About the ILO in Kosovo*

Limited job opportunities, especially for women and youth

While Kosovo has witnessed an annual GDP growth rate of approximately 3.9 per cent over the past decade, it still displays slow income convergence with EU levels (13 per cent), without a measurable impact on labour force participation and employment. In 2021, the labour force participation rate stood at 39.3 per cent (77.6 per cent in the EU27). This low participation rate is particularly noticeable among women (22 per cent) and young people aged 15-24 (21.4 per cent). Moreover, the latest available data (2021) reveal that a staggering 32.1 per cent of youth are neither employed, nor enrolled in education or training programmes (NEET). This raises concerns about the successful transition from school to work, a crucial step in securing a prosperous future. Kosovo has one of the highest emigration rates in the region with 22 per cent of its population living in OECD countries in search of better employment opportunities and higher living standards. 

The ILO has been active in Kosovo since 1999 with a focus on developing vocational training; reforming the network of employment offices; promoting youth employment; combatting child labour; and enhancing social dialogue.

Currently, the ILO contributes to:
  • Developing effective employment and social policies with a focus on youth employment through the reinforced Youth Guarantee,
  • Strengthening labour inspection and occupational safety and health as well as social dialogue,
  • Reducing informal employment and undeclared work, and
  • Elimination of child labour in all its forms, in particular the worst forms of child labour, and forced labour.
The ILO is a member of the United Nations Kosovo Team (UNKT). It contributed to the drafting of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2021-2025.

* All references to Kosovo should be understood in the context of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999).

Text last updated May 2023