Kurti Announces Deep Reform to Modernize Kosovo’s Inspection System

Acting Prime Minister Albin Kurti said the aim of the institutions is the full modernization of Kosovo’s inspection system.

While presenting the annual inspections report for 2025, he said the new model will be based on the risk level of businesses, while entities that repeatedly violate the law will face stricter measures, including fines and criminal charges.

“The changes we have initiated in the inspection system aim at full modernization and increasing the capacity of Kosovo’s inspectorate at both the central and local levels. The main objective is defined by law: protecting the public interest, including public health, public safety and the environment. One of the important parts of the reform is a new approach based on different levels of risk created by the various inspection entities. For example, a business engaged in hazardous activities or one that has an impact on a larger number of consumers should, in principle, be inspected more often than other businesses… The reform requires a cooperative approach aimed at reducing as much as possible the administrative burden on the private sector. For example, through the checklist published by each inspectorate, businesses will have the opportunity to know exactly the legal criteria on the basis of which they will be inspected,” he said.

Kosovo’s Inspector General, Lyra Osmani, underlined that another priority remains the digitalization of inspection processes in the country.

She assessed that progress was made during 2025 in implementing the reform of the inspection system.

“The Office of the Inspector General has taken responsibility and led the inspection reform process at the country level, advancing inter-institutional coordination and strengthening the cooperation of all inspection bodies in Kosovo. Our mission is clear: to build a proportional, coordinated and risk assessment-based inspection system that protects the public interest and guarantees safety, health and the environment. At the same time, it reduces the administrative burden for citizens and businesses,” Osmani stressed.

Meanwhile, World Bank Manager for Kosovo and North Macedonia Carole Megevand said inspections, when properly carried out, create favorable conditions for businesses to develop, grow and invest.

“It is very important, because when done properly, inspections create conditions for businesses to develop, grow and invest. They help protect citizens, communities, safety, as well as the environment. But when they are not implemented properly, they can create unnecessary bureaucracy and a perception of unpredictability, which discourages investment and negatively affects economic growth. Therefore, it is very important that they are carried out in the right way. The issue is not whether inspections are important, but how to ensure they create the most favorable environment for private sector development without burdening it with unnecessary administrative measures. I think this is exactly the path we have seen so far in Kosovo – the way the country is moving toward simplifying administrative procedures, while at the same time inspections can make a key contribution to creating a transparent, fair, equal and predictable environment for the private sector,” she concluded.

According to several monitoring non-governmental organizations, the number of inspections increased during 2025, but this was not necessarily accompanied by improvements in law enforcement.

According to them, in many cases the sanctions were not sufficiently preventive, while there were also cases when inspectors’ decisions were not implemented by the inspected entities.