States of Conflict: A case study on statebuilding in Kosovo

Article

Despite ten years of extensive international involvement and unprecedented amounts of donor aid, Kosovo continues to face enormous political, social, and economic challenges that threaten the sustainability and integrity of the new state. Many of Kosovo's institutions remain fragile, and its economy is dramatically underdeveloped. Having attained independence, the unity of purpose of the Kosovo Albanian political elite has almost entirely vanished, revealing a deeply divided political class that tends to engage in personal rivalries rather than work towards programmatic solutions to Kosovo's socioeconomic and political challenges.

Despite ten years of extensive international involvement and unprecedented amounts of donor aid, Kosovo continues to face enormous political, social, and economic challenges that threaten the sustainability and integrity of the new state. Many of Kosovo's institutions remain fragile, and its economy is dramatically underdeveloped. Having attained independence, the unity of purpose of the Kosovo Albanian political elite has almost entirely vanished, revealing a deeply divided political class that tends to engage in personal rivalries rather than work towards programmatic solutions to Kosovo's socioeconomic and political challenges.

This case study of post-conflict statebuilding focuses in particular on the period since the declaration of independence. It identifies three key challenges to a successful and lasting transition from conflict to self-sustaining peace in Kosovo:

  • The difficulties of reconfiguring the international presence in Kosovo and the impact of this on international authority
  • The effective division of Kosovo and the challenge posed by the creation of Serb parallel structures in the North to governance in the territory
  • The threats to stability and development posed by Kosovo's dire economic situation, exacerbated by its high rate of population growth.

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