Minister Hoxha: Our youth aims to achieve same values as they EU peers

Prishtina, 11th March 2019 – Under the auspices of the National Institute of Peace (NIP), Austrian Institute for International Affairs, Renner Institute, Admovere and Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, the Minister of European Integration, Dhurata Hoxha, attended the discussions under the topic Young Generations for New Balkans 2030 Towards Alternative Horizons to strengthen the road ahead.

The voice of youth must be heard. We have to listen to the direct concerns and requests that our young boys and girls have with regard to their lives and hopes of the future, pointed out Minister Hoxha and emphasised the need of facilitating the youth dialogue in the region and their broader inclusion.

Discussions such as these, as Minister Hoxha stated at the beginning of her speech, serve as a good opportunity for demythologisation of historical events, challenging stereotypes, and creating new communication platforms, as the region often continues to be challenged by the past, the result of a common inheritance from the conflict.

After emphasising the importance of signing the Stabilization and Association Agreement, the National Program for the Implementation of the SAA (NPISAA), Kosovo is preparing to apply for candidate status in the Council of Europe.

“The European Integration Agenda is a unifying agenda for all Kosovo institutions regardless of their party affiliation, as more than 90% of Kosovo’s citizens support this agenda, which is the largest percentage of EU support in the Western Balkans”.

“Although we have fulfilled 95 criteria under the Visa Liberalization Roadmap we remain as the most isolated country in Europe. Our youth continues to be deprived of equal opportunities to invest in personal and professional achievement, compared to their peers across Europe” stated Minister Hoxha, adding that it is now in the hands of the EU Parliament and the EU Commission, to take the final step on this issue.

Maintaining an open EU integration perspective, is very important to the future of our region, reconciliation and working toward a joint vision of sustainable peace, stated Minister Hoxha, while adding that a more engaged EU in the region is the key precondition to this regard.

“The EU must see the Western Balkans as it is – an inseparable part of Europe. It is important for EU to ensure the fair acceptance process and apply the same standards to each aspirant country” stated Minister Hoxha

Subsequently, there was a debate on this subject, which started in Pristina and is expected to be discussed in other capitals of the region as well.

Last modified: August 5, 2022