda değerli yapıtlar vermiştir. Komünist rejimin tüm sanat dallarında olduğu gibi, klasik müzikte de dayattığı “Sosyalist Gerçekçilik” kültürünün ağir ve yıpratıcı baskılarına göğüs geren Harapi, sanatsal kimliğini korumayı başarmış ve onurlu bir duruş sergilemiştir. Harapi’nin toplam yedi piyano münyatürü albümlerinden yalnizca ikisi basılmıştır. Programlı müzik türünde ve sade bir dille yazılmış “Pjesé té zgjedhura pianistike” (“Seçilmiş piyano parçaları”) albümü , bestecinin piyano minyatürleri türünde bestelediği en iyi önekleri oluşturmaktadır. “Tema ve Çeşitlemeler” Harapi’nin ustalık eserlerinden biridir. Bazıları kaybolmuş olmakla birlikte, eserdeki şiirsel anlatımın yanı sıra, teknik açıdan düzeyli varyasyonların bulunması da esere derinlik kazandırmaktadır. Bestecinin 60’lı yıllarda yazdığı Sonatin C-Moll ve Piyano ve orkestra için Konçerto eserleri Arnavut piyano müziğinde bu türlerde yazılmış ilk örneklerdir. Bu eserlerde Arnavut halk müziği materyali geniş bir şekilde kullanılmıştır. Bu her iki eserin icrası yüksek bir teknik düzey gerektirmektedir. Eserlerinde halk müziği hazinesinden de geniş bir şekilde yararlanan besteci, kendinden sonraki kuşaklara piyano icrası ve piyano eğitimi açısından sanatsal değeri yüksek eserler bırakmıştır. Sanatsal mirasına işik tutulması Harapi’nin, hem yaşadığı coğrafyada hem de bu coğrafyanın ötesinde gerçek değerinin bulmasının önünü açacaktır. Arnavut ulusal müziğin yapı taşlarının oluşturulmasında önemli rol oynayan ve Arnavut piyano ekolü kurucuları arasında yer alan Harapi’nin piyano eserleri Arnavut piyano icra sanatını zenginleştirmenin yanı sıra, müzik eğitimi kurumlarının piyano eğitimine de önemli katkıda bulunmaktadır. Bu durum, ulaşılan yapıtların içerik analizleri ve görüşmeler yoluyla ortaya konmuştur. Bestecinin değerli mirası, yaşadığı coğrafyanın sınırları ötesinde, dünya ölçeğinde tanınması ve seslendirilmesi, piyano literatürüne katkıda bulunmanın yanı sıra, piyano eğitimine de farklı boyutlar kazanmasına yardım edecektir.Tonin Harapi is one of the most important composers of Albanian music. He belongs to that generation of composers that have established classical music in Albania from the second half of the twentieth century. This thesis statement provides an analysis of Harapi’s most important compositional output: piano music. The first and second chapter have been significantly focused on explaining the historical, social and political context of the establishment of classical music in Albania, and Harapi’s relation regarding these developments. The third chapter focuses on the analysis of some of the author's most successful piano works, trying to specifically define Harapi's particular style, and also taking into account the Albanian historical and social background. Regardless of the many common aspects, Albanian music of this period cannot be seen or considered as just “another sample of” the developments that we can find in the “Eastern bloc” of the second half of the twentieth century. This is perhaps due to historical developments of Albanian tradition of music, which were different from those of the vast majority of the Eastern (socialist) countries. This could have been the result of ever growing and unprecedented political pressure that spread out in the whole country, lasting until the fall of the socialist regime in the beginning of the 1990s. The core of this work is thus to highlight and to understand such circumstances and restrictions, and how Harapi preserved, challenged and dealt with those in his work.           Tonin Harapi played an important role in the creation of the music of the Albanian nation, as well as among the first creators of the Albanian school of piano, his works on piano music played an important role in the enrichment and development of music education in general and piano music education in particular. This conclusion was reached through the analysis of the content of the works as well as various interviews. His valuable artistic legacy, his recognition as a composer beyond the borders where he has lived, in addition to contributing to piano literature, will help piano education take on different dimension